What drives ordinary people to accomplish extraordinary feats for the Gospel?

 I am reminded of a blind missionary friend who had planted three churches in the remote, rugged mountain villages of southern Mexico! Physical handicap did not discourage, disappoint, disqualify, nor deter this blind missionary away from fulfilling the Great Commission, it only ignited his passion to declare the glory of God, in the face of Christ, to Indigenous peoples enslaved to spiritual darkness. “And the ‘face of Jesus Christ’ is the beauty of Christ reaching its climax in the cross. The bloody face of Christ crucified is the countenance of the glory of God. What was once foolishness to us becomes our wisdom and our power and our boast (1 Corinthians 1:18,24)” John Piper.

The world is not worthy of a blind missionary who gazes upon the beauty, the majesty, the glory, the power, and the worthiness of Jesus Christ! The glory of Christ is found at the cross and the power of Christ is found in the Gospel, but the worthiness of Jesus Christ is only found in a selfless, broken, obedient, surrendered heart. Is Jesus Christ worth more than your possessions, your accomplishments, your pleasures, and your very own life? The Apostle Paul, a man abandoned to the preaching of the Gospel, boldly declared, “I do not account my life of any value nor as precious to myself, if only I may finish my course and the ministry that I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God” (Acts 20:24).  For most of secular American culture, the cross of Christ is foolishness, and for many American Christians today, the gospel has become powerless and the worth of Christ has diminished! “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes,” Romans 1:16.

Don’t let the glittering things of this decaying, dying world blind you from seeing the eternal purposes of God! “May I never boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world,” Galatians 6:14. So what drove a blind missionary to abandon the comforts, the conveniences, and the complacency of contemporary culture, and chose to bring the Gospel to a foreign, hostile, remote, mountain village? Was he driven by guilt, by obligation, by pity, or for the sake of merit? “For the love of Christ compels us…and He died for all, that those who live should live no longer for themselves, but for Him who died for them and rose again,” (2 Corinthians 5:14,15). It was the love he had for Christ that compelled him to abandon himself to the Gospel! Make the cross of Christ the blazing center of your life through which the glory of God will pierce through spiritual darkness and set captives free through the power of the Gospel!

It’s been a few years since I had visited Oaxaca. I have completed my studies for now, but since I have a short break, I have decided to revisit the mountain villages where I have worked before with various Indigenous pastors and church leaders. I am looking forward to this trip and to see how God has worked among the remote mountain villages of Oaxaca. I will be leaving toward the end of this month, August 2010. So please pray for safe travel, for smooth logistics, for finances, and for health. Also pray for the Indigenous peoples of Oaxaca. They are under tremendous spiritual and social oppression; pray that they will come to know the one true God and that they will make Him known! Pray also for the Indigenous pastors and leaders in these regions. They face constant hostility, persecution, and hardships. Pray that the Lord continue to provide for their families as well. Their sacrifices for preaching the Gospel pales nothing to any sacrifices I know of here in America. Its only the amazing love of Christ that would compel them to operate with such power, conviction, and authority. I appreciate your prayers very much. Thank you and may God richly bless!

In His Amazing Love,

Jeremy Seaton, (Navajo Youth)

CHIEF CIRCLE   April 2010

Dear Supporting Friends:  

Last month, Guatemala was in the news a lot due to the destruction of Hurricane Agatha and the big sink hole that suddenly appear in Guatemala City. Also, the American Embassy has issued a travel warning for Guatemala because there are a lot of city bus drivers that are killed daily. The ones killed are the ones that cannot or do not want to pay the daily fee charged by extortionists. Life seems of no value here. The street fights that gangs carry out daily is getting more and more gruesome and demonic.  

Some of our students and teachers have been targets of extortionists. Let me share with you one of the cases. This is the story of Pastor Manuel. He studies every Thursday with us and teaches for us every Friday at our remotest teaching center. I say that this place is at the end of the world because the main road stops there. Anyways, Manuel has been threatened by many daily phone calls asking him to pay the ransom of Q. 60,000.00 or his sister and dad would be killed. He went to the local police station and denounced the threats. The police advised him to continue the negotiations and pretend to pay the ransom at a specified location so that the police could catch the extortionists. He contacted our ministry to ask for prayers. As a result, Isaias thought that it would be better to stop traveling to the isolated teaching place because he felt that the terrain would be appropriate for kidnapping him or killing him. When we communicated this to him, he refused to comply. He told us that he has been teaching his students that God is a God that takes good care of His children in all the matters of life. He felt that if he quit going to teach the students, then this would a sign of not trusting God. So we told him to present our proposition to his wife to see what she said. Her advice: to continue the teaching ministry. So Manuel continues teaching in this remote area. And, two weeks after he made his decision, the threats stopped!  

