Bob’s Trips: December 2019 – December 2020

Posted on November 28, 2019 by

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Asia

December 2-14, 2019 – Minneapolis office time, (TLI’s headquarters is in beautiful downtown Minneapolis) and then to Asia teaching Course 4 in our 9 course curriculum: “Gospel of Mark“. Course 4 equips the trainees to understand Gospel literature accurately and to communicate it clearly and relevantly. Mark has been chosen as a representative of this genre. Sample passages from Mark will be the focus (e.g., 1:1–15; 2:1–12; 8:27–9:13; 10:32–45; 15–16:8).

Here’s a link to a TLI Asian story of God at work.

https://trainingleadersinternational.org/stories/874/the-prodigal-pastor

I have not been to Asia for several years. I have great memories! Below are a few pics from those trips.

Boys are the same everywhere. FUN!
In school, thinking about recess.
Delivery bicycle. Tough climb.
Early morning delivery

Ethiopia

January 6-18, 2020 – I will go to Minneapolis for a few days and then to Ambo, Ethiopia teaching Course 3: “Understanding and communicating Narrative and Law (Genesis and Exodus).”

Liberia

March 2-27, 2020 – Minneapolis office time, before and after the trip. 2 weeks teaching in Liberia: one week teaching Course 9: “2 Timothy”, and the next week teaching Course 1: “Knowing God, Scripture, and Ourselves.” Course 1 provides the foundation and orientation for the entire 9 course curriculum. It introduces (1) God’s character, focusing on his sovereignty, wisdom, and goodness, and God’s nature as one and three (triune). It introduces (2) Scripture as our diverse and unified authority, with a fundamental hermeneutical question tied to its diversity, its unity, and its authority respectively. And it introduces (3) our own purpose and role as leaders within God’s church.

Here is the link to TLI’s Liberia site information

https://trainingleadersinternational.org/short-term/381/liberia-march-2020

Here’s another link to the story of the Liberia site’s history!

https://trainingleadersinternational.org/stories/857/higher-power

Ethiopia

May 11-23, 2020. I will be teaching Course 4 in our 9 course curriculum: “Gospel of Mark“. Course 4 equips the trainees to understand Gospel literature accurately and to communicate it clearly and relevantly. Mark has been chosen as a representative of this genre. Sample passages from Mark will be the focus (e.g., 1:1–15; 2:1–12; 8:27–9:13; 10:32–45; 15–16:8).

Tanzania in August 2020, exact dates to be determined.

I am slated to be the site director at this new TLI site. The first trip will be in August. As the director I will travel to Tanzania 3 times every year and work directly with the in-country partner on scheduling, curriculum, accommodations, budgets and anything else that is necessary to make our training effective.

Somewhere in October

Tanzania in December.

Tanzania on the East coast of Africa

57 Reasons to Proclaim the Gospel

Posted on October 10, 2019 by

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57 reasons to continually bear witness to the truth of Christ work on the cross. There are more reasons. One is enough.

