Training Pastors Worldwide

Thursday morning, Dyonah, Abraham, and I drove to Ganta, Liberia, on the border of Guinea. We were scouting the possibility of opening another TLI training site in this remote part of Liberia. The pastors must travel to GraceLife Center in Monrovia to receive any education and bringing our training to them would allow many more to come.

We spent the night in Gbarnga and readied ourselves to help a starved-for-training group of Liberian pastors in the morning. I spoke five times and after each session they broke up into discussion groups – very lively discussion groups! Each group gave a report, we discussed some more, took a break, and rebooted. We returned late Saturday afternoon The two days were very profitable and the men, and four ladies, want us to come back.

Here are a few pics and videos from the trip and the church that hosted us. We came home tired but happy.

I just bought John Piper’s new book. The $25 was worth these paragraphs.

Westminster books. I’m reading the Kindle one. Paper awaits me at home.

“When humans exalt themselves, they call attention to something that can never satisfy the people they want to impress: themselves. No mere human, no matter how exalted, can be the all-satisfying treasure of another human. Nor is such satisfaction of others even a typical human motive for self-exaltation. For humans, self-exaltation is typically a way of getting, not giving—using people, not serving them. But it is otherwise with God.

But what if God’s continual acting for his own glory proved to be less like an insecure, self-enhancing, needy bully and more like the star professional basketball player who drives his Porsche into the neighborhood because he genuinely loves inner-city kids and wants to give them the unimaginable pleasure of playing with their hero?

What if God’s calling attention to his glory turned out to be less like a quack doctor who hangs out a sign that he’s the best and more like a real doctor hanging out a sign because he is, in fact, the best, and he alone can do the procedure that will save the community from the spreading disease?

What if God’s making known his superiority is less like an anxious college art teacher touting the greatness of his classes to shore up his reputation by attracting more students and more like the best artist in the world going to the poorest college and announcing that he is going to give an absolutely free course so that he can show the lowliest student the secrets of his superior skill?

What if God’s public promotion of his power is less like a narcissistic, fame-hungry, military general who seeks victory by sacrificing thousands of soldiers from his safe position behind the lines and more like the truly greatest general who wins both victory and fame by willingly dying at the front line for the troops he loves?”

http://wtsbooks.com

I’ve been busy: teaching, preaching, preparing, eating.

I’m speaking in chapel today on assurance of salvation. Sunday, I’m continuing the series on Colossians – 3:1-4. The text preaches on its own, I just have to get out of the way. In class we are studying the four Gospels and Acts. Part of the discussions deal with connecting preaching units with previous preaching units and the ones that follow. Just like a chain. Hard work. Essential.

Bugs are bugs, but the ones here are a bit different than the California critters – see below. Additionally, African chickens, according to my local chicken whisperer are smaller. I’m not sure about that, but I think they are feistier. One of the “girls” found a small piece of styrofoam. The others chased her for two days for the “prize”. Sounds like us and our styrofoam-ish gods.

Remember the iron? Ever wonder how they change the settings? Linen, cotton, wool? Liberians are industriously amazing!

This guy was actually quite a monster. A good half inch. I kept my distance. Photography has its risks.

It’s amazing what comes out of the kitchen. I don’t know how they do it, but I enjoy every moment.