tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8294304458677955232.post1493054695299313346..comments2023-10-23T17:44:39.517-07:00Comments on Paratus Familia Blog: Back-yard Mission FieldEnola Gayhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12719123975236426938noreply@blogger.comBlogger25125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8294304458677955232.post-15714427167403017682014-01-28T21:36:19.938-08:002014-01-28T21:36:19.938-08:00Bless you, dear lady.Bless you, dear lady.JB Greenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08156970309629930409noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8294304458677955232.post-49834971392013097352014-01-13T18:44:00.891-08:002014-01-13T18:44:00.891-08:00I am most certainly not a christian, but I've ...I am most certainly not a christian, but I've studied the christian bible and it has long occurred to me that those who wish to evangelize would have their time best spent living "as a light" to their friends and neighbors.azreelhttp://www.freespiritmind.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8294304458677955232.post-50177256291438166082014-01-13T13:50:47.110-08:002014-01-13T13:50:47.110-08:00I love this story. My family can't afford to ...I love this story. My family can't afford to travel or do missions or whatever, but we try to make at least a small, but positive difference in our little community. The kids have gotten to where they anticipate what we'll be doing when they hear of a friend in the hospital or someone's having a baby or lost a husband, and get in there to help me.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8294304458677955232.post-1749840103156868602014-01-12T18:06:12.534-08:002014-01-12T18:06:12.534-08:00Beautiful story and wonderful advice on your part!...Beautiful story and wonderful advice on your part! Everyone should be valued and I hope her path has been a good one. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8294304458677955232.post-34916398503042187372014-01-12T09:57:33.262-08:002014-01-12T09:57:33.262-08:00God's blessings include discernment. I believe...God's blessings include discernment. I believe He expects us to use it. God is also the source of all truth. Surely He expects us to express what we believe to be the truth. Ah, but we encounter today's man-created political correctness. Our Pastor warns us that political correctness is most often directly contrary to Biblical teachings. <br />Montana GuyAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8294304458677955232.post-46391455866803099402014-01-12T00:04:28.106-08:002014-01-12T00:04:28.106-08:00God directs some overseas which doesn't negate...God directs some overseas which doesn't negate the vital ministries needed at home. God directs most of us to reach out where we are. We do not need to disparage the first to encourage the latter. Or do we not truly believe that all we need is in God's hands?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8294304458677955232.post-66981823711576094082014-01-11T11:36:48.548-08:002014-01-11T11:36:48.548-08:00My husband and I were youth pastors for awhile an...My husband and I were youth pastors for awhile and now we are lead pastors of a small church in a small town. When we were youth pastors, we took our youth group of about 30 kids on a mission trip to our town. We painted the yellow lines down highway 101, built a wishing well fountain for the local senior center, hauled dirt and planted flowers at the local VFW hall, mowed grass, trimmed trees, and cut brush at a 98yr old's home, and cleaned homes and did yardwork and stacked firewood at various widows home's in the community. It was such a great time and so many of the community members were amazed that teens wanted to help. When we painted the highway lines, the road department supervisor and my husband worked together to close one lane of 101 and get all the supplies together etc. This was during the height of tourist season and 101 goes through the center of all the towns on the Oregon coast. It was quite a big deal. The supervisor only brought enough materials for one person to paint the lines because he didn't think any of the kids would show up. Boy was he surprised when more than 35 people were waiting to paint lines. The kids in that group were all from broken homes or no homes at all except for 2, our daughter and one little girl from our church lived in a home with happily married original parents. It has been more almost 10 years since that first mission trip and the kids (now grown) and adults are still talking about it. Although only 1 girl got to share the gospel with one elderly man (at the senior center), we still call it a success. That man was on his way out of this world, and now I believe his home is with Jesus. We have used this event as a model in every church we have pastored. It is so nice to minister to your own town.Tricianoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8294304458677955232.post-52973258229051131212014-01-11T11:07:20.127-08:002014-01-11T11:07:20.127-08:00I too have my doubts about many of these so-called...I too have my doubts about many of these so-called 'mission trips'. I blindly supported a church in New England where their high school youth participated in mission trips each summer. That is until around 2002 when they chose Juarez, Mexico for their destination. Even back then no parent in their right mind would allow their child to go to Juarez. I expressed my concerns and was basically shunned. After all, "Where was my love?" Well I loved my child enough to say adiós to that 'church'.<br /><br />Yes Enola, there are plenty of people close to home who need help. Many will not ask for it. We are trying our best to stay keen and look for them.<br />Montana GuyAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8294304458677955232.post-85497066398654544532014-01-11T02:36:48.392-08:002014-01-11T02:36:48.392-08:00Well put! Well put! Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8294304458677955232.post-38467296116430524752014-01-10T19:09:17.846-08:002014-01-10T19:09:17.846-08:00They often say that they are committed but don'...They often say that they are committed but don't see any value in "a piece of paper". What that seems to mean is that one of them wants an easy escape from a relationship if it requires any effort.