Monday, February 6, 2012

Harvest Blog

News from Harvest Baptist Church

Zambia Update

Posted by admin On February - 8 - 2010

Pastors Class Time

Dear Church Family,

Today we started teaching in the college. It is incredible to meet these pastors and future pastors and hear their stories. I think one piece of this trip will be indelibly impressed upon my mind, the singing. There is such joy in it and praise offered to God. The Zambian hymns are so neat to hear but they sing traditional hymns with the same joy and worship. You can watch as they sing the true appreciation of the words. I need to make sure that my singing is filled with that joy and excitement.

Pastors Class Time

Dad (Pastor Jeff Musgrave) started the day by showing the pastors how all of the pieces of the exchange fit together. A person gets saved through Inquires Bible Study. Then they grow through Learning to Live with God. And then they are taught to serve through Come and See Soul. Where they are trained to repeat the process over and over again. I was struck again by the magnitude of the impact of this approach to Soul Winning and Discipleship. We are multiplying our efforts instead of simple addition.

I got to be Dad’s guinea pig for the soul winning presentation. Dad led me through as if I was a lost man and I got saved so that the pastors could see how the presentation works. It was fun to work with my Dad doing this and also watch the lights come on in some of the pastor’s heads as they saw the simplicity of the gospel message.

Lunch today was incredible. It was my first insight to a real African meal. We had a sausage with a cabbage salad and some very good sauce drizzled over everything. The sausage had a very brothy taste with a hint of curry and a few other spices that I couldn’t identify. On the side they had a rice like substance. I’m sorry I can’t remember the name of it. Imagine a grits like texture but more like sticky rice consistency. This served as the vehicle for all of the other food. The best part of the whole meal was that I got to eat it with my hands. No silverware was tarnished in the process (Don’t tell my Karis, or Tali this we are working very hard to get them to eat with silverware, but it was fun to regress to my childlike eating).

We ended the teaching day by going through the first lesson of Learning to Live with God (The study that the Homebuilders class is going through right now). Again I was impressed with the importance of teaching new believers the importance of service to God in their newfound relationship. If the Christian life is going to work the way God wants it to we must be serving.

In just a few minutes I will be heading out to dinner at one of the missionaries houses. After that I am going to get together with all the missionary men and watch the Saints beat the Colts in the Superbowl. Then sometime I hope that I will find my way back to my bed. The jet lag has been horrible for me this time. I have been waking up at 3 every morning with the awful feeling that I slept through my alarm. After that I really can’t fall asleep again but I dutifully lay in my bed until it’s time to wake up. I figure that horizontal is better for my rest than vertical. I think it might just be the fact that I am getting older and my body doesn’t handle these changes as well as it used to.

Pastor Josh

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Highlights

Dear Church Family,

What a beautiful to sight to look out at the landscape transformed by the white snow. As I look out the window preparing for tomorrow I can’t stop thinking about the sacrifice that Jesus made for me to make my sin as white as snow. I pray that you will begin thinking these thoughts today and prepare your heart for tomorrow’s service. We have a very special service planned tomorrow. Our singing will be focused on the sacrifice that Christ made for us on the cross. Maria Barta, one of our newest members, will be singing one of my favorite songs tomorrow, The Look (the lyrics for this song can be found at the bottom of this post). We will conclude the service with our Sacrifice Sunday Offering. In this offering you will be asked to place your financial, as well as time, sacrifice to Christ. It will be a wonderful time of focus on the work of our precious Savior.

I understand that the snow has made it difficult for many to get out; however, I believe that tomorrow’s service is extremely important for our church. We have a quick fellowship after the service tomorrow followed by a presentation of the plans for our new auditorium. If our church is going to move forward on this building project I believe it is vital for us all to be on the same page. We are planing the future of our church tomorrow. We spent the entire month of January building up to this service. I believe this is a critical time for our church body. We have the opportunity to gather together and focus on the sacrifice that Christ made for us on the cross. I pray that you will be here tomorrow to worship together with the body of Christ.

In Christ,

Pastor Josh


The Look


I saw one hanging on a tree in agony and blood

Who fixed His loving eyes on me as near His cross I stood

And never till my dying breath will I forget that look

It seemed to charge me with His death though not a word He spoke


My conscience felt and owned the guilt and plunged me in despair

I saw my sins His blood had spilt and helped to nail Him there

But with a second look He said “I freely all forgive

this blood is for your ransom paid; I died that you might live”


Thus while His death my sin displays for all the world to view

Such is the mystery of grace; it seals my pardon too

With pleasing grief and mournful joy my spirit now is filled

That I should such a life destroy yet live by Him I killed


CHORUS

Forever etched upon my mind is the look of Him who died

The Lamb I crucified and now my life will sing the praise

Of pure atoning grace that looked on me and gladly

took my place



Original lyrics by John Newton. New and Alternate lyrics by Bob Kauflin. © 2001 PDI Praise (BMI). Sovereign Grace Music, a division of Sovereign Grace Ministries.

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