The Seabourns

Archives for August 2007

Revisting Virginia Tech-personally

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At our conference in Colorado this summer, the parents of Lauren McCain were interviewed. I heard it live. I’ve replayed it many times since then, both in my own head and on my computer. I was deeply affected by the juxtaposition of the McCain’s interview and the story of 23 Korean Christians who were kidnapped by terrorists while doing relief work in Afghanistan.

My friend Judy Nelson has written very eloquently about the McCain’s interview. Please read Judy’s thoughts.

In amazing evidence of God’s preparation, Lauren (their daughter who was murdered) was videotaped during an interview. A rough cut is available online.

Our children grew up in Nigeria in West Africa. During that time, I committed them to the Lord. I gave them to the Lord for his purposes. God gave Kay and I tremendous peace raising our children in another country. He is sovereign everywhere. We never feared weird diseases, political unrest, or violent crimes. Yes, as parents part of our job was to be smart and not do unnecessarily unsafe things. We experienced God’s protection and provision many times.

But sitting in Moby gym on the campus of Colorado State University praying in small groups for the hostages from Korea and hearing the McCain’s story, I realized I had never given our two beautiful granddaughters back to the Lord. I had never consciously and intentionally acknowledged his sovereignty over their lives.

And I realized that not only had I never done this, I didn’t want to. God and I had quite an argument there in Moby gym. Have you ever known that you’re going to give in on an argument because the other person is right, but you are not emotionally ready? Your head is ready to concede because you know the other person is right, but your heart is still arguing?

It came to a head when the praise band led us in singing songs of surrender. I remembered the dialog in C. S. Lewis’ Chronicles of Narnia about meeting Aslan the lion. Susan asks, “Is he–quite safe? I shall feel rather nervous about meeting a lion.” Mr. Beaver responded, “Who said anything about being safe? ‘Course he isn’t safe. But he’s good. He’s the King, I tell you.

I thought this was just an inner battle as I stood there in Moby gym. But long-time friend Charlie came up and put his arms around me and just hung on. I thought he’d do the nice “Christian” thing about reassuring me with a brief hug, then moving back to his seat. But he hung on. Minutes. Lots of them.

And my heart began to come around. It’s still fighting some, even as I write this weeks later. But I am on the journey of consciously entrusting Abby and Lucy into God’s care. He is good, all the time. He is sovereign, even over the country on the other side of the world where their parents hear God calling them. He is involved in making his glory known among the nations, even through the difficulties of his precious children. And he is lovingly working out his merciful plan of redemption through his children — the big ones and the little ones. Even if some of those children are big ones like our son and daughter-in-love or little ones like our grandchildren Abby and Lucy.

Risky faith

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To be known by your friends is interesting.

I was recently interviewed by a friend, Byron, who ministers with Probe. He was writing a radio program script for Kerby Anderson on the use of MySpace and social networking sites. It’s now available online as an MP3 also.

I’m the head of Internet outreach for one of the world’s largest ministries encourages viewing MySpace as a mission field. He tells kids, “It’s where your friends and their friends are already. Jesus called us to be smart, not safe.” As Paul wrote to the Roman church, “Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.”

A mutual friend, Paul, wrote me today about Byron’s program, since we’ve both served with Byron in the past. I admitted to my friend Paul that I was the anonymous guy talking about being smart, not necessarily safe.

Paul responded, “I thought so.”

I guess I’ve said stuff like that before. At least I’m consistent enough to be recognized!

So while we’re on the topic of safe ministry, I’ll quote from Ron Hutchcraft. Sometimes we come to a place in life or in ministry where “I realized that I had gone as far as I could go . . . safely.”

Ron goes on to say [click here to read his excellent article]:

So has American Christianity.

We, as Christians, have gone as far as we can go safely. If we just keep doing what we’ve been doing, we will leave most of our generation unreached for Jesus Christ. Chuck Colson has said, “In a startlingly brief period, the West has been transformed from a Christian culture, in which the majority accepted basic Christian concepts, into a post-Christian culture.”

When we’ve gone as far as we can go safely, then it’s time to move beyond safety into risky faith.

At a missions conference last year, Kay and were speaking to teenagers. I asked “How many of you have MySpace or Facebook sites?” A few slowly raised their hands while sheepishly looking around to make sure parents weren’t watching. I asked, “How many of your parents know you have a MySpace site?” Almost all hands dropped.

I encouraged them to use their MySpace as lighthouses in the midst of loneliness and lostness. I urged them to tell their parents what they were doing. I encouraged them to pray with their parents for the mission field called MySpace. I encouraged them to join with a few other teens as lighthouse accountability partners.

I encouraged them to be smart in their MySpace outreach through accountability with peers and parents, but to move beyond safety into risky missionary outreach in the largest mission field today.

So what about you? Have you gone as far as you can go … safely? Does God have you in a place where he’s asking you to move beyond safety? Be smart, but exercise risky faith.

Back to School Time

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Over the next few weeks, college students will be traveling to their college of choice. You may know some students who are going for their first time. If you know a student who might be interested in connecting with Campus Crusade for Christ’s ministry on their campus, check for information at using our ministry locator. Many of our campus groups have their own website and you can find information in the ministry locator. You can also find a contact person.

Click here for the ministry locator.

Why not pause right now and pray for the students you know who will be returning to college.

Some things to pray:

  • Pray that Christian students would find a place to connect spiritually through one of the excellent Christian groups on campus.
  • Pray that students who have not yet found Christ will have experiences that awaken and quicken their spiritual interest. Pray that they will find someone who truly follows Jesus who can share the gospel with them.
  • Pray for those fulltime vocation Christian workers with Campus Crusade for Christ, with Navigators, with InterVarsity, and with denominational ministries who will invest their lives these next months in seeking the lost and discipling the followers.
  • Pray for Christian professors who are sharing their lives with students every day in the classroom and in informal opportunities, sometimes in the midst of hostile environments where their economic futures may be adversely affected because of their ministry activities.

I recall how significant our colleges years were in spiritual formation in our lives. College was the time for both Kay and myself where we learned how to walk daily in the power of the Holy Spirit, where we learned how to and began the practice of taking the initiative in sharing Christ with others, where we made commitments to follow Christ for the rest of our lives and to participate in helping fulfill the Great Commission.

Campus Mission 2007 is over

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Campus Mission 2007 (the event) is over. Campus Mission 2007 (the mission) is beginning. 16,000 students from 129 countries were invited to sign a pledge:

The CM 2007 Pledge

Because…

…the lost can not perceive the majesty of the Lord, and God deserves the glory, honor and praise of all.

…God desires the ends of the earth turn to Him and be saved

…Christ died for all; therefore all deserve the opportunity to hear the Gospel.

…the Lord deserves the rewards of Christ’s suffering, which are the redeemed from every nation.

…the deepest needs of the human race can only be met by Jesus Christ.

…Jesus said “the harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few”.

…Jesus made me a light to the nations, so that His salvation may reach to the ends of the earth.

Because of these…

… I choose to invest my time, energy, resources, and abilities in light of eternity, to follow Jesus in the power of the Holy Spirit, in unity with the Body of Christ.
In full surrender to Him, I will go to the unevangelized university students of the world, and beyond, “that the earth may be filled with the glory of God as the waters cover the sea!”

My name
July 5, 2007, CM 2007, Busan, Korea

See some of the excitement: