Bauman's Blog

An articulate expression of one churches' mission team experience in the slums of Rio (from CP Winter Park).

How to Stay Safe In Rio (in other words, WikiTravel's guide)... It really isn't THAT bad, is it?

This is straight from WikiTravel's guide to having fun in Rio de Janeiro, except I think this would scare the &*(# out of anyone interested in coming here.  But there are some interesting and valid points...

==============================

Have Fun in Rio!  How to Stay Safe...

It is important to note that while the following information may panic you and also make you question whether to go or not to Rio, most visitors to the city have a great time with no incidents.   (um, ok...)

Still, Rio can be dangerous. As a traveler, even if you don't leave the "Zona Sul" (which include Copacabana, Ipanema, Leblon, Gávea, Jardim Botânico, Flamengo, Laranjeiras, Botafogo, Urca) or Western Suburbs (Barra, Recreio), you'll still experience a palpable tension over security. In February during the Carnival, there were two consecutive armed robberies on tourist youth hostels with the first being in Zona Sul's Copacabana.

Generally, tourists (gringos) and teenagers are considered "easy" targets for criminals. Day-to-day living has also been affected by this for example regular banks all have fortress style security doors and armed security men. Rio can be a dangerous city and it is wise to follow these rules even if they seem over exaggerated. It's better to be safe than sorry.

In order to fully enjoy your trip the traveler should pay attention to simple things. Avoid the downtown area, especiallySaara, after dark. Although downtown is a relatively safe place during the day, after-dark all the people who work there have already gone home. If you are going to a theater or a show, it's all right; but do not wander in those dark streets by night. Go to Ipanema beach, all lighted and policed during the night, though even there is not entirely safe for tourists who look obviously like tourists.

Never go to Copacabana beach at night as you may get robbed. After midnight, you probably want to stay off Avenue Atlantica in general as there will be only prostitutes and beggars out at those times. Also, avoid Avenue Atlantica in front of the Praça Lido park, 3 blocks northeast of the Copacabana Palace Hotel. This is the only block without any businesses, which makes muggings far more likely. Try walking on the beach side, or, even better, detour inland.

Sunday is a particular day since most shops are closed and their security guards are absent so the neighbourhood Centro is not safe in the daytime. Also, even the bigger streets in Copacabana are less safe after dar so the beach walk is probably the best option.

Should you find yourself being mugged, the normal advice applies:

Don't resist or do anything to aggravate the muggers. Try not to stare in their faces as they might think you are memorizing their appearance. Eyes to the ground is probably your best bet. Let them take anything they want (keep your arms limp). Afterwards, leave the scene quickly but calmly (don't run in panic screaming for the police). If possible, and not more dangerous, don't leave in the same direction that the muggers went.

In the morning, especially before the police arrive, if you are walking or jogging on, Copacabana should be considered unsafe. Even with people around, joggers are popular targets for mugging. If you plan on jogging make sure not to wear anything that may tempt a mugger (watch, ipod etc) and if you can, wait until after 10:00 AM.

When in downtown during the rush hour, be aware of pickpockets as in any other big city center. The difference in Rio is that the pickpocket can often be a bit violent: one of them pushing you forward in the bus or to the ground in the street while another one takes your wallet and runs away. It's not that usual or as bad as it sounds, but try to avoid being in real danger by reacting strongly as these guys often operate in armed groups (2-5 people), some unnoticed by you.

Still in the city center (but also in other parts of the city), you will see lots of people called camelôs in small tables or simply on the ground trying to sell all sort of things like cheap small electronic devices, wallets, purses, pirated software, music and films. People do buy some of these stuff as they can be amazingly cheap, but be aware that most of these camelôs are illegally selling on the street and often the police will try to expell them. You may see lots of them packing their goods and quickly running away right before the police arrives. Be aware--this moment can be a chaos !

On weekends, beaches in Rio are watched by helicopters.

