A Concise Update

Annual Report to the Assemblies of God Missionary Fellowship June 2011-May 2012

Dave and Debbie Johnson

Assemblies of God Missionary to the Philippines

http://www.daveanddebbiejohnson.com/

www.drdavejohnson.blogspot.com

[Every year the missionaries on our field write an annual report to our colleagues, in preparation for our annual field meeting, to keep them abreast of what’s happening in our ministry. I thought I’d send ours along in case you missed some of our newsletters, are new to our mailing list, or would just enjoy a concise report of the last 12 months of our ministry. Hope you enjoy it. Dave]

Dear Friends,

This is the first time in quite awhile that we have had to file a report for Annual Meeting, and we are thrilled to do it!

Last September we completed our fourth itineration cycle and, one more time, bade our families a heartrending goodbye. When I was a new missionary I (Dave) was naïve enough to think this would get easier as time went on. Like many of you, we are dealing with aging parents issues, mostly on Debbie’s side of the family.

We took all of October just to get well settled in before beginning ministry. If you’ve been here awhile, you know the drill. Find a good house, spend a small fortune getting a zillion things fixed or modified to suit your needs and tastes, move in, set up house, and bring the dog home from where he had been staying with friends. We had a lot of fun getting reacquainted with our Filipino friends, many of whom pitched in to help.

While in the States, God spoke to Dave that we needed to “get better before getting bigger.” In response we spent November, part of December, and most of January, thoroughly reviewing every aspect of our evangelistic ministry and church planting program and making sweeping changes. All of this was done in concert with our evangelistic team and the district leadership.  After all, we aren’t in this alone. We spent February and March preparing to make these changes, which we rolled out to the pastors at the district council in early April and are now just beginning to implement them.

Regarding our evangelistic ministry, our research revealed a need to shore up the spiritual vitality of the churches as well as our follow up program. Therefore, we switched from a three night outreach format to a one night revival meeting at the host church, then an afternoon training session followed by a one night outreach at an outdoor venue, and then a one day strategy session and follow-up kickoff. We are also moving towards greater accountability and ongoing training, hopefully expanding our churches and resulting in more church plants.

Researching regarding our house church planting program revealed that while we have planted 207 house churches in the last five years, the multiplication rate is not as high as it could be. The research also demonstrated that more training and better oversight of the workers is needed. In response, this June we will implement a second tier of training that will be built around a long term mentoring program.   

We love Filipinos and are so privileged to serve with you!!  Dave and Debbie

Juvy is With Jesus

Dear Friends,

 

Debbie and I are saddened to report that last Friday, Jesus whispered in the ear of Juvy Sumayao, our dear friend and pastor's wife for whom we have asked your help, and she went to be with him. We attended her beautiful funeral service in their church yesterday. Her husband and all three of her children, though heartbroken, took part in the service.

 

Today, we have received about $800.00 in cash and commitments to help with the medical expenses. Coupled with the funeral costs, the total bill around $5,500.00. Thank you so much for your love and help. We advanced some of the funds and brought them with us, and this meant a lot to the family. If you have not yet given and would like to do so, you can give through the ways I mentioned in my previous post or you can give through our website, http://www.daveanddebbiejohnson.com/. Again, please let us know by return email how much you will be giving so that we can watch for the funds.

 

Thank you for your continued prayers and gifts at this time.

 

On behalf of the Sumayao family,

 

Dave and Debbie Johnson

Assemblies of God Missionaries to the Philippines

Emergency Medical Situation of a Dear Friend

Dear Precious Friends,

 

For about 20 days our former District Superintendent’s wife, Juvy, has been struggling for her life in the north part of the Bicol region where we live. Juvy entered a hospital before our recent district convention for surgery on a perforated gallbladder and a perforated intestine, but there were complications and the surgery was not successful. The family transferred her to another hospital where she might receive better treatment, but after a second surgery she is still in ICU. Yesterday we received word that the infections from the perforations are going down, and she no longer has a fever. 

 

Juvy's husband, Pastor Rudy Sumayao, was unable to attend our district council and, therefore, was unable to stand for reelection.  But his concern is for her.  We are still praying and trusting God for a full recovery.  What we are appealing to you for us both your prayers and for a love gift to pastor Rudy and his family.  He has asked us to help him raise money for a medical bill that has grown to over $4,700 and increases at the rate of about $300 per day.  This is an extremely big amount in a region where most families only earn about $850 a year or less. The family has used up all their money in the medical expenses so far, but we believe the Lord is going to take beautiful care of both Sister Juvy and the family.  If the Lord is putting it in your heart to be part of God’s loving care to this family, would you send any amount that is on your heart?  Here is what you can do ...

