Matt and EB Jackson: Strengthening the work of the gospel in Asia

A candid moment on the only man-made object that can be seen from outer space.

What ever became of that trash can? With the gentleness of a bowling ball bouncing down the steps inside a house, the stomach flu ravaged its way through our family as we prepared to leave. In the days leading up to our trip, first EB got it, then Quentin. The day before left Savannah got it. The morning our plane departed Elizabeth got it. Within site of the Budapest airport, Elizabeth became sick in the car. Fortunately the van trash can was available. She was sick again once we boarded the plane. Before we landed 9 hours later Rebekah became sick. We made it to our destination and to the empty apartment which was to be our home for the week. But before we could wash up and go out to eat, Ben got sick. However, God revealed Himself to us during this time of illness. For more specifics, please scroll down to the end of this posting.

Tired and sick while going through security at an Asian airport

“Little emperors” Our first full day in country EB was ushered into an apartment filled with young Asian mothers, all of whom serve as missionaries. EB taught on boundaries between family and ministry, as well as home organizing and loving husbands (the most difficult task!). Yet where she really struck a chord was her teaching on disciplining children. It is against the law to have more than one child in this big country. And since this one child represents both the future of the family and the parents’ retirement plan, most parents are afraid to do anything that might upset the child. Discipline is rare. Hence the term, “little emperors,” describes that single child. Christian families know that this is not God’s plan for children but are unsure of what to do. Therefore, they asked EB to return to them on a second day so they could ask more questions and secure more resources regarding Christian child-rearing.

Our large family with blonde hair, blue eyed kids, (along with our American friends' kids) attracted a lot of attention in Asia. Since Asians are much more outgoing than Europeans, our kids were overwhelmed with how often they were asked to pose for photos. I told Rebekah that now she knows what it feels like to be a movie star!

New country, same problem: I spent a day also with our national Asian staff. The 30 I met with are evangelizing campuses in a “small” city of 8 million that has almost 1 million students. These precious laborers must raise their own support. Even though the church is growing very rapidly in this part of the world, it is still largely a poor church. Additionally they cannot get visas to the US where 80% of the world’s Christian wealth resides. Therefore they must raise money from within the country. So our laborers there have a greater uphill struggle than even our European staff. I taught on how support raising is not begging for money and how we even provide a blessing for those who choose to give (i.e. Acts 20:35, Matthew 6:20, 1 Timothy 6:17-19). At one point my translator leaned over to me and said, “This is revolutionary!”

Motivating Asian Christians from the Word about support raising

Encouraging the heroes: We also spent two days with English-speaking missionaries serving in this part of the world. For security reasons, Asian nationals and the foreigners who work for our missions agency rarely mingle. This time was no exception. I spoke on the three most influential verses in my life: Romans 5:8, Romans 8:18 and Matthew 9:37-38. Even though we were all crammed into an apartment (again we dare not have a traditional conference setting for security reasons), some traveled from the far western reaches of the country, the equivalency of traveling from Seattle to Dallas, for this time together. Included was a team of missionaries from Romania, several of whom we know personally. I was genuinely moved to be around REAL HEROES of the faith, people serving in very primitive, isolated places who are working among some of the least evangelized people in the world. I thought, “Who am I to be speaking into their lives?”

Ben with the Asian Rod Stewart. I had to explain to Ben who Rod Stewart is.

“Happy Birthday to you.” While in the country, we had to use a new vocabulary of code words when talking about “company business” in order to protect identities and activities. At one point during one of our praise and worship times, there was a loud, forceful knock on the apartment door. Quickly Bibles were shut and put away and the song leader switched to “happy birthday to you…” Fortunately, it was only the building maintenance man checking to see if the phone lines worked, a man known well by the occupants of the apartment. Just a few weeks before, the authorities busted up a similar meeting, and separated the nationals from the foreigners. They hauled the foreigners down to a police station for questioning while seizing their passports.

Elizabeth tries an Asian delicacy, cow stomach, while Savannah registers her opinion on her face!