Three weeks ago, Jorge, Pastor Manuel and his wife, David and I were at his teaching place to deliver certificates to his 14 students who finished our course: Bible Panorama. It was a great celebration because100% of the students who began the course finished it! Never in the past, have we had a class like their’s. The top student in the class was crying for joy because his efforts paid off. This man, Antonio, has always been an eager student. To attend the class, he had to walk for two hours over the mountains crossing one river. During the rainy season, the river would overflow so much that he could not cross it. Because of this, he asked us if we could come to teach in his village so we told him that we would if he could gather 18 students from 3 different churches. So he went and promoted the class in the three churches in his community and 14 students enrolled. All of them are continuing their Bible training with the Synthesis of the Bible, our second course. 

Manuel’s wife told me that the joy that Manuel experiences by being part of our teaching staff is what keeps him going. Manuel and his wife also feel that they are not alone in the ministry. She also said that every time Manuel goes to teach or study that she goes to church to pray for him. They are both truly committed to the Word of God. We are the only Bible Institute that has come to them and for that they are truly thankful.  

That day as I was driving our 96 four wheel Rodeo, I was very nervous because parts of the road were flooded or covered by mud slides. However, gladly, the one bus that services this road had cleared the way before we came. In one section, a mud slide had made the road very narrow, just wide enough for the bus to go thru, but if our car slid in that section, it would have ended up in the ravine that I could not see the bottom of! Praise God for our faithful old four wheel drive Rodeo! And praise God because it did not rain that day. David could not believe the beauty of this remote place–the color of the jungle, the vegetation and everything else was magnificent but very dangerous for a nervous driver like me. Manuel’s wife noticed that I was nervous, so she started laughing and teasing me and reminded me that if God took care of them when they were threatened, surely the Lord could keep us safe on that dangerous road.
  

A. MINISTRY GOAL FOR JULY 15 THRU AUGUST 15:

1. July 16, for Ginny and Isaias to visit the new church that Pastor Juan , a graduate of our ministry, started in Antigua last year.

2. July 17, for Isaias to begin discipling Pastor Diego every week in Xela.

3. July 19, for the Ministry Board to meet in Solola.

4. July 19, for David, our son, to preach at home fellowship in our community.

5. July 25, for Annie, our daughter to arrive in Guatemala to spend the rest of her summer with the family after her missionary service in the Dominican Republic.

6. August 7, for David to be inaugurated as the youth pastor for the Saturday youth ministry.

7. By August 15, Isaias should scheduled discipling time with David, Manuel and Juan. 

 
B. PROGRESS TOWARDS MEETING LAST MONTHS GOALS:

1. June 23, for Isaias, Virginia and Jorge to attend a closing ceremony for the 28 ladies who learned how to make sweaters at the ladies group in Santa Lucia Utatlan.

THE CEREMONY WAS POSTPONED, BECAUSE THE LADIES WERE EAGER TO START THE NEW CRAFT OF MAKING SHASHES.

2. June 24, for Jorge to continue teaching the Epistles to the 8 pastors in Nahuala.

THE CLASS IS GOING REALLY WELL, JORGE AND ISAIAS
DECIED TO INTRODUCE BIBLE TRANSLATION TO THE
STUDENTS AS PART OF THEIR HOMEWORK FOR THE CLASS.

3. July 2, for Isaias and Jorge to attend the closing ceremony for the 9 church leaders in Chuisibel, Nahuala.

THIS IS THE COMMUNITY AT THE END OF THE WORLD THAT I WROTE ABOVE, THERE WERE 14 STUDENTS INSTEAD OF 9. A 100% SUCCESS.

