Youth Camp Again

When we were younger, Greta and I often went to camp for as many as three weeks a year. We also did came several times in Africa. A few years ago we decided that camp was for younger people and we did not go to camp for many years. Then a friend called and talked us into being the camp missionaries at a camp called Wonder Valley Christian Camp located near Salem, Indiana. He was the dean for a week of camp for fifth and sixth grade youth. Reluctently we decided to try it again. We were assured we would just be the camp missionary and would do a one hour missions presentation once a day. We would have our own private room and bathroom and could participate in any other activities as we wanted.

This year, the first week of August was the fourth year we have attended this camp. Another week of hot August days days of almost 100 degree heat, campfires, hikes, games, even helping build solar ovens to bake cookies in the afternoon sun - it was hot enough to do that.

We have found this camp and this age group surprisingly refreshing. They are of an age that they are eager to learn and are able to learn quickly. Using some age appropriate videos and materials we were pleasanatly surprised to be able to teach them rather lofty mission ideas such as "What is a people group?", an "unreached people group", or the now famous "10/40 window". Through a simple memory idea, we were able to teach them the five major world religions. We called it the THUMB. So, the five religions are Tribal, Hindu, Unreligious, Muslim and Buddist. By the second or third day, all we needed to do was give the "thumbs up" gesture and they would recite the five major world religions. I know lots of adults: preachers, elders and church leaders who do not have good mission information. At the end of the week we had a "Bible Bowl' type quiz and were amazed at how much information the children had learned.

These children are the church of the future. Greta and I feel honored to help in the formation of their minds towards good missions planning in the church. These children already know that the church is spending 95% of its "missions" money on the parts of the world that are already largely Christian and the remaining 5% on the parts of the world that have no way to find out about Christ or the church. Our hope is that they will help change the way the church today does missions.

Even an inexperienced fisherman knows that if you want to catch fish, you must go to a place where there are fish. Why is that the church finds it difficult to understand that if we are to reach the lost, we must go to where the lost are living?

This is Africa

A few years ago, Greta and I were invited to join friends for a visit to East Africa. The trip involved a conference in Mombasa, Kenya, on the Indian ocean and then a trip into the Great Rift Valley to a mission station and then to Masai Mara Game Reserve. It involved a long drive into the wilderness, and an overnight with a missionary family in as remote location as I had ever seen. At the time I said I used to think I was a missionary and had lived in some wild places, but this family took the cake.
The next day we drove to to the Masai Mara Game Reserve. From the moment we left the mission compound, we began to see some amazing animals. When we entered the park the animals were abundant beyond imagination. We had not driven 3 miles along a trail until a male lion sauntered out of the bush and walked by our vehicle as if it/we did not exist. He was the "king" and knew it. We saw most of the "big" game that day; lions, elephants, hippo, zebra, giraffe, cape buffalo, cheeta --literally thousands of animals, except the rhino.
When the lion walked by, everyone was trying to get me to roll up the window for fear of being attacked by the vicious beast. Some hours later, as we were about to leave the park, we came upon a herd of cape buffalo resting quietly some distance off the road. Our missionary guide began to tell us that these big cows, not the lions, were the most dangerous animals in the area and that more people were treated in the mission clinic from buffalo attacks than from lions. Buffalo are "just mean" he said. I took his word for it with a grain of salt until I saw this video on YouTube. Here is the link. Take a look.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LU8DDYz68kM

My Country

I am unabashedly patriotic. I love my country and am proud to be an American. I fly the flag proudly and still get a bit choked up when they play or sing our National Anthem. I have lived in other countries long enough - over 23 years in Africa- that I appreciate the blessings of being a citizen of the United States. At the same time I try not to be the "Ugly American". Having lived in other countries and having friends from literally all over the world, I appreciate and respect other countries and cultures and understand their national pride.
This Fourth, Greta and I went out looking for fireworks displays and found one at a town a few miles outside of Louisville where we live. I like the small town fireworks displays. The big crowds such as the million or so who attend the now world famous "Thunder Over Louisville" turn me off. It was pleasant to sit back and watch the "Rockets red glare" and reflect on what it all means to me as an American. God bless America!

My Name is Hezekiah

It is not often that life forces us to face our own mortality and it is not one of the favorite subjects of blogging as I see it, but sometimes our own imminent death forces itself on us. Last September I was diagnosed with Melanoma, a dangerous and often deadly form of skin cancer. I was told at the time that if it comes back a second time, there might be little they could do about it, so a spot was removed from my right hand and I went through a series of chemotherapy treatments, the last of which nearly killed me. Then early this month, June, they found melanoma in a lymph node under my right arm which necessitated a second surgery from which I am still recovering--all of this to say that I was forced to consider the very real possibility of the end of my days. As a pastor and preacher of the Word for more than 50 years, I had presumed to help others through similar situations and have officiated at many funerals. Is it now my turn?
I don’t want to be morbid about this and my kids will likely fuss at me, but it has been a valuable experience. I have had time to think and even plan. I can’t imagine how one would do all this is the few split seconds before a head-on car crash or a massive heart attack.
Anyway, long story short, earlier this week my surgeon reported that of the 19 lymph nodes he removed from under my right arm, only one was infected with cancer and that the CT/PET scan they did of my whole body, showed that only that one lymph node was infected with cancer. That has now been removed, and as far as the doctor knows, I am cancer free. So I feel a bit like Hezekiah, the king of Israel whom God gave 15 more years of life – 2 Kings 20:5-6. And I have a new and stronger appreciation for prayer.
After getting the disturbing news that my cancer had returned, I sent out a prayer letter by Email. I requested the elders of our church to pray for me according to James 4 and began to receive assurances and promises of prayer from people all over the world. I believe the Lord has heard those prayers as he did that of Hezekiah. So I am praising the Lord for his goodness and grace to another undeserving soul.

