Rick Bergen: Rick's Reflections

Where is my focus?

Mon, 14 Apr 2008 06:45:02 GMT

Where is My Focus?

I often feel like I am walking along a narrow mountain path among the cliffs and thick fog and clouds. Sometimes I can see parts of the path way up ahead where the fog is lifted. Most of the path I cannot see. But I can always see where to place the next step. And sometimes I can see a few steps in a row. I have to be careful not to focus on myself or my problems. By keeping my focus on Jesus the next step of obedience is always easy. And occasionally, when I look back I am amazed at how far along the path one step of obedience after another can carry us.

· Peter walked on water as long as his focus was on Jesus.
· Jesus was eating with Martha and Mary. Martha was doing her best to serve Jesus and the other guests, and possibly to impress them. Mary simply focused on Jesus.
The children of Israel often thought of themselves and their problems. But to those who kept their focus on God and His promises, “Not a word failed of any good thing which the LORD had spoken to the house of Israel. All came to pass.” Joshua 21:45

Here are some photos of a recent ministry trip to Tijuca. We had to walk a couple of kilometers through a lot of puddles to get there, and slept in the one-room schoolhouse.

END

Freedom

Sat, 22 Mar 2008 22:55:04 GMT

Jesus died to set us free.

Free from bondage to...everything.

How many people this Easter week-end don't have a clue?

How many don't have a chance to hear the gospel message in a way they can understand it?

Maybe some of your friends? Maybe they are locked in materialism? Or poverty? Or they have a monster in the closet from their past that they can't tell anyone about? Or maybe they are living in a remote community and no one ever goes there with a clear gospel message?

Let's make the best use possible of each day.

END.

What Are We Doing?

Wed, 09 May 2007 09:55:02 GMT

Here are a few questions?:

1. What is our goal?

2. How will we know if we have done a good job?

3. When is our job done?

Here are a few responses:

1. We want a plant a church planting movement...plant churches that train leaders and plant churches.

2. We want to be careful not to create long-term dependency.

3. When it becomes a lot of fun, but we are not really needed, our job may be done. A few questions we can ask to find out are:

a) If I leave, what churches, events, organizations or momentum will die?
b) If I don't go to the meetings, what will really happen?

What is our plan?

1. Go where there is no church like the one we want to plant.

2. Make disciples of local people. Plant a church with sufficient leadership, finances and infrastructure to keep making disciples and planting churches when you are gone.

3. Give it away. Move on. Do it again.

Remember

1. Missionaries go where few invite them to come, and leave when few think they should leave.

2. The harvest field is still huge. (This is understated).

3. We need to find the people who God has called and help them get on the right path. They may be trapped in really bad lifestyles and patterns. God will train them, and they be far more effective than we could ever hope to be. Find them. Help them get to the right place. Move on.

4. Missions are really good at starting and equipping.

5. Missions need a local exit strategy. Work until the time is right. Then go and do it again.

6. The Harvest Field still has a tremendous need for many more missions and missionaries.

AND THE BIG QUESTION?

7. What in life could be a greater investment than starting a church-that-plants-churches-that-plant-churches? What if you could be part of a team that does more than one of these in a lifetime? How would you feel about that? What if together we could build a team that will plant a whole bunch of these, in several countries? How much time and money and effort would YOU be willing to pour into a project like this?

Hmmm...

Here's a thought that's in my head. "You only get to keep what you give away."

Sat, 05 May 2007 08:32:24 GMT

Baby Karissa

Sun, 25 Feb 2007 14:15:26 GMT

Baby Karissa was born yesterday, February 24th.

Sirley has helped us in our home for about three years now. We performed her marriage to Eduardo Falcão in the church here, while we still met at the Guest House. Everyone just calls here husband by his last name, Falcão, which his fairly common here.

Deanna was thrilled to be at the delivery.

Photo Walk with Mike Sheedy (Why I Like Photography)

Sun, 25 Feb 2007 14:00:39 GMT

While a team was visiting us from Ohio last week we went for a walk to the field back of our house and took some photos. I love the photography hobby because it is something I can do with the girls. In fact, they took most of these photos. Also, looking at the world through a camera lens naturally shifts your thinking to looking for the beauty and emotions which God created. It's a restful shift from the problems and challenges that can tend to swamp us if we are not careful. And there is a lot more beauty than problems when you start looking for it. A third reason I like photography is because of how it helps us communicate, both to Brazilians, and to North Americans.