4. July 8 for Isaias to continue teaching his Biblical Leadership class in Nahuala.

ONLY THREE OF THE 9 STUDENTS SHOWED UP, THAT WAS BECAUSE I INTERRUPTED THE CLASS TO GO TO THE USA.

5. July 14 for Isaias to celebrate his 58 years of life with a thanksgiving service with the family and staff.

GREAT SUCCESS.

C. PRAISES AND THANKSGIVING:

1.   We praise God for giving Annie a great experience in Dominican Republic as she ministered to different groups. Her main responsibilities were to teach English and present the Gospel to her students.

2.   We praise God for David’s desire to take over the directorship for the weekend youth ministries. He expressed his desire as he noticed that no one from the young people wants the responsibility.  For Ginny and me, this is a great blessing.

3.   For students like Pastor Manuel, who are committed to the work of God, inspite of threats that he received.

4.   We praise God for our ministry Board. They really want to get involved in the guidance of the organization.

5.   I praise God for Ginny, who saw the need for the women, children and youth ministries. Her involvement to these has made a tremendous impact on many lives.

6.   We praise God for His continued care for us in the middle of many social, economical and spiritual problems in the country.

 PRAYER REQUESTS:

 1.   Please pray that God will give us wisdom to minister to people who are experiencing threats and extortions.

2.   Please pray for David as he takes this major responsibility of youth ministries.

 3.   Please pray for Isaias as he approaches candidates to be discipled that may find the time that it takes to accomplish it. 

 4.   Pray for Ginny as she begins discipling teenaged girls from youth grouping the next two weeks. So far, five girls have signed up! 

 5.   Pray for Annie’s time here in Guatemala. She could use a good rest.  We have to make a decision about more orthodontic work for her . 

 6.   Pray for safety as Jorge and Isaias travel to the different teaching centers. 

7.   Pray for the completion of our Recording studio.  The Recording equipment is on the way from the USA.  Please pray that Customs would not hold it up.

Some believe that the Creator is a person who created the world around us.  Some believe that the Creator is an impersonal force.  “If He is a person, does He know me, and is He concerned about my needs?  Does He even care?  Can I reach Him through my prayer songs and ceremonies?”  Another important question is this.  “If Creator is real, then will I meet Him after death?  Again, how can I really know?  What assurance can I, as a Native American, have?”  Certainly, you will agree that these are very important questions.

     During our School Without Walls, sponsored by CHIEF, we seek to make this truth known.  If we really want to know Creator and the true Great Spirit, we must know the Son of the true Great Spirit, who is Jesus Christ.  He is not the white man’s God, but the God of all tribes, languages and nations.

     One of the disciples, who followed Jesus, was named John. He wrote these words to believers:  “This is the testimony, or this is the truth.  God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son.  He who has the Son has life and he who doesn’t have the Son doesn’t have life.  I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life.”  (I John 5:11-13)  John wants his readers to know the answers to questions regarding life after death, and how they may know Creator.   

     The word John used for “know” is not the word “to know about”.  The word is “to know and be assured of” the knowledge of Creator, His Son and eternal life.

     In another message about God’s Son, John is listening to Him speak.  This is what He says:  “I tell you the truth.  Whoever hears my word and believes that Creator, my Father, sent me has eternal life.”  (John 4:24)

     What a wonderful truth!  Anyone who believes that Creator’s Son was sent by the Creator, can know and have absolute assurance that they have eternal life.  Eternal life is in the Son of God. Therefore, if you have the Son of God, by believing in His name, or better yet, if the Son of God has you, you then can know that you have eternal life.

      Some who will be reading these words may not have this assurance.  But having read these words, you can know that God has given you this gift.  Please respond and share with us that you now have this assurance.  Others may already know.  Your story about your assurance of faith and eternal life can be a real encouragement to others.  Do let us hear from you.

     This series called, “The Five Assurances” is available through CHIEF media section.  The series teaches not only about the assurance of salvation; but also about the assurance of answered prayers, the assurance of victory over sin, the assurance of guidance and the assurance of forgiveness.

 “We invite you to take a moment and visit some of our Ministry partners. Here you will find valuable resources from a wide variety of organizations who are working alongside CHIEF to spread the gospel of Jesus Christ.”
 

