Prepare for India

As I prepare for India, there are so many things to think about as the time is approaching rapidly for me be heading to a place that I have been waiting to go to for about 2 years now.  I was taking a class with Covenant Theological Seminary back in 2007 when I had developed a problem with my back. 
Do you remember that? 
I had a ruptured disk, and I ended up not being able to walk and required surgery to remove the part that had ruptured out and to relieve the pressure on my sciatic nerve which was the cause of extreme pain.  That all happened around Thanksgiving time. 
So, I had to ask the school to give me about 6 months to recover and then finish my class, and they were quite gracious to me to allow me the extra time.  Then during that recovery time in the spring of 2008 I had been asked to go to India in March of 2009. 
After much prayer and feeling compelled by God, I decided that I would go, and that I would also prepare for this trip by taking a break from taking classes.  I also did not go to Disney World with my wife and kids since I would not have enough vacation time to do both trips. 
Then in about January of 2009, there were terrorist attacks in India, but not in the area where we were to be visiting, but nevertheless, everyone backed out on going.  So, then the trip was postponed until September and we were able to connect with another team out Christian Church out of Maryland, to share in this long anticipated mission experience. 
They are a medical mission team that will be putting on medical clinics at various places and they have asked me to help them since I have a medical background from when I was a Hospital Corpsman (EMT / Medic) in the Navy.  So, I guess I will be serving in two roles while I am there in India.  I will also be teaching or preaching at a Bible Study or at the Institute or Bible College, or whenever asked to do so. 
I was recently notified by Covenant Seminary that I was in jeopardy of being withdrawn as a student if I did not sign up for a class this semester.  But, considering the above events that have transpired, it was not possible for me to begin a class at this point nor was it feasible  during all these delays and set backs.  So, I asked if they would give me grace for one more semester considering the whole situation that I have written here.  They reviewed my plea for grace and they finally emailed me back and agreed to give me one more semester.
So, why am I writing all of this to you all?  I have no idea... 
Except for the fact that there must be a reason for why God has delayed my visit to India, and there must be a reason why things worked out they way they did.  I could sit here and complain how things didn't work out the way that I would have liked them to.  And I could have been angry with the whole situation and at one point I was a bit frustrated.  But, I'm looking forward so much to see the blessing that God has in store for me while on this trip to India and afterwards.
I think this all comes from one of my favorite subjects.  The Gospel.  And you are asking.... How so?  The Gospel message is so awesome and Grace is so amazing, that I cant help but be Grateful for what God has done and has been doing, and I anticipate what He is going to do, either in the lives of those we touch in India, or even in our own lives but ultimately I hope to share this same Gospel message.

Please be praying for our whole team as we join together and work together for the first time.  Pray that we will enjoy each other and we will be a blessing to our brothers and sisters in India and that we have an impact in the lives of these people, not just for time but for eternity.

 

Chris
www.Reform-Shire.blogspot.com
Coram Deo!!!

Mike Horton Interviewed on CBN

Hello,

Here is an interview on CBN (Christian Broadcast Network) about Michael Horton's book Christless Christianity. Also, the bit at the beginning about the Anglican Church in North America is actually good news too. And you can hear about that on this week's broadcast on the White Horse Inn "The Future of Anglicanism"

On this edition of the White Horse Inn, Michael Horton talks with Dr. David Virtue about his efforts to promote a new Global Orthodox Anglicanism in the midst of widespread liberalism. Later in the broadcast, Dr. Horton talks with retired Episcopal Bishop C. FitzSimons Allison about the problem of Pelagianism and the crucial importance of recovering the doctrines of justification and imputation in our time.

Grace and Peace,
Chris Allen
Coram Deo!!!

CBN Interview

Mike Horton Interviewed on CBN

Note: The interview with Dr. Horton begins at the 0:27 mark...

Update on Chidamoyo Conference

Hello Friends, Here is wonderful news from Chidamoyo Zimbabwe. They had 3,149 people attend a conference in Chidamoyo. What a blessing to see all those people who came from all over Zimbabwe to be fed, but not just on food but fed on the Word of God.

