El Salvador Trip
Missions • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
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Goals:
People are more in love with Jesus
Shape Bridge of Faith’s heart for missions
Amy, our children and I just got back from El Salvador. This trip did two things for us. It allowed me to spend time with Alexis (my brother in law) and JoHana (my sister) in Alexis’s home country
The second thing is this was a vision trip for Bridge of Faith as God is moving in our vision statement.
Bridge of Faith believes
5 And whoever welcomes one child like this in My name welcomes Me.
We believe that by doing this
Bridge of Faith will transform generations that transform communities
I remember how this vision statement started...
It started by saying Bridge of Faith will transform a generation that will transform their community.
Later we thought that this is not very reflective of a church so we said
Bridge of Faith will transform generations (plural) that will transform their community.
Then it evolved a little more as the vision started to get bigger.
Bridge of Faith will transform generations that will transform communities (plural)
In our effort to do this, we hire Summer mentors to work with local high school students to make disciples.
The Summer of 2016 we had ONE college mentor and 4 local high school students. That one college mentor was my sister JoHana who is 14 years younger than me.
In 2017 JoHana walked in obedience to the Lord and went to El Salvador. We saw the place she started at. I am blown away.
My little sister went to a new country
Did not know the language (said it took her 6 months to learn)
A time when gangs controlled the country
The driving was intense like really intense
In 2018, she married her husband Alexis.
Then in 2021 they felt the Lord calling them to the mountains of Chalentenago and the city of Citala.
In this call to Citala they asked if Bridge of Faith would partner with them as they were leaving the organization they were currently with Christ for the cities and going to help children in the rural community of Citala.
November of 2021 Alexis got the approval and had a short amount of time to make it to the United States. They landed that December in the US with $40 in their pockets.
They thought the Lord was taking them back to my hometown in Lebanon, MO but as God would lead they landed in Rockaway Beach to serve and learn from Bridge of Faith.
This is where it starts getting even more exciting for me. Two things happened. Alexis and JoHana dove in and started learning. They invested in learning and serving. Alexis had never experienced church in the way Bridge of Faith does church. (The more you learn about El Salvador and the church culture the more that statement will make sense to you) It can also make you thankful for what we have here at Bridge of Faith.
The second thing that happened that I can’t take credit for is that you all started investing in them. You got to know them and you started learning from them. JoHana is my little sister so there was times where she had to pass the little sister test. Amy would battle for them and stand on their behalf but I was tough on them at times. I also probably fought it just because it was my family.
Bridge of Faith you all have been driving this. I have watched as God has ignited your hearts for what He is doing in El Salvador.
I would say I delayed this vision trip for at least a year because I was unsure about it but I have watched as some of you are saving, giving, praying, and wanting to go.
Sometimes as a leader you lead people directions but on this one I feel like I have been following you all as a congregation. It excites me and continues to draw me to the goodness of our Lord and Savior.
(Vulnerability) I was questioning why we were going on the plane ride down. To land and see the excitement in Alexis and JoHana it didn’t take long to see some snapshots of what God is doing there. JoHana said in my 5 years of marriage this is the first time I have ever had family in my home! How cool and encouraging is that to them and us.
Alexis and JoHana’s personalities came alive in El Salvador. I really feel like I saw a whole new side of them that I had never seen before. (Kylie pic)(JoHana pic)
I also saw some of their gifts and abilities. Like driving. I would let either one of them drive me anywhere in the united states. I took a very short clip in the small town of us riding down the street and I am telling you this is nothing compared to other places.
(Video)
San Salvador to Citala is 60 miles and took us 3 hours to get there.
I get excited because transforming communities is plural. The principles that have brought success in Rockaway Beach are some of the same principles that the team in El Salvador is applying and already seeing some results. (Hiking pic)
Start shaping vision for Bridge of Faith missions
At Bridge of Faith, we have the opportunity to host mission teams. So far this year, we have host 17 teams. Yesterday, we had 150 people serving for 2 hours.
I say this to say we host a lot of mission teams. We can tell good teams from bad teams and we have had our share of both.
I will never forget one team that was painting in the old building many years ago. The youth pastor was sitting outside in the van while the kids were inside painting. The kids were getting paint all over everything but the walls they were to be painting on. We had just put in new flooring and they were getting paint all over the floor. I told this team that they should go spend time in Branson rather than come back and serve tomorrow. They took me up on that and we finished the paint job without them.
How does El Salvador fit into the overall mission of Bridge of Faith?
You saw it in the plural of communities but you will also see it here.
18 Then Jesus came near and said to them, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth.
19 Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,
20 teaching them to observe everything I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”
What kind of team do we at Bridge of Faith want to be?
We don’t want to be a team that the leaders tell us to go enjoy the tourism rather than paint.
I also want us to resist the temptation to be the United States Saviors.