Free Market Communism: I was surprised at how clean and modern things were. Now granted, we were staying in one of the nicer parts of a large, large city. I asked the Americans serving there about the ever rising standard of living; I made some ignorant comment on how “Communism must be working.” They were quick to tell me that what I saw was the results of a giant step toward a free market economy, as well as the country putting on its best face for the upcoming Olympics that will be held in that country. The government, in order to appease the masses, had to turn the free market faucets on somewhat. The best way our friends could describe it, was the term, “free market Communism,” as confusing and contradictory as that term is. I laughed when I realized that in order for Marx’s and Mao’s dream to remain alive, a giant step away from Communism had to be taken.

Mao intends evil; God uses it for good: I found it so ironic that Mao’s picture is still everywhere in this country, including on most of the denominations of money, given all the pain, suffering and failure he caused his people. About the time I was born, there was a famine caused by Mao’s ignorance of farming (yet everyone feared telling him that he was wrong) that killed “at least 30 million people.” (for more details see the book review for “Hungry Ghosts” at http://www.fff.org/freedom/0697f.asp). Yet God has used the temporalness of Communism to weaken the strongholds of Buddhism that spiritually enslaved people for millenniums. Missionaries for centuries gave their lives for a people enslaved to Buddhism and unresponsive to the gospel. Yet Communism swept away much of the power structure of this occultic Eastern religion. And now, even though outlawed, Christianity is growing very rapidly within the spiritual vacuum created by the secularization of Buddhism and Mao’s governmental philosophy.

Back to Jerusalem: In recent years, a missionary movement has arisen among the underground church in this country. In fact, the goal is by the year 2020 that this country will send out more missionaries than any country in the world, including the US. They have taken upon themselves to take the gospel “back to Jerusalem.” The history of the Christian church is to push west. The church was founded in Jerusalem, and then expanded into Europe, North America and now to Asia. However, North Americans cannot take the gospel to most of the closed places in our world today, specifically the Muslim Asian countries. So the Asian church is picking up the baton and determined to carry the gospel “back to Jerusalem.” This passion for missions was not born in the comforts of wealth and freedom but was born in the persecution of Communism!

Easter under Communism: We also toured the capitol city of 12 million with good friends of ours from our days in Atlanta, who have been serving in this country as long as we have been in Budapest. While comparing notes about life and raising children on the mission field, their knowledge of the city and the language proved invaluable. We all attended an Easter Sunday service at a church that in many ways resembled one of the thousands of similar churches in America. Yet it grieved us that only those possessing foreign passports could attend this service. Yet we were assured that in house churches and in underground locations all over the city and in the country-side that the resurrection of Jesus was being celebrated. The Lord will be glorified in spite of natural man’s attempts to squelch it. OUR GOD REIGNS!

The Sufficiency of Christ: It was Friday morning, March 30^th, and I was spending time with the Lord. We were to leave for the airport to begin our journey in just a few hours. I begged God to take away the stomach flu from our family. Yet when I reviewed one set of my talk notes, I came across this Scripture from 2 Corinthians 12:9-10. Paul had a messenger from Satan, a thorn in his side, that he begged God three times to remove. Yet the Lord did not do it; instead the Lord told Paul, “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.” Paul comments further, “Therefore I am well content with weaknesses, insults, distresses, persecutions, difficulties (including the stomach flu) for Christ’s sake; for when I am weak then I am strong.” I then out of obedience thanked the Lord for the stomach flu, proclaimed Him sufficient in the midst of our weakness, declared “lesson learned!” and fully expected Him to remove the flu from our family THEN and NOW! Just then Elizabeth came into the room to tell me she had just thrown up. It was then I realized that the Lord was going to not heal but reveal. He would reveal Himself sufficient in the midst of our weakness.

When we arrived at the airport, EB asked if the flight was full. “Not an available seat,” the woman at the counter told EB. Our countenance sunk. We were hoping for some additional empty seats. However, when we got on the plane, there were two rows of three empty seats each near us. Those two rows became our “sick beds.” Both Elizabeth and Savannah, both weakened by the flu, were able to lay down and sleep pretty much the entire 9 hour flight. THANK YOU, LORD! There was also a sympathetic flight crew and plenty of airsickness bags, of which we used several! God chose not to heal but to provide abundantly in the midst of our sickness. Yes, other people’s sufferings are much worse than ours. Yet the Lord wanted to show our family His faithfulness through this sickness. And He did just that! Pursue not merely relief from your sufferings but pursue finding Christ sufficient in the midst of your sufferings!