Latin America

To catch up on our epic Latin America trip, go to http://gradyguy.blogspot.com/

Off the Couch

I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father. Jn. 14:12

 

"Hey, Junior, get your old man another beer and move your fat carcass out of the way of the Home Shopping Channel." Except for the grace of God it might have been me saying those words. Thankfully, as a Christ-infused human I am transformed from a spiritual couch potato into a cosmic adventurer.

 

Every day Jesus asks if I want to come out and play, and he does not mean play with dolls. Before I jump into the fun with him, however, Jesus gives me three packing tips for spiritual adventurers. First, I must strip down to only the material belongings necessary for a warrior. Whatever possessions I keep will constantly call me back indoors, out of the fun. Second, I must release my claims to health and longevity on earth. Mollycoddling my body will make me cry like a baby at every skinned knee and discomfort. Third, I need to throw off the sour blanket of my agenda. Only the sweet joy of doing God's business will satisfy. If I can be stripped down, fearless, and responsive, I will wake up laughing, "Another day of chalking up exploits with you, Jesus."

 

There are souls to rescue, casualties to heal, and strongholds to pray down. No barrier of wickedness or demonic fortress will stand in the way of my King. We will march out under his banner to pillage the enemy's camp and hurl spiritual mountains into the sea.

 

When Jesus went to the Father, he left us in charge of kicking evil. Before he departed, our big brother put his truth in our hands, his Spirit inside our chest, and his name on our forehead. We are fully armed to have some really good times. The question for my heart is this, "Are you up for eternal conquests, soul-riveting adventures, and supernatural forays or do you want watch sitcoms?"

 

Prayer: Jesus my warrior King, lead me out.

Sermon- Living as a Man of God July, 2008 – Albania Men’s Group

Intro

We are going to look at three characteristics for men of God as demonstrated by three men in the Bible.

Broken of Self

In Genesis we find the unusual story of Jacob wrestling with God.

Gen 32:22-32

22 That night Jacob got up and took his two wives, his two maidservants and his eleven sons and crossed the ford of the Jabbok. 23 After he had sent them across the stream, he sent over all his possessions. 24 So Jacob was left alone, and a man wrestled with him till daybreak. 25 When the man saw that he could not overpower him, he touched the socket of Jacob's hip so that his hip was wrenched as he wrestled with the man. 26 Then the man said, "Let me go, for it is daybreak."

 

But Jacob replied, "I will not let you go unless you bless me."

 

27 The man asked him, "What is your name?"

 

"Jacob," he answered.

 

28 Then the man said, "Your name will no longer be Jacob, but Israel, because you have struggled with God and with men and have overcome."

 

29 Jacob said, "Please tell me your name."

 

But he replied, "Why do you ask my name?" Then he blessed him there.

 

30 So Jacob called the place Peniel, saying, "It is because I saw God face to face, and yet my life was spared."

 

31 The sun rose above him as he passed Peniel, and he was limping because of his hip. 32 Therefore to this day the Israelites do not eat the tendon attached to the socket of the hip, because the socket of Jacob's hip was touched near the tendon.

Later…

Gen 35:2-3

So Jacob said to his household and to all who were with him, "Get rid of the foreign gods you have with you, and purify yourselves and change your clothes. 3 Then come, let us go up to Bethel, where I will build an altar to God, who answered me in the day of my distress and who has been with me wherever I have gone."

 

Later…

Gen 35:9-10

After Jacob returned from Paddan Aram, God appeared to him again and blessed him. 10 God said to him, "Your name is Jacob, but you will no longer be called Jacob; your name will be Israel." So he named him Israel.

 

It is a mystery how this angel is both God and an angel of God. As with other encounters with God, the angel/God limited himself to Jacob's level for the all-night match. Obviously he held back his power until the morning and allowed Jacob to wrestle before using supernatural strength to injure his hip which caused Jacob to walk with a limp from that day on. The point of this story is that God honored Jacob for having wrestled and been subdued by God. He honored him with the name of the new nation, Israel, which means 'wrestles with God.'

You and I often wrestle with God as we work through issues. God honors that struggle when we do not ignore the fight and give in without processing the issues. Are you struggling through your trials or simply letting apathy win?

In the end we must submit to God but it is a better submission if we have first fought.

For almost 20 years I struggled with God as I tried to run a godly business. Many were the nights when I could not sleep and I cried out to God for help. Through it all he stretched and grew my faith. In the end God touched my hip with financial ruin and the company was sold at a loss. I was humbled but it was only after this grand 20 year fight that I was ready for a new name and calling and began full-time ministry.

Circumcision of the Heart

Why did God give Abraham the rite of circumcision of the male reproductive organ? Why could it not have been our earlobe or some other less critical body part to snip away? The answer is that God wanted men to take that part of them that was the instrument of reproduction and greatest passion, their most viral and potent element of their being and submit it to him. We are to be submitted to God but note we are not to be completely emasculated.

Rom 2:29

No, a man is a Jew if he is one inwardly; and circumcision is circumcision of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the written code. Such a man's praise is not from men, but from God.

 

Our strength and purpose are meaningful when submitted to God. Men of God must be broken before him.

Guided by What God Thinks Not What Men Think

Next we will look at four episodes in the life of David. As we do, remember what God said about David:

Acts 13:21-22

Then the people asked for a king, and he gave them Saul son of Kish, of the tribe of Benjamin, who ruled forty years. 22 After removing Saul, he made David their king. He testified concerning him: 'I have found David son of Jesse a man after my own heart; he will do everything I want him to do.'

 

David and Goliath

1 Sam 17:33-37

Saul replied, "You are not able to go out against this Philistine and fight him; you are only a boy, and he has been a fighting man from his youth."

 

34 But David said to Saul, "Your servant has been keeping his father's sheep. When a lion or a bear came and carried off a sheep from the flock, 35 I went after it, struck it and rescued the sheep from its mouth. When it turned on me, I seized it by its hair, struck it and killed it. 36 Your servant has killed both the lion and the bear; this uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them, because he has defied the armies of the living God. 37 The Lord who delivered me from the paw of the lion and the paw of the bear will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine."

 

Saul said to David, "Go, and the Lord be with you."

 

1 Sam 17:45-47

45 David said to the Philistine, "You come against me with sword and spear and javelin, but I come against you in the name of the Lord Almighty, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. 46 This day the Lord will hand you over to me, and I'll strike you down and cut off your head. Today I will give the carcasses of the Philistine army to the birds of the air and the beasts of the earth, and the whole world will know that there is a God in Israel. 47 All those gathered here will know that it is not by sword or spear that the Lord saves; for the battle is the Lord's, and he will give all of you into our hands."

 

When David first came to the battlefield, his brothers teased him about being a small-time shepherd boy and told him to stay out of the business with Goliath and the Philistines. David did not care what his brothers thought of him, or what Saul the king had to say, of even what threats Goliath hurled at him. David only cared about what God thought of the situation.

