Jan 24 2012
Doing Training. Lots of Travel.
The last two weeks have been a very productive time and God did many wonderful things in and through our ministry. Honestly, today I ran out of gas but that is okay. God seems be be giving me a couple of days of rest this week to catch up after non-stop stuff. God is good. Lisa and the kids too are in a busy time. Tim and Charis are in basketball right now and Tim continues in scouts. As I did some training with some ISI staff friends in Colorado who are just about to have their second wedding of the year of their two daughters, I was struck by the fact that in not too many years, we will have one in college and another not too far behind. Lisa and I celebrated our 18th anniversary yesterday. Wow… the time move so quickly.
Some quick hits:
- Roy and teammate Derrah spent Jan 13-16 in Colorado training people in some of the stuff we are doing in ministry with the M28 initiative. This was in a sense a dry run for another nationally teleconferenced training in Omaha in February and a international trip to do training in Asia in late March. God really blessed the time as people seemed receptive and open to trying what we were teaching: implanting church planting concepts in discipleship of students who follow Jesus. We also learned about what works and doesn’t work in training this material. Almost everyone there said that we encouraged them to really look deeply at how they do ministry.
- We welcomed several hundred new students at UTA. Roy helped out with the rides to Walmart and Roy, Lisa and the team helped out much with the Big Howdy party this last Saturday. On the Walmart run, in his group of 6, he met a young friend from Iran who really connected with Roy.
When you are looking for people of peace(POP’s), you find them. Or at least it seemed that way this week. the Big Howdy party was remarkable on many levels. We had our usual 500-600 people. We had our usual 200 volunteers. (all amazing blessings from God) But it seemed like more Americans (students and volunteers) were mingling and really connecting with more international students than any other year. Then Friday night was huge as we expanded to two groups. We still had any very open kids again many POP experiences.
We recently heard a story from a volunteer who shared that they have been able to take their friendship partner student to church with them and recently that student brought 13 friends and several kids along from the same program. On coming there, ten signed up for a Bible study in preparation for the movie
The Friday night groups at our house continued to be huge with 50+ people even after we expanded to two groups. The fruit though came in the second group which was considerably smaller but the intimacy encouraged some that usually go into discussion group to be a part of Bible discovery instead. Praise the Lord! No doubt they are learning and finding truth in God’s word. Also next week one of the students offered to facilitate Bible discovery group. Wow! (our discovery facilitator always asks the same questions and so is not a “teacher”). 
Can you all say POP… One new Korean student said that after the group he finally, for the first time in America felt comfortable like he was at home. Continue to pray for Friday night(
At the TCU welcome party we saw many new faces as over 70 were present. they came from all over the world including Russia, Armenia, China, Vietnam, Venezuela, Sri Lanka, etc. All enjoyed the time thoroughtly and felt love and appreciated. We also met many new potential volunteer students.
The talk at Southfield Community Fellowship was just like coming home as we felt loved and we were amazed by how many people we knew from different part of our lives there. Roy was able to share from Luke 11 about doing ministry on purpose looking for people of peace with many, many student examples of POP’s going home and being different makers.
Roy was a part of the Big Howdy Rides to Walmart, the Used Item (Garage) Sale and the Airport rides the last two weeks. God really blessed with some people of peace like relationships with several people. Roy connected well with a student from Bangladesh and Korea through airport pickup and a couple of Indian students through the rides to Walmart. That is just a microcosm of what is going on all over. This year it seems like the volunteers and Americans are being much more focused on the task and there seems to be more POP’s being found. In addition, one HUGE addition was a concert of prayer related to all this. We’ve also had more students than ever volunteering and helping. It’s almost every day that people like Mark from China or Bethany from Columbia are helping with something. Praise that Lord for all he is doing.
We connected with one of the first students we worked with, Jane from Taiwan who became a follower of Jesus while here through her helping us out with music. She is now married and she visited with her husband and young son from Indiana. We also saw Joyce (also from Taiwan and a Jesus follower from her time at UTA) and her husband Culley who were great friends with Jane. It was good to reconnect with both families and encourage one another in the Lord.
Pray hard all day today (on Saturday, August 27) as we have the Big Howdy Party at UTA. This has been an unusual Big Howdy in that there has been some push back by some students from certain communities which is spread easily on facebook. The plus side of that is that POP’s are much more obvious as they are the one who are coming. Pray for our volunteers, students and staff teams of the different groups and ministries there that they can identify POP’s and route them where they can build on what God is already doing in their lives. Pray also for enough food, safety, and a good aroma among those who go. Pray as our students also go out and pass out cards about Friday night as the party is the main place we allow people to share about their ministries, etc. (
The Big Howdy begins (
Our family continues to meet for Discovery Bible study with another family, our dear friends from Tajikistan. Wednesday was the husband, Alex’s birthday but the Alex and Maria insisted that we did Bible Discovery group before we celebrated with Alex for dinner. Praise the Lord for their excitement over studying together. Pray that as Wednesday church and other things start up again, we can find a day of the week that works for everyone to meet.
Many students are going home after the summer long term. One student shared on Friday that she was “concerned” when she came here and was worried about not having anyone here. She shared she never would have thought that she would have found a place that felt like family like the Friday night group was to her.
