iAsk: Marco Tant, Missionary to Italy with International Gospel Outreach {PART 2}

Every Monday I will be posting new interviews with Christian leaders to find in-depth counsel on issues such as ministry, family, careers, politics, finance, and theology. Today's in-depth interview is PART 2 with career missionary to Italy, Marco Tant. Marco and I met at a men's discipleship event earlier this year and have been building our personal relationship since then . Marco's sending and covering agency is International Gospel Outreach located in Semmes, Alabama. This interview is TWO parts. The detailed responses from the seven questions I asked Marco will give readers and a real in-depth look inside a missionary's life.

Marco Tant -Missionary to Italy

 Paul: 4. Tell us more about your work in Italy. Often when thinking about beautiful European countries like that, one may wonder if it should really be called "missions". I know the Lord is doing something deep within the Italians and sending them off to plant churches. Share with us the most up to date ministry happening in Italy among the brethren and churches? 
Marco: Wow, another big question! Europe is on its way back in my opinion and not that it is happening fast but rather a deep movement. Europe has so few Christians statistically and foreigners with their own religious beliefs are flooding in by the masses from the Middle East. So much so that America will not be the only "melting pot" as Europe is following right behind it and fast. We have Muslims that are taking over areas as their own with medical services, finding themselves in danger for simply entering to help other injured Muslims. The great part about it all is that we are able to reach the people groups that are too hard and dangerous to reach in their own cultures. Europe needs help and hope that those who are reading this who have not answered the call will do so simply because God has no plan “B” to missions. People cry out to God for their nations and God calls you but if you don’t go than their prayers go unanswered.

Our work is almost everything since the need is so great in Italy and help is scarce (90% drop out rate for missionaries). We purposefully lace everything we do to be indigenous as we empower local believers and churches to believe God and not just the American arm of the church. I could go into a very long and detailed explanation of all the incredible needs and how we fill in those gaps but I will rather hit on just a few. We partner with local churches, the few that be, in a sense of treasure hunting to know where they are and how we can work with them. In a partnership relationship, we are invited into the church to teach and preach, hold leadership conferences, model discipleship, empower evangelism corporately, personally, and work with church leadership in reshaping the church structure to create churches that are not a place where a pastor vents from a pulpit but rather a place where members are built up, encouraged, discipled and empowered to reach others. The overall success in our ministry is that teaching is coupled with providing and encouraging an atmosphere where people encounter the tangible presence of God; otherwise teaching just entertains the brain rather than transforming a life.   

The overall environment is changing in Italy since the internet is increasingly being used to watch what God is doing through people all over the world. Like anything else, some of that has been very good and other experiences have been very very bad. The positive is that new ideas, that are scripturally accurate and Godly, have challenged this once closed society and is beginning to create hunger. I am so grateful being on the ground and helping them wade through the good and the not so good. It is a tool that we use and encourage continuously as Italians are seeing God move mightily in revivals and amongst believers in ways that are scriptural but rather unknown in the Italian context.  There are still many incredible challenges that break our hearts continuously but we have seen small changes over the last seven years that have encouraged both us and our Italians. We are home incinerating right now and purposefully building relationships of which will provide leaders a platform to come to Italy to help provide needed teaching and modeling through conference type meetings which is extremely needed in Italy. Furthermore, we have purchased a home for $13,000 near the Birmingham, Alabama area of which we will use to bring Italians back once a year for training. Missions is an investment and we are encouraged to see how much fruit is being produced the longer we are on the field and harder we work towards revival in Italy.

 Paul: 5. Discouragement is a common tool the enemy uses to diffuse kingdom work among laborers in the Lord's field. Can you give some personal stories of how you encountered discouragement and ways you found to battle it away? 

Marco:  It is true in that discouragement can overcome people in ministry! We have a saying in our house that we "take negatives and create positives.” We purposefully look at life this way to know that any setbacks can be redeemed for the Lord as well as understanding that even though there are things we cannot see, God is doing things behind the scenes in peoples heart that takes time. If I live by the negative than I respond by the negative which often destroys the work of God in peoples lives. People who meet me say all the time how positive I am only because I have seen God move time and time again in situations and in peoples lives without moving into the realm of negativity. Life is a reaping process and I do not leave a field or curse a ground simply because fruit has not manifested in a week or a month.

