jammin' in India

Here's about 5 minutes of video of a few of our translators praising the Lord during some down time. Kinda gives a brief glimpse of some of the worship we might see when we're all around the throne. (Rev. 5 & 7)

out of india

Wasn't that a book by Rudyard Kipling? Anyway, our team is out of India and back at home. I apologize to those of you that I told to check here for daily updates while we were gone. The guest house in which we were staying did have Internet access, but it was only available from 9am to 5pm - the same times that we were going door-to-door in the neighborhoods. So I'll take time now to highlight some of what God did on this campaign.

First of all, thanks SO MUCH to those of you who were praying for all facets of the campaign. We witnessed things that could only have come about through the prayers of the saints. Just knowing that there were several hundred people back in the U.S. praying for us, the national believers, and the lost people of India was an incredible thought and encouragement.

Where to begin. Getting to India. Needless to say, it takes a while to get there. In order to meet the group in Atlanta, I left out of Charlotte on Friday, Nov. 23, at around 9AM. After hooking up in Atlanta, we flew to NY and then across the Atlantic to Mumbai (formerly Bombay). After a long layover there, we flew to Cochin, Kerala and took a 2-hour bus ride to our guest house. When we finally arrived at the guest house, it was mid-morning on Sunday. We were able to rest for a couple of hours before we joined the host church for a time of worship in the afternoon.

About India. Two things stand out - it is a beautiful country, and there are a lot of people. The state of Kerala has a tropical look to it with lots of coconut trees (Kerala means "land of coconuts"). It's not uncommon to see an elephant being led down the road by its owner since they are commonly used to move heavy loads. The standard of living is obviously below ours, but we didn't encounter abject poverty as in other parts of the country. But there are a lot of people. India is about 1/3 the size of the U.S., but has as many people as the continents of North America, South America, and Africa combined. Chew on that statistic for minute - it's really mind-boggling. Over 80% of those people are Hindu, and nearly 12% are Muslim. So technically, it's not a godless land, but it is a very God-less land. The biggest thing that I'll take away from this trip about the Indian people is their hospitality. It's as much like biblical hospitality as anything I've ever seen. When you visit their house, they invite you in, pull up every chair in the house for you, and bring out food and drink for you, even if they don't have much themselves. It was very humbling to be the recipient of such selflessness.

Regarding the ministry, beginning on Monday we were divided into teams and went to our respective neighborhoods. I was on a team with Martin (my brother-in-law), Bijo (our translator), James (another translator and seminary professor in northern Kerala), and Manoj (an Indian national). Our goal was to do door-to-door evangelism Monday through Wednesday and then follow-up with those individuals on Thursday, encouraging them to come to a cell group meeting in their neighborhood Thursday afternoon. By God's grace and the Holy Spirit's guidance, we were able to lead nearly 40 people to faith in Christ during the week! While every conversion is notable and significant, the one that stands out is the chance we had to lead a 104 year-old woman to faith in Christ! What a picture of God's grace! Overall, our campaign team saw over 160 people "born again" into the Kingdom of God! The four exclamation marks in this paragraph really do not do justice in attempting to convey just how incredibly God worked this past week.

But even more significant than these individual professions of faith (if there can be anything more significant than a person being rescued from death and brought into newness of life) is the foundation that was laid for the future of evangelism in India. Since this was e3's first campaign to this part of India, the hope was that by the end of the week we would have helped plant at least one church. But as Eph. 3:20 tells us, God is "able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us." By week's end, we witnessed 5 different cell meetings in 5 different neighborhoods! Each of those cell groups is a baby church full of fledgling believers that through the nurturance of the local mother church will hopefully develop into a multiplying church full of mature believers. Additionally, we were able to train many national believers in evangelism and discipleship by modeling the process throughout the week. Through this training process, the work of making disciples in India will continue, long after our team has gone.

