Sharing the Treasure: A Story Bigger Than We Are

This isn’t our story.

In that we rejoice! God calls us not to write the plot, but to be faithful in the roles to which He has called us in His glorious plan to redeem people from all nations. His grand purpose of salvation depends not on our ability, knowledge or skill but on Him, and for that we praise Him.

As I reflect on the past year—a time when the word “unprecedented” has become cliché—I am especially thankful for this truth. Were the success of the story up to us, it would surely have been derailed.

But, as we have so clearly seen, the Author is not limited or phased by the challenges that leave us crippled and confused. He is the One who declared to Isaiah:

“for I am God, and there is no other;

    I am God, and there is none like me,

declaring the end from the beginning

    and from ancient times things not yet done,

saying, ‘My counsel shall stand,

    and I will accomplish all my purpose.’” (Isaiah 46:9b-10 ESV)

In spite of—and often through—hurdles that seem insurmountable from a human perspective, our gracious Lord is weaving an epic narrative of redemption throughout the nations and across time. This interconnected story began long before Christar and reaches far beyond the scope of our ministry. Yet, as God creates access for the gospel and draws people into His family, we praise Him that He calls us not only to be witnesses of His divine story but to participate in the transformation He is bringing about in least-reached communities.

This call extends to every believer, and every part of Christ’s body has a role to play. Our good and sovereign God works through the collective efforts of His people to build His Church where it doesn’t yet exist, and He does so in ways that far exceed our own capabilities.

Our 2020 Annual Update is a celebration of the many ways the Lord has worked through His Body to tell His story. It’s a testimony of God’s faithfulness in accomplishing His purposes, and I encourage you to read it and take heart in how He has worked through you, as a part of His Church, to bring about transformation in least-reached communities.

As we considered the roles the Lord has sought fit for us to play in His great work of redemption among the nations, we give thanks that He moves through us to tell His great story of salvation. And we praise Him that this story is bigger than we are.

Dr. Steve Coffey, Director of Christar U.S., began work with Christar in 1989. He and his wife, Beth, initially served among North African immigrants in France. In 2001, they returned to the U.S. for Steve to lead the Christar Church Planting Division. In 2005 he became Director of Christar. Before serving with Christar, the Coffeys worked for a year in a humanitarian project in the Red Sea hills of Sudan among the Beja people. Dr. Coffey’s education includes an undergraduate degree in history education from Liberty University, a Master of Divinity from Liberty Baptist Theological Seminary and a Doctor of Strategic Leadership from Regent University. The Coffeys have three children and four grandchildren.