When we rely on organization, we get what organization can do. When we rely upon education, we get what education can do. When we rely on eloquence, we get what eloquence can do. But when we rely on the Holy Spirit, we get what God can do.

A. C. Dixon

We are learning the lesson of waiting on God, which isn’t easy for “doers,” but, nevertheless is essential for successful ministry. May we not run ahead of God, or lag behind Him. As we walk in pace with Him we see how the Holy Spirit links people, experiences and opportunities together with precise timing. This shows us that He leading us, and is weaving together pieces of the tapestry that we never could have conceived of nor orchestrated on our own.

Then he said to me, “This is the word of the Lord to Zerubbabel: Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit, says the Lord of hosts. 

Zephaniah 4:6

From time to time I have had people tell me, “ I could never do what you do.”  Whether the obstacle for that person is leaving family, travelling by plane for over 24 hours, doing so with young kids, living in a place without “such and such,” evangelism, or something else, the point is well taken. I can’t do those things either, apart from the grace of God. To think I can is dangerous and is folly.

You may have heard it said that “when God calls He enables.” He provides physically, financially, spiritually, emotionally and mentally.  This truth is taken from various Scripture teachings and examples including this verse in Hebrews.

“Now may the God of peace, …equip you with everything good for doing his will,” (Hebrews 13;20-21)

 Our vision and calling may take us to places others don’t feel comfortable for themselves, or even for us. And, that’s okay. They may catch up to the vision and support it, or even join in. They may not. What is important, though, is that each of us is certain of our own calling and of the One who will equip us to fulfil that calling.

“For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.”   (Eph. 2:10)

I know many of you enjoy The Chosen series as I do. The scene depicted below is one I love because it weaves all the characters together. This is one of my favorite bible stories because it teaches us that there is often a way around obstacles stopping us from introducing people to Jesus! Nothing God is calling us to do is “too hard” for us, for He Himself helps us with creative solutions!

Another word (besides “technoclete”) has been coined under Para Tech! Except in this case, it all took place in the dream of one of our close friends. So, in actuality, it is really her word.

The word?  Re-biding!  In my friend’s dream she was asking what I am doing upon leaving Guam.  Apparently, I cleverly responded that I was working on “re-biding.”  Biding again. Settling again.  Yes, I grew up in the States, and spent months here on and off, every so often. And, it’s true that Guam is a US territory. However, there are many things that are done quite differently. Values differ. Procedures differ. Food, shopping, cultural norms, conversation, weather and dress, they all differ.

As believers, this place is not our home. As we departed Guam and walked away from so much that was familiar and as we seek to “re-bide” in the States, I remember the words that Albert E. Brumley wrote,

This world is not my home
I’m just a-passing through
My treasures are laid up
Somewhere beyond the blue

As it turns out, this friend will also be re-biding soon after decades on the island.  However, since the thought already ruminated in her mind as she slept a few months back, and as “I” had such an insightful word to introduce her to, I suspect she will not be taken by surprise at how much she needs to readjust to new ways of doing things!

Rebide (verb)

\ ri-ˈbīd  \ re-bode\ \ ri-ˈbōd  \ or re-bided; re-biding

1 To live or dwell somewhere again.
2 (as in missionaries): To learn to live in the continental US again after a long time away.

“I will need to rebide in the continental US when I move back next month.”

I am happy to share a few resources for missionaries that have been very helpful to us over the last year! Maybe you, or someone you know, can benefit from one of these ministries:

There wouldn’t be adequate words to share how helpful the Alongside retreat center (Richland, MI) is for those who are processing big changes or disruptions, or those suffering from burnout. The staff are first rate and the whole atmosphere and environment is intentionally designed such that grace and peace pervades the retreat center and each of its activities. Visit https://www.alongsidecares.net/   for more information.

Righteous Rides (https://righteousrides.org/) is more than just a place for missionaries to rent reasonable wheels. It is a ministry with caring staff who take care to provide reliable, clean (spotless!) and affordable van rentals. They go over and above with extras such as variety of gifts for families to send them on their way, Blessings Boutique (free clothing), World Brew Coffee shop, and prayer with the missionaries. Their mission is “to provide care and cars to missionaries on home assignment… in a manner worthy of God.” Yes, indeed! Based in St. Louis, but with other hubs around the country, Righteous Rides ministry also sells donated vehicles and uses the proceeds towards the purchase of their missionary loaner vans.

Edenridge is a missionary-focused retreat and vacation destination located in eastern Tennessee. It is a lovely place, and our family was able stay there on our way through the area. Motivated by the recognition that missionaries are often worn out from busy furlough schedules and struggle to afford vacations, Oliver Dossman founded the ministry and the center opened in 2012. Oliver grew up on the mission field and remembers well what it was like. You can read and watch a video about Eden Ridge’s history and vision on their website: https://www.edenridge.org/.   Edenridge also welcomes non-missionaries whose stay helps subsidize the reduced fees for missionaries. Check it out!