With our team is back in the U.S., the new believers in Kerala are in very capable hands. Pastor Dani Abraham, e3's national director for India, has assembled an awesome team of pastors and lay people who have a heart for evangelizing, discipling, and shepherding the people of India. The mother church, Worship Church, led by Pastor Sabu, is full of individuals who have committed themselves to seeing these baby churches grow to maturity. Our team was just one small tool to help reach India with the gospel. The bulk of the work will be done by these Indian nationals, so please be in prayer for them.

As you pray for India, please pray for the following: (1) these new believers and new churches, that they would persevere and be a light in their communities; (2) Worship Church and the national believers who will be discipling the new believers; (3) Pastor Dani as he works to accomplish the vision God has given him for the evangelization of his country; (4)
for our American team, that they would take what God showed them through their involvement in this campaign and be even more motivated to make God's name famous in the States; and (5) for how you might be involved in what God is doing in India - by praying, supporting Pastor Dani, or going with me on a future campaign. God moved in a mighty way on this campaign, but there are so many more people that need to hear the good news of Jesus Christ.

happy thanksgiving!

For God so loved the world, that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. - Jn. 3:16


Thanks be to God for his inexpressible gift! - 2 Cor. 9:15

to india with thanksgiving

The day after Thanksgiving, I'll be joining a team of Americans on a church-planting trip to Cochin, Kerala in India. It's located in the SW corner of India on the coast, right near the southern tip of the country. This will be the second of two training trips that I'm taking before I can lead campaigns myself.

It's not too early to begin praying for all aspects of this trip - the logistical details, preparation of the team leaders and campaigners, national pastors and church members, the lost, and that all we'd do would glorify Christ. Next month, I'll be sending out a prayer calendar to all of our ministry partners on our prayer list. This prayer calendar has a specific prayer emphasis and scripture each day - prior to, during, and immediately after the campaign. If you aren't on our email list, are interested in joining it, and will commit to be a part of the prayer force that undergirds our ministy, just send a blank email to join-jaskiprayerteam@lists.e3partners.org.

day 5 - in rio

We left the hotel early this AM to head toward Rio to be closer to the airport. On the way, we stopped in a small coastal town and took a schooner ride for the day (really suffering for Jesus, huh?). We sailed off the coast around several small islands, had lunch on one of them, and arrived back about 6 hours later. It was a much needed time of relaxation after a rigorous week. Then we continued on to Rio and arrived just before 10PM. From what I was able to see at nighttime, it´s a huge city. Kinda strange to see a city that is a lot like New York City but located on the beach. We´re staying at a youth hostel downtown. Tomorrow, we´ll get to go to some shops and then get to see Christ the Redeemer, the famous statue overlooking the city that has recently become one of the new 7 wonders of the world. I´m looking forward to that. Then we fly out tomorrow evening, and I should arrive back in Raleigh a little after noon on Sunday. Thanks so much for your prayers during this entire campaign. They really made the difference.

day 4 - last day in barra mansa

Today was full of follow-up visits. Our team had some great times of fellowship and discipleship as we sat down with new believers and worked through their first Bible study together. I don´t think I´ll ever get tired of doing that. And the best part is that the nationals were doing all the work. The church we´ve been working with is full of soul-winners, which is a tribute to their pastor, Gerson, who is a tremendous man of God with a huge heart for missions.

Tonight was a great time of celebration. We had our last evening service in which we celebrated what God has done this week. It was a sweet time of worship with many Brazilians who have become very dear to us. We had a time of singing and then testimonies from Leo and Carlos, 2 nationals who went visiting with us this week. I spent the entire week with Carlos and grew very close to him. He has an amazing testimony of how Christ took him from a life of anger and abuse that led him to prison to a life full of love and dedication to making the name of Jesus famous. After the testimonies, I preached from Heb. 12:1-2, encouraging them to continue running the race for the glory of Christ after we´re gone. Then we presented the pastor with the stack of names and addresses of all those individuals who had received Christ during the week so that he and the church could disciple them after we leave. There were many tears shed as we probably saw many of these precious people for the last time (this side of heaven).

