GREENSide Update
  • reflecting a bit
    • Easter 2019: Four ‘D’ Words of The Passion Week
    • Spring 2019: ‘Kingdom of God’ Reflections a Week After
    • Early Winter 2018: Taking a Closer Look at The Advents
    • Late summer 2018: Impressions from the Incapacitated
    • Summer 2018... Confronting Fears
    • Happy New Year 2018 Wishes
    • Christmas 2017 - Reconstructing the Christmas Story
    • Fall 2017... Returning, Rest, Quietness & Trust
    • Summer 2017... Reflecting Pools Matter
    • Spring 2017... The Singularity of God's Kingdom Purposes
    • Winter 4th qtr. 2016... One Foot, Two Feet, Three
    • Fall 2016... Personal Confessions of Mistaken Political Thinking
    • Summer, 2016... Waiting and Listening
    • Resurrection Sunday, 2016
    • Winter 1st qtr, 2016... The Marrakesh Declaration
    • Christmas 2015 Greeting
    • End of Year, 2015... Are We To Care?
    • Spring 2015... What are you and I doing about it?
    • New Year's Day 2015... New Mercies Never End!
    • Christmas/New Year 2014/15... Holiday, Holiday, What have you done?
    • Fall 2014... On Kingdoms... Past, Present and Ethereal
    • Spring 2014... Didascalicon: Man, God and Greatness
    • Christmas 2013... Even in the Air and Space
    • Winter 2013/14... Callings
    • Christmas 2012... 'Jumping Beans' in old age
    • Spring 2012... New Beginnings
    • Fall 2011... People of Promise
  • a look behind
    • Spring 2019: ...Off the Starting Blocks
    • Early Winter 2018: Sabbatical Results and First Furlough Leg
    • Summer 2018... "Come and See"
    • Summer 2017... Making Full Circle
    • Spring 2017... Completing Pre-furlough Commitments
    • Fall 2016, JJ's New California Home!
    • Summer 2016... Accomplishing Significant Milestones
    • End of year, 2015: Building God's Kingdom Among the Middle East Unengaged Muslims
    • Summer 2015... Building Deeply in Small Ways
    • Christmas 2013 photos
    • Winter 2013/14... Up and Running!
    • Winter 2012... 'Global Impact 29', first steps
    • Fall 2011... A great school; A promising alliance
  • a look ahead
    • Spring 2019: Finishing Touches to a Special Furlough
    • Early Winter 2018: Expanding to New Beginnings
    • Summer 2018... Winding Around the Country
    • Summer 2017... Three Decades and Counting
    • Spring 2017... My Upcoming Two Greatest Decades
    • Winter 4th qtr. 2016... Our Upcoming Furlough, Part Two
    • Summer 2016... Our Upcoming Furlough, Part One
    • Early Winter 2016
    • Summer 2015... Looking to Remember the Middle East
    • Winter 2013/14... The West heads East
    • Winter 2012... Coming out, going deeper
    • Fall 2011... Getting and Giving 'Perspectives'
  • prayer
    • Spring 2019
    • Early Winter 2018
    • Late summer 2018
    • Summer 2018
    • Fall 2017
    • Spring, 2017
    • Winter 4th qtr. 2016
    • Fall, 2016
    • End of year, 2015
    • Summer 2015
    • Why pray?
    • Winter 2013/14
    • Winter 2012
    • Fall 2011
  • finances
    • Spring 2019
    • Early Winter 2018
    • Summer 2018
    • Winter 4th qtr. 2016... Year-end giving
    • Fall, 2016
    • End of year, 2015
    • Summer 2015
    • Winter 2013/14
    • Winter 2012
    • Fall 2011
  • get involved
  • fun
  • more contemplation
  • in case you missed it
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Spring, 2017
on... My Upcoming Two Greatest Decades
On March 1, my birthday, I got a call from one of my best friends GP to say, "K_-ol'-boy, you have two more years to get ready for the two greatest decades of your life." I asked him what he meant by that. He answered me, "Well, I was just listening to a public Q & A session with _____ and _____ (so & so, you know), two of my favorite spiritual leaders as they answered a question posed by a young pastor regarding what they considered to be the greatest decade of their lives. They both answered it was the present decade they were in, their seventies, followed only by the second most significant decade of their lives, the decade of their sixties. GP reminded me I had only two years to "get ready" for the two greatest decades of my life. Could this be true? The more I've milled this around in my mind since that day the more I've warmed up to the idea on account it gives me hope for my remaining days here on earth. Maybe you feel the way I do, maybe you don't, but I am choosing to believe that what these two men of integrity said is most likely true and that my next two decades of life can indeed outshine the previous five in not only fruitful ways for God's glory and a fuller joy in my Lord Jesus, but also in ways of greater love  for His Kingdom purposes than I have had in any of my previous decades. I'm dreaming of future decades that can be a reflection of His glory in and through me with an incomparable measure. This is my prayer and not only a prayer for myself, but also for my family, friends and co-laborers for Christ. It is my prayer for you.

Such a hope must start for me today as both my wife and I finalize preparations for heading back to Colombia so as to put certain responsibilities in order, finish undone ministry business and prepare to commence our year-long furlough later this year. It starts today with greater reflection and prayer toward refining a vision God gave both my wife and me thirty years ago, that is, a vision to participate in the establishing of God' Church (we have refined this idea to be disciple-making movements) among the unengaged muslim people groups of the world by virtue of our participating in, and alongside what was then an emerging Latin American mission force to the world (click here for more info) and has now since become one of the largest mission mobilization forces in human history. Since that call in 1987 we have not wavered in God's call to recruit, train and mobilize Latin Americans (more specifically Colombians in the last twenty years) and have now been privileged to experience firsthand fruit from around the world as a result of our labor of love for God and His Kingdom purposes - fruit hailing from western Africa to eastern Asia
. It has been an exciting thirty years, but I am now beginning to get the picture that the next twenty may may be the most fruitful of all. So for us our preparation for the two greatest decades of our lives begins today, but anticipate it really getting cookin' later this year as we return to the States for our year-long furlough. Our primary purpose during that time will be to have greater times in prayer and reflection before the Lord through spiritual retreats, good restful daily devotions and significant connections with God's people in many a sundry manner. We look forward to that time. Until then we will keep on 'preparing' for the two greatest decades of our lives.
And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord’s glory,
are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory,
which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.

2 Corinthians 3:18, NIV


Jesus once taught... 
”Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth,
where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal,
but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven,
where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal.”
Matthew 6:19,20, ESV


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First name: KR
Last name: G
Personal account #: 004527
Project account #: 024527
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