Come Follow Me, Celebrating 12 Years as Missionaries to Scotland

Come Follow Me, Celebrating 12 Years as Missionaries to Scotland

And he said to them, “Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.” (Matthew 4:19 ESV)

On this day, the 28th of August in 2001, we arrived at Edinburgh Airport, jet lagged and bleary eyed, nervous yet excited to begin an adventure-packed journey with God.

We thought we were too old, at 40, for Youth With A Mission. But after 6 months training in Paisley, we were staffing a school with YWAM Scotland in Edinburgh.

To our surprise, there were other families, just as crazy as us, who joined us for the training at the YWAM base, Stanely House in Paisley, Scotland.

It was there at Stanely House, where we began our Family DTS (Discipleship Training School) with a total of 12 staff/student families with 35 children. That’s right, 35 children, and 20 of them ALL in the same house. An experience NONE OF US WILL EVER FORGET!

And today, we celebrate 12 years as being missionaries in this beautiful, historic capital city of Edinburgh, and in this rainy, but gorgeous, country that we have come to call home.

“To follow is to love.”
(Barclay Card Advert) http://youtu.be/zdg8uSQ4tvw
please watch this 1:31 minute video posted on You Tube.

When I recently saw this advert from Barclay Card, I thought the theme to be quite profound. The emotions, the drama, the reality of the situations that were portrayed, were all too real and engaging.

The tag line stated, “to follow is to love.” I thought to myself, there is something more to this, beyond the message that the company has presented or intended.

After seeing this advert several more times, I began to think about the words of Jesus in the Gospels, and compare those words to the Barclay ad tag line,”to follow is to love.”

COME FOLLOW ME
Jesus proclaims on numerous occasions “come follow me,” so I decided to do a search on my You Version app, and the following words of Jesus were the most commonly found and repeated in the Gospels.

And he said to them, “Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.” (Matthew 4:19 ESV)

And calling the crowd to him with his disciples, he said to them, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.” (Mark 8:34 ESV)

And Jesus, looking at him, loved him, and said to him, “You lack one thing: go, sell all that you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.” ( Mark 10:21 ESV)

To FOLLOW is to LOVE. I believe there is a Kingdom principle found here.

The words of Jesus, “come follow me,” not only require us to deny ourselves, but to daily take up our cross (which is a whole other blog post on its own), and to follow Him.

I am daily trying to live this out as I seek to draw closer to God, to hear His voice, and to be obedient as I intentionally pursue to be His hands and His feet.

When I reflect back on the past 12 years as a missionary, I can honestly say there has been a lot of denying of self, and dying to self that has come along with the obedience to following Jesus.

STARTING YEAR 13 in Edinburgh, Scotland:
For the past 12 years, we have been focused on:

• reaching the lost with the Gospel
• training and discipling the next generation
• church planting

Our focus and passion remain the same today:

Our FOCUS: Reaching the lost with the Gospel here in Edinburgh Scotland and beyond its borders, and helping them become fully devoted followers of Christ.

Our PASSION: Making Disciples, Equipping Ministers, and Mobilizing Missionaries.

SEEKING PARTNERS
As we begin this 13th year as missionaries, we are looking for a few more people to partner with us, and to help us advance the Gospel in Edinburgh and Scotland.

If you would LOVE to Follow, and be a part, you can go to my Supporting Our Ministry page on this blog for details on how to do that, or email me directly at: lovefromkent@gmail.com

Love, Kent

The Week In-Between & the Atheist Church

The Week In-Between & the Atheist Church

The Week In-Between Christmas and the New Year has become a significant week in my adult-married life. During this week, I have always chosen to take holiday/vacation time. This is because it gives me an extended period over the Christmas holidays that I can spend with my wife and my children. Over the years, it has also become a time where we as a family enjoy spending it with friends, playing games, and watching college football bowl games.

This in-between week has gradually become a significant week for me, as I mentioned. It is when I get to enjoy extra time with family and friends, and also take time to reflect on the year and look ahead to the coming year. As I have been reflecting on all that the year has entailed, I’ve gained proper perspective for dreaming, planning, and strategising for the year to come.

In reflection, one thing I like to do is make a list of 7 Highlights of the Year. In doing so, I’m able to be thankful and give praise to my heavenly Father for all that He has done, both in my life and through my life, during the previous year. As I have thought about this today, I’m not going to list my 7 highlights here in this blog, but I am going to share a few in a photo montage.