Editors note: When you link from this page to any website maintained by the organizations below, you are leaving the CHIEF.org website. CHIEF does not monitor the material provided on these web sites. Therefore, the views expressed on those web sites may not be the views of CHIEF. Also, web site addresses often change. These addresses were correct when the page was created but we cannot guarantee their continued accuracy. Please let us know of any broken links or corrected addresses.   Thank you!

• Native Ministries and Churches
• Native Schools and Resource Centers 
• Native Youth Ministries
• Strategic Ministry Alliances

You too are a very vital part of our ministry!  The fact that you are reading this tells us that you are a person concerned about prayer and the spiritual needs of our Native American people.

We need people who will be Prayer Warriors for CHIEF.  Individuals who will intercede on behalf of our Christian Native leaders, who are faithfully teaching and discipling Native people for the purpose of building a strong, vital, indigenous church for the glory of God!

We have provided you with specific prayer needs for each day of the month.  Will you be a Prayer Warrior and pray for the needs on the dates corresponding with each of the numbers in this Prayer Guide and Praise Report? If so, we invite you to download a new Prayer Guide for each quarter upon request.

Start your prayer 31 day prayer journey

Native Christian leadership is one of the greatest needs within our Native communities today. We need individuals who will be Godly examples impacting their communities on all levels of leadership: in the church, on the council, in the home, and on the job. We need Native Christian men, women, and youth who reflect the Excellencies of God!

It is CHIEF’s desire to encourage, equip and empower our Native Christian leaders of today and the generations to come. It is also with this intent that we want to keep you informed of training opportunities, current Christian Native resources, and networking opportunities with other like-minded Christian leaders.

Mark your calendars and plan to attend!! On the second Monday of every month from September through April, there will be an opportunity for you to interact with other Native Christian leaders discussing common ministry issues and concerns impacting our Native communities, both urban and reservation settings.

These sessions are recorded in DVD and audio format and can be used in teaching sessions upon request.

Upcoming Native Christian Leadership Forum Sessions -

In 1996, CHIEF established the School Without Walls program. SWW are training sessions which can be held in any location to Native communities and urban areas where there are Native people who desire effective methods and resources to minister within the context of their culture using the Word of God as a guide.  

School Without Walls are training sessions which provide Native American pastors, church leaders and lay people with effective methods and resources to minister within the context of their culture using the Word of God as a guide. In addition, School Without Walls may also be worship sessions.

WHERE IS THE SCHOOL WITHOUT WALLS LOCATED?

The School Without Walls training sessions can be held in any location where there are Native people who need Bible-based training. CHIEF and local Native Christian churches and Christian ministries work together to bring School Without Walls sessions to Native communities and to urban areas where there are concentrations of Native people who will benefit from these seminars, lectures, and/or church services.

HOW DO I HOST A SCHOOL WITHOUT WALLS SESSION?

All applications to host a CHIEF School Without Walls session must request a CHIEF SWW handbook, with dates being considered. Please send your application back to the CHIEF office and we will respond in a timely manner.

We invite you to join us at one of CHIEF SWW sessions this year.  Perhaps you would be interested in hosting or sponsoring a CHIEF School Without Walls.

Upcoming School Without Walls Sessions

Dear Supporting Team: 

We are really enjoying Annie’s time with us.  We are blessed by her report on how God helped her to serve the Lord in the Dominican Republic by teaching English as a second language and being a witness for the love of Christ.   To all of you who prayed and financially supported her in this service, we want to thank you for your commitment  to the work of God.  We are very thankful to the Lord because in the Fall, Annie will begin her senior year at the Master´s College.  It is hard to believe that she will soon enter her final year there and yet the faithfulness of God has been obvious in providing the finances for her studies.  

In ministry, we are at a fork in the road and we need to ask you to pray for us in regard to the children’s ministry.  Since 2004, we have been engaged in this ministry;  we know we have touched young lives for Christ thru the years but our problem has been the lack of ministers for the children. We always have had good workers but not ministers.  What we desire are people who come along side the needy children and minister to them outside of the classroom activities.  We would like to invite you to pray with us in this regard, our request is to find those ministers or discontinue this ministry.  The need is great but the workers are few, (Matt. 9:37).  

