A Response to Recent Events | March 2020
Dear Friends and Family,
Over the last couple years a passage that I keep coming back to in difficult times is Psalm 121. I saw it again recently and I wanted to share the first two verses with you.
"I lift up my eyes to the mountains—where does my help come from? My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth." Psalm 121:1-2
In all the mountains I've faced, God's always been there to give me the strength and the reassurance I need to get through, and I know that He's going to be there for all of us through these present trials too. I hope that you can be encouraged that even with all of the news, panic, and different responses to the coronavirus and everything else going on, there is nothing that can separate us from the love of God. Later in the psalm, the author goes on to say, "The Lord will keep you from all harm—he will watch over your life; the Lord will watch over your coming and going both now and forevermore." Psalm 121:7-8
Knowing this, what then should we fear? I believe that we need to be taking everything seriously and follow what we are being told to help slow the spread of the virus, but at the same time I think we have a great opportunity to serve and reach out to our communities.
The church is meant exactly for times like this. While the world panics and needs arise, the church steps up. We step up to love and serve others just as Christ did. He went out of his way to help those in need. We can and should be doing this too. Maybe it's going to look a little different at the moment, but we can still go without fear.
I've seen people offering to buy groceries for older people and other people who would be more at risk if they left their homes. I've seen so much prayer going around. I've seen communities continuing to meet and encourage each other over video calling when they couldn't meet in person. Let's get creative.
Two weeks ago I was in Florida for a conference on church planting and a few weeks before that I was part of a church planting training in California. The common thread between these events was the idea that the church, the community of believers, is central to redemption and sanctification of the world. We hold the keys to the kingdom, but it' going to take the church going outside its "walls" and comfort zone.
As we work out what this means for us and our churches, remember that there is are no rules or specific ways for how the church is supposed to look. So maybe not being able to meet in larger groups currently will help us see how church can be just a few people meeting together or a group of people meeting online or something else entirely. Maybe church can focus more on the outreach than on buildings and programs.
With the progression of the Coronavirus in Japan, businesses, schools, and public places have closed down. Even though the churches my team is a part of haven't been able to meet in person, they are continuing to meet online through a video calling platform called Zoom. They still are able to experience community together, study the Bible together, and pray for each other during all the uncertainty.
The model of church that we've chosen has transitioned well into an online format because there's little preparation needed, there's no sermon to worry about, and it can easily be led by anyone. It's not dependent on a building or a single person or a specific program that only certain people can lead. There's a picture of the guide that we use below. I think that listening to a sermon online is still a good option for a Sunday service, but it isn't going to fulfill the need for community. If you are looking for something different right now then I'd encourage you to check out our model. You can use it in your existing small groups or use it to start a new one. And if you want to know more about it or want someone to walk you through it first then I'd be happy to help.
Even if you don't want to organize a small group or church using something like our model, please still try to connect with friends and family during this time. With everything that we are all doing to keep our distance from others and not spread the virus it's easier than ever for someone to become isolated during this time. I'm happy to talk more with anyone that is feeling that way or just wants someone to talk to. If you need help with getting groceries or if you have prayer requests then please let me know too.
Let's not waste this opportunity to be Christ to our communities. Let's stay healthy, and reach out to others, and always remember to pray.
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The facilitator's guide for our church which we usually have on Saturday nights.
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What This Means for Me
In the midst of my own busyness and the struggles of being back in the past couple months, I've been thinking more about my calling. I've struggled with doubts and feeling unequipped or unworthy, but recently God has given me a new confidence, vision, and sense of peace. And with what's been happening in the world, I'm convinced even more that God wants me to go back and reach out to the people of Japan. Now is the time for the Gospel to be spread. Japan and the rest of the world need Jesus more than ever.
I've had many questions about how the coronavirus is going to affect my plans of going back to Japan and the answer is that it isn't. I'm still going. Even if things get worse, I still would. I can't ignore God's call on my life. My timing might change, but I will trust that God will get me there on His timing.
So for now, my goal is still to go back to Japan in October of this year. I'm currently sitting at about 37% of my monthly support and about 56% of my one time needs.
This might not seem like a good time to be raising support, but I'm trusting in God's provision and wisdom for allowing me to be doing this in this season. He has me here right now for a reason and like I said before, I can do it without fear.
I know that I'm not going to be able to do this without God's help or without you guys partnering with me. Missions work is a joint effort. So partner with me in prayer by praying for this ambitious leave date and for more financial partners. Partner with my in financial support if you feel led by committing to monthly giving or to increasing your current support. And, if you don't feel led to that, then you can partner with me by connecting me with people who can financially partner with me. We can accomplish this together.
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My teammates, Kevin, Sarah, and I (just missing John) at the Exponential Conference.
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Schedule for the coming months:
I don't have anything planned for the coming months (and anything I did have planned would have been canceled), but I still would love to meet with anyone who's willing to either in person if they feel comfortable or over Skype or Zoom. Let me know if you are interested. We don't have to talk about Japan either if you just need someone to talk to or someone to pray for you. Connect with me on social media or by email at adam.bailey@efca.org.
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Prayer Requests:
- Pray for Japan: Japan has been dealing with the coronavirus for longer than we have and they also have a greater percentage of elderly people who are more at risk. So, pray for health for the Japanese people and for wisdom for the government and businesses in how to handle the situation. Pray that the church in Japan would be able to reach out more to those in need and especially to help the elderly population as well. For my team's churches, pray that they could continue to successfully meet online and that they would experience the community and fellowship that they need.
- Pray for more partners: With everything canceled I don't have any speaking engagements or meetings lined up any time soon. This doesn't look like a good time for partnership development. At the same time, I am not anxious about it and I'd ask that you pray for me to remain at peace. Pray that opportunities would still open up to talk with new people and churches about partnering with me. As I go through this process it is also stretching me and pushing me beyond my comfort zone so pray that I could rely on God and allow him to work through me instead of trying to do it through my own strength.
- Pray for me to keep learning: Exponential, the church planting conference I went to in early March, was super good and I took a lot of notes. Between that and the other training I had a month ago, I still have a lot to process and learn from. I want to be as equipped and knowledgable as I can (while still recognizing that I'll never totally be there) before I go back to Japan. So, pray that I can continue to learn and apply what I'm learning to my work as a missionary and church planter.
- Pray for each other: I want us to remember to keep praying for each other. With all the panic around us, pray that we would be people of peace and stability for our communities and that the needs around us would be met in miraculous ways.
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