Missions Engagement

Resent.

I think most of you know, that are here, know, Pastor, Randy and Alicia. For those of you who are not familiar with them, Randy pastor this church here at Oasis until about March of 2020. If I got the dates, right and then they went back to the mission field where they had been before with a stopover in between but in Uruguay. But I don't want to give all their introduction because I think they're going to interrupt to do some cells and their Ministry. And so please give them your full and undivided attention so that we can learn what the Lord is doing. Thank you for being here.

What feels like family reunions for us. We know many of you and then something any of you we don't know and haven't met yet so good to be back here and passwords exactly right but last time I preached here was March 1st 2020 and then covid hit. So I'm I'm sorry to leave you, we did not know that was going to happen or the Lord might have had to stick around, you know, a little bit longer, but thank you for inviting us. Thank you for putting us on the schedule. We look toward I'd look for a week. Look forward to speaking here with you and sharing our ministry with you. And before we begin we just want to thank you. I said, church family for your contributions to the Great Commission fun, which allows all of our I w-was. We're not called missionaries anymore. We're called iwi International workers, is that term? Missionary is not is Taboo. In many countries around the world for contributing to the Great Commission. Fun. Which funds are all of our iws around the world, actually get them. On on the ground in that country. And then also for the personal contributions that the church has made to our ministry fund, which we were able to use in various ways, but why we're eating lunch, we'll have a kind of a looping PowerPoint that shows you, how we use that those funds for the renovation of the church building where I. So thank you for that. So this morning, or this morning,

10 grandchildren, maybe you didn't know that Tamika had three children, three great-grandchildren and so unfortunately she needs your prayer. She lost custody of a sweetheart. Little girl who adopted by a Christmas channel. Not her. And that was one of the things that we sacrifice when we heard that they were in foster care. We stayed in your wife and I

Out of this drug cycle.

That just goes to show you that I W families are not immune to the things that happened to their kids or grandkids in our thing. For all of our missions tour is now to the Harvest. We want to begin with a video

thumbs down.

It started over.

Get no idea how it happened.

Then above the right between the harbor.

When you share the good news of the Gospel, we never know where and how it will grow.

Underground and out-of-sight, the word has already.

The Harvest from today to get the plan for next year. And the next

followers of Jesus disciples of all Nations. This is truly are an alliance and believe it. United around, Dodge dealership, Bowie and Sunday.

A harvest from Overlook field Nation. Until the same requirements.

Man was talking about this more referring to All Nations around the world, worshiping the Lord, all that snake groups all language in all languages around the world are privileged. This was to serve both actually in part of why and in order, why? But we need to talk about or why this morning because that's where we spent most of our time so you can go on to the next slide. Are we going to the next Just so that you know where we served go ahead. They were so sometimes people don't know where in the world is Uruguay, where in the world is part of why. So I wanted to put a map up there, and you see, South America there on the left, which is actually to the east of North America and interesting Lee enough. And then the photo on the right, the picture on the right shows you where he is and east of Argentina. So we're pretty far south and it's nice if we can take a direct flight from where do I find the capital? Montevideo to Miami, but those are rare. And then we wanted as, as we continue on, we want to show you something really quick things. Go to, why is the land of the Asado we do dinner and Order? Why so we enjoyed many, many, many, many meals. And I know pastor and his wife, they would love to live in order. Why you would love it for sure. And this is a method in which they cook the, the beef with the fire on the right, this is the Abby's cultures we call them. You can do the next. You can do the words if you if you spell chores and the pastries and the Sweet Rose Berry European Uruguay is very European, very different from most Latin American countries. And the TV toe which is very much Uruguay. And you can see there was a bed of french fries and sensitivity, do all Plateau around the plate instead of a sandwich. We're always eating french fries with every meal, unfortunately, and covered by a layer of beef, and then a layer of ham, and then a layer of cheese. And then a fried egg on the top, And then next is mate, this is a very much a part of Uruguay and Argentina and we have an example out on the, on the table, in the four-year are you can take a look at it up close and personal but the mate gourd and then the mate herb, which is poured inside of it, and then hot water. And then you drink it with this metal straw.