In the area around Copacabana beach (and maybe in the city center), the tourist should be aware of a shoe shining scam. The tourist will be approached by a shoeshiner and to his astonishment discover a large, dirty blot on his shoes (which is actually shoe polish or mustard but looks like quite something else). The tourist is typically shown to a chair and has his shoes or sandals cleaned in the best manner. Only after this service is rendered, the outrageous price of somewhere around R$1000 or more is revealed. At this point, muscular friends of the shoeshiner typically appear to "oversee" the completion of the transaction. If you are approached by a shoe shiner, you should shout or state loudly "NO" and walk quickly past. Swearing in your native tongue could also act as a deterrent. Should you be so unlucky as to have been put in a position where you cannot prevent having your shoes cleaned, it will be of some relief to you that the price can often be haggled down to a level suited to the size of your wallet.

The subway is fairly safe, so it is recommended to use it if you want to go from one place to another. Although you may be used to taking the handy and good trains in Europe or even in North America to go across many places, you won't need to take a train in Rio. If you do, it can be a fairly nice trip to the suburbs or a chaotic journey to a bad neighborhood in a train where people sell all kinds of weird stuff, where everyone will look at you in a way you will feel you are a alien, about to be mugged. Buses on the South Zone are fairly safe as well, but, in the city center, they can be quite crowded. Inside a bus, being mugged is always a threat: less so but stil possible in the South and tourist zones. Always remember that Bus 174 movie. It happens so often that they don't even go to the news (only homicides or big cases where the police got involved such as this Bus 174 go to the news). In the subway, it is quite unlikely though, which is one extra point to the subway!

Don't walk around with lots of money in your pocket. ATM's are everywhere (prefer the ones inside shopping centers) and credit/debit cards are widely accepted. But don't walk around without any money: you may need something to give to the bad guys in case you are mugged. Not having money to give a mugger can be dangerous as they may get angry and resort to violence. An excellent idea is to buy a "capanga" (literally meaning bodyguard), that is, a small frontal unisex pouch, normally used to carry your wallet, checks, money and car keys.

Avoid wearing jewelry or other signs of wealth (iPods, fancy cell phones/mobiles, digital cameras, etc.) if possible, at any time of the day, as these attract attention. Thieves have been known to run past targets and tear off necklaces, rings, and earrings without stopping. Earrings are particularly dangerous as tearing them off often harms the owner.

There are around 700 favelas in the city and most of them can potentially be unsafe in Rio: and there is always one near you (by a couple of miles or just a few yards). These are easily recognized by their expansive brick walls, and are often on a hillside. The slums grew from being impoverished neighborhoods but are now large areas ruled by drug lords. If you want to keep your nice vision of Rio, you don't need to go there. However, some favelas are amazingly huge, and a new experience for some -- there are some travel agencies who take people on tours there. If you want to go, pay one of those agencies. NEVER go to a favela by yourself, or with an unknown guide. The tour operators have "safe-conduct pacts" with the local drug dealers. If you don't have one, you'll be in BIG trouble. You'll most likely be approached by the drug baron's guards and asked what you are doing there (and these guys typically don't speak English). If you don't have a good reason (and you probably don't), the consequences could be dire. Don't count on the police to help you, as they don't like to enter the favela either, except in special circumstances, though most likely they will check if you are carrying any drugs upon leaving the favela.

In Brazil, every state has two police forces: the Civil (Polícia Civil) and Military (Polícia Militar). Only the latter wear uniform (in Rio, it is navy blue). The city of Rio also has an unarmed Civil Guard, dressed in khaki. Policemen can usually be trusted, but corruption in Brazil is still rampant and a few officers may try to extort you or demanding a little bribe. When this happens, it is usually very subtle, and the officer may typically say something about "some for the beer" (cervejinha). If you are not willing, refuse and ask for another officer. Don't ever try to bribe a policeman on your own--most of them are honest and you might end up in jail.

The local emergency dial number is 190.

At night, especially after traffic has died down, you may hear what sounds like fireworks and explosions. This is not as menacing as it sounds, though it is still indicative of somebody up to no good. These are often firecrackers set-off as signals in the favelas. It might mean that a drug shipment has arrived and is in-transit or that the police are making a raid into the favela. It is a signal to gang operatives who act as lookouts and surrogate police to be extra-vigilant. However, real shoot-outs may occur, especially on weekends. If you are on the street and you hear a shooting, find shelter in the nearest shop or restaurant.

