Leading people to intimate places with God where his voice can be heard.
Ready To Receive
June 2007 - August 2007
Ready to Receive
"The more we receive in silent prayer, the more we can give in our active life." (Mother Theresa)
I got to know Elijah in Mexico City in January 2006. We were at the annual meetings of Global Disciples Training Alliance. We ate together a few times. I was amazed at his personal story of faith. He showed me a scar he received from a gun shot wound when he fought as a rebel in Sudan. But now as a discipleship training leader his life was going in a very different direction.
A while after I was with Elijah he was planning to fly to another part of Sudan to help establish a discipleship training program. When war broke out near their destination, flights were cancelled. Elijah realized the only way of getting to his destination on time was to hitch a ride with a UN convoy heading through the desert. The 29 hour drive was halted by a vehicle breakdown. Their drinking water was running out and they began to face the reality that they would soon die if something didn't change. Knowing he was a man of faith, they looked to Elijah for help. He and two Christian young men with him started to pray. As they did they spotted a cloud in the sky. They continued to pray and the cloud grew larger and darker. Elijah stepped out in faith and told the UN workers to place all their drinking containers outside in the sand. As they did it began to rain. A downpour filled their containers. Then it stopped. Many in the caravan gave their lives to Christ including five of the drivers who joined Elijah's team as witnesses of the miracle in the desert when they arrived at their destination.
Lately I've been thinking about the idea of receiving from God. I've found the words receive and receiving showing up all over the place. If God is the Giver of life itself and if he is our Provider and Helper, if salvation comes from him and if GOD IS LOVE, then part of our role as humans is simply to receive from him. For me the picture of Elijah and the UN workers in the desert placing water containers in the sand is an image of readiness to receive. Elijah believed God would act. I guess he believed enough to put himself into a place where either God gives rain, or Elijah looks pretty stupid and people potentially end up dying. God did give rain and people received it and more. Now they believe in him and are no doubt expecting to receive more on their journey with God.
God is active. He is giving today. He is surprising people, speaking, guiding, opening eyes, encouraging, strengthening, being patient, creating, causing things to grow, blessing, leading, sending help. Get ready to receive from him. He is on the move all over the world. He is active in your life. Always. Are you ready to receive?
Global Disciples Meet in Abbotsford
It was the privilege of MBMSI and MARK Centre staff to host the Europe/North America cluster meetings of the Global Disciples Training (GDT) Alliance May 22-23. Representatives came from Switzerland, USA and Canada. Galen Burkholder, Executive Director of Global Disciples based in Lancaster Pennsylvania was also present. The TREK program, which runs its training and debriefing at the MARK Centre, is a charter member of this Alliance. When it began in 1996, the GDT Alliance (www.globaldisciples.org) started with 5 programs. Today 78 programs are part of the Alliance!
GDT Alliance members meet in Abbotsford.
TREK Teams Returning
The MARK Centre is booked for the month of June with TREK teams returning for debriefing. They are coming back from all over the world, each team spending two weeks in rest, reflection and re-entry mode.
Focusing on Listening
As a MARK Centre staff team we are excited about sharpening our focus on listening to God. May 18-20 weekend we enjoyed hosting a retreat called Presence: Increasing your awareness of God. It was inspiring to see people take time to listen, and once again they were not disappointed. It seems that whether it is an hour or a whole day or more, when people listen they begin to hear what God is communicating.
So this coming November 22-25 we are already looking forward to putting on Come Away: A Silent Retreat to Refresh and Strengthen You. If you are interested in attending or know someone who might be, please let us know and we will get you all the information.
Family News
Jackson and Steve will be flying to Guadalajara Mexico July 18th for a two-week mission trip. They are going with 4 others from South Abbotsford Church. Part of their time will be spent helping at an English Camp. Steve also hopes to visit and pray with Trever and Joan Godard about their dream of launching a training centre in Guadalajara.
Josiah won a trip to Germany through a contest the German Consulate put on! He is preparing to be in Germany August 13 through September 9 with students from Canada and all over the world.
And if that isn't enough, Evy and Steve have been asked to be facilitators at a MBMSI missionary consultation and retreat in Thailand in October. We've decided to go as a family to give our kids a chance to see their cousins and friends in another culture!
As of June 8, 2007 this hot tub and the entire building phase debt is entirely paid off.
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MARK Centre Advisory Council Members
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