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2025 Alaska Mission Trip Presentation
0 Plays2 seconds ago
Sunday Message recorded 04 May 2025
by Senior Pastor Victor Morrison
First Baptist Church - Columbus, TX, USA
1700 Milam St.
Columbus, TX, USA 78934
Recommended
Transcript
Mission Trip Overview
00:00:06
Speaker
Well, thank you so much for watching the slideshow and the video. We want to give you a report, and so i want to ask all the team members if they would come up and join me on the stage. I tell you, it was a real joy, literally a joy, to work with these that were on the team.
00:00:22
Speaker
We had such a great time, and I thought that Josh said it right at the beginning when he said it was what a tight fit team. It really was. I mean, we worked together so closely and so well, but we knew that you were praying for us, and that's why it was like that. So anyway, thank you so much. So we thought we would give you just a little overview of just some of the highlights.
Construction Challenges in Bethel
00:00:45
Speaker
So Don Dishman is going to come and sort of talk about the construction. And then after that, Kenny Miller will come and tell us about Tulixack, and we hope he'll tell us about more than his grandchildren, but maybe... Anyway, it's it's a hope anyway. Sammy Cox had a really interesting connection with one of the local people in Bethel. We were actually in two different places. We were in Bethel where we did the construction and then we went to Tulixak on Sunday where Aaron and Alyssa Litzler serve that you have heard before. We've showed their videos and so forth.
00:01:21
Speaker
But anyway, Sammy's going to talk about a man that lives in Bethel. And so that'll be great to hear from him. And then after Sammy speaks, then Mike Ridland is going to come and tell us about just some ideas. And we're trying to brainstorm. How can we continue to support the Litzlers and what they're doing? Because we saw it firsthand. And it's let me tell you it's ah awesome. Awesome.
00:01:44
Speaker
What God is doing there is breathtaking. And so I just wanted to give you a little taste of it. And then I'll come at the end to sort of wrap it up. We'll look at Colossians 4 and see how we can pray. You prayed for us, but how can we pray for them? So we'll look at that as we close out our time
Unexpected Tasks and Compliance
00:02:02
Speaker
together. But first, let me invite Don Dishman to come and talk a little bit about the construction. Don?
00:02:08
Speaker
So part of the project that we were involved with is, if you looked at, remember the video, the tall section that they was existing already exist and be built? That was basically hotel rooms is what they're going to be.
00:02:24
Speaker
And not just for the public, but for the school teachers. So what happens is is yeah Bethel has a big airport, so large aircraft can come in and they can fly in some, you know, somewhat bad weather. But once you land in Bethel, to get in a bush plane to fly to the 40 other villages up the river, weather has to be good. And Alaska is very unpredictable when it comes to weather. So lots of times the teachers come into Bethel and then they're stranded there until the weather clears for them to get to their village.
00:02:58
Speaker
And a hotel room is a very expensive place to live. I mean, you've seen the ice cream for $14. Doritos was like $10 a bag. It was just really expensive place because everything has to be freighted in.
00:03:13
Speaker
And there's a hotel there, and $300 night. So they could be stranded there one night, two nights, three nights. You just don't know. So what these rooms are is for these teachers, as they come in to have a place to stay that doesn't cost them any money until they can get to their village. And so our part of the project, as we came in was we thought was to do sheetrock, but we found out there was quite a bit more to do other than just
Logistical Challenges in Bethel
00:03:40
Speaker
hanging sheetrock. So we had to go to each room because all this work was done by volunteers.
00:03:45
Speaker
And there was a lot of stuff missed. So before the sheetrock goes on, we have to make sure that everything was up to par, everything was correct, because once it's covered up, it's a big deal to change.
00:03:56
Speaker
So we had to do um rewiring because some of the wiring wasn't quite right. We had to check all the wiring. ah We had to do the...
00:04:07
Speaker
fresh air ventilation, which we don't really have to deal with a lot here, but up there you really have to, it's a whole new system. and So it was all hard duct line, inside out, you know return, it was a lot of work because it was very tight quarters.
00:04:23
Speaker
We had to insulate, as you've seen, and unfortunately when we'd done the insulation was, we started that on the night that we could not take a shower. So it was it was bad. We had to wait until the next day to take a shower. and But we all split up into you know two year about two men or women teams.
00:04:44
Speaker
and And we just tackled different projects. And the team really worked good together. We accomplished a lot. We had set our goal up when we first got there to be done with the sheetrock. But we had no idea that all this other work had to be done before we could even do the sheetrock.