Okay, we have a few, we have a few and by the way, we share the straw but I don't put a new straw in each time, the saw the one you and you can see how a typical mother and son walking with their mate and you'll see that all throughout little y next. some architecture, as you can see Uruguay in the city and most of it is very European in style, in fact, 8 out of 10 people are descended from either the Italians or the Spanish, Other European countries, they marched all the indigenous people out of the country. And of course, we have football or soccer in order why this is the national team and Tiny Uruguay which has only three and a half million people compete in FIFA. And for the World Cup in there, they're up our house. It's amazing. It's why call it a religion, the religion of Uruguay. So, they're called.

And then we are research was in the capital city in Montevideo this last term and also the first time, but this last turn the whole time we were there, you can see the river water there in a little bit of beach. That is the Rio de La Plata, which celebrates the witch said, her hates it away from Argentina. A very wide river to takes about three and a half hours to cross it by ferry. And this was our go back. This was our mission statement and vision statement to live and share the hope and love of Jesus and we want to explain why that was that simple phrase had much of an impact on the people of Uruguay.

Next flight. All the way out to Costco the suburbs in Montevideo so in Uruguay nobody's allowed to have their own property on the beach. So the properties of the beach. The coast of this River belong to the people until they built.

Those expensive ones with the view of the bar or the sea and we live the block off that. So, this is where the unreached people groups that they sent us. These are the people who don't believe in Jesus. Many of them are atheists and agnostics. We'll talk about that in a second. And then they're also background Jewish European Jewish immigrants children for generations and chocolate background. But very normal. So that works really well for us. Being a Jewish, believe, it was really a good fit for us. We were working with the and the next flight of the other stuff out of church planting team, which arrived while we had one while we were here to assist during those 12 years. And so the team that's there now is this team, these three couples and one other couple remarks. The field director Matt into that Griffin youth director at the Alistar Church. Plant has another, and another part of the city, part of our ministry as a team, and then Daniel and Tori Daniel over there on the right. Is the pastor of that church. So, And then, on the next slide, you will see the fourth couple Oscar and Charlotte who worked with us at the encuentro de Esperanza church and going through this. For answer, means the encounter with hope or Encounter of Hope in Jesus there from Puerto Rico. So they spoke perfect Spanish much better than us. So we are glad to have them on our team and doing children's ministry there at the church. Where I pastored in 2004 to 2006. We live in 100 day old, he were the first IWC there and we had I did a lot of things and let people and God connected us Rotary Club, English stuff like that and then we reconnected with those people. But at the same time after we got there, the Uruguay national Church who had remember Dustin Clark. Let them Pastor in the urban low-income church. So we were doing two things, two major thing we're doing for passing this shirt, they also did worship. Thank God and then they did children and said he was the pastor and all that involved in an urban area.

Doing both kinds of ministry to do, two different social classes of people in the city. So Uruguayan beliefs and barriers to the gospel and then some of the Breakthrough, some stories we want to share with you. So the first thing I want to show you on the next slide is there was a survey done recently actually only about three years ago, how important is religion to you and you can see there at the top that many of the countries in Central America and then Northern South America. Religion is very interested, they're very interested in religion. Of course, we know that is not religion, but it's a relationship with Jesus, but this was a survey and where was Uruguay and I kind of circles that. So you can see it that 33 plus thirty-three 66% of the people is not at all or not. Very Important to them. And so we have a population in order why that's 60 almost 66% atheist or agnostic, very different from all the other Latin American countries and it and I want to show you why on the next slide. It gives you a reason for this especially there in the green at the end of the nineteenth century and the beginning of the twentieth centuries or talk to you about the early 1900's, a political project was developed. In Uruguay, that I am to obliterate religion because religion was seen as backward as irrelevant as obscure social life from the culture, laying the groundwork for local, cultures relationship to religion that we faced when we arrive there and the 2000s. Turn it down. I think this was from the government down. So what did they do? They got rid of all the holidays.

There's no day of the match. There's no.