For your safety, cross at the crosswalks, not closer to the corner, and watch for cars regardless of traffic lights.

You will notice that cariocas (Rio residents) avoid stopping at the traffic lights after dark, especially at small roads. This is because the boys selling candies and other goods may be something simply annoying--or some of them may be there to mug/rob you. Therefore, you will also notice that most cariocas drive with all the windows shut and doors locked, despite the usually warm weather. Air conditioner is therefore a must and you will probably not see a single convertible car: it is too expensive for a regular Brazilian citizen and even though one could buy such a car, it is again a sign of wealth, which is to be avoided even by locals.

Carjacking can be a threat too, especially if you are outside the tourist areas and after dark. It is perfectly acceptable (even if exactly legal) not to stop in the traffic lights if there is nobody else on the street and you feel it's okay to go (if there are no other cars). You will see even police doing this. Some major motorways such as Linha Amarela(Yellow Line: connects the west zone(Barra da Tijuca) to the north zone - may be your way to Norte Shopping for example) and Linha Vermelha (Red Line - the main connection from the International Airport) are strongly avoided late at night. Both motorways are surrounded by favelas so carjacking is usual and shoot-outs may occur between rival drug lords or between drug lords and the police. If you rent a car, be aware of all these issues. As a tourist, it may be better not to rent one anyway, as if you get lost and go to a bad neighbourhood (and again, there will always be one near you), you will most likely be in trouble.

If you want to go to a traditional escola de samba (samba school), Mangueira is a good place. This is close to a favela, so you should go with a guide accordingly. If you do have a trustful Brazilian friend that can take you, that's excellent. Ask the friend to take you to Maracanã as well to watch a football (soccer) match! Yet exercise great caution if you go by yourself especially if two of the local Rio teams are playing (Flamengo, Fluminense, Botafogo, and Vasco). These matches can be very exciting but also very dangerous especially if between Flamengo and Botafogo or Vasco. If it looks like the team for which the fans around you are cheering is losing, it is wise to leave the stadium before the match ends. You don't want to be in the middle of a very angry bunch of football fans when they all cram out of the stadium.

My Trip to Haiti

It's been literally months since I blogged, and quite frankly I feel a little disappointed that I haven't been able to keep up with what was a regular practice the first half of this year.  Nonetheless I would like to get back into it...  The conference we held in late May, along with three mission teams who have joined us this summer (winter), as well as a new pregnancy, have kept us pretty busy.  Nonetheless I had an opportunity to go to Haiti alongside 18 Brazilian pastors & missionaries, and it was quite the experience.

We worked with M.A.I.S. which in English is Mission to Support the Suffering Church, a great organization led by Pastor Mario Freitas.  Mario has a heart to see Brazilian churches adopt Haitian churches, particularly those who have been devastated by the earthquake in January.

 
 
 We held a pastor's conference with nearly 200 pastors from all over Haiti.  It was amazing their capacity to worship God in the midst of devastation.  From my perspective of driving around the city of Port-au-Prince, it is a mess.  Not only was it about 100 degrees every day, but the lack of basic infrastructure is alarming, even from someone who is used to seeing this in Rio de Janeiro.

 

One of the pastors that we met is called Maxi.  Maxi is planting a church in an area called "Tent City", where there are over 10,000 families basically hosted in a glorified refugee camp outside the city.  We spent time going through tent city and praying for several of the families.  Imagine losing your home, and potentially loved ones, and then being forced to live in a city of thousands of tents for the unforseeable future.  Difficult to be sure.  But as always, God was there.

We want to invest in Maxi, to help him create a stronger infrastructure to plant churches in Haiti.  He appears to be a potential movement leader.  If you are interested in specifically donating to a project such as this, let me know.

 

It was a joy to work alongside the Brazilians this week in our effort to encourage the suffering church.  While staying in the conditions of Haiti was difficult, a part of my heart is there with the pastors, some of whom live in extreme poverty.  What can we do to help?  More than money, to simply encourage them to pursue Christ as their treasure.

