Discover Grace Blog

The Smell of Death and the Aroma of Christ: Tom Little

The smell of death and the aroma of Christ

Like martyr Tom Little, we carry both | Mindy Belz

AFP Photo/Handout/Courtesy of Tom Little Family/Newscom

Sometime after Taliban affiliates gunned down Tom Little in northern Afghanistan, the FBI visited his wife Libby to give her personal items recovered from his body.

Included was a small notebook, and in between the pages listing medical equipment and supplies for the team he led to the upper reaches of Nuristan province last summer were what looked like penciled sermon notes. "They were stained with blood and blotted with sand," said Libby, carefully unfolding them before an audience of several thousand at Cape Town's Lausanne Congress on World Evangelization in October. "Were these some of the things he shared with the team on that last Sabbath rest before they were killed? I'd like to think so."

There were several notations from Ephesians and a reference from 2 Corinthians 2:15, where Tom wrote, "For we are to God the aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing, to one we are the smell of death and to the other the fragrance of life." To the side Tom had jotted, "Use the Nuristani goat cheese story."

As Libby explained, "Some aromas take some getting used to," and Nuristani goat cheese is packed on donkeys in animal skins and carried for weeks, permeating even the saddlebags with its strong sour scent. Herdsmen who carry it are smelled from far off, she added, but once you have acquired a taste for it, you're hooked. Folks travel miles for a taste of Nuristani goat cheese.

Think of Tom Little with his colleagues, hiking mountains and fording rivers in Nuristan and Badakhshan provinces last August, reeking of Christ as they delivered medical care to remote villages—before militants killed them one by one in a forest. The Taliban accused them of spying and proselytizing. Dirk Frans, the head of their organization, International Assistance Mission, insisted both charges were "out of the question" as they were "against the laws of this country and the rules of our organization."

What Frans didn't say is that those accusations were beside the point, the aroma of Christ already so strong among them. Little, a 61-year-old optometrist, had worked four decades in Afghanistan, spoke fluent Dari, was referred to among Afghans as one of "the ones who stayed": He and Libby reared three daughters there, survived the Russian occupation, civil war, and Taliban takeover. When a rocket attack flattened one of his eye hospitals, he built clinics and expanded into remote areas. He was on his fifth trip to the Nuristan region when he and nine other aid workers were killed Aug. 5.

The year 2010 has brought multiple encounters with people like the Littles, "ones who stayed," men and women of whom the world is not worthy, as the writer of Hebrews calls them. One is Joel, pastor of an evangelical church in Baghdad. Asked how to pray for a congregation that has faced death all year long, he didn't ask for safety or prosperity but for his church to experience deliverance from a "spirit of religion, where we worship creation instead of the creator" and from "our spirit of pride, rooted as we are so close to ancient Babylon."

Another, Baptist pastor John Bell in Zimbabwe, told me that living through dire crises has taught his church better to appreciate the reality of Jesus' life. Feeding 5,000 or walking on water are sought-after traits when grocery shelves are empty. "There are certain things about Christ you only learn in a storm. That has been our privilege here to have Christ manifest Himself in ways that you do not see in the calm," he said.

And there is my friend Labib, an Arab Christian living in a Jewish settlement facing the security wall that separates Israel from the West Bank. How do you survive this place? I asked him one day waiting in Jerusalem traffic. "The importance of the Christian community does not come from its numbers but from our presence and our service and our witness for Jesus Christ," he said calmly.

Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us run with endurance the race set before us in 2011, looking to Jesus.

From:   http://www.worldmag.com/articles/17439

Martin Luther & Football

It is not a new story -- pundits and the populace are abuzz with the latest sports (football) melodrama.    At stake is the reputation and eligibility of a young sport star.   Perhaps we are too quick with our judgments, but we do not need to look far for examples of wrong doing.  And that makes it easy to come to a quick conclusion, without all the facts, and assume guilt. Yet, we live in a world with much compromise -- in sports, in politics and in people around us; there is so much inconsistency that nothing really surprises us anymore. 

 

Then we look to the Reformation and find a man of deep conviction, a man without compromise.  I was recently gripped with an account of Martin Luther, the Father of the Reformation, standing strong in the transforming power of the Gospel.   Facing certain death from his persecutors at the Diet of Worms  he was told he must recant.  His response?   “I cannot and will not recant anything, for to go against conscience is neither right nor safe. Here I stand, I can do no other, so help me God. Amen.”  He did not compromise, even when faced with death.  Michael Reeves draws the reader into the historical moment as he outlines these events in his excellent book, The Unquenchable Flame: Discovering the Heart of the Reformation. 

 

How did  Luther have so much integrity?  Why would he go against the teaching of the Church?  Why leave the comfort of “popular thought?”  Why make waves?  Luther had been gripped by Romans 1:17,  “For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is written, ‘The righteous shall live by faith.’” 

 

God took hold of Luther’s heart and transformed him from a man with questions to a man who had answers.  He was a man who sought a way to remove his own guilt, and was transformed into a man with a clear conscience as He understood the Gospel of Christ.  He had received Christ’s forgiveness and righteousness from “Christ alone,” through “faith alone,” by “God’s Grace alone,” as he learned through “Scripture alone.”  Truly his story was a story that God was weaving for “his glory alone.”  (The Latin word for alone is “sola” and these phrases are known as the “Five Solas” of the Protestant Reformation.)

