MissionDunns - Serving Christ's Kingdom in the Americas

Proposal Defense Report

2009-12-18T08:11:00.002-05:00

Hi All, Thank you for praying for Dan's proposal defense yesterday. We are grateful that Dan passed his defense with minor revisions, and also some substantive changes required in the theoretical section. The defense meeting was intense and exhausting, yet helpful. Some very good guidance was provided to help the dissertation take more shape and clarify some fuzzy issues. Of particular importance for our ministry is that it became obvious to Dan and his entire committee that there is no way he can finish in June. The new projected date for graduation is December. This impacts us in a ripple-effect way. It will be more difficult for Dan to get a teaching job beginning next Fall without his degree, should God continue to lead us in that direction (we're still praying about that!). Some schools will hire faculty as ABD (All But Dissertation), but not all will. If he doesn't find a teaching job, we'll need to discern from the Spirit what to do regarding the balance between the need to focus on finishing the dissertation and the need to earn living expenses. If possible, we'd prefer to live on support until finishing the dissertation so Dan can focus on "gettin' 'er done." But this may not be feasible financially. The good news is that God is in control and has a wonderful plan. We just need help discerning that plan and being obedient thereto. Hence, please continue praying for us. Many Blessings, Dan and Nancy

Proposal Defense Scheduled!

2009-12-12T10:37:00.002-05:00

We are thrilled to report that Dan's proposal defense has been scheduled for next Thursday. We have been waiting to receive feedback from all three of his dissertation committee members. We finally heard back from the third one yesterday, and he, like the other two, agrees that Dan is ready to defend his proposal. Please pray that Dan will pass his proposal defense with only minor revisions. This will allow him to make those revisions quickly and then be released to begin research. Courses are over for the semester, but Dan has one more paper to finish for a group project in his Healing class. He will do this early next week, and then on Wednesday and Thursday morning he will make final preparations for his defense meeting on Thursday afternoon.
In the meantime, we had a fun evening last night at a Christmas party with other students, faculty, and staff. We discovered some interesting things through a game that was played. One man from India has never eaten pizza or worn a pair of jeans. Never! Another young woman, a very good friend of ours, has never chewed gum. Never! One daughter of a missionary couple, who is probably 8 or 9 years old, has already spent Christmas in four different countries in her life. And finally, one fellow from Kenya speaks eight languages. Learning these "fun facts" about one another, in addition to good food and Christmas carols, made it a very fun night. Today, a little work at the library, and then we may hang some Christmas lights outside, if it's not too cold. Thanks for your prayers! Dan and Nancy

Yet More Venezuelan Baptisms!

2009-12-08T18:04:00.002-05:00

Wow, is God ever good. We have reported in the past on baptisms in Venezuela, and we just received an email this week that 11 more persons were baptized into the family of Christ through the ministry of the Ondas de Paz UMC in Venezuela. Pastors Alexander and Amarilis are friends and Seminary students, and it is a joy to see them blossom in their ministry. Thank you for your continued prayers as we play a small role in training these kinds of leaders. Your partnership in the gospel makes an enormous and eternal difference. Much Love, Dan and Nancy

Busy and Thankful Week

2009-12-01T07:11:00.002-05:00

Monday - Wednesday of this week Dan is working on a group project related to Healing from Perfectionism. Thursday and Friday he will be writing a paper on three questions related to healing: healing's relationship to God's Kingdom, the role of faith in healing, and why some people are not healed. Nancy is sewing some Christmas gifts this week, plus doing some research. We are thankful for a great visit with John and Tara over Thanksgiving, and for a good phone conversation with Chris. We are very blessed with our family.

Sabbath Time

2009-11-21T09:38:00.003-05:00

We are taking a couple days of Sabbath time this weekend. Dan usually studies at least a half day on Saturdays and sometimes longer, but we've decided to enjoy a "normal" weekend of rest and relaxation. Nancy will do some sewing and reading, and Dan will mostly piddle around the house, watch some football, and enjoy some time with Spanish. We will also go for a walk each day, taking advantage of sunshine and highs close to 60. We are thankful for the concept of sabbath and glad that God not only invented it but also endorses it. Monday and Tuesday of next week will be two intense study days as Dan writes a position paper for his healing class. John and Tara will arrive Tuesday evening for a Thanksgiving visit (gloria a Dios!), and Dan wants his paper finished before they get here. After Thanksgiving the focus turns to making revisions to his dissertation proposal chapter, working on a group project in the healing class, and making final preparations for his proposal defense in mid-December. Please pray for God's hand to guide this process. Thank you for your continued prayer partnership with us during this time of equipping! Many Blessings, Dan and Nancy

Proposal Chapter Submitted

2009-11-17T11:48:00.003-05:00

We are celebrating the submission of Dan's dissertation proposal chapter last night. Hurray! The next two weeks he will focus on catching up with assignments for his healing class, then he hopes to have his proposal defense in early December. If this proceeds according to plan, and without too many revisions to the research and writing schedule that he is proposing, he will be released to begin his research late December. Thank you for your prayer support during this arduous yet enjoyable time of equipping. And thanks be to God for God's incredible faithfulness and provision.