00:05:04
Speaker
And there's there is fire codes up there, no building inspection, but a fire marshal. And they want double 5-8 sheetrock on the ceiling because there's apartment upstairs. that Amelia, who's a girl that cooks for us, and she she serves there at the Bethel Church, and that's where she lives.
00:05:24
Speaker
Housing is extremely expensive. I mean, what we would almost consider a shack is going for $300,000.
00:05:32
Speaker
I'm not sure how they support it and how they afford all that. of Paul told us that because the tundra is frozen, there's no septic system, so and there's no running water but to a few buildings in town.
00:05:47
Speaker
So all the water has to be trucked in, and as it fills up the tank inside the building, they also send a truck at the same time to empty out the holding tank in the ground because everything's frozen, so septic systems do not work.
00:06:00
Speaker
And he said he spends $400 a week to get that accomplished. So it's definitely an expensive place. Nothing's easy there.
00:06:12
Speaker
We needed some studs. We went down to the local lumber yard.
Cultural Exchange in Tulixac
00:06:16
Speaker
I noticed there was no prices on anything. And I asked Paul, I said, well, why aren't you prices on stuff? He said, because it changes everything.
00:06:23
Speaker
every time the shipment comes in. Depends on how much the material costs, it depends on how much it costs to to freight it in. And they can only be brought in on cargo, on ah barges, a certain short period of time.
00:06:38
Speaker
So like a two by four was $13. So we we worked hard and we literally worked up until the very last minute to get the last piece of sheetrock installed.
00:06:51
Speaker
And then we ran down, jumped in the van and went to the airport. So we at least got to our goal was to get that accomplished. And we had Kenny and Mike.
00:07:02
Speaker
They mainly done the fresh air ventilation, which I was glad I wasn't a part of that. Well, yeah. Yeah, because it was it was there definitely a puzzle. I think we have pictures of it, but it it was something else, and I didn't really get involved with.
00:07:22
Speaker
And also, I really had the best job, because I'd done the electrical and the framing, and and then I started the sheetrock. Sammy and Terry had the installation, and... That was some bad stuff. It was like soundproofing, but just them working. instant We're all doing different things. As they're insulating one area, we're working on another area, and and the insulation was just making you cough. it was It was bad to work in, but we got through it. Yeah.
00:07:56
Speaker
Victor and Chris went upstairs and was doing some ventilation work up there. um We accused them of sitting in the recliners up there and hitting the floor every now and then because they were gone for a long time. um and And Sammy was involved with the insulation and then he helped with the sheet rock. So we did ah accomplish a lot. We worked well together. Our days consisted of, you know, meeting down at the at the main area at seven o'clock. We had a devotional at breakfast. We worked until lunchtime, 1230, had, you know, 15, 20 minutes eat.
00:08:36
Speaker
And then we went back to work and worked till 630 at night. So it was a full day. Everybody worked. constantly as fast as we could go until 630 at night. And then then we were able to go over to the community shower and take a shower. So that was pretty much it. And it was it was a great team. We had a lot of fun.
00:09:06
Speaker
Good On Sunday, April 13th, the team flew to Tulixac. As Victor said, that's home to Luann and my daughter and son-in-law, Aaron and Alyssa, and our grandbabies. I gotta have to wave to my grandbabies.
00:09:24
Speaker
Azariah and Eliza.
00:09:27
Speaker
We've been asked several times, you know what kind of planes do you go on when you go to these villages and stuff? And we were fortunate enough to fly on plane. 29 passenger Cessna, it's called a caravan.
00:09:40
Speaker
Typically you fly on a three to six passenger, you know it's a very small plane. and But one thing for sure, it's amazing how much cargo the pilots can stuff on these little planes you know with you to get you there. Sometimes you feel like you're sitting on top of each other.
00:09:56
Speaker
But they get us there. um Our visit started with a devotion led by Victor at Aaron and Alyssa's home.
Personal Growth and Gratitude
00:10:05
Speaker
Afterwards, we toured the village post office. We toured the grocery store, which you saw some of the prices.
00:10:13
Speaker
I bought a package of Oreo cookies that was $13. You know, just some more perspective on costs.
00:10:24
Speaker
We also kind of toured the boat launch area where you know the all the villagers pull their boats up on top during the winter and then that's where they'll go back out when they have the salmon run and do their fishing and that stuff.
00:10:39
Speaker
For the most part, the teams actually wait to buy most of their groceries when they go back to Bethel or Anchorage, you know just where they can buy it in bulk. They bring it back in totes, and that's just because of the high cost of the goods and stuff in the villages. It's just extremely expensive.
