Day of Prayer #4: Pray that the Translation of the Bible would Stamp out the Prosperity Gospel
“And he said to all, If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it.” Luke 9:23-24 The thinking that has been termed the “Prosperity Gospel” teaches that success, wealth, and health belong to the Christian now and thus he can “name” and “claim” what he wants and God is more-or-less entitled to give it to him. Please see our blog posts for a more thorough explanation. Please pray that through our…
Day of Prayer #3: Pray That We Would Adjust Well to Cameroonian Culture
“From the end of the earth I call to you when my heart is faint. Lead me to the rock that is higher than I.” – Psalm 61:2 Pray that in the midst of culture shock/stress that we would not neglect to call out to God who is our rock. Pray that in turn he would give our hearts peace. Pray that we would adjust to the heat, that we would develop good relationships, that we would pick up the language, that our kids would make friends, and that it would eventually become “home” to us.
Day of Prayer #2: Pray for the Salvation and Participation of our Children in Ministry to the Cameroonians
“Unless the LORD builds the house, those who build it labor in vain.” Psalm 127:1 Pray that the Lord would cause our children’s hearts to be the “fertile soil” as described in the parable of the sowers so that when they hear the Word that they would receive it with joy and bear much fruit. Pray that they would not only have a personal relationship with Christ, but that they would also want to serve him in ministry. Pray that, in time, the Lord would lead them to do oral Bible-storying projects among the children in our people group. Pray…
Day of Prayer #1: Pray for Wisdom Regarding Which People Group to Translate For
by Stacey Spending the last year in a new culture has really humbled us. We now know that we enter a new culture as “children” as we have to learn how to speak, how to read the street signs, how to cook, and so on. It truly shows the power of God that he uses clueless people from across the globe to bring about his Kingdom among unreached people groups. Thus, as we enter another new culture, we know that we are totally dependent on the Lord to save people through two tired, sinful, culturally awkward people like us. All…
Am I a Horrible Parent for Moving my Kids (back) to Africa?
If anyone has ever asked us about what our family life will look like in Cameroon, you probably heard “Oh we have no idea.” Or if you asked how exactly we would manage to homeschool the kids and do a linguistic analysis of a language, we likely said “Oh we’ll cross that bridge when it comes.” Not worrying (or thinking) about tomorrow has more-or-less been our modus operandi these past few years as we’ve sought to conquer one stage of life at a time. But the “tomorrow” of Cameroon is less then a month away and thus I am forced…
July 1st: Join us for a Day of Prayer and Fasting for the Boko Haram
by Stacey Many have read the news reports that describe the horror that is sweeping Nigeria (and parts of Cameroon) at the hands of the Islamist terrorist group, Boko Haram. For instance, in February 2013 this group kidnapped a French family of 7 from Cameroon and then in November 2013 kidnapped a French priest, who was also living in Cameroon. Both groups were later released. Militants are said to have attacked various churches in June 2013, leaving 50 people dead. Then, two months later, they are also reported of attacking a Mosque in Borno state in Nigeria killing at least…
Hare Family Update (With Prayer Requests)
by Dave With a little over a month remaining in France I thought I would do a short update on the family. Kaden Kaden has had a great year. He enjoys school so much that he has actually cried about having to stay home for vacation. This is particularly amazing being that when we lived in Chambéry he cried everyday when we got to school and said he wanted to go home. In a recent parent-teacher conference his teacher said that he speaks French fluently. He also had to get glasses which actually seem to fit his personality well as…
The Unstoppable Kingdom
I had the amazing opportunity to go to a conference put on by the Gospel Coalition in Geneva, Switzerland last week. The theme of this conference was the Gospel and the book of Galatians. I learned a great deal and found myself extremely encouraged in the power of the Kingdom of God. The Powerful Kingdom In one particular sermon on Galatians 1:11-21, Tim Keller described how Paul’s testimony is so powerful, in part, because he used to be a persecutor of the Church. Paul was not the kind of person anyone would imagine would convert to Christianity. And in chapter…
Your Best Life…Now? (Part 3)
by Stacey We have spent the last two blog posts describing the theological basis for the Prosperity Gospel along with its fundamental flaws. In this post we will discuss how to react to what we have learned. In light of the Prosperity Gospel, we should: Actually Help the Poor In serving the poor, the church can offer a real alternative to the deception of the Prosperity Gospel that is sweeping through impoverished nations. Yes, God is a God who does heal even today and is One who has a concern for the poor. But the way in which this is…
Your Best Life…Now? (Part 2)
by Stacey As mentioned in our last post, we are looking at the theological foundation of what has been coined the “Prosperity Gospel.” We previously described the claims of this system and now we will evaluate, what we are persuaded, to be its main flaws. Prosperity Gospel: Where is the “Not Yet”? Did Jesus die to heal of us of our diseases, give us bodies that function perfectly, and ensure our wealth? Well, kind of. The argument of the New Testament authors is that Jesus died for our sins and in addition to forgiveness and a right relationship with God, believers…