Relational Dimensions of Fully Flourishing Life

2009-11-13T06:00:00.004-05:00

A couple days ago we talked about Fully Flourishing Life in Jesus Christ. Today it behooves us to think about the relational/communal dimensions of new life in Christ. What is the relationship between my experience of fully flourishing life in Christ and your experience of it? Can a person experience the life that God intends outside of relationship? Is our experience of God’s fully flourishing life somehow linked with our sensitivity to, and ministry with, others? How privatized can the experience of life in Christ be? How communal should it be? Miroslav Volf has written a book titled Exclusion and Embrace, in which he talks about the human tendency to fear and loathe "the other," because the self is under threat of disappearance, loss, and death. In response to the fear of losing our "self," we respond to others in one of four ways. We try to conquer then, or we isolate ourselves from them, or we relate with them contractually, or we surrender to them (meaning we capitulate, but don't enter into true mutual relationship).

Volf suggests that this impacts our participation in "life flow," meaning that when we respond in one of these four ways based on our fear, we block the possibility of life flowing from us to others, and from them to us. He encourages us to embrace others with love. Vitally important, however, is that the love we must embrace them with is not our own love, but God's love flowing through us. It's suicidal to try to give our own love to others. We can only love others when we move into and get hold of God's love for ourselves. We must love out of God's supply of love and life. When we do this, then we can give the gift of true God-love, and we know that we are doing this when we see that the other person is coming alive and thriving. A core dimension of truly flourishing life in Christ, therefore, is that we help other people blossom, flourish, and thrive. Ask yourself, therefore: Do I help other people thrive? The life that God intends for all of us cannot be experienced or shared outside the scope of relationships, nor at the expense of other persons.

Trading our Sorrows

2009-11-12T06:59:00.003-05:00

I heard a short teaching time last night related to healing, based on the worship song, “I’m Trading My Sorrows,” which includes the chorus, “Yes, Lord, Yes.” The presenter referred to the fact that healing is often closely related to how much we say “yes” to the Lord, but that it also relates to how fully and honestly we embrace (say "yes" to) our suffering and sorrow. There are times when we suffer and endure sorrow due to decisions which other people make rather than due to our own choices. This can cause deep feelings of anger and resentment. For healing to occur in our lives, we must come to a point where we acknowledge and own those feelings as being real, rather than keeping them pushed down. God won’t heal things that we insist on hiding from Him.

Once we acknowledge and own the feelings, we must choose to say “yes” to our unjust suffering. We must choose to embrace it, accept it. In this sense, we not only say “yes” to the Lord, but we also say “yes” to our sorrow and suffering. There are things in our lives that we simply have to surrender to, and then God can redeem them. He cannot redeem them if we keep saying “no” to them. Integrity and truth have to come together. Because Jesus became a man of sorrows He can take our sorrows. If we will deal with our sorrows with truthful acknowledgement and integrity, we can trade our sorrows for the joy of the Lord.

Fully Flourishing Life

2009-11-11T07:28:00.002-05:00

As part of the Spirit's receny teaching in my life, I have pondering the notion of Fully Flourishing Life. Especially in light of the numerous references to life in the gospel of John, it seems to me that too many Christians have an undernourished view of the gospel. They follow Christ "somewhat," perhaps with integrity but also a bit half-heartedly, with the result that their lives are "moderately touched" by Jesus, but not truly transformed. The question I would raise is this: are you experiencing the Fully Flourishing Life that God intends and desires for you? Or have you settled for less? This not only impacts you, but it also impacts the non-Christians in your life. If you do not understand and experience the Fully Flourishing Life that God-in-Christ makes possible, you won't be able to share that life with others. The Greek word for "gospel" means "good news." We might ask ourselves, therefore, what is "good" about the "good news"? "The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly" (John 10:10 ESV).