00:10:59
Speaker
um I did want to mention that you know you don't see actually a lot of pictures of the village itself. The villagers, they don't they don't care a lot about gussics walking around, taking pictures of their, that's what they call white people.
00:11:16
Speaker
They don't want them taking pictures of their homes and properties and stuff like that. you know So we tried to keep that to a minimum and just areas away from their actual houses and stuff.
00:11:27
Speaker
Let's see, we then, after that, we toured the We toured the school where we saw Aaron's office, some of the classrooms. We got to see some of the projects and stuff that the kids were working on, sewing rugs and building fish traps and stuff that you know basically is for their often for their lifestyle, you know for warmth and for food, some of the things that they helped teach them you know in the school, in the classrooms.
00:11:58
Speaker
um The facilities, the the school facilities are very clean and neat and modern, but they do, as some of the pictures show, they do preserve the culture. They have murals and paintings and some of the artwork and stuff within the school preserves the culture of the village and stuff. So that that was pretty neat.
00:12:26
Speaker
See, after after the tour of the village, we went back to eron and Alyssa's house for lunch. They were nice enough to fix some moose roast for the team.
00:12:40
Speaker
And I think everybody enjoyed the moose roast. It's very good.
00:12:47
Speaker
We also their during that time we were able to meet the other eight KSP members ah that are there with Aaron and Alyssa, teaching the the kids there in the village.
00:13:01
Speaker
After lunch, we walked down to the river and proceeded to drill holes in the ice to try to do some ice fishing, and that is definitely harder than it looks. the The ice is about two to three feet deep, kind of depending on where you're trying to get through, but we all pitched in, and we finally succeeded at getting through the ice and were able to do some do some fishing.
00:13:27
Speaker
The fish we were trying to get were called pike. See, we all took turns dropping our lines down the holes, but in the end, Alyssa, she won the fishing contest. As y'all saw, she was the only one with fish. But after after thinking about that, was thinking, you know, that probably was a good thing because those of you who know how competitive she is, we'd have been there all night if she wasn't the one that caught that fish.
00:13:53
Speaker
Then we walked back to their home afterwards and to say our goodbyes, and then we headed back to the airport to catch our plane back to Bethel.
00:14:07
Speaker
Lisa and Aaron, along with Luann and I, we want to express our gratitude. and thankfulness to all of you who donated for the trip and the prayers for safe travels and successful rebuilding of the Bethel Church building. It was a blessing to me to have been able to be a part of this special and and fantastic team to work with during that time.
00:14:34
Speaker
Luann, also want to thank you guys that have been donating to Alyssa and Aaron outside of this mission trip even. We appreciate it very much. It's truly a blessing, and we're very grateful for it. Thank you all.
Faith and Personal Connections
00:14:50
Speaker
are Hello. So I wanted to reiterate what Kenny said. This trip was a complete blessing and in so many ways, some totally for the whole group, some personally, individually. I know it has definitely changed my outlook on on um just certain things in life. So I've been asked a couple of times what my favorite part of the trip was, and I have two.
00:15:19
Speaker
One was interaction with Dale, which I'll speak about, but then also at the end, our our last host was struggling with some stuff when we were in Anchorage. and Victor had the great idea of us all praying for her. And it was just completely heartwarming and just reiterate how great of a church this is, how everybody got down and prayed for her. it was so from the heart, and she really, really appreciated it. So it was just something I wanted to touch on real fast. But...
00:15:51
Speaker
As Don said, we got there and got straight to work and we're not able to get showers for a couple of days, which seemed like not a big deal. But then it definitely did start to be where we needed showers. So um since water is so expensive, they take us to the to a community center, which has a huge indoor pool um and and a shower facility. So we got to get cleaned up and then we would go you know get in the pool.
00:16:18
Speaker
Most of us get in the hot tub and try to relax some some of the muscles that we're not used to being used quite so much. And and i
00:16:34
Speaker
got a huge answer to um my biggest prayer of the trip, which was I wanted to go build things. I wanted to to further the church, but i also wanted to connect and interact with some of some of the local people. And we're all sitting in the hot tub, and I love every single one of these people up here, but I was like, I've been hanging out with them enough. I'm going to go.
