The Value of One

I was sent this great satirical story, and coming from the daughter of a missionary who has gotten letters such as this, as well as knowing friends who have gotten letters like this as well, let me tell you that this is all too true. Anyway.

A PINK SLIP FOR AN APOSTLE

by Rick Moeller

Missionary to South Africa and Scotland

[Note: every missionary who has served for very long has been “fired” by one or more churches; sometimes, it is an economics-driven “layoff,” and every missionary is sympathetic to churches suffering due to the state of the economy beyond their control; but far too often, the reasons given--if any are given at all (some very unethical pastors drop support and never notify the missionary)--for terminating regular support to a missionary are patently absurd or blatantly disingenuous.  When we read Bro. Moeller’s satirical letter--of course containing caricature--illustrating this situation, it struck a cord with us and we wrote for permission to reproduce it here; we think it will prove thought-provoking to our readers.--Editor]

From: Rev. Alexander Demas

New Ekklesia Church, Thessalonica

To: Missionary Saul Paulus (The Apostle Paul)

C/c: Church at Antioch

Dear Brother Paul,

Greetings, from your former disciple, Alexander Demas.  You will be excited and encouraged to hear that I have recently been called as pastor of the church at Thessalonica that has faithfully supported your ministry for many years.  Our church has recently heard of your health issues and your incarceration in Rome. Please know that we have been faithfully praying for you.  (I have especially been concerned for you, because I still fondly remember the short time that we served together in missions work before the Lord led me elsewhere).

New Ekklesia Church is so grateful for your years of service to our Lord.  I know that you have had many long time friends in our church.  (Unfortunately, many of these friends have recently left our church for various reasons.)

Since becoming pastor of this church, I have done my best to attempt to reorganize the church in such a way that it can function more effectively and efficiently.  One of the first things that I have done is to establish a Missions Committee in our church that I encouraged to make a detailed study concerning current Missions techniques and practices and how we can most effectively reach this modern world for Christ.

After this intense study, our Committee concluded that we need to concentrate on certain specific areas of world Missions outreach at our church.  Our greatest desire is to find the neediest people of this world so that we can concentrate on taking the Gospel to them through modern business principles and current technology.  Missions scholars and our own meticulous research have made it clear to us who these persons are and how we can best reach them.  Of course, we know that souls need to be saved around the world, but we have come to the conclusion that New Ekklesia Church must concentrate upon the area of the “20-25 Window” for our Missions outreach.

We have further concluded that in our modern world, it will be best to concentrate on supporting short term projects, rather than lifelong ministries since short term projects yield the most visible results in the shortest possible time period.  The Missions experts that we consulted have confirmed that this will be the best way to reach the world in our generation.

We also feel that such short term projects are the most efficient way to get the members of New Ekklesia Church to be involved consistently in giving to Missions since they will be continually excited by the ever changing Missions opportunities that are presented to them.  We will support condensed, pithy Missions projects, not time-consuming, long term investments.

Brother Paul, please know that we love you with all of our hearts.  (This is especially the case with me, because of our past history since you were such an incredible blessing on my life; I know you feel the same way toward me).  So, you can imagine how difficult it is for me to inform you that, after compiling our report, our Missions Committee has come to the conclusion that we can no longer financially support your ministry.  I know that this is a great disappointment to you and I apologize for that, but we know that you have many other supporters who can stand in the gap for you.

Let me outline some of the factors that have led us to this difficult decision:

1. YOUR AGE — Our Committee is afraid that because of your advanced age, you are no longer able to identify with the current generation.  You have had a significant ministry, especially when you served in Asia Minor, but we, as a Committee, do not believe that you will be able to make the difficult transition necessary to minister in Europe.  We feel that you are too tied to Oriental culture and so, it will be difficult, if not impossible, for you to adapt to ministry in Europe.

Our research has led us to believe that the greatest hope for world outreach is to use young missionaries who can identify with the current generation.  You have had your chance, now it is time for us to go in a “different direction” with our financial support, and give someone younger a chance. I know that you, who have discipled so many young preachers yourself (myself included), will surely understand our decision.

2. YOUR HEALTH — Our Committee is so thankful for your many sacrifices, but as a result, you have had too many life threatening situations which have caused too much wear and tear upon your body. To be completely honest, in your current health situation, we on the Missions Committee, feel that you would not be a good investment of our Missions denarii because your health will prohibit you from expending the energy that is necessary to do the ministries that our church envisions.  Again, we are thankful for your sacrifices, we know that the Lord will honor them, but we must think about the future of our Missions program.  There are so many projects that we desire to accomplish in the harvest fields of the world and this will require healthy bodies.  We cannot waste our hard earned denarii!  We know that you will understand and that the Lord will surely continue to provide for you from other sources.  (Besides, I am sure that you have an adequate retirement plan in place).

