AFRICA: “The Church is the Pillar of Truth”
VOMRadio
The Voice of the Martyrs
4.9 • 1.4K Ratings
🗓️ 30 July 2022
⏱️ 35 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Sean Paton enrolled in university to study pastoral ministry. But on the first day of his first class, the professor challenged students to think more broadly, to consider if God was calling them to take His love to people who hadn’t yet heard the name of Christ. Sean left class that day and changed his major to missions—and ever since he’s seen and lived a direct link between pastoral and missionary work.
In recent years Sean has led VOM’s work serving Christians on the continent of Africa. Now he’s transitioning back into a pastoral role with an American congregation. Listen as he shares some of the stories he’ll take with him—like the story of meeting the wife and children of a long-imprisoned Eritrean pastor and being inspired by their faithfulness. Sean will tell how persecuted Christians like these impacted his own faith and understanding of the gospel.
He will also encourage listeners to pray—with specific ideas on how to pray for VOM’s international staff that travel extensively and deal often with suffering and pain. Sean encourages pastors to incorporate our persecuted brothers and sister’s stories within their church services, such as during communion or prayer time, as weekly reminders that we are one body in Christ.
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Sean Patton reminds us the church is far more than just a building the church is the pillar |
| 0:06.1 | and support of the truth the church is how God makes known the manifold wisdom of Christ to |
| 0:12.4 | the rulers and authorities in the heavenly places and it's the church's job to be on mission |
| 0:19.9 | Jesus never promised his followers an easy path in fact he told his disciples that the world |
| 0:25.6 | would hate them he sent them out as sheep among wolves Jesus' words came true in the life of the |
| 0:31.6 | apostles and they're still coming true today in the lives of his followers around the world |
| 0:36.7 | join host Todd Nettleton as we hear their inspiring stories and learn how we can help |
| 0:41.6 | right now on the Voice of the Martyrs Radio Network welcome again to the Voice of the Martyrs |
| 0:46.3 | Radio my name is Todd Nettleton we're in the studio this week with Sean Patton |
| 0:50.4 | Sean has served as our Africa regional leader for the last several years |
| 0:55.6 | he has previously been a guest here on VOM radio and he is right in the midst of a transition |
| 1:02.0 | and we're going to talk about that transitioning out of VOM and back into pastoral ministry which is |
| 1:08.4 | what he was doing before he came to work here at VOM so we will talk about that Sean welcome |
| 1:14.4 | back to Voice of the Martyrs Radio thanks Todd thanks for having well I I wrote at the top of my |
| 1:19.6 | notes that this is your exit interview so I'm sure you probably had an exit interview with HR |
| 1:24.4 | and handed in your keys and all of those things this is going to be a little different but I want to |
| 1:29.7 | start out when you came to work at VOM you came out of a pastoral role here in an American church |
| 1:37.5 | what was it about coming to work at VOM that you thought oh I really want to do that I'm |
| 1:42.7 | really excited about doing that yeah well maybe I'll start a little bit further back so my life |
| 1:47.4 | I just feel like has always been intertwined with pastoral ministry admissions and this goes all |
| 1:52.7 | the way back to college my major in college was pastoral ministry my very first class in college |
| 1:57.9 | was introduction to pastoral ministry I walk in that class I sit down on my desk we had a very |
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