During the Alongside retreat we attended in Michigan, there was one presentation with a very catchy title: Dooby Dooby Do. We had no idea what that meant but it turns out that it was actually a very profound truth they were conveying with this silly phrase.

One of the critical projects that Para Tech Ministries completed recently was identifying and removing a network device that had become compromised.  The wireless access point had changed from its original design and was negatively affecting the other computers on the network so that they couldn’t communicate correctly.

The small code change within the device was subtle and could have been easily overlooked, yet that “small” issue was creating an open door for a major attack later on. You can see in this picture that most of the activity was to “trustworthy” places, but a small amount of traffic was going to untrustworthy ones.  

There is a spiritual lesson for us in this. It is so important to remove the things that impede us in our walk with Christ.   

In Hebrews 12 we are encouraged to “throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And …. run with perseverance the race marked out for us.”

Sin can really distract and throw us off course and we need to throw our sins off regularly and experience the cleaning power of God’s love so that the sin does not open opportunities for larger problems later on.

This also points out how important it is to perform daily maintenance on systems.  Regular updates of firmware help prevent open doors for compromise in equipment. 

In the photo you can see a “before and after” picture after replacing the device around 2pm.

Similarly, we need to have daily checkpoints in our time with God to keep our firmware (the core components that allow us to function) updated and to obtain the benefit of confessing our sins for maintaining spiritual health. 

As John wrote, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.” (I John 1:9)

Rather than try to fix this infected device it was determined that it should be replaced.  Oftentimes, it is better to start fresh than to attempt to clean up bad equipment.  In the same way we can attempt to clean up our spiritual lives, and that may have a temporary positive result. But as we read from Isaiah 64:6. all our efforts towards making ourselves righteous are as worthless as filthy rags.  How much better it is to take the offer given to us to confess and have God give us a new, clean heart – free from any unrighteousness – returning us to operate as God intends.

“Generous persons will prosper; those who refresh others will themselves be refreshed.”  (Proverbs 11:25)

We know some people who will be refreshed! Those who sent us on our way with words of encouragement, donations and prayer! A dear brother and sister who gave us a place to stay as we were transitioning.  Several talented “technoclete” brothers who donated equipment and valuable time to help us as we helped others!  God sees their service and will reward them. This coming together of heads, hearts and hands makes a task go more smoothly and more importantly doubles as a time of fellowship.

You’ve probably seen it: a pile of puzzle pieces that doesn’t look like anything special…Until you begin to put the pieces together one by one. Some puzzles are so beautiful when complete that people wish to frame them.

God connects people and events together in order to carry out His sovereign plan. And it is beautiful to behold, even from our limited human perspective!

Para Tech Ministries (PTM) has already experienced this, and we expect to continue to see the pieces of His puzzle fall into place. There was the friend on Guam who needed to close down their business and willing to offer their firewall to the ministry that could use it, with PTM being available at the exact timing to facilitate the transaction. Or, the timing of our return to Guam to pack out coinciding with the need for help at KTWG. And even the need for housing and household effects by another missionary couple at the same time we were transitioning out. Perhaps there are others we didn’t even notice?

For God, none of this is a surprise or a mystery. And it is certainly not just happenstance. He has it all in His sovereign hands. He is kind enough to let us see a glimpse of His big plan every now and then. “The secret things belong to the Lord our God, but the things revealed belong to us and to our children forever, that we may follow all the words of this law.” Deuteronomy 29:29

God has a way of bringing things around full circle. He can do this because He is sovereign over all things, and He knows the beginning and the end.

Back in the late 80s Doug started his engineering career in fire alarms …. In other words “life safety” work. The fire alarm panel that he helped design as lead engineer on a talented team with Electro Signal Labs (ESL) helped propel him into “spiritual life safety” ministry since he was able to pay off his loans after finishing the project and begin missionary service.   

As we travel, from time to time we see that fire alarm panel still in use in various buildings, which is an encouragement to Doug!  The local Christian AM/FM radio station, KTWG, is one such building and Doug recently helped repair the panel as one of his first projects with Para Tech Ministries (PTM).

We have seen God work in this way to use our past experiences for His glory, and I am sure many of you can attest to the same thing. Denise didn’t expect to be able to use her dietetics degree with TWR, but in 1999 Guam began the pilot project of Women of Hope program to Asia and she was able to be a part of the original team writing some nutrition scripts. We have seen this type of thing happen time and time again. What past experience has God surprised you with in your personal ministry?