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  • 11Jul

    Building a Church in the Sacred Valley

    by Drew in Articles, Seeking Things Above.

    This Friday Kevin D., Tim L. and I will depart from the Atlanta International Airport for Cusco, Peru.  After making connecting flights in Miami and Lima, we should arrive in Cusco sometime in the afternoon on the following day.

    Cusco is a capital city in southeastern Peru with a population of close to 360,000.  The city is nestled in the Andes mountains and is perched at a staggering elevation of 11,500 feet.  The city was built ages ago by the Incans, making it a place of great historical significance.  The Sacred Valley of the Incans is nearby, over which looms the ruins of Machu Picchu, the most familiar icon of the Inca Empire.

    Ashville Road helps support a mission team that moved to Cusco in the fall of 2009.  Comprised of three families, the team includes Barton, Allison and Cole who used to work with our congregation.  Before the Cusco Mission Team arrived, by all accounts there were around 60 Christians in Cusco.  Imagine the city of Birmingham, a metro area of comparable size, served by only one congregation of 60 Christians!  Obviously, there is a great need for missions in this part of the world.

    One of the most recent developments in the mission efforts in Cusco is the purchase of an abandoned movie theater.  The aim of our trip next week is for our three men to join a larger group of workers that will remodel the building and make the necessary repairs to convert it into a place for worship.  A schedule for the week shows the work beginning the evening of our arrival and continuing through Thursday evening.  Friday, July 23, we will begin to make our way home.  We should arrive home Saturday evening, July 24.

    I hope to make a presentation on the trip the Sunday evening after our arrival.  Please pray for our group next week, and continue to keep the Cusco Mission Team in your prayers.  They are still in the beginning stages of their work, but so far the Lord has blessed them with many opportunities, some of which they could not have anticipated.

    Cusco needs the gospel, and we are fortunate to play a small role in evangelizing this ancient city.  At one time it was held in the grip of an ancient pagan religion.  Now it is dominated by the traditions of Roman Catholicism.  Our prayer is that the pure New Testament gospel will penetrate ages of human tradition and bring hope to the Sacred Valley.

  • 20Jun

    Neil’s Niche

    by Neil in Neil’s Niche, Seeking Things Above.

    I found a reason why moving is good:  In the frenetic post-earthquake like destruction of our apartment, Hannah and I have begun to find things we forgot we had.  For example, I found the very first directory the congregation that I grew up at published.  The congregation (then Union Avenue Church of Christ in Memphis) had several hundred members and were blessed to be able to listen to G.C. Brewer as their preacher.  They published this directory in 1929: 81 years ago.  Right now I am fascinated with the directory.  Since beginning graduate school in history, I have learned some more critical research techniques, and so this book that I forgot that I had has become a valuable possession.  G.C. Brewer was a well known preacher for the gospel, and coming from Freed-Hardeman – where his name was mentioned a lot – I am glad to have some of his original anecdotes and bulletin articles.  There was one thing that he stressed in some of his articles in this 81 year old document that I really appreciated: the need for giving.  In Brewer’s context, he stressed the importance of monetary giving: the congregation was 30 years old or so and had just completed a HUGE building phase and needed to pay the debt off.  He described the uses of monetary giving and the prescriptions given by Paul and the other disciples and how it was of the utmost necessity to continue giving in such capacity.  I think that we need to remember that the issue of giving has always been important.  It was important 2000 years ago, it was important 81 years ago, and it is important now.  It is critically necessary to give not just what money we have/can, but we also need to give (i.e. devote) our time; our hobbies; our lives…

    We should not be stingy with what we have, even if we don’t think we have enough physical possessions to “give away”.  Whatever we have, be it time or leather interior, we should remember that it is for us to enjoy, but for the Lord to use.

  • 20Jun

    We Call Him “Father”

    by Drew in Seeking Things Above.