 

David and Michal

2 Sam 6:12-16

Now King David was told, "The Lord has blessed the household of Obed-Edom and everything he has, because of the ark of God." So David went down and brought up the ark of God from the house of Obed-Edom to the City of David with rejoicing. 13 When those who were carrying the ark of the Lord had taken six steps, he sacrificed a bull and a fattened calf. 14 David, wearing a linen ephod, danced before the Lord with all his might, 15 while he and the entire house of Israel brought up the ark of the Lord with shouts and the sound of trumpets.

 

16 As the ark of the Lord was entering the City of David, Michal daughter of Saul watched from a window. And when she saw King David leaping and dancing before the Lord, she despised him in her heart.

 

2 Sam 6:20-23

20 When David returned home to bless his household, Michal daughter of Saul came out to meet him and said, "How the king of Israel has distinguished himself today, disrobing in the sight of the slave girls of his servants as any vulgar fellow would!"

 

21 David said to Michal, "It was before the Lord, who chose me rather than your father or anyone from his house when he appointed me ruler over the Lord's people Israel — I will celebrate before the Lord. 22 I will become even more undignified than this, and I will be humiliated in my own eyes. But by these slave girls you spoke of, I will be held in honor."

 

23 And Michal daughter of Saul had no children to the day of her death.

 

Michal was David's wife and she had a prideful heart. When she confronted David with acting in an unbecoming manner in public David made it clear that he did not care about the approval of the public or even of his wife; he only cared about how God saw him and knew he must be humble before God even in public.

David and Bathsheba

Next in the life of David is the tragic story of how David lusted after a married women, slept with her, and had her husband murdered to cover up. When the prophet Nathan confronted him, David repented completely and recorded his humiliation for all to see in Psalm 51.

Ps 51:1-11

Have mercy on me, O God,

according to your unfailing love;

according to your great compassion

blot out my transgressions.

2 Wash away all my iniquity

and cleanse me from my sin.

 

3 For I know my transgressions,

and my sin is always before me.

4 Against you, you only, have I sinned

and done what is evil in your sight,

so that you are proved right when you speak

and justified when you judge.

5 Surely I was sinful at birth,

sinful from the time my mother conceived me.

6 Surely you desire truth in the inner parts;

you teach me wisdom in the inmost place.

 

7 Cleanse me with hyssop, and I will be clean;

wash me, and I will be whiter than snow.

8 Let me hear joy and gladness;

let the bones you have crushed rejoice.

9 Hide your face from my sins

and blot out all my iniquity.

 

10 Create in me a pure heart, O God,

and renew a steadfast spirit within me.

11 Do not cast me from your presence

or take your Holy Spirit from me.

12 Restore to me the joy of your salvation

and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me.

 

13 Then I will teach transgressors your ways,

and sinners will turn back to you.

14 Save me from bloodguilt, O God,

the God who saves me,

and my tongue will sing of your righteousness.

15 O Lord, open my lips,

and my mouth will declare your praise.

16 You do not delight in sacrifice, or I would bring it;

you do not take pleasure in burnt offerings.

17 The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit;

a broken and contrite heart,

O God, you will not despise.

 

After his repentance, David only cared what God thought of him.

 

David and Shimei

2 Sam 16:5-15

5 As King David approached Bahurim, a man from the same clan as Saul's family came out from there. His name was Shimei son of Gera, and he cursed as he came out. 6 He pelted David and all the king's officials with stones, though all the troops and the special guard were on David's right and left. 7 As he cursed, Shimei said, "Get out, get out, you man of blood, you scoundrel! 8 The Lord has repaid you for all the blood you shed in the household of Saul, in whose place you have reigned. The Lord has handed the kingdom over to your son Absalom. You have come to ruin because you are a man of blood!"

 

9 Then Abishai son of Zeruiah said to the king, "Why should this dead dog curse my lord the king? Let me go over and cut off his head."

 

10 But the king said, "What do you and I have in common, you sons of Zeruiah? If he is cursing because the Lord said to him, 'Curse David,' who can ask, 'Why do you do this?'"

 

11 David then said to Abishai and all his officials, "My son, who is of my own flesh, is trying to take my life. How much more, then, this Benjamite! Leave him alone; let him curse, for the Lord has told him to. 12 It may be that the Lord will see my distress and repay me with good for the cursing I am receiving today."

 

13 So David and his men continued along the road while Shimei was going along the hillside opposite him, cursing as he went and throwing stones at him and showering him with dirt. 14 The king and all the people with him arrived at their destination exhausted. And there he refreshed himself.

 

In this story David allows a man to falsely accuse him and his soldiers to think badly of him in order to gain the respect of God. If we are to be men of God we must take on David's attitude of heeding what God thinks of us and not what humans think.

One time I was on a missions team in Cote d'Ivoire under a leader much younger than me. He called me in and berated me for a side trip he himself had authorized. As he vented his anger the Lord told me to remain quiet and not defend myself. I had to learn David's lesson of trusting God to see my innocence and not playing to man's opinion.

The man of God demands holiness from himself while extending grace to others in their weaknesses.

 

Operate in the Spiritual World

Finally, from the life of Jesus we see that the man of God operates in the spiritual world before the temporal world. This was evidenced in the beginning of Jesus' ministry when the first thing he did was to spend 40 days fasting in the wilderness. This removed him from the physical world and focused him on the eternal realm. This was to be a pattern for his life as he often went away from the world to re-connect with the Heavenly Father.

Luke 5:16

But Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed.

 

Later Jesus pointed out that the spiritual is primary:

John 3:5-8

Jesus answered, "I tell you the truth, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit. 6 Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit. 7 You should not be surprised at my saying, 'You must be born again.' 8 The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit."

 

John 6:63

The Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing. The words I have spoken to you are spirit and they are life.

 

Brothers we are to be spiritual warriors for God. We are to do battle in the spiritual realm with weapons that are not of flesh:

2 Cor 10:3-5

For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. 4 The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds.

 

Eph 6:12

For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.

 

We are to fight against un-forgiveness, sexual sin, the occult, generational sins, false doctrine, and fear. Our lives are to look like the first disciples lives when they were sent out to wage war against Satan:

Luke 10:1-9

After this the Lord appointed seventy-two others and sent them two by two ahead of him to every town and place where he was about to go. 2 He told them, "The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field. 3 Go! I am sending you out like lambs among wolves. 4 Do not take a purse or bag or sandals; and do not greet anyone on the road.

 

5 "When you enter a house, first say, 'Peace to this house.' 6 If a man of peace is there, your peace will rest on him; if not, it will return to you. 7 Stay in that house, eating and drinking whatever they give you, for the worker deserves his wages. Do not move around from house to house.

 

8 "When you enter a town and are welcomed, eat what is set before you. 9 Heal the sick who are there and tell them, 'The kingdom of God is near you.'

