Present but pressing forward
In his letter to the church in Philippi, Paul writes that “I have not yet reached my goal, and I am not perfect. But Christ has taken hold of me. So I keep on running and struggling to take hold of the prize. My friends, I don’t feel I have already arrived. But I forget what is behind, and I struggle for what is ahead. I run toward the goal, so I can win the prize of being called to heaven. This is the prize God offers because of what Christ Jesus has done. All of us who are mature should think in this same way. And if any of you think differently, God will make it clear to you. But we must keep going in the direction that we are now headed” (Phil 3:12-16 CEV).
There is lot that resonates with me in this passage, both in general and specifically in the season we are in at the moment. We are missionaries of Home Ground Church sent to serve with OM because the goal of making disciples of all nations has not yet been reached. We are completing courses and raising more partnership so that we can take up our places in making disciples of all nations. We are longing to start caring for missionaries and supporting and challenging the church in Austria, because the whole church is not yet involved in taking the whole gospel to the whole world.
This time of home assignment, an in-between time in very many ways, has been full of blessing. We have thoroughly enjoyed sharing how God has been using us with our church, in the main services, with the kids in children’s church and with lifegroups. We have been able to connect well with family and friends and gain a better firsthand understanding of how our home church has been challenged and shaped by the COVID pandemic. I (John) have been able to use what I learnt and experienced in the Personnel Department on Logos Hope to support the OM South Africa Personnel Team as they go through a stretching and challenging season of low manning and decisions about leadership.
This time of home assignment has been good, but it’s a temporary place as we strive towards what is ahead. There are those that have not yet heard of Jesus. There is work for us to do! God has relationships and roles, conversations and conferences, escape rooms and outreaches, people and places that He wants to us to be engaging in. We have a place and purpose ahead that we need to step into so that more of the church will be supported, challenged and invited along in the unfinished work of the whole world coming to know Him.
Timeline & Targets Update
In our previous update, we shared in some detail the targets and (hoped for) timeline as we work towards serving with OM in Austria.
Prayer Partnership
We now have about 40 people receiving specific prayer updates. We are so grateful for this and know that we will need this prayer support as we serve in a place that isn’t as spiritually vibrant as HomeGround or Logos Hope. These updates will focus on more sensitive personal and ministry prayer needs and praise points. You can join The Benns Prayer Place if you would like to partner with us in this way.
Financial Partnership
In our last update we shared that we aim to have 100% of our support by 1 June (and need 80% to start the visa application process). We are excited to share that we are currently at just over 73%, with more conversations ahead with potential partners. We could reach our target by having just 27 people commit to 1% (R750/€45) per month. But we have partners contributing from R50 to a few thousand… so there is no amount too big or too small.
If you would like to partner with us you can find more information on our giving page or connect with us. We’d love to have a conversation about what’s involved in partnership.
4 months to go
In addition to the progress with prayer and financial partnership, we have received unabridged birth certificates that we applied for and confirmation that we have an apartment that we can rent in an ideal part of Linz.
In a little more than a month we will be doing our A1 German exam, which we need along with a marriage certificate and Police Clearance Certificates to apply for our visas.
We believe we are still on track to join the OM team in Austria in September.
In His light and love,
Zippy, Dané, Cori and Lily
The Benns 