New staff members Nathan and Rachel Washer speak with Pastor Walton this week about becoming disciples, serving in Africa, and eventually coming to Guam.
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Episode Transcript
Chris Harper: Welcome to Harvest Time. My name is Chris Harper, and our host on this program is Pastor Gary Walton, the lead pastor of Harvest Baptist Church. Every week, we spend these twenty five minutes together telling you the stories of our church by interviewing our members and other friends of the ministry. We have two services at Harvest Baptist Church every week. You can join us at 08:45AM or 10:45AM on Sunday morning.
We have Japanese and Korean translation during the second service at 10:45. We also live stream that service at hbcguam.org. Hbcguam.org. This week, part two of what’s the big deal about the church. Let’s begin today’s harvest time by welcoming Pastor Gary Walton.
Hi, Pastor.
Gary Walton: Hey, hafa adai, Chris. Yeah. Two weeks ago, actually, we started this little series in August on the church and God’s plan for the church. And we talked about the fact that of how much Jesus loved the church and gave his life for it. And if Jesus loved the church so much, if he designed the church to be the vehicle that he was going to use for his will in the New Testament age, if God cared about it so much, then it makes sense that we ought to care about it as well and invest our lives in caring for it.
And so we’ve just been talking through very practically some ecclesiology, some foundations of the church that helps us what part that should play in our lives. And I’d like to invite you to come. I think you’ll be encouraged. We had a great first service or first message on this, and we’ll come back to it again this coming Sunday. Well, I’m really glad to have with us Pastor Nathan and Rachel Washer with us.
If you’ve been at Harvest, of course you’re going to know this story. If you’re just listening across the island, we want to introduce Pastor Nathan and Rachel to you. They’ve just come on island and have joined our pastoral team. Pastor Nathan has and our staff together. I’ll tell you a little bit about that.
God’s done a good work in the Washer’s life over a number of years and I think so many things that he’s used to prepare them for this ministry. So we’re so excited about it. Actually like to talk about it a little bit this morning. But first of all, welcome to Harvest Time, Pastor Nathan and Rachel.
Nathan Washer: Thank you very much, Pastor. It’s good to be here.
Gary Walton: And welcome to Guam. I mean a couple weeks, really, a little bit more than two weeks I think that you’ve been here for the permanent move and moved along with your youngest son. I’ll maybe ask you about that here in a minute. And, well, I already said this, I just feel like God’s been preparing you for this maybe your whole life. And it’s thrilling to have you here filling some very important roles for us and then praying that God would plant you here and use you mightily in the years to come.
We’re excited for that. Maybe we could start with just the whole background. I know people will want to know where you came from, what God’s done in your life, and maybe include part of your spiritual story. Or I can ask you about it as we go.
Nathan Washer: Sure. So I grew up in Africa. My parents were missionaries. So at the age of seven they went to Kenya where I spent ten years growing up as a missionary kid, pastor’s kid. I had heard the Gospel multiple times.
And I remember as a nine year old hearing the Gospel one more time, somebody had preached on the subject of hell. I knew deep in my heart that if I died, I would not be going to heaven. I had never made that decision for myself. I’d always raised my hand, said, Yes, I want to be saved because I wanted to please other people, but not because I wanted it for myself. And I didn’t go forward in the service, pushed that off, and God kept convicting me.
And finally I woke my mom up and took her she took me out to the living room and opened the word of God where she pointed out a verse in Revelation three twenty that says, Behold Christ is speaking, Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If any man hears my voice and opens the door, I will come into him and sup with him and he with me. And God opened the eyes of my understanding and I finally realized that I have to just hand this whole issue of salvation over to him. It’s called trust. And believe that if he said he had done everything on the cross to die for my sin, to take the penalty that I deserved of going to hell, and he suffered that for me because of his shed blood and accept that salvation, he would like the verse said, he would come into me.
He would give me that salvation. He promised he would. And as a nine year old I remember just letting that go and saying, Okay, I’m going to trust. And I went back to bed that night and I remember the fear that so dominated my life of death was gone. And there was a peace the Bible calls it the peace that passes all understanding and keeps our heart and mind through Christ Jesus was there.
