By Rolland Baker
“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, hut not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed. We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body. For we who are alive are always being given over to death for Jesus’ sake, so that his life may be revealed in our mortal body.”
(2 Corinthians 4:7-11)
It would be easy to list our testimonies of victory and create the impression that we have come to live a life of protected ease, blessing and fruitfulness. But our life of faith is continually and increasingly put to the test, not only revealing our flaws, but also His mercies, which are new every morning. We die daily, and daily we are raised again after having lost all reliance on ourselves. We are only in the beginning stages of learning to trust God, who raises the dead.
If He can raise ten from the dead, He can raise a hundred or ten thousand. If He can double our chicken and bread in one meal, He can feed a whole village or province. If He can change my heart or yours, He can change anyone.
We are very conscious that we are not in control of this revival movement, and that looking after so many churches is a project far over our heads. The plight of the poor and lost of the entire African continent weighs down on us and would crush us if Jesus did not intervene. But we don’t want to be kept from knowing the world’s problems. Neither do we want to be spared from undergoing His discipline and training, by which we will share in His holiness and be useful to Him, prepared for every good work.
So as jars of clay we enter the spiritual fray by faith, straining toward what is ahead. It is amazing to us that He is able to qualify us for this fight. Just when we think we know how to minister to the one, a thousand or ten thousand present themselves urgently and desperately. We barely find time and patience to handle one drastic crisis, only to run into ten more the same day. We pour out love and compassion one minute, only to run dry and turn irritable the next. We preach our hearts out and see vast response, only to encounter great ignorance, misunderstanding and hardness of heart the next. We receive miracles of financial provision, only to be robbed and cheated on a grand scale the next. We teach faith, but begging continues on all sides. We preach power, but the hungry die before us, forgotten by the wealthy. We preach unity in the Spirit, but we have to deal with jealousies and offenses of all kinds. Our marriage, family and closest friendships are under assault every day from intense stress and impossible demands.
We are asked for counsel and direction as though we have the answers at all times. How do we become missionaries? How will I support myself? Can I please have a truck? How can I run the churches in my district without a phone, an address, or even a pencil and piece of paper? We haven’t eaten in weeks. How will I get to Bible school? What will happen to my family? Can you pay for my child’s funeral and buy a coffin for us?
Every day requests come pouring into my office for finances, always for good, legitimate, desperately needed things. Heidi faces long queues all day long, every person in a tragic, difficult situation needing help. We see their lined faces and cracked, weathered skin, survivors of Africa’s harsh realities. There are so few employers to send them to, so few missions who will take them in, so few other churches that will teach them how to live the Christian life. Everyone is at capacity, stretched to the limit, unable to do more.
Yet in the face of everything Satan can do, we maintain that there is always enough. We were advised to give up and leave Mozambique years ago, but we are still here because we believe the gospel of Jesus Christ is adequate, and that in Him we are more than conquerors even as we lay down as sheep to be slaughtered. We are in fact hard pressed, perplexed and struck down – but not destroyed. We don’t know how we will endure through the day or the week. We don’t know how to please everyone, answer all our email, send all our reports, pay for every need, and minister with anointing night and day. We don’t know how to keep all our staff, brief all our visitors, reassure the disappointed, lift the weak, and provide clear direction for everyone. We are only a few jars of clay! Yet Jesus has revealed that because He died, there is always enough, and we will never deny that revelation.
There are over 180,000 AIDS orphans in Mozambique, over 400,000 in Malawi, and one million in Kenya. Here in Mozambique the Prime Minister has admitted that this country is facing collapse because so many teachers, policemen and health workers are dying of AIDS. Millions in southern Africa are facing death in the near future from the especially deadly combination of AIDS and famine. Organized crime and drug traffic undermine the economic growth figures that are cited. We are surrounded by extreme crisis.
Yes, we are seeing a great revival and move of God, one that we have cried out for all our lives, and we are unspeakably grateful. But our appetite has just been whetted. We are only jars of clay, but God’s power is made perfect in weakness. And in all our weakness we will keep submitting ourselves to Him, that we can see His glory, that we can be part of His answer for Africa and the world. If He can raise ten from the dead, He can raise a hundred or ten thousand. If He can double our chicken and bread in one meal, He can feed a whole village or province. If He can change my heart or yours, He can change anyone. We have seen too much, we have tasted too much of the powers of the age to come, we have drunk too deeply of the love of God to ever say again, “No, there isn’t enough. That’s all Jesus has. I’m sorry.”
No, we will always say, “Go to Him. Eat and drink of Him. What we don’t have, He has. Be desperate for Him. Have faith in Him. Love Him. Look into His eyes. His body and blood are enough for all who will receive Him.” And we know we will see more revival. We will keep testifying to the gospel of God’s grace. We and the rest of the Body of Christ will persevere and do greater things than Jesus did on earth, because He is good, and has prepared these things for us to do from before the foundation of the world.
(Source: There is always enough)
