The Relentless Creep of Interior Ice

This winter in Mongolia has been the coldest in 10 years. Some say 20 years. Others say 30 years. I’ve heard Mongolians give all of those figures. None of the folks I’ve talked to about it are meteorologists, of course. But professional weather forecasting aside, it has indeed been cold this year. Temperatures have stayed consistently below zero for over a month, with some nights dropping down to -40F or -45F.

I don’t know if it’s the cold or if it’s the humidifiers we’re running in our home or some odd combination of both, but this year we’re finding that the outside windows and doors are consistently getting a build up ice. It freezes and melts and expands and is causing the concrete around the windows to deteriorate. We’ve had to put towels in the window sills to keep the melt off from running onto the floor. It’s kind of fun to watch the dog go to the door leading out to our balcony and chisel the ice off with her teeth in some bizarre attempt to get a drink or chew on something or … actually who knows what she’s thinking. It’s entertaining, nonetheless. There have been some days where it feels that our home is being invaded by the outside ice and cold, like it’s alive trying desperately to come in rule on the inside in the tyrannical way it’s ruling outside right now. We have to keep things warm enough on the inside to fend it off. Defeat the ice.

For me personally this is not a new problem at all. I’ve had to fend off ice ever since we started living here in 2006 (we’re pushing the four year mark). No, we don’t have the ice in the window phenomenon all year round. But I do find that there is a similar thing that happens to my heart … all year round. There is a creeping iciness, coldness of heart that I feel I am constantly having to battle. I am thinking there is a sense in which we all fight the fight of the ice. Contexts change but spiritual ice is the same wherever you are. It’s always there waiting for you to turn the heat down just enough to creep into the interior of our hearts.

In Mongolia interior ice can have an abundance of catalysts. Bad driving, constant begging, pushing and shoving, cutting in line, isolation, spiritual oppression and depression, constant busyness, outward demands, inward stress and pressure, language (or lack thereof), weariness. They’re all factors. Some of these factors will be the same where you live. Some different. Maybe you have more. But the truth is that it’s incredibly easy for my heart can get hard. Cold. Frosty. Like my window. I’m seeing that there’s a sense in which I’ve had to wage the battle of the ice ever since I started to follow Jesus over twenty years ago. I am thinking that this battle becomes more intense with time. Harder, not easier.

This year’s ice serves as a not so subtle reminder that I am in constant need the Word to keep me soft; His Spirit to keep me warm and make me compassionate. Jesus lived in a world that was way different from His familiar, comfortable and happy home of heaven. I am thinking that He had run into irritations that were real issues, versus my irritations that are in reality quite petty. The incarnation never ceases to humble and amaze me.

I must say that our impending vacation is something I am very much looking forward to. (We have the opportunity to go to Thailand and hit the beach and hang out with some friends up in Chaing Mai.) It’s not so much a way to escape the literal ice in my window. Renee’ and I really don’t mind the meteorological climate here so much. We rather enjoy it. However, the spiritual iciness that ever so slowly creeps in and takes over needs some thawing in me. I am hopeful and glad for that opportunity to get away, reflect, pray, write and rewarm. I need the Word and the Spirit to do His thawing, softening and warming so the relentless creeping of the ice will again be thwarted and Jesus reign supreme.

A Holiday Leftover

The Holidays are indeed over. Of course, in Mongolia the "big" holiday of Tsagaan Sar (White Month - the beginning of the lunar new year) is yet to come. So, consider these Friday Photos a tribute to that.

I was driving to Darhan and stopped at the half way point "rest stop" to find them still all decorated from New Years. Here is their very original "New Year's Tree":

Iced In

This week has been ridiculously cold in Mongolia. Temps at night are in the -30F to -45F range. Daytime it's not even hitting 0F. This year there's a peculiar phenomenon of ice forming all over the inside of windows. This has happened int he past in a small way ... but this year it seems to be something occurring to a greater extent. It makes for interesting photographs, however. It's today's Friday Photo ...

On Not Importing Nashville

“Some people have thought that … the gospel is preached and that the truth has a kind of general moral effect upon people … But it is not that. It is an operation of the Spirit upon the men and women themselves, in the depths … It is the Spirit acting upon the soul from within and producing within us a new principle of spiritual action.”

D. Martin Lloyd-Jones

“Not everyone who says to me on that day, Lord, Lord will enter the Kingdom of heaven…”

Jesus

Not everyone who says they are Christian are in point of fact regenerate believers. Not in America. Not in Mongolia.

The last numbers that I saw from the Barna group say that 45% of the people in America would fall into the category of “born again”. In Mongolia there are supposedly 45,000 Christians (which is still less than 2% of the total population). There is a sense in which these numbers are sadly low. We want to see many more people than this who are radically changed by the power of the Holy Spirit and who know the efficacy of the Cross of Jesus. However, in reality these numbers are probability outlandishly high, in that there is not near enough visible evidence to cause me to believe that there are even close to this many true believers in America or in Mongolia. Here, reports that came out at the end of 2009 state that alcoholism rates are up, poverty rates are up, murder rates are up and theft/crime rates are up. This doesn’t really jive with supposed increased in Christian salt and light.

In Mongolia we are finding that many of the people who have claimed Christianity in the past are not living a life which would give evidence of any sort of regeneration or new birth. Some of these people, including several we know personally, have flat out rejected the claims of the Gospel and are no longer making any pretense to follow Christ whatsoever. Some statistics that I have read are saying that in Mongolia there are fewer believers today than there were ten years ago. My guess is that all of those who have ever made some sort of profession of faith, even if that profession has been recanted, are still counted in the grand tally.

I was an American pastor once. I know how the numbers game works. But the stakes are too high, and this is far too serious of an issue to play games with numbers so we can impress donors at home.