I didn’t know what that was as a nine year old, but I felt it. I knew it was there. And salvation’s not a feeling. Feelings come and go. But it’s a fact.
It’s based on truth. And so
Gary Walton: Well, I just think the idea that, I mean, if the Holy Spirit comes to dwell in your life, which is exactly what the Bible says, you ought to feel that in some way.
Nathan Washer: Yes. Yes. Yeah. It didn’t mean every day I felt that way because some days I got sick or whatever. When I considered my salvation, there was a peace there that you can’t get any other way.
I continued growing up there, learned what it meant to serve God. God took my family then from Kenya and we moved down to Zambia. And I worked there for help my dad there start a church plant for three years. And it was there that God gave me an appetite for ministry. Up to that point, I was a junior in high school and I told God I’ll do anything you want me to do except be a missionary.
And I think God has a sense of humor because that’s what he ended up calling me to be. And the way he did that is he took a good friend of mine I worked with. He was a Zambian national named Divan. And Divan had got bitten by his dog at one point and ended up dying of rabies. And I remember watching him as he was in the hospital, a very rough time, but he kept saying goodbye to me and he would come around and he would point his finger at me and say, Nathan, instead of saying goodbye to me, would just say, Nathan, preach the word.
And he would forget he’d say that and come back around and do the same thing again. And I remember after the funeral reflecting back on that, and Divon knew he was about to meet God. Devon had the right priorities. I didn’t hate being a missionary, but I didn’t want to go through the sacrifice and doing without that my parents had done with that. I wanted the nice cars and the garage and the comfortable salary and all those things that I thought were going to bring me the satisfaction that I thought I craved.
But God brought me to a place where I understood, okay, once you die, all that’s gone. You don’t have that anymore. And so what’s it going to be like when you stand before God? And God says, okay, I gave my only begotten son for you, and I gave you some time to live for me. What’d you do with your time?
And at that point, my hands were pretty much empty. So I determined, told God, If you want me to be a missionary, I will. And the cool thing about it is that within a week, God had changed the desires of my heart. Psalm 37:4, “Delight yourself also in the Lord, so put him first, and he will give you the desires of your heart. God didn’t give me all those things I was living for.
He gave me a different desire. Now I was excited to go back to Africa, excited to take the Word of God. And so that was what I pursued in my education.
Gary Walton: Yeah, it’s really fantastic thinking about the ways that God transforms our thinking. And sometimes it takes a little bit of time and then other times when we surrender, submit to God, it really does. God transforms our desires and can be in short order. It’s a cool experience, you know, to have God give you such clarity in that way. Rachel, let’s catch you up into this picture, alright?
So actually both of you guys come from really cool ministry families, you and your brothers and all that. But tell us about, your spiritual story.
Rachel Washer: Okay. So I was born in a Christian home. There were nine of us kids and I grew up right in the middle. I had a twin brother. I can just remember at a very young age hearing the Gospel at my mom.
My mom’s knees just listening to, her tell me how to get to heaven, how I would know for sure I was saved. I remember making that decision. And, growing up, I was just very drawn to the Lord. I made an assurance of my salvation later on and the Lord called me to full time Christian service when I was about 12 years old. And then after that, just being able to trust in the Lord for different things that came up in our family situations, how we went through some difficult times where we had to trust the Lord, all of us, for the future and, going to Bob Jones for nursing school.
All of us kids did end up going there for college and many of us ended up on the mission field serving the Lord. It was just a neat time in our family’s life where we were all just excited about getting out there and serving the Lord. Some of us had different business jobs that they gave up and made that decision to follow Christ on the mission field.
Gary Walton: Well, you have three brothers in Micronesia, right?
Rachel Washer: Yes.
Gary Walton: And the church supports all three. So we know well John and Mark and Paul. Mark and Paul are in Yap and John’s been in Palau and now serving in some other areas. So you’ve had some familiarity, you know, via your brothers and their families with this part of the world, but never did you ever visit out here?
Rachel Washer: I went to Togo, West Africa after my senior year of college and graduation and went there for a month and helped out in a hospital out there in Adeyta. Just loved it. Knew God was calling me. But it wasn’t the right time. And then, just continued working and God brought Nathan into my life.
And then we just met and we just knew that that was what he wanted us to do.
