Bivocational pastor reaches Phoenix's Arabic community

Jamal Bishara's life is lived in slices of time, often compartmentalized and only sometimes overlapping.

Building relationships represents the greatest challenge for the bivocational church planter. "It's been enough to get the job-in fact, two jobs-done," Bishara notes.

Bishara is the founding pastor of First Arabic Baptist Church in Phoenix, Arizona, a congregation he helped establish in 1988. The Arabic-speaking church averages an attendance of about 50, but it's a church in which relationships must be established quickly. "It's transient," Bishara says. "Just like any other church in Phoenix."

Bishara is a native of Israel who came to the states in 1978 to study. He made a profession of faith in Israel at age 16 due to the efforts of the then Foreign Mission Board and immediately became involved in the mission work there.

He attended Grand Canyon University and majored in biology. Since 1982 he has worked as a biomedical technician, primarily dealing with dialysis patients, eventually becoming one of the "most highly educated persons in the field" as training for the position switched to an electronics specialty.

Juggling his two professions is, admittedly, "very, very tough." Yet he's found secular work that works around his ministry schedule and not the other way around. So, he's able to take needed time off for special events, like weddings and funerals. "They're accommodating to me because I'm a good worker, and they know I'll get the job done."

His parenting of his four daughters with his wife, Yvonne, has been contained to snatches of time, too. "They've suffered through that as missionary kids," he says. "But they've turned out to be very good kids." Yvonne works for Maricopa County in environmental services.

Although he is unequivocally a church planter, Bishara considers himself a missionary, too. As such, he's not only bivocational but dual in his approach. "I consider myself a missionary from both Israel and the United States."

That missionary zeal has lately prompted Bishara to take steps to go to Iraq to work as a military translator, leaving the church ministry in the hands of another pastor who is helping him. If the assignment goes through it will take him away from his church for a year or so-but he plans to return.

It has been reported that there are some 100,000 Arabics in the Phoenix area but only one established Arabic church, and that is the one Bishara pastors. The mission field is here, too, and Bishara will work it in snatches of time.

Easter cookie lessons

Here's a great way to involve children in the Easter story and teach them about Jesus' sacrifice. You can use the Easter cookie recipe with your family or for a slumber party. The recipe is best used the night before Easter, but the message will come through any time of year.

You will need:

• 1 cup whole pecan
• 1 teaspoon vinegar
• 3 egg whites
• pinch salt
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 large plastic zip bag
• wooden spoon
• mixing bowl
• cookie sheet
• wax paper
• tape
• Bible

• Preheat oven to 300 degrees (this is important: don't wait until you're half done with the recipe). Place the pecans in the large plastic zip bag and let the children beat them with the wooden spoon to break them into small pieces. Explain that after Jesus was arrested, the Roman soldiers beat Him. Read John 19:1-3.

• Let each child smell the vinegar. Put 1 teaspoon of vinegar into a mixing bowl. Explain that when Jesus was thirsty on the cross He was given vinegar to drink. Read John 19:28-30.

• Add egg whites to vinegar. Tell the children that the eggs represent life. Explain that Jesus gave His life ?to give us life. Read John 10:10-11.

• Sprinkle a little salt into both hands of each child. Let the children taste it from one hand and brush it from the other hand into the bowl. Explain that this represents the salty tears shed by Jesus' followers and the bitterness of our own sin. Read Luke 23:27.

Say: "So far the ingredients are not very appetizing." Add 1 cup of sugar. Explain that the sweetest part of the story is that Jesus died because He loves us. He wants us to know and belong to Him. Read Psalm 34:8 and John 3:16.

• Beat with a mixer on high speed for 12 to 15 minutes until stiff peaks are formed. Explain that the color white represents the purity God sees in those whose sins have been cleansed by Jesus. Read Isaiah 1:18 and John 3:1-3.

• Fold in the broken nuts. Drop by teaspoons onto a wax paper-covered cookie sheet. Explain that each mound represents the rocky tomb where Jesus body was laid. Read Matthew 27:57-60.

•Put the cookie sheet in the oven, close the door and turn the oven off. Give each child a piece of tape and have them seal the oven door. Explain that Jesus' tomb was sealed. Read Matthew 27:65-66.

• Go to bed (Make sure the oven is off). Explain that they may feel sad to leave the cookies in the oven overnight. Jesus' followers were in despair when the tomb was sealed. Read John 16:20 and 22.

• On Easter morning, open the oven and give everyone a cookie. Notice the cracked surface and take a bite. The cookies are hollow. On the first Easter Jesus' followers were amazed to find the tomb open and empty.