 

Email us at dave.johnson@hqmail.agmd.org and tell us how much you are sending.

 

For those in the USA, please send your gift to

 

AGWM

1445 Boonville Ave

Springfield MO 65802

designated for Dave and Debbie Johnson, missionaries to the Philippines, account 2256006

 

If you are in the Philippines and know the Sumayaos, please contact them directly. Otherwise, you can send it to Dave through SMART.  Dave's SMART cellphone number is (0921) 252-5794.

 

If you live somewhere other than the Philippines or the USA, please contact me by email, and we will figure out something!

 

Again, please contact me by email to let me know how much you are sending so that we can inform the Sumayaos of what to expect.

 

Thanks for considering this,

 

Dave and Debbie Johnson

Missionaries to the Bicol region of the Philippines

 

Allegiance: The Heart of Discipleship

Allegiance: The Heart of Discipleship

By Dr. Dave Johnson

Assemblies of God Missionary to the Philippines

http://www.daveanddebbiejohnson.com/

www.drdavejohnson.blogspot.com

[This blog was first published in March, 2012, in Call To Prayer, the online prayer magazine of Assemblies of God World Missions, and can be seen at www.ag.org.]

While we were home on itineration, I visited a convenience store where I saw a woman wearing a beautiful T-shirt that described the reality and necessity of Christ’s death on the Cross.  Both the theology it expressed and the artwork truly glorified God.  But before I could compliment her on it, she stepped up to the cashier, bought lottery tickets, and left the store.  I stood there wondering if she had any idea that the message she wore on her body totally contradicted the one she held in her hand. 

What does it mean to be a follower of Jesus Christ—a true disciple worthy of his name?  The apostle Paul, in 2 Corinthians 5:17 calls for a change of allegiance, renouncing the past in terms of its worldview, which lies at the core of our being.  Worldview can simply be explained as a pair of eyeglasses through which we perceive reality, define values, and decide actions.  Since our worldview begins to develop the day we are born and is strongly conditioned by the environment in which we live, we seldom question it.  Asking the average person to describe their worldview is like asking a fish to describe water. It’s hard to explain it when it’s all you have ever known.

A good example would be our cultural concept of “rugged individualism,” no doubt born out our westward frontier expansion in the 18^th and 19^th centuries. This can be seen in everything from Frank Sinatra’s hit song I Did it My Way to abortion and the right to die movement. We rightfully cry out against these immoral practices, but do we examine our own lives and see how deeply this attitude is ingrained in us and how often our insistence on our rights runs contrary to the biblical model of interdependence within the body of Christ and the scriptural examples of close knit families? 

Proverbs 4:23 speaks to clearly to the need to examine our own worldview under the guidance of the Holy Spirit. As this passage suggests, our values and actions flow out of who we really are. Having a biblical worldview, then, is a vital component of discipleship. Without it, our cultural environment will define our values and actions.

Allegiance is the heart of the issue (Proverbs 4:20-23). Since what we do flows out of who we really are, a good way find out what’s really important to us might be to take a look at our checkbooks. Does having a nice car or designer jeans get in the way of tithing, supporting missions, and caring for the poor? Does watching TV or working more hours to make more money interfere with taking appropriate time for our family and church?

A true change of allegiance must result in a change of worldview in order to bringing lasting impact on our daily lives. 2 Corinthians 5:17 teaches us that being a new creation in Christ involves leaving behind the old ways of thinking, with its selfish (and ultimately self-destructing) pursuits, and taking on a biblical worldview that weighs all things in this life by what the Bible teaches, calling for new values, attitudes and actions. In other words, discipleship means that our allegiance is to Christ, not to ourselves. . 

*All Scripture references are from the New King James Version unless otherwise noted.

PLEASE NOTE: Permission is hereby given to forward, print, and post this blog as long as it is done as a complete blog, and its authorship is acknowledged. Thank you for your cooperation.  For automatic notification of future blogs please visit www.drdavejohnson.blogspot.com and click on “join this site.”

Copyright 2012 Dr. Dave Johnson 

Have You Been to the Garden With Him?

Have You Been To The Garden With Him?

By Dr. Dave Johnson

Assemblies of God Missionary to the Philippines

http://www.daveanddebbiejohnson.com/

www.drdavejohnson.blogspot.com

“Did I not see you in the garden with Him?” one of the servants asked Peter in the high priest’s courtyard during the trial of Jesus (John 18:26). While most Christians have never been to the actual Garden of Gethsemane, the question can still be asked, “Have you been to the garden with Him?”