Gary Walton: Tell me where the Rhonda story comes in. You’re good friends or in the past, very good friends with Rhonda. Rhonda Green
Rachel Washer: Yes. So it was my junior year, well sophomore junior, I met Rhonda and we studied together, we wrote care plans together during nursing school. We just went to the same church, but we just were just really good friends. And so we ended up this is crazy, but after graduation I can just remember going, somewhere. We we, swam to this island off Lake Kuehee.
But, yeah. And then we did crazy stuff together. So we went to Togo and served there and then just knew that God was calling us. Worked Barge campus Bob Jones Campus Hospital and then St. Francis together.
Gary Walton: Well I just think it’s so cool. I mean, of course Rhonda. Miss Rhonda is so loved here, served here in Guam for so many years. And to have that long term friendship reconnected, not that it went away, but to be able to serve together, I just think that’s an awesome part of this story. And then let me ask you, Rachel, about this too.
You have children, right? You and Nathan do. Tell us about your family.
Rachel Washer: Okay. So my oldest one is David and he is 25. He works at Eastside, St. Francis Eastside right now. My next one is Mark.
He’s 24 and he’s working as market marketer. He has works with brands. And then Joshua is he he was just married, in in July and he graduated with his photography degree this last May. Steven is going for his last semester at Bob Jones and he’ll be graduating in December and he’s also worked with Amazon as an intern there. But they all have they’re all just wanting to serve the Lord where they are locally in their church and just very involved with that.
Nathan Washer: Don’t forget John.
Rachel Washer: Oh, John, yes. He’s 15. John’s 15. He’s going to be going into Harvest. And he’s just he’s our last but not least.
Nathan Washer: Yes.
Gary Walton: So He’s great and we’re so glad that he’s here. Just think he’s gonna find his way. And there’s always the transition, but we’re so glad that John’s here. It’s gonna it’s gonna keep you guys connected, which is good, for you. So very thankful for that.
Fast forward, God brought you together, sent you back to Zambia. How long back in Zambia as missionaries?
Nathan Washer: So we had two sons, started raising support to go back to Zambia. And then, were in Zambia for ten years, I’m sorry, thirteen years, as a family, working there both in church planting. And then God burdened my heart for higher education, so I was able to, work with the school over there, Central Africa Baptist University, as they got off the ground and started their training. That was a big blessing. So working with a couple different church plants there.
And then God brought us back to The States in 2016. It was time for the boys to get into college and he just opened several doors for us to be able to do that. So worked at Bob Jones for the last ten years, got the older four through Bob Jones. Steven’s almost done, but he’s going to cover the last semester on his own. He just got married, so he’s not under dad’s roof anymore.
so it was very fascinating. We came over not only for our son’s education, but also my parents were retiring from the mission field, and so they lived with us, and we took care of them all the way until God took them home. So God took my dad home last August, last year. It’s been right at a year. And then, so that responsibility as of this summer was done.
Our sons were done with school as this summer, our responsibility of it. And God put in both of our hearts just a lack of peace about staying and keeping on doing what we were doing. It was time for a change. Just amazing how many things got lined up to open up the doors to be able to come here to Harvest. I think you were at Bob Jones at the missions conference and you just mentioned that you needed a nurse.
So I said, Okay, there’s a door, let’s just push on it. No idea what was going happen. So I went and met had an interview with you and it turns out that not only was there that job, but there was also a need on the Pastoral team. And that was unknown to me and just another piece that God put in place and just opened one door after another, gave us peace in our hearts. Our kids all gave the thumbs up and our counselors, we prayed about it.
God brought us here and here we are on the team trying to get adjusted.
Gary Walton: Yeah, yeah. Yeah, and we’re so thankful for that, for your willingness to listen to God’s voice and come. It’s been a perfect fit that God has allowed for us. As you guys went through that process, it’s a big move, right? You’ve got four kids in The States.
What was the big realization or the big burden that God used to confirm for you guys? Said there was a sense that you just didn’t have a settledness in staying there. But it’s another whole thing to say yes to Guam and to Harvest. What was the thing?
Rachel Washer: Well, we wanted to come here first and just kind of see what it was like. So we went ahead and booked just a trip. I guess it was seven days that we came over here. And then our itinerary was all laid out, what we were going to do every single day. And then God brought Typhoon Sinlaku over.
