Adultery!

I hope that catchy title got you to read this :)... I have been reading in Proverbs and I was so struck by how much empahasis Solomon puts on warning men (but it applies to women as well) against adultery that I wanted to share with you some of God's words on this. Please skim the first 10 chapters of Proverbs and you will see that 3 out of those 10 are words of caution on how to avoid the adulteress and warning by laying out the consequences...

Proverbs 5

"3 For the lips of an adulteress drip honey,
and her speech is smoother than oil;

4 but in the end she is bitter as gall,
sharp as a double-edged sword.

5 Her feet go down to death;
her steps lead straight to the grave."

(I think it interesting that he remarks how sweet and beautiful the temptation is in the beginning...)

"8 Keep to a path far from her,
do not go near the door of her house,

9 lest you give your best strength to others
and your years to one who is cruel,

10 lest strangers feast on your wealth
and your toil enrich another man's house."

"15 Drink water from your own cistern,
running water from your own well.

16 Should your springs overflow in the streets,
your streams of water in the public squares?

17 Let them be yours alone,
never to be shared with strangers.

18 May your fountain be blessed,
and may you rejoice in the wife of your youth.

19 A loving doe, a graceful deer—
may her breasts satisfy you always,
may you ever be captivated by her love.

20 Why be captivated, my son, by an adulteress?
Why embrace the bosom of another man's wife?"

Proverbs 6

"25 Do not lust in your heart after her beauty
or let her captivate you with her eyes,

26 for the prostitute reduces you to a loaf of bread,
and the adulteress preys upon your very life.

27 Can a man scoop fire into his lap
without his clothes being burned?

28 Can a man walk on hot coals
without his feet being scorched?"

I will conclude with all of Proverbs 7. I know it is long, but it is worth reading all of it...

Proverbs 7

" 1 My son, keep my words
and store up my commands within you.
2 Keep my commands and you will live;
guard my teachings as the apple of your eye.

3 Bind them on your fingers;
write them on the tablet of your heart.

4 Say to wisdom, "You are my sister,"
and call understanding your kinsman;

5 they will keep you from the adulteress,
from the wayward wife with her seductive words.

6 At the window of my house
I looked out through the lattice.

7 I saw among the simple,
I noticed among the young men,
a youth who lacked judgment.

8 He was going down the street near her corner,
walking along in the direction of her house

9 at twilight, as the day was fading,
as the dark of night set in.

10 Then out came a woman to meet him,
dressed like a prostitute and with crafty intent.

11 (She is loud and defiant,
her feet never stay at home;

12 now in the street, now in the squares,
at every corner she lurks.)

13 She took hold of him and kissed him
and with a brazen face she said:

14 "I have fellowship offerings [a] at home;
today I fulfilled my vows.

15 So I came out to meet you;
I looked for you and have found you!

16 I have covered my bed
with colored linens from Egypt.

17 I have perfumed my bed
with myrrh, aloes and cinnamon.

18 Come, let's drink deep of love till morning;
let's enjoy ourselves with love!

19 My husband is not at home;
he has gone on a long journey.

20 He took his purse filled with money
and will not be home till full moon."

21 With persuasive words she led him astray;
she seduced him with her smooth talk.

22 All at once he followed her
like an ox going to the slaughter,
like a deer [b] stepping into a noose [c]

23 till an arrow pierces his liver,
like a bird darting into a snare,
little knowing it will cost him his life.

24 Now then, my sons, listen to me;
pay attention to what I say.

25 Do not let your heart turn to her ways
or stray into her paths.

26 Many are the victims she has brought down;
her slain are a mighty throng.

27 Her house is a highway to the grave, [d]
leading down to the chambers of death."

If you are being tempted by sexual sin, REACH OUT to someone. If you have been snared by the temptress, REACH OUT to God and someone else!

God is faithful...

Just wanted to share an incredible testimony of God's faithfulness. In the Bible we read stories of God's faithfulness, but often it seems in life that it doesn't happen to me. I am finding that the more we take steps of faith where we really have to believe in God for miraculous things He comes through, and we get the blessing of experiencing His faithfulness in our lives...

Recently the Lord impressed upon my heart to begin a prayer meeting in the place where we live, Ao Nang. There currently is no church in Ao Nang and I greatly desire to see a place where God's name is exalted and God's people experience the Glory of God shining on this place. I have the desire to have a consistent prayer meeting occurring in Ao Nang that ultimately will become the church. Although we have this desire we lack other people to join us in beginning this gathering. After speaking with a dear brother of mine he reminded me that if God has given us a Word that is when it is time to act. It is not time to search for more Words, especially if none are given. He specifically challenged me to set a date to when we would have consistent prayer meetings occurring. He reminded me that when we put ourselves out there in setting a date, this creates urgency in our prayers, urgency in our striving, and gives us the faith to see God work in miraculous ways. So knowing that God was using him to clearly communicate to me, and confirming in prayer these things, I set the date of Oct 31st. I again contacted the people that I know in the area to let them know that I want to have our first meeting next week.