 

So, are there any righteous?  Are there any who seek God?  The third chapter of Romans (as quoted from Psalm 14 and 53) is abundantly clear: “None is righteous, no, not one; no one understands; no one seeks for God.  All have turned aside; together they have become worthless; no one does good, not even one.”   Luther knew that his righteousness in Christ was alien to his flesh.  It was a gift of God.  This transformed him into a righteous man who lived by faith.  In a day and age when we are constantly disappointed by both the actual and alleged failures of sports stars, I pray that you and I will be called all the more to live godly, consistent, unequivocal lives of integrity for the glory of Christ.   This is the result of a heart that is changed by the power of the Gospel.

Wisdom I Wish Every Christian Knew

“Only What’s Done For Christ Will Last” - Charles Thomas Studd

One of my favorite all-time poems:

Two little lines I heard one day, Traveling along life’s busy way; Bringing conviction to my heart, And from my mind would not depart; Only one life, ’twill soon be past, Only what’s done for Christ will last.

Only one life, yes only one, Soon will its fleeting hours be done; Then, in ‘that day’ my Lord to meet, And stand before His Judgment seat; Only one life, ’twill soon be past, Only what’s done for Christ will last.

Only one life, the still small voice, Gently pleads for a better choice; Bidding me selfish aims to leave, And to God’s holy will to cleave; Only one life, ’twill soon be past, Only what’s done for Christ will last.

Only one life, a few brief years, Each with its burdens, hopes, and fears; Each with its clays I must fulfill, living for self or in His will; Only one life, ’twill soon be past, Only what’s done for Christ will last.

When this bright world would tempt me sore, When Satan would a victory score; When self would seek to have its way, Then help me Lord with joy to say; Only one life, ’twill soon be past, Only what’s done for Christ will last.

Give me Father, a purpose deep, In joy or sorrow Thy word to keep; Faithful and true what e’er the strife, Pleasing Thee in my daily life; Only one life, ’twill soon be past, Only what’s done for Christ will last.

Oh let my love with fervor burn, And from the world now let me turn; Living for Thee, and Thee alone, Bringing Thee pleasure on Thy throne; Only one life, ’twill soon be past, Only what’s done for Christ will last.

Only one life, yes only one, Now let me say, ’Thy will be done”; And when at last I’ll hear the call, I know I’ll say ’twas worth it all’; Only one life, ’twill soon be past, Only what’s done for Christ will last.’

Dr. Tom Little - A Modern Martyr (UPDATED)

Yesterday morning I was reading the news and was shocked to see a name I recognized.  It is a story that I was have dismissed in my mind as a tragedy and then moved on to bigger things.   "Dr. Tom Little" for  Delmar NY.  So close to my hometown.  A missionary supported from my home church (1st Presbyterian, Schenectady, NY).  A man I had the privilege to meet a few times growing up.  A man that served people & his Lord well.  A man that in the face of the threats of wars and violence, stayed to serve.  Even threatened with death threats, he persevered.  I trust that today he has a place of honor in Glory.

If you came across this blog, Christian or not, I would encourage you to take the time to check out these articles about him (and remember to pray for the families):

Cnn.com visitins with Libby Little: A Hundred Rockets a Day

Vii Photo - Pictures of His Ministry

Times Union: Violent End to Life of Caring

Added 8/9/10 -- Coverage of Libby, his wife:

Widow of Afghan Vicitim is Not Angry

Only By His Grace

Please take a moment to hear this amazing story. Oh, that we might trust Christ like this:

Miley's Days as a Positive Role Model Long Gone - Jonathan McKee

Jonathan McKee writes an insightful article about Miley Cyrus' transformation from a child star to a teen/adult, sex star.  It is quite sickening to consider how this transformation, undoubtedly through a lot of pressure by business execs, will dramatically impact young women (and men) throughout the country with more normalization of provocative dress, dance, and lyrics.  The sexualization of a star is something we have seen before...it is a scary formula for a increased cultural decay.  

What is even more disturbing is that Miley & her family have claimed to be followers of Jesus Christ.  How could a (Christian) father prostitute out his daughter like this?!  No doubt partly a victim, Miley is now old enough to make decisions herself.  She is making bad ones.  Is this what Christian faith looks like?  Is this what Christ call us to?  The answer is clearly 'yes' to the millions of American students (fans / and non-fans alike).

Article

The Glory of Plodding - Kevin DeYoung

A most excellent article about the purpose & necessity of the Church in a Christian's life.   Please take the time to read it:

It’s sexy among young people — my generation — to talk about ditching institutional religion and starting a revolution of real Christ-followers living in real community without the confines of church. Besides being unbiblical, such notions of churchless Christianity are unrealistic. It’s immaturity actually, like the newly engaged couple who think romance preserves the marriage, when the couple celebrating their golden anniversary know it’s the institution of marriage that preserves the romance. Without the God-given habit of corporate worship and the God-given mandate of corporate accountability, we will not prove faithful over the long haul.

Here is the rest of the article: http://www.ligonier.org/learn/articles/glory-plodding/

Pastor Matt Chandler's Desire to Suffer Well

Keep praying for him....great AP coverage of his suffering...yet his only goal is to bring glory to God.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100131/ap_on_re/us_rel_the_pastor_s_cancer_1

Matt Chandler - Don't Waste Your Tumor

I posted a great video a few days ago from Matt Chandler.  He posted this video to his church prior to going in for brain surgery.  It is worth your time:

The Village Church