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March 8, 2020

Marriage or Mission?

Dear Friends,

“The health of your family is central to the effectiveness of your mission.”

I was a young husband and father preparing to move to Eastern Europe in obedience to God’s call. Regular meetings with my disciple-making pastor were part of my preparation, but I expected that we would spend more time talking about ministry strategy. Instead, his first item of business was always the same.

“How are you caring for your wife? How are you leading your kids? What is the health of your family?”

The intensity of his voice and strength of his emotions left no doubt in my mind that this was a subject near to his heart. Trying to understand more, I asked what I thought was an obvious question.

“So how should I balance family and ministry?”

“Balance?” he said, with a stern tone that caught me off guard. “When you balance you place two things in opposition to each other, assuming that when one gets more the other gets less. It sounds like you believe the more you give to your family, the less you give to ministry. Or, the more you give to ministry, the less you will have for your family.”

“What you don’t understand”, he continued, “is how the strength of your marriage and the health of your family extends and multiplies the impact of your ministry. The inverse is also true. There’s almost nothing that will limit your ministry’s effectiveness more than a lack of health in your marriage and in your home.”

Then came the phrase I have never forgotten. “The health of your family is central to the effectiveness of your mission. If you want to be effective as a missionary, disciple first at home. Then, together with your wife and children, make disciples of those around you.”

Thank you, Rich, for those very wise words. Because of your foresight, healthy marriages and families have been a top priority in Josiah Venture from the very beginning. As I write this, I am preparing to join over 100 of our JV staff couples in Krakow, Poland as we spend four days investing in the strength of our marriages.

Focused Bible teaching will be combined with hours of conversation and reflection as individual couples. Concentrated time alone with their spouse will provide an experience that is difficult for most missionary parents of young children to find. We have raised the funds to give this event to all of our national staff for free and brought in a number of seasoned professionals to provide personal counseling sessions for every couple.

Ministry strategy is very important. But, none of it matters if the fires are not burning at home. Thanks for helping us fan the flame.

Dave Patty President

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A New Generation of Missionaries

Dear Friends, “I am sending you.” —Jesus At the end of January, I spent a week with 52 new Josiah Venture missionaries at our winter Academy. Talking with them at meals and in training sessions, I was overwhelmed with the quality and passion of this next generation of missionaries. Let me briefly tell you a few of their stories. Klemen (Slovenia) trusted Christ at 16 years of age when his best friend—the son of JV missionaries—shared the gospel with him on a napkin and challenged him to put his faith in Jesus. With so few evangelical believers in Slovenia, Klemen experienced rejection from his friends and is still the only believer in his extended family. Because of his heart for young people, Klemen studied physical science and became a PE teacher but was so outspoken about his faith that the principal didn’t extend his contract. At that point, our JV staff challenged him to join the team, and he experienced God’s call into full-time ministry. Now, he is helping local churches develop outreach programs to reach the lost. Klemen’s vision? That 30% of Slovenia would become followers of Jesus. Gabriel (Romania) grew up in a Christian home as the son of a pastor. At a youth camp when he was 16, Gabe put his faith in Christ. From that point on, he spent all of his free time serving in church. He experienced God’s call into ministry at 18 and spent the next four years in theological study. However, as is typical in Romania, his church was very traditional and inward-focused. When he began to lead the youth group, there were just five attending—all from Christian families. Then, some members of the JV Romania team began to train Gabe on how to reach the lost using the tool of Fusion, a rock/gospel choir that builds community through music. Soon, the entire culture of the youth group was transformed, and unbelievers were drawn in, inviting more of their friends and coming to faith in Christ. The youth group grew to 100 in a church with just 200 members, and the entire community was impacted. Now Gabe has joined the JV team to equip other churches like his to reach the lost. “I would love for all the churches in Romania to experience this,” he said, “that the church can have an impact on the outside and share the gospel in a relevant way. That would change our country.” Kendra (Ukraine) is a second-generation JV missionary, raised on the mission field. After her graduation from Wheaton college in Illinois, she responded to God’s call to serve in a very challenging location—near the city of Kyiv, Ukraine, in the midst of war. It is a dangerous assignment for a young woman, but Kendra feels privileged to bring the light of Jesus to young people in the midst of physical darkness and great uncertainty. She learned the Ukrainian language in just 6 months, and is now experiencing open doors for ministry across her entire city. God is using her bold faith to draw many to himself. I can’t wait to see what God will do through these committed young missionaries! They can be sent because you stand with them through your prayers and generous support. Thank you. Dave Patty President, Josiah Venture
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Events, Stories

The Right Learning for the Right Person at the Right Time

Stop and think about the times in your life when you grew the most. What were you doing? What were the circumstances? What did you feel? What were you excited about, and what were you worried about? When I look back on my own life, I notice a pattern. Growth usually happens when the challenge in front of us is outside of our comfort zone or outside of our skill level. It happens when we’re stretched. I remember learning this in a very tangible way in college. I took a class called Experiential Learning, and, throughout the semester, we worked through various team-building exercises. At the end of the course, we went to a ropes course, which culminated in a challenge known as the “Pamper Pole”—a towering 10-meter telephone pole. The challenge was to climb to the top, stand on a tiny platform, and then leap to grab a trapeze bar. My professor had seen me go through most of the challenges fairly easily. 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Christmas Traditions

Every culture has its own Christmas traditions. Many of us already have our Christmas trees up, have begun playing our favourite Christmas music, and are checking items off our shopping list. In most European cities, Christmas markets have taken over town squares and observe their own unique traditions for Christmas Day. For example, in Poland, families prepare an extra place at the table in case of an unexpected guest; in Bulgaria, the oldest person in the house breaks open homemade bread with a coin baked inside; and in Czechia, children hide a fish scale under their dinner plate for good luck. Traditions are a wonderful thing as long as we remind ourselves why we keep them. One tradition that has meant a lot to my family and me for many years is lighting an Advent wreath. We usually make ours out of fir branches and four white candles, sometimes adding extra decorations like dried orange slices or pinecones. Then on the four Sundays leading up to Christmas, we read from the Bible, say prayers, sing songs, and light the candles in an increasing number: first one, then two, then three, and finally four. This tradition has its origins in the sixth century, and many European churches and Christians practice it. But after such a long time, it is easy to forget what it all means. Here is some of the significance. First of all, Advent derives from the Latin word for “coming, arrival.” It denotes the beginning of the year for Christians, who prepare our hearts for the arrival of God, by both remembering Jesus’ incarnation and anticipating his second coming. The circular shape of the wreath signifies the never-ending nature of God’s love for humanity. The fir branches remind us that, even in the dead of winter, God is at work to bring forth new life. And the successive lighting of the candles signals God’s determination to send his light into the world: the incarnation of his son. We love this tradition, but, to be honest, we don’t always keep it perfectly. This year, we had to dig out some old candles to use for our wreath, we have struggled to get through the Bible readings with our young children, and we often forget to light the right candle on the right day. But God is teaching me that this is alright. The season of Advent, along with its many traditions, is not made more or less meaningful by how faithfully I keep it. The season of Advent is made most meaningful because of how faithful God is at drawing near to us. The Apostle Paul summarised it well: “But when the right time finally came, God sent his own Son… so that we might become God’s children.” (Gal. 4:4-5, GNT). This Advent, may you find renewed meaning in your traditions. And may you remember and rely on God, who is most faithful to draw near to those who need his light.