00:16:54
Speaker
do some fishing and not the kind of fishing like Alyssa did, but I should go out and try to try to speak to somebody. And have a little a little um basketball hoop in the pool. So went over there and started shooting hoops. And I mean, not within 10 seconds that ah Did a young man come over and ask he could shoot with me? Huge smile, like your greatest greatest energy, and I told him, yes, please. Come to find out he was way better at basketball than I will ever be. And basketball is a big outlet for
00:17:26
Speaker
um the youth out there, the the huge basketball tournaments where they travel from all over to, you know, in Plains, from village to village. And so we just got to talking and it was just, you know, casual first. And he asked me, um you know, while we were there and I told him we were there to ah to help build the church. And he was asking which church and I told him. And um just the way God connects things for us, you know, sometimes it's obvious and sometimes it's not. But that Paul, the guy that's in charge of the of the organization,
00:17:57
Speaker
The man that he got the church from, I believe Bob, correct? Bob was this guy's neighbor, which didn't find out until a little bit later in the conversation. but um So when I told him while we were there and and explained the church, he's like, oh, i know that church. And he said, I just... I can't remember the term he used. I'm using the word, I just got saved, because that's that's the term I used. And I said, really? And he was he said, yes, that I'm really trying to change the direction of my life, change the direction my family's life. And I've had a past. And you know I'm really trying. And I told him, man, that is that is what this is all about. And we shared some similar stories. I'm not going to go into details, because I'm trying to keep it in my five minutes.
00:18:40
Speaker
But a lot of the things that I have struggled with, um on drugs and anger and a bunch of different things. I mean, almost to a T, him in the same thing. And so we connected on that level and got to asking him about church and all that stuff. And he said, you know, I'm really wanting to get baptized. And boom, I started looking around. I'm like, who's about to baptize this dude?
00:19:01
Speaker
Can I do it? You know? um And nobody got baptized, unfortunately, that day. But just got to talking to him and and, you know, asked him why he'd been baptized. And he said his family, his mom and dad and him are are Catholic, and he hasn't met the requirements yet. And I stared clear of that and just told him how awesome it is, you know, that that that he's searching and looking and following. And we talked about daily surrender and different things. And it was just...
00:19:28
Speaker
a huge blessing and like
Reflecting on Impact
00:19:30
Speaker
i said one of the biggest prayers that i had for the trip to be answered so um you know as we all know god does answer prayers he doesn't always do it um in the time or in the way you think it's going to happen but but he does so um just kind of made me to remember that just to trust in God, that that that he has got his hand on everything.
00:19:51
Speaker
He connects dots. The fact that this is Bob's next door neighbor, the fact that he just surrendered months prior to this. I'm new to my walk. So it was just pretty amazing. And so just want to you know, we all can be used by God. The good things, the bad things, the things that he had allowed in my life, in each one y'all's lives.
00:20:12
Speaker
There's things in here that have gone through that have helped me so much that I'm sure at the time y'all didn't think was going to be for for the glory of God. There's things that I was doing that I never thought would be for the glory of God. but But being able connect with Dale on that level, they were definitely used. So before go, everybody, his name is Dale. He 24. There is a light and a a contagious smile that that man has, and he really is trying to lead his family down the right path. So if you can put him on the prayer list, that would be awesome.
00:20:41
Speaker
And then was trying to think a verse to to put on on the end of all this, and I found one and I was like, I'm not going to say it But then at the end of the the the clip that Paul had made for us, it's the exact same verse I wrote down. So I'm going to go ahead and say it. So it's Mark 16, 15. This is in the And he told them to go into all the world and preach the good news to everyone.
00:21:12
Speaker
And I think it is so important that is Jesus saying that. um And yeah, we need to go out into the world, but we need to go in this community too. Like there's a ton of people here. There's a ton of people in this country. There's a ton of people everywhere. And I just hope that we're all available.
00:21:28
Speaker
As Mr. Dishman says, our best ah ability is our availability, that we are available whenever God has got a use for us. So thank you all for everybody that helped me get to Alaska. I could not have done it without you all, and I will not forget it. so are away Good morning, church family.
Cultural Barriers and Discipleship
00:21:55
Speaker
As we know, God uses us as his hands and feet to do his work. And that's what these gentlemen and ladies did on this trip. I'm gonna get a little bit personal.
00:22:07
Speaker
um I've had opportunities to do mission trips and things over the years, and I've never done one. I've never felt called. But when Kenny asked, hey,
00:22:18
Speaker
Would you be interested in going to Alaska and doing this project? It was an immediate, no question, I got to go. And I feel like that was that was God touching me and saying, hey, Mike, this is something you can do. You need to go do this. okay And so...
00:22:39
Speaker
The experiences that we had we can't talk about in five minutes because these are experiences that will last a lifetime. okay The relationships that we made with each other, with the folks up there, will will be with us forever.
00:22:55
Speaker
But in talking about relationships, when you go to Alaska and and you are communing and being with the natives up there, you can absolutely see that there is a c there's a difference. There's a clash between our culture and their culture, okay?
