The Missive ~ Spring 2019

Hello friends,

Stuart continues to work with CompassionLink - an International Ministry with AGWM, as I (Wendy) prepare for my final year as Missionary in Residence at Evangel University,

Just recently, CompassionLink welcomed golfers and guests to a complimentary steak dinner on the eve of its annual Golf Classic. Specialty items from around the world helped to raise funds in a silent auction and exceptional door prizes surprised a few grateful attendees.

Donna Barrett, general secretary of the Assemblies of God, encourages donors at the CompassionLink golf classic.

CompassionLink partners with AGWM missionaries and the communities they serve to find and use locally available resources to create spiritually, physically, and emotionally healthier communities. In preparation, the CompassionLink team customizes seminars, clinics, and projects to adapt to unique environments.

For example, in our last newsletter, I described the aquaponics process of siphoning off fish waste to fertilize and grow vegetables - a sustainable project to feed a family or a village. As you can see (below), the hydroponically grown buttercrunch lettuce that Stuart planted weeks ago thrives in the greenhouse at CompassionLink.

Buttercrunch lettuce thrives in the CompassionLink greenhouse.

As handyman Scott looks on (and as I teased on social media), Stuart and MSU intern Marcus show off their current project - a rocket stove! This highly efficient stove requires much less fuel – imagine only needing small branches or twigs to cook a meal – while significantly reducing smoke to allow a healthier living environment. Materials used to make the stove can be found almost anywhere in the world which makes this a wise and sustainable option.

Stuart and company build a rocket stove

These are just a few of the many unique ways CompassionLink serves the world.

School’s out for summer, but as Missionary in Residence at Evangel University the fall semester promises two (very) full classes in New Testament Literature and Introduction to Intercultural Ministries. As faculty advisor of World Changers Missions Fellowship, I look forward to a great year promoting missions and mentoring the next generation of global workers. 

Even better than building rocket stoves and tweaking lectures, Stuart and I will celebrate with family and friends at the wedding of (our son) Wesley and Katie (Lafon) in July. Then we are off to General Council and Together '19 in August.

Wesley and Katie

Thanks, friends, for your faithful support. See you soon!

Stuart & Wendy

Stuart and I visited my family in Connecticut recently to celebrate my dad's 80th birthday.

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How Fortunate We Are

Recently, I visited with a kind and dedicated professional in her office. Before we got down to business, we chatted a bit as people like to do (well, as extroverts like to do, and as introverts loathe to do). Realizing that I am a global worker, she mentioned she had been on a few short-term, cross-cultural trips. The small-talk portion of our meeting ended when she related to me how she wanted to eventually bring her young son on a cross-cultural trip so that he could know how fortunate he is.

“So, he could know how fortunate he is.” I smiled weakly as her words hung between us. I wish I had the presence of mind in that moment to ask her to finish that thought. But thanks to newfound allergies, my congested and scratchy-throated self could only offer her one of those I’m-just-going-to-smile-at-you-weirdly-and-not-comment-because-you-seem-like-a-nice-person-but-what-you-just-said-sounded-a-bit-odd-to-me looks.

My untimely loss for words led to a momentary silence and an awkward segue before we proceeded to talk about other things. Yet, if I could go back and grab those words out of the air, I would ask her to finish her thought, “How fortunate he is … to what?”

How would you respond?

I imagine we might say things like: “I want my son to know how fortunate he is to live in the US.” “I want my daughter to know how fortunate she is to want for nothing.” “I want my children to know how fortunate they are to have nice things.”

But what does our responses say about what we value? Or what we think God values? 

I propose that wanting to participate in a cross-cultural trip so that we can know how fortunate we are, is a rather unfortunate reason to go and often an unfortunate by-product of going. Many short-term trip participants return home with the guilt-induced revelation, “We don’t know how good we have it here,” while the rest of us applaud their enlightened view. But I dare say, we are missing something quite profound about cross-cultural trips if we come back with the flawed notion, we are more fortunate than everyone else in the world because of what we have (or what we know, or whatever). 

I appreciate the professional I chatted with. I believe her genuine concern and generous spirit make her the effective professional that she is. I appreciate she wanted her son to learn gratitude (for I trust that is what she meant and probably would have clarified if I gave her the chance). But I don’t believe we nurture gratitude through comparison. I believe comparison nurtures something far less virtuous.

Comparison focuses on what I have and what (I perceive) you don’t have. And feeling fortunate for what I have (and what you don’t) and assuming what I have is better (and what you have is not) isn’t gratitude. It’s pride. Likewise, “We don’t know how good we have it here,” isn’t a testimony. It’s a confession. An unwitting acknowledgement that we think our stuff (our know-how, our whatever) is superior.

Here’s the thing, going on a cross-cultural trip isn’t about being the sole provider or even the better provider of material resources (or knowledge, or whatever) to the people we meet wherever we travel. It’s about, at least in part, humbly showing up with what we have to offer, truly valuing what other people have to offer, and intentionally learning from the other how we can work together for the glory of God. Gratitude playing an essential role in that whole dynamic.

I believe we can nurture gratitude wherever we go, when we pause to appreciate God’s grace wherever we find it. And let me tell you, we can find God’s grace everywhere, for God is everywhere. The next time you travel to a foreign land (or down the street, for that matter) I challenge you to ask yourself a few questions. Ask yourself if you can see the face of God in the people you pass; if you can feel the presence of God in the hands you grasp; if you can discern the voice of God in the languages you hear. Because if you can, you are fortunate indeed.

