Greetings,

“Most of the brothers, having become confident in the Lord by my imprisonment, are much more bold to speak the word without fear.” Philippians 1:14  

My prayer is that I would be bold and so confident in the Lord that I would be willing to do whatever the Lord calls me to do, regardless of how crazy or risky or uncomfortable it is. I am happy to be considered a fool for Christ as long as it is Christ that shines through me and not me. It is human nature to seek your own glory. It is the work of the Holy Spirit to sanctify us to a place of humility where it is not about us, but about His glory. Paul was willing to suffer for Christ often because it was through his suffering that others were motivated and became bold in their faith as well. As a leader, he recognized that he must sacrifice much in order for those that he influenced to sacrifice a little. 

 
It should be the desire of every believer to seek to bring glory to God in whatever we do. You don’t have to suffer imprisonment, persecution, or ridicule to empower people around you to live boldly. You simply must be willing to do the things that we are called to do as believers, regardless of the consequences. Telling a stranger the gospel is bold and most people don’t enjoy it, but it impacts those around us. We think, if they are brave enough to proclaim the gospel publicly, then maybe I can tell my friend or family about Jesus.  

In about 24 hours, I will be on a plane traveling to a land that I have never been to. I will be landing in a culture that I don’t understand with a worldview that is unique and a history that is filled with trauma. I will be listening to a language that is beyond foreign to me. I am not nervous about the trip, but I am curious. I am wondering how God is going to use me to help the people of Cambodia. I am optimistic that this trip will be amazing and I will see the Lord work in amazing ways even though I feel poorly equipped to minister to the people in this culture. I am confident because Tim and Leslie, the great people that I am traveling with, have been there several times before me. I know that our friends Joseph and Kay Kong are already there and that they will be there to welcome us. I can be confident in the Lord because of their testimony and past suffering for Christ that encourages me to be able to do what I feel God is calling us to do in this foreign land.

Paul’s confidence wasn’t based upon people who went before him. He was confident that the Lord is present everywhere and His Spirit had already paved a way for him to minister. As a leader he was willing to be the first to blaze the trail for others to follow. My prayer for our fellowship is that we are full of people willing to blaze the trail and lead others by our example of obedience to Christ. I believe it will be by our faith that others will be willing to follow Christ and become more bold to speak the word without fear.

I will be praying for each of you as I am gone for the next couple of weeks.

Love ya,
Chris  

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