The Gift of the Body of Christ

2009-11-06T06:27:00.002-05:00

Today we are grateful for the gift of the Body of Christ, the fellowship of believers. What brings this to mind is the experience we had over the past couple weeks. Two weeks ago we were planning to drive to Milledgeville, Georgia to visit for a couple days with our good friends Virgil and Jo. Through a phone call, however, we found out that Virgil's mother had been moved to the Serenity Room in her nursing home in Vidalia, Georgia, to live out her last few days. After thinking and praying, we decided to drive the next day to Vidalia so that we could support Virgil and Jo during this time. It was a great joy to be a part of their lives during this important phase in their journey, and we are grateful that God made this possible. We sat with them some in the nursing home, as they provided 24/7 care for "Miss Nell," talking, laughing, plus reading Scripture and singing hymns to Miss Nell. She went to be with the Lord last Thursday, and the funeral was this past Monday. Miss Nell's church (Tabernacle Baptist) was very supportive during this time, with pastoral visits, a covered dish meal, and a beautiful funeral service. Additionally, the local UMC helped find a family who could host us for four of our nights in Vidalia, which saved a lot of hotel money. So in the midst of this situation, two congregations, two pastors, a particular family, and untold numbers of invidual Christians, were used by the Lord to be an instrument of His love for Virgil, Jo, their family, and us. There is great room for improvement in how churches in the USA understand and live out the gospel of Christ, but there is also much to celebrate, and we experienced that personally over the past two weeks. Thank You, Lord, for people in the USA around the world who love You, and in so doing, are our brothers and sisters, who also love us. Thank You, Lord for the gift of the Family of God.

Passed the Quals!

2009-11-05T07:22:00.001-05:00

Good news - Dan has found out this week that he passed his Qualifying Exams. Thank you for your prayers a few weeksk ago when he was in the midst of preparing for and taking the exams. His next big task is to write his dissertation proposal chapter, which is due in 20 days. Much Love, Dan and Nancy

Our Abba God

2009-10-22T08:08:00.002-04:00

Last night in my Healing class at the Seminary the professor asked if any students would like to receive prayer for direction, comfort, or to lay down burdens. I was one of the students who asked for prayer. A group of about 10 classmates gathered around me and prayed for several minutes. One of the students was given an image of a child's bicycle, with an accompanying thought concerning how I am God's son and that He, my "Daddy", will continue to take care of me. This was a precious gift from the Lord for me at this time our journey, and I am so thankful to be reminded of God's care and provision. No matter how uncertain the future seems, no matter how low our support fund gets, no matter how difficult the dissertation process appears to be, my precious Abba Father will continue to take care of me (and Nancy too, of course). If this is a message that resonates with you as well, I invite you to receive from the Lord a fresh measure of His love and of trust in His loving care, so that you can more fully abide in Him your
Abba (Daddy) Father. Much Love, Dan

Finished with Quals!

2009-10-13T21:24:00.003-04:00

Gloria a Dios! Dan turned in the 2-day take-home portion of his Qualifying Exams at 5pm today. We are thankful for God's grace steering him through this stringent process. The next big step is his dissertation proposal chapter, which is due November 22nd. In the meantime, we each have upcoming ministry opportunities. This Wednesday through Sunday Nancy will be attending a Dunamis Conference, and Thursday through Sunday Dan will be serving as a table discussion leader at a Consultation on World Revitalization Movements. Busy times, but we are grateful to be allowed the privilege of sharing in God's passion to reach the lost people of the entire world with the good news of the full/vital life that is available in Jesus. "For as the new heavens and the new earth that I make shall remain before me, says the Lord, so shall your offspring remain. From new moon to new moon, and from Sabbath to Sabbath, all flesh shall come to worship before me, declares the Lord" (Isaiah 66:22-34). Oh what a celebration that will be!

2009-10-11T06:46:00.002-04:00

Nancy has recently had two trips that were blessings from God. On the first trip she participated in a 3-day advanced seminar on prayer and healing, followed by 5 days as a member of a prayer team that ministered healing to several folks. It was a joy to continue learning from the Lord as well as being used by Him. On the second trip she enjoyed a 2-day event in which she learned about a ministry perspective on wholeness through Christ that is called Sodzo (from the New Testament Greek work for wholeness/salvation). Dan was feeling puny most of last week, which was very bad timing, since he had to take Days One and Two of his Qualifying Exams. God gave him strength to make it through those exam days, and we're trusting His will concerning whether or not Dan passed. Monday and Tuesday of this coming week Dan has a 2-day take-home portion, and then his Quals will be over. Thursday evening marks the beginning of a consultation at Asbury on world revitalization movements, an event which lasts until noon on Sunday. Dan will be serving as a table discussion leader during this event. We continue to be amazed at the new opportunities for learning and ministry that God opens up for us, and thank you for your gracious and generous support. Much Love, Dan and Nancy

