Suffering in Hope Romans 5v1-5

Buddhists believe that suffering is not real. Paul in Romans 5:1-5 does not deny that suffering exists, he tells us to rejoice in it. Twice in the passage, he says rejoice.

When I first read this passage, I thought to myself, Paul, how can you rejoice when you have not had steady work for 6 months. How can you rejoice when you know that as you cold call people, they will turn you away as you try to build a new business? I think Paul would tell me this: first, remember who you are. Not who you think you are becoming (Sometimes I think I am turning into my father). No, remember who you are today, right now.I am a person who has access to God, I am a person who is drowning in God’s grace. We who are Christ followers are people who are grounded in God’s grace. I am shown grace moment by moment, as I face rejection in job application after job application. I am still standing in God's Grace shower, even at my lowest point, which I will face today, when I receive another ten rejection letters and it feels like if I get one more I will explode. C5.v1-2 We all set up our lives to avoid as much pain as possible. We use things like medical aid plans, retirement plans and on a more basic level pain pills.All good things, but Christians know that we will suffer, but it is how you view that suffering that is important, for it is not without pain, but the key is that we are strengthened as we suffer by a loving father. Christians can rejoice in suffering because they know suffering produces endurance, which produces character, which produces hope. The three step faith strengthening process. Growing in faith is a three step process. Suffering is like an incubator for faith. But that made me think, when I think of endurance I think of people who do things with sheer force of will. Like when I ran a 90 km road race, it was mind over matter. The sheer determination to finish prevented any lapses in my character. But that's not what Paul is saying in chapter 5. Paul is encouraging the Romans and us to endure and to build character during suffering. The emphasis is on hope. Our rejoicing in suffering is a product of hope, a hope that never puts us to shame. It is a hope based on God filling us up with his love knowing that we can trust him. All suffering must be viewed from the perspective of my peace with God and my current standing with God. Confident in the knowledge that his love is pouring into me as I endure. Have I ever really grasped how much love that took? Help me to rejoice in all you've done for me and all you are doing for me my father.

December 2020 update

Dear friends.

But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us.We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair;persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed. - 2 Corinthians 4:7-9 http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=2Corinthians4:7-9&version=NIV

To me this passage puts my present situation into perspective. We are not experiencing what a pastor friend says is Disney land Christianity. What has really surprised me is how much we think we are entitled. Entitled to "fair" treatment by God, we are vocal about the evil of prosperity gospel, yet in some way part of us is expecting comfort as our primary experience as a Christian. Secretly we all want the offer of prosperity gospel- comfort is our desire.

But as you clearly in the passage above and most of the experience of the disciples this was not their experience. So why do we expect or feels entitled to a "blessed" life? Repentance is and will continually be required by me.

So I have applied for  over three thousand jobs. I have more rejection letters in my inbox than spam. I have had two interviews and short listed for two jobs.

Also, I have had some success at in finding accounting and bookkeeping freelance work.I have secured a few more clients. I continue to network in this area.

Also a number of applications for ministry jobs overseas. This is only because I have this option and need to work. I am not angry or disappointed by SA. One application in Ireland has shortlisted me so we will see...

We have also applied for my specialist license that will allow me to drive for uber  next year.

Taryn is earning some cash driving school kids in Paarl. She also has picked up some good work in tourism only to have clients cancel after the presidents address last week...

I have a huge favour to ask I have set up a free training for servant leaders. I realise I can serve all those church leaders and NGO leaders I met in Africa with weekly short training video on my Facebook page and YouTube. You can provide some monthly support for this weekly training video on fundraising, accountability and donor communication. These are all areas I have experience in and will be helpful to Christian servant leaders. You can click the link below and support this project from $3 per month...

https://www.patreon.com/ifsgroup?fan_landing=true

Check this video out for more detail 

https://youtu.be/94RUXr4PphI

So we are hard pressed on all sides but not crushed

Please pray

For rent money we need at the end of December. We are about 3k short.

Please pray for strength to keep going...

Pray specific for a Job for both of us...

Yours in Him 

Clint



 