I’ve heard various proposals for solutions to the problem of the troubling rate of attrition. We need to offer more training. We need to have greater discipleship. We need to plant more churches. While I am not going to say that any of these solutions are bad or that they will not help with the problem, I’m convinced more than ever that this will not come close to resolving the problem. The issue as I see it has little to do with these things and has everything to do with the nature of true conversion and regeneration of the believer. Those of us in Christian ministry are satisfied to count the coercion of profession, rather than actually believe God for true conversion.

It’s not popular, nor is it pragmatic (at least from a human perspective) to expect people to turn from sin and turn to God without some measure of human arm-twisting. At the very least there needs to be some sort palatable presentation of why Jesus “makes sense”. After all, people are pragmatic to the core and in order to properly contextualize the message, we should teach it in a simple practical way that folks will understand.

Please don’t misunderstand, I am a strong believer in and practitioner of contextualization. This is why we took two years of full-time language and why we continue to study and learn from the language and the culture. It’s never ending. That said, my convictions are becoming stronger by the day as we live here, and as we view the results of so much that has taken place here in the past. There is one key and crucial ingredient lacking in the so-called church: regeneration. True conversion. There’s been intellectual ascent to Christian teaching. There’s been the formation of churches. There’s even been the formation of a sort of “Christian culture”. There’s Christian publishing, Christian books, Christian music. However, I’m finding that there’s a huge differential between what is professed and what is actually lived out in terms of character and holiness. Not meaning to be unnecessarily cynical, but I feel sometimes like Nashville has been imported to Ulaanbaatar, minus the Starbucks.

I’ll qualify this. I am not talking about perfectionism. I am not saying that there are not inconsistencies in my own life and in my own spirituality. No question about this. It’s true for all of us. But my concerns and the issues that I am seeing in Christianity here (and in other parts of the world as well) is that there are not just small differentials. There are huge gaping divergences. There are “Christians” who are consistently getting drunk, lying to clients, sleeping with folks other than their spouses, continuing to practice idolatry and spirit worship, acting unethically in business and society. Some write this off to “culture” or “context”. But Bible trumps culture. Every time. This is true in America, where we have a culture of materialistic consumerism and it is true in Mongolia where the culture is rife with alcohol, spiritism and pragmatism.

The need of the hour is Gospel proclamation in the power of the Holy Spirit. Not a message of “only believe” or “Jesus can improve your life” or “come to church” or “let’s work together and see how quickly we get the church planted so that we can leave”. But rather a call for sinners to repent and prayer that asks the Holy Spirit of God to open up hearts and eyes to His holy awesomeness and our absolute helplessness and hopelessness any other way. The dead come to life and the blind are made to see. That’s the message of Christianity. Any other message is counterproductive and will hurt, not help the Kingdom.

I personally am not willing settle for less than Jesus raising the dead.

A Rundown of the Merriment

Today is the first day in I can't remember when that there's time to sit and think, write and even blog. It's been something of a holiday whirlwind for us, even here where the holiday isn't necessarily the highest of priority for the people around us.

It was fun watching the staff at the Grain of Wheat begin to anticipate Christmas this year. They asked a lot of questions about how and why Christians celebrate, and there was a sincere desire on their part to share the story of Christmas with students who came into our Center. Here is a video that we put together for that purpose. The music (with the exception of Silent Night, of course) is all original music. Zolo, a staff member wrote it, taking the words directly from the Mongolian Scriptures. The singer is a young lady who works at our office and guest apartment as a cleaner while she is going to school. You can tell by the sound of her voice that she will not be cleaning apartments for the rest of her life. She sings like an angel. All editing mistakes in this video are mine. Zolo was in a car accident just before it finished and had to go to the hospital. He's fine now, and we thank God for that. But we had to do a quick editing job on his concept. There will be a final "fixed" version that will come out later.

This is the updated and fixed version! Check it out on Vimeo, as well.






We had 30-40 students come to the Center party on the 23rd. Most were regulars and members. Many (if not most) were not believers. We sang Christmas Carols and shared this video. After the video, we made a clear appeal to follow Jesus. It was a good night with great opportunities.





Christmas Eve found us back at the Grain of Wheat for a Midnight Christmas Eve candle light service. We had a multi-national bunch of folks who came to pause, worship and remember the coming of our Savior. Readings were in English and Mongolian. The presence of the Lord was evident to all who were there.



We had a quiet Christmas morning with our family, Skyping in both sets of Grandparents when the time was right. Gifts were somewhat minimal this year, since we will be taking vacation in Thailand at the end of January. But all seemed pleased in their giving and receiving. Even the dogs...



On Christmas Day in the evening, we gathered with our UB staff, both Mongolian and foreign and enjoyed a multinational celebration of food, song and story telling. We ate from various American, Philippine and Korean traditions ... with the underlying Mongolian tradition of a lot of meat. Three different kinds, to be exact. We sang carols in Mongolian and English, as well as had a bi-lingual reading of our favorite Anderson Christmas tradition of "The Tale of Three Trees".











On Saturday night our home was opened up to 30 teenagers. We had our Annual Anderson Christmas Smorgasbord with the kids and their friends. Much food and much fun. We have a great group of MK's here in Ulaanbaatar. As you can see from this photo, they had a good time (no one looked at the camera for the group shot, but that actually made it more interesting...)



Finally on Sunday afternoon the Cornerstone Church of All Nations, UB's only International Church, had a Christmas celebration. As part of our worship time we exalted the coming of Jesus as the "Desire of Nations" by having everyone in the congregation (every continent, 25+ nations) write ascriptions of praise to Jesus in their heart language.









It was a fitting end to a busy, yet satisfyingly celebrative season of Christmas. We hope and pray that you and your family also have a blessed New Year.