For the week, all 4 of our teams were witness to nearly 1,800 Brazilians making professions of faith. 1,800? Some of you may be wondering if that´s even possible. One reason for such a high number is that many of the local schools let us into their classrooms to share the Cube and present the gospel. So were 1,800 people really born again into the family of God this week? Maybe, but I doubt it. "Profession of faith" means exactly what it sounds like - each individual professed that they had recognized their sinfulness and the fact that they couldn´t save themselves by their good works; confessed their sins to God; repented (turned) from their sins; and placed their faith and trust in Jesus, and Jesus alone, for eternal life. Was each profession genuine? Really, only God knows. I guess the true believers will be borne out by the fruit they produce (or fail to produce). This is what Jesus was talking about in the parable of the soils in Mark 4. As the gospel is cast like seed, it will fall on hearts in different conditions - some will fall on the path, some will fall on rocky soil, some will fall among thorns, and some will fall on good soil. Only that that falls on good soil will produce fruit. So it´s not up to us to try and determine who the people are who had "good soil" hearts - our responsibility is to cast the seed (share the gospel) and leave the results to God. His Word tells us that ultimately the true believers will "bear fruit in keeping with repentance." All we can count are professions, not salvations.

Tomorrow, we will leave in the AM for Rio de Janeiro to do a little sight-seeing. It´s a welcome respite. This week has been very fatiguing - physically, mentally, and spiritually. Thanks so much to you who´ve been praying. I can´t imagine how exhausted we´d be without your prayer support.

day 3 - follow up

Discipleship visits. These are what I think distinguish e3´s trips from other ministries, and they really get me fired up. There´s nothing quite like sitting down with new believers and watching them search the Word of God for answers to Bible study questions. It thrills my heart. I believe that a lot of them probably attended our evening meeting tonight (I haven´t heard from the team since they haven´t returned as of this post). I wasn´t there because I was with approximately 20-25 English students in their class. I was told ahead of time that I could not share the gospel with them - apparently some Americans had visited their class a while ago, tried to bash them over the head with the gospel, and soured many students and teachers to Christianity. They asked me many questions on a variety of topics - family, job, Brazil, weather, movies, global warming, George Bush, music, war in Iraq, etc. While I couldn´t share the gospel, by the end of the night they knew what I did with e3 and that I definitely live life from a biblical worldview. Also due to how I said what I said and in honoring their request, I believe I helped repave the road for Americans to share the gospel with them in the future.

I don´t think I´ve done so yet, but I want to brag on my team this week. When each team gets to its mission point, it divides up into smaller groups of one American, one translator, and at least one national church member. For the past couple of days, I´ve been going out with Jarbas, a translator, and two nationals, Carlos and Gutierrez. Carlos has such a heart for missions. He is a prosthodontist (makes dentures) but has closed his business this week so he can go out evangelizing. His desire is to become a missionary to India. He has become a dear, dear brother to me. Gutierrez is a sweet old lady who is a prayer warrior and an inspiration to me. As I mentioned before, the goal is to train the nationals how to evangelize and disciple on their own so they can continue the work when we leave to go home. Today was a thing of beauty - I would begin with my personal testimony, Carlos would lead the individual through the tract, Jarbas would "cube ´em" (do the Evangecube presentation), and Gutierrez would close in a prayer of thanksgiving, also lifting up any needs the individual might have. As Jarbas said today, we operated like the "Dream Team." Again, I didn´t need to be there because the nationals in my group are capable of doing it all on their own, but I was privileged to serve with them.