I will keep you posted on how Pastor Maxi is doing, as well as our brothers in Haiti.  To be sure, my focus is completely here on our work in Rio de Janeiro.  But it's difficult for me to see how we in the West can be "global Christians" and ignore the greatest catastrophe that is less than two hour flight from South Florida.  I think we should all ask ourselves, how can we help?

To learn more about MAIS, check out their website at: http://www.maisnomundo.org/

 

Also, I spent some time with Thomas Kim, Director of Churches Helping Churches, while I was there.  CHC has some great information on their website, you can also see some videos here.  Several A29 churches are also involved in CHC.

Ask yourself - how can I get involved in the reconstruction, and aiding the believers, in Haiti?

My Recap of the Acts 29 Conference in Rio

 

The first-ever Acts 29 Church Planting Conference in Brazil was held in Rio de Janeiro on May 17-19, 2010.  Men from over eight states in Brazil as well as from Chile participated in the International bootcamp, entitled “Foundations of Church Planting.”  The conference was co-sponsored by Restore Brazil (V360), Tempo de Colheita, and Escola Teologica Reformada.

 
Pastors Chan Kilgore, Gregg Heinsch, Adam Sinnett and Jay Bauman gave the presentations on the foundational elements of church planting.   All the bootcamp’s manual and theological material was carefully translated to Portuguese by a professional translator.  

 

Antonio Carlos Costa, a movement leader in Brazil, spoke of the relationship between social justice & the gospel.    Antonio recently presented at the Q Conference in Chicago, receiving a standing ovation for the unique presentation on human rights & social activism from a reformed perspective.    Jay Bauman, serving as a pastor at Barra Presbyterian Church, also shared on developing citywide church planting networks, which Jay has started in Rio de Janeiro as the director of Restore Brazil.

Over 90 were present during the bootcamp, including 80 pastors and church planters.

The American team interviewed 16 men interested in becoming a part of the network, even having to turn away some due to inadequate time in the schedule.  We have already received a few complete applications and are expecting more.  

 

Another interesting development is the strong level of interest in bringing similar training to Chile.  We are praying about this as leaders from the Presbyterian & Anglican churches in Santiago visited with us and demonstrated a strong interest in hosting a bootcamp there in the future.  

One of the pastors commented simply on his experience – “This bootcamp has changed my life.”  By God’s grace, may the Gospel move forward in Rio, in Brazil, and beyond.  Join us in praying for the advancement of God’s kingdom in Brazil.

Just One Week Left!

 

Really looking forward to the Acts 29 Brazil Conference, starting on May 17, in just one week.  We are hosting several Americans, including Chan Kilgore, Gregg Heinsch, and Adam Sinnett.  Right now we have pastors coming representing 8 different states in Brazil as well as some men from Chile.  Please join us in prayer for this conference, the first ever of it's kind here in Brazil.

The Definitive Rio de Paz Video: Shown at the Q Conference.

I believe our recent video is the most definitive on who Rio de Paz is, and what we do.  We aim to reduce violence & homicides in Brasil.  Check it out.  This is the video shown at the Q Conference in Chicago on April 30.

Obstacles

In II Corinthians 6 the Apostle Paul reminds us to "put no obstacle in anyone's way, so that no fault may be found with our ministry."

Have you ever thought of the ways you place obstacles in the lives of others?  Sometimes our behavior, our attitude, our expectations, serve as obstacles instead of us being vessels of Christ to a hurting world around us.  Many times we are the obstacle.

Who is the hero at the end of your stories?  In preaching, in teaching, in communicating.  All too often it is about us, or we simply acknowledge God as a means to our "overcoming" or personal success, the ultimate end.

This week I was reminded of the leadership mantra that many of us are familiar with - It's not what you teach, but rather what you emphasize.  Many of us emphasize something different than what we teach.  This is one of the biggest ways to create obstacles for those pursuing Christ in our circles.  

People, little eyes & big eyes, are watching us.

Devastating Rain in Rio de Janeiro - 1k+ homeless, 100+ dead

 

In case you have not been following the story, we have been having a devastating rain here in Rio over the past three days.  

First, I encourage you to view the following links to get a better picture of the problem:
http://bit.ly/9eJFgY
http://g1.globo.com/Noticias/Rio/0,,MUL1559221-5606,00.html
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9jQ58DXcTuY

We are evaluating the situation in the favelas (slums) that we work in, in Cidade de Deus and Rio das Pedras, to see how we can help.  At this point it has been nearly impossible to travel from our home to these parts of the city.

