An Unexpected Partnership

by Rev. Karl Emerson, pastor of Nashwauk Alliance Church, Nashwauk, Minnesota

Last fall I was invited to travel to the Middle East to explore partnerships that might develop between our church and the Arab Lands team. As I boarded the plane, I found myself wondering what God had in store. While other pastors on the trip talked about the possibility of funding major building projects, our small church in a tiny northern Minnesota town was struggling with the depths of the recession. Forming an effective partnership seemed well beyond our limited means. While there was no doubt in my mind that God had called me to go on this trip, I couldn’t figure out why.

Each of us traveled with two suitcases. While we had packed light (about half a suitcase) for ourselves, we carried treasures across the ocean to our workers. We brought Christmas presents from grandparents, favorite snacks, cooking items, and supplies for medical clinics. All was well until we arrived at the Frankfurt airport, where we discovered that the weight limit was significantly under what we had been told. Frantically repacking in a corner of the airport, we were forced to decide what to leave behind. Cookie sheets or Christmas presents? Maternity clothes or medicine?

Open Doors/Heavy Hearts

After arriving in the Middle East, we observed various ministries. As we toured medical clinics, visited coffeehouses that supplement our English programs, and stood on recently purchased land dreaming of a new school being built, I was struck by the incredible doors God was opening for Alliance work there.  We have a tremendous group of workers doing amazing things. The need for was readily apparent.

I also couldn’t help noticing that our workers are under a great deal of stress. The challenges of operating in an environment among the predominant religion are great. In some places we are pioneering new works with all of the risks that entails. On top of this, almost all of our workers are in the crazy years of starting families. Most have preschoolers or elementary age children. There were several women expecting new children any day. They are dealing with all of this away from the support of family and church friends. Times of prayer with them were filled with tears. My pastor’s heart longed to do something to encourage or support them, but what?

Inspiration!

One evening I noticed that a short-term worker was teaching an ESL class had a small electronic device that I had never seen before. When I asked her about it, she explained that it was a Kindle-an electronic book reader available through Amazon. Light-weight and about the size of a 100 page book, it allowed her to purchase, download, and read deeply discounted books anywhere in the world. With a screen like an etch-a-sketch rather than a backlit computer screen, it is easy on the eyes and has a long battery life. It can hold more than 1,000 books. I was amazed.

I sensed the Holy Spirit nudge me. “This is why you are here.” Quietly, I began asking the workers if they would use a Kindle. Their eyes lit up. “Yes!” It quickly became apparent that access to Christian books was sorely needed. Weight restrictions and finances kept the workers from being able to read things that I took for granted. Whether it was James Dobson, A. W. Tozer, or a Bible commentary, our workers were craving good reading material.

Effective Partner

I talked to the field director and developed a partnership with the Arab Lands team to provide every family with a Kindle. We would also contact their home churches with the idea of providing gift certificates for books. Within a couple of months, our church had raised the nearly $4,000 to fund the project and workers were ordering their Kindles.

We’ve received grateful responses, like the one below from the one of the families:

“We want to thank you all for your kindness and generosity in the purchasing of our Kindles. Honestly, you have blessed us TREMENDOUSLY, and we are so appreciative that you thought to bless us in such a creative way. We love to read, and it’s wonderful to buy books as quickly as we need to, instead of trying to figure out who is coming to visit and making sure that they have room to sneak a few books in. Thank you for partnering with us in our work here!” – Alliance worker in the Arab Lands.

I am continually amazed by the way God opened a door for us to be a strategic part in supporting our workers. If we are open to the leading of the Holy Spirit, even the smallest of churches in the most out-of the-way places can have a tremendous impact in reaching the nations.

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