Don't Let Your Past Dictate Your Future

This past week I have had the privilege to shoot a video for the Correctional Ministry here in Kenya. I had to opportunity to meet and interview not only the chaplains at the prisons, but also the staff and prisoners. God is doing amazing things through this ministry and lives are being transformed. 

I interviewed one prisoner (with the help of one of the chaplains) who had been greatly impacted by the Correctional Ministry in the prison. He told me that  

“When I came to prison, I saw that I had no hope at all. Through the preachings of the chaplains that have visited many times, I have come to know Jesus Christ as my personal Savior.” 

He went on to tell me his testimony which was powerful and then talked about his conviction for the lost.

 “I am very much concerned for the perishing souls. Since I’ve been saved, I have seen the Lord Jesus Christ working in my life…God healed me through the Lord Jesus Christ while in prison. From 2010 til now I have been preaching Jesus Christ because I have seen He has done great things in my life, He has changed me completely, He has healed my insanity, and I have been trying as much as possible to bring many many to Jesus Christ.” 

He concluded by giving a beautiful depiction of Salvation. 

“Because I have been saved, I have that inward feeling that I must reach the rest of those lost souls here…I share my testimony with the inmates and the staff in the aim that I must reach them also that they may come out darkness so they may become children of God.”

Prisons are not the happiest and brightest places, but on that day, when this man told his testimony and talked about his conviction, the light of God illuminated the prison compound. Just because someone may have a rough past, doesn't mean that God cant use them. Think about it.  Moses was a murderer, Noah was a drunk, and Paul (Saul) was a persecutor of Christians. Your past may be rough, but through the power of the cross, your future is bright through the power and blood of Jesus Christ. 

GO

Learning and Praying are wonderful ways to get started in missions. However, nothing beats actually going on a trip and allowing God to use you in a mighty way! Now, going doesn't have to be across the world, it can be in your home town. In Knoxville, Tascha and I have worked with The Lost Sheep Ministries and Knoxville Area Rescue Ministry (KARM) serving the homeless. Homeless ministry was out of my comfort zone at first and I believe that because it was, God was able to teach me, shape me and bless me more through it because I was more reliant on Him than I was myself. When we do missions, we do not do them to be a hero to the world, Jesus is that hero. We do missions not only because it is our purpose to reach every tribe and tongue, but because we cant not share the love of Christ! Our love for others is the overflowing of God love for us! Below are a few ways to GO!

• Go on a short-term cross-cultural trip with your church or a mission group.
• Tascha and I did this when we went to Uganda
• Use your profession to share the good news and Christ's love among the nations.
• Students can go on a "back and forth" trip with their college group or seminary. 
• I did this when I went to East Asia and Kenya
• Contact a few mission agencies to see how they might utilize your skills short term or long term.
• World Gospel Mission - www.wgm.org
• International Mission Board - www.imb.org
• Wycliffe Bible Translators - www.wycliffe.org
• Serving In Mission (SIM) - www.sim.org
• Africa Inland Mission (AIM) - www.aimint.org
• The World Race - www.theworldrace.org

PRAY

Missionaries need prayer. All over the world, there are people laboring for the sake of the gospel. This is why Paul repeatedly asked those who sent him to pray for him (Rom 15:30; 2 Cor 1:11; 1 Thess 5:25; 2 Thess 3:1; Heb 13:18). Below are 6 ways to get involved in praying for missionaries (including us!)

• Sign up to receive prayer letters or missionary e-mails and pray regularly for them. You can sign up for ours by visiting our website (www.jeffandtaschafyke.com) or by emailing us (jeff.fyke@wgm.org)
• Ask God to show you for whom you should pray.
• Request country- or people-specific prayer guides for your computer or mobile phone . You can get the free Joshua Project app at http://www.joshuaproject.net/mobile.php
• Join or start a prayer group through your church or among your friends.
• Purchase the Operation World book and pray for people in a different country each day.
• Use an outline to pray for missionaries. You can find one at http://www.kingdompraying.com/assets/PDF/Scripture_Prayers_Missionaries.pdf

LEARN

Tascha and I just finished a 15 week class called "Perspectives on the World Christian Movement." In this class we have not only learned what missions is, but our part in every Christian's calling to missions. Every Christian has a mission: the be a part of the Great Commission.

Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” 
Matthew 28:18-20


We all have a mission as Christians: To reach a lost and dying world for Christ. This brings God absolute glory! One way we can be a part of our mission is by learning about missions and missionaries. Here are a few ways to you can do that:

• Read a missionary biography

• Pray for people you see in world news reports.

• Take a course like Perspectives on the World Christian Movement.