Later…

Luke 10:17-21

17 The seventy-two returned with joy and said, "Lord, even the demons submit to us in your name."

 

18 He replied, "I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven. 19 I have given you authority to trample on snakes and scorpions and to overcome all the power of the enemy; nothing will harm you. 20 However, do not rejoice that the spirits submit to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven."

 

21 At that time Jesus, full of joy through the Holy Spirit, said, "I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children. Yes, Father, for this was your good pleasure.

 

Summary

Men of God are:

• Broken of Self
  
• Guided by What God Thinks Not What Men Think
  

Operational in the Spiritual World

Albania

Thank you for helping in Albania through your prayers. Once again the Lord has done amazing things. Grady—an Oregonian whom I met in India—and I were the only foreigners on a team of about 40 Albanians. We were working with Campus Crusade for Christ in a discipleship camp targeted at college age students. Our daily routine for the three weeks we were in the coastal city of Durres was classes in the mornings, evangelism on the beaches in the afternoons, and praise sessions mixed with traditional dancing (picture below) and fun times in the evenings. About eight first time decisions were made at the beach and students dramatically enriched their walk with God.

Albania is 47 miles across the Adriatic Sea from Italy. Here is a location map:

This is a old country and language dating from before Greek times. I am told there are some 20 million Albanians living around the world but only 3.5 million live in Albania due to the poor economy. One of my hosts shuddered as he told me of the brutal repression of communism that lasted until 1991. Sadly, 60 percent of the national budget was spent during the 1960's through the mid-1980's on bomb shelters to save the people from the imperialist Americans. As a result of unfounded fear, the national economy was destroyed while the countryside was littered with cement and rebar. Here is a picture of today's impoverished youth playing on yesterday's ruinous bunkers:

Albanians are gregarious, hospitable people. I can see why God is bringing many of them into his kingdom. The Christians I met are beautiful examples of Christ-like servants. 70 percent of the general populous are traditional but largely non-practicing Muslims.

Above are some of our Albanian team members: Bottom row: Lorana, Eddy, Aronjni, Tony, Gentie- Top: Zona, Ella, Delia, Neta, Don, Erma, Alma, Basie, baby Veronica, Gentie, Mirela

In this picture Tony had just broken his foot during a soccer game and spent the rest of our trip in a cast.

As you can see the beach was ridiculously crowded, mostly with Kosovars on holiday. Several were led to the Lord including these two girls sitting on either side of Monica who was used for the harvest:

I was able to preach/teach six times including three times last Sunday that included a church of all woman and children meeting in a widow's home. Men are culturally not allowed into a widow's home and so none could attend this lady's house congregation.


Sleeping quarters were a little cramped but it helped us really bond. We slept like hamsters; when one stirred all the rest shifted a little and went back to sleep:

Albanians have a superstition of the dreaded evil-eye curse from malicious passersby. Therefore a child's toy is hung from some houses to distract the curse away from the home. Outside of Christ, we all tend toward goofy beliefs.

Here is Grady suffering for Christ during beach evangelism with an interesting choice of candidates. This girl rejected his offer of Christ so according to Matt 10:14 he shook the sand from his sandals and went swimming.

Below is a picture of Amre who often translated for Grady and me. I was able to counsel with her about moving past a deep pain caused by an American boyfriend. He heedlessly said intimate things that in Albanian culture equate to engagement. Her parents granted permission for the marriage. Because he was a seminary student in the States, Amre trusted her heart to him not realizing that in his mind he was still in an exploratory dating mode. Traditionally, Albanians do not date without intent to marry so when he called to say he was moving on to another girl, Amre was devastated.

Through prayer we were able to help Amre see what every Christian must eventually learn experientially: no human can complete and fulfill us; that role is reserved for Jesus only. It was difficult to see this daughter I adopted in Christ with so much pain and it frustrates me that fellow Americans can be so culturally-centric that they travel the world spreading pain, nevertheless I rejoice to see the new depth of love between Amre and the truest Lover of her soul: Jesus.

Thank you all for your prayers, they have resulted in more brothers and sisters around the throne for eternity and more rewards to celebrate with our King. Thank you for your love and participation in the gospel.

Phil 1:3-6

I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.

Recent Missions Trip

Following is a report from our most recent trip into a security-sensitive country. Email me for more details.

Our primary work in XXXX was with the und__g__und pastors of a large city of 10 million. For security reasons we cannot reveal the name of the city. To date the pastors have been fractured and concerned with only their own congregations. When we heard that four or five had been meeting together, we asked to join them for five days of meetings. About 15 cell churches were represented which is only a small beginning of the hundreds of fellowships that secretly meet. Still this was the largest gathering of pastors in the history of this city and all were encouraged by how the Lord worked among us. A wealthy sister provided a secure central meeting room and donated lunch at her 4 star restaurant for the 25 participants. We know it was due to your prayers that none of our meetings were hampered by government. It never ceases to amaze me how the Lord provides for our needs, often with touches of luxury.

We worshiped and prayed together and old barriers came down—as they did for the pastors we saw come together in California, Zimbabwe, and India. I was able to give several days of pastoral training and as with most everywhere we go, I discovered I may have the training but they have the faith and true heart knowledge of what it means to serve the Lord. So we encouraged each other and finished with a commitment to the spiritual mapping strategy we brought from prior ministry work. They will continue to meet and expand their und__g__nd network as they bring focused prayer to bear against the "spiritual forces of evil in heavenly places" (Eph 6:12) over their city.

One brother, we'll call him Xu Quing, refused to join in because of doctrinal differences. He pastors a fast growing church and is very organized in his approach to evangelism and discipleship. I met with him privately and explained my testimony as a pastor who once did not trust other denominations until the Lord convicted me to love them and humble myself to let God work in all of us toward accurate teaching. We had a real meeting of minds and spirits and Xu Quing attended the final day.

Meeting so many und__g__und leaders blew open the doors for invitations to speak at more house churches then we could get to. Several groups combined so we could speak to groups of 30 to 60 at a time. We were busy every day with a constant barrage of amazing ministry with beautiful people. Their stories of heartbreak, seeking God, and victories create a beautiful college in my memory. God is very much at work in XXXXX.

Here are a few insights we gathered from this trip:

• There are as many as 50 to 80 million Christians in XXXXX. These are tried and tested believers. There are perhaps only about 28 million devoted followers of Christ in America. Over and over I asked the XXXXXXX to begin sending missionaries to America and they only laughed. They still mistakenly look up to us. Because of their persecution they are on the whole stronger believers than their American counterparts.
  
  
• Only about 1/3 of the believers are in the government approved churches. They are required to be self-administered (no outside control), self-supporting (no foreign money), and self-taught (no outside mission influence). All these have proven to be healthy however the official church still often waters down doctrine—heaven and hell are rarely mentioned, love is taught as the answer instead of Jesus, the Holy Spirit is rarely discussed, and sermons must be pre-approved. Nevertheless, we were encouraged to meet several solid believers who are staying in the official church to promote reform.
  