By Brian Hedrick

Monica Mhango lives in Zambia. She hasn't experienced her teen years and yet is in the final stages of HIV/AIDS. She contracted the disease from her parents before they died. While Monica has put up a valiant fight, her body remains weak. A cold or flu virus could send her health into a tailspin.

Heart wrenching stories like these don't make headlines, but they are becoming the stories of Africa, India and parts of South America. Through organizations like the International Mission Board (IMB), World Vision and others, the church has taken up the fight against this terrible disease with vigor, and believers are showing up to share the love of Christ with people who often feel little hope.

De-myth your thinking

• Myth-AIDS is not that big of a problem. In fact, more than 40 million people are infected with HIV/AIDS and 30 million have died from the disease since 1981. It infects and affects men, women and children-many of them innocently infected through tainted blood transfusions, sexual crimes or the promiscuity of a spouse. It's not just a disease that affects the homosexual community.

• Myth-AIDS is everyone else's problem. In fact, there are millions of orphans around the globe who've lost their parents to the disease. And according to the World Bank, HIV/AIDS has the ability, if left unchecked, to destroy the economy of an entire society in three generations.

• Myth-AIDS will just go away eventually. In fact, Russia, China and India are the new battlefronts against the disease. Some projections state the disease will take the lives of more than 40 million people in these three countries alone in the next 20 years if drastic change doesn't occur.

Do something now

• Educate yourself about the disease and what people are doing to prevent, treat and minister. The IMB (imb.org/aids) has made AIDS relief, education and treatment a part of their DNA in ministry areas like Africa. Find an organization that fits the mission of your church and plug into helping.

• Provide financial assistance to people dealing with the problem. World Vision and the IMB are providing evangelicals with opportunities to directly affect areas with Christ's love and hope through giving money, time and work. The IMB partners with True Love Waits to provide abstinence education throughout Africa and other parts of the world. They also give care to AIDS sufferers. Donations to the Cooperative Program and Lottie Moon Christmas Offering® help provide funds for these vital services.

• Pray about it. If you can't give or go, get on your knees. Begin a prayer ministry for the victims of AIDS and those who are ministering to them. Visit imb.org for a prayer list that helps churches pray specifically for the needs of people involved in AIDS relief.

Visit www.imb.org/aids for more information about how God can use you to fight the world's greatest health threat.

Brian Hedrick is a freelance writer living in Monrovia, California.

Outreach...on Sunday morning

By Toby Frost and David Wheeler

Sometimes it seems our faith is wrapped up in "being at" church every Sunday morning. What if instead we focused on just "being the" Church on Sunday. Why should we sidestep community outreach on one of the few days most people are available to receive it? It's a stretch for many of us, but with a grain of salt please consider the following suggestions for periodically moving beyond the Sunday gathering.

• What if your congregation commandeered a local car wash near a major shopping area and offered "free car washes" from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. All it takes is the permission of the local proprietor, volunteers and numerous roles of quarters. You can send out promotion teams into the parking lots and neighborhoods drumming up business. Free donuts and coffee also are a nice touch as people wait for their cars to be cleaned.

• On rainy days, send teams with umbrellas to local parking lots to offer dry transit. You might even send out teams to local eating establishments that serve breakfast and simply pick out a table and purchase their meal. Call it "Evangi-eat!" Ha!

• Better yet, as a new church plant did in the Memphis area, pick out a community and send out "yard work" teams after 10 on a Sunday morning to mow, trim and weed. This is especially effective in the spring as people emerge after a long dormant winter. If I recall, the congregation attracted seven new families!

• Some people have found in the spring that "free" packages of flower seeds and small gift certificates to local lawn and garden shops help to open doors when canvassing neighborhoods. Packages of cookies are also great to use with a note stating, "If you think these cookies are sweet, you should taste the fellowship at _______ Church." In each case, the key is to serve the families and to show them the love of Christ in practical ways. If they ask why, and they will, just tell them your congregation felt it was time to "be" the church, not just attend one!

Toby Frost is senior director of Strategic Evangelism Coordination for the North American Mission Board. David Wheeler is professor of evangelism and associate director of the Church Planting Center for Liberty Theological Seminary, Lynchburg, Virginia.