00:23:12
Speaker
um it's It's evident everywhere, but God's using us to reach into that culture, okay? And I want to highlight that Aaron and Litzler, well, let me even back up and say, it's not a culture that we can just walk into.
00:23:28
Speaker
You can't, you're not going to just be accepted into that culture just because you walked into it. It's a culture that you need to prove yourself to them, that you need to, that they need to understand that you are there and that you are there loving them. Okay.
00:23:46
Speaker
um In all the ways that that can happen. There was a term that I heard up there that Alaska is long on evangelism, but short on discipleship.
00:23:59
Speaker
Aaron and Alyssa are breaking that mold. They are truly disciples up there. And when you go up and you experience that, and I'll give you a a little short thing. um When we were out ice fishing,
00:24:14
Speaker
You know, our kids go and play in the parks and they play wherever they play. Their kids go play on the frozen river. Okay. And so when we're out there fishing, kids are playing. Kids came up to Alyssa, kids came up to Aaron and they're giving them hugs and they're, they're welcome. They are part of that community. Okay. As small as it is, they are part of that community.
00:24:36
Speaker
God's using their relationships to reach those folks. And it was it was very, very evident that that those two are becoming, i don't want say part of that culture, but they are influencing that culture in in very, very positive ways.
00:24:52
Speaker
As many have talked, or several have talked about, it's expensive up there. It's very, very expensive. it's It's an economy that I don't think we can understand down here, just because it isn't like that for us.
00:25:06
Speaker
And so when we went to the village,
00:25:11
Speaker
At the end of the day, you know one of the things we did was sat around and kind of hashed out the day and and and a question came up, how can we help? you know What can we do? How can we help you guys thousands of miles away? and and So ideas kind of started springing up. and We actually had further conversations um later in the week about that. How can we help?
00:25:35
Speaker
Well, as we all know, money is the way that we can help. Okay. I mean, that, that can go a long ways for lots of things. And, and I think that's something that this church should consider and that there's very real evidence. And this is, this is a very generous church and we have good missionaries doing work all over the, all over the place, all over the world.
00:25:56
Speaker
But this is a place that touched us personally and that we saw somebody that came from these pews in another part of the world and doing God's work. it was It was just, like I said, I've never done mission trips, but this is one that touched me deeply.
Team Accomplishments and Praise
00:26:13
Speaker
And I think that hopefully we're kind of conveying some of that, that this they are doing God's work up there. and And as much support as we can give them, um I think that it's a very, very worthy goal.
00:26:29
Speaker
um Other ways that we kind of spitball talk about, this is Alaska. They are cold and they are frozen and and food is expensive and that, maybe we build them a greenhouse. Maybe we do things like that.
00:26:46
Speaker
Other needs, the graduation rate from the the school that they're teaching at is about 27%. And there's cultural reasons for that, but but the national average is about a high 80, 90%.
00:27:02
Speaker
So there's a difference there in that all of their kids don't graduate from school. Again, some of that's culture. Maybe we think about ideas that would keep some of those kids in school and incentivizing or whatever ways to keep them in school. So...
00:27:22
Speaker
As you guys see us walking around, if you think, you know, hey, I think I've got a need i think or I think I've got a solution or I think I've got something to answer those prayers. um I mean, we I think we'd all be willing to help direct you in the right direction as to how you can help.
00:27:37
Speaker
But this was an awesome experience. I want to thank this congregation for allowing us to do this, for making it possible for all of us to participate to in this. and And just know that by your support,
00:27:50
Speaker
You've not only changed Alaska, you've changed us as well, and that's just awesome. Thank you. are Well, I think you can tell by the things they shared how blessed I was just to be a part of it. To be honest, i don't really know construction work, and so I was just following their lead.
00:28:12
Speaker
But I want to take my hat off as a team member for a second and just put my pastoral hat on and say they represented you and us really well.
00:28:24
Speaker
So before I allow them to go and sit down, I think just a round of applause one more time for the are
00:28:39
Speaker
Thanks. You guys can go ahead and be seated.
Praying for Missionaries and Community Involvement
00:28:41
Speaker
i would like to extend the invitation after we finish, but I wanted to share just a little bit from Colossians four verses two through six.
00:28:50
Speaker
Before we go, if you want to open up God's word, you know, sometimes it's good to ask someone who is like a missionary. Let's say ask the missionary. How can we best pray for you?
00:29:03
Speaker
If you were to ask perhaps one of the greatest missionaries of all time, the Apostle Paul, how can we pray for you? This is what he would have said. But not only that, if you were to ask him, how can you pray for missionaries serving in Southwest Alaska among the villages? I think he would say the same exact thing.