  
• The und__g__und church already has some connections over the whole of XXXXX and many good resources including Bible colleges and mature churches that send missionaries to the remote areas of their own country. For example, it is largely the Christians that are currently on-sight helping the disaster victims.
  
• Bibles are readily available and inexpensive wherever we traveled. They have three modern versions available and one old version that would be comparable to our King James Bible.
  

Dani was able to continue some of the work Denise started: a woman's Sunday School class and the English Corner at the bookstore where she was using an inspirational story to teach new English words to a group of Christian and non-Christians who wanted to learn more English.

We saw again so many dear friends we had made last year and it was good to catch up with each other. We also met so many new people. We were taken care of by the XXXXXXX Christians from the minute we passed through Customs to when we went to check in to leave. They are an amazingly considerate, generous, and traditionally graceful people. We look forward to going again if the Lord calls us to.

It was a highlight to hear the pastors as they fervently prayed for each other in small groups for more than an hour. Incredible bonding took place for the first time. Following is a list of their prayer requests so we can pray with them. Please share this with others with caution:

S/N	Name	Church Name / Location	Prayer Request
1	Qian (Sis.)	(XX, East）	More co-workers required for church
2	Manna, Jiang (Sis.)	(XXX District)	Training system required for coworkers
3	Ruth Sun (Sis.)	XXX Church	More work at church, need better time management, need relief of workload
4	Shi-Wei, Tao (Bro.)	XX City	Need good leader at the church
5	Loshan	New District	More instructors needed for Suzhou bible college
6	Shu-Xia Qin (Sis.)	XXX (SouthEast)	Sunday School textbook and teacher needed, place of 100 M2 needed for Sunday school
7	Wu (Sis.)	XXX ()	Unity of churches on Truth
8	Andrew (Bro.)	Fellowship (XX, East)	Co-workers and pastor needed
9	Xiao-Yang (Bro.)	XXX Fellowship (XX Sub-church)	Coworkers needed, Place needed for accommodation of missionaries, Sunday school teacher needed
10	Kang （Bro.）	Fellowship ()	Full time coworkers needed, training needed, financial turn-over needed to support family, family consolidation needed.
11	Zhang (Sis.)	(New)	More brothers needed for ministries
12	Mei-Rou, (Sis.)	XX Church (East)	1. All existing coworkers full time serve Lord. 2. Offerings exceed 100K RMB per year. 3. Setup Youth fellowship. 4. Electronic Piano/Piano/Guitar teaching service for one year. 5. Healing for my Husband (Shou-Ming Jin) diabetes mellitus, reborn and be a coworker with me
13	Ji (Sis.)	XX Church (East)	Students' life growth on Truth, Mature in Christ. My personal direction in service.
14.	Peter Mao (Bro.)	(XX, East)	2nd row of echelon co-workers needed City churches have the ability to evangelize across areas to help churches in weakness.
15	Cai (Sis.)	XX City (North)	Anoint all the preachers in our place. Bless me with wisdom.

Following is a message sent to the leaders of this revival work:

Chong and Wong, 2-Jul-08

For you and all the pastors:

As I walked through your city on my last day I kept feeling a deep pull on my soul. I could not understand what the Lord was telling me; the feeling returned several times. It felt like a holy dread that something major was about to happen. I asked the Lord if it was about the pastors or perhaps me or my family. It felt like I was inside a ship going to an important war. Late in the day I could not get peace from this stirring so I pled for God to show me what it was about and randomly opened the Bible to the story of Nehemiah rebuilding the wall around the city of Jerusalem.

(I will insert comments on what I believe God is saying to us through this passage.)

Neh 2:17 Then I said to them, "You see the trouble we are in, how Jerusalem lies in ruins with its gates burned. Come, let us build the wall of Jerusalem, that we may no longer suffer derision."

(the spiritual wall around XXXXX is in ruins from many years of idol worship. The demons laugh at their continued victories.)

Neh 2:18 And I told them of the hand of my God that had been upon me for good, and also of the words that the king had spoken to me. And they said, "Let us rise up and build." So they strengthened their hands for the good work.

(Now you are ready to rise up and do the good work of praying for the rebuilding the wall of protection around XXXXX.)

Neh 2:19 But when Sanballat the Horonite and Tobiah the Ammonite servant and Geshem the Arab heard of it, they jeered at us and despised us and said, "What is this thing that you are doing? Are you rebelling against the king?"

(Some will oppose what you are doing and jeer at what you are attempting saying, "This task is impossible and you have no authority to do this.")

Neh 2:20 Then I replied to them, "The God of heaven will make us prosper, and we his servants will arise and build, but you have no portion or right or claim in Jerusalem."

(God will be with you to accomplish this work and those who ridicule you will have no share in the eternal rewards of this mighty project.)

Neh 7:1 Now when the wall had been built and I had set up the doors, and the gatekeepers, the singers, and the Levites had been appointed,

Neh 7:2 I gave my brother Hanani and Hananiah the governor of the castle charge over Jerusalem, for he was a more faithful and God-fearing man than many.

(You brothers and sisters are set as leaders over this work because you are "more faithful and God-fearing men/women than many".)

We stand with you in prayer for your city.

Sacrifice of Thanks

He who sacrifices thank offerings honors me, and he prepares the way so that I may show him the salvation of God. Psm 50:23

 

Hundreds of people began to disperse after an evangelistic festival in Red Hills, India. A woman stopped directly in my path and begged me to pray for her friend. She pointed to a cluster of chairs where a 20-year-old girl in a green sari sat alone. They explained she had polio as a child and was now lame. I cannot forget the sight of this daughter of Christ her legs braced ridged, eyes locked expectantly on me, and a smile of peace on her lips.

 

I laid a hand on her shawl-covered head to pray and was struck by the Christ-like beauty that radiated from this bent young woman. Because of her disability she had an opportunity to present a sacrifice of praise to God that I would never have. Her beaming countenance told me she was already living in thankfulness in spite of personal suffering. It was the most holy and true form of life worship. It felt Spirit prompted as I said to her, "In heaven the first will be last and the last will be first. When we go home forever you will be ahead of me because you have learned to praise God even while crippled. Don't ever stop praising Him." As we bowed my prayer was as much about confirmation that her heart was in exactly the right place as it was for healing.

 

I do not imagine I will see the girl again until heaven so I plan to tell her then how much she blessed me. The brief encounter gave me a role model for living a life of gratitude. My limbs are not paralyzed nevertheless I live in a cursed world and negative things come my way. I can turn each problem—from a rude store clerk to a cancerous lab report—into a sacrifice of thanks to God. It only requires a decision of the heart: I choose to let this stone of grief make me cling to the Spirit of Jesus. Instantly the rock pops into a Jewel in my heavenly treasure.