Today I am blessed to know that many people are praying for me. Such as, the mission team I will be traveling with, my friends, and my family, as well as my church family are all praying for me as we prepare for our mission trip to India.
It is less than 3 weeks away. I am praying to stay healthy and to connect well with the rest of the team, and to be a blessing to those we are going to help, support, and encourage. So as I pray for these things I'm reminded of Paul and his prayer to the Lord and the Lord says "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness."

2 Corinthians 12:8-10 (New International Version)

⁸Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. ⁹But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me. ¹⁰That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

Grace is sufficient... and He is all we need. Especially, when it comes down to He is all you really have.
Grace and Peace,

Chris
www.Reform-Shire.blogspot.com
Coram Deo!!!

From: Kathy McCarty
Sent: Tuesday, August 25, 2009 6:09 AM
Subject: Update on Chidamoyo Conference

Dear Friends:
Just to give you an update on the church conference. We started with a preconference of Ministers and their wives from all over Zimbabwe on Tuesday night the 11th. We provided 3 meals a day and they had meetings during the day and at night. This conference was attended by about 150 people. The women cooked in my driveway and people ate in my outdoor dining room and patio area. This was a good start to get us ready for the conference.
On Thursday all day we did surgeries at the hospital with Dr. Bungu from our sister hospital Mashoko. He came early for the conference to help teach our 2 doctors to do hernias and hydroceles. So as the people began arriving for the conference we were very busy at the hospital. We got out in time to join the group for dinner and the first night! We had over 2500 people the first night and they all got fed and put to sleep in the 2 schools near us and the chapel and church. I had 7 people in my house and sharing 1 bathroom and Major ended up with 19 in his! We had people sleeping everywhere; I even put up my 2 tents for people to sleep in!
By Friday we officially had 3,149 people that were attending the conference! We so enjoyed the fellowship—but got very little sleep. We had a special program for the youth after the main services each night which ended with a movie about 12 midnight! The women came to start cooking about 3:15 a.m. right outside my bedroom window and they figure if they are awake, everyone else must be, so they don't even try to be quiet! We continued to work at the hospital Friday and Sat and run back and forth as we could.
The electricity went off Friday afternoon and never came back until the Wed after the conference—so we ran the generator Sat most of the day for the sound system. We killed 5 cows, ate 2 tons of maize (sadza and porridge), ate 40 litres of peanut butter, 58 dozen bread and 250 heads of cabbage! By Saturday night Major's eyes were so red I thought he had been smoking a lot of marijuana!
The conference officially ended about 10 a.m. Sunday but many people left early morning on Sunday by bus and lorry and cars to get back home. Many people commented that this was the best conference they had ever attended and it was so well organized and the food was so good. They wanted us to volunteer to have it again—I said maybe in another 37 years!
Monday after work I left with my visitors for 3 nights on safari at The Hide and 2 nights at Vic Falls. We did see a lot of animals, even lions and 1 leopard! We cruised the Zambezi and saw the Falls and ate at the Boma restaurant, crocodile, buffalo, ostrich, guinea fowl, warthog, impala, and some of the visitors even ate the Mopani worms! I spent 2 days from breakfast to sundown on the platform at The Hide by myself reading (finished 2 books), napping and enjoying peace and quiet with giraffe and wildebeest and impalas nearby. What a wonderful time!
We flew back to Harare on Sunday morning and then drove on to Chidamoyo. On Thursday Jimmy, Bre, Tej and Mark leave for home. Monday Major flew with Rick, Sue and Jordan to Swaziland to assess an orphanage there supported by Rick's church in Hawaii. They get back Saturday night with a new visitor from Washington who is here for a month. Rick and Sue and Jordan leave Sunday afternoon—so I will go in Saturday to pick them up and return with Major and the new visitor, Charlotte on Sunday.
While I was gone to The Hide we received word that Lori Batten, RN got her work permit for 2 years and should be arriving mid-September! PTL—we are all happy!
Sorry I am so behind on e-mails, please forgive me and I will get back to you soon. Trying to deal with the emergencies at work and home right now!

Hi from Oklahoma City, Oklahoma!