The Big Howdy (
The TCU welcome party was one of the best yet. There were nearly 50 people there. The team did a terrific job of connecting with both old and new students. The greatest joy for me was watching the team gel and work together. It is a really tight group and it is a testimony to the students. Also Roy had a great discussion with a student about the impotence of politics and government to inherently change the world at the root level but that heart change affected by Jesus is the only way that true change can happen.
Ron shared with me that of a cool happening with the Training for Trainers (T4T) discipleship group. On Thursday, the group was sharing things they were thankful for and stressed out about. One couple from Taiwan desperately needed a car as they planned on transferring to a school 30 minutes away. One of the newly believing Chinese girls prayed for them. The following Monday, they reported that God provided right car at the right price. All was amazed at how quickly God answers prayers.
Every year we (ISI and many different ministries, churches and organizations) welcome new international students to UTA. The whole month of August is devoted to this activity. This is true at TCU and all our other DFW campuses as well. It is a very special time when we get to meet some new friends. We welcome them in many ways! (see 
Organizer) as a sample of what was happening on all our metroplex campuses (including UTA, UTD, TCU, SMU, UNT, Northlake, UD, Collin, Navarro, & Northwood):
200+ volunteers who provided food, did airport pickups, transported students to Wal-Mart, lifted and delivered furniture to students apartments, and many other acts of love and kindness.
Thank you for praying and giving!
Some times God “benches” us in the craziest times to force us to rest. Often he uses illness or family issues to do this important thing. This last week I was exposed to a new way, Jury Duty.
(not to mention the other campuses – UTD, SMU, Northlake, UNT, Collin College, University of Dallas, UT Tyler) Last I checked our UTA Big Howdy team (
still ahead with the Used Item sale this Saturday and the approximately 450 attender Big Howdy Party on the 29th, the rides around Arlington on the 7th (already 50 sign ups) and the Aradhna concert on the 19th where we expect 350-400 students. Of course this all wouldn’t be possible without our incredible and dedicated team of volunteers and staff. At UTA, Ron leads our Howdy team of approximately 150-200 volunteers. It is a generally crazy time and God is blessing us in so many ways.
Thankfully it was at municipal court and I figured the cases are relatively short (it’s really traffic court). As it got closer and closer, I was feeling more frantic about being able to make the time to go. Still, to be able to finish out jury duty with one day of service (likely sitting around and waiting) and to not have to serve again for a while was very inviting. Anyway, I decided to go with an attitude of rest. This was a day off from the frantic daily requirements of life; a time when “I could legitimately say, I can’t do it… I am serving my country.” I was going to take a good book, my facebook app on my phone and just relax.
taken to the court room to be picked… We find out they just handle 30 minutes to 2 hour traffic (mostly speeding) cases. This time I want to be picked… I can go home quicker and I can honestly say I served on a jury in the last 2 years when asked next time. First jury… No… “I’m taking a day of rest… relax” Second Jury… YES! I am picked… but we have to go up to the 9th floor to wait for our turn for the second case.
The case was relatively short, cut and dried. The defendant was trying to be “Denny Crane” on Boston Legal but no one bothered to tell him he was in traffic court and really, in real court… Boston Legal would not cut it. Actually in contrast to the obviously new, just-out-of-law-school but professional Assistant DA, his case really felt like a grown up version of “My dog ate my homework” with little substance but much passion. Anyway… I’m not going to let it bother me because “I’m taking a day of rest…”
Here is a great student testimony from one of our key staff team members, Ron Bunyard showing how the initiative of our friends who volunteer with students are one of the keys to what we do. It is especially relevant because the Big Howdy is coming up soon again. Please volunteer to help welcome student if you can at 
Thanksgiving at one of our volunteer’s home and learned more of the story of Christ. On New Year’s Eve, led by some of her Chinese friends, R committed her life to Christ. She then led her boyfriend in Canada to faith in Christ by spending all night long chatting with him about what had happened in her life. The story does not stop there. This past spring, R has led her two roommates to Christ and they are actively engaged in Bible study and growing. They have also engaged two more of their friends in Bible study with one of our volunteers and the five of them will resume this study when they return from China this month.”
In many ways this has all the indications of being a very emotionally draining week for me and my family. So many difficult things happened (see Prayer needs below). There were some sleepless nights and lots more prayer than usual. Still, God is here and working and for that I am truly grateful. We have lots of huge prayer requests this week. Please pray specially. The next couple of weeks will feel difficult and the effects of the last couple of weeks will start to be felt.
God gave our DFW team a wonderful, wonderful retreat. We looked at a new strategy for ministry for the DFW area that incorporates what we already do but looks to expand on it using a new paradigm. We will need some prayer warriors if this will work, but if it does, it could be really special. Let me know if you are interested in praying specifically for this for the next year in a concentrated way.
We had a wonderful banquet for the Chinese EMBA students at UTA where they got to hear from a wonderful Christian business man who spoke at their level and also they connected well with their friendship partners.
My grandfather in Japan passed away today. I did not know him too well as he was always so far but I do know he was a very special man who was a huge influence for my mother. I’ll never forget his wonderful laugh, his constant smile and his deep but simple wisdom. I just wish I could have gotten to know him better. I don’t believe he ever knew the Lord. That saddens my heart.
depend on God’s grace.
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