And we just could not believe it. When we had been reading, just a devotional that morning, how it was so specific, how our itinerary can be totally changed and it was God’s doing. And we looked at our schedule and we couldn’t believe it. Everything had been canceled. We were getting the campus ready for this typhoon.
And it was just so exciting to see God specifically just showing us, Yes, this is where we want you. So that was what it was for me for sure.
Gary Walton: Yeah, yeah.
Nathan Washer: I think on my end, I went back to what God called me to do when I was in college and some of the verses he used in the Word of God had me specifically in ministry. And when I went and was working at Bob Jones, there was a need there both for my parents as we honored them and took care of them and my kids getting those into school. But I wasn’t doing what I felt God made me to do. I had things that I had learned through ministry that I wasn’t using in The States. And so it was just a huge opportunity.
When you first mentioned a pastoral position, I was very taken aback, because I wasn’t necessarily looking for that. But when I saw that, okay, maybe God’s going to open this door for me, I was just overwhelmed at God’s goodness to let me get back into ministry and be able to do what he called me to do. So there was that. And Rachel’s job was changing and transitioning things that they were expecting of their nurses that were making it more difficult. She was looking for something different.
She’d been working nights and has for most of our life together. And it was just coming to a place where that needed to change. And so it’s just so many little details that God lined up to let us know it’s time to stop doing that and it’s time to start doing this. And it was clear in both of our minds.
Gary Walton: Always cool to see how God does that. I mean, so specific and usually not in the way that we think that’s going to happen on both sides. Spent those years, both local church, plant and then in training future ministry leaders. Central African Baptist College, right?
CABU?
Nathan Washer: I think of the university now, yes.
Gary Walton: Yep. Baptist University, right. CABU, right. I wanted to turn this a little bit. What have the believers in Zambia taught you about following Christ and about what really matters in the church?
Nathan Washer: You know, when I went there when I was 17, I got to be in charge of the youth group. And it young guys who were just coming out of sixth, seventh, eighth grade. And we made a soccer team, we had just a guy Sunday school class and got to work with them for three years. Fast forward past college, came back to Zambia working in the same church and those young men were now the young leaders in the church.
And I got to slip right back in alongside those men and learn from them, learn culture. They took me under their wing and they would one of them was getting married and he said, Come on, let’s show these traditions. And he would walk me through and let me attend some of those events. Stood out like a sore thumb, but they were very gracious and understanding. And just the patience.
When I became I was senior pastor for about three years out there with them, and my job was to get ready get the national pastor ready to take my spot. And it was a joy to work with him as an assistant pastor. And then when the church voted him in, we switched places. So I was his assistant pastor and focused more on the Bible College at that point. But it was a joy being able to serve under him and to see him lead, take that, and the church has just grown and expanded, he’s filled in at the Bible College as well.
He’s one of their teachers, and God has just done some tremendous things through those men. So it’s just been a blessing to see my dad pour his life into those young men, to have a small part of that in myself and then see the many, many people that God has impacted as a result of their ministry. So when we have the opportunity to pour into another person’s life, we can never predict what God’s going to do with that and the effect that’s going to have on eternity. I got the privilege of seeing a little glimpse of what my dad’s investment did in the lives of so many people and is still doing to this day. It’s a challenge and encouragement to me too.
Gary Walton: Yeah, that’s so good. Yeah, very, very encouraging. Rachel, you’re stepping into a very different kind of ministry as a school nurse. You were, tell me again, a charge nurse at a hospital. Is that how you described it?
Rachel Washer: Yes. On 9th Floor of the Rehab Floor.
Gary Walton: Night shift.
Rachel Washer: Night shift
Gary Walton: I mean just a pretty high pace, high energy. Okay, so all of that. So this is different. The nurse, a school nurse at HCA. How do you see caring for students physically as an opportunity to care for them personally, spiritually?
What are you looking forward to in this new role for you?
Rachel Washer: I’m looking to just be able to help them where they are, meet them where they are, find out how their day’s going, just showing them a lot of love and always being available for a listening ear and for, just a healing touch. I want to be that person for them, that they can always feel like they can approach and talk to me if they have something that they’re going through or anything like that.