Their religion was for the gullible for these churches, preyed on gullible people. This is an intellectual Society. They don't, they don't, The, Amulet is backwards of the relevant, is not important. So let's get rid of it on the next flight. We know. In a secular country, there's going to be a void in their heart because we know that there's a god-shaped void. In the heart. Wild vacuum. The God say vacuum in the heart of every man. But only my God, it's in the shape of God and he's our creative in Jesus name. No made him know to us and so

relationship. How does the you're going to fill it? Well, lots of amazing and crazy. Think this is the worship of Iman job or just after her on the coast. She's the goddess of the sea. They go to fortune tellers in.

You can go to the. Open. Holy incense do all that kind of like we call it the new age stuff. Yeah it's real. Next line.

It's tell the vacuum and they need to fill it. So

yeah. So driving around Montevideo. It was very peculiar to me to see these red ribbons. Find out. The back of the car is one of my windows going on here, more than half the cars, have them. And that's because that's to ward off any evil spirits, in any accident, but we might have. So if you have this tight on the back of your car, your warding off an accident, so that was, that was a cultural thing. You know, very peculiar on the next kind of some bullet points there to give you another some more ideas about the culture. So that you understand what we stepped into his eye W's. The most secular nation in Latin America. They embraced the good lie, they have now got Netflix on the internet and so this is like, you know, Thinking is the way to do life and they legalized all the things we legalized, abortion and gay marriage, big diversity, big pride parade and yet look they don't know how to love each other. I'm selfishly they don't have the love. They don't have the teachings of Jesus and help them.

Divorce rate, and they don't have her.

Moral.

are you satisfied or The Fill or have joy or have hope. There's no faith. So what if what happens when things get so wrong? This country has the highest rate of suicide. Next next flight

my sister tried to take her life, every

But it makes sense, they have no hope. So the question that we ask ourselves, as I love yous is on the next slide. How do we, as I W's overcome, all of these beliefs overcome these barriers so that we can share the good news of Jesus Christ. So we can share the hope and love of Jesus Christ. And we have as our as our mission, as our statement, for our all of our team, how do we get to that point? Urban Church. Ladies there go to the next light. Alicia.

Because the Christmas feel like they're in the desert. They're in the wilderness, they're so cute. There's a boy in Christian bookstore.

So, I'm like, well, we have our job cut out for us, don't we? But this verse helped us, it's one of them that you show this morning. Pastor. Jason forget, the former Do not dwell on the. See I am doing a new thing now it Springs up. Do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the Wasteland. We trusted God was going to open doors and open heart. We couldn't do the old. Wait for somebody to visit the church.

Do bbs's and Outreach has.

We had to come up with what to do to break into the society with the Love & Hope of Jesus. Sorry, thank you.

So on the next slide, what we began with his finding points of connection connection with people on one of those ways which was very popular for us to do as a team, not just Alicia or I was teaching English English camps for kids there after school, programs and clubs for kids and Adventure camps for the teens and even Alicia Todd. Adult classes in, this is a photo of her. She always gathers kids around here, it's amazing how they flock to her, but this was in one of the apartment near where we lived at the other iws and they had this group on a weekly basis. On the next flight. We also talked about building relationships of loving grace, and acceptance,

I guess we call it the ministry of presence. We were there and we immersed in the culture in in our apartment building, we invited people to come to our open houses, what's an open house. But we invited we lived one block over from the rambla in a building of nine floors and there was a family on each one of the floors and so we invited them to come over and just

open the door and open the door in your relationship. We said, yes, if we were invited for coffee for many in do, which is coffee. Then we were invited for dinner. But sometimes, as time went on, we were invited to watch a soccer game. Some of our team members are very athletic and they were a lot younger. So they were enjoying like Mommy hand ball or volleyball and play sports with the parents of the kids that their kids went to school with the something sent. So in these schools that have parent groups that play basketball on. So they got to know people. We practice Hospitality all lot and that we had Thanksgiving dinner, birthday party. Any excuse to have people over? Do you want to do a Yeah, and other go to the next flight.