For Jesus, the garden was the crucible of his suffering. The stress was so great that he sweat blood.  It was here that Jesus, the God-Man, fully confronted his humanity. He was given the choice of two paths: his own or his Father’s. He was challenged with the ultimate moral choice to accept the Father’s will, which was the path of excruciating pain, or take the opportunity to opt out of the will of God and go his own way. The stakes could not have been higher as the eternity destiny of mankind hung in the balance. Heaven and Hell waited with bated breath, and angels and demons battled for the soul of the Savior.  Jesus made his choice in the garden, not on the cross.

Have you been to the garden with him? All of us, at one point or another in our lives, will be confronted with personal pain as part of our walk with God. Many, if not most, will face this choice more than once. For some in may be a short season, for others it will be longer. For some it will be some form of physical suffering through persecution, disability, or illness, for others the pain the pain will be emotional and mental. For me, the battle has been with depression and a deep sense of abandonment rooted in my mother’s unintended many absences from our home due to mental illness. These issues deeply impacted my relationship with Debbie, others, and how I felt about myself.

Have you been to the garden? If so, you have been presented with these two paths. Unlike Jesus, we may not have the opportunity to opt out of suffering, but we always have the chance to choose how we will respond to it. One way is to own your pain like Jesus did and say “nevertheless not my will, but Yours, be done” (Luke 22:42), knowing full well that the will of God meant the incalculable suffering. The other path is to ignore your pain, medicating it, like I did, by becoming a workaholic or, like others, through unresolved anger, bitterness, alcohol, drugs, pornography, illicit sex, and a million other false remedies that offer a temporary panacea but no ultimate healing.

Have you been to the garden with him? If so, you may understand that one may “come to the garden alone,” as the old hymn goes, but one does not have to walk alone. In our darkest hour, when Debbie and I had almost lost hope, Jesus was there. He helped us confront and work through the greatest pain we have ever known. And He didn’t do it alone. Our families, and friends too numerous to name, walked with us, loving us in a manner so seldom seen yet so desperately needed in the Body of Christ today. We would have never survived without them. Because of Jesus and others, though I am still working through some issues and must still choose which path I will follow, immeasurable healing has taken place. To the glory of God, there is a renewed freshness in my relationship with God, our marriage has been healed, and fellowship with others have been strengthened and deepened. New vistas of ministry are opening for us, and the future, though fraught with peril, is brighter than ever.

Have you been to the garden with him?

*All Scripture references are from the New King James Version unless otherwise noted.

PLEASE NOTE: Permission is hereby given to forward, print, and post this blog as long as it is done as a complete blog, and its authorship is acknowledged. Thank you for your cooperation.  For automatic notification of future blogs please visit www.drdavejohnson.blogspot.com and click on “join this site.”

Copyright 2012 Dr. Dave Johnson 

Spring 2012 Newsletter

Spring 2012 Newsletter

Strengthening Relationships for a Greater Harvest

By Debbie

      In 2007, we began a wonderful ministry of training lay workers in small schools around our Bicol district to plant house churches.  The movement has now grown to include 14 schools and 207 house churches scattered throughout the region.  Praise the Lord for His goodness and blessing.

      But now we are gearing up to add a second year of training that will help all of us to carry out the Great Commission more effectively.  One of the greatest challenges of the harvest is the quality of relationships we Christians have with one another while we reach out to those who don’t know Christ.  Sometimes we forget Jesus’ greatest commandment - to love God and love one another.  Jesus’ heart was to create a church with a culture of love. 

      Our hearts as missionaries to the Philippines is to strengthen these relationships between believers as we work with our brothers and sisters in Christ to reach the lost.  Dave often says these days, “we need to get better before we get bigger.”  In truth, we are all broken vessels that the Lord has chosen, washed, and made fit for His use.  But we are still in process and we desperately need the love, encouragement, and safety-net of healthy, mature relationships where we can go with our fears and weaknesses and know we will be built up and prayed for without criticism.

      Because of this great challenge, our main focus will be on creating a mentoring program for strengthening relationships amongst those involved in house church planting. Eventually, we hope to make this program available to all of our pastors.  Of course we will also address the current ministry concerns of the students.

      Please pray with us that the fruit for God’s glory will be abundant both now and in the years to come.

Missionary Hats (by Dave)

    A missionary must wear many hats, often within the same day or week. Some we wear often, others are for special occasions.