3. YOUR FIELD  — You have left a fruitful ministry in Asia Minor, especially in Ephesus, where you proactively influenced a whole culture.  Our Committee does not feel that this move to Europe can possibly bear the same results.  Your talents were perfectly matched to the Asian mission field.  We believe that you will be a “duck out of water” in Europe. Now, we have learned of your incarceration in Rome.  This development will definitely further reduce your effectiveness.  How will you ever be able to have an effective ministry while being chained to those licentious Roman soldiers?  We are sorry for your situation, but we must think about getting the most “bang for our denarii“.  A missionary whose freedom of movement has been so curtailed just cannot get the job done that we have envisioned.  We feel that we would not be good stewards of God’s money if we continued to pour our resources into your ministry, since you are now incapable of free movement.

New Ekklesia Church agreed to support you in Asia Minor, but since you chose to change your field of service to Europe, our contract with you can legitimately be cancelled.  This is not a judgment upon you or your future ministry.  We will continue to pray for you and for your release, but we must move on to fields that we think are more deserving of the Gospel than Rome.  (Please do not take this personally; we have had to take the same step with other missionaries who left a very successful ministry in Samaria to move on to Ethiopia).  After our research we have determined at New Ekklesia Church that our target field must be Asia.  So we are concentrating on Asian ministry, not European or African ministry).

4. YOUR STATUS — Our Committee also believes that you have probably been out in field service too long.  Many of the people of our church no longer even know you or your ministry.  It has been such a long time since you last visited us. We just cannot pump our people up for Missions without regular personal contact.  So, we feel we must concentrate our efforts on new missionaries and partner with them to reach our targeted fields. We even plan to send teams from our church out to instruct these new missionaries in what our research has indicated is the best way to reach these targeted people for Christ.  I am sure that with your vast Missions background you can understand, accept, and appreciate this fact.

5. YOUR CONTACT — Our Committee must also point out that you have been inconsistent with your reports from the field lately.  We realize that you have been in some awkward situations, but it is still absolutely essential that we receive regular reports from you in order to keep Missions before our people.  This is a very vital way for us to know whether our investment in your project is consistently bearing fruit.  Regular “prayer letters” are a “must” and their neglect for any reason whatsoever must result in missionary termination.  I might also say, as a word to the wise, that when we do receive your letters, they are good, but our Committee feels that they are much too long and wordy.  We feel that the best letters are those that are short and pithy; our people will never read them otherwise.  Furthermore, our people need to hear of exciting results from their missionaries, not to be preached to!!  You can see where I am coming from, I am sure.

I hope that we can part ways as friends. Your termination is only a business decision that is in the best interests of our church; it is NOT personal.  We still love you in the Lord and will continue to be praying for you.  We do love you, my brother!  You are still important to us.  We apologize to you that we could not speak with you about this in person, but you understand that, due to your situation in Rome, this was impossible.  Also, our exciting and growing church does not have anyone that we can spare, at this moment, to come and visit you in your Roman prison.  When you are released, if you get back to Thessalonica, I would be happy to meet you over a cup of coffee.

May the Lord continue to bless you, as He is blessing us.

Yours in Christ’s service,

Rev. Alexander Demas

New Ekklesia Church, Thessalonica

—

I wonder how the Apostle would have felt if he had received such a dismissal. Perhaps he would have remembered this occasion when he sadly looked around his dark, damp cell in the cold Mamertine prison in Rome and wrote, ” .  .  . Demas hath forsaken me, having loved this present world, and is departed unto Thessalonica . . .” (2 Timothy 4:10).

I totally forgot to mention a ways back that I started a blog devoted entirely to my writing. It’s updated…well…not so frequently, but I hope to start writing consistently on it (when I start writing consistently on this one, right? ) and keep posted on what I’m doing writing-wise!

So check out The Breathings of My Heart! See you there…

I’ve been awarded by Elise over at Ribbons of Light! Thanks so much!

I send this award onto Elisabeth,  Brittany, Katy, Amanda, and Everly.

As for random things…

-Benjamin Bunny is five and a half weeks old! I promise, I will post a pic soon. It’s just been a little hectic because…

-Jon was having severe abdominal pain yesterday, so Dad took him in. Lo and behold, he had appendicitis and an emergency surgery was in order. He’s home now, being babied by ten nurses waiting on him hand and foot. So it had eliminated any time to post.