What is our apartment on top? We were giving a Thanksgiving dinner and the lady sitting to my right said to us this is after a few years of knowing her, she said, you know what she said.

Because of Thanksgiving, you would pray, we would talk about faith on our walk. We would talk about meaningful thing in our English conversation group. We were given the theme meaningful, things about love that. We talked about it. We also did three years in a row. We do Messianic. Seder is without you wish your friends, they loved it. We talked to his Messianic now and go. Okay. And as we're doing it and sharing, you know, and I'm sharing Isaiah 53. You know, about he was pierced for our transgressions. He was wounded for our iniquities.

I did mention this is kind of different though. Are you doing, okay?

We have one.

IMAX slide. Let's read this together are verses that were repeated in the video that we saw the last week, this together. Jesus also said, this is what the kingdom of God is like a man scatter seed on the ground in Knight and Day. Whether he sleeps or gets up the seed sprouts and grows. So he does not know how the soil produces grain versus the stock in the head, then the full colonel in the head, and as soon as the grain is, right, he puts the sequel to it, because the Harvest has come and I highlighted that phrase all by itself in in red, because in the Greek, it refers to it, it happens automatically. You do, we put the seat in the ground and we put a little water on it and that becomes a plant especially here in Florida. You can actually just stick anything in the ground but this is, this is a visual or An example of how God works in people's hearts when we sell abundantly and we pray expectantly and we wait, the Harvest will come. And so we want to share with you now to the Harvest some of the breakthroughs in the next couple of slides. Keep going the breakthroughs that we had with you. So we talked talked about police and barriers to the gospel. And what we, what confronts us when we arrive there and now what happened. As God touched the lives of people.

A mini minivan.

Craft and Randy's asked him, do you know the team would meet together when we going to do next week?

We love on the kids. We get to know their parents.

Alex missing then.

It was my turn and I wrote the presentation, it was a skits and it was really cool and then connected with Mariana, but she's a psychologist and she does positive psychology.

Amazing because only God could do that. I talk with my hands. So Mariana came and afterwards, I talked to her and we connected on that in a season. Basis. And then she told me, she opened up her heart and we kind of knew something was going on. Cuz Alan was telling us his father had moved out. And she says, well, I'm separated my husband's leaving me for someone else. This is not uncommon in your Android. It's really sad. And so, you know, I befriended her, I got to see her afterwards. She started going to the Ella Star Church, which basically means the living room, the family room, Ella star, that's what it means, that's what it's used for. And so it's a really laid-back. We've become as yourself Church plant that they did about 30 minutes away from us in a different suburb. So, then she started crying. we met with her and Mariana. Do you want the joy of the Lord? I will have her over for lunch. Do you want the joy of the Lord? Have him on. In your heart. And she receive the Lord in my in my dining room and she is going to adjust her going to baptize next month. Has been a regular at the church serving the lord. Joy and so I'm amazing breakthrough on the next flight a little story about on the right. Just got baptized while before this day happened, way back in his kind of former life. I was a drug dealer drug dealer, an atheist. He was an alcoholic, he has five daughters, who are all atheists? He has grandchildren, that are all atheists. And this was not, this is common, and it would have wife. And so he but he felt he thought that emptiness. He felt that vacuum. That Alicia spoke about earlier and that first from Isaiah are from, but it's about Scout. And so he went, he was invited to the church. The church has been going there at two or three couple of months, maybe and so after I was installed, I gave up Evangelistic sermon and asked. If anybody want to receive the Lord.

Obviously God, I've been moving in his life. I sit down with him and share the gospel with and make sure he understands what he's doing. He's yes, yes, yes. A couple of months later asked, is anybody want to be baptized? Do you want to be baptized and you'll see in the in the photo display afterward with the baptistery look like, it was horrible. But I said, I want to be baptized in their cleanup myself. And I saw this guy It was an alcoholic drug dealer. Atheist completely God, transformed his life, the power of the Gospel, the power of the seed that we plant in people's lives.

