Innocent.

INNOCENT.

The word kept repeating in my head.

INNOCENT.

We weren't even sitting in the tent for ten minutes before this beautiful little girl nudged my arm and made the international sign for "take a picture." I immediately obliged and then showed her herself before looking at the captured moment. She giggled and skipped away towards the other kids. I looked down at this picture, starting to re-enter into the interpreted conversation between my teammates and the Syrian teacher, and cried. "Why am I crying??" I thought. "No, seriously, Lord... Why am I crying right now??" I earnestly prayed. No answer. I wiped the tears away and tried to fully reengage.

The next day we were back in the Syrian refugee camp. This time we were set to have tea with one of the patriarchs of the community. As we took our places inside the tent, sitting criss-crossed on the clean cement, Munnah came hopping in followed by her older sister and a tray of tea. In just a few minutes, Munnah was parked next to me, shoving an English book in my hands and gesturing for me to read to her. My heart swelled and I again prayed, "Lord, why do I feel this way??"

INNOCENT.

The word kept repeating in my head.

INNOCENT.

This beautiful, innocent little girl has lived six of her eight years of life in a refugee camp in Lebanon. She doesn't deserve this. This world is broken. This world needs the hope of Jesus Christ. I pray Munnah does not lose her joy, her sweet, innocent joy. I pray she remains as innocent as one can in this world. And I pray she finds the eternal hope found only in Jesus.

Thoughts and Notes on T4G

About ten days ago, four of the five residents from BACC went to a conference together: Together for the Gospel. We had a great time engaging in the talks but probably the most notable experience was the time we spent together, downloading what we’d learned and getting to know each other better.

T4G Overall

I’ve not done this before, but felt it was useful for myself in thinking through the conference. I decided to give the conference a score, based on nothing other than my own perspective and preferences. 

So, overall, I give 2018 T4G a 6.5/10. Here is the breakdown.

• 7/10 for organization: tough to organize 12,000 people, very uncertain for first two days where and when the main sessions were, despite the app. App was neat but could have been better utilized.
• 3/10 for diversity: no female voice, no Latino voice, no non-American speakers. Only reason a 3 instead of a 1 because there was diversity in age and they did have two black speakers. 
• 10/10 for free stuff: came home with two dozen free books, equal to more than conference cost, much to my wife’s dismay.
• 8/10 for messages: very very rich, exegetical preaching. Only once or twice did I disagree with the basis or doctrine behind a talk. Some unforgettable, trend setting talks as well (see below).
• 5/10 for conference food: ended up not eating it despite paying for the food plan… wish I could get my money back. (also Louisville has great food options, so why I bought the food plan, I’m not sure).
• 3 OR 9/10 for breakout sessions (so taking the average: 6/10): 3 because there were so few and difficult to get to or know content ahead of time (I really like breakouts/workshops - they are more engaging in my opinion). 9 because I went to all three David Platt’s breakouts (not on purpose) and they were very very well done. Lots of tangible, applicable information (see below).

The Notable Talks:

I would highly, highly recommend watching these talks, in the order I have them listed below. If something is being shared that makes you uncomfortable or you disagree with, I encourage you to persist and watch through to the end.

1. HB Charles’ message about the cross. This was such a fantastic, grounding talk on the truth of the cross and its ramifications for life.
2. David Platt’s message about racism. This is the one that you might disagree with. Or maybe it will make you jump up with affirmation. Either way, I encourage you to listen to it and ask God to show you what he wants you to take away from it. Comment below your thoughts!
3. Ligon Duncan’s message about holiness. This is an excellent follow-up to Platt’s message. I highly recommend watching both of them. Ligon talks about our call to holiness, how we’ve been set apart and made whole. 

I did not sit in on all of the talks, so feel free to check out the other recordings on the T4G homepage. There was only one talk that I sat in on (ok, actually, I got up and left... don't be like me, though!) that I had a hard time listening to based on the speaker’s thoughts on church, but you’ll have to message me separately if you’re curious about that.