What do I mean by this?
The minimum wage a month is $350.00 Because you come from the United States no matter your current state here you are viewed as having power and wealth. (Image eating papusas)
I have always been about doing life on the same level and so it is my desire for us to share the Gospel in how we do missions so that means we must resist the temptation that we as US citizens are the Savior.
Who is the Savior? There is only one Lord Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior.
Let me give you an example
The principle of the school wanting band uniforms and Alexis instructing me to not give him any money. (Team before leaving money with him to fix the bathrooms, they came back that the principle was in the bathroom trying to fix it himself)
8 At Rephidim, Amalek came and fought against Israel.
Just previous to this the Israelites did not have water. So Moses is dealing with meeting the needs of the Israelites and now he is facing being attacked by enemies. You wanna talk about a rough day or week I would say this was a rough week for Moses!
9 Moses said to Joshua, “Select some men for us and go fight against Amalek. Tomorrow I will stand on the hilltop with God’s staff in my hand.”
10 Joshua did as Moses had told him, and fought against Amalek, while Moses, Aaron, and Hur went up to the top of the hill.
11 While Moses held up his hand, Israel prevailed, but whenever he put his hand down, Amalek prevailed.
12 When Moses’ hands grew heavy, they took a stone and put it under him, and he sat down on it. Then Aaron and Hur supported his hands, one on one side and one on the other so that his hands remained steady until the sun went down.
13 So Joshua defeated Amalek and his army with the sword.
Exodus: An Introduction and Commentary The War with Amalek (17:8–16)
Held up his hand: usually a military signal for beginning battle or for the advance. Presumably ‘lowered his hand’ could then be a signal for retreat. Otherwise the uplifted hand may be the sign of an oath
22 But Abram said to the king of Sodom, “I have raised my hand in an oath to Yahweh, God Most High, Creator of heaven and earth,
Exodus: An Introduction and Commentary The War with Amalek (17:8–16)
However, the usual explanation (that it refers to prayer) may well be correct. In this case, to lower the hands would be to cease to pray, and thus to cease to depend on God for help. See Psalm 63:4 for lifting up of hands in prayer.
4 So I will praise You as long as I live; at Your name, I will lift up my hands.
The Bible Knowledge Commentary 17:8–16
Moses’ holding the staff of God (cf. Ex. 4:20) above his head with both hands symbolized Israel’s total dependence on the power of God. When Moses lowered his hands, a picture of lack of dependence, the enemy was winning.
12 When Moses’ hands grew heavy, they took a stone and put it under him, and he sat down on it. Then Aaron and Hur supported his hands, one on one side and one on the other so that his hands remained steady until the sun went down.
13 So Joshua defeated Amalek and his army with the sword.
14 The Lord then said to Moses, “Write this down on a scroll as a reminder and recite it to Joshua: I will completely blot out the memory of Amalek under heaven.”
15 And Moses built an altar and named it, “The Lord Is My Banner.”
Look at Moses in this situation
He is a strong powerful leader and what do we see? He needs help and he can’t do it alone. If Moses can’t do it alone what makes you think in your trial that you can endure it alone.
Moses allows Aaron and Hur to hold up his arms
It does take humility for us to ask groups to come help hold up our arms as we seek to accomplish all God has called us to do here in Rockaway Beach.
It takes humility for you to realize that you need help.
I really think this is what the time of response should resemble every week when we have people in the body of Christ who are willing to stand up here and pray with you. They are willing to hold your arms up in surrender even when you are too tired to hold your arms up. I am telling you it takes a lot of humility to walk forward and let them pray with you. Moses did and so can you.
Aaron and Hur
They are arm holders
This is my picture for missions
I want Bridge of Faith to be arm holders.
Let us up hold the arms of local missionaries who are making disciples (Hacey Picture)
It is a pet peave of mine when I hear these words. I came on mission to get away from my 9-5 job so I don’t want to do that this week.
The way I read scripture is that God has gifted you in your career or job for the purpose of building up the Body of Christ. We don’t go on mission trips to get away from our call. If God has called you to repair Heat and Air, do landscaping, be a server, build buildings, pour concrete, do hair, then be willing to do this on mission trip.
That is if this helps hold the arms up of local mission trips
I also struggle when people want to do things on mission trips that they are unwilling to do in their own community.
If you want to go knock on doors and invite people to church on mission trip but you don’t want to do that in your own community, then I struggle with this.
Knocking on doors in Rockaway and mission teams inviting church members to church.
We are arm holders to the local missionaries.
(Soccer Shoes and Tylenol)
It is so important that if you are desiring to go on mission trip that you are an arm holder here and practicing this on a daily basis.
I am not about waisting money and spending thousand of dollars to fly people oversees for a joy trip. I would rather send the money we would have spent to go if we are not intentional about why we are going.