We have one more day of follow-up visits tomorrow and then our last evening meeting. It is going to be a great celebration where we honor the nationals who´ve participated, present the pastor with the names and addresses of all the new believers, and praise God for all He did this week. I will be preaching the message, so PLEASE pray for me. Fatigue is beginning to set in among all the campaign team members. It´s been an awesome, yet tiring, week. I have photos and short video clips that I plan on posting when I get back. Boa noite (good night).

day 2 - back to the battlefield

Different day, same routine. After breakfast and meetings, we drove out to our mission point. Each team picked up where it left off and continued going door-to-door, house-to-house and sharing the gospel. It is such a joy to see the national church members take ownership of the evangelism process. After watching us conduct a few visits - giving our testimony, going through the tract, and using the Evangecube - the nationals were immediately ready to do it themselves. For every visit we made today except one, the nationals in my group did the entire gospel presentation while I stood there and silently prayed. On the one hand, I was feeling kinda useless on each visit, but on the other hand, I knew that this was the whole reason we came to Barra Mansa - to train the nationals how to win their country to Christ. Americans can certainly help, but the only way the gospel is going to reach the nations is for nationals to take it to their own people.

The evening meeting went well tonight. We had 48 people there, up from 32 the night before. Two members of our team went to an English class and hopefully had an opportunity to share the gospel (we haven´t heard back from them as of this post). It´s been confirmed that I will get to share with 3 English classes tomorrow. Our translator said that historically, the young people have tuned out Americans when they begin to speak about religious matters. Please pray that God will open their eyes and ears, and that He will speak clearly and effectively through me. Also be in prayer for tomorrow and Thursday. Tomorrow begins our discipleship emphasis. For the past 2 days, we´ve met with people, shared the gospel with them, and many of them have placed their faith in Christ. For the next 2 days, we´ll go back to their houses, teach them how to look up Bible verses, lead them in an elementary Bible study, and simply encourage them in their new journey with Jesus. It´s really cool stuff. Wish you could see it. Hopefully some of you can in future trips. ;)

day 1 - on the field in barra mansa

We began the day with an early meeting and devotion (7AM). I was asked to bring the devotion for the team and felt led to share from 2 Cor. 12:9-10 since we have so many team members who are on their first mission trip.

After breakfast, we went to our mission site. Let me just say that we have an INCREDIBLE group of nationals to work with. Their pastor, whom they greatly respect, is all about evangelism and missions, and he has trained them to be focused on winning the lost. The mission point we are operating from is a church that was planted by the mother church less than 2 weeks ago. The mother church has planted a total of 3 churches throughout the state of Rio de Janeiro while it continues to grow itself (It is possible to do both!).

Today, our team of 5 Americans, along with translators and nationals, divided up and began going door-to-door in the district of Vila Nova. At the end of the day, we shared the gospel with approximately 20 people. Out of that number, 16 of them placed their faith in Jesus Christ for their salvation, realizing that what they were trusting in to get to heaven couldn´t get them there. Overall, our entire campaign team was party to approximately 50-60 people who were "born again" into the Kingdom of God! Not a bad first day, huh? All glory to God! At the evening meeting, there were about 32 people at the new church, and we had a great time of music, teaching, and fellowship.

Tomorrow, we´ll go back to Vila Nova and pick up where we left off. It´s extremely hot, but not nearly as humid as it was back in NC. Seeing the resolve of the nationals in reaching their countrymen and women is really inspiring and keeps us from focusing on our circumstances. One specific prayer request - we have a unique opportunity to share the gospel on Tuesday and Wednesday. Two of our translators are teachers, and they teach English to kids, teens, and adults. The translators/teachers have asked us to come to their classes and field questions from the students. We´ll also have an opportunity to tell them about ourselves and what we do (wink, wink). On Tuesday evening, 2 folks from my team are going to go to one of these classes, and on Wednesday, I´m going to go to the other (which will actually be 3 classes coming together). I´m pretty sure that we will get to use the Evangecube to share the gospel with them. Pray that all will work out for us to do so. Thanks so much for your prayers. Please lift up a special prayer for my brother-in-law, Martin, whose mother just passed away and for his family. PTL that she had a saving relationship with Christ.

sunday in barra mansa

As I mentioned in an email to my prayer team, we arrived safely in Rio de Janeiro at around 9AM on Saturday after traveling through the night. We spent the remainder of Saturday catching up on some rest and eating.

