I Can't Convert Anyone!

I find conversion to be a dirty word.

I know it’s in the Bible. I know conversion is a great thing and reason to rejoice. But that’s not what I’m talking about. Let me explain with an example.

A few weeks ago a friend ask me about a mutual acquaintance of ours who was not a believer, but she had been to church a couple of times and was definitely interested in Christianity to some degree. So when my friend brought her up, he asked me simply “so, have you converted her yet?”

That question left a bad tasted in my mouth. It was simple enough and he asked it with genuine interest in her spiritual state, but to my mind, he may as well have asked “did you complete steps 1-12 of the Christian-making process as laid out in your AIM-approved ‘How to Make a Christian in Twelve Easy Steps Workbook?’”

When a person decides to devote their life to Christ and turn away from everything that defined them before that point, it isn’t ever because “I converted them.” That sounds cheap and easy and it shouldn’t be either of those things. Conversion isn’t something I can strive for. It isn’t a goal I can reach in someone else’s life. I can’t earn a conversion badge to go on my conversion vest every time someone decides to give their life to Jesus, no matter how much influence I did or didn’t have in that decision. 

Here’s a phrase you never find in the Bible –

And   _______  converted ­­­­­­________ .  

You never hear an apostle bragging about how they totally converted that Roman official. In fact, you never hear the conversion of a person or people attributed to someone else. 

You do hear things like the story of Lydia…

“… who was a worshiper of God. The Lord opened her heart to pay attention to what was said by Paul. And after that she was baptized, and her household as well…” Acts 16:14-15a (ESV, emphasis added)

Or the Philippian jailer who…

“…brought [Paul and Silas] out and said ‘Sirs, what must I do to be saved?’ And they said ‘Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household.’” Acts  16:30b-31 (ESV, emphasis added)

Who opened Lydia’s heart? Who must the jailer believe in? The Lord.

Sure, Paul and Silas had some influence in the conversions of these people, but the decision was theirs, as a direct result of God’s actions in their lives (Lydia’s opened heart, and the jailer witnessing the miraculous freeing of Paul and Silas from prison.) Paul didn’t convert anyone, and neither can I. 

I can share the love of Christ with them. I can talk to them about the life that Christ offers to them. I can be a light to them that they cannot ignore.

But under no circumstances can I ever convert someone. 

Jacob Norwood (AIM, Utah 09)

Burnt to Maturity

The prayer that most Christians pray when facing trials is one of escape or “take it away Lord, take it away!” We begin to question ourselves to the core and challenge our motives; sometimes we will even question God or our faith. When we do these things we need to be comforted to the fact that it is normal human behavior to act this way when facing difficult times. I know when I face trials along the way; my faith is rattled to the core at times. It may not last for very long, but the soul will face some “dark nights” along its journey to maturity.

The Biblical text of James 1:12 encourages the one who perseveres under the trials of life of an eternal award that awaits them in the end. I Peter 1:6-9 also encourages and awakens us to the reality that the trial will “burn” or it will bring unwanted pain. Just as the matter of gold is refined repeatedly until it is free of all impurity, so the soul is “burnt” to maturity as the years and trials pass. As total maturity is never reached, so the soul will continue to be refined along the way. The sustainment of the soul in the midst of the fires and furnaces is its anchored trust in Jesus Christ.

Christ has faced and overcome the greatest fire of all. The fire of Calvary, the pain of the cross and the events leading up to that dark day in history. It in the midst of the fires that we see and feel the embrace of the Father. The prayer is not one of escape, but rather one of being burnt in the best way possible for growth and trust to occur. The trials that we face along the way will “burn” us to maturity and we will look back one day and have a deeper trust in Jesus as a result.

Trent Tanaro (Aim Alum, Wyoming 95)

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When Expectations Don't Meet Reality (Part 1)

One of the biggest mistakes that some AIMers tend to fall into is getting or having too big of expectations of themselves or even of the mission field.  This is one of the things that the AIM directors try to make us understand because of the consequences.  Many AIMers have gone through this before and have told us what happened.  AIMers have shared how they felt after realizing that they were having expectations that were unrealistic. 

