cklablog

I’ve been kind of keeping this under wraps, but I’ve decided to make some pretty big changes in my life. Over the last year or so, Emily and I have become increasingly involved with issues relating to developing countries; from both a political/economic and a spiritual point-of-view.

Most recently, I read The End of Poverty, by Jeffrey Sachs, and was taken by the plausibility of his work. It’s more than just a pipe dream; his vision of reaching an end to world poverty could become a reality in our lifetime if we only committed a fraction of the resources toward ending poverty that we do to waging war. Sachs bases his well-thought-out and comprehensive approach to eliminating world poverty upon his conviction that everything depends on everything else — that, for instance, you cannot cure poverty in Africa without beating AIDS, which requires infrastructure, which requires stable government, and so forth.

Sachs is not himself a particularly spiritual man, but his ideas got me to thinking; what is the ultimate foundation upon which reliable, compassionate social structures are built? To my mind, the answer is an abiding and pervasive social relationship with Christ.

Emily and I have spent a lot of time praying over this issue recently, and we have come to the conclusion that while we are not high-powered economists or influential politicians, we can still do our part to advance Mr. Sachs’ vision by abandoning the dubious “luxuries” of the first world for the spiritual fulfillment of ministering the Word among the most needy (and deserving) people of the world.

“I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in an eat with him, and he with Me…And, to all who receive Him have the right to become children of God (Revelation 3:20; John 1:12).”

We’ve already made arrangements with the people over at JCA (Jesus Christ Africa), and in two short weeks we will travel to their headquarters in Branson, Missouri for a two-month intensive training/prayer retreat (and faith-based variety show) after which we will fly to Africa for our direct ministries. Normal postings last six to nine months, but Emily and I have been moved by the spirit to sign up for an 18-month posting. We are hoping to be posted to Malawi, but there is a chance that we might be more needed in Nigeria, which would be okay also, of course.

We don’t anticipate having any internet access while training or during our post, so we won’t be able to stay in touch, but remember, “. . . neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord (Romans 8:31-39).”

God bless and keep you, and I hope to hear from you all upon our return on or before Christmas 2007.