  1. Because eternal conscious punishment, hell, is God’s righteous judgment on all, Revelation 19:11-21; 20:14-15; Matthew 8:12; 13:42; 13:50; 22:13; 24:51; 25:30.
  2. There is no other way to be saved except by trusting in Christ, Acts 4:12; John 14:6.
  3. The Lord strengthens and stands by those who share the gospel, 2 Timothy 4:17.
  4. When unbelievers come to faith, they come to their senses, 2 Timothy 2:25-26.
  5. When unbelievers come to faith, they are saved from hell, and they know Christ, 1 Peter 3:18.
  6. The lost escape from the snare of Satan when they come to faith in Christ, 2 Timothy 2:6.
  7. Witnessing is a holy calling, 2 Timothy 1:8-9.
  8. When we are obedient to the call to preach the gospel, the power of God is at work in us, 2 Timothy 1:8.
  9. The words of the Gospel cannot be bound, they will do their work, 2 Timothy 2:9.
  10. When the Gospel is preached to the elect they will be saved, 2 Timothy 2:10.
  11. If we never proclaim the gospel, we will be denied by Christ at the judgment, 2 Timothy 2:12; Luke 12:8-9.
  12. Paul rejoiced when Christ was proclaimed, Philippians 1:18.
  13. The good news of God’s deliverance is glad news, Psalm 40:9.
  14. In all four gospels, Jesus’ call to follow him is synonymous with his call to be fishermen for men, Mark 1:17; Matthew 4:19; Luke 5:10; John 20:21.
  15. There are blessings and rewards when Christians are persecuted for proclaiming the gospel, Matthew 5:1-12.
  16. People glorify God when they hear the words of the gospel, Matthew 5:16.
  17. Jesus sends his followers to live and preach in the same way the Father sent him to live and preach, John 20:21.
  18. The Abrahamic Covenant is fulfilled when the gospel is proclaimed to all the nations, Genesis 12:1-3.
  19. We are commanded to make disciples, which entails going and telling the good news, Matthew 28:16-20.
  20. Telling the greatness of the glory of God, as seen most fully in the work of Christ on the Cross, is the means by which the glory of God fills the whole earth, Psalm 67:2; 72:19
  21. When the Gospel of the kingdom is proclaimed in every nation, then the end will come, Matthew 24:14.
  22. When believers proclaim the testimony of Christ, and die in the process, it fulfills the number of saints who need to die before the end will come, Revelation 6:11; 12:11.
  23. Christ weeps for the lost, Luke 19:41.
  24. Paul wept for the lost, Romans 10:1.
  25. Non-believers need to be warned about judgment, Colossians 1:28.
  26. The Bible says that the task is so vitally important that every effort, except sin, should be made so that people would believe, 1 Corinthians 9:22.
  27. There is rejoicing in heaven when sinners, repent, Luke 15.
  28. Jesus’ name means savior, Matthew 1:21.
  29. In Jesus’ estimation, preaching the gospel was more important than healing sick people, Mark 1:35.
  30. Jesus will crush everyone who rejects him, Acts 2:37.
  31. There is no other way to be saved from our sin and God’s wrath, Acts 4:12.
  32. Jesus saves all who come to him in repentance and faith, Acts 2:21.
  33. The gift of the Holy Spirit is intimately tied to the mandate to witness, Acts 1:8.
  34. When Christians evangelize, they are working with God, 2 Corinthians 6:1.
  35. We are ambassadors of reconciliation to God, for Christ, 2 Corinthians 5:18-20.
  36. We fear God; therefore, we share the gospel, 2 Corinthians 5:11; Luke 12:4-5.
  37. When these bodies are destroyed in the caldron of mission work, we get new ones, 2 Corinthians 5:1-10.
  38. When people are saved, it increases thanksgiving to God, 2 Corinthians 4:15.
  39. When we speak of Christ, we are following the example of those who have gone before us, 2 Corinthians 4:13.
  40. When we suffer for Christ, there will be an eternal weight of glory awaiting us far beyond comparison to the suffering we endure here, 2 Corinthians 4:16-18.
  41. Evangelism pleases God, 2 Corinthians 5:9.
  42. Witnessing is evidence that God’s love has been poured out in our hearts and controls us, Romans 5:5; 2 Corinthians 5:14-15.
  43. Christians are God’s new creatures, made new to proclaim his greatness in the Cross, 2 Corinthians 5:16-18.
  44. We know that just as Christ is majestic beyond description, even though we cannot see him, the unsaved are also eternally majestic souls who must be saved, 2 Corinthians 5:16.
  45. Jesus came to seek and save the lost and we are called to follow his example, Luke 19:10; John 20:21.
  46. The early church went everywhere preaching the word, Acts 8:4.
  47. God commands everyone to repent. Most are unaware of this command, Acts 17:30.
  48. We have proof that Jesus can forgive sins because he came back to life, Acts 17:30.
  49. Those who preach the good news have beautiful feet, Isaiah 52:7.
  50. God is watching over his proclaimed word to accomplish his purposes, Jeremiah:12.
  51. We cannot not speak of that which has enflamed our hearts, Jeremiah 20:9.
  52. It is the privilege of old age to tell of God’s greatness, Psalm 71:15.
  53. We share the good news so that all might worship God, Psalm 117:1; Romans 15:9-11.
  54. When we share our faith, God promises to be with us, Matthew 28:20.
  55. Sharing the gospel gives Christians great joy, Philippians 1:18.
  56. When we evangelize, and endure hardship, persecution, and stresses it gives us great joy, Acts 16:
  57. God is a missionary God, John 20:21; Genesis 12:1-3; Genesis 3:15; Matthew 1.

Ethiopia: plowing, praying, praising, patrolling

Posted on October 4, 2019 by

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Plowing
Praying
Praising
Patrolling

Ethiopia Recap with Pics

Posted on October 3, 2019 by

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Four corners of the room, 2 whiteboards, a teacher (me) and a translator
The story of the Bible in symbols

Dear friends and family,

I’m back and recovered from 14 days of teaching, traveling, and enjoying some good fellowship with the other international trainers at TLI.

I spent three days at our bi-annual staff meeting in Minneapolis, with Dr. Jim Plueddemann. He is the resident expert on cross-cultural teaching at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School. We enjoyed his presentations and discussion designed to help us better equip pastors in other cultures to teach and understand the Bible. I stayed with another TLI international trainer and his family. We enjoyed a great time of fellowship and I really appreciated the accommodations!

Women working in the fields

I left with the team on Thursday afternoon from Minneapolis, overnighted in Washington D.C., and arrived in Ethiopia on Saturday morning. After a full day in Addis, the capital, we left on Sunday morning early so we would be in Ambo in time to check in to the hotel and preach in nearby churches. I preached to a very full and enthusiastic crowd of 160! This is huge in the non-health-and-wealth church in Ethiopia.

Home

On Monday morning, we began teaching. The students were bright and engaged in the teaching. We had lively discussions and many, many aha moments. Now that I have taught the “Story of the Bible” course 2 material, I can say – WOW!! It is very well-written and incredibly insightful. I am reading the Bible with new eyes myself. If anyone would like a copy of the teacher’s manual let me know, I can send a PDF version, it would be eye-opening. The Bible is truly a grand story of the King, the story that oversees all other stories, and God has called us into it as participants. My students understand this now. Thank you for your prayers and support!

Dozens on these teams plowing fields in the beautiful farmland of Ethiopia

We teach the story using symbols (see attached picture). The central symbol is the Cross with a Crown above it. At one point in our training, I took them down and tried to continue teaching. The students objected strongly and would no allow me to continue until the King was in His rightful central place. Probably my best memory of the week, see attached picture.

The rest of the courses in our 9 series curriculum builds on this, story, telling it in more detail while equipping pastors and church leaders to interpret the different types of literature in the Bible (wisdom, poetry, history, prophecy, gospels, narrative, epistles, etc.) and preach/teach/lead their people.

Great time! Grateful for your support. Grateful to be home.

My next trip will be in India in December. I need a little break, it’s been a whirlwind of activity through the summer and September.

Thanks,

Bob and Vickie

Washing clothes, studying the Bible – my favorite picture
Baboon on the road waiting for a donation

Pre-school recess in Ethiopia

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