Authentic Christianity

Wed, 20 Dec 2006 07:00:23 GMT

“Authentic Christianity is not learning a set of doctrines and then stepping into cadence with people all marching the same way. It is not simply humanitarian service to the less fortunate. It is a walk—a supernatural walk with a living, dynamic, communicating God. Thus the heart and soul of the Christian life is learning to hear God’s voice and developing the courage to do what he tells us to do.”

"Authentic Christians are the persons who stand apart from others, even other Christians, as though listening to a different drummer. Their character seems deeper, their ideas fresher, their spirit softer, their courage greater, their leadership stronger, their concerns wider, their compassion more genuine, their convictions more concrete. They are joyful in spite of difficult circumstances and show wisdom beyond their years."

“Authentic Christians are full of surprises. You think you have them neatly boxed, but they turn out to be unpredictable. When you are around them, you feel slightly off balance because you don’t know what to expect next. Over time, though, you realize that their unexpected ideas and actions can be trusted.”

Bill Hybels – Too Busy Not To Pray, Intervarsity Press, 1988, page 99.

So Where Are All the Signs and Wonders?

Fri, 08 Dec 2006 12:38:37 GMT

Sometimes I kind of joke with Anni, who is our oldest daughter of 14 years, "My but it must be nice to be a teenager and know everything." Recently I have been sensing that God wants to communicate with me more than I am hearing. It is so hard to listen for God's response when we are always jumping to conclusions.

What thoughts would come to mind if you saw a field of dry bones...backfill, hmm-interesting, death valley, grotesque...lots of snap judgements come to my mind. Yet when God asks Ezekiel whether these bones can live, rather than making a snap judgement he snaps into listening mode. After listening Ezekiel was asked to prophecy. And then again. And the miracle that followed, and then the second stage of that miracle, almost defies our imagination. Read the rest of the story sometime, imaging you were Ezekiel.

So where are all the signs and wonders that are to follow us? Are we listening? Or are we "realists?" Know-it-alls?

Ezekiel 37:1-3

The hand of the Lord was upon me, and he brought me out by the Spirit of the Lord and set me in the middle of a valley; it was full of bones. ²He led me back and forth among them, and I saw a great many bones on the floor of the valley, bones that were very dry. ³He asked me, “Son of man, can these bones live?”

I said, “O Sovereign Lord, you alone know.”

Sunday Walk

Sun, 26 Nov 2006 19:24:50 GMT

I went for a walk with the children this morning.

Steve and Elba are in Belem for a few days getting a bit of business done there...and celebrating three years of marriage!

Do not withhold good from those who deserve it,

when it is in your power to act.

Proverbs 3:27

We can all give compliments. We can all encourage someone. So why don't we do this more often?
I remember as a child when my father bought my mother a guitar. He doesn't play any musical instruments, but he always paid for us to take lessons. I remember some years later overhearing him tell someone that the music teacher said we had a "good" guitar. I remember thinking at the time how Dad felt good about this compliment. It was kind of unusual.
Several years later when I was coming home from the Yukon for Christmas, I helped Dad load some bales of hay into the back of his pickup truck. It had a white corrugated steel bed, with about two inches of wet snow in it. While throwing the heavy bales around I slipped and twisted my ankle, ripping something. I hid the limp and never mentioned this because I really wanted Dad's approval. I wanted to be considered a hard worker, and not a whiner. A lot of people around us are trying to hard to do the right thing and we don't really notice.
Just now a ministry team got back from a seven day river trip, I heard that one of the visitting pastors told Ross, in essence, "You did a great job as a worship leader." I thought, "I don't think I have ever told Ross I thought he did a good job as a worship leader."
There is a lot of people around us trying very hard to do a good job. The Bible exhorts us to be encouragers. We need to be continually encouraging our children. They will hear a lot of messages in a day, and in a year, and if we don't encourage them, who will? But it is more than our families. Look around and see how many people you can encourage today. It might be someone who appears totally confidant and self-sufficient.

Do not withhold good from those who deserve it,

when it is in your power to act.

Proverbs 3:27

Second Test Blog

Thu, 23 Nov 2006 18:18:16 GMT

This is my second test blog for the Writer program by Windows Live.

This looks like it will really help me to be a better blogger.

End.

Testing the New Writer Beta Program

Thu, 23 Nov 2006 15:53:10 GMT

This was the young pet of the caretakers of the place we stayed at a few weeks ago.