• Go to the library and check out books about countries or people groups that interest you. You can visit www.JoshuaProject.net for more info on people groups!

• Use the internet to explore different areas of the world

Here is a video about the importance of learning about missions and ways to do it!

6 WAYS - LEARN from K H on Vimeo.

Video and info from OMF International

What Is Our Purpose?

This semester, Tascha and I have the opportunity to attend a class called Perspectives (http://www.perspectives.org). Over the next 14 weeks, we will learn and discuss what missions is, the history of missions, and learn about current missions from missionaries serving all over the world! This past week we were asked to give our elevator speech. “If you had 60 seconds to present the gospel to someone, what would you say?” We got into groups and discussed things we would say. Some said the would talk about John 3:16 and elaborate on the great love God has for us. Others said they would concentrate on our sinful nature and that we need Jesus to bridge the gap between us and God. While we were discussing what we would say, II Corinthians 5:18 came to mind. “All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation.” 

To me, this, and the previous verse, is a missionary theme passage. II Corinthians 5:17 talks about how we are a new creation in Christ. In verse 18, we are reconciled (restored) to God through Christ and we are all called to restore others to God through Christ. This is our purpose as Christians: to invite non-believers into a restoring relationship with Christ, making them a new creation in Christ and allowing them to experience the perfect love of our Savior. This is my goal. Whether at work, in my neighborhood, or overseas, my aim is the share the love of Christ with everyone. The boldness and power to do so comes from Christ (I Timothy 1:7-8a) so we have nothing to fear! 

Below is a video about Perspectives 

God's Timing

First of all, I just want to say that Jeff usually writes our blogs and does a wonderful job. He is much better at writing than I am and enjoys keeping up with our blog. However, I (Tascha) have been feeling like God wants me to share how He is working in my life during this time of Homeland Ministry Assignment. While this time has sent me on a roller coaster of emotions, God is teaching me so much. Yes, there are many good days where I am so excited about what God has called us to do in Kenya, and I am often encouraged by friends, family, and even people we do not know by their kind words and actions. There are also the hard days, where I start to feel overwhelmed by all that we have going on, discouraged when we are not seeing the progress we would like, or even frustrated by how long the process takes. God is definitely using this time to work in my life, and I want to share with you a couple of things He has been teaching me lately.

1. Faith- God is teaching me to fully trust and rely on Him. Sure, leaving everything and everyone we know and moving to Kenya requires a lot of faith. Surprisingly though, that is not what I am struggling with. I would love to hop on a plane today and fly on over to Kenya. It is the day to day things, the details, that I am having trouble trusting God for. When I look at our ministry account, I find myself thinking, “How in the world are we ever going to raise all that money?” When Jeff and I need to take off yet another week of work for speaking or training I worry, “How long until one of us has to quit our job? How will we pay the bills?” However, time and time again God has shown up and provided for all of our needs. He is teaching me that instead of worrying about these details, I should trust Him for direction and provision. I have heard it said that God does not call the equipped, but instead He equips the called. I believe this to be true, so I know that He will prepare us in all ways for the mission field. I also need to trust God’s perfect timing. Which leads me to the next way that He is working on me! 

  2. Patience- This is another area in my life that I am currently struggling with. God has blessed me with a good deal of patience when it comes to children. Being a teacher and constantly being around children requires this patience. However, when it comes to other things, honestly I am not the most patient person. I have the type of personality where I like to get stuff done and make things happen. I do not like to sit around and wait for everything to work itself out. So, I start to get impatient with the amount of time it is taking us to complete our Bible courses we are enrolled in, or the fact that our support is not rolling in. I have a hard time waiting to hear back from churches that show interest in our ministry, or waiting for individuals to respond to newsletters, emails, calls, or messages. I want so badly to get to Africa, that I sometimes lose sight of the fact that God has us here in the U.S. right now for a purpose. I don’t want to miss out on all that He wants us to do here and now, while we are waiting for His timing to move to Africa. These are just a couple of the ways that God is working in my life so far during HMA. I came across this verse and it has been an encouragement to me. I pray that it will be to you as well. 

  Hebrews 6:10-12 “God is not unjust; he will not forget your work and the love you have shown him as you have helped his people and continue to help them. We want each of you to show this same diligence to the very end, so that what you hope for may be fully realized. We do not want you to become lazy, but to imitate those who through faith and patience inherit what has been promised.” G

  Prayer requests: 
- Pray that God would continue to move people to get involved in our ministry. 
- Pray for the people of Kenya and the missionaries already serving there. 
- Pray for Jeff and me as we will be the camp missionaries at Mt. Hope Bible Camp in Ohio July 21-27.