Well it has been a strange summer for me.  Especially since I've been so busy with all kinds of new things going on.  Right now I'm in Oklahoma on my second day at my new job.  Everyone here has been very nice to me and I'm getting to know my way around the important areas like at work and at my apartment.  Now that I'm back into some kind of routine I'm hoping to keep up with my blog postings on a somewhat regular basis.  Soooooo...  Here is some thoughts that have been hitting my brain lately in the pursuit of "calling the church back to the Gospel."

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Our church is currently searching for a new Senior Pastor and an Associate Pastor and we have had several people that have decided to go elsewhere to find another congregation.  But, for the most part the congregation and the leadership have not let that kind of thing bother them.  At least it doesn't appear to be too much of an issue at the moment and the staff members that are still with us have really stepped up to the challenge of carrying on with out 2 significant parts of the team.

Last Sunday was "Youth Sunday' and the music and prayer time was all done by the youth members.  The Youth Pastor did the preaching, and I was quite pleased with the message that was shared.  Usually, when someone mentions that a "Youth Pastor preached" it brings to mind that it was probably a good energetic message with a practical application for youth and there was probably and exciting video or prop used to go with the sermon.  But, this was not the case with this message.  As far as I'm concerned this is the kind of message that should have been preached for the past 9 years in this church.  Guess what the message was???  It was the Gospel, the great Commission it was God's Holiness and Guilt, Grace, and Gratitude.  Except he used the words we learned from camp: God, Sin, Jesus, Choice.  Which is basically the same pattern.  I think our leadership has a great model to look at in our Youth Minister.  If they can find a Sr. Minister that will preach the way that our Youth Minister has been preaching, God will surely be pleased to have the messages that He asked to be preached actually preached.  Although, this kind of preaching may be deemed impractical, and not relevant to our daily lives...  But, I would challenge that notion, especially since the Apostle Paul repeatedly preached Christ and Him crucified, the Gospel to Paul IS practical and out of that Gospel comes redemption, and out of redemption comes a life of grateful living in gratitude for what Christ has done for us.  Not just by His death.  But also by His LIFE that He lived in our place.  Grace is truly amazing, declaring us righteous before a Holy God.

Grace and Peace,

Chris
www.Reform-Shire.blogspot.com
Coram Deo!!!

India STM 40 Day Prayer Calendar

Dear Family and friends,
Thank you so much for your support for our trip to India that is
coming up in a little less than 5 weeks--40 days to be exact, tomorrow!
We covet your prayers for our team and the Central India Christian
Mission (CICM) that we will be visiting next month. We have made a
Prayer Calendar to introduce to you our short term mission team as well
as the different parts of the CICM ministry. Please print this out
(it's 13 pages!) and keep this where you can read it everyday and most
of all PRAY for us!

You will recieve a copy of our daily itinerary the week before we leave
so that you may see where we are and what we are doing everyday we are
in India. You will also recieve updates while we are there.....you are
our partners in the venture and we are thankful for your support!

Blessings,

2009 India STM team
Mountain Christian Church
 


 

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Hello Again Reform-Shire Friends!!!

I know it has been a long time since this blog has been updated.  You may have thought I had been raptured or fell off the edge of the Earth or something.  But, I have been quite busy and there have been some significant changes going on in my life.  First I went on a week long summer camp with the youth group at my church at Camp Table Rock in Missouri.  You can find out about more about this camp at www.funson.com .  Then my family and I finished the weekend off with a little family vacation there at Table Rock Lake with some good friends and family activities.  Now I'm in the process of transitioning to my new job in "OOOOk-lahoma, where the wind comes sweepin' down the plain".
So, during this time I have neglected to keep my blog up to date and to keep my donation status up to date.  So if you give it a little peek over there you'll see that I'm progressing very well towards my goal for the India trip which is still on schedule in September this year.  Please continue to pray.  I will start posting some of the notes or email requests for prayers as they come up and will explain some of the things we are planning on doing on this mission trip and I hope to be able to provide some kind of update during the trip and afterwards.

I hope all is well with you all.  Please drop me a comment below or an email.  I would love to hear from you all and I pray that the Lord is blessing you all.

Thanks again and may the Lord bless you and keep you...

Grace and Peace,
Chris
Coram Deo!!!

 Chris
www.Reform-Shire.blogspot.com
Coram Deo!!!

2009 Haiti Mission Trip Video - 90 Pews built in 3 Days