December 3, 2006

I am writing this before I have had a chance to post previous blogs and will post them all simultaneously. We have had some good experiences the past week, though I find myself extremely homesick and melancholy as I compose this blog. I think that it is mostly that Christmas is approaching and we REALLY miss our family and friends. We also really miss America and the ease of daily living. We set up a Christmas tree this week (thank you Denise Melendez for providing it), but it is rather small and modest and reminds us that we are not in America anymore. Interestingly, we gave our tree away before leaving because we didn’t think we would need it or have room for it, but now live in a house with 9-ft ceilings. Oh well, just one more thing that our flesh has to die to.

Anyway, on to the past week… Thursday night we were invited to a dinner at Speke Resort that was with Nigerian kings. They were traditional African kings and each of them ruled a tribe in Nigeria. The thrones that they occupy had been steeped in witchcraft and sorcery and Satanic sacrifices. These men were giving testimony of how God broke that chain when He called them to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ. It was so encouraging to hear what God was doing and His power over darkness when men step into the light. They are changing their nation for Christ though proper leadership based on humility and scripture. It was extremely cool to see them in their African garb and ceremony. We had a great time and fun evening. On a side note, of the 400 people in attendance, only two of us were white. We are comfortable with it, though it still takes getting used to.

Yesterday I attended a Christian leadership conference. Again, there were 400 people and this time only one white person since I went alone. The speaker was incredible. He was from Ghana and directly addressed many of the leadership problems in Africa. It was all based on scripture and very applicable, sound, and challenging. He spoke of Joseph, Daniel, David, and Nehemiah and showed how each man led by Godly principles. I hope that I will have an opportunity to spend more time with him. Those in attendance were either government leaders or business leaders and I am using this forum to make relationships. They seem happy to have me there, and being the only white dude, it is easy to meet people. I am meeting many people of influence and am anxious to see how God will use it.

I preached for the third consecutive week at KIU (you should know this acronym by now if you are reading my blogs regularly). This week I spoke from Joshua chapter 5 where the Captain of the Lord’s host appears to Joshua. I emphasized that it is not about us, but about Him and that the battle belongs to the Lord. There is an extreme emphasis here on spiritual warfare and how to fight it. Much of the teaching talks about all we must do in our flesh to win the battle (e.g., pray all night, shout loudly, say the exact right words). I was trying to teach that victory belongs to the Lord and it is not about saying “the magic words”. Their cultural influence of witchcraft and sorcery makes spiritual warfare very real and frequent here, but this same influence can result in them fighting a spiritual battle in their flesh. I am trying to balance this teaching by showing that God has already defeated Satan and victory comes from Him and Him alone. Our fighting posture needs to be one of humility, dependency on Him, holiness, and obedience. Joshua 5:13-15 clearly shows all these things. Please pray that God’s word will sink deep into the hearts of the students who have been taught some very unbiblical things recently about spiritual warfare including carrying clubs and axes while praying in order to gain victory. I hope that you understand that I am not downplaying the importance of spiritual warfare and I recognize how real it is. However, I also realize that Satan isn’t behind every sickness, sin, and difficult circumstance. They are busy trying to cast out “lust demons” instead of teaching repentance and crucifying the flesh. It seems to me that they are giving Satan so much credit, that it actually glorifies Satan and empowers him in their lives. As I read about the many battles of the Old Testament, in particular I Samuel 17, Exodus 14, II Chronicles 20, Joshua 7 & 11, and Judges 7, I see that victory comes only from God and that He is the Commander. We have to seek Him in holiness and hear from Him how to win the battle. The battle plan was different in almost every case. Sometimes, they do nothing while God fights the battle (Exodus 14), one time they sing while God turns the armies against themselves (II Chron. 20), David uses a sling, and Jericho is defeated by marching and a shout. I have been told that demonic influences are only defeated after years of praying and that you have to the words exactly right. That sounds like victory is too much dependant on us. The battle belongs to the Lord, and the victory is by His strength and for His glory. Pray that God will continue to teach me more about what this means and that I will be able to communicate clearly the truth of His Word.

Pamela was playing Christmas music yesterday and I heard the words “I’ll be home for Christmas if only in my dreams.” How true,.