Once we have a better idea of the situation I will post practical information on how we can help.

I am posting a letter from one of our partner churches in Niteroi, just outside of Rio, regarding the desperate situation there.  (Translated into English)

------------------

The damage done by heavy rains in Niteroi are visible throughout the city. For where we walk we see the marks of a storm that soon will be not be forgotten soon. Without the slightest doubt Niterói is living in the greatest tragedy caused by rain in its history. There already have been 60 deaths and 1,110 people are homeless. According to the Bureau of Security and Civil Defense, there were more than 30 points with victims of landslides throughout the city. The North Zone has been the region hardest hit by the storm. At least 25 people died in Fonseca, Santa Barbara, Snail, and Lieutenant Lush Garden Garden. Falls barriers hindered the transit and trade remained closed. Throughout the day, the Military Police recorded more than 22 thousand connections and Civil Defense received 220 calls for help. 

Dear reader, before this terrible tragedy left us roll up our sleeves and help those who suffer.The Christian Church of the Covenant, is receiving donations of clothes and non perishable foods to be distributed to the poor. Those wishing to contribute can bring their donations to the Christian Church Alliance Pendotiba. It is worth noting that because of the varied points of destruction in the municipality, we divided our help and attention to the neighborhoods of Fonseca, Rio do Ouro and Pendotiba. Our pastors and leaders are directly involved in the direct assistance of the poeple. Those wishing additional information may come into us by phone 2718-0086 or if you prefer to speak with our coordinators. 

Dear friend, it's time for the Evangelical Church to mobilize and help.

In Christ our Lord, 

Pastor Renato Vargens

-------------------------------

Restore Brazil April Update

Click here for an April update on what's been going on with Restore Brazil.  Also, you can check out our video here.

You want to be a church planter? Make sure your ministry actually is seeing people come to Christ.

A message to Church Planters:

I know this is probably stating the obvious, but in my experience coaching church planters, it is amazing how many of them have weak or lackluster track records in the areas of personal evangelism.  Whether it is more of a traditional evangelistic approach, "life-on-life", a community approach, or even from the pulpit primarily, your ministry should be seeing converts to Christ if you want to plant a church.

The truth is, we don't need more church plants where we are assembling together groups of Christians.  We need churches that are going into the world and seeing God move hearts of men, women, and children towards Him.  While I recognize that the Holy Spirit is the one doing the work and that sometimes conversions can be difficult to see, it is not an impossible task for the believer.  And at the same time, one who wishes to lead a congregation on mission must have the capacity to lead in the area of seeing people embrace Jesus Christ for the very first time.

Too many church plants have disengaged from the mission of the Gospel before they even get off the ground.  They are so fixated on gathering people (oftentimes at all costs) they neglect the more important work of life-on-life evangelism and discipleship.  Sure, they can gather a group of Christians through marketing or a strong personality, but many times they do not bear the fruit of gospel mission.

If you haven't seen a person come to Jesus as a result of your life/ministry in the past year or two and you want to plant a church, you probably shouldn't.  Wait until you are seeing the Holy Spirit-induced fruit of a passionate life for Christ, which without question will include others coming to know Him for the first time.

Why some things are ridiculously expensive in Brazil

Check this article out - it is an excellent, brief read on the history of Brazil's economy.  http://www.roubini.com/latam-monitor/258410/brazil__inc_

I particularly like the comment about hotels.  The hotels in Rio are priced ridiculously for subpar service and amenities.

Restore Brazil welcomes Christy & Guilian Guisti from Houston, Texas

Christy & Guilian Guisti from Houston, Texas are on the ground here in Brazil for 6 months.  They will be working with us at Restore Brazil and we are very excited to have them here.  They are a younger couple but are very mature and committed to Christ and His kingdom.

The Guisti's have done a lot of prep work in advance of coming to help us fulfill our mission.  They will be working with our church plant in Cidade de Deus as well as working in Rio das Pedras.  