Final Push Toward Quals

2009-10-01T15:53:00.002-04:00

Dan is in the final study push before his Qualifying Exams begin on Monday. The next 3 days will be critical to his success with the exams, so we ask for these prayers: clarity of thought, energy, and excellent memory. The Exams will conclude at 5pm on Tuesday, October 13th. Nancy is still in North Carolina. Beginning yesterday, she will be engaged for four days as a prayer servant with other folks who will be praying with various persons for deep healing needs. Please pray for her protection, for her to be an instrument of Christ's compassion, and for God to be glorified. Thank you so much for your love and your support. We are so thankful to be part of the worldwide Body of Christ. Much Love, Dan and Nancy

Nancy Ministering and Learning in NC

2009-09-26T07:34:00.003-04:00

Nancy drove to Black Mountain, NC yesterday. This weekend she is involved in the final weekend seminar of her year-long advanced course on prayer healing. Next week she will be a prayer ministry volunteer, serving on one of the prayer teams that will be ministering to people with a variety of healing needs. Please pray for her guidance, protection, empowerment, and strength. Dan is going to enjoy a "normal" weekend without studies today and tomorrow, in order to rest his mind and body prior to his last intensive week of studying in preparation for qualifying exams. The week after qualifying exams he will be leading a class session at the Seminary on Dynamics of Interpersonal Evangelism, then later serve as a table discussion leader for a Consultation on Christian World Revitalization for 3 days. All this while also trying to write the proposal chapter for his dissertation. Please pray for wisdom, strength, and "redeeming the time." Thank you for your love and prayers. We can truly discern how your prayer support draws us closer to God's will and way. Much Love, Dan and Nancy

Qualifying Exams - 2 Weeks Away!

2009-09-21T14:20:00.002-04:00

Dan's qualifying exams are 2 weeks from today (Monday). Aye Papa! He has been studying for them since August, but still has a lot of material to review. The exams will cover eight of the courses he has taken over the past 3 years, which includes class notes and all readings (over 50 books). Please pray for him as he studies during these remaining two weeks. Pray for clarity of mind, analytical ability, strong memory, and the discernment to know when he just needs to stop, rest his brain, and go to bed each day. Thanks, and Much Love, Dan and Nancy

Street Kids Visit the Zoo in Costa Rica

2009-09-14T08:01:00.003-04:00

One of our favorite ministry partners is Amor en la Calle, the ministry with street kids and extremely-at-risk families in Costa Rica that is led by Edwin and Sonia Brenes. Here are some images they sent us of a day in August when they took a lot of teens from their ministry to a beautiful zoological park. For some of these young men and women, it was the first time they had ever seen any animals other than a dog or a cat. Sonia and Edwin used this visit as an opportunity to teach them that God is creator of all, and that He loves all His creation, including them (the teens). This is a critical message for them to hear, because they have been "taught" in so many ways that they are invaluable and worthless, rather than being taught that they are precious creatures of God whom He is calling back to Himself through Jesus Christ. We are very thankful for the opportunities we have to partner with Sonia and Edwin in their incredible ministry. Please pray for them, as you also to continue to pray for us. Much Love, Dan and Nancy

Great Visit, Excited about Healing Class

2009-09-09T20:54:00.002-04:00

We had a great visit with John and Tara in Athens this past weekend. It was such fun to stay with them and catch up with each other. We are thankful for their lives and ministries. We then went to a wedding in Cumming, and thoroughly enjoyed seeing James and Sharyn begin their new life together. This was followed by two nights and a day with our long-time friends Ralph and Donna. What a grace-gift it was to relax and do nothing for a day on Labor Day. The only thing we labored at was enjoying some good food. We are now back home, and Dan's new semester has started. He is thoroughly benefitting from his class on The Ministry and Practice of Christian Healing. After one class session, he can already discern that this course will be a strong source of blessing and impact for his teaching ministry in Venezuela. We pray that you are experiencing the healing grace of Jesus in your own life, as we are. Much Love, Dan and Nancy