Siteseeing...
	HELP REFUGEES www.worldrelief.org Here you'll learn how your church can reach refugees and other internationals right here in North America. The website of World Relief, you'll find what the need is for the church to act internationally to aid people in troubled countries. You'll also find out just how much need there is in our own backyards. The North American Mission Board has partnered with World Relief to help assist churches and communities in refugee resettlement. Currently, more than 17 million people around the world have been uprooted from their homes and communities by war, poverty and natural disaster.
	DEVELOP AS A LEADER www.alexmcmanus.org In the world of church planting and leadership mentoring, Alex McManus and brother Erwin, both leaders at Mosaic Church in Los Angeles, California, try to engage church and mainstream culture in out-of-the-box ways. Visit Alex's site to read his newsletter "Into the Mystic" and to find conferences and resources for strengthening your leadership. For more on being a missional leader, visit www.missionalnetwork.org and www.churchplantingvillage.net.
	BRAND YOUR CHURCH www.churchcommunicationspro.com Find out how to give people the best possible impression of your church while staying true to your core values and beliefs. Founder Cory Miller is the director of communications for Quail Springs Baptist Church in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. While this site is a promotional site for Cory's professional services, it also is a site packed with resources for more effective communication and image branding specifically designed for churches and other Christian organizations.

Promote missions giving during the Annie season

Start a prayer group.   
Few activities can excite a group more than praying for the same thing and seeing God work miracles. As you approach Easter and the Annie Armstrong Easter Offering®, form small groups to pray for your church's giving goals, for more involvement from your church, for a renewed sense of purpose among the congregation and, of course, for the more than 5,000 missionaries in North America.
 
Get organized. 
Form a team to plan, promote and conduct the various events. Include the pastor, mission leaders and other mission advocates. Schedule emphasis dates-i.e. The Week of Prayer for North American Missions, March 4-11-on the church calendar.

Set challenging goals for giving. Keep track of giving visually (visit www.AnnieArmstrong.com for ideas).

Enlist advocates. Ask your pastor to preach a sermon on North American Mission efforts (visit www.AnnieArmstrong.com/pastors for sermon ideas). Encourage laypeople to give testimonies on why they give to AAEO. Enlist mission leaders to visit every Sunday School department or class to encourage praying for and giving to North American missions.

Plan promotional events. Plan a missions banquet, for example, for church members and invite North American, state and local missionaries or mission representatives. Display information on the different mission opportunities represented and make a missionary the guest of honor at each table. You also can make missions giving exciting for the kids in your church. Collect and decorate plastic Easter eggs. Allow children to place their offering to AAEO in the decorated eggs. During a worship service, hold a mission march for children to place their eggs in a large Easter basket.

TOP PICKS

	The Holman Illustrated Study Bible (Holman Bible Publishers, 2006) is the power of  the Holman Christian Standard Bible enriched with illustrations including maps, photographs, charts and graphs interspersed throughout illustrating various points in history and theology. With extended introductions for each book and a historical timeline describing the Intertestamental Period, the HISB will prove to be a useful study tool for students of the Scriptures.
	The AIDS Crisis (IVP, 2006) by Deborah Dortzbach and W. Meredith Long spells out the reality of the AIDS epidemic worldwide. The authors also offer ways the church can be a part of the solution to a problem spanning all ethnic and geopolitical lines. More than 40 million people are living with HIV/AIDS.
	Making Disciples of Oral Learners (International Orality Network) offers hope and a guide for reaching the estimated 4 billion oral learners worldwide. These principles don't only apply to the non-literate population in primitive countries. In the U.S., even literate people have become oral learners as 58 percent of U.S. high school grads never read another book after graduation. To order your copy, visit www.oralbible.com.
	"More Than Dreams" (Dreams and Visions, 2006) is a professionally produced DVD with testimonies of five Muslims from Egypt, Nigeria, Indonesia, Iran and Turkey whose encounters with Christ through dreams and visions compelled them to leave Islam and turn to Jesus. Recorded in Arabic and soon available in Farsi (the language of Iran and Afghanistan), this resource appeals to literate and non-literate populations and provides English and French subtitles. This is a beautiful, heart-wrenching production perfect for outreach to Muslims from anywhere. To order, visit www.dreamsandvisions.com. For more resources on Islam, visit www.4truth.net.
	The Great Omission (HarperSanFrancisco, 2006) by Dallas Willard is a call to disciple-making and personal discipleship and it's so much more. Offering practical, though deeply thoughtful, advice for pastors, lay leaders and the like, The Great Omission is a thought sampling of the author's last two decades as he's written and spoken to universities and churches.
	The Upside of Adversity (Regal, 2006) by Os Hillman looks at the Old Testament Joseph, who experienced years of trouble before rising to leadership. Hillman chronicles his seven years of trial, which he has come to call the Joseph Calling. "In the process," he writes, "I discovered that God has a great purpose for the problems and obstacles that we face in life. He uses adversity to prepare us for a lifetime of service to Him and to others."
	Strong Walk (New Hope, 2006) by Randy Sprinkle is a six-week study designed for group or individual study. Five days a week Sprinkle will encourage and teach us how to engage in a spiritual battle as spiritual warriors who engage in warfare everytime we share the gospel. Through the exercises for reflection, inspiration and strategic prayer and action, readers will be emboldened to be more passionate evangelists.