Learn Change; Selecting ideas

The Kimble’s news To the Winelands Issue Date BEEN BUILD UP AND ROOTED IN JESUS Trinity church: There are some really exciting things that are happening at Trinity church. There are two new groups starting in the very near future which we hope will grow into new congregations. Because Trinity church is situated in a rural area we have decided to try and plant two new congregations in two different areas, this will mean that so families in the church will not have to travel so far to get to a Bible believing and teaching church. In addition to that we will no doubt fine others to join these families. The two new congregations will start out as small groups over the next few months and we are praying that God would grow those small groups to the point where we can plant a church in the area. Clint will be heading up the new work that has been started. Please pray for him as he undertakes this difficult work. In the Main Church we are planning to have outreach services at Christmas to try and bring more people into the kingdom of God. This we will do by running a carol service and an invite you friends, to meet the Christ of Christmas service on Christmas Day. We hope to follow this up with a Christianity explained course or an Alpha course in the New Year. Please pray that people will be bold in the holy spirit to invite their friends Clint is also practising the Ministry of presents in Franceshoek and the two other areas to try and get to know people that are not Christians in those areas. Please pray for all these events, pray that God by his spirit may be opening blind eyes to the Lord Jesus Christ. An accident Unfortunately on Monday, 17 October 2016 Clint had an accident while dropping the kids off at school. We request that you consider helping us to raise the excess on the car which is 4000 Rand. Unfortunately this was an unplanned expense and we have no way of covering it except by raising support from kind donors like yourself. If you aren't able to give please pray that God would open the hearts of other donors to give generously towards the car repairs excess. The Family The family is settling in well to their new environment, for Taryn it is a sort of homecoming because she grew up in this area the Cape wine lands. Unfortunately with all the competition that there is in Stellenbosch Taryn is struggling to find a sustainable amount of work as a tour guide. Please pray for us and in particular, for Taryn as she works hard to try and market herself and the business in a highly competitive industry. Pray for God's wisdom as she does this and tries to maintain the balance of being a wife and a mother. The kids are settling in well at the schools that we have moved them into, Daniela had her sports day on Friday and ran in two races placing fourth and second. The most amazing thing was that in every race she had a beaming smile on her face enjoying every second, I pray she never loses that joy in the future. Ethan will be playing his first cricket match next Saturday. Please pray for them that they will be comforted at this time of great change and that they would put all their trust in the unchanging Father the God of all the universe. Pray that they would also come to understand their brother Jesus and live every moment for him in schools that are very secular.

First Prayer Meeting

Well Landsdown Gospel Community had its first prayer meeting for the year there were 4 people there and we discussed many exciting things. 

Possible Childrens worker joining us next time as a volunteer 

Networking with other church planters via Skype

The need for a venue for the planed once a month kids club. What we are planning, starting next quarter is a once a month kids club for the community at a house. We want to encourage the parents to stay and get to know them and encourage those who are interested to come to the core group we are starting.

We will also start a once every 2 weeks open house on the Kimbles house once we move.

So as you can see to really kick off the core group we need a house in the area.

In three months time we will have a weekly core group meeting. 

Clint is meeting people to cast vision with them and encourage them to join our core. This involves lots of cups of coffee. 

Also for UK supporters The Gospel Partnership Trust is able to receive on our behalf and provide the necessary income tax deductions. I will forward those who will be supporting the bank details and the contact person.

We think God is moving and we are exited to see what he might do with our small group. 

UK supporters Please let us know if you still want to support us and i will forward the trusts details. 

A Redeemed Barbarian’s Cookbook.

A Redeemed Barbarian’s Cookbook.

I am reading a book called Saturated. The author, like me, is a bit of a barbarian, what I mean is that he has a tendency like me to be an initiator and to drive things forward, sometimes without a regard for cooler heads, prayer and the wisdom of experience.

I am having too often painfully at times, learn that Christianity is fundamentally about a change of identity. It’s all about becoming who you are in Christ. So as my mind wrestles with being a Christian and doing Christian things, being the barbarian I am, I often do Christian things without regard for who I am in Christ. This is probably the biggest lesson I have learnt this year. God wants me to be his child, he wants to hold me and he wants to work through me.

In thinking about establishing a mission community in a 70% Muslim area my mind jumps to the obvious things, establish a core group, move into the area and find people to share the Gospel and demonstrate the gospel to.

But thanks to the kind intervention of godly Christians I have come to realise that while all those things are important and need to be done. First and foremost, I need to understand what it means to be a follower of Jesus and how I have fundamentally been changed because Jesus, lived died and rose again.

I am a Christian first and knowing that changes all I do. Now you may be asking yourself, but Clint you have Degree in Theology and have worked for 9 years in church leadership surely you understand your identity in Christ? You can read some of the biblical language words, you have done systematic theology ect. You have run all the programs in a church. You have started new programs.

But as I think as Saturated has challenged me to think listen this Quote ‘Jesus Saturation-Jesus is filling every place with his presence through normal, everyday people in everyday stuff of life. THIS HAS ALWAYS BEEN GOD’S VISION FOR HIS PEOPLE. See in some senses the reformation did not go far enough, it still maintains a false distinction between the clergy and the laity.

So do I just let go and let God. I really detest this statement because it means I can just sit on my hands a wait for a still small voice like the women who would not leave the house if God did not tell her which sock to put on. But I never realised as I went to minister’s meetings and we all asked each other how the ministry was going instead of praising God for what he was doing with my friends instead I was in my mind proud of all I was doing for God and how blessed I was compared to others! My gospel at that point was God is happy with me because of all I am doing for him. It’s at this meeting that a friend said to me he was so glad I was putting my stamp on my ministry?!