Here is a video of Christy & Guilian arriving from the airport on Tuesday.  They are sent from Clear Creek Community Church, an Acts 29 church, in Houston.

Is it almost Six months already? Thoughts on ministry & the move to Brazil...

 

I thought it might be time just for an ordinary blog post about what God has been doing in us over the past several months since moving to Brazil.  As of this week we are approaching six months on the ground here in Rio de Janeiro.  In many ways things have moved more quickly than I expected, and in a few ways a little slower than I expected, but overall, it has been kind of a whirlwind.

The Gospel has been at work in me in several ways, the first is simply in increasing my faith in Christ.  After all the step of faith to move to another country, leave a church and a job that I loved, leave my family and friends, was a step that I only could have made by God's grace.  I have experienced an increased understanding of God's faithfulness in times of both trial and in the good times.  Christ is always faithful.  In the times when I am still not fluent in Portuguese, when I don't fully understand the culture, or when I am saddened by the lack of Gospel-centered churches here in Brazil, I still am encouraged by His faithfulness.

One of the biggest ways the Gospel has been at work was to realize what a Consumer I can be.  I mean this not in the sense of buying stuff or something like that, but an attitude that I believe many of us as Americans have, that everything is disposable.  And in the same way, Consumers live as if everything should be consumed quickly and on demand.  Excess is even encouraged.  Being back in the US last week I went through a mini-culture shock.  This has been a change in me.  I saw this from the way I was eating, to the way I would throw things away without thinking, to money spent eating out (even if sometimes I am a cheapskate).

A regular walk through the slums of Rio gives you perspective.

I wonder with a Consumer mindset if this from time to time even slipped into some of my relationships back home in the US.  As a pastor I had a lot of responsibility to see that people were doing things to advance the mission of the church.  While I sincerely believe that God used me to help advance His mission, I know that there were times that I may have strong-armed people to help me accomplish what I felt needed to be done.  Not in a loving, discipleship oriented way, but almost in a manipulative way.  I don't believe this was the norm for me, but I have had to repent many times to remember that in Church our mission is to see people transformed to be more like Christ - in essence, it is about the people and their journey - and not about simply growing a church.  People who serve out of duty or allegiance to you are not serving out of the strength that God provides.  

Another way the Gospel has been working in me is giving me a hatred for sin - some sins here are so visible - corruption, prostitution, sexual infidelity.  

Another challenge has been the fragmentation of churches and networks here in Brazil.  I feel like in some ways I am beating my body daily on this one.  Getting Brazilian churches to work together is more difficult than in the States, in my limited experience.  There are so many autocratic pastors working on their own Kingdoms.  Many pastors hold on to hurts from the past and do not practice repentance & confession in the context of relationships.  Many relationships even among Godly men are not setting a good example, particularly with regard to humility and in honoring one another.  I have no other word to describe it except as sin.

In launching Restore Brazil and in directing Acts 29 here in Brazil, we are working to bring together Kingdom-minded pastors of like-mind (missional, evangelical, reformed) to plant Gospel-centered churches throughout the largest cities here in Brazil.  God by his grace has given us a great start.  Looking at the goals we set out for our first year, we are already on our way with the majority of them.  But there is still much work left to do.  

Here is what we are currently working on.  I believe within 3-6 months all of these goals will be a reality.

- A fully up-and-running church plant in the City of God

- An NGO fully accredited by the United Nations

- Two couples working with us at Restore Brazil

- The launch of Acts 29 Brazil & a Conference in May

- Hosting three mission teams from the US this summer

- Large outreaches in the favelas as a part of summer mission work

- Hosting a "vision trip" for those interested in investing in church planting or an orphanage

I want to say Thanks to all who pray for us, support us, encourage us, and invest in us.  God has used you to help us accomplish His purposes here in Rio. 

Love,

Jay & Lu

Yes, the Gospel informs & transforms even Politics. So don't feel marginalized if you want to speak out.

As a pastor sometimes I feel a bit marginalized when I am willing to speak out against a bill, such as the enormous health care project that was recently passed.  Is it ever the role of a religious leader to speak out regarding such things?  Increasingly, I am encouraged not to do so.

But I believe that a Church that appears thoughtless regarding the public/political life of a nation is not a church that embraces the full Gospel.  

