Dear All,
I’m afraid I don’t have anything new to share about the
immigration application with the British government. I continue to covet your prayers for this and
for the whole process of pursuing ministry in Newport. However, as I mentioned at the end of my last
blogpost, I want to offer some ways that you and I as Christians in the United
States can help the Church in the United Kingdom grow and thrive. I've put together a list of nine practical
ways you can help, or can encourage help for the Church in the UK below. Please prayerfully consider these and any
other ideas you may have. You never know what opportunities God might give you if you're paying attention.
As a quick footnote,
I want to offer this article about some of the mistakes Americans can make when
doing mission work or trying to support Christians in other countries. We can easily make a mess of things and not
even realize it if we don’t think critically about the context and unintended
consequences of our work: http://dbouchelle.blogspot.com/2013/12/frequent-missteps-of-americans-in.html (from the blog of Dan Bouchelle of Mission
Resource Network)
“Of course, I don’t mean you should give so much that you suffer from having too little. I only mean that there should be some equality. Right now you have plenty and can help them. Then at some other time they can share with you when you need it. In this way, everyone’s needs will be met. Do you remember what the Scriptures say about this? ‘Those who gathered a lot had nothing left over, and those who gathered only a little had enough.’”
-2nd
Corinthians 8:13-15 (NLT)
Top 9 Ways to
Help (Practically)
9. Learn More
Take time to learn more about the British Church, their
cultural context, and history. You won’t
know how best to serve until you learn a little more. Here are a couple websites to start learning:
-The Christian Worker (like the Christian Chronicle for the UK; check out their directory of CofCs in
the UK)
-Wikipedia (Wikipedia’s page on the UK; very informative)
-Current Events (story from the Telegraph about the decline of Christianity in the UK)
8. Meet Some
British People
They are among us, lurking in the shadows….not
really. Actually, there are a large
number of British visitors, students, and immigrants in the USA at any given
time (about 680,000 this past year). Look for
opportunities to meet them and talk with them about their home and (where
possible) about their faith. You could
learn a lot.
7. Trade Your
Preacher
I know many of you have been looking for a way to ‘nicely’
get rid of your local preacher. Well,
here’s your opportunity! (just kidding, but really…). I have heard of a least
one situation where a congregation in California and one in the UK swapped
preachers for a 6 month to 1 year time period.
See if your preacher and his family would be interested in a temporary
change of venue. You never know, you might learn a lot
from a British preacher as well.
6. Write a Letter
of Encouragement
Find the address of a congregation in the UK (see
Christian Worker website above) and write a letter of encouragement to them. Tell them you are praying for
them. Ask about their worship, ministry,
and outreach. You never know what impact
you might have (and postage is no more than about $2 for a regular letter sent to
the UK from the US).
5. Take a Trip to
the UK
Many of you have been looking for an opportunity to visit
Europe on vacation. Why not visit the
UK, and add a Church of Christ to your list of places to visit (preferably when
someone is there)? Your presence would be a
significant boost to many congregations in the UK and you never know what
connections you might make.
4. Plant a Seed
Do you know a young person who is considering
missions? Or maybe someone who is
retiring and looking for meaningful retirement work? Or maybe someone who is looking to do a non-ministry
job in a foreign country? Talk with them
about helping buildup the Church in the UK!
You might not be able to go yourself, but you could plant the seed in
someone else’s heart with God’s help.
3. Plan a Mission Trip
Talk with your youth, college, or senior minister about a
short-term mission trip to the UK. It
can be relatively inexpensive with some good planning (check out my favorite
airline for Europe, Aer Lingus).
Remember that medical missions or building houses are probably not
necessary in a highly developed country like the UK.
2. Give Money
This could be to a missionary or to a specific
congregation in the UK. There is a great
need for this as it is quite expensive to live in the UK. Ask me if you’d like some suggestions for
missionaries or congregations to support in the UK.
1. Pray for the
Church
Finally, make sure to pray for the Church in the UK. They need our prayers so much and truly God
is the One who can accomplish most there.
Make sure to pray specifically for things like: strength, unity, their relationships
with outsiders, deeper knowledge of the Gospel, and encouragement.
Sincerely in Christ,
Chris
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