Aisatu

I just received word that one of our good friends in Guinea Bissau is "very near death". 

Aisatu (pronounced Ice-a-Too) accepted Christ 3 years ago.  To say that God has used her mightily is an understatement.  While we were in the village of Buruntuma in March, Aisatu went with us to help cook.  Like a true servant of Christ, she allowed God to use her for His will while she was in the village of Buruntuma with us.  She spent her days and nights sharing the Gospel with many women and children.  I remember one man in particular who, because of Aisatu's faithfulness in sharing the Gospel, accepted Christ.  I can still see him sitting in his plastic chair with tears in his eyes, and his infant daughter in his lap, telling Aisatu, "I want Jesus in my heart so bad".  One night Aisatu took the portable DVD player that we brought with us and showed a hut full of women the "Jesus Film".  She shared the Gospel with women who had no idea who this Jesus really was.  Because of Aisatu, 6 of those women accepted Christ that night.  This is all in a village that had zero Christians a year ago.

When we left at the end of March, Aisatu got very sick.  Her face and shoulders broke out in painful boils.  For weeks, she was bed-ridden.  In a part of the world where the enemy is so present and so real, it seemed like he was attacking Aisatu.  After some weeks, she seemed to be getting better, but the gains that were made in her health were temporary.  The latest news is that she is bed-ridden again and in a lot of pain.  She spends her days on a mattress on the floor in a village that experiences consistent 120 degree temperatures this time of year.  She has a friend who spends the day fanning Aisatu and helping to roll her over.  When her daughter visited, she could not recognize her.

It appears Satan may be "sifting her like wheat" (Luke 22:31-32).  Please pray that Aisatu's faith would not fail and when she has returned, she may strengthen her brothers and sisters.  Aisatu needs a miraculous healing that only comes through prayer and the power of the Holy Spirit.

Here is a short video of Aisatu:

Aisatu from Black Daffodil Films on Vimeo.

Jesus Is My Homeboy Pt. 2

One of the dangerous places that the "needy Jesus" theology leads to is ignorance of a very real enemy.  A soft Gospel focuses on the individual and not Christ, the created and not the Creator.  A very real and present spiritual enemy does not have much room in the "needy Jesus" theologian's life.  It just doesn't fit.  From experience, I know.

Let's be clear, our focus and our attention should be on Christ, not on the forces of the enemy.  To focus on the enemy is just an inversion of the "needy Jesus" theology.  Where one focuses on the individual the other focuses on the enemy.  Neither one focuses on the only thing worthy of devotion, Christ. 

But to ignore the spiritual battle that rages around us is so dangerous.  I'm convinced one of the most effective tools of the enemy on the Western world is to convince us that he does not exist. 

There is an amazing passage in Luke where Jesus gives us a glimpse into this spiritual battle:

"Simon, Simon, behold, Satan has demanded permission to sift you like wheat; but I have prayed for you, that your faith may not fail; and you, when once you have turned again, strengthen your brothers."     (Luke 22:31-32)