River Shore

Mon, 04 Sep 2006 19:14:33 GMT

The Lord will be awesome to them

when he destroys all the gods of the land.

The nations on every shore will worship him,

every one in its own land.

Zephaniah 2:11

Wedding in Souzel

Sun, 06 Aug 2006 16:10:50 GMT

Pastor Ademir and his wife Dina moved to Souzel from Altamira about 6 years ago. He was a youth pastor here, and he went to pastor there. He is doing great job, keeping the mission's vision of reaching the far flung villages. His daughter got engaged about 6 months ago, and he committed all their spare time and money for one year to hosting a wedding.

It is still a rare occasion when a young couple gets engaged and waits to for marriage before living together. This is actually only the third one I can remember in all the years here. I'm sure there have been a few more. Probably.

Anyway, Tatianni, Ademir's daughter has just turned 17. She married a Christian fellow and it seems like a happy story.

Deanna and I travelled down with Clenildo and Angelita. As this movement grows it is getting hard for us to spend any quality time together. We stayed in a kind of bed and breakfast (pousada) in Souzel and were back the next day in time to preach on Sunday. We rented a motorboat so we could get back a little earlier. (Ross pilotted the big boat and it was fully loaded.) When we were almost home we hit a big turtle under the water with our prop which caused it to deform and vibrate seriously. And we had no paddle. We limped to shore and the fellow straightened the prop a bit with a post and a rock or brick and we were glad when we arrived in the port of Vitória. From there we drove about one hour home to Altamira.

End.

Bees

Sun, 06 Aug 2006 12:24:59 GMT

There was a swarm of bees on a big leaf by our gate the other day. Anni found them. I burned them because Anni got stung by 20+ wasps awhile back and she doesn't like bees. But this reminds of of a few recent incidents.

We are just moving into our office building. This involves using a "front" door that had little use before. Beside the door was a swarm of black bees, going in a out of some holes in the ground. Tim K told me he had sprayed this area with a bug spray daily for two weeks but this never diminished the activity. I got a shovel and dug down a foot or so. The earth was real soft and mixed with wax and a sour lemony smelling honey, and a small cloud of bees. I threw a rag with some alchool on it in the hole and lit it. After awhile it was kind of smouldering so I left it. I was not worried about the brick and cement building. That was Friday. Sunday a wind blew up and it flamed up. I guess the wax down underground burned smoked the whole time. It must have been a very big nest.
Over the past months three swarms of honey bees have come to Clenildo's house. He learned how to make the box and moved them out to the training site one swarm at a time in his little car. I'm not sure how he did that. But he brought us 1/2 liter of honey the other day!
Clenildo's friend saw some bees in an old tire the other day, in the bush. He harvested 21 liters of honey out of the old tire! It's worth about $10 per liter at the market so this was a real windfall.

End.

Changes

Mon, 24 Jul 2006 13:36:22 GMT

The Xingu Mission is changing and growing. As the number and the size of the churches are growing, the missionaries are also shifting around to the places they feel will be a good investment of their lives. Some of the recent changes include:

Steve and Elba are on "Home Assignment" for three months
Richie and Christie are on "Home Assignment" for three months
Clyde and Kelsie have moved to Porto de Moz
Kevin and Angie have moved to Porto de Moz
Branco left for Christ For the Nations Bible School in Southern Brazil
Keith and Marsha plan to move off the Mission Campus and into their home in Santa Anna this week.
Tim and Betsy plan to leave for three months "Home Assignment" next week
Rachel leaves for "Home Assignment in about two weeks
Sirley (and Falcão) is pregnant

On a more constant note, the Brazilian leaders continue to work with their churches. As a mission one of our goals is to plant a Brazilian church planting movement.

Warmly,

Rick.

Life on the Frontier

Tue, 28 Mar 2006 10:00:02 GMT

I recently got back from a week long ministry trip with Richie. We visitted the churches along one of the tributaries out here. I was so impressed with how God is changing lives, families and communities. Some of these pastors I had not seen for a long time. It was a great time of reconnecting with some of the river pastors, and also a timing of prayer about the future of the mission and churches. It was also so encouraging to feel the warm welcomes and the eagerness to learn more at the church services.