For example in Scotland, this country is often not very receptive to the gospel and it can be harder to be a Christian over here.  Before my team came to Scotland, the assistants that had worked here told us about how Scotland can be, how expectations are something that are just going to make our mission time harder than it is. Now today, I am enjoying my time over here but that is because I came without expecting anything unrealistic from the country and the people.  What's neat is that after being here for a while, they have surprised me with things that I thought wouldn’t happen or wouldn’t be.  At times we expect too many things from the church, the people, etc., resulting in our feelings that everything here is wrong. This can be a real struggle. So if your expectations are too high, then reality will make you suffer from your comparisons to your expectations- and you may experience disappointment and other frustration.  This is why maybe we shouldn’t have such expectations.

So let me ask you what are your expectations?  How has reality affected your expectations? 

Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways!

Romans 11:33

Evelyn Galvan (AIM, Scotland 09)

The Joys of Gardening

“I am the true vine, and my father is the vinedresser. Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit, He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit, He prunes it, that it may bear more fruit…abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, so neither can you, unless you abide in Me.” John 15

Our great God, The Vinedresser, is always busy tending and nurturing His olive tree. His process requires the utmost patience, moment-by-moment attention and a careful hand. If you’ve ever split the roots of a plant or pruned a plant so as to cause it to grow then you know the meticulous effort and painstaking work involved in the process. Thank God He loves us enough to wound us to make us more fruitful.

Had you asked me at eighteen I probably would’ve told you that I thought Jesus’ words in John 15 likely referred to the harvest of lost souls and the tireless effort of those involved in it. Little did I know. From somewhere and somehow I came to believe that God was primarily concerned with my production of ‘fruit’ in the form of teaching others who would teach others. It took a little while for me to realize that I was gravely mistaken and on a serious road to burnout. Not only that, but I was completely missing the point about what it means to be deeply loved by my creator. As I struggled in those early years -- learning to walk –- the belief that I wasn’t producing enough ‘fruit’ was overwhelming. As the great vinedresser tended and nurtured me, I discovered His true vision: the growth of the ‘fruit’ of His spirit made manifest in my life. And as we should all know, the fruit of the spirit is Love, Joy, Peace, Patience and the like. (Gal 5) This, of course, meant a significant shift in my expectation of myself and of others. I began to understand God’s plan for me in the context of a loving creator and Father instead of a distant taskmaster whom I feared. I believe this process completely natural; Solomon told us that the fear of God is the beginning of wisdom. I love the idea that God desires more peace, more joy, and love from us. These are remarkable things to attain to that, in great irony, make us better and more effective proclaimers of the gospel. Healthy fruit is aromatic and pleasing to the eye – just ask Eve.

This, of course, is not to say that God is snipping, clipping, and awaiting only a celebration to be born from our hearts, though this has definitely occurred in me at times (and is highly recommended); He is also very concerned with the less popular matters of faithfulness and self-control. Painfully, this is where the great vinedresser tends to draw upon more stringent measures to inspire us.
Romans 11 is a rich passage that uses the Vinedresser imagery to describe God’s tending of Israel by breaking off the natural branches of the root of His olive tree (unbelieving Israel). This seems like a drastic and destructive thing for our Gardener God to do but is explained as the mechanism that would bring ‘riches for the world,’ allow for the gentiles to be grafted into the rich root of His olive tree and ultimately inspire natural Israel’s jealously and ultimate repentance. I think this is a beautiful picture of God’s courage and wisdom to do what is necessary to save as many lives as possible and even enrich His cultivated olive tree with a bunch of wild olives like us. For the last 2000 years this olive tree/mustard tree kingdom has been growing aggressively and pressing against the gates of Hades. Thanks be to God!

When I have faced significant trials that test my resolve and bring me to frustration, I am reminded of God’s severity and willingness to do whatever is necessary to prune me for His purpose. I am learning to view this severity as His great love for me—though it’s always hard. And if YOU have ever born fruit, He WILL prune you again and again. “…and every branch that bears fruit, He prunes it, that it may bear more fruit.” If you are a fruit-bearing branch of “The Vine,” Jesus Christ, then you’ve been blessed to experience this at The Vinedresser's hand. “…abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, so neither can you, unless you abide in me.” As he clips and prunes – sometimes severely – we are forced deeper into the vine for sustenance and the restorative power of Jesus. We reach into his Heart for the strength and character to be be reborn with new growth, stronger tendrils, heartier leaves, and healthier, more delectable fruit.

As the Lord loves you severely into His holiness, may you consider it pure joy and be fruitful again and again bearing ‘fruit that will last,’ ‘much fruit,’ and so prove to be His disciples.

“Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and unfathomable His ways!” Rom 11:33

Nathan D. Myers (Aim Alum, Russia 95)

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