I've been starting to come to church now Miriam? Dad trying to eke out a living in the most. City in Latin America. And so she had a little Salon in her apartment and she would bring me a, you know, some Leah would go to church, you know how that is, bring the kids to church and she would maybe have a client on Sunday, can you bring me a home and stuff like that? Take a phone call. She also wanted for Mia and herself to learn English and so they started coming and I have baby eight people, but since I didn't charge there would be days, there'll be nobody. Sometimes somebody well there was one night just Miriam and Mia came and finally I asked Miriam and me yet do you want to have that personal relationship with you? Do you want to be born Anew and have that relationship? Why you know I was raised Catholic and I'm like I know but I mean really have a relationship

yeah, so I put away that

Holy God, and and, and we're on this side of the cross.

they both prayed and neck and may there will be you have going to be born Anew and so is much more involved in church and serving as being disciples The right through, I'm an ex like family than Lucas. This is Lucas's day that he was baptized Sunday that actually preach. There we were there and that but Lucas got up before he was baptized. He's twelve years old and when this family arrived at the church, as he described to everyone in the congregation they were completely broken because his older brother who is 20 years old, that died in a drowning accident and they were broken as a family, and they would, with their heads down and be crying, almost through the whole service. And we were always putting our hands on them and praying over them. And Lucas said, you know, we were about to lose our faith. Like you were talking about this morning and all of a sudden he snapped his fingers and you said, but then I remember that the holy spirit is always with us walking with us, always with us to whatever happens in our lives and so he gave testimony that that that began to transform his faith. His life, his family's life. Lucas. Now that the family has a youth group once once a week or every every every other week on a Friday or Saturday night at their home and Lucas is inviting his friends. He sharing versus with them, he's helping to lead worship with this team. It's an incredible kid got transforming lives on the 20 and 21 year old and the fiance of his older brother who they came to his baptism and she was just crying. So he is leaving Right. Sewing more seat on the next flight.

Pictures of parents right after they were baptized, and they have kids. So when they first came to parents,

And I'm looking at a marching.

you know what a No, they had no clue.

And the mother was like, oh my God.

The older. At the church. And then there was one night where only her So I talk to you want to be baptized. This is why I was baptized in a Catholic and even I was an infant.

I'm getting baptized. Can come to terms with the kids can enjoy our children's program and that's what changed they started. She asked me, where can I buy a children's Bible? So I could send her over to the one Christian bookstore and they got baptized and that family is now United and Brian price. For that is a great, great story on the next slide is Boblo, The Butcher. And Pablo was one day when he was sitting on the stoop, in to our apartment building and we're asked him, what was going on and he said that he got kicked out of the house. His his wife kicked him out of the house so they obviously having marriage problems. Looking for a place to stay where he worked at the butcher shop, clerk butcher, if you press it again, maybe, I don't know. They got yeah, we can format this pretty very well for that. But anyway anyway, so I invited him to church next Sunday. It takes an hour and a half to get there by bus. He's sitting there listening to the worship songs. He doesn't know anything to the preaching. But clearly, God is moving in his life. And I sit down with him after the service. And I share the gospel with them and he prays with me to receive the Lord. And after that, I give him a Bible. And then we see him almost every day because you sent the butcher shop right below in the first floor of our apartment building. And, and he has been reconciled with his wife and he still needs to be disciple. He is way too far away for him, but we continue to pray for Pablo and thank God for the opportunity to share with him. Romina.

And she said, well, this is what happened to me when I grew up in a small town. My parents are not Believers, very serious, but my grandma used to go to church and I went to the youth group group, I accepted you, but every year,

Only want to go to university, they have to leave their small town, and come to Montevideo the big city.

From the wall. They fell in love and she moved in with him and now she To renew her relationship with. And she hasn't.

I can leave him. But I can go out on my own. You know what that means when you have a Maltese pregnant? In Latin America is she found a room in a residence where they share the kitchen and share the bathroom. She only has her own bedroom and her family's like are you crazy? You have this beautiful apartment is God who

Relationship with God.

