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Women On Mission - April 2024

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Bill Wallace, Christian Martyr

Bill Wallace made the decision to become a medical doctor in 1925 at the age of 17. That decision took him to China where he served through various uprisings, the Japanese invasion, and World War II. He performed surgery with bombs bursting around him. After the Communist takeover, he remained in China. When America entered the Korean War, anti-American sentiment ran strong in China. Mission boards urged their people to leave. Bill refused. Although he was known as one of the best surgeons in China, and many Communists profited by his skill, the Communists did not spare him. He was sent to prison on December 19, 1950 and accused of being a foreign agent. Two months after his arrest, Bill was found hanging in his cell. His captors claimed he killed himself, but his body told a story of terrible abuse. Armed guards tried to hide their handiwork by burying him in an unmarked grave. Faithful Chinese risked their own lives and buried him with a proper ceremony. Above his grave they placed this sign, “For Me to Live is Christ.” “He was so identified with the Chinese that they considered him one of them, “ said a missionary nurse who worked with him. A book of his life was written in 1963 by Jesse Fletcher. It is titled, “Bill Wallace of China.” A children’s book, “Bill: An American Doctor in China” was written especially for fourth to sixth graders. The author is Ann Lovell. It is available on Amazon.

Send Relief
Send Relief is the Southern Baptist compassion ministry that meets physical and spiritual needs around the world. Send Relief is bringing help and hope to displaced families in Eastern Europe during the Russia-Ukraine war. 

Send Relief is a collaboration between the International Mission Board and North America Mission Board. They respond to natural disasters, care for refugees, fight human trafficking, support adoption and foster care efforts, and provide clean water and medical aid around the world.
 
Women on Mission will meet Thursday, April 4th at 1:00 pm in the Grace Ladies’ classroom. All our ladies are invited to join us.

Our Annie Armstrong Easter Offering goal is $5,200.00. Prayerfully ask the Lord what he would have you give.

Posted by Women On Mission with
in Missions, Newsletter

Grow & Go - March 2024

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The Joy in Discipleship

There are times when many of us struggle with having joy in this life. Yes, even Bible-believing, fully devoted followers of Jesus Christ. I have gone through seasons that seemed as if I were just spinning my wheels, where the busyness of life was so overwhelming that an end was not in sight.  Times when I had to stop and ask myself, what sort of kingdom impact am I making by doing this or that? There have even been situations when the brokenness of others around me seemed to drag the energy from my body or wear me out. Or seasons where my aging body informs me that I am not getting any younger. It is during times of joylessness I remind myself that the power of Christ is
magnified most during times of my weakness (2 Cor 12:9). More importantly when the realization sets in that my joy is waning, a redirect typically needs to occur from self to the Savior. When this redirect occurs, it typically is emphasized in the Word by the Holy Spirit, our helper, that I need to die to self (Lk 9:23), and that my real joy is found in discipling others. It is during our greatest of lows, that our need to cling to Christ becomes most evident.

When I say there is joy in discipleship, there is an unspeakable joy that should flow out of love – love for Christ, and what He has done on our behalf by dying on the cross. If not careful, we can forget what we were like before Jesus transformed us. We can forget the joy we first had when we were born again and if not staying in the Word, that love can diminish. If not mindful of our sinfulness, and the unmerited grace we received, we can see the work done in the name of Christ as burdensome. What helps me to remain focused and thwart this, is the giving away of myself to others in discipleship. What pushes me towards discipling another, is that I have experienced for myself the goodness of our Savior and Lord. Keeping our eyes perfectly affixed to our Savior helps us, helps me, to deny self and “count others more significant” (Phil 2:3)

It is very encouraging for me to see another Christian finding delight in the Word of God (Ps 119:16) and resting in the finished work of Christ (Jn 19:30). Let me encourage you to take what you know about Christ and His Word and invest that in another believer. If you have found yourself in a place where there is little joy or usefulness, there is a joy to be found in making disciples. In no way is discipleship easy, but considering what Christ paid that we may have life, there is a cost that we must count. The cost for us on this side of Heaven once we have been transformed by the gospel, is that we are to be making disciples (Matt 28:20). I think David Mathis best captures the essence of the joy in discipleship when he said, “Disciple-making is indeed costly – and designed by God, when healthy, to be a great joy-producing enterprise. It is not easy, but hard work. Yet it is deeply rewarding, with joys we do not otherwise taste apart from God’s work in and through us in ‘sharing our own selves’ (1 Thess 2:8) with others.”   Therefore, yes
discipleship is a mandate, it will cost us something, it is not easy nor should it be burdensome, and there can be great joy found in discipleship as we count the cost of following Christ. 

1. David Mathis. https://www.desiringgod.org/messages/the-cost-of-disciple-making, 2017.

Posted by Paul Willett with

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