Another way we keep ourselves encouraged is that we look for what God is doing in the world through moves of God and revivals and feed ourselves from their breakthroughs. We watch services, worship,  listen and share testimonies of great things in the Kingdom because it continually gives us direction and motivation. Otherwise we would simply glare at the overwhelming mountain of things that need to be done in Italy and find our selves dwarfed by them. We live from a place where problems are dwarfed rather than us being dwarfed by problems around us. We share this through messages back here in the States from pulpits where people respond overwhelmingly to hope again. A staple in our lives is a quote by Bill Johnson that simply states “Hope is dreaming with our eyes open” and we allow ourselves to dream insane dreams knowing that it is the only way we can keep up with the God of impossibilities. Thinking and living this way is the only way to really know His will both for our lives and the country we are called to reach.

Marco and Shana Tant

  
Paul: 6. Do you invite teams and individuals to join you on a short-term basis in Italy? What would one be involved in if they decided to come alongside you and serve for a week or more? How can they reach you for more information?

Marco:  Yes, we do invite people to Italy and want believers to come and bless our Italian brothers and sisters. If people were to come they could do a host of different things from evangelistic events, which is heavily needed, to conferences on basic truths. We held a conference with pastors from the U.S. and we had a response that I would have never imagined. There was so much encouragement and simple truth that was explained that it has impacted them still to this day. The best part about it is that people come and and confirm what the missionary is doing and teaching as well as creating a platform for the missionary to walk with the believers through the truth that was given to make it a part of their lives on a daily basis.

If people wanted to reach us about what we do or a short-term trip in the future, they can do so by contacting International Gospel Outreach at 251-645-2117 or contact us directly at 250-386-0855. Our email is tantmissions@hotmail.com and our web address is www.italiarevival.com .

Paul: 7. Marco, the Bible says, "the harvest is plentiful but the laborers are few..". What encouragement and challenge can you give to someone reading your story and who are contemplating about becoming a full-time missionary or joining the ministry? 

Marco: Can I just be boldly honest here? Paul instructed the church that we are part of one body and when one suffers, all suffer. There is not an Italian body, an African body, and an American body but rather we are all together and we must work together with churches from around the world to strengthen and encourage them in whatever way possible. God has always been global even before being global was popular! 

    The rapture is not God’s plan to rescue a church that has not loved the world well and sought to bring salvation to everyone they come in contact with. I have visited churches here recently and we have people begging God for the rapture to happen so that they are saved from a mortgage of a home that was too large and expensive to begin with not knowing that the rapture will be the worst time the earth has seen. There will be millions perishing and going to hell at a pace more rapidly than any other time in history and yet this same rapture ready group does nothing to evangelize their neighbor. The rapture is not to rescue an irresponsible church but rather His bride that loves the same things and the same people He loves.

    God does not have a plan “B” to see people saved and the same plan “A” is more than capable in that God’s people share God’s message through God’s power to see God’s will be done in someone else. We cannot afford not to be involved in ministry full time or whether we are a workplace missionary that lives Jesus at his work and community every possible minute. The U.S. or any other country is not going to turn around because we beg God to do something and call it prayer but rather it will turn around when God’s people live God’s way and love people again like He loves. Sorry for the soapbox here but I was one of those in the world that worked with Christians and even dated Christian girls that never once loved me enough to share Jesus with me. Sorry for being so honest...

Paul: There are so many hurting people, so many who need healing, so many who need the embrace of God in our world. What parting advice would you share for those hesitating to serve in ministry? 

Marco: Love well! And when you get frustrated and tired love well still. Ministry is just simply loving people and meeting their needs in whatever way possible. Ministry is awesome and taxing all at the same time but it is the ultimate plan God created and is the best and only plan we need to transform the world. Get involved in ministry as soon as you can and not just behind a pulpit or hopping on a plane to go hallway around the world but begin to love your coworkers, family members, and people in your community; that is ministry at it finest! 

PLEASE NOTE: If you would like to financially support Marco and their missionary family to Italy please contact International Gospel Outreach at (251) 645-2117.

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