During this reflection time and as I look forward to 2013, I find myself contemplating this fact that has come out of our most recent census here in the UK.

FACT: 1 in 3 people in the UK indicate they are atheists: The 2011 census for the UK indicates that now 1/3 of its residents, or 1 out of every 3 people in the UK, claim to be atheist. This coupled with the announcement of the first-ever Atheist Church has confirmed to me that NOW, more than ever, is the time for the Kingdom of God to be expanding in Scotland and the UK.

Stand Up Comedians Launch UK’s First Atheist Church
http://www.islingtongazette.co.uk/news/stand_up_comedians_launch_uk_s_first_atheist_church_in_islington_1_1747944

12th Year We are in our 12th year as missionaries here in Scotland, and I have never seen, nor experienced, a more desperate need for the Gospel to advance in Scotland and Europe than what we face today. This is why we are committed to sharing the Gospel here in Edinburgh and are working to help establish churches that reach the lost.

Additionally, I have been drawn to the words Paul wrote to Philemon.
Philemon was considered to be an ordinary pastor.

Philemon’s Love and Faith
Philemon 1:4-7 I thank my God always when I remember you in my prayers, because I hear of your love and of the faith that you have toward the Lord Jesus and for all the saints, and I pray that the sharing of your faith may become effective for the full knowledge of every good thing that is in us for the sake of Christ. For I have derived much joy and comfort from your love, my brother, because the hearts of the saints have been refreshed through you.

I guess I can say as I look ahead to 2013 that the words of Paul to Philemon will be one of the prayers that I pray for myself.

My Prayer: “Dear Jesus, I pray that in each and every relationship of mine that the sharing of my faith will become EFFECTIVE for the full knowledge of every good thing that is in me for the sake of Christ. I also pray that the hearts of the saints and others will be refreshed through me.”

So during this WEEK IN-BETWEEN, I would encourage each of you to make your list of 7 Highlights of the Year from 2012. And my prayer for you is that you would be thankful for the past and be encouraged and inspired for the year to come.

From my family to you and yours, may we all grow in grace and mercy, be filled with peace and joy, and be extravagant in LOVE! Here’s to a very blessed 2013!

Love, Kent

Confessions of a Father’s “Dadisms”

Confessions of a Father’s Dadism’s
This past Father’s day I decided it would be interesting to poll my family and ask them to give me their favourite “dadism”. Each joined in, and now it’s confession time…
“I love that you cry during touching movies or shows, especially when the underdog does well or is helped.” “You use malaprops (saying the wrong word that sounds similar).” ” You always sign ALL of your text messages, Love Kent” “Dad, you are the King of Mixed Metaph(ers).””I love that you always say signs & WANders instead of signs & wonders.”
I’ m so blessed to have such an amazing family. I would like to honour them by bragging on them. Each one of them, Debbie, Joshua, Jacob, & Hannah contribute so much to the work of the ministry & advancing the Gospel here in Edinburgh, Scotland.
CHARITY DINNER for NAOMIS VILLAGE, MAAI MAHIU, KENYA

Before my total knee replacement surgery, God gave Jacob and myself a vision to put on a charity dinner at my local pub, Centre Court. The vision was to gather together different groups of people, friends from Centrepoint Church, Mosaic Edinburgh, Destiny Church, Ironmen & friends from the pub in which I had developed relationships. We wanted to bring together these two different communities (Believers & Not-yet believers) for this one evening. The common goal was to raise money and awareness for an orphanage in Kenya that is located on the Aids Highway. The majority of the children at the orphanage are HIV positive. It was started by some folks from Village Church, Dallas, Texas, & are associated with Lost Orphans International. You can check them out at http://www.naomisvillage.com.
The theme was Tex Mex, and the pub allowed Jacob and I to come in and use their kitchen for preparations and the cooking of a Tex Mex Trio, all homemade from scratch (cheese enchilada, crunchy turkey taco & smoked chicken fajita). For dessert, we served a Dr. Pepper brownie, with a Green & Blacks chocolate dark ale sauce & whipped cream.
We served 38 people and could not have done the evening without Debbie, Joshua, Hannah and Jacob. Everyone contributed from cooking, hosting, serving, & clean up. And Hannah, painted an amazing painting that was raffled off in the evenings raffle.
The evening was a huge success thanks to my amazing family and friends. The communities mingled with each other, and many of my friends from the pub asked more questions. We were able to show the love of Christ in a practical way. And, one of my highlights, in addition to doing this with the family was my friend Davey from the pub, volunteered to help Jacob and I in the kitchen both in the preparations and the cooking for the two afternoons and on the evening.
I want to give all glory, honour and praise to God. We will be looking for more missions of mercy as we continue to preach the gospel, reach the lost & advance the Kingdom of God in Edinburgh, Scotland.

