Dear David Platt

        

       

Most days feel like a fight. South Sudan is a brutal place to live. The dog days have become dog years and yes, we need help Mr. President. The fields are black unto harvest. We have seen so many come to know Jesus in such a short period of time. We are a poor representation of God’s love, but…he chose us and is conforming us into a better image of his son, a better image of his love for the Dinka people. Africa/America/theChurch is changing so quickly and our “re-orgs” have not kept up. Eight years ago I went thought the IMB selection process. I prepared and trained and then did it again. Like all the rest, I worked hard to get here. But, few things in my preparation actually prepared me for anything over here. We were trained to play kickball, but when we showed up for the game it was kickboxing. Yeah, we were surprised.  

My first year on the field I would pray "God don't come now, let us work a little longer so more will be saved." Sounded good at the time, but then I learned about population growth. Less of the world is saved now than when I was 23. We are moving in the wrong direction! My prayer now, "God come quickly before more are lost." But we’re still here and we must work while there’s still light. There is simply no time to waste. We must find a deeper obedience to His Commission. We are not getting it done when we are not working together. We have become a disjointed giant. The church has become an island nation and we reflect this all over the world. There is so much competition for every dollar in the offering plate. Member services has taken over the command to go and we reflect this as an organization. I cannot reach the Dinka alone and I don't want to. I want the church to reach the Dinka. And the population of our area is only a few million in the sea of billions unreached with the message of Christ. 

  Where do we go from here? Forward. How should we change? More into the image of Christ. I’ll let you work out the details. Welcome to the team David. 

-Robert