They don't understand, they're not encouraging her, she's grieving. But I took her week after week, disciples her, and how she is just so strong in the Lord

Encuentro de Esperanza church family back in 2022 or so. And just the people in the kind of the center section. There are the Uruguayan that was this whole church. It was about 15 people, maybe 18 on a good Sunday and what the Lord as we continue to preach the gospel. As we continue to pray for new families to come every Sunday. I pray for new families to come, and God bless this on the next slide. You see in June of 2024, what God did and multiplying the congregation and that was really through prayer, some of the people inviting their friends. But we had now use in children at, we had two babies, born a day apart, it was an amazing transformation in that congregation in the heart of Montevideo. I know the last white photo. Anyway. Your daughter. In the back of her three kids. So Kiki kids who are now twenty-three twenty-four and twenty-five, all single decided to come visit Grandma and Grandpa in Uruguay. So here we are there. Other grandparents who I was always jealous of because they lived in Houston and they always had them available. Both of them died during covid. So now, I'm so sure. Enough they come to visit us and we take them back and fall East-West, all different places in Uruguay, had a great time and on our way back to the city, I called some of our friends from Cafe condo group. And today we're going to be at this restaurant in 15 minutes, meet our kids or grandkids and

this is,

we have loved these people while I'm there, are there already writing this when you coming

and then,

and I very young in a car accident, and she was left to little She's now with Ignacio here and they, they were the one that came to our first open house and stock and stuck to us and said, this is so great. We love you and really famous. And anyway, but the night before I am riding up to the apartment right before we left.

We have pumpkin pie.

Sharon Howard. Kind of know Jesus.

And they both received award and creativity on their radar. And here we are and they're there and they need to be disciples and I pray

Congruent. It's on the next fly. We just wanted you to be encouraged that. God is always at work on 517. God is always at work, with something, you can be with somebody, somebody sharing something with you and you said, can I pray for you all? We found that nine times out of 10. People will let you pray for them. You would have sold that seed of the Gospel. So that scripture a prayer and encouraging word for someone.

I don't know.

Wheel.

It's a great story.

So,

and I told her my address and she was like, my sister lives in that building. What's the chances of that happening are building that we have an apartment in So put me in the elevator looking for Honor, are you out at know, if you're not on OK, Google.

and, and let the elevator close and I'm like

So that God Spirit lead because that's how I talk to her.

Your daughter.

And so that begin another relationship. It's just being

the Nike.

I did it again. Another time and prayed again for her father.

Leaving our open house. Invitation the cookies, we made for the association when they had a meeting with made them cookies.

and the love that we shared with them and how they're going to miss us and I gave us a gift and I'm like

And it may be different and we're hoping they also will walk with. What we found out that I found out that is her brother, or her brother-in-law became a Christian is giving God the glory for the changes in his life. So there's more in her life going on 55, it will not return to me, empty, the Lord says, but it will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it. And then collection 69 that they are the New Testament. Let us not become weary, in doing good because we can become weary, you can become weary. We become, we became weary many, many times exhausted really from the ministry, but the Lord says, at the proper time, we will reap a harvest. If we do not give up, encourage you as an oasis church family. Don't give up as the last fight says continue to do so abundantly. The word of God praying expectantly over those people praying to the Lord expectantly that he's doing something underground in people's hearts and their souls and their minds. So that that word Rose and them for them to believe. Sometimes we have to wait a while and in our case we're still waiting on some people that we've known for many, many years. In fact, that one couple that Jewish couple weeks we met him at 24 years, 23 years ago, promises us, it will happen. We don't know when but it will happen. But let us pray for you or God. We thank you for the opportunity to share your story. Your story. What, you, how you used us, Lord, and how you use anyone here in this congregation, who you are calling calling to take our place in order, why calling to another country, calling to serve you and whatever capacity. Lord, may you call men and women and young boys and teenagers lured into your ministry, Lord because the Harvest is happening around the world through the alliance through other missions organizations for people who are willing to go and be obedient to you. Thank you, Lord, for calling us and for the opportunities that we had to serve and would have why. And for this congregation who supported us and support other, I double use Around the World Lorde. We want to see the kingdom. Come we want to see the king returned and this is the work that you have given us to do to make that bring that about. And we give you all the glory in Jesus name. Amen.