-I watched BBC’s Emma again Sunday night (I saw it the first time via YouTube) and my opinion still stands–I like the Gwyneth Paltrow version much better.

-I also watched My Fair Lady last night with Belle, and in light of all the discussion I’ve had on my costume/sewing blog about the upcoming remake, I was reminded once again–why is a remake needed???

-I’ve gotten a lot written on my contemporary novel, Hope Torn Apart–four chapters! Very happy about that.

Anyway. I need to run and see if Jon needs anything. Have a good week, ladies! Love you all!

Once upon a time, there was a sixteen-year-old girl who had everything all figured out.

Life was a very simple puzzle, one of those 25 piece ones where you can clearly see which pieces goes where.

Things would happen in a very pat order. Graduate from high school. Six months later, boom. A young man that matched every little things I ever wanted would come. It would be love at first sight. After a whirlwind courtship, in which we would never, ever quarrel and he would bring me flowers every day, he would get down on one knee in a perfectly romantic spot during a perfectly romantic time and pop the question with a soliloquy that smacked of Romeo and Juliet. I would accept without a moment’s thought, of course, and after a whirlwind engagement, we’d have the perfect without-a-hitch fairytale wedding, have the perfect fairytale honeymoon, and then live in a little dollshouse and have twenty children and live a long and happy marriage, having never quarreled in our whole lives. The same cycle would happen to each and every one of my close friends, and I’d be a bridesmaid at least twice a year for the next five years.

Then I got older, and suddenly the puzzle turned into a 5000 piece one…with a few pieces apparently missing. Suddenly all my pat ideas were one by one tossed out of the window by reality. Princes transform into real men who forget to pick their clothes up off the floor and forget to buy flowers. Weddings have catastrophic events occur. Love at first sight can be a complete joke. Years, decades can go by before a man ever appears on sight. Courtships–even unbreakable, foolproof courtships don’t work out. And an engagement ring is not the sign that wedding bells are definately in sight.

“It’s not supposed to be this way.” My heart cries as reality continues to smack me. “Where’s the happily-ever-after?”

The perfect little dream of a starry-eyed teenager is gone. And maybe that’s a good thing. It seems like this year the Lord has seen fit to slowly turn me away from my ideals to what he has planned.

I look back, even to the beginning of this blog, and see how much I thought I knew about everything, and how little I really did. I was the expert on love, courtship, and marriage. And then as I was witness to “perfect” circumstances turning out in not-so-perfect ways, as I saw friends face heartbreak in many different ways, all my big opinions were pulled out from under me.

Just because we do it the perfect way doesn’t mean that it’s going to turn out perfectly.

Because we live in a sinful world.

But even though the realities of life have taken the dream of my childhood, a new dream rises in its place.

A dream of serving my family. Of helping in their endeavors. Of bonding even closer to my siblings, and enjoying the time I have with them.

And someday, in circumstances only God could work out, meeting not a prince or a knight or a superhero, but a man, a man probably much different than me (because we are two totally different human beings–duh! ). A man that will love the Lord first of all, and then love me. And he will be a prince and a superhero because he is a godly man and because he is mine, not because he can (or can’t) fly or magically think everything I’m thinking or kill dragons.

A dream of a courtship prayerfully considered through a long period of time. Of a courtship that will be riddled with problems and petty quarrels, but that will last by the grace and will of God, not because we are courting, and therefore are assured of a perfect ending.

A proposal romantic because the man I love is asking me to be his wife, not because there’s a sunset.

An engagement full of smiles and tears and wedding planning, still keeping our eyes on the Lord and praying for His will and guidance.

A wedding that glorifies what God has done in our lives,

And a marriage full of flus and moving and bills and even quarrels. If God wills, a marriage full of happy children. A marriage that will last because God is in it.

Yes, the old dream is gone. But that dream was the dream of a child, a child who was full of the Disney Princess idea of romance, of love at first sight, of happily-ever-after.

I can’t let go of the promise that God is going to work all things out for good. That he will give the desires of my heart. (And that courtship is the way to go. Don’t get me wrong. I’m not giving that up.) And I am content in that. I am happy to enjoy life now. I see now that love and marriage doesn’t solve all our problems. It creates whole new ones. And that’s not bad. But I realize that if I’m not happy now, I never will be. I’m not going to be magically rid of my problems and worries. I’ve got to face them now.

And I’m happy with that.

Someday it will happen.

But for now, I wait.

I’ve been gone a while from the blogworld. Where am I, you ask? Here. At home. With a case of the January blahs.