 

Jesus' sacrifice on the cross is a chute that carries me from a broken life on a cursed planet into a restored eternity in a perfect paradise. However it is the sacrifice of thanks that greases the salvation chute. If I can live as the girl in the green sari I will not slide into heaven, but fly.

 

Prayer: Mighty God, I give You thanks—in everything.

More Than We Know

For the Son of Man is going to come in his Father's glory with his angels, and then he will reward each person according to what he has done. Mat 16:27

 

Inside their high-tech video headquarters B. E. Langley and a handful of twenty-something-year-old employees leaned close to a computer monitor to secretly monitor Billy Anhiester in his office. Billy started to pick up a lingerie catalogue but put it back down. "I'll give him $150,000 for that little act of decency," the white-haired Langley stated as he held an Italian shoe in one hand and rubbed his silk-clad foot with the other.

 

All three employees dropped their jaws. The fellow who was standing so as to yield his chair to Mr. Langley declared, "Whoa, I'm definitely on the wrong side of this video camera." Langley was an eccentric billionaire looking for creative ways to distribute some excess wealth. His staff randomly selected an average Joe, in this case Billy Anhiester, with the plan of secretly monitoring Billy's every move via electronic surveillance equipment and assigning generous monetary rewards for each noble action. After 30 days of tracking the Langley Foundation would announce what they had done for Billy and how much he unwittingly earned. Langley hoped to spur public interest toward right living when people thought no one was watching.

 

At Mr. Langley's request the Statics Technician recounted Billy's total so far, "We have three awards of $30k for general kindness to the public, one $75k award for mailing a charity donation, twelve $25k awards for kind things said to his family and roommates, you gave him $700k that time he refused to cheat a customer at work, $25k for cheerfulness in spite of illness, and now with what we just saw we have two instances of $150k for good moral decisions. Running total of 1.49 million. That's a lot and he still has 14 days remaining."

 

Another Tech replied, "Ya, but he could have much more. He'll kick himself when this is over."

 

While Heaven watches our lives mean far more than we know.

 

Prayer: King Jesus, help me use life today for Your glory.

Holiest Union

Love and faithfulness meet together; righteousness and peace kiss each other. Psm 85:10

 

Two gray fathers gingerly lowered into chairs in the well used study. Father Love privately held high expectations they could come to an agreement as he broke the silence, "Faithfulness, you and I have been good friends for many years, yes?" The other readily agreed. "Then I will not dally at the entrance to our topic. I believe it is time to unite our families."

 

"I could not agree with you more Father Love," replied Faithfulness. "A marriage would seal an alliance between you and me that has been long recognized." He leaned forward to emphasize his point, "Are we not already of the same heart? Where love goes faithfulness is always there."

 

"And likewise love grows and strengthens when faithfulness is near. Your house has always been good for ours," Father Love spoke with animated hands. "Then we are agreed, my son Righteousness shall marry your daughter Peace?" Love rose and clasped the hand of Righteousness and gave it a single hearty pump and the covenant was bound.

 

Meanwhile beyond the study doors Righteousness and Peace strolled in the garden. As the handsome couple walked hand in hand Righteousness spoke of things to come. "I think we are natural for each other. Righteousness ensures the approval of God and therefore the heart is at peace. This is a marriage made in heaven."

 

Peace looked into her beloved's eyes and added, "And we would make beautiful children. They would be Joy, Patience, Gentleness, and Kindness. We could even name our boys after our fathers Love and Faithfulness."

 

Peace must have noticed how Faithfulness watched her lips as she spoke. She blushed but raised on her toes ever so slightly. It was all the encouragement Righteousness needed. He leaned down to her mouth and at precisely the moment their fathers shook hands Righteousness kissed Peace.

 

Prayer: Father, unite love, faithfulness, righteousness, and peace in my heart.

Mission Journal

Tues 1/29 – Dani drove Karen and me to Portland. Stayed overnight at hotel and made the plane with no problems. Met Boya (Calif), Grady (Portland), and Shauntel (Portland) at the airport.

Wed 1/30 – Good flights. Made a friend of an Italian man on his way to Chennai. One hour layover was perfect because the second flight out of Frankfurt was in the same terminal.

Thurs 1/31 – Billy and Rajkamarie met us at the airport and it was a great reunion. We were tired and fog headed. I slept at his mother's house while the rest slept at Sudha's.

Fri 2/1 – Spent the day running errands in Chennai. Very jet lagged; Need some sleep.

Sat 2/2 – The three guys from the Extreme Team arrived (Tim, Gary, and Rick). Great guys with a real heart for the Lord. Tim and Rick are blind. I am rooming with Rick and trying to guide him and be careful about not leaving stuff around for him to trip over. Left for the 3 hour crazy drive to Vellore City. Nice hotel, the Grand Krishna.

In my quiet times the Lord keeps leading me to scriptures about being sent to the nations to proclaim the Good News with power and authority. Mal 3; Psm 40; Luk 8; Jhn 17. Very excited to see what God does.

Sunday 2/3 – Did not sleep well. Preached four times at four locations. Went into it foggy headed and wondering how the Lord was going to use us. Karen, Kristen, and I were together. The testimonies from Karen and Kristen were anointed. Made many beautiful Indian friends. I love these people and that makes it a joy to encourage and teach them in the Lord. Karen was a trooper using the rustic toilet facilities out in the village. She is doing very well.

Got a nap at the hotel and felt good for the first time. Taking lots of vitamins and Airborne to avoid the colds going around. The first days are critical to get adjusted to the sleeping schedule without getting sick. We are 13 ½ hours ahead. The food is great but not so good for the tummies of some of the team. Karen, Shauntel, Michael, and Grady are sick from colds or food.

I am really enjoying the people on the team. Rick and I are good roomies. He also knows magic tricks so we are sharing secrets.

Mon 2/4 – Off to medical camp in village. Feeling close to the Lord and ready to minister. God has been giving the message, "Bring them out." It was a two hour ride into the hills through neat squares of electric-green rice paddies, rutted roads, wandering Brahma cattle, sugarcane fields, banana trees, and school children stricken in amazement by a van full of white people. We finally climbed into perfect cool weather to the mountain village of Nampiyumpetu. This was the real India.

A national husband and wife doctor team were already at work with the clinic and due to a miscommunication of time most of the patients had come and gone by the time we got there. Karen joined the medical types and the rest of us set up to pray over people. As I explained to my first guy how his spirit could be healed along with his body the interpreter pointed out that a crowd was listening in so we stood up and addressed the larger group. The interpreter, Asher, was experienced with the Gospel and for my every five word sentence he would explain using about 20 Tamil words. These villages have never heard about who Jesus is or why He died so we explained it in simple terms. We told them if they were ready to have all sins forgiven in exchange for devotion to Christ alone then they should sign up on our decision cards. Over the next couple of hours different groups came and went and this process of preaching the Gospel was repeated by Asher without any American help. I told Michael, "This is the way it is supposed to work."