00:29:22
Speaker
So let me read these verses and tell you how we as a congregation can continue to pray. Once again, thank you so much for praying for us. but also please continue to pray for them, for the work that is still going on. Here's what I think they would say.
00:29:41
Speaker
Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving. At the same time, pray also for us, that God may open to us a door for the word, to declare the mystery of Christ, on account of which I am in prison, that I may make it clear that which is how I ought to speak.
00:30:02
Speaker
Walk in wisdom toward outsiders, making the best use of the time. Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer each person.
00:30:16
Speaker
Let me give you five requests that are definitely enclosed in this passage of Scripture. And this is how it can continue, how the Lord's work can keep going as we are here in Columbus now. And they are there in both Bethel and Tulikshak.
00:30:32
Speaker
First, I would look at verse two and say, why don't we pray for their devotion to watchfulness? Pray for their devotion to watchfulness. You know, there's definitely one thing that's going on with the Litzlers and their team, and that is they are praying. They've been praying and they're continuing to pray.
00:30:51
Speaker
do you realize that Aaron and Alyssa Litzler have been there in that small Tulixack village of 350 people? They've been there now three years. How long would you be able to just stay somewhere? I think that prayer helps them stay. I think that prayer not only helps them stay, it also has the possibility of helping them be thankful.
00:31:13
Speaker
And that's why I think he mix mixes thankfulness and gratitude in with watchfulness in prayer. He says, continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving.
00:31:24
Speaker
If you were to ask Aaron and Alyssa, how's it going? They would say, great. You know, they really genuinely mean that because they're seeing the things that God is doing. And so it's just great whenever they can stay connected to God. So I know they're very busy because they're very involved in raising their two twin girls. They're involved in, you know, teaching.
00:31:47
Speaker
Aaron also is sort of like one of the co-principals of the school. They have about... I think they had 85 students and it went down to 56. And so they're praying it will continue up. But, you know, they're staying in there because they're so connected to God. So pray that doesn't change.
00:32:07
Speaker
Secondly, I would say pray for doors of witness. Do you know that already God has opened incredible doors of witness for them? i think ah if I don't remember correctly, they've seen three baptized, right?
00:32:19
Speaker
From their little group. And so I'm just so grateful for those three that have made decisions. And so when I think about praying for doors of witness, I'm thinking two things are important from verses three and four. And that would be declaring the mystery of Christ.
00:32:37
Speaker
Whenever we had a devotion there in Bethel, we were getting ready to go and work and do do our work with the construction work. I shared a passage from 2 Corinthians 2.12 that reminds all of us, you as well, that we're like a fragrance of Christ.
00:32:53
Speaker
And so what God does is he uses us wherever we are. And so Paul had gone to a place called Troas. And he says in there quite clearly, you know, the the Lord opened a door for us in Christ to share the gospel with them.
00:33:10
Speaker
And so definitely pray that God would continue to help them to be able to have these incredible opportunities to tell others about Christ. Then also declaring the clarity about Christ.
00:33:22
Speaker
You know, just like Mike Ridland was saying, it's a different culture and you have to learn that where the people are. You have to take the message that is timeless and it doesn't change.
00:33:34
Speaker
You take that gospel message, but you've got to put it in there in a way they can understand it and get it. And so why don't we pray for them that they can make it clear, that they can make it clear of how to be saved.
00:33:47
Speaker
I would say thirdly to pray for continued dedication in their walk, their walk with the Lord. You know, Aaron and Alyssa and those working with them, they have a beautiful testimony in that small community of 350. You know, it says that they were, he said, pray that we will walk in wisdom toward outsiders, making the best use of the time.
00:34:11
Speaker
And I was thinking, you know, that's what they're doing. Because every day they get up, they go to the school and they invest in that community's children. I appreciate so much those who are in our congregation who are either homeschooling their own kids or they're going into the public school and helping invest in the kids that are in our community and loving them. you know, I was just learned just while ago, ah earlier today, that there's a barbecue contest that was taking place with Columbus, was involved in it from all across the state. All these high school students were
00:34:44
Speaker
were involved in cooking barbecue. And I think we came in somewhere just beyond 10th place. I can't remember if it was sweth or 14th, but I was so excited out of all the state of Texas. And I think, Sammy, I think your son, Eric, his chicken got fourth place out of the whole state. So anyway, it's just incredible. you know I think that'd great. Yeah, let's go ahead. Give him a hand.