Youth ministry is going great especially because David, our son, has really taken the pastoral activities seriously. He has befriended the boys by visiting them or calling them during the week.  Many have opened themselves up to him.  He told us one day, “these kids are good kids; it is the parents who are messed up”.  His observation is correct in many cases. One of the phenomena that we have discovered is the fact that many Quiche fathers are oblivious to the needs of their children, because they are physically absent from the home.  Either the father is illegally in the USA  or he is with another woman in the same town.  We also have discovered that many fathers feel inadequate to guide their “sophisticated” children who use internet and their cell phones daily.  This is a lie that the enemy has used in this culture.   On the other hand, God is using David to make a difference. Last week a mother of a young man that attends the Saturday meeting went to Jorge’s house to thank him for what we are doing here is changing her son.  She is very grateful especially because she says that her husband is “useless” in rearing their son.  Besides this problem,  Ginny has discovered the young people have a hard time reading.  They are semi-literate people.  They read syllable by syllable so they cannot understand the Word of God when they read it.  

The training of the pastors is going really well. Right now we have nine centers in progress. The two advanced groups in Nahuala are really catching up in their understanding of the Word. In Jorge’s group, the pastors are translating into Quiche the chapter of Scripture to be studied in class. This homework has really excited them. This excercise has taken them into a new level of understanding the Scriptures. The other course, “How to become a Biblical Leader”, that Isaias is teaching, has brought out their shortcomings as leaders of the church. There are only 6 people left in the class, but Isaias is encouraged by their response.  

A. MINISTRY GOAL FOR AUGUST 15 THRU SEPTEMBER 15 

1. August 16 to 19, for Jorge to attend another Translation workshop, this time he will be trained to use a special computer program for translation. 

2. August 26 and 27, for Isaias and Jorge to attend a meeting with Vina Recordings, the sister organization that is helping us with our recording studio. 

3. August 26, for Annie to go back to the Master’s college to begin her Senior year.

4. September 2, for Isaias to hold a half a day of prayer with his class in Nahuala. 

5. September 9, for Jorge to hold a half a day of prayer with his class in Nahuala. 

6. September 14, for the library staff to hold a special celebration for Guatemala Independence day at the library. 

B. PROGRESS TOWARDS MEETING LAST MONTHS GOALS: 

I want to apologize for not reporting the progress of last month’s goals, the computer that I used has crashed and I did not make a copy of that report. I hope I learned my lesson and make copies of the reports in the future.

C. PRAISES AND THANKSGIVING: 

1. We praise God for Annie’s ministry accomplishments in the Dominican Republic. 

2. We praise God for David’s involvement in the young Quiche boys who are responding to him and to God. 

3. We praise God for his care for us as we travel to the different dangerous areas. This year the rainy season has really damaged the roads even the paved ones. All the main highways have damaged parts so only one side of a two lane road is used. The problem is that the signs are not that clear and many crashes have been registered. 

4. We praise God for the way that the pastors are gaining a new understanding of the Word of God. 

5. We praise God for Ginny’s discipleship class every Friday morning and afternoon; the girls are opening up and she hopes for them to come to know God in a closer relationship. 

PRAYER REQUESTS:  

1. Please pray for David’s health. He is experiencing lack of energy. The doctors have pointed out that this is not normal for a young man like him. 

2. Please pray for Annie as she goes back to the USA. She has to report for Jury duty immediately, pray that she won’t be selected as she has to attend classes and does not know her way in downtown LA.

3. Please pray that we will follow the leading of the Holy Spirit to continue or discontinue the children’s ministry at the end of the year. 

4. Please pray for Ginny as she continues to develop the special discipleship program for Girls.

5. Please pray for Jorge as he continues to translate the book of Genesis. He is in the 6th chapter. 

6. Please pray for Isaias as he continues to lead the six pastors in Nahuala to become more biblical in their private lives. 

7. Please continue to pray for traveling safety as we go to the different places to minister. 

8. Please pray for Ginny’s healing from a thyroid nodule that has been growing.

 

Can you imagine 500 Nations giving glory to God? It was the prayer of David Brainerd over 200 years ago.

He prayed, Friday, December 21, “Towards noon visited my people, (Native Americans), and spent the whole time in the way to them in prayer, longing to ‘see the power of God’ among them…”