Many school children came and we gave out the 100 Gospel bracelets that Dani and the ladies had sent from Washington. Asher explained the meaning of the beads (black for our sin, red for the blood of Jesus who took our punishment, white for our purity after Christ forgives, green for growing in Jesus, yellow for the gold in the promised heaven). I left money for Asher to buy more beads and give the rest of the students bracelets on a return visit. 32 decision cards were completed and that was enough that Asher and his father agreed to start going to the village once a week to follow up and to form a church. They already minister to 24 other villages as pastors.

A man that was in the first group that accepted Christ returned later with another in tow and said, "This is my brother and he also wants Jesus." We stood under an ancient acacia tree and through an interpreter I phrased a prayer that he repeated to repent and swear allegiance to Jesus. I felt the awe a doctor must feel after delivering twins.

As the team continued to pray for healings five of us meandered through the village and got some awesome pictures of life just as it was 1,000 years ago in India. Asher came looking for us and said, "It is not safe for you to be alone here because these people are not civilized."

I am so glad we introduced that forgotten village to the truth of God's love and now the darkness, fear, and uncivilized ways can be chased away by the Light.

When the other half of our team returned from a school and an orphanage they were animated as they shared the results that included 25 decisions for Christ. We are too excited about all the Lord is doing to notice we are running on little sleep and missing meals now and then.

Tues 2/5 – Began with a college presentation by the Extreme Team breaking bricks, bending steel, tearing phone books, and sharing the Gospel. It was fun to watch but after the first of two meetings we were told by the President we should not have given the invitation because the Hindus might consider it coercion into Christianity. Those from the East are not independent minded and would feel compelled to do whatever was asked of them in mass so I can understand the concern. No translation was provided because the college students speak English however they could not understand our accent so the whole thing fell rather flat on hundreds of ears.

In the evening Boya and I spoke at an Industrial Workers' Conference in Ranipet. Grady led music and the Extreme Team also presented. The meeting started late by 1 ½ hours as is usual for the culture so we used the time to pray and anoint the building. We were so prayed-up that as I preached on ultimate fulfillment the Spirit gave me more passion then I ever recall. Due to miscommunication the event was held in a church instead of a public hall so mostly Christians came, about 200+. There was one decision for Christ and Michael prayed Christ's power over a demonized lady. If all that effort and prayer combined with the hundreds of prayers from our supporters produced only one new believer then it was a good night because eternity would be a very long time for that one person to spend in hell.

Michael closed the meeting neatly but then three or four national pastors took turns mumbling unwanted accolades about our team along with other mundane announcements. By the time they were done the sweetness of the night's message was sufficiently diluted so as to be forgotten. I love many of India's cultural elements but I'm not so hot on this one. It was good that it happened because it reminded us to take pains to not let it happen again at the upcoming festival meetings where there will be thousands present.

Wed 2/6 – Began at another primary school. I ate some byrani (the national dish) the night before that was handed out after the event. That was foolish and while Grady and the Extreme Team presented I found relief among the student's toilets which is a hole in the ground and a bucket of water—you do the math.

God is dangerously protective of children. I would not want to be the one to mislead any one of the 850 black-headed brown-faced cherubs that sat before our stage in neat rows. Our evangelistic team led them in songs and dance. The room was long and narrow so the children had to sit cross-legged and nested against each other. The result was a compression of bright eyes and white teeth bobbing amidst a sea of blue gingham uniforms. The aggregate face-energy combined with the blast of singing put me at the foot of heaven's throne to experience God's view. Something of the love exchanged between Father and His followers passed through my being and I knew without a doubt He guarded these innocents.

Rick concluded our program with an invitation to stand up if they wanted to receive Jesus. He dramatically counted one-two-three and pled, "Stand." Every head jerked about to see what they were supposed to do. At first no one stood then after more confusion of translation everybody stood. The principal told them all to sit while another man tried to get only those who wanted Jesus to stand. But it was a Christian school and they all wanted Jesus or already had Him and still wanted Him so were they to stand or sit? No one seemed to know and yet everyone was eager to do the right thing. I was still partially transported and felt Heaven's mirth at our situation.

Jesus paid a horrible price at the cross to save us from consternation over the right way to approach God. Sit for Jesus, stand for Him, say a prayer, cross yourself, turn around three times—it does not matter as long as we come through Jesus. To say otherwise is to doubt His sufficiency. It is a wide open Jesus-fest and all are welcome.

In the evening we went to the festival grounds for a couple of hours to pray over it with about 100 nationals. It was a powerful time.

Thur 2/7 – Held another clinic. Karen took blood pressure all day in the intense heat. She held up well but saw a lot of grizzly stuff not fit for this G-rated journal. The rest of us prayed over and gave the Gospel to people one-on-one. A man came in who recently converted to Christ and was chased by Hindus wanting to beat him. He was very afraid and we prayed over him and gave this scripture:

Matt 5:11-12

"Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. 12 Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you."

In the evening we began four nights of festivals. The first night we had about 5,000 attend. Michael preached and the Extreme Team did wild feats of strength. Many accepted Christ for the first time. I tried to lead the children away during the invitation so we could minister to them. It was impossible to get 1,000 children to sit and be orderly. I stood on chairs and did a few magic tricks to get their attention but then we were to break into groups of 15 for instruction from trained nationals. For some reason only one national was available. We were overrun by hyper children and little was accomplished. As we stood in the middle of the press a rock struck the prayer pastor on the forehead and left a lump with a tiny cut. Spurred by wicked spirits there are many hostiles mixed into the village crowds. Nevertheless I was able to lead two teenage boys to accept salvation.

Rick prayed over a man with a growth on his head the size of half a ping-pong ball. As he prayed he felt the lump disappear under his hand. All in all our team prayed over hundreds of people. Who but God knows what all was accomplished in the heavenly realms.

Fri 2/8 – In the morning Esther, Kristen, Karen, Shauntel, and I spoke at a women's conference. I had to leave just after speaking so I could prepare for preaching at the festival. Kristen and Shauntel led about five to the Lord after they spoke, including a Hindu woman. This woman's father committed suicide 15 days before and she was searching for hope. Some Indian women had been bringing her to their church and she was reading the Bible. Our girls were in the right place and time to be used to see the troubled soul set free.

For the evening festival we had between six and eight thousand. Grady led music and even sang some songs in Tamil. Many people gathered around me as I sat in a chair and they prayed for my preaching. One pastor grabbed my head and rattled my brain as he prayed for…I don't know what, the evil spirits out or the Holy Spirit in??? I got the giggles. Stepping onto the stage as the keynote was a huge privilege. The interpreter and I got into a groove until I said, "The false gods have not died for your sins." He went silent and shook his head no. He was unwilling to start a riot by offending the thousands of Hindus. I defer to the wisdom of the national pastors because they are the ones who will stay and live among whatever work we leave behind. Nevertheless it makes me recall the words of Jesus:

Matt 10:34

"Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword."