Well today God showed up and reminded me that it is His work to complete. I got a call from a guy named Andre whom had met another missionary friend of ours at a church in neighboring Krabi town last Sunday. He said he lived in Ao Nang and wanted to get together. We got together this afternoon and Andre and his wife Rita just moved to Ao Nang from Russia with the intention of starting a Russian Restaurant. Andre and Rita found christ due to the efforts of separate missionaries and met at Bible College. They served as missionaries within Russia and now have moved to Thailand to serve as business people on a mission! They are totally excited about being apart of prayer meetings and I can tell will be incredible witnesses to this place. I do not know yet how God is working, but I am so humbled and excited to be able to see Him move in miraculous ways! So great when you get to experience the miraculous, powerful love of the Father!

When you take big steps of faith, trusting in God alone to get you through, you won't be disappointed!

Puak rao ja namasagan phra Jao! (We will worship the Exalted Lord!)

Be Sent Out

As I was praying the other evening with another missionary God led us to pray for those we have influence with in the American Church. I also prayed that He would give us a platform to share on this topic, so I praise God for an answered prayer!

People are falling away from Christ because they are not taking the step of being sent out that being a disciple of Jesus demands. It is clear throughout the Gospels that Jesus disciples were sent out consistently while He was alive and after His resurrection [Luke 10:1-3; Matt 10:5-8; Acts 6:5-7; Acts 13, 14, 15]

Here is what I see happening… I (state your name here) go to church most of the time, pray semi-frequently, study the word semi-frequently, and even occasionally serve at my place of worship. Is this merely how I have allowed Christ to affect the pattern of my life? Or am I giving Him unrestricted Lordship of my life? Will I allow Christ to truly challenge me and take me places I wouldn't be compelled to go otherwise [Acts 20:22]. If I do not apply the knowledge I become so FULL of head knowledge that I literally get overstuffed and want to go to 'sleep' (like on Thanksgiving). This is the point at which people want to change churches (rational being the messages are the same and they aren't getting anything out of them anymore, worship doesn't do it for me anymore, etc.) or just move on altogether.

Jesus NEVER intended for us to just continually get filled with head knowledge and never GO OUT and use it! NEVER! Look at the pattern throughout Jesus' life. He would preach and then show them miraculous things, then He would send them out to do the same. Then He would gather them back together, ask them how things went (to show them that there faith could sustain them in those and even more difficult situations), teach them more, then SEND THEM BACK OUT!

We have experienced this in school as well. Even in basic courses we don't just learn from a book. At some point we are required to do a project or lab work. Why? Because they know that the only way for us to completely understand the lesson is for us to go experience it. In this example you are doing it under the supervision of the teacher, but later on if you continue in your learning you will be required to do field work, where you will take the knowledge and creativity that you have and complete a new project out in the field. This is what Christ calls us to do. Allow Him to give us creative input as we must trust in Him (because we finally are living in full faith) and apply the knowledge we already have to bring Glory to the Father. This is how Christ lived. This is how His followers will live.

One of the reasons we need to be sent out is that the bible doesn't make sense fully in our cultural context. Many of the stories cannot be understood unless we go to different places where we are able to apply the message in a different setting. For example, If we live in an urban setting, parables about vineyards and harvest time can only be imagined, we miss many, many insights because we have never labored in the soil.

Begin with your own life… When was the last time you allowed God to send you out to apply your knowledge in a new way? I would highly recommend to all followers of Christ to take a short term mission trip to a different country. You will begin to fulfill the final command that Jesus left us with, you will grow in ways you CANNOT by staying at home and you will understand the Gospel message in a new way.

You have more power than you think if you will just wield it! Go for it! Don't let anyone tell you you cannot. You can! I believe in you! God believes in you! If you have the Spirit of Christ in you then you can do ALL THINGS!

One Month... Culture Shock

Its been one month since we have arrived in Thailand. I would love to express a romantic picture of the first month and everything being incredible and perfect. I mean how could it be that bad right? Living in Ao Nang South Thailand, arguably one of the most picturesque paradises in the world. Enjoying the wonderful Thai people with my family. How could it get any better?