    One recent week serves as an excellent example. On Monday, I wore my “host missionary hat” as two advance men came from First Assembly of God in West Monroe, LA, to get ready for a team that arrived the following Sunday. They came to do major renovations to our Bible school, Evangel Bible College. We spent several days running all over town, buying everything from paint to power saws, and working with the Bible school leadership to determine what repairs would be made and in what priority. At the time of this writing, the team is still here and doing a great job!

    In my case, hosting this team required me to master the art of driving a Filipino jeepney--a type of transportation whose hood design came from an American military jeep and has two long seats in the back where the passengers sit facing each other. My attempts at driving it with a dozen Americans inside have already driven many to prayer!

   Since many Filipinos speak English, the language is usually not a problem but sometimes different words mean different things. To a Filipino a hostess is a prostitute, not a woman who seats people in restaurants. A tomboy is a lesbian, not a girl who climbs trees and plays men's sports. The bathroom is called a comfort room, an often inaccurate description.  These things can be easily corrected, but other cultural issues are more challenging, requiring the missionary to put on the hat of "cultural mediator."

    During this week we also had an evangelistic outreach nearby, so I put on my "evangelist" hat on two evenings. Fortunately I put this one on fairly often, and God continues to bless our efforts with his presence.

    On top of this, we are also completing the translation of the study notes, articles, etc., of the Full Life Study Bible (aka Fire Bible or Life in the Spirit Study Bible), and I am the managing editor.  This project has been a partnership between Life Publishers--the publishing arm of the Assemblies of God World Missions, and the Philippine Bible Society. My major responsibility has been to keep the partnership functioning well--and it has. But this week a couple of issues came up that demanded my involvement, so I put on my "managing editors" hat.

    While this was an unusually busy week, constantly switching hats is just part of being a missionary.

Let’s Connect!

    If you like, you can call us on our toll   free Vonage line at (616) 855-1151. Even though this is a US number, it only rings at our house here in the Philippines! We’re 12 hours ahead of the East Coast.

    If you aren’t hearing from us by email and would like to do so, please write Dave at dave.johnson@agmd.org and asked to be placed on the mailing list. Also, if you want to visit our website and Dave’s Blogspot, just google “Dr Dave Johnson” and everything will come up. From our website you can connect with Dave on Facebook, Linkedin, and Twitter. Most of our prayer requests and news updates are posted on the social media.

    Thanks for making it possible for us to be here. We couldn’t do it without you!  We love you and appreciate you ! 

    Please continue to pray that many souls will come into the kingdom and be built up in Christ.

Dave and Debbie Johnson

Spring 2012 Newsletter




Strengthening Relationships for a Greater Harvest
By Debbie



In 2007, we began a wonderful ministry of training lay workers in small schools around our Bicol district to plant house churches. The movement has now grown to include 14 schools and 207 house churches scattered throughout the region. Praise the Lord for His goodness and blessing.
But now we are gearing up to add a second year of training that will help all of us to carry out the Great Commission more effectively. One of the greatest challenges of the harvest is the quality of relationships we Christians have with one another while we reach out to those who don’t know Christ. Sometimes we forget Jesus’ greatest commandment - to love God and love one another. Jesus’ heart was to create a church with a culture of love.
Our hearts as missionaries to the Philippines is to strengthen these relationships between believers as we work with our brothers and sisters in Christ to reach the lost. Dave often says these days, “we need to get better before we get bigger.” In truth, we are all broken vessels that the Lord has chosen, washed, and made fit for His use. But we are still in process and we desperately need the love, encouragement, and safety-net of healthy, mature relationships where we can go with our fears and weaknesses and know we will be built up and prayed for without criticism.
Because of this great challenge, our main focus will be on creating a mentoring program for strengthening relationships amongst those involved in house church planting. Eventually, we hope to make this program available to all of our pastors. Of course we will also address the current ministry concerns of the students.
Please pray with us that the fruit for God’s glory will be abundant both now and in the years to come.


Missionary Hats (by Dave)

A missionary must wear many hats, often within the same day or week. Some we wear often, others are for special occasions.

One recent week serves as an excellent example. On Monday, I wore my “host missionary hat” as two advance men came from First Assembly of God in West Monroe, LA, to get ready for a team that arrived the following Sunday. They came to do major renovations to our Bible school, Evangel Bible College. We spent several days running all over town, buying everything from paint to power saws, and working with the Bible school leadership to determine what repairs would be made and in what priority. At the time of this writing, the team is still here and doing a great job!