I need to be more like one person i am hoping God will include in my core group she says she can't imagine God using her because she does not know the Bible well and is a struggling Christian. What she does not realise is that God will use us weak as we are for his purposes in the everyday stuff of life. And we are all weak made bold by his grace alone.

Another Older couple says something like this, We don’t have the energy for this Missional community. I really hope God gives people like that to me to Shepard because its people who know that they are weak that I want around me and the family.

Please pray for:

My family as we are the core of this missional community at the moment.

Pray for a focus of Jesus and ordinary people for me Clint.

Pray that my traveling to the UK will develop partnership with Jesus at the centre.(26 November to 3 December).

Pray that God would show me My weakness as a Father, Husband and undershepard.

Pray that I would be bold for God in all I do.

Pay that I would focus of being and let that lead me to do.

The Kimble’s newsletter (November 2015)

Leaving Trinity

All I can say about leaving Trinity is that we were extremely encouraged by the send-off we received from the church. The outpouring of genuine Christian love was evident to all. It was heartbreaking to hear how we would be missed in the church. My suggestion is that if you have a pastor don’t wait till he leaves to tell him how much Jesus is done through him instead go up to him at your next meeting and explained to him exactly how Jesus is working through him.

It is also heartening to see that Jesus will carry on his work at Trinity using people during our time there is a family. It was always our desire to raise up local leaders to lead the church in that area. It is wonderful to follow these servants of Christ on social media to see what God is doing through them.

We are so grateful as a family to God for all that he taught us during this five-year period.

Eastmountain.

It was with great enthusiasm that we joined the team at East mountain. The main focus of this group of missionaries based in Stellenbosch is to strengthen the church through providing adequate training for its leaders. This was something we as a family could easily get behind.

We also had the privilege of working in partnership with them at Trinity Church for two years. I (Clint) set about trying to increase their partnership base in Cape Town. This involved meeting on a weekly basis with different church leaders and together with the church leaders discovering whether or not East mountain and the church could work together. It was an amazing time getting to hear the stories of all these church leaders.

One story in particular stands out: it’s about a pastor in guagelethu. All his training and church experience was based in the charismatic church movement. However, he came in contact with evangelical Christians who provided him with training. He decided that the word of God was the most fundamental thing in any gospel community. As a result, he decided to preach and teach it at every opportunity training himself to expound God’s word.

Not surprisingly, many of his former congregants left, and he is one of two Bible teaching pastors in the whole of that area. As you can see the need for training is enormous in our country. This is why the strengthening that East mountain is attempting to do of church leaders in our country is deserving of all the support that we are able to give it.

Lansdown gospel community (being disciples, making disciples)

During my work with East mountain and the opportunity presented itself through various people to begin discussing the possibility of planting a gospel community in Lansdown. Lansdowne is an area that in Cape Town which has, to my knowledge, no gospel preaching, gospel believing community. It is historically a ‘coloured’ area, with a high concentration of Muslims.

It is also geographically located between the traditional white suburbs and colored township’s. It presents the possibility of reaching both groups of people and having them praise God together.

At the moment a group of us has met twice to pray and speak about this idea. The Kimble’s next year plan to move into the area. Once in the area, we would like God to form a group of Christians, which will form the core group of this community. This community has the potential to be supported by some major role players in the community.

We have absolutely no idea what God might do except that we are stepping out in faith as a family. East mountain is 100% behind us and want to partner with us in this endeavor. They very kindly released me/send me into this area to look into all the possibilities. I am also receiving support from the North American mission society which is helping plant over 260 churches and partners with a number of church planting is all over the world.

Look out for a Facebook page and a website... coming soon

The family

Taryn is working hard as a tour guide in Cape Town taking people to the most beautiful places in the city, eating at the best restaurants with her guests. She is managing to work around three days a week to help with the financial situation.

The two kids are really enjoying the school and am constantly amazed at what they can read. Daniela, who is in grade 1 is already reading quite complicated books. She is trying to also increase my cultural knowledge by telling me about the composers she is studying at school. Last week we had a long conversation about Hayden, I must confess I didn’t even know who he was!

Ethan is also reading very well and he is only in grade R. He is constantly telling me what they are reading in the Bible at school. It is also amazing to see how he loves engaging with different ideas. At the moment Lego and Star Wars are hot topics of conversation.

Prayer points

Please pray for my fundraising trip on 27 December to the UK. We need to raise money in order to rent a house in Lansdown. This is very costly!

Please pray for the role players involved in the Lansdown gospel community. Pray that we would seek Christ’s glory above all.

Pray that I would come across Christians who are interested in reaching out to this community.

Thank God for the part-time work both Taryn and I have managed to source.

Thank God for his work in our lives.

Pray for continued generous support.

Pray that God would take the efforts of Lansdown gospel community and do much more than we can ever imagine.