"My heart burns with the fire of God when I talk with you." This was a recent comment of a Vietnamese pastor I work with. This man is a part of those who embody the future of Vietnam, who are paving the way for the new thing God is doing globally.
Our time in Vietnam since mid-January has been rich, full and fruitful with a series of unexpected God-things taking place.
All we've been working toward is maturing. It is dovetailing with God's sovereign moves across the earth, as we're witnessing the fire of God manifesting. It is linked to the shift that we believe is the forerunner of the new thing the Lord is doing between the generations. So, thank you for your prayers.
At the forefront of our strategy has been an approach that mobilizes Vietnamese to help Vietnamese. Our aim has been to help them become self-sufficient as a culture within a culture, to mobilize believers to be a people of God who bring influence, as they become a blessing within their communities.
Our goal has been to build community builders as we work toward establishing God's blueprint in the roles served by both pastoral and business leaders bridging the generations. These are ones who are a part of the ground-swell of God's purposes manifesting for Vietnam's believers.
While we have started (and have continued) with a unique business startup program, our efforts plant what we call the God's economy program, "how to do business God's way." It is business with a purpose. In many ways, it's a different way of thinking. It is not unlike that of the Jews, the people of the Book, who have had to think strategically over the centuries to survive. But it is more than just survival. God's pathway has been for His people to be the head and not the tail.
As our efforts have taken root and begun bearing fruit, we have begun preparing experienced business leaders to mentor the next generation. We have also long had the vision to tap the secular community with our efforts. This has spilled over into the field of education.
From Orphans to Community Influence
Here is one story to illustrate what is emerging. One of our closest associates, a successful business owner, has been caring for a group of orphans he and his wife have taken responsibility for. With very little help from the West, he has built the housing for this group of orphans on a property he owns. We have prayed with him as he has taken steps of faith and the opportunity has morphed.
Through the orphanage now they reach out to their neighbors with gifts and food on
holidays. They also conduct free English classes for many in the neighborhood who want to come, which broadens the spiritual foundations of those attending.
However, their long-term vision is to establish a private Christian school. Taking one step at a time, their application for a private kindergarten is expected to be approved soon.
New Emerging Opportunity
In another "unexpected" from this trip, we were introduced to and broke bread with the boss of a close Vietnamese associate of ours. Our friend is in charge of the language program for a private college. Interest was expressed in our program for these students.
Having been a part of a group (ICCC) that prepared a video series for the Chinese educational TV system in the late 90s, I am acquainted with the challenges of communicating spiritual things to a non-believing audience. It is an additional challenge when there are governmental restraints over spiritual things.
Within the arena of doing business God's way are matters tied to the wholesomeness of faith, the spiritual values which comprise the faith-culture for doing business successfully. Interestingly, many within China, promoting the Chinese video series have surmised THIS to be the key edge defining Western business success.
This premise ties in to the biblical mind-set of why the Jewish people have been so successful in business over the centuries. So we have been discussing the applicability and uniqueness that our approach will offer the students of this college. Before our departure, we conducted an informal workshop with a group of these students at a private Bistro.
Our expectations were exceeded as we shared openly on topics related to the Lord and
pertinent to these students. The matters we broached ranged from how to discover their gifts, discerning their destiny, God's plan for their lives, entrepreneurship, factors of leadership, community and the cultural similarities between the Jews and the Vietnamese. This wonderful time of exploration was concluded by my praying a prayer of blessing over them and then our being encouraged by these students and invited back for "more."
Ripples from Generational Blessings
One of our God's economy programs on this trip was done for the Methodists. Both pastoral and business leaders attended. One of those attending is the owner of a private kindergarten program. Her comment upon completion of our time together was that God had spoken to her about expanding her already successful operation into a K-12 school.
This is the same thing the Lord has spoken to our business friend with the orphanage, who is awaiting approval for the first step with their kindergarten.
Many business leaders from this workshop indicated they now understand how to better use their businesses for the Kingdom as they serve as community builders.
I have a friend who has commented that he has enough in-laws to make a denomination! The family that has spawned the leadership of the Methodists in Vietnam didn't start that way. However, they have become an example of what is now significant with the generations strategically cooperating to bring in the "new thing" God is doing.
Not long after the government change in 1975, the oldest of nine siblings came to faith. He then brought all the other members of the family to the Lord, including their parents. The parents went on to become pastors and half the siblings are now pastors and half are business owners with all the extended family being believers. From the beginning to this day they have supported one another. And their influence now extends across the nation.
Yet, at the time they came to faith, things were not easy for believers. They formed a close family-community and prayed. They reached out and blessed their friends and neighbors. The youngest son (the pastor hosting us), is almost a generation younger than the oldest. As a young teen he felt a strong call into the ministry and upon completing school in Vietnam, they all came behind him and he was sent first to Korea and then to the US to study for the ministry. He has his doctorate from a respected U.S seminary. Their Bible School, where members from across Vietnam attend and where we did our workshop was property that was owned and donated by their parents.
Unexpected Multiplication
The participants of another of our workshops felt so strongly about the significance of what we taught that they asked us to do another workshop in conjunction with another group in another part of the city. We did. These folks are not only ready but eager to put into action what our program teaches.
What was distinctive about this group was the number of successful business owners, who in addition to running quite successful businesses, have opened their homes to their friends and now are also pastoring congregations of 45 to 60!
One of the most unusual "unexpecteds" was a request from a secular source to minister spiritually to a business professional. We did and it was received and embraced, an indication of the spiritual hunger that is resulting from the years of prayers and the spiritual climate change underway at this time in Vietnam.
Unexpected Convergence
Yet among all the things that took place, personally the most exciting was the start of plans for a coalition of Christian business leaders to mentor the next generation. Strategies have been laid out and steps taken for what we believe will trigger the opening of unusual doors for spiritually hungry people eager to do business patterned after the ways of the people of business described "in the Book."
After these steps, before leaving, we "unexpectedly" were invited to share a meal with a group of three Vietnamese businessmen and a pastor. Two of them had gone through our program about four years ago. They were on their way back from another Asian locale putting on a seminar on how to start a business It was for an expatriate Vietnamese group preparing to return to Vietnam. They are the mobilized business community already doing what we are talking about. They are eager to bring our program into their efforts.
These are the highlights. There was more, but I think you get the idea. God has been bringing it all together.
It has been eight years since Easter of 2008, when the Lord opened the doors for us
into Vietnam. With the God's economy program at the forefront, we've invested over two years into our efforts with these amazing people. Now the fruit is coming forth as we plan for our next two trips, as we expand our efforts with strategies in education, make plans for successful business owners to mentor the next generation, get key materials translated, and walk through the open doors with university students hungry to embrace alternatives to the world's pathway of success with new (biblical) mind-sets.
Again, thank you for your prayers. The fire of God is truly burning in Vietnam. Our efforts have been supported by literally a couple of handfuls of dear friends. Thank you from the bottom of our hearts. I pray that you recognize the shift and the opportunity we have before us and that your very vital support continues and should the Lord speak to you, will increase. The opportunity has never been greater.
For those who may have only considered helping us, we are prudent with our expenditures and do a LOT with a little. We pray that you'll consider getting in the boat with us for this time of opportunity the Lord is opening for us.
The year that began with Christmas of 2014 proved one of our greatest times of challenge. Our dear grandson Isaiah unexpectedly died. Twice while we were ministering in Vietnam in 2015, the ground floor of our home offices flooded. In the time following, my computer crashed with the loss of important data. We KNEW that God had something significant coming soon. That "something more" is happening now.
Thank you again for your prayers and support.
In His love and ours,