In my case, hosting this team required me to master the art of driving a Filipino jeepney--a type of transportation whose hood design came from an American military jeep and has two long seats in the back where the passengers sit facing each other. My attempts at driving it with a dozen Americans inside have already driven many to prayer!

Since many Filipinos speak English, the language is usually not a problem but sometimes different words mean different things. To a Filipino a hostess is a prostitute, not a woman who seats people in restaurants. A tomboy is a lesbian, not a girl who climbs trees and plays men's sports. The bathroom is called a comfort room, an often inaccurate description. These things can be easily corrected, but other cultural issues are more challenging, requiring the missionary to put on the hat of "cultural mediator."

During this week we also had an evangelistic outreach nearby, so I put on my "evangelist" hat on two evenings. Fortunately I put this one on fairly often, and God continues to bless our efforts with his presence.

On top of this, we are also completing the translation of the study notes, articles, etc., of the Full Life Study Bible (aka Fire Bible or Life in the Spirit Study Bible), and I am the managing editor. This project has been a partnership between Life Publishers--the publishing arm of the Assemblies of God World Missions, and the Philippine Bible Society. My major responsibility has been to keep the partnership functioning well--and it has. But this week a couple of issues came up that demanded my involvement, so I put on my "managing editors" hat.

While this was an unusually busy week, constantly switching hats is just part of being a missionary.

Let’s Connect!

If you like, you can call us on our toll free Vonage line at (616) 855-1151. Even though this is a US number, it only rings at our house here in the Philippines! We’re 12 hours ahead of the East Coast.

If you aren’t hearing from us by email and would like to do so, please write Dave at dave.johnson@agmd.org and asked to be placed on the mailing list. Also, if you want to visit our website and Dave’s Blogspot, just google “Dr Dave Johnson” and everything will come up. From our website you can connect with Dave on Facebook, Linkedin, and Twitter. Most of our prayer requests and news updates are posted on the social media.

Thanks for making it possible for us to be here. We couldn’t do it without you! We love you and appreciate you !

Please continue to pray that many souls will come into the kingdom and be built up in Christ.

Dave and Debbie Johnson

A Missionary's Many Hats

A Missionary's Many Hats
by Dr. Dave Johnson


A missionary must wear many hats, often within the same day or week. Some we wear often. Others we put on for special occasions.

This past week has been one of the special occasions in which I wore my "host missionary" hat. On Monday two advance men came from First Assembly of God in West Monroe, LA, to get ready for a team that was supposed to arrive on Saturday, but didn't arrive until Sunday, to do major, much needed renovations to our Bible school, Evangel Bible College. We spent several days running all over town, buying everything from paint to power saws, and working with the Bible school leadership to determine what repairs would be made and in what priority.

Since many Filipinos speak English the language is usally not a problem but sometimes different words mean different things. To a Filipino a hostess is a prostitute, not a woman who seats people in resturants. A tomboy is a lesbian, not a girl who climbs trees and plays men's sports. The bathroom is called a comfort room, which is often not an accurate description.  On the other hand, the upraised middle finger is only significant to those Filipinos who have watched too many American movies. But while these things can be easily corrected, other cultural issues are more challenging, requiring the missionary to put on the hat of "cultural mediator." In the middle can be an uncomfortable place to be.

In my case, hosting this team required me to master the art of driving a Filipino jeepney--a type of transportation whose hood design came from an American military jeep and has two long seats in the back where the passengers sit facing each other. My attempts at driving one have already driven many to prayer!

During this week we also had an evangelistic outreach nearby, so I put on my "evangelist" hat on two evenings. Fortunately I put this one on fairly often, and God continues to bless our efforts with his presence.

We are also completing the translation of the study notes, articles, etc., of the Full Life Study Bible (aka Fire Bible or Life in the Spirit Study Bible), and I am the managing editor.  This project has been a partnership between Life Publishers--the publishing arm of the Assemblies of God World Missions, and the Philippine Bible Society. My major responsibility has been to keep the partnership functioning well--and it has. But this week a couple of issues came up that demanded my involvement, so I put on my "managing editor's" hat, a role with which I am familiar.

This is all part of the job, but it does make for a long week--one in which I wore many hats.

 *All Scripture references are from the New King James Version unless otherwise noted.

PLEASE NOTE: Permission is hereby given to forward, print, and post this blog as long as it is done as a complete blog, and its authorship is acknowledged. Thank you for your cooperation.  For automatic notification of future blogs please visit www.drdavejohnson.blogspot.com and click on “join this site.”

Copyright 2012 Dr. Dave Johnson