Ministry is an interesting thing and many who read this will understand. Job 37:5-6 speaks to this because it’s not up to us. He allows us free will, but still maneuverers our lives to best suit the interests of the many. I really appreciate that about our Lord. He protects us yet gives us a heart for more.
Ministry is an interesting thing. It has the excitement of winning the lottery and the depth of a dead sea. Somewhere in the middle we find a balance of human relationship and serving a Saviour that has never left our side.
Last year I had the privilege of walking some of the same ground in Israel that Jesus, David, and a number of others I know, walked. It was humbling and hard to live up to. Very revealing. The band Kutless sums it up in the song Sea of Faces:
Your body’s the bread,
Your blood is the wine,
Because you traded Your Life for mine.
We all have life because He traded His life for us. We have hope and promise in that sacrifice. Especially as we serve those who don’t yet know this: those the campos and row housing, those who feel they are garbage. We identify with those human conditions and reality of life circumstances. It tugs at our heart because in some way we can all identify with that.
This fall, a lot changed within OLOCM. What we’ve been desiring to see since the beginning. Our Board placed the responsibility of ministry direction and leadership into the hands of our Mexico team. The task was released to those who can do it best. The timing was beautiful and complements every department head of this Ministry.
While we continue to work towards the filling of the House of Refuge, our Board has tasked us with using the building as a training center for indigenous students, from all the churches we work alongside in Mexico. Resources and teaching will come from those who live in Mexico and understand the culture and need of evangelism of this country. It will be organic and driven by the churches we work with. It will fill the gap until the paperwork for the Mexican government is completed to have this House of Refuge rescue lives. Once the House is ready, the training center will continue as we make space for this important resource. It has been prayed for. It is covered.
It goes without saying that every church and friend of this Ministry has a similar heart. It’s the uncommon…the sacrifice that is silent and extends itself to others that none of us hear about. We hear and see your silence. Thank you. Especially to the staff that spends themselves every day, crying and sharing with those who have so little.
So, I spoke about calling. If Jesus wasn’t the Bread and Wine…why would we do this? This demographic of One Life One Chance Ministries is the fisherman that worked through the night to throw down nets (Luke 5:5), and the new wine mentioned in Mathew 9:17. That is why we want to live here in your friendship. It is the dust on Jesus’ sandals and isn’t centered on money or position…just relationship with a God that called each of us to follow Him. That is where the readers of this blog live, and we understand that.
God called all of us. I could write all night about you, my friends. We have learned so much from you and we look forward to much more in His Grace!
Rob & Brenda