I’ve been surprised at the increasing absence of critical thinking regarding domestic political issues among Christians.  Many times this is under the guise of staying “gospel-centered.”  What this means is that we don’t take stances on issues, we don’t tweet or encourage political debate, presumably because the minute we do so we are “about politics rather than the Gospel.”

This is an unfortunate and incorrect view. 

Most Christians I know who are concerned with issues such as health care and the increasing American debt are not obsessed with such issues to the neglect of the Gospel.  They think of the Gospel as informing their worldview in all realms and domains of life, including the political realm.

Friends of mine have twittered “I wish Christians would care as much about converting others to Christ as they do about Health Care” or “Why do people get so worked up over politics.”  Or “Why can’t we just focus on the Gospel.”

Some pastors and leaders in the camp which I belong (missional/evangelical/reformed) won’t touch political issues with a 10-foot pole, especially if such issues have any remote resemblance with Republican positions.   I am not sure what the rationale is, either to swing the pendulum as far as possible away from the troubled past, trying to stay culturally relevant, trying to not offend non-Christians. 

I hope above all, it’s not to be cool.

Whatever the rationale I don’t think it is Biblically wrong to engage in challenging prevailing thought that could clearly head the country in a wrong direction.

I for one have very little faith in politics, or in a political party for that matter.  I could share several reasons for this, both cultural & theological, but the main point is that I am not a pastor or Christian that is aligned with the “religious right.”  But at the same time, I am increasingly surprised at how far some of my friends will go to create a distance.

So why then are many of us worked up? 

Many of us see fiscal responsibility, stewardship, traditional marriage, and protecting the value of human life, as important Gospel issues.

- We are concerned about the growing, out-of-control national debt.

- We are concerned about the most pro-abortion Administration in decades. 

- We are concerned about abortions paid for by taxpayer dollars, despite an impotent “Executive Order” that declares they won’t be.

- We are concerned about the increasing hostility in public life towards those who hold a traditional value of marriage.

- We are concerned about the threats to religious liberty in our nation.

And as a side note, I think it’s justifiable to get worked up regarding what kind of nation our kids will grow up in. 

Persecution will come.  But continuing to resign ourselves to the fact that “it will just get worse, so why bother” is not an acceptable response, practically and theologically   We are not called to give up in our call to proclaim Christ.  In the same way, we are not called to care less about the direction of our nation, or the world, for that matter.

Thank you John Piper for making a declaration to Obama recently regarding your disgust with his pro-abortion legislation.  I wish more pastors had this courage.  And thank you for calling us to pray for President Obama at the same time.

A church that appears thoughtless regarding the public, political life of a nation is not a church that embraces the full Gospel.   The gospel has the power to inform and transform all of the aspects of our lives.  Both individually, and as a nation, by God’s grace.

Profiles of the Acts 29 Brazil Conference Speakers - Gregg Heinsch (Part IV)

Today we are profiling Gregg Heinsch.

 

Gregg's passion is to see the reign of Jesus Christ advanced through planting churches that are theologically driven, faithful to the Biblical Gospel, conversant with culture, and empowered by the Holy Spirit.

Toward this end, Gregg left Faith Community Church—a large (1500 in attendance), reproducing church he had planted over twenty years ago in Hudson, Wisconsin—to help launch the Vision 360 church planting network (www.vision360.org) and serve as dean of the Bill Bright Global Training Center in southeast Orlando.  He is also lead pastor of Celebration Community Church in Celebration, Florida (www.celebrationcommunitychurch.com).

He holds a B.A. in business and theology (Bethel University, 1981), a Master of Divinity degree (Bethel Theological Seminary, 1985), completed a three-year pastoral internship under Dr. John Piper (www.desiringgod.org), and was ordained as a pastor in 1987. He has also been a youth pastor, adjunct seminary preaching professor, church planting coach, and all-around sports enthusiast.

Gregg and Heidi have been married twenty-eight years and have three children: Luke (22), Leah (20), and Taylor (16).

REGISTER FOR THE CONFERENCE:  http://eepurl.com/iLYa

LEARN MORE:  http://bit.ly/8YjVvk