Forgiveness and Reconciliation

2009-08-31T13:04:00.003-04:00

"Put on then, as God's chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive" (Colossians 3:12-13)
We had a great worship experience yesterday. Our pastor preached a very helpful sermon about forgiveness, and invited us to respond in a specific way to address relationships that the Spirit brought to mind. We are grateful for God's forgiveness for us as well as the Spirit's power to help us forgive others. Forgiveness in and through Christ is one of the most important messages we can share with our families, friends, and acquaintances, both here and abroad. As we partner with the Spirit to share this message in Venezuela, Costa Rica, and the States, we thank you for your partnership with us through prayer support and financial giving. God is a good and forgiving God, and it is a joy and privilege to be partners and friends with good and forgiving brothers and sisters in Christ. Much Love, Dan and Nancy

St. Louis and Other Things

2009-08-26T07:28:00.002-04:00

We had a great visit with Chris and Eleanor last weekend in St. Louis. They love the new apartment they've moved into, and it is located in a very nice section of town. There is a large park right across the street with a lot of shade trees and about 3 miles of walking/biking trails, plus a lot of open spaces for soccer and softball, etc. They are about a mile from a very nice Botanical Garden, and also very close to an Italian section of town featuring some wonderful little delis and restaurants. They are both doing well. Chris has begun his 3rd year of teaching 8th grade math, and Eleanor continues with her post-doctoral research position at Washington University.
This semester Dan is auditing a Spanish class at Asbury College (as distinct from Asbury Seminary), and that class began on Tuesday. He is also buckling down hard on studies for his upcoming qualifying exams. Nancy continues with her reading projects and with trying to keep Dan moderately straight :)
The Seminary semester begins in a couple weeks, during which Dan will be taking a course on Christian Healing, plus studying for and taking his qualifying exams, plus trying to write and defend the proposal chapter for his dissertation. Thank you for your continued prayers!

Chris and Eleanor !!!

2009-08-20T08:37:00.003-04:00

We are really looking forward to the opportunity this weekend to visit our oldest son, Chris, and his wife Eleanor (pictured on the left, with John and Tara on the right). We will drive to St. Louis tomorrow (Friday) and return to Wilmore on Monday.

This has been a bit of an active yet strange week for Dan. Monday he made some progress on his dissertation research and his qualifying exam review studies, but he didn't have 100% energy. Tuesday morning he had even less energy, both physically and mentally, so he took a mental-health day. What a blessing that was. In the afternoon, however, he was working on a firewood project, and while using the chainsaw his glasses slipped off his face and fell right into the chainsaw blade, putting a big nick in one of the lenses. We are thankful he wasn't hurt. Wednesday morning he cut the grass, but the dewpoint and humidity were much higher than he realized, so this wiped him out physically. He had to rest up before he could function at all, and then after lunch he had to take a nap. That afternoon a trip to the chiropractor brought great relief from a back issue that had been worsening. On the way home we stopped at the optometrist's office and discovered that his glasses are still under warranty (hurray!), which was a wondeful serendipitous surprise. With his back feeling better, he slept much better last night and seems to be back to normal strength today. He is going to work on finishing up the grading for the Theology of Evangelism course which he taught in Venezuela this summer, plus do some work on our next printed newsletter.

Nancy has had a great week doing some reading, tending to some of our household affairs, and enjoying good health. She was a little tired yesterday (Wednesday) but has bounced back quickly. We are both wondering if the heat/humidity just snuck up on us and zapped us. Anyway, we went for a pleasant but muggy walk this morning, and both had sufficient energy to do that, for which we are thankful. Today she will also be working on our next printed newsletter, plus bake some homemade bread to take to Chris and Eleanor.

As always, we thank you for your prayers and your giving, which support us in our ministry of serving Christ's Kingdom in the Americas. Much Love, Dan and Nancy

More Saving Grace

2009-08-13T11:25:00.002-04:00

The young woman pictured here on the left chose to begin her journey with Christ on July 12th at McEachern UMC, as we worshipped and preached there with the Latino congregation. What a joy to see the Spirit at work! Thank you for your prayers for us and our ministry. Much Love, Dan and Nancy

Grateful for Approved Dissertation Topic

2009-08-02T18:43:00.003-04:00

We are very very very grateful that God has finally led us to a dissertation topic for Dan that both he and his professors are excited about. This has been a frustrating 15-month process of thinking, praying, researching, experiencing much non-response from research queries, etc. Dan can now focus his energies on actually researching his topic instead of trying to simply select a topic. He is going to research the evangelistic implications of a Biblical theology that focuses on God as the source of full/vital life. Thanks for your continue love and prayers. Much Love, Dan and Nancy

Saving Grace

2009-07-30T10:33:00.003-04:00

This young woman became a Christ-follower in Venezuela in Pastor Antonio Toloza's church when Dan preached there back in June. We praise God for saving grace!