We still have the snow leftover from Christmas. The most I’ve seen in a long time! It seems like as soon as the roads clear up, another snow comes along and the roads are a mess again. The state line road was a study on the difference between the Kansas and Missouri’s system–the Kansas side of the road was almost totally clear, and the Missouri side was barely plowed. Our street went three weeks before a snowplow came along. Quite messy.

We had a very nice first-week-of-the-New-Year, relaxing after the holidays (terrible you have to “relax” after the holidays ) and watching BBC miniseries. Tonight we watched the first two episodes of Cranford and enjoyed it very much!!!

Benjamin is four weeks old now (pictures coming soon, I promise!). He’s an absolute doll and is so fat! Which is lovely, as our last three babies were all scrawny (but adorable, of course) little things. He gets up about every three hours, which isn’t bad, I guess, but still keeps me from keeping early rising hours. Especially in the last few days as Mom’s been under the weather. But I don’t mind, of course. Except when he’s wide awake and ready to play at three in the morning. Ok, not even then.

I got new stuff for my room this Christmas, so in the next couple of weeks I’m hoping to get started on redecorating my room! For the last four years I’ve had a hot pink/lime green/orange/turquoise room. It was so much fun, but I’m ready to go to a more…older look. The colors now are chocolate brown, cream, gold, and peachy-pink. It’s a French theme. I will post pics when we are finished (think February, probably).

I’ve got a very serious case of post-Christmas blahs! Our tree is entirely dried up (to the point of not turning on the lights any more for fear of fire), but Mom and I just can’t take it down yet! All the decorations are still up. I don’t like thinking about taking them down, in fact, I got choked up this evening about it, and I regret to say, shed some tears.

I really need to get a “meaty” post up after all this Christmas fluff, but my brain is completely fried. I will attend to it soon, though.

Well, it’s very late and I should be going. Have a good week, girls (and ladies )!!!

I found this fun New Year’s at Wickfield.

What did you do in 2009 that you’d never done before?
Started taking voice lessons and teaching piano.

Did you keep your New Years’ resolutions, and will you make one this year?
Talked about that earlier.

Did anyone close to you give birth?
Yes!

Did anyone close to you die?
Not really.

What countries/states did you visit?
Yikes. Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia, North Carolina, Florida, Indiana, Oklahoma.

What would you like to have in 2010 that you lacked in 2009?
A husband? Just kidding. Um, wisdom!

What date from 2009 will remain etched upon your memory?
Um…12-11-09, Benjamin’s birthday.

What was your biggest achievement of the year?
Finishing Nothing More than Dreams. Or rather, finishing the third draft. I’m on the fifth now.

What was your biggest failure?
Not being where I should be at this time.

Did you suffer illness or injury?
Other than the norm, I don’t think so (a bad flu spell this fall made me think of H1N1, but that’s not for certain.)

What was the best thing you bought?
Well, it was bought FOR me, but I’d say my computer!

Whose behavior merited celebration?
My dear, dear friend Victoria graduated this past year!

Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed?
The folks at the top of the U.S. government ladder

Where did most of your money go?
Roughly Walmart, Mardel, and Amazon MP3 downloads!

What did you get really, really, really excited about?
Our new church!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

What song/album will always remind you of 2009?
Whoo-boy…not sure on that one.

Compared to this time last year, are you:
1. happier or sadder? Happier
2. thinner or fatter? I won’t say.
3. richer or poorer? Rich in blessings.

What do you wish you’d done more of?
Read more. Bake more. Lived more (you won’t get this unless you’ve ever read Pollyanna.)

What do you wish you’d done less of?
Spent too much time on the Internet. (And what am I doing now??? )

What was your greatest musical discovery?
The voice! (Not necessarily mine ) Several lovely musicals (hint: a musical based on the animated film version of a very famous French fairy tale, and two musicals based on French revolutions. ). Andrea Bocelli. Some of Josh Groban’s (non-pop) stuff. James Barbour. Jodi Benson. Susan Egan. Lea Salonga. Charlotte Church.

How did you spend Christmas?
With my family!

How did you spend New Year’s?
Quietly, playing ping-pong, eating, playing Lego Indiana Jones 2 with the boys on XBox and watching Beverly Hillbillies w/the family.

Who did you spend the most time on the phone with?
Tori. With Kate coming in very close second.

Did you fall in love in 2009?
Unfortunately, no.

What was your favorite TV show?
Hogan’s Heroes, until it was very much bumped by the wonderful Jeeves and Wooster!

Do you hate anyone now that you didn’t hate this time last year?
No.

What did you want and get?
A computer!!!!

What did you want and not get?
A husband. Hahaha.