And for that, we can be truly grateful.

Our family walking near the Zócalo in Ciudad de México 2012.

The Missive ~ Winter 2019

 Some wonder if something fishy is going on when world missionaries are approved for temporary assignment stateside. They may be right. While I (Wendy) spend most days at Evangel University, a different kind of school occupies Stuart's time and energy as he volunteers full-time with AGWM International Ministries at CompassionLink.

CompassionLink engages in numerous projects year-round, but a school of Tilapia currently occupies their attention. The team is raising about 100 Tilapia and siphoning off the fish waste to feed growing vegetables. The plants filter the water which then returns to the fish tank squeaky clean in a hydroponic circle of life.

The CompassionLink team takes a project like this and teaches missionaries and other partners how to adapt and use it in their ministry contexts to promote health and sustainability in communities worldwide. So, if you think something fishy is going on in Springfield, look no further than the Tilapia.

Stuart wants you to know, this is just one of the many unique ways CompassionLink serves the world. Please check out their link here to see more.

As Missionary in Residence at Evangel University this year, I have the unique privilege to train, educate, and mentor our next generation of missionaries. Whether it's in the classroom or as the faculty adviser to World Changers Missions Fellowship, God has opened doors for deep conversations with students not available elsewhere. I trust you would be proud of the questions our young people are pondering and the ways they are serving now to prepare for a life of intercultural ministry later.

World Changers hosted Global Impact week at Evangel University just recently and brought students and missionaries together for a meaningful week of personal interactions and heartfelt challenges.

Many thanks to the Pipeline Team, Dave Ellis (Regional Director LAC), Dick & Cynthia Nicholson (former Regional Directors LAC), and missionary colleagues from every region serving with AGWM and US Missions for their help and service.

Stuart and I give thanks to you as well, friends. It's been 15 years since AGWM commissioned us as missionaries and you have faithfully supported us throughout the journey. We are grateful, and we are truly blessed.

Stuart & Wendy

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Mexico City Missive ~ Fall 2018

More than just lectures, papers, and exams filled our first semester as Missionaries in Residence at Evangel University. Stuart and I enjoyed our involvement with the WorldChangers Missions Club including Meal with a Missionary (with John and Dina Musacchio) and the annual Bonfire (with students, missionaries, and s'mores galore).

A wonderful Secret Church experience (with Paul & Lana Duda) and a Christmas party (not complete without little piñatas) rounded out our end of semester activities.

However, our responsibilities didn’t end there. Stuart and I also mentor two Evangel students headed abroad next summer as part of their EU studies. (Evangel University requires cross-culture experience for every student - whatever their major might be!)

Much more to come in the spring (including Global Impact week). But before we go, here's another update on the Teen ChallengeMexico project. Along with other improvements, your generosity has beautified the bedrooms with new mattresses, pillows, and bedspreads. ¡Gracias a todos!

Grace and peace,

Stuart & Wendy

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Mexico City Missive ~ Summer 2018

All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age. Matthew 28:18-20

Dear friends,

Did you know missionaries receive lots of fan mail? Well, maybe not fan mail, exactly. But we often receive notes of encouragement, holiday cards, and a few inquiries that get us thinking. A few years back, an inquiring mind asked how our ministry focus aligned with God’s purpose. Granted, I may not remember exactly how the sender worded the question, I do remember answering it more or less this way. No matter where Stuart and I are in the world, Jesus’ command to make disciples remains at the center of who we are and what we do.

In Jamaica, making disciples looked like caring for 40 precious children and teenagers at our children’s home. It also looked like teaching at the Assemblies of God Bible College and developing a mentorship program between those two entities.

In Mexico City, making disciples looked like teaching at Anna Sanders Seminary and preaching in our home church and other venues during our first term, and focusing our efforts at Teen Challenge Mexico during our second term.

Suffice it to say, following the call to make disciples has afforded Stuart and I the privilege to love, serve, and minister with many wonderful people in God’s wonderfully diverse world.

Just recently, the Executive Committee of World Missions granted Stuart and I approval for a short-term assignment as Missionaries in Residence (MIR) at Evangel University. This opportunity would not have happened without you. Your support over these last three terms of service (15 years!) gives us the perspective and the experience we need to inspire students in their God-given vocation and help them find their place in his Great Commission. In other words, Stuart and I will continue the process you began in your homes and churches to make educated, responsible, Spirit-led disciples to go and do likewise.

I’ve barely given you a glimpse of all the responsibilities required as a MIR. But as the year progresses, I trust you’ll be impressed with the partnership of Assemblies of God World Missions and our Assemblies of God learning institutions to provide missionary educators to create vision, promote missions, and provide your students guidance as they discover God’s call on their lives.

As I mentioned, the MIR is a short-term assignment (for the 2018-2020 academic years). Then Stuart and I will eagerly return to the field by God’s grace and your continued support. Please know, we need you just as much now as ever. Transitions are never easy. We’ve already hit a few snags that hopefully will turn out to be nothing more than inconveniences. As for now, please pray for us as we settle into a new home and into all our new responsibilities.

Grace and peace,

~ Stuart & Wendy Brown

We met the challenge! A few weeks ago, we challenged our supporters to help us give a generous offering to Teen Challenge Mexico to repair, replace, and upgrade some worn out items at their facility. In fact, you more than met the challenge and so we made these guys, as well as the directors of Reto a la Juventud, very happy. 

Thanks everyone. You're the best!

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