00:35:06
Speaker
um But you know we have people like Debbie Gregory and others that are investing in the kids that are in this community. And so it makes a difference. And so what they're looking at is they're looking at our lives.
00:35:20
Speaker
The walk here means their lifestyle. And so we have to live before people biblically. I think that's what it means when it says in wisdom. You know, the the water treatment plant in Tulaksac, it burned down.
00:35:36
Speaker
So what do you do? Well, they were saying it's time to leave. All 350 of us are going to have to move away. But those missionary guys said, we have another idea. How about if we haul in water? And so the three missionary guys, Aaron Litzler was one of them,
00:35:50
Speaker
They hauled in 400 gallons of water every week. Can you imagine how much lifting and so forth that would be? But that said to the community, we care about you.
00:36:02
Speaker
But then the other thing that, like Mike was talking about with the fishing and how he saw a lot of the kids come up, one of those kids was a kid that had really been sort of ugly and difficult to Aaron.
00:36:15
Speaker
But when he came up to Aaron, just like Mike said, he put his arm around him. I thought, these guys look like war buddies or something. You know, they're like, we've been through a rough time together. And in some ways, the more I learned about it the more I realized, yeah, they really had. what was cool was we only caught one fish that day. And Alyssa caught it. I mean, thank God for Alyssa, right? you But she caught the one fish. And you know what they did with the one fish?
00:36:38
Speaker
Rather than all of us taking it back and having you know that one fish for ourselves, Alyssa said, we want you to have this. And she gave it to the the child. I think it was like a junior high student. She gave it to him.
00:36:52
Speaker
And said, we want you to have this. And I thought, you know what? They didn't have to do that. It's like that's living in wisdom biblically. That's redemptive love that's flowing out of them. It says, do it before outsiders.
00:37:08
Speaker
This young guy's an outsider. And think about the difference that it made as they loved him wholeheartedly and loved him unconditionally. So pray that that continues, that in their daily walk, they just keep living for Jesus.
00:37:23
Speaker
But then also pray for their diligence in their work. It says, give the best use of time. You know, I think teaching in the local school, you know, i'm I'm married to an educator. And so when Jody was teaching full time in the school, I thought,
00:37:37
Speaker
We have no idea how much. It doesn't matter what level you're teaching on, whether it's homeschool or whether it's public school. It takes time. And so just the appreciation for the investment of time.
00:37:50
Speaker
But pray that they will be diligent in how to best invest their time. He says, making the best use of time. but then also to try to invest their time in people.
00:38:03
Speaker
You know, every Friday night, Alyssa and some of the other missionary ladies, they get together with some of those girls from that school, and they have sewing, crafts, and all those kind of things.
00:38:14
Speaker
And then Aaron, he goes and hangs out with the men. He goes hunting. They teach him how to fish for salmon and so forth. I remember thinking, Did Aaron grow up killing moose and so forth? Because that moose was so delicious.
00:38:29
Speaker
And it's like, Aaron grew up in Conroe. He didn't shoot moose, you know. And so anyway, I'm thinking, wow, you know what he did? He invested time hanging out with the locals so he could learn their ways. So that he could be a witness, a fragrance for Christ with them.
00:38:45
Speaker
So pray for their diligence in their work. And then lastly, but also importantly, sometimes our words can undermine what we're saying in terms of the gospel.
00:38:58
Speaker
You know, our words that we say, they're either going to substantiate and verify. your Christian witness, or they're going to break it down. And so listen to what he says. Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer each person.
00:39:17
Speaker
So how can we pray for Aaron and Alyssa and those that are working beside them? How can we pray for them to have discernment in their words? Well, these this verse 6 tells us three ways.
00:39:30
Speaker
Let's pray that they continue to let their words be gracious. Are your words gracious? When I think of gracious, I think of sweetness. And I think about how they're making a difference in those students as the student that received the fish.
00:39:47
Speaker
You know, if it could if it would have been me, I mean, would I have said if I were in Aaron's shoes when he comes up and hugs me? Would I say, no, you know what? You cut me at one time, buddy. I'm not hugging you. What would you say in response to those that you're trying to win. So there's a sweetness, it's gracious, but also I think we can pray for their words that they are voracious.
00:40:10
Speaker
It means straight, it means honest, it means truthful. We can't sugarcoat the gospel. We have to share the gospel message. We have to share biblical truth. And it says seasoned with salt.
00:40:23
Speaker
You know, sometimes salt steams when it gets into a wound. And so we should pray for them, help them have that right balance, Lord, between the sweetfulness and the truthfulness of the gospel, because both are important.