Love, Kent
John 13:34-36New Living Translation (NLT)34 So now I am giving you a new commandment: Love each other. Just as I have loved you, you should love each other. 35 Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples.”

Musings of Christmas & Community

An excerpt from “The Case for Christmas” by Lee Strobel

“The Chicago Tribune newsroom was eerily quiet on the day before Christmas.  As I sat at my desk with little to do, my mind kept wandering back to a family I had encountered a month earlier while I was working on a series of articles about Chicago’s neediest people.  The Delgados – sixty year old Perfecta and her granddaughters Lydia and Jenny – had been burned out of their roach-infested tenement and were now living in a tiny two-room apartment on the West Side.  As I walked in, I couldn’t believe how empty it was.  There was no furniture, no rugs, nothing on the walls-only a small kitchen table and one handful of rice.  That’s it.  They were virtually devoid of possessions.  In fact, eleven-year-old Lydia and thirteen-year-old Jenny owned only one short-sleeved dress each, plus one thin, gray sweater between them.  When they walked the half mile to school through the biting cold, Lydia would wear the sweater for part of the distance and then hand it to her shivering sister, who would wear it the rest of the way.  But despite their poverty and the painful arthritis that kept Perfecta from working, she still talked confidently about her faith in Jesus.  She was convinced he had not abandoned them.  I never sensed despair or self-pity in her home; instead, there was a gentle feeling of hope and peace.  I wrote an article about the Delgados and then quickly moved on to more exciting assignments.  But as I sat at my desk on Christmas Eve, I continued to wrestle with the irony of the situation: here was a family that had nothing but faith and yet seemed happy, while I had everything I needed materially but lacked faith -and inside I felt as empty and barren as their apartment.  I walked over to the city desk to sign out a car.  It was a slow news day with nothing of consequence going on.  My boss could call me if something were to happen.  In the meantime, I decided to drive over to West Homer Street and see how the Delgados were doing.

WHAT JESUS WOULD DO

When Jenny opened the door, I couldn’t believe my eyes.  Tribune readers had responded to my article by showering the Delgados with a treasure trove of gifts -roomfuls of furniture, appliances, and rugs; a lavish Christmas tree with piles of wrapped presents underneath; carton upon bulging carton of food; and a dazzling selection of clothing, including dozens of warm winter coats, scarves, and gloves.  On top of that, they donated thousands of dollars in cash.  But as surprised as I was by the outpouring, I was even more astonished by what my visit was interrupting: Perfecta and her granddaughters were getting ready to give away much of their newfound wealth.  When I asked Perfecta why, she replied in halting English: ‘Our neighbors are still in need.  We cannot have plenty while they have nothing.  This is what Jesus would want us to do.’  That blew me away!  If I had been in their position at that time in my life, I would have been hoarding everything.  I asked Perfecta what she thought about the generosity of the people who had sent all of these goodies, and again her response amazed me.  ‘This is wonderful; this is very good,’ she said gesturing toward the largess. ‘We did nothing to deserve this – it’s a gift from God.  But, she added, it is not His greatest gift.  No, we celebrate that tomorrow.  That is Jesus.’  To her, this child in the manger was the undeserved gift that meant everything – more than material possessions, more than comfort, more than security.  And at that moment, something inside of me wanted desperately to know this Jesus- because, in a sense, I saw Him in Perfecta and her granddaughters.”

My prayer is that this short excerpt from “The Case for Christmas”  by Lee Strobel will in some way encourage, inspire and challenge us to reflect during this season that it really is ALL about Jesus. He is the greatest gift!

“In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent His only Son into the world, so that we might live through Him.  In this is love, not that we have loved God but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins.  Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.” 1 John 4:9-11 esv

Celebrate!

Kayleigh's Baptism

Excited to have had the privilege of  baptizing one of Hannah’s friends, Kayleigh during this past month.