How Long Will You Do This?

A good friend came by the office this week to visit and talk. He is the associate minister of a local church and has recently accepted the position of senior minister of a large church in a nearby town. He was surprised to see the numbers of people involved in the Team Expansion home office and to hear about the variety of things we do to recruit, train and help field missionaries be healthy and successful. After touring the office he asked me, “Wayne, how long do you see yourself doing this?” My reply was easy, “As long and the Lord will allow me.” My friend laughed and told me of another friend who says he will retire when God forces him to retire.
I cannot see myself playing golf every day. In the first place I could not afford the green fees. But I could enjoy more fishing than I have done recently. The last time I went fishing was with our grandson in Texas, fishing for the tiny perch in the little stream that runs through the green belt of their sub-division.
I really do enjoy the work I am doing. Every day, through the “magic” of internet technology, I talk with missionaries literally all over the world. I get to be involved in their lives and ministries. I help them with their problems, encourage and pray for them when they need it. Sometimes they need to be prodded or simply be held accountable. God has taught me a few things over the years, sometimes through the school of hard knocks my grandmother talked about. While lessons learned the hard way usually stay with you, there is no need for a young or new missionary to be knocked around like I was if I can help them avoid it.
There is a young school teacher tutoring a family of missionary children in what we call a “sensitive” Muslim country in Eastern Europe. She has had a difficult time recently. She had to have oral surgery to care for an infected tooth and so could not talk for weeks. Unable to talk, she could not teach the missionary children. AND, dentists in Eastern Europe are not as well trained or equipped as US dentists and she had to trust the best one she could find. Not long after that, she got a bad abscess that had to be opened and was on antibiotic IVs for several days. Through the “magic” on the internet I could be there for her with prayer and encouragement. I could even put her in touch with best dentist I know to help guide and advise her through this experience. She is still there, teaching the Missionary Kids and making it possible for an effective missionary family to do their work. Because of their combined efforts, there are the beginnings of two churches in a small, backward Muslim country in Eastern Europe. I am happy I could help a little. I know of former missionaries who came home when faced with problems like hers. It may be because no one was “there” to help.
So, perhaps I should do more fishing, but I enjoy what I do every day too much and feel it is too important to stop until the Lord tells me it is enough.

Family

We had a Meece family reunion last week in California. We were all in Santa Barbara for our granddaughter's graduation from Westmont College. The family had not been together since 2002 and some of the little ones were too young to remember, so for them, it was the first family meeting ever. Westmont College is a fine Christian school and we are all proud of Jackie. She got her degree in History and hopes to work in a historical museum.

In the picture at the right, she is with her fiancé, Micah Ralston. They plan to be married next June. The graduating class wore scarves made from Kente cloth made in Ghana, West Africa. The president of the class is from Ghana. I had lots of fun telling the students the meaning of the cloth, how it is made and about Ghana.

The Kente cloth they wore was of particular interest to Greta and me because we lived in West Africa for almost 25 years and have visited Ghana many times. Kente cloth is largely associated with the Akan peoples who are from Ghana, but have moved and settled all over West Africa, taking their culture, and their Kente cloth with them. The cloth is woven on narrow hand-made looms in narrow strips about 3 to 5 inches wide. The strips are sometimes sewn together to make wider material for robes, table cloths, bed covers or wall hangings. The various colors and patterns with black, yellow and green being the dominant colors, reflect Akan beliefs, history, events and other aspects of their society.

A family reunion is just the kind of event that would inspire a special pattern in Kente cloth. So this event will be remembered and cherished by the Meece family for the rest of our lives.

We often forget the meaning and importance of Family. We forget that family is a precious gift from God. When He made Adam and Eve in the Garden, His instructions to them were the foundation for home and family. "What God has joined, let no man take apart" was spoken of Family, not just husband and wife. I don't know how the Akan people would design a cloth for this event, but I know it would be special. Our family will weave it into the fabric of our memory and hold it precious for many years. We will also pray that as our family grows and changes we will find ways to celebrate the important events and find ways to remember them. Our family tradition has almost always been to share a meal together. Just before this picture was taken, we had shared a meal at a nice restaurant on State Street in Santa Barbara, California. Who knows where the next reunion will take place or when. We would like for it to be soon.

Praying For Our Missionaries

When our missionaries visit the home office, we always try to give them a good meal, debrief them, let them tell us of their work, ask a lot of good questions and them we pray for them. We all gather around them, put our hands on them or on each other in a kind of prayer chain of contact and pray.

Somehow there is just something special about the Biblical format of laying hands on someone and praying for them. For many of our people it is the highlight of their time with us. We always take a picture and give them a copy. It is one way we can feel that we are sending the out properly.

We pray every day for our missionaries in some way, and a group and individually, but I try never to miss the group prayer and "laying of of hands." I get a blessing from it too.