A Meeting Most Precarious
Four years at Cincinnati Bible Seminary led to opportunities to take part in and overhear many fascinating conversations about the Bible, the church, and many things in between. Whenever the topic of missionary work would come up, inevitably someone would always make a specific comment. Someone would always say, “Missionary work is so great, and I am interested, but I would HATE fundraising!”
I absolutely agree. I would hate fundraising too, if I viewed it how they do. This is why we engage in partner searching instead. This means that we do not limit ourselves to seeking out individuals who want to invest in FCM financially. We desire more! There are so many people who have heard about our plans for France, and they get excited enough to also partner with us through prayer, and getting us connected to others who can help us, and by reading our newsletters (thank you!), and by communicating with us, and even by planning to visit us in France. When we find ourselves in the same room with people who want to take part in our ministry in any of these ways, it is truly exciting.
As part of this endeavor, I had a meeting scheduled in Indianapolis this past week. About 15 minutes from my destination I realized that I had never turned on the radio and had been riding in silence. Upon hitting the power button, I was not greeted with positive and encouraging K-Love, but instead with the ominous blare of the emergency broadcast system. There were tornado warnings in the area, but at this point the church was easier to get to than anywhere else, so I forged on ahead.
As I parked my car in a downpour, I remembered something important: I was driving my mother’s car. Upon deciding that her blue, floral umbrella was not quite my style, I arrived at the front door of the church quite wet despite my brisk jogging. At this point the decision was made to head downstairs instead of upstairs, and that is how I got a chance to share about our plans for France during a tornado warning. While I detailed our plan of knocking down the barriers that are keeping the French from the Gospel of Jesus Christ, a tornado was knocking down a Starbucks 40 miles away.
Was it worth it to be soaking wet in an unused, old office of a church building while danger potentially swirled outside? The answer has to be yes. God has helped us and guided us so much in our journey to France, and his working has so often come from the faithful servants of his Kingdom. It is a joyous challenge to search for partners.
This past Sunday I passed two people in the church hallway who were simply chatting. It struck me that they are both partners in our ministry. I imagined in this moment a spiritual string connecting us and forming a kind of web, because of our mutual commitments to reaching the lost in France. How cool would it be to have special glasses that could tangibly see these connections? How thrilling and exciting would it be to see this web when it is fully formed and we are able to board a plane later this year and work effectively in France as a result?
Watch out France, the Kingdom of God is partnering up. Not even tornados will stop us. Amazing things will ensue.
Glen