    When I talk to my dad I don’t call him “Andy,” even though it is a name we have in common; both of us share the middle name “Andrew.”  I don’t call him “Mr. Kizer” despite the fact that we are proud of the Kizer name.  I call him “Father” or “Dad.”  It may be a matter of habit, but I’d like to think it is something more.  “Father” speaks of a tender relationship between parent and child, mentor and trainee, man and boy.  The name means family, and it is written in blood.  I call him “Father” because I respect him and love him.

    It’s amazing that Jehovah invites believers to call Him “Father.”  Paul spoke of this beautifully in Galatians 4:4-7:

    But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons.  And because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, “Abba! Father!”  So you are no longer a slave, but a son, and if a son, then an heir through God.

    Due to the redemption that is in Jesus Christ, God has adopted us as his children.  In those days, as it is now, adoption was as good as the real thing.  There is no difference to a father between a biological child and an adopted one.  Both are, in a very real sense, his own.  For this reason we cry, “Abba! Father!”  It is uncertain why Paul chose to use this mix of Aramaic and Greek.  Some have trivialized the phrase to mean something like “Daddy,” but a closer rendering is Phillips’s “Father, dear Father.”

    I’ve noticed a trend in prayer to stray away from the traditional opening “our heavenly Father” and go with something else, such as “God.”  I would not say this is unscriptural, but I do not think it is best.  Here’s how Jesus taught us to pray:

    Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name.  Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.  Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.  And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil (Mt. 6:9-13, emphasis added).

    The gods of the pagans never sought after a relationship like this one.  In mythological tales, they rarely aided man.  Never did they call him “son.”  Only the true and living God seeks a father-child relationship with His creation.

    Christians are remarkable for their God.  They call Him “Father.”

  • 16Jun

    Report from Belize

    by Drew in Missions.

    Gloria Harrington was kind enough to write the following report on her recent medical missions trip to Belize.  Her husband, Jim, usually accompanies her on this annual excursion but was unable to go this year.  We are grateful for the work these two are doing around the world for Christ!

    I hope you had a good week and have not melted in this heat !   We had a great trip to Belize; it was hot, and we worked very hard.

    This is the first time we have been there this time of the year which is the start of the rainy season.  We usually go in late March/early April, which is still the dry season, and we rarely see any rain at all.  This time it rained and stormed several nights and some during the day.  The mango trees are also loaded, which I had never seen before;  I don’t think I even knew there were mango trees there, but people were eating them all the time, and we also ate them several times, plus juice with lots of fruits, including mango in it, which was absolutely wonderful ! Continue reading »

  • 13Jun

    Neil’s Niche

    by Neil in Neil’s Niche, Seeking Things Above.

    So, VBS 2010: Heroes is over! It is pretty wild to think that we are already in 6th month of this year. By my calculations, that means that we are halfway through with the 2010 calendar year (because there are 12 months). Anyways, I just wanted to take a minute and say a big ol’, “Muchas gracias” to all who helped with VBS. It was a great time that was had by all.

    Now that VBS is over, we are getting into the meat of our summer. Next week the teens have an SoS at the church. We will be meeting at the building at 12 and doing some work around the building. Lunch will be provided. The week after that we have an On-Site Devo on Monday night at 6:00 post meridiem. We will be hitting up some bowling and then have a devo afterwards. Be sure to make plans for this (Monday, June 21). Also, 6th graders who will be moving up to 7th grade are welcome to come to this devo as well. That Thursday we will be having our first Clandestine Destination. Keep your eye on the announcements as more details will be coming out about our first CD very, very soon. The very next day we will be leaving for COC day at Six Flags sponsored by Faulkner University. Signups have already hit their deadline so this is mainly a reminder for those who have already signed up with dreams of riding Goliath ten times in a row in their heads. That Sunday we will also be leaving for Backwoods Christian Camp. This year we will be with the Hoover Church of Christ at Backwoods and it is going to be pretty fun, signups have almost hit their deadline so be sure to sign up and bring a friend. Cost is $80 for the whole week and signups are on my door.

    The summer is hitting its full stride like Usain Bolt, so be sure to hold on as it gets faster and faster.

    Take Care.

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