After getting some much-needed sleep last night, our team had an awesome time of worship with the congregation of Central Baptist Church in Barra Mansa. The music was great, but the preaching was not-so-great (I had the privilege of preaching this morning). I preached from Luke 15, and using Jesus´ parables of the lost sheep, the lost coin, and the prodigal son, I focused the message on God´s love and pursuit of the lost. After the service, the church provided lunch for us. After a day and a half, I already know that I love Brazilian food. So far, it loves me, too.

After coming back to our hotel to rest a bit after lunch, we went out to the mission point, a church that was just planted last week by CBC. We spent an hour prayer-walking around this poor section of town, praying for a fruitful harvest this week. Then we came back to the hotel, ate at a restaurant across the street, and got back in the car to go back to CBC for a youth worship service. The music and the preaching were dynamic.

Tomorrow, all 4 of our teams (we divided our group into 4 teams that will minister at 4 different locations) will go to our particular mission points and begin going door-to-door with the gospel. Please pray that the Holy Spirit will lead us to those homes and hearts that He has already prepared for visits. Also pray that Satan and his demons won´t win any victories this week. I can feel the prayer support.

wanted: prayer warriors

The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working . - Ja. 5:16b (ESV)

The Bible abounds with verses like this one that highlights the importance and effectiveness of prayer. While I don't claim to understand all of the dynamics of prayer (i.e., how its effectiveness squares with the sovereignty and will of God), I firmly believe that prayer is vitally necessary in the life of every believer. It is also indispensible as it relates to missions.

If you would like to join the prayer force that undergirds our e3 ministry, we would be honored for you to do so. Just simply send a blank email to join-jaskiprayerteam@lists.e3partners.org. I'll periodically send out prayer requests relating to the various campaigns I'm involved in and let you know specific prayer needs of the team, the nationals, our family, and more. I also invite you to email me with prayer requests that you may have. If we can pray with you on anything, please let me know at tom.jaski@e3partners.org.

first 2 trips on the calendar

As part of my training to be a CP (church planter), I'm required to take 2 training trips under an experienced CP. On these trips, I'm given more responsibilities than the rest of the campaigners - before, during, and after the campaign. After taking these 2 training trips, I'll then able to plan and lead trips of my own in 2008 and beyond.

My first training trip is coming up at the end of August. Our team will be travelling to the town of Barra Mansa, Brazil which is a city of about 150,000 people and is located in southern Brazil, just west of Rio de Janeiro. It's a Portuguese-speaking country and has the largest Roman Catholic population in the world. Please pray for the team, the people of Barra Mansa, and for the Spirit of God to work in an awesome way through this campaign.

The day after Thanksgiving, I'll be leaving on my second training trip, this time to Kerala, India. Located in southern India, Kerala has had some exposure to the gospel in its southern region but the northern region is dominated by Hinduism and animism. FYI, there are still a few openings on this campaign, so if you are interested in joining us on the Kerala campaign, either let me know or fill out an online application at http://www.e3partners.org/. Without having been there, I feel confident in guaranteeing that it will be a life-changing experience.

Come join us, and see what God is doing around the world!

the power of smell

It’s funny how a particular aroma or odor can trigger certain thoughts, feelings, or memories.

A couple of days ago, I was out taking an early morning walk. I try to do this on a regular basis, partly for exercise but primarily because I feel that I better connect with God when I’m in the midst of His creation than when I’m at my kitchen table. But that’s just me. Anyway, on this particular morning I happened to be thinking and praying about the lost – the millions of people scattered throughout hundreds of countries across the globe that don’t have a relationship with God through Jesus Christ. In the midst of my praying, a garbage truck sped by, and immediately the odor of garbage filled my nostrils. Just as quickly, thoughts and images of Manzanillo, Costa Rica and Tumbaco, Ecuador flooded my mind. The smell from the truck was remarkably similar to the smell of those poor, garbage-strewn towns that I’ve had the privilege of visiting and in which I’ve shared the gospel. As the garbage truck drove off, I found myself praying for specific faces and names of individuals I’d encountered in those two towns.