Maybe that is part of the hard part. I don't understand my feelings. I have felt extreme highs and lows since being here; Frustration, Anger, Depression, Doubt, Isolation, Abandonment, Lack of Control... These are just a few of the things that I have experienced over the past few weeks. More than anything else my mind and heart have felt like a battle field. Reading about the symptoms of culture shock and language shock have helped me at least to recognize that it isn't just me. Praying and trying to hold on to the strength of the Lord.

Coming to understand that I am not strong enough and I am still in need of a Savior.

Video - Kenya Mission Sampling

Mission Kenya Sampling from Jeremy Wight on Vimeo.

A sampling of clips from our 9 days in Kenya. Please also read the below text post "Sing to the Lord a new song - Lessons from Kenya" as well.

Worshipping,

Jeremy

Sing to the Lord a new song - Lessons from Kenya

"Sing to the Lord a new song" Psalm 96:1

You wont know the meaning of servant until you have spent a few days with these people. They are the most hard working people I have ever met. Our hosts, Vincent and Alice Ogutu do EVERYTHING for us. They wont let you do anything. Everyday they get up at 3 - 4AM to begin preparing the monstrous pot of food for the 21 orphans, 4 children and never ending stream of overnight guests. When we awake around 7AM we are greeted by hot water for our bath, in a place where the nearest water source is .5 mile away and the method of heating is over a fire (which they had to cut wood for and start). By the time we are done with our warm water bath we sit down to our feast of a breakfast. Pancakes, fresh Pineapple, Tea, Bread and often an assortment of other things (which they pile on your plate 4 inches high). Now this may not sound like a feast, until you are humbled to find out that there only source of income for themselves and the orphans is a small Pineapple garden which takes up a good portion of there property. For most people (75%+) in this area, it takes 3-4 days of work to make $1USD (please consider supporting them). After we had been there half the week we found out that they don't normally eat breakfast other than possibly a cup of pourage and tea. After our feast of a breakfast, before we head out to take care of our activities for the day we are asked for our dirty clothes so they can wash, dry, fold (and iron if we would let them, but that is where we had to put our foot down). When we arrive back for lunch they first bring a pitcher of water to each person to wash your hands before serving us another spread of a meal often rice cooked with tomatoes and onions to be eaten with a tomato broth and jupatta (African style tortillas). While we were gone they took care of every whim and fancy (which are many, considering the company and place) of my Son (even while he cries and screams) and carries and watches over our daughter so that we are not troubled by their needs. When we go out to take care of our afternoon business we are often greeted by little surprise treats such as soda, pineapple or other items of which most cost as much as they make in a day to a week. Twice during the week while I was out they washed the car we had rented (which the nearest water source from the car is .75 miles away). When the activities are done for the day we return to there love filled, always clamoring with activity, mud home to sit and converse by the light of hurricane lamps with the many friends and neighbors that are always stopping by. After sitting down we are served a pre-meal of tea and bread prior to our grand feast of Ugali (there staple food), squoomaweeky (greens), chicken in broth, pineapple, rice, tomatoes, jupatta and other delicious items as they cook and prepare for the other 30 - 40 mouths to feed for this meal alone. I rarely ever see our hosts at our meals because as we dine they are still working to prepare food or other items for the orphans.

It would be one thing if they only served, but they also have GREAT faith. With so little, they believe in a God who can and does do miraculous things. Three times a week they meet at 5AM (still pitch black) for what they call "Morning Glory" a time of prayer and worship that advances the Kingdom in Nyansakia, Kenya.

As I read and re-read over this post I almost want to throw it away because I cannot express what is inside of me. I can only sum it up by saying:

'We (the Western church) have a lot to learn from these brothers and sisters. We need to learn that people are INFINITELY MORE IMPORTANT THAN THINGS. We only serve/share/give when it is fairly convenient. If it really impacts OUR schedule, OUR family, OUR finances, OUR personal agenda that is when we put on the brakes. This is not how Christ lived. This is not how His children live. So the question is how am I living. Am I living as His child or not?'

"Sing to the Lord a new song" this is what I learned in Kenya; So we have come up with a plan that will allow this Pastor (who receives no financial support from the fellowship) the church and orphanage to become self sufficient through the gift of the resources to farm a 2 acre parcel of land. I call upon the Western church to assist us in helping them. Look for a video describing our plan and how you can partner with God in Nyansakia, Kenya in the coming weeks.

Blessings in the name of Christ Jesus,

Jeremy Wight

Announcing our partnership with M300 Ministries

Lisa and I are humbled to announce our autonomous partnership with M300 Ministries. M300 represents and supports many valiant warriors for Christ all around the world. Founder and Director Wayne Gaines is an incredible man of God. For those that support us financially this will be a way for you to do so securely and receiving all of the tax benifits. Please see the report from Founder and Direct Wayne Gaines here: M300 Ministries Report