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8294304458677955232.post-42548503290404642592014-01-10T19:06:12.904-08:002014-01-10T19:06:12.904-08:00Our church youth have two mission projects per yea...Our church youth have two mission projects per year. One is to somewhere in the US where there is a need and the other to work locally to help where help is needed. They also serve the community at the church's Thanksgiving and Christmas meals--they are the servers to the homeless and those in the community (marginal) around the church. Our church is relatively prosperous but in an older, less affluent area. We all see people in need as we drive to church and have a number of projects for all in the church to minister to those who need our help. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8294304458677955232.post-72381446818196942882014-01-10T16:58:48.799-08:002014-01-10T16:58:48.799-08:00"our Post-Christian country"... Yes, sad..."our Post-Christian country"... Yes, sadly that's where we are. Our Pastor frequently reminds us that God did (and does) so much with His 'remnants'.<br /><br />We have been trying to stay keen for opportunities to do God's will. Enola, your message was timely and truly welcomed.<br />Montana Guy Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8294304458677955232.post-71040494853445554602014-01-10T15:53:56.581-08:002014-01-10T15:53:56.581-08:00"This girl, with the pierced tongue, met the ..."This girl, with the pierced tongue, met the Man with the pierced hands, in a shop in the middle of a windswept prairie." Dear Enola, sometimes your blog is truly inspired. Don't be discouraged by the naysayers or the anti-Christmas crowd. God bless you, dear.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8294304458677955232.post-70847380332904686442014-01-10T11:56:04.784-08:002014-01-10T11:56:04.784-08:00I agree wholehearted with you, Enola, on your advi...I agree wholehearted with you, Enola, on your advice to the young woman. My husband and I had not lived perfect lives, but when we met and started dating, we both agreed that we did not think living together before marriage, or intimacy before marriage, was God's plan. We dated for two years and have now been married for 19. I can honestly say that we have nothing in our courtship to regret, nothing to say "I wish we hadn't" about. We were both living on our own but never even saw each other's bedrooms before we married! It was interesting to my husband to see the reactions of others who assumed that we were living together. When he simply stated that we weren't in a "practice marriage", he said that they suddenly seemed to treat him with somewhat more of a respectul attitude. (Unfortunately,one young woman I worked with, who boldly assumed we were being intimate, had the opposite reaction- she seemed to think that somehow I thought I was better than anyone else.) <br /><br />Lately many young people will live together and even have children without marrying, and tell you that they don't marry because they are too afraid of divorce. This to me makes no sense. They are afraid of betrayal so they don't want to make a committment. This is living your life in fear of what may never happen! Others think that by living together they will be less likely to be divorced later; sadly, the statistics show just the opposite. <br /><br />I also agree with you that America is quite a mission field. I am not advocating abandoning ministry to other nations, but it seems somewhat hypocritical to be out preaching to others with our serious problems here at home. It also seems to give a false idea of what "ministry" is. Ministry must happen in our own communities/states as well as in the other nations of the world.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8294304458677955232.post-91338963426044000302014-01-10T10:12:43.714-08:002014-01-10T10:12:43.714-08:00I agree.....I think its just become the "in&q...I agree.....I think its just become the "in" thing to do. There is so much that needs tending to here but that doesn't appear to carry the prestige. I guess its more Godly to travel all those miles to feed a hungry belly rather than the small child down the street....or assist an elderly person ... or...mdoe37https://www.blogger.com/profile/03019276985594142350noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8294304458677955232.post-8532305650185862692014-01-10T10:00:19.535-08:002014-01-10T10:00:19.535-08:00It's always bothered me that our local youth g...It's always bothered me that our local youth groups would go on summer mission trips to other towns in a distant state. There is so much we can be doing in our own back yards. What a wonderful story. I too look forward to reading your new posts as you always state so eloquently exactly how both my husband and I feel about our God and the downhill path of our country. God bless! Irene in MIAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8294304458677955232.post-24519729928162149622014-01-10T09:26:45.475-08:002014-01-10T09:26:45.475-08:00I don't know how typical this is, but a fair p... I don't know how typical this is, but a fair percentage of the people I know (friends, family, coworkers and so on) look at religions of all types as they would the paranormal-sort of a realm-of-the-aether type thing that really doesn't have any application to their daily lives. If you start any sort of "preaching", you're looked at as if you'd just announced you're from a small planet around Betelgeuse. There are a few exceptions to this, but probably 80 percent fall into the "unsure" category. They're not rabid atheists or anything, just really not sure about it all-or assume that becoming Christian means "fun's over".<br /> Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8294304458677955232.post-68844046523186448432014-01-10T07:24:50.521-08:002014-01-10T07:24:50.521-08:00Enola,
Great post! You did your part, now its up ...Enola,<br />Great post! You did your part, now its up to GOD to deal with her. If she is one of his elect he will open her heart to your words at some point in her life and she will respond in faith. Salvation is of GOD not man! Soli Deo Gloria!!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8294304458677955232.post-20868154354572087932014-01-10T06:45:07.970-08:002014-01-10T06:45:07.970-08:00Amen!