Here’s a somewhat related question: how do you and I smell? Not literally, but figuratively. In 2 Cor. 2, Paul refers to believers as “the aroma of Christ” (v.15), and he says that through us God “spreads the fragrance of the knowledge of him everywhere” (v.14). Wherever we go, people ought to recognize that we are markedly different from those in the world because of our relationship with Christ. Our “scent” should exhort believers to live holy lives and should convict nonbelievers of what’s missing in their lives. But sadly, many believers today smell just like the world. There’s nothing distinctive about their “scent” that would catch the attention of an unbelieving world.

So how do you smell? Do you carry the putrid stench of the world? Or do you give off the sweet-smelling aroma of Jesus to a lost world?

how near is the end?

While we don't know any specifics such as dates or times, Jesus did mention THE precondition that must take place in order for this world to end and Christ to come again:

"And this gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come." - Mt. 24:14

So what's the current status of world evangelization? Obviously, we're not there yet since I haven't heard a trumpet blast (1 Thes. 4:16). But I do know this - the gospel is spreading throughout the world at a pace that would boggle your mind. As a result of numerous church planting movements, thousands of people are being born into the Kingdom of God DAILY in parts of the world where there had previously been no gospel witness. Consequently, only God knows how close we are until the precondition given in Matthew 24 is met. It could be 10 years from now. It could be sometime next week.

So is this good news or bad news? The answer is Yes. Well it's good news for those who've been born again, who've been redeemed by the blood of Christ. We will finally get to see our Savior who died on our behalf and satisfied the wrath of God. We will finally get to see God the Father in all His glory and splendor, something we could never do here on earth. And we get to dwell with the Triune God and with other believers in a place where sin and death do not exist. Can you hardly wait?

Now the bad news. It is possible for the precondition given by Jesus to be fulfilled without everyone having had a chance to hear the gospel. That may sound strange, but based upon the Jesus' words in Matthew and upon other passages in the Bible, the precondition only requires that the gospel reach every people group in the world, not necessarily every person (for a thorough explanation of this, see John Piper's Let the Nations Be Glad).

So what can/should we do? The Body of Christ needs to do all that it can - pray, give, and go - to get the gospel to every person possible so that when that final trumpet blows, multitudes upon multitudes of redeemed individuals will meet the Lord in the air at His coming.

Will you be a part of that welcoming party? Whom will you invite?

the road less traveled

In this first post, I simply want to give glory to God. Almost 13 years ago, He redeemed me and brought me in into an intimate relationship with Him through Christ. Nearly 6 years ago, He led me out of a secular job and into full time vocational ministry. And this year, He has blessed my family and me with the opportunity to be a part of what He is doing globally through e3 Partners (www.e3partners.org).

I think for many believers, the path of global missions is the "road less traveled" for many different reasons. It may not be what God has called everyone to do, but I do believe that He has called far more than those who are actually going. My prayer is that this blog may give you a glimpse of what God is doing around the world for His honor and glory. I also pray that God will lead more of His children to take this "road less traveled," whether on a short-term trip or on a long-term basis, so that people from every tribe, tongue, and nation will be able to experience a relationship with God and begin a journey down the Highway of Holiness.

And a highway shall be there, and it shall be called the Way of Holiness; the unclean shall not pass over it. It shall belong to those who walk on the way; even if they are fools, they shall not go astray. No lion shall be there, nor shall any ravenous beast come up on it; they shall not be found there, but the redeemed shall walk there. And the ransomed of the Lord shall return and come to Zion with singing; everlasting joy shall be upon their heads; they shall obtain gladness and joy, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away. - Is. 35:8-10