Archive - July, 2010

Anyone, Anywhere Can Help

July 31, 2010 in church planting, Family, Mission with 3 Comments

There is a great organization that my family is affiliated with called His Commission. They are committed to helping missionaries, pastors and church leaders spread the gospel to all nations. His Commission was started by Byron Britain as a way to utilize his business gifting (selling vehicles) for the cause of Christ around the world. He owns Britain Chevrolet in Greenville, TX. I know Mr. Britain and have done business with him and can attest to his integrity and his love for the Lord and the church. Through His Commission Mr. Britain is committed to giving the commission on any vehicle sale to the missionary that recommends people to his business. That means, if you purchase a vehicle from them Mr. Britain will pass along his commission on the sale to the missionary and the sending agency who sent them. This is huge for those who have to raise their support.

With the advent of the web and the popularity of vehicle websites someone can purchase a car from anywhere in the United States and have it delivered to their doorstep. I have observed how people purchase vehicles online with complete confidence they are getting a fair and honest deal. Through His Commission purchasing a vehicle of any make or model is possible, not just a Chevrolet. For those who are skeptical of purchasing a vehicle online Byron will put your fears to rest. You will deal directly with Mr. Britain, the owner of the dealership.

Here is an opportunity for you to be involved in partnering with the Goen’s as we move to Belgium. If you are looking for a new or used vehicle call, email, visit their website or go and see Byron Britain at Britain Chevrolet.  Please tell them that Kyle Goen recommended you purchase with Byron Britain through His Commission and you want the Goen’s to receive the commission.

Thanks Byron for your heart for the Lord and the nations. Thank you friends for helping out from anywhere and everywhere in the United States.

Raising Global Christ-Followers pt.2

July 30, 2010 in Family, Influence, missional, Sending Church with 3 Comments

I previously wrote about raising our children to be global Christians. Here is the completion of my article.

In addition to her suggestions we implemented some ideas of our own that have made a tremendous impact on our family. These suggestions have influenced our thinking about being a global Christian rather than just a North American Christian.

  1. We looked for people who were serving Christ in our community and around the world and hosted them in our home so our kids could meet them. We wanted our kids to hear God-sized stories about serving God in a context different than our own.
  2. As a family we would get involved with local outreach ministry opportunities that would expose them to living a missional life. My wife and I wanted our children to understand that ministry was more than Sunday morning.
  3. Our family has tried to make friends with people from other cultures living in the United States. When we lived in Houston, we lived on a cul-de-sac that was home to a Filipino family, a Chinese family, a Jewish single lady, and a Buddhist family. Our children learned early on that people worship differently than our family did. We would explain to our kids that the gospel was for all people, all nations, all races and tribes.
  4. We led our children to be involved in mission education in our local church. The experiences they received in our home were undergirded by the mission education they received through our children’s ministry in the local church.
  5. We made a commitment to give an annual gift to our church-wide mission offering that was taken up each Christmas. We explained that our offering was a gift that would help international missionaries accomplish the work God had called them to do. Our offering was equal to or greater than the most expensive gift(s) we would exchange during the Christmas season. This made a huge impression on our kids and us.
  6. Lastly, we made a commitment as parents to take our kids on an international mission trip before each one moved into middle school. We felt it was important to expose them to other global Christians and to expose them to what living on mission internationally was like for other followers of Christ. Our trips together have been so beneficial for our children and our family. The decision has meant much sacrifice for our family but we have never regretted our decision.

All of these activities and decisions have had a cumulative effect on our kids. There is no way for me to narrow down the list and say “this one thing” made all the difference. Keeping our children consistently exposed to global Christianity has made me a better and more well rounded follower of Christ. He has changed my thinking, living and serving in the process of leading my family. We are not perfect nor do we have raising global Christ followers figured out. I am thankful for people like the Piper’s who exposed us and mentored us to having a higher vision for raising and growing our children into global followers of Christ.

Raising Global Christ-Followers pt.1

July 29, 2010 in Family, Influence, missional, Sending Church with 2 Comments


There have been families throughout the years that my wife and I have tried to watch from afar and let them mentor us in what it means to be a Christian family. We looked for and found a family to help us develop our children into “global followers of Christ.”  When I speak about being a “global follower of Christ,” I am referring to someone who has a bigger vision and idea of what it means to follow Christ outside of the context in which they live.

One of the families that has mentored us in developing a global Christian mindset is John and Noel Piper. Noel Piper has written an article that influenced my wife and me tremendously concerning developing our children to think as a global Christian.Some of the ideas she listed in her article included subscribing to National Geographic magazine, reading missionary biographies together, putting missionary family pictures around for the family to see and pray for and teaching your children that America is not the only God-made country in the world.

What strategies are you utilizing to raise your kids to enlarge their view of global Christianity?

Part 2 tomorrow.

Paul the Missionary

July 28, 2010 in church planting, missional, Sending Church with 0 Comments

I have been reading Paul the Missionary by Eckhard J. Schnabel for the past year. Literally, it has taken me this long to work through the book and try to digest what I am reading. It has been challenging and interesting from a practical standpoint in light of the fact my family is about to move to another country and plant roots. Attempting to learn for the biblical example of the Apostle Paul has been a very rewarding endeavor.

Though I am not quite finished with the book I am wondering what other books have you found beneficial for living a “on purpose” intentional Christ-centered life in front of your neighbors and friends?

Where Have I Been???

July 28, 2010 in Uncategorized with 0 Comments

Great question.

Life has been going 110 miles an hour trying to prepare for our transition to Belgium. While we have been working our way through all of the checklist items the blog has gotten lost. I am hopeful that I can get myself back in gear and start engaging the keyboard more and putting my thoughts into words.

Thanks for hanging in there with me and being patient.