What were your favourite films of this year?
New:
North and South
Jeeves and Wooster
Wives and Daughters
Pride and Prejudice 1995
Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull
Braveheart
The Patriot
Kit Kittredge: An American Girl
The Nativity Story
Shop Around the Corner

Rediscovered:
Beauty and the Beast
The Princess Bride
101 Dalmatians (live-action version)

What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?
I turned 20 and spent the day with my friend Kate, who had come down to visit for the first time!!! We had a lovely tea party at Victoria Trading Co., the site of my Sweet Sixteen birthday, as well.

How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2009?
I feel like I really shaped my personal style in 2009. Fell in love with Audrey Hepburn, Grace Kelly, and 50’s inspired classic pieces. Discovered Talbots, Anthropologie, J.Crew, Halls (as inspiration only–their price tags are too steep for my bank account!). Developed an insantiable passion for scarves, tweed, lipstick, heels for dressy and ballet flats for casual, trenchcoats (take that back. Coats in general!) and red everything!

What kept you sane?
My family, blogging and writing.

Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most?
Um. Audrey Hepburn. And I had a thing for digging up any (family-friendly) film that had Hugh Laurie in it after seeing him in Jeeves and Wooster.
(Found 101 Dalmatians, The Young Visiters, and re-discovered one of my favorite characters, Mr. Palmer in Sense and Sensibility (1995))

What political issue stirred you the most?
Everything about this year!!!  We’ve been a part of the Tea Party protests and it’s the most awesome experience!

Who did you miss?
All my friends.

Who was the best new person you met?
The folks at church!!! And my faithful blog readers

Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2009.
When life gives you lemons, make lemonade. And I have a Wonderful Life.

Quote a song lyric that sums up your year.
This should be easy, but it ain’t. That’s not a song lyric, it’s myself making a comment.

Five personally significant events of 2009:
I turned 20
I gained a baby brother
We found a wonderful church
One of my friends started courting
I joined ACFW

Five things I want to do in 2010:
Finish Nothing More than Dreams and send it to an agent
Get really good at voice
Get at least five more piano students
Get better at the things I do around the house
Get better at sewing.

Five people I’d like to know better in 2010:
Hmm. My blog readers!

Authentic Beauty is having an e-course!!! I am very excited about this.

According to the site…

The Authentic Beauty on-site and online courses are underway! The AuthBeau course team has been working diligently in preparation, designing, video shooting, researching, and the like. All this to provide a quality program designed to enhance your life, challenge you, and help you to be beautiful not only on the outside, but most importantly, on the inside where it counts!

Things that will thoroughly studied are:
}Health (eating properly, sleep schedules, vitamins…)
}Fitness (exercise routines, lifestyle, habits…)
}Hygiene (proper skin, hair, and nail care…)
}Personal Style (a total body evaluation: the most complimentary hairstyle for your facial shape, how to dress for your body shape, the best clothing colors for your skin tone, getting the most out of your wardrobe, “what to where when…”)
}Social Graces (introductions, dining out, giving gifts, writing notes, writing letters, phone etiquette, hosting events, being a good guest, public speaking…)

Read all about it and register for the free e-course here.

“Men are not reservoirs of romance put on earth just to fulfill all of our little needs and desires.”
–The Botkin Sisters

We saw a wee bit of BBC’s Cranford on TV the other day, and now I’m waiting for it at the library. I’ve heard a lot about it on the various costume drama sites, and with some of my favorite actresses (Judi Dench and Imelda Staunton for example) and many BBC-familiar faces in it, it looks like a deliciously humorous series!!!

Has anyone else seen it? What’s your personal opinion?

My take coming…as soon as I see it.

Here’s the trailer:

Happy New Year, Everyone!

Wow, 2010. The start of a new decade.

I was talking to my friend Victoria early this morning (2 am ) and we were discussing how this year brings in the start of a whole new season in life. Ten years from now I’ll be 31. (YIKES!!!! That’s sick. No offense to 30-some-year-olds out there. It just seems like a lot now. ) Lord willing, I’ll probably be married and maybe even have a few babies running around. In ten years my youngest sibling will be…ten. (Duh? ) The kiddies will all be grown up and most will probably be on their own with families of their own.

That’s super depressing in a way. If you look at it right. But it’s also exciting. So much can happen in the next ten years. This is the start of a whole new season of life!

I know that this year…

1. I’ll turn twenty-one! Yaaay!

2. Nick will graduate from high school

3. My friend Katy Crompton will be getting married

4. We’ll travel to several different states

What are some of y’all’s plans for 2010?

Happy New Year!