Many came to first time decisions while a demonized man thrashed around at the foot of the stage. A policeman tried to assist in controlling the crazy until a big woman stepped up and grabbed the demoniac's hair and held on for control. He was swinging out at everybody and those coming forward left a clearing around him. The Holy Spirit had me ignore the demon and focus on the 200 or so who came for salvation and healing. It was an awesome time, Jesus was glorified, and I slept like a baby last night.

Note to self: Do not wear a long white Indian shirt under the stage lights or you become walking fly-paper for all manner of bugs.

Sat 2/9 – Morning was spent at an orphanage about an hour's drive into the country. 65 beautiful kids squeezed into a small room painted years ago in lime-green but now worn to patina. Grady and the Extreme Team presented. Those poor guys, they are big and wear red and black sports suits with jackets. How they withstood the heat in a room of compressed little bodies I do not know. I stayed out in the drizzle of rain and watched through the bars in the window. Before leaving we had a great time swinging the children around outside. Each one of them is so special. It was sad to see that the man who ran the orphanage was mean to the tikes.

The festival this evening was crowded but some spiritual funk hung over the place. The Extreme team's stunt of breaking bricks that were on fire would not happen. The inferior kerosene simply would not light. Children were distracted, the flow stuttered. Still Grady did a great job preaching and many came forward.

During prayer I had no interpreter and too many supplicants pressing in. I had to do a group prayer and began by anointing the foreheads of about a dozen people with oil then praying the gifts of the Spirit from Galatians 5:22-23 into their lives. Later a national pastor asked me if I spoke Tamil because he saw the faces intently listening. I had to agree it appeared they were straining but comprehending my longish prayer. Could it be that the gift of interpretation from the second chapter of Acts was at work in their ears?

Sun 2/10 – Every time I minister in India it feels like living a whole year in a few weeks. This morning the team was split up among six churches again. Karen, Shauntel, and I were at an energetic assembly of about 100 beautiful believers. The pastor asked those who were Christians when the church began to raise their hands and only four families did so, all the rest were converted Hindus.

It was awesome that the Lord directed me to focus the message on worship and testimonies. I had planned to ask our team and the nationals to give each other testimonies but before I could mention any of these plans to the pastor he led out two songs centered on the Tamil word for worship. Next he asked several of his people to stand and give testimonies of what God is doing in their lives. We obviously both serve the same Lord. It was a holy time. The highlight for me was calling the children forward for a blessing; beautiful round faces drank in the goodness God poured onto them.

Standing outside after the service Karen pointed out the fear in a young woman's eyes. The pastor said she was a new believer and afraid of her situation with an all Hindu family and a baby in her to be born any day. I prayed over her then Karen embraced and held the weeping woman; not a cultural norm but perfectly appropriate for the moment as the Spirit led.

Mon 2/11 – Rest in the morn, shopping in the back-street bazaars, then the 2 ½ hour drive back to Chennai to begin ministry anew tomorrow in the Village of Minjur.

Tue 2/12 – In the am we presented to two schools that also house orphans. Our routine is Grady on silly songs and juggling, me on magic, the Extreme Team on feats of strength, then one of the other members gives a testimony and message. Several times I have heard those on our team say they are impressed at how well we have all worked together. The children are so stinking cute. I want to tuck a few into my luggage.

We lunched at Pastor Abraham's house. A board was laid on the bed and we used it as a table. We had wonderful Indian food made with purified water, no hot pepper, and served on banana leaves. They even dug out a few spoons but no one took them up on the offer and we all ate with the fingers of our right hands. The afternoon was spent at another school/orphanage. These kids are the absolute highlight of the trip for me. We stopped at an American restaurant for dinner—boring—then fell into bed around 10pm.

Wed 2/13 – Back to Minjur for two schools in the morning, lunch at a wonderful brother's house, some open village ministry, an orphanage in the afternoon, then prayer time in the evening with the Indian Intercessory Prayer Team. During the prayer I had an awesome opportunity to speak to 10 upper grade level Hindu girls. They listened intently as I adapted the parable of the Prodigal Son to two daughters. They were beautiful treasures and I had to force myself to believe all ten accepted the reality of Christ's forgiveness and none opted instead for an eternity of separation from the Source of joy.

Thurs 2/14 – Ended today with an AIDS orphanage. Even though some of these children were dying they were the most joyful of all the kids we met. The Extreme Team left early this morning so the rest of us took turns sharing silly songs, magic, stories, and gifts. Yesterday when we made the arrangements to visit there were 15 children. Today there were 14. One had to be taken to a terminal care center. She will not return. The administrator warned us not to contact the open sores on one boy' head, other than that we loved on them and prayed over them. They have no fixed income and wait on God only one loaf of bread away from starvation.

Later we went to the beach for an hour of relaxation then off to the airport to send the rest of the team home. Tomorrow I fly to Pakistan.

Fri 2/15 – The flight to New Delhi was about 15 minutes late. I was to transfer to Indian Air for the rest of the trip but the Delhi airport is a bit disorganized. While I waited an hour and a half for an inter-terminal bus the plane left without me. I was told Pakistan Air has one flight a week to Lahore which is tomorrow so there must be some providence involved. The airline agreed to comp a hotel and food until I could get another flight. It took exactly 4 ½ hours of sitting in a dingy unmarked office for them to find a hotel and process the interminable paperwork. God gave me patience through humor. About two hours into it the nightshift supervisor came boisterously into the office and by way of greeting he grabbed the butt of the female dayshift supervisor; we are not in Kansas anymore Toto.

Mr. Bottomgrabber said to me, "Please give us one or two minutes more." At the three hour mark another man said, "Sorry for the inconvenience, please give us just ten minutes more." At the 4 ½ hour point everything was finally ready and I found my way out to a taxi and noted a row of bodies sleeping on the sidewalk with blankets over their heads and hundreds of noisy people walking around them. The sight squelched any complaints from me and I was humbled by the good bed I fell into at 1am. Nevertheless I think we have proof that Einstein's theory of the relativity of time is true; two minutes in Indian time is 4 1/2 hours elsewhere. I called the contacts waiting and worrying in Lahore and told them I would make another run at Pakistan tomorrow.

Sat 2/16 – Travel day. Made it into the Islamic Republic of Pakistan without further complications and stayed in an apartment above a church in Lahore. A 22-year-old Evangelist by the name of Azeem slept outside my room for protection on account of the terrorist activity from the election scheduled for Monday. The brothers explained that Pakistani children massage their parents in the evenings as a sign of respect. So I submitted to an hour of back and leg massage before sleeping. The temperature dipped to about 40 F in the night and my one blanket was not quite enough.