Community: We’ve Got to Come Together   God has been speaking to me a lot about the important role that community plays in our daily lives.  So, I’ve included a link here if you would like to listen to my sermon on community from a few weeks back. (38minutes).

We wish you a very Merry Christmas from our family to yours!

Love Kent

The Changing of Seasons

Every turn of a new season brings a reflective mood in my soul.  I can’t believe that winter is on its way, and the leaves have all turned their glorious colour, seemingly willing to shine one last time in the glimmering autumn sun for our enjoyment.

While the end of this summer brought about the completion of a DECADE of ministry here in Scotland for us, the autumn has given us new challenges and vision for embarking on another 10 years of ministry and preaching the gospel in Scotland and Europe.

In looking at what scriptures say about seasons, I’m encouraged, challenged and admonished by both of these.

Ecclesiastes 3:1 esv “For everything, there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven.”

1 Timothy 4:2 esv “preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke and exhort, with complete patience and teaching.”

Here are a few highlights of ministry here in Scotland from this past season:

A decade of ministry in Scotland!

on this late August day, we celebrated 10 years in Scotland by serving and worshiping with Centrepoint Church, Edinburgh and Mosaic Edinburgh.

Salvation for Hannah’s Friend!

one of Hannah’s friends, 16 yr old K gave her life to Jesus, and we are baptizing her on 27 November.

New life with Jesus 

18 yr old homeless young man, S gave his life to Jesus and was baptized in August.  We have since helped him to get into his own flat.

Brotherly love & baby dedications

Debbie and I are the proud godparents of Oma Edeh.

We are continuing to share the love of Jesus with all those that God brings us into contact with whether at the pub, bus stop, the meadows, or at Deb’s charity shop with Bethany Christian Trust.  We are seeing deeper relationships and friendships form, and also continue to see more and more healings.          Praise God!

Won’t you please join us in praying over our city, Edinburgh!

Embarking on the next 10

As we embark on the next 10 years preaching the gospel in Scotland and Europe, we are  praying for more of the lost to be reached.  We want to THANK ALL of you who have supported us and partnered with us over the years, and appreciate you continuing to do so.  During this new season, honestly, we are at a critical stage where we need to increase the number of our partners who can join with us to help resource our ministry in spreading the Gospel.

Please Take a Moment

Please take a look at how you can partner with us under the “supporting our ministry” tab here on the blog.

Love, Kent

Sound-bites of Summer Pt. 1

6 Month Check- Up   –    Still Cancer Free!

12 July 2011- ‎6 mo check-up at the cancer centre today & I was told my scans were all clear & still cancer free. Praise Jesus for healing me! Thanks for your prayers.

LG’s healing and salvation

God has miraculously saved this 16 year old girl as she committed her life to following Jesus, and has healed her by growing her leg, arm and dissolving a tumor in her leg.  She’s recently moved to Australia with her family and sent me this message…

“everyone loves my story on finding god! im so glad that i get to tell people my experience with god! anyway, cant wait to come back to scotland for a wee visit and see yous all”.

Water Baptism

Recently, we had a very special Sunday where we baptized 4 people including LG.

NightLife

Our monthly outreach where we share the love of Jesus with dancers and bouncers. One young lady, E, has now heard the Gospel several times and has expressed a desire to get out of this work, but has felt trapped do to debt and a high tax bill.  God is loving her & wooing her, and recently her tax bill has been reduced significantly.

Missions Week

In June, we had a missions team  from America serving with us for 10 days.  Our main outreach was a picture survey asking questions that would give us an opportunity to share the Gospel.

Two highlights for me: (1) Met a Religious Education teacher from a local high school who turned out to be a not-yet believer. Can you imagine, teaching religious education and not being a believer?  I was able to share some with him, and got his email so we can meet up for coffee.  (2) an impromptu baptism at a local beach.

Community Group

We’ve got a heart for Edinburgh!  We are a group of people that God has brought together from the nations to reach the lost here in Edinburgh. Scotland, America, Zambia, Nigeria, Columbia, Nepal, Poland & Hong Kong.

Ministry Partnership

Please continue to pray for us as we reach out to Edinburgh, Scotland and Europe with the Gospel.

Critical Stage

Honestly, we are at a critical stage where we need to increase the number of our partners who can join with us to help resource our ministry in spreading the Gospel.

Please Take a Moment

Please take a look at how you can partner with us under the “supporting our ministry” tab here on the blog.

Love, Kent