A few local lifestyle highlights:

Two families had not eaten for a whole day. Apparently this is not uncommon during certain seasons. At the end of the day they caught a small fish and gave it to their children. They were elated the next day to catch a fish that will feed them for about 40 days.
A fellow came by in a hammock in a boat, at dusk. At ten that morning he was bitten by a very poisenous snake. They still had an all night boat ride to get him to town and the health post there. Richie gave him some anti-venom and painkilllers. He said if that did not work the fellows foot and leg would turn black and he would not be able to use it for about 40 days.
Forty days! At our men's group we are studying 40 Days of Purpose.
The river is rising and many expect their houses will go under water. Some have other houses on higher ground.
A heavy pashiuba tree fell on a local fellow recently and really hurt him. It was the talk of the river.

All in all, it is a tough life out there, kind of like you would expect in a frontier. This makes for desperate prayers and a strong hope there is a creator God who watches and responds. It is a region ripe for the gospel.

Thank you for your prayers and participation.

Sincerely,

Rick.

Northern Trip

Mon, 12 Dec 2005 17:00:50 GMT

I just got back from a great trip through Western and Northern Canada. Deanna and the girls stayed with her parents for the 10 days. When I left it was snowing here in the Fraser Valley. For me, the temperature varied from -15C to -26C, plus the wind chill, which sunk the temperatures even more. Still, it was a great trip. I mostly drove in the days and visitted supporters in the evenings, often until midnight or later. I travelled East through the Roger's Pass to Saskatoon, then North through Edmonton and another 7 hours where the road signs point to the NorthWest Territories. After this I travelled home through Jasper and along the Yellowhead highway. I was a really good trip with lots of time for prayer and reflection, and some good reconnections with friends.

A List to Live By

Sun, 21 Aug 2005 15:12:10 GMT

As I have been reading the book of Job, I am amazed by how convinced Job was of his righteousness before God. And this may be the oldest book in the Bible. This is before Moses, certainly long before Jesus and his ultimate sacrifice, and the Bible that explains things to us.

Job's friends were sure that Job had sinned to bring on all these punishments from God.

Job was convinced of his right-standing with God. Even though he did not understand why he was suffering, he did not think it was for personal punishment. He had amazing faith.

"I refuse to say one word that isn't true. I refuse to confess to any charge that is false. There is no way I will ever agree to your accusations. I'll not deny my integrity even if it costs me my life." Job 27:4,5

So why was God so pleased with Job? What type of man was Job? I found the following clues in the book of Job. They are a good list to live by.

1.1 Job was honest inside and out.

1.1 Job was a man of his word.

1.1 Job was totally devoted to God.

1.1 Job hated evil with a passion.

1.5 Job would make sacrifices in case his children had sinned.

23.11 Job followed God closely.

23.12 Job obeyed God’s words, treasured His advice.

29.8 Job had earned everyone’s respect

29.12 Job was known for helping people in trouble

29.12 Job was known for standing up for people in trouble

29.13 Job would visit the bereaved and dying

29.14 Job was fair with everyone

29.14 Job was eyes to the blind

29.14 Job was feet to the lame

29.15 Job was a father to the needy

29.15 Job was a champion to abused aliens

29.17 Job would make thieves pay back what they stole

30.24 Job never hit anyone who was calling for help

30.25 Job wept for those who live a hard life

30.25 Job was heartsick over the lot of the poor

31.1 Job was very careful with his eyes and imagination, regarding morality

31.7 Job never wandered off the straight and narrow

31.7 Job never wanted things he had no right to

31.7 Job never messed around with sin

31.9 Job never let himself be seduced by a woman other than his wife

31.13 Job was never unfair to his employees

31.16 Job never ignored the needs of the poor

31.16 Job never turned his back on the indignant

31.18 Job’s home was always open to the poor and indignant

31.18 The poor were always welcome at Job’s table

31.19 Job never left a poor family shivering in the cold when they had no warm clothes

31.21 Job never used his strength and influence to take advantage of the unfortunate

31.24 Job never set his heart on making big money

31.24 Job never worshipped at the bank

31.25 Job never boasted about his wealth or showed off because he was rich

31.27 Job never worshipped the sun or the moon

31.29 Job never crowed over his enemy’s ruin

31.29 Job never gloated over his rival’s bad luck

31.30 Job never spoke evil of his rivals

31.30 Job never cursed, even under his breath

31.31 Job’s workers loved to work for him

31.32 Job’s house was open to travelers and strangers

31.33 Job never tried to hide his sin or conceal his guilt

31.37 Job was prepared to give account for every move he ever made

31.39 Job never raped the earth for his own profit

31.39 Job never dispossessed rightful owners of their land

What I Find Amazing About the Book of Job

Wed, 10 Aug 2005 14:23:03 GMT

I have been reading Job in the Message Bible these last few days. In other translations when I read the book of Job, it seems more like listening to two sides of a flowerly argument that is kind of "out there." In the end Job wins and is approved by God and prays for his friends. The lesson is that we would rather be like Job than his friends.