Sun 2/17 – The houses are decidedly Middle Eastern with square edges, protruding log rafters, and multilevel flat roofs all coated in brown mud. One dwelling connects to another creating a ramble of squares, cubbies, nooks, stairs, windows, and rooftop patios. The favored mode of transportation is a donkey pulling a wooden cart. A little brown man peers out of his shawl wrapped around head and body while bouncing along behind the trotting beast. I see more Arabic influence than Indian.

It turns out we will not be in Lahore at all but five hours away in the village of (Undisclosed). We rose at 5am to make it to the village and speak at the Sunday services then begin the pastor's seminar in the afternoon. On the way we passed through several other villages and I noted something significant missing: the women. Only men sat in clusters or walked about because Muslims consider it indecent for women to be seen in public. It appeared like a female rapture had occurred.

In the green wheat fields outside (Undisclosed) a half dozen men awaited our arrival to place a garland of roses and lilac on our necks and toss flower petals over the dignitaries (I laugh at the role) and the car. We drove slowly through the main street attracting great attention by the flower strewn car and throng of attendants.

Years ago this village converted in mass, all ten thousand, from Islam to Christ. In 1997 neighboring Muslims raided the village looting, destroying, and burning. The people of Jesus refused to retaliate or become bitter and simply rebuilt. My guides pointed out the buildings that were remade with red brick after the tragedy. Only about 50% were the original brown. Today there are 10 packed Christian churches and one mosque of 25 people. The village is alive with friendly faces, boys flying homemade kites, and women out in the open enjoying life.

I am here to be used of the Lord for five days in spurring on the Pastors, Evangelists, and their wives who go out from (Undisclosed)to minister in the Muslim communities. I am quite safe; they are in grave danger. It inspires me that they fear God more than man. As I waited to address the group of 85 they were singing in the church below me and the passion of their song made me wonder how I could teach them anything. Nevertheless the lesson on how we are the temple of God was well received.

The massages continue, this time by Erfan, my personal ARMED bodyguard and tailor by day who offered, "Make Brother Don good Pakistani pants." They are baggy comfortable looking things so I might just take him up on the offer, but enough fun for one day—off to sleep.

Mon 2/18 – We are holding sessions from 9-11:15, then 11:30-1, then 3-5 each day so I am teaching a lot and praying my voice holds out in spite of a cold finding its way into my throat. The Lord is blessing our seminar in ways I never would have imagined. For instance, today I gave a spiritual gifts inventory test of 140 questions. The goal was to add up the scores in each category to determine what gifts they had. I left the interpreter to work through the questions with the participants. At question number 50 the group broke into loud singing and worship. I went down to the church and found everyone kneeling on the floor praying and weeping. They got to the questions that deal with our weaknesses and were smitten in humility so they decided to stop and worship. I could not understand the prayers but the heaven-renting urgency melted my own heart in repentance. Phew, it was an intense time. We will try to get through the rest of the questions and the original point of the exercise tomorrow yet I know God's primary goal is already complete.

Each evening we walk through the village and out into the green fields for exercise. What a treat to stop into quaint mud homes with donkeys and cows tethered in the walled compound and find the family eating around an open air fire. Add a manger and a baby and you would have the perfect nativity scene. We picked some sugarcane and crunched the sweet pulp as we talked about our cultural differences and they tried to teach me Urdu. I heard a shout in the night with fire crackers and realized the men were celebrating the election results so we made it through the tension charged days without incident.

Tues 2/19 – Taught today on gifts of the Spirit, forgiveness of others, and a message for the women that used the lessons Dani gave in India. We wrote the names of people we were angry at on slips of paper and burned them to release the bitterness to God.

Since arriving our cook has been a wonderful servant of God named Prevene. For my sake she slowed the use of red peppers but tonight she took her foot off the break. You know it is hot when even the nationals mop their brow and complain. One man sent his unfinished plate back to the kitchen. By the grace of God and prayer cover I made it through with only red ears that all the Pakistanis thought were extremely entertaining.

Got a double massage tonight from my two body guards simultaneously. Zzzzzzzzzzz.

Wed 2/20 – Taught all day so now I am really tired. I wonder how school teachers do what they do so faithfully. In the evening we walked out in the fields again but this time to a broad canal. A giant orange sun dropped through the haze from thousands of cow dung cooking fires while the full moon rose above the wheat fields on the opposite horizon. In the summer the same fields grow cotton. It is an amazingly fertile and green land. We stopped at a farmhouse and watched sugarcane pushed through a grinder powered by a tractor. Out poured syrup that was then heated in a shallow pot five feet across. The pot was nestled into the ground with a tunnel beneath for a wood fire. After boiling the goo it was cooled in large square troughs where it became candy that tasted something like sugar mixed with molasses. Everybody we passed was friendly and gave the single vertical palm greeting with the word salaam which means peace.

Thrus 2/21 – Gave the women in the audience an opportunity to compete for the wordless book Dani made and sent with me to be used in child evangelism. To win the ladies had to recite an entire chapter of the Bible from memory. It took about 10 women until one came forward and made it through flawlessly by closing her eyes, raising her hand, and reciting a Psalm as a prayer. Would there be 10 women in any of our North American churches that could recite a whole chapter? Finished the seminar with preaching practice from the brothers. They did an outstanding job. Only one in the lot seemed a bit boring and had no illustration. All the rest will be able to draw a crowd in any village by showing up and speaking out. I told them, "The Good News is in good hands in Pakistan."

My translator had a death in his family so I took the five hour bus ride back to the Lahore airport with three non-English speaking brothers. The trip had many interesting moments where I had no idea what was going on or where we were going so I prayed for peace and just followed and wound up at the airport. One sees so many funny things traversing the Pakistani roads: Trucks with a two lane wide load bulging like an overstuffed goose, farm tractors decorated with every imaginable trinket including fans twirling in the wind on the bumper, and a lorry (truck) loaded 20 feet high with live sheep. The wooly critters were packed in layers and hundreds of eyes peeked over the high wooden sides. The funniest part was the crown of the lorry. It was made of a semicircle arch covered with a cargo net of fist-sized holes. The topmost level of sheep lay on the net with their legs dangling through the holes. They were not tied down but there nothing to push their feet against to get free. They were stacked so close it bordered on cruelty but as their ears flopped in the wind the sheep simply looked about as if to say, "I don't know why we are here; do you know why we are here?"

I will miss my new friends in the family of God; Johnson with his undaunted cheer, Sameen and her singing in the kitchen, Azeem always borrowing my camera to ensure I was photographed from every possible angle, Yoseph and dancing with him in front of the church before the Lord, Preveen and her sheepish smile whenever I praised her cooking, Saba and her valiant attempts at English, William and Erfan and their massages and protection, Baba who called me son and refused to let go of my hand, and so many more. Beautiful people all, living valiant lives of faith in the face of bitter persecution. I commit them into the hands of our strong Father.