David Livingstone's Challenge

It has been a delight and exhausting challenge to study "Desiring God" by John Piper. And this week, there was a statement from the study that I think will challenge us for the rest of our careers to serve God in Angola, with great joy. It was made by a "famous" missionary of the 1800s, David Livingstone, who spent much of his time in Africa. Interestingly enough, he said this quote on DECEMBER 4th ... in 1857 (yesterday, 157 years ago):

For my own part, I have never ceased to rejoice that God has appointed me to such an office. People talk of the sacrifice I have made in spending so much of my life in Africa. . . . Is that a sacrifice which brings its own blest reward in healthful activity, the consciousness of doing good, peace of mind, and a bright hope of a glorious destiny hereafter? Away with the word in such a view, and with such a thought! It is emphatically no sacrifice. Say rather it is a privilege. Anxiety, sickness, suffering, or danger, now and then, with a foregoing of the common conveniences and charities of this life, may make us pause, and cause the spirit to waver, and the soul to sink; but let this only be for a moment. All these are nothing when compared with the glory which shall be revealed in and for us. I never made a sacrifice.

How does someone, with no Internet, Skype, ice cream, cell phone, air conditioning, or any modern amenity (no matter how simple ... I mean, not even peanut butter!) say "I never made a sacrifice?"
Truly, his words were founded on God's truth, spoken by none other than Jesus:

Truly, I say to you, there is no one who has left house or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or lands, for my sake and for the gospel, who will not receive a hundredfold now in this time, houses and brothers and sisters and mothers and children and lands, with persecutions, and in the age to come eternal life. (Mark 10:29-30)

 

Dessert AND Silent Auction

Wow! We have been so overwhelmed by the response of friends and family to make desserts for our upcoming dessert auction! Thank you to everyone who has offered their extraordinary talents towards the event coming ... soon! OCTOBER 24TH, 7 PM, West London Alliance Church (750 Wonderland Rd. N.)!

Silent auction!

Well, good news--we are adding in another element to make this a fun night out for friends, family, coworkers, neighbours--whoever you might be or bring! A SILENT AUCTION! Yes, after some thought and discussion, we decided a silent auction would be the perfect element to add on to the night--especially if you'd like to get in some early Christmas shopping or don't have an avid sweet tooth.

So here's the dealio--we need help in two areas. If you can arrange something for the silent auction--maybe it's some sports memorabilia, a donation from your business or spouse's business, a gift basket, one of those Christmas gifts you never ended up using but someone else would love (as long as it's in new condition), a work of art, a collection of handmade objects--we would love to have it! Please let us know!

But I would say our biggest area of need is people to join us for the event! Where we stand now, at 75% of our monthly MAF ministry funds, is crucial--but we've kind of hit a plateau, and after some discussion, we've determined the plateau is due to the fact that we need to expand our circle of contacts! So we're looking to you--friends, partners, and family--to help us expand our circle. Bring some of your girlfriends, your grandparents, your coworkers, or your neighbours out to the auction, and enjoy a classy, fun night out! We would love to see tons of people come out for a good cause.

Matthew 25:40--The reason we serve.

Finally, I think it's been a while since I've given this last part due justice. In the midst of fundraising, one of the key things that keeps us motivated is realizing WHY we are fundraising. It's not just so we can travel the world and do something we love doing. We seek and need support for the important work we will be doing through MAF in Angola. Every dollar donated monthly or one-time allows Marcel to help keep the three planes in Angola flying. Those planes are "life links" to so many people whose ministry, well-being, or hope depend on them. Sometimes, those planes are helping missionaries directly planting churches in unreached people groups. Sometimes, those planes deliver Bibles for the first time in a tribal language.Sometimes, they provide emergency food and nutrition in the midst of a terrible famine. Sometimes, they are saving a teenage girl whose pregnancy has taken a sudden turn for the worse. Sometimes, they are delivering a team of surgeons who have dedicated a week, two weeks, or many weeks out of their successful careers to serve long days in rural clinics, treating people who know only limited health care. ALWAYS, they are paving the way to the future--a future without minefields in rural Angola, a future for children who don't yet know Jesus, a future for the small-scale farmer, whose goods get delivered to market in the big city, a future for the "least of these" in Angola and around the world.