This week I have been amazed three things:

How I think and sound like Job's friends.
How convinced Job is of his own innocence or righteousness before God.
How God is pleased by Job's attitude, and not Job's friend's attitudes.

I will show a short example from Eliphaz (considered bad council).

"Give in to God, come to terms with Him and everything will turn out just fine.

Let him tell you what to do; take His words to heart.

Come back to the Almighty and he'll rebuild your life.

Clean house of everything evil.

Relax your grip on money and abandon your gold-plated luxury.

God Almighty will be your treasure, more wealth than you can imagine.

You'll take delight in god, the Mighty One, and look to Him joyfully, boldly.

You'll pray to Him and He'll listen; he'll help you do what you've promised.

You'll decide what you want and it will happen; your life will be bathed in light.

To those who feel low you'll say, 'Chin up! Be brave!' and God will save them.

Yes, even the guilty will escape, escape through God's grace in your life."

Job 22: 21-30

Here is an example of Job's response (considered good by God).

"I'm not letting up--I'm standing my ground.

My complaint is legitimate.

God has no right to treat me like this--it isn't fair!

If I knew where on earth to find Him I would go straight to Him.

I'd lay my case before Him face-to-face, give Him all of my arguments firsthand.

I'd find out exactly what he's thinking, discover what is going on in His head.

Do you think He'd dismiss me or bully me?

No, He'd take me seriously.

He'd see a straight-living man standing before Him; my Judge would acquit me for good of all charges.

Job 23:2-7

Job had such an incredible conviction of his own righteousness before God. Job's friends seem more humble on the outside. It turns out Job was right.

Maybe the lesson here is that we should not be too quick to judge others or to put God "in a box", not to try too hard to figure everything out and why stuff happens. We should live righteous lives, help everyone we can, pray for forgiveness, walk on this earth in relationship with Jesus, and be absolutely convinced of our righteousness before God in Jesus. Faith and Works.

PS These photos were taken in the Belem Mall.

What King Solomon discovered.

Thu, 14 Jul 2005 08:19:05 GMT

The mark of a good leader is loyal followers...

Slowness to anger makes for deep understnading...

Proverbs 14:28a,29a MSG

Richie's Big Fish

Thu, 07 Jul 2005 10:06:09 GMT

Richie showed up last night with a big trophy from his spear fishing yesterday. His smile is almost as big as the fish. We'll have it for lunch. Should be enough for a big party.

The Heselton Team arrives today, and we look forward to seeing them again.

Our days are pretty full as we try to pass over responsibilities and wrap up loose ends. We leave in about three weeks for Canada.

Psalm 92:4,5

Mon, 04 Jul 2005 11:55:27 GMT

You made me so happy, GOD.

I saw your work and I shouted for joy.

How magnificant your work, GOD!

How profound your thoughts!

Psalm 92:4,5 MSG

A Safe Place

Fri, 17 Jun 2005 09:41:52 GMT

"God's name is a place of protection--good people can run there and be safe." Pr. 18:10 MSG

Here is a thought, "What does it mean to you that one day we will see Jesus face to face?" Do you think of that day as a safe place where you will be happy or will you hang your head with a bunch of regrets for things still undone...people not forgiven, acts not done, money not given, apologies not made, etc. It is good to be still occasionally (it is good to be still often) and really think about what that day will be like.

What is the big news here?

Kevin and Angie have moved here to join the missionary team.
Danny and Penny Meyer arrived here with a team last night.
The Mirante Church property is leveled and the initial plans for the building structure should be released today.
Elba organized a Couple's Dinner" with the key couples in our church. The Brazilian Valentine's Day is in June, last Sunday. We went out to a restaurant. Each person had to share for a minute on how their relationship changed since they got saved. It is a wonder how God transforms lives.
July 19 Elba is organizing a "community" wedding, where 9 of the couples from our church will get legally married and say vows of commtment to each other.