My Notes on Platt's Breakout Sessions:

If any of these notes don’t make sense, comment below or email me. Below is David Platt and I. After being at all three of his sessions, I think we were basically best friends. 

Cross Preconference

• Not all Christians are missionaries and we dilute the definition when we call them that.
• All are called to make disciples. Missionary is different than Christian.
• A missionary should be defined as a Christian, set apart by the Holy Spirit, sent by the church to cross cultural, linguistic, geographic barriers to make disciples of unreached people groups.
• How to know you are called: read you Bible. Fast regularly.
• Missionary training starts in the local church.
• Missionary training should not end in the local church.
• Short term missions develop a culture of missions well.
• Instead of asking the congregation “If God is calling you to be an overseas missionary...” ask the question “If you feel like you want to talk to your pastors/elders to discern whether you are being called to be a missionary…”
• “There is no such thing as transformation by aviation” - in other words, anyone who is planning/feeling called to be a missionary should be doing cross-cultural disciple making at home.

12 Critical Issues in Global Missions

1. The authority of the Bible. There is increasing skepticism on the authority of Scripture worldwide. Only 64% of senior pastors think studying the Bible is essential. The authority of Scripture is SO foundational, critical, essential for missions (and salvation).
2. The content of the Gospel. Must be clear on what it is and what all it has done; don’t dilute the gospel in an effort to lead more to Jesus. “The last thing the world needs is the exportation of nominal Christianity.”
3. The necessity of evangelism. We will be tempted to be silent, but the greatest need of humankind is the Gospel. Romans 10:13-15 - the Gospel is never shared in Acts/NT without the tool/vehicle of a believer.
4. The identity of the missionary. Not every Christian is a missionary. We must take the Gospel to where it has not yet gone. Globalization has increased the opportunities/ways people can be missionaries.
5. The role of the local church. Training should start here, churches should send missionaries and missionaries should desire a sending church.
6. The mobilization of the global church. Laborers for the harvest should come from the harvest: the nations on missions to the nations. In 2050, 40% of Christians will live in sub-Saharan Africa- this is a missions sending force!
7. The migration of peoples. God orchestrates the movement of peoples. Never before in history did the world have more displaced peoples (refugees) than it does right now.
8. The movement to cities. More than 50% of the world lives in cities now. Acts 19:10 - all Asia heard the Gospel because it was preached in a city.
9. The prevalence of poverty. Be gospel-centered, gospel preaching to the nations, many of which are very poor and very sick. Churches need to be planted there.
10. The spread of Islam. By 2050, the number of muslims will about equal the number of Christians in the world. Because Christians are delaying marriage, delaying childbearing, having less children.
11. The reality of illiteracy. Make the Gospel and word of God known, but there are still 1 billion people in the world who cannot read. We must prioritize oral sharing and oral methods as well.
12. The theology of suffering. We must train and teach missionaries how to suffer well. God specifically uses suffering for the spread of the Gospel. Acts 9:16 - Paul was appointed to suffer for Jesus’ namesake. 

10 Questions Pastors Should Ask Themselves

1. Are you, in your church, preaching the Word in the context of the world?
2. Are you calling people to radical identification with Christ?
3. Are you equipping and expecting ordinary disciples to make disciples in extraordinary ways?
4. Are you giving sacrificially for global missions?
5. Are you fasting and praying fervently for missions?
6. Are you continually communicating the general command [to make disciples] and periodically issuing a specific call [to be a missionary]?
7. Are you nurturing an atmosphere of sending out your best?
8. Are you celebrating continual (STMs) and creative (BAM, tent making) sending?
9. Are you stewarding the sending relationships God gives you?
10. Are you training your church to sacrifice willingly and suffer well?

Again, please use this forum as an avenue for discussion. I would love to engage with some of these things with you!