Gary Walton: I think God’s going to use you powerfully there. I’m looking forward to that. So all these years of ministry, raising a family, moving across continents a couple times now, now beginning again on Guam, tell me about your relationship with Jesus and about what he has done, ways that he’s become more precious to you than he was twenty years ago. What’s Jesus, what’s God done in your life?
Nathan Washer: I’ve been so thankful to as I’ve gotten to know God more and more to understand both his grace and his mercy. His mercy and his willingness to forgive. I Am a my kids will tell you I’ve got a black belt in bitterness. I can hold onto grudges pretty strong and I have to work a lot on that.
But once I take that same standard and compare it to what God’s done for me, I’ve got nothing left to stand on because God has forgiven me again and again and again. And I was just thinking through Romans this week just on how much the gift of God has done for us in making us children of God and how the old man has been crucified. It’s not something we have to worry about anymore. We still wrestle with the flesh, but that’s all taken care of because of Jesus Christ and his work on the cross. Understanding more and more day by day his mercy, but then his grace, which I would define as his just the strength that he gives us to do what he calls us to do.
So mercy is covering the bad side of things, what areas I don’t measure up. And grace is giving me the strength to move forward, to do things I wouldn’t be able to do without him anyway. Couldn’t possibly glorify him without his touch in my life. I think within the past several years, just my own personal devotions has become sweeter and sweeter. We had a challenge earlier this week on hungering and thirsting after righteousness.
And there was a point in my life where I had to ask God to give me that hunger and thirst. And he did. And the place that I was satisfied was in my own time with God in the mornings when I was able to open God’s word and the Holy Spirit just helped me understand what those words meant to me and how I could rely on him more and who he is and all his different characteristics mean so much as you think about them and how they apply to my life day by day. That’s probably been my biggest area of growth is just learning to be satisfied with him and my time with him in the mornings has gotten so much sweeter.
Gary Walton: I love that. Rachel, anything that you’d add to that?
Rachel Washer: Just the brevity of life, because as we cared for Nathan’s parents on the 1st Floor of our house, you know, it’s just we only have a certain amount of time left. And what are we doing for Christ? And also, I’ve been keeping like a prayer, like not a prayer journal, more of a praise journal and just seeing how God has just really answered prayers. Every year at the end of the year, December 31, I like to go back through and read it with our family. It’s just amazing to see God’s answers to prayer that we’ve prayed specifically for.
Gary Walton: It’s a great idea. Might be an encouragement for somebody to begin that praise journal. Sometimes we pray and we forget. Once God’s answered it, we have a tendency to move on. You know, it’s kind of past.
Man, it’s so important for us to go back and remember. You guys, I’m so thankful that you’re here in fifteen seconds. New chapter, new season of ministry for you. What are you most excited about?
Nathan Washer: I’m excited about seeing what God’s do both doing here and the opportunity we have to we, Rachel and I, have to join a team that’s effectively serving God and try and just lift our end of of the stick and make this happen so we can glorify God better together.
Gary Walton: Amen. I love it. Anything you want to add, Rachel?
Rachel Washer: Just looking forward to meeting people and being able to spend time with each one, one on one.
Gary Walton: We’re glad God brought you guys here. So thankful for his leading, which has been so evident in your life and been evident for us. And, you know, our dream burden, our vision is that God would connect us together in such a way that we would strengthen each other, fill in our weaknesses. The fact that God’s brought you here, you know, one Corinthians 12 says that this body needed you. We needed the gifts that you have, the ways that God’s wired you.
We needed you. And and also means that you needed us. You needed this. And I love that. I can’t, I can’t wait to see what God’s gonna do.
So thanks for joining us here today. Look forward. We’ll have you back again sometime. It’d be like the one year catch up. And, that’s good.
Welcome to Guam, you guys. Thanks. Thank you.
Chris Harper: And thank you for listening to Harvest Time, of course, at this point in the program. We always wanna personally invite you again to services at Harvest Baptist Church, 08:45AM, 10:45AM, Sunday. We have Japanese and Korean translation during that 10:45AM service. We also bring you that service live on 88.1FM and khmg.org. We hope to see you this Sunday.
Thanks again for listening to Harvest Time.