00:40:37
Speaker
And then to be sensitive. I thought about praying their words are also spacious, that they're caring that they say, OK, wait a minute. I'm not going to give a dump load of truth on them so that you may know how you ought to answer each person.
00:40:54
Speaker
Sammy answered Dale just right you when he got to talking to him at the community center. You know, pray that God would give you the words to say and it'll be just right. You may have to put some space between so how much you know and how much you share, but pray that Aaron and Alyssa can continue to share those sensitive, straight, sweet words the way that they do.
00:41:18
Speaker
But I do want to ask you also to be praying. Some of you may be wondering about the t-shirts. On the back side, we received this from AKSP. That's Alaska Student Partnership. On the back side, it says Acts 3.6.
00:41:32
Speaker
Whatever I have, I give. Whatever I have, I give. Whatever I have, ah give. You know, that's what they're challenging those students.
00:41:44
Speaker
You know, it began eight years ago on the University of Fairbanks and the University of Anchorage, and a disciple-making movement began. And so this man, Paul Burkhardt, he began to say, you know what, we ought to take this and say to those students, you can go to the villages and make a difference in the schools.
00:42:03
Speaker
And so some of those students would say to him, I don't know what to say. I don't know. I'm not really talented. I don't have a lot of skill. But then he found this verse in Acts 3, 6. Whatever I have, I give.
00:42:19
Speaker
So what we are to say is, Lord, I don't have much. I'm like the little boy who gave his loaves and his fish. I don't have much. But what little I have, I offer to you.
00:42:30
Speaker
i want to encourage you when you hear of our church going on a mission trip. That you wouldn't begin by saying, i can't, I can't, I can't. But you would begin by saying, what has God blessed me with? What do I have that maybe someone else, maybe there's a Dale in a community center somewhere. You know, there's someone else like the boy that received the fish. And because you go, because you're where God wants you to go, great things are going to happen.
00:42:59
Speaker
I want you to stand with me as we close in prayer. Of course, we'll pray for them, but maybe God spoke into your heart and there's something that you feel you need to do today. i want to give you an opportunity to respond to the invitation.
00:43:12
Speaker
You know, you heard Mike Ridland saying, I'd never gone on a mission trip before, but this one, God, I knew God wanted me to go. And I'm so glad that I went. You know, what about you? Are you doing what God has called you to do?
00:43:25
Speaker
you know, sometimes the first step is a step of obedience. There's someone in our church that's going to be baptized in a couple of more Sundays. And so what about that? Have you taken that step?
00:43:37
Speaker
So whatever God has told you to do, do that and say, Lord, I'll trust you with the rest. Let's pray together and extend this invitation for him. Lord, I thank you so much that we can be partners in prayer. There's a long distance between us and Tulik Sack, between us and Bethel.
00:43:55
Speaker
But you know what, Lord? You, through partnerships and prayer, you're there right now. As we pray, you can strengthen Aaron and Alyssa and Paul and others that are there. Lord, we pray that they would stay committed in their prayer life.
00:44:10
Speaker
We pray for doors of witness to open before them. We pray, Lord, that you would help them keep living it every single day. Lord, we pray that you would help them be diligent in their work every single week to know what's the best way for me to invest these hours, this day, this 10 minutes or this 30 minutes.
00:44:32
Speaker
Lord, we also pray that you would help them. Lord, just like David said one time in the Psalms, Lord, put a guard over my mouth. Lord, help us to be discerning in the words that we should say, that our words would be both sweet and straight and sensitive. Lord, truthful, but also redemptive. Lord, thank you so much for all that we have heard and seen.
00:44:54
Speaker
Thank you for the seeds that were planted. And Lord, this team, thank you so much for their example. They took the fragrance of Christ all across that area, even in Anchorage, Lord. Thank you so much for each one of them.
00:45:08
Speaker
They work together beautifully. I've never been on a mission team and seen this kind of unity and cooperation and just it was amazing. I thank you for that.
00:45:19
Speaker
But Lord, it could be that someone here, you're tugging on their heart about something. And so Lord, please help them to realize that you you want us to bloom where we're planted. And so right now you've got Alyssa Aaron Litzler planted in Tulixack and I'm glad you you have them there.
00:45:38
Speaker
But you have us planted here in Columbus or Weimar or some of the outlying areas. So God, please help us to bloom where we're planted. But it all begins by surrender to Christ and obedience to Christ one step at a time.
00:45:54
Speaker
So bless this invitation and I pray you would be exalted in it. In Jesus name we pray, amen.
00:46:05
Speaker
This is a ministry of First Baptist Church located at 1700 Milam Street, Columbus, Texas.