CAMEROON MISSION FUND MONTHLY REPORT – DECEMBER 2006 .
Over the course of my life, I have heard my fair share of mission reports. My experience has been that many of them have certainly erred on the side of ‘Pollyanna’. If the missionary was in the ‘truth ball yard’, the ministry that he was involved in was virtually without error. It kind of reminds me of some words that were spoken to me by Abe Lincoln when I was in school. By the way, it was not THAT Abe Lincoln! He was telling us that there were no perfect churches. He said to us: ‘now boys, don’t be lookin for no perfect church cuz it don’t exist. However, if by some strange happening you find the perfect church, once you get there it won’t be’! Well, I am not going to try and tell you that the work that we are involved in is flawless. There is much work to do in Cameroon. I do not believe that I will see the church as I want to in my lifetime but I hope to see continued progress.
Let’s face it; is the congregation you attend flawless? Do all of your members spend time in the Word and prayer daily? Do they all serve and love and evangelize as the Bible instructs? Do they have the level of dedication that Jesus demands? No, when we speak of a desire to be like the New Testament church we are not referring to any particular congregation. Instead, we are hoping to follow the teachings of the Bible and conform ourselves to the Word and will of God. Our attempt in Cameroon is to help each brother and each sister ‘grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ’ (II Peter 3:18). Will there be ‘speed bumps’ in the road? Sure, in fact, sometimes the ride will be incredibly bumpy. We believe, however, that the Lord is at work in Cameroon and He is working through brethren like you.
As I have grown in my faith, there is one word that continues to come back to my mind when I think of Christianity. That word is surrender. There are many brethren throughout the world who have been baptized and who, for lack of a better term, are nominal Christians. They are moral in the way they conduct their lives and would never do anything that would be considered ‘evil’. As you look at brethren all over the planet you discover that human nature crosses all cultural and racial bounds. The concept of giving oneself completely to the Lord is a battle that will continue to be waged. Satan is not threatened by those who call themselves Christian but have never surrendered. The church in Cameroon is not growing as it should because too many of our members have simply not given their lives to the Lord.
One of the battles that we have fought in the States has been the ‘doctrinal soundness’ battle. Now listen very carefully; we need to do everything in our power to correctly handle the Word of God. Doctrine is a vital part of Christianity and I must never treat the Word of God and what it teaches in a haphazard way. The problem comes when our emphasis is on being right and we fail to practice the attitude that Jesus displayed. When He did not condemn the woman taken in adultery in John 8, He was not being soft on doctrine. In fact, He told her to ‘go and sin no more’. In that text the Scriptures speak of Jesus telling those without sin to ‘cast the first stone’. I have known brethren in my life who would have been very tempted. When I was younger I may have even done so. I am not bragging, just letting you know that this is a struggle that many of us face.
As we minister to brethren in Cameroon, we are trying to help them develop the mind of Christ. Does this mean that we don’t stress doctrine? Of course not! In Matthew 4 when Jesus was tempted He responded with doctrine. Once again, this is not an issue of whether we are going to follow doctrine or Jesus. Doctrine and Jesus are a marriage that must take place in our lives if we are to truly be the ‘bride of Christ’. In February I will continue my class on the Sermon on the Mount and my aims will be as follows:
1. To correctly exegete the text
2. To encourage independent thought
3. To help the brethren think like Jesus
4. To help the brethren model their lives after Jesus
Let me share an extremely important prayer request as we think of ways to help the
church in Cameroon grow. We are currently involved in determining the benefit of an extended period of time in Cameroon in either 2007 or 2008. I would travel there for 8 or 9 weeks and hold 7 different seminars. The events of the morning would be aimed at helping the brethren become better at sharing the Word of God in a way that will impact the church in a positive way. Several months before I arrived each man would have been assigned a text and he will then have the opportunity to preach a full sermon. We then will look at his work and give a positive critique. I will not be the only one talking, however. There is much that I can learn from my Cameroonian brethren regarding how Africans receive the Word. The afternoon would have a 3 pronged emphasis; 1) Evangelism, that is, actually sharing the Word with the lost. 2) Lecture and at this point I have not determined what subject (s) we would cover. 3) Listening to them as we work together to develop a strategy for winning Cameroon for Christ. In December hundreds of brethren will be introduced to this concept and asked for their feedback. I am not asking you to pray that they say yes to the proposal. I am asking you to ask God to guide them to make the decision that He knows is best for the church. Some of the reasons for contemplating this seminar are:
1. It will allow brethren to attend who have never been able to come to our February seminar because of distance and cost.
2. There will be fewer people at each venue to allow more personal attention.
3. It will be one more way in which we are showing our love for the brethren in Cameroon.
4. It will allow us to focus more closely on their needs and their views regarding the future health of the church.
I want to conclude by asking you to think carefully about assisting with the cost of the seminar in February, specifically the cost of printing. I have dealt with this once before and the response was less than overwhelming. Please realize that I understand you cannot contribute to every missionary who has his hand out. Here is what we are going to print:
1. 350 English Seminar Booklets
2. 75 French Seminar Booklets
3. 100 Adult Bible Class Books
4. 100 Children’s Bible Class Books
The total printing cost will be well over $2000. Only $150 has been contributed as I write. If you can help, please make your check out to Buckingham Road Church of Christ-CMF and put “Feb Printing” under memo. Mail to:
Buckingham Road Church of Christ
Attn: Jim Corner
3630 Buckingham Road
Garland, TX 75040
Let me share another prayer request with you. Lord willing, next May 3 young men will graduate from preacher training school. Two of them will come from the French school in Benin and one from the English school in Nigeria. We are taking a different approach with them than with earlier graduates. They will work with a seasoned preacher for 6-12 months. After that time an assessment will be made regarding where they should work. We are trying to put more and more of the decision making on the backs of the Cameroonians. Please pray that the Lord will lead them to the place the He wants them to be. I cannot overstate the need for God to be in control of the church in Cameroon. We want decisions that are following His will and not simply what we desire.
I also want to update you on Jeffery Armistead. I asked you to pray for him back in October. You will recall that he had severe brain damage (or so the doctors said) but he is nearly back to normal. He still has some struggles so don’t stop praying but the Lord has truly worked in this young man’s life. I also want to thank each of you who have been praying for my wife. She goes back to the doctor on December 13 to see if the brace can come off. She will probably go through some rehab but the wrist seems to be healing fine.
Finally, I will never be able to adequately thank each of you for the part you have in this ministry. Many of you are able to help financially but all of you are lifting this work in prayer on a daily basis. I am definitely grateful beyond words for your concern. If I can ever be of assistance to you in any way, just let me know.
In Christ,
Jim Corner