Those conversations are sometimes hard to ...Amen! <br /><br />Those conversations are sometimes hard to have but the fruits of your labor are so worthwhile!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8294304458677955232.post-6827472859516886092014-01-10T05:28:38.443-08:002014-01-10T05:28:38.443-08:00Amen and AMEN on both points. I am blessed to work...Amen and AMEN on both points. I am blessed to work in a secular profession (medical) where I have the opportunity to interact with people one on one every day. The Lord has given me so many ways to reach out to people without having to leave my hometown.<br />I'm in no way downplaying overseas missions, but I see so many people (especially high school age kids) use these trips as a fun time, and their parents love to boast about how many countries Junior has visited. When asked for help to sponsor one adult in my community to the tune of $3000+ for a seven day trip to a not-so-distant country, I raised an eyebrow and offered prayer.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8294304458677955232.post-39918454667026723302014-01-09T20:22:17.365-08:002014-01-09T20:22:17.365-08:00Enola,
Thank you for this post. It has encouraged ...Enola,<br />Thank you for this post. It has encouraged me to keep my eyes open for opportunities to share the love of Christ with those around me.<br />In Him, CricketAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8294304458677955232.post-46117682833015706082014-01-09T18:57:18.832-08:002014-01-09T18:57:18.832-08:00Your insights are always truly amazing. No wonder...Your insights are always truly amazing. No wonder I look forward to your next blog. Thanks.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8294304458677955232.post-19584873836464580522014-01-09T18:35:26.664-08:002014-01-09T18:35:26.664-08:00THIS is true ministry. Most people have never hear...THIS is true ministry. Most people have never heard the gospel and feel they are "too far gone." I also minister in my home to whomever the Lord puts in my path. I encourage you to continue to do the true work of Christ.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8294304458677955232.post-86549541862833366282014-01-09T18:32:51.821-08:002014-01-09T18:32:51.821-08:00What a beautiful story, Enola. It is awesome that...What a beautiful story, Enola. It is awesome that you took a very real opportunity to share the gospel with this young woman. That is what we are here for. Most people will never see a foreign land, some will never even leave their state of origin, but we can ALL share God's good news right where we find ourselves. First in our own homes with our own children, then in the communities where God has placed us, then wherever else we might find ourselves. We all live in a mission field.Lanitahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17713113631452498444noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8294304458677955232.post-45781434588596686842014-01-09T18:06:10.037-08:002014-01-09T18:06:10.037-08:00Sadly, this is how so many young people live today...Sadly, this is how so many young people live today. Our beloved daughter was questioned as to why she and her fiancé were getting married when they had never lived together to see "if they could get along". Her response was that they thought it would be nice to get married and then live together! They have since celebrated their 17th anniversary and get along very well without the common "test run". It hurts me to see so many young woman who live with a young man, dreaming of a perfect marriage only to be discarded when he finds another young woman with a similar dream but is "new" to him. I also cringe to hear of couples who already have a child together who talk of saving money for their wedding as though a fancy wedding is the norm and having the child come after the marriage is not important. None of these people seem to think of the teachings of the Bible about marriage, probably because they have never been given a chance to know God and his teachings.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com