Looking for a Timothy, a Phebe… in Yei

“Lord, give me a
Timothy, a Phebe, Aquilas and Priscillas,
more, more of these kinds of disciples…” Has been my heart cry for over three
months now, as I continue to think and dream of our thrust in Sudan.

I was meditating on
this as our overloaded bus drove all night from Kampala to the border town of Koboko in Northern
Uganda on Monday; wondering what the Lord will do, how He’ll respond to my
petition, who these Timothys and Phebes could turn out to be. People I could
leave the task here with and head on to new fields in the interior. The time for
that move is around the corner. I know it but do they??

I’ve met three kinds of
disciples since my arrival.

The hungry, who like
new born babes can’t wait to engage a familiar source from which nourishment flows.
They remind me of the disciples in the Suck Zone. I see more than hunger for food, I behold and hear of a passion for something the food was meant for- spiritual growth; the kind that gives momentum to Kingdom expansion here. They fulfill Abba’s joy.

They’re also those stuck
in the mud of life by reason of the heavy
and unnecessary luggage they insist must go with them to the Promised Land.
They appear standing but alas, they are sinking. They have to be told the hard truth about their situation. We’ll get to this
messy place later and my prayer (please join me) is- “Dear Lord Jesus, please make
these baggage become irrelevant enough for the barriers to cast them aside, receive strength to
press toward the mark.”

The last group need
a fresh start altogether. Their very bad condition is public knowledge. Some of them
have changed churches, acquired new spiritual counselors and comforters; while some have left town outright.
I pray the right prescription is administered to them here or there. Our God offers
second chances and much more, in His package called riches of grace.

For all three
groups, the team and I; we’ll need a great deal of three things:

1. Faith – a commitment to grow
beyond the present: We must dream and see ourselves not only as we are, but
as we could be, – depth in the knowledge of the Lord and fruit to show
for it. A corporate thrust towards church planting, where every man comes with
their own log (2Kings 6:1-2) is key to expansion. If they truly want this as bad
as I do, they’ll trust me and other coaches in our small team, valuing our
counsels and instructions, which may not make sense sometimes.  

2. Hope – a commitment to a healthy attitude:
We must all have a sound hope-filled attitude. In a world saturated with professional
critics and negative people; a never-say-die mind-set is needed for every step
forward as the grounds that are yet unclaimed for the Master are the toughest to
occupy. On the flip side, I recall Butch Maltby’s comment, “I
am weary of listening to the cheerleaders encouraging deep leaps of faith even
as they make their way down the long ladder saying… “excuse me!”
We must pledge not to be discouraged as we see their lousy meandering down the high calling set before us all.

3. Love – we must commit to righteous suffering: The first thing Paul said
about the agape love in 2Cor. 13:4 is that it suffers and does so for a long time, as there’s no telling when
God will breakthrough with ultimate victory. We must be pressed towards giving
more than we take. If we become self-centered or acquire bad habits, the team
could be destabilized. Some disciples and especially leaders, easily fall into the trap of not seeing how
entrenched and disruptive their bad habits have become in their lives; though they may spot it quickly in others. We all
need healing in needful or hurtful areas before we can venture into the world filled with wolves. Lord, may we meet the loving embrace of other saved sinners and reassure one another.

In all, few life pleasures
are sweeter and even greater than seeing your disciples grow and discover for themselves
that the promise of Christ’s presence, provision and power are as available as they are real; experienced in full as
they go for Him. While the stretching and
growing process may be awkward, I confess I’m becoming comfortable in
my own skin, sure of the fruit God is producing through our corporate thrust. All glory to Jesus!

Did you send your
funds to get me here again? Did you plan to but forgot? Are you praying for our efforts out here? Abba
smiles on you and please know that every thought of you in my heart brings a smile, a lifting that’s hard to express in words.
Thank You, true yoke fellow!