We wish to share another request, but it will take more than a line or two. This past Summer we were blessed to host two missions teams. Their work and ministry were sources of great encouragement to us and the people here. On the Pennsylvania team was a young man who was preparing to attend a Christian college in the Fall to prepare for the Gospel ministry.
When he returned home, he submitted to the required blood work for college admission. At that time the doctor informed him and his family of an abnormality indicating progressive kidney failure. In spite of the threat, the young man went off to college, but his health has continued to diminish. At present, many are praying that he will be able to finish this semester before dialysis is necessary.
As soon as he returns home, he and his parents will visit a transplant surgeon to consult regarding the options that remain. The family feels keenly their need of Divine direction. Unless the Great Physician intervenes, the teen will need dialysis shortly; transplant surgery will likely be required as well.
While it would be easy to ask, "Why?", the family is leaning heavily on the Lord's arm and praying for a miracle. I would like to request that each person who reads this blog will join in praying for this urgent prayer request. Certainly there is no limit to what our Savior can do, and Scripture admonishes us that many times we "have not, because [we] ask not."
Pray also that the Lord may be glorified through this young man's testimony and that of his parents.
Monday, March 19, 2007
Prayer Requests
I hope to create a weekly prayer request entry at the beginning of each week. This will help you know exactly how to pray. I will also try to remember to inform you as to how the Lord works in each case.
1. The filling of the Spirit to make our remaining weeks full of the Lord's blessing.
2. Wisdom to train each member of our furlough replacement team for their new tasks.
3. The preparation of about 6 people for baptism before we leave.
4. Provision of more students to make our budget work at Ponce Christian Academy
5. Spiritual growth for Victor, Maritza, Chu, Nelson, Gilson, Jomar, Jeremy, et al.
6. The faithfulness of the Lord's people to His work here in Ponce.
1. The filling of the Spirit to make our remaining weeks full of the Lord's blessing.
2. Wisdom to train each member of our furlough replacement team for their new tasks.
3. The preparation of about 6 people for baptism before we leave.
4. Provision of more students to make our budget work at Ponce Christian Academy
5. Spiritual growth for Victor, Maritza, Chu, Nelson, Gilson, Jomar, Jeremy, et al.
6. The faithfulness of the Lord's people to His work here in Ponce.
Pre-Furlough Blessings
The Lord has certainly been good to us! Since beginning to call pastors from SC/NC to PA, we have seen our schedule develop nicely. In fact, from May 27 until December 16, only one Sunday has no meeting at all (Anyone interested in July 1?). Several Sundays need a morning service to be complete, and a number of Wednesdays still remain. If you know of a church in the above mentioned States that needs to hear from us, drop us a line.
In addition, the Lord has provided a display board free of charge! That is at least a $200 gift! Our hearts rejoiced when we received this news. We still have the work of preparing the display, but that will come together in its own time.
A particular concern is the organizing of a good presentation with voice and music accompaniment. Many hours will be invested in this endeavor. These are hours that are hard to come by, but they will have to be found.
In addition, the Lord has provided a display board free of charge! That is at least a $200 gift! Our hearts rejoiced when we received this news. We still have the work of preparing the display, but that will come together in its own time.
A particular concern is the organizing of a good presentation with voice and music accompaniment. Many hours will be invested in this endeavor. These are hours that are hard to come by, but they will have to be found.
Thursday, March 8, 2007
Spiritual Progress
Praise the Lord for the growth of those involved in our discipleship program. Maritza has been coming with her mentor, but this week she showed up on her own! It's a small thing perhaps, but she does not drive. That means she had to find someone to bring her instead of making excuses for not being able to come.
Victor is my (Bill's) pupil. He eagerly awaits our time together every Monday morning. He would gladly meet a second day, but my schedule is a bit tight right now. His comments during our studies are as refreshing as a young child's short sentences. There is obvious growth, and his wife reports that they study the Word together at home, and she has found him studying on his own. He even goes to the trouble of looking up every verse in the upcoming lesson and writing down the page number where the verse is found in his Bible! Such extra effort is not often found in long-time believers.
We also have a group of people who wish to be baptized. We are trying to wait a bit so that some in discipleship students will be able to be baptized as well. Our baptismal services are held in the surf of the ocean, usually on a Sunday afternoon. We look forward to these special times of praise and worship surrounded by our Lord's marvelous handiwork. Pray with us for the continued progress of all the new converts (Maritza, Victor, Mandy, and Nelson).
Victor is my (Bill's) pupil. He eagerly awaits our time together every Monday morning. He would gladly meet a second day, but my schedule is a bit tight right now. His comments during our studies are as refreshing as a young child's short sentences. There is obvious growth, and his wife reports that they study the Word together at home, and she has found him studying on his own. He even goes to the trouble of looking up every verse in the upcoming lesson and writing down the page number where the verse is found in his Bible! Such extra effort is not often found in long-time believers.
We also have a group of people who wish to be baptized. We are trying to wait a bit so that some in discipleship students will be able to be baptized as well. Our baptismal services are held in the surf of the ocean, usually on a Sunday afternoon. We look forward to these special times of praise and worship surrounded by our Lord's marvelous handiwork. Pray with us for the continued progress of all the new converts (Maritza, Victor, Mandy, and Nelson).
Eleven Weeks & Counting
On Sunday afternoon, we got to thinking about all the preparations for furlough. That spawned the thought of counting how many more Sundays we have left to enjoy the fellowship of our church. We started counting and found that just 11 Sundays remain. The following Sunday will be our first meeting of furlough, over 1,400 miles from here!
Already the Lord has begun to answer our prayers concerning support. One of our dear friends and long-time supporters had to discontinue support due to unemployment. Yet just prior to this we learned that another close friend has committed to almost the identical amount which would have been lost. Earlier this week GFA informed us that a family in North Carolina wants to begin supporting us for $500 per month!
Yet another church had asked about any special needs. We gave a list of concerns for the work here as we approach furlough. The pastor said, "We will surely pray for these needs, but I was actually asking if you have any special financial needs." After picking myself up off the floor, I mentioned that our van's air conditioner has been dead for about one year. We plan to ship our van and use it on furlough, but the air must be fixed before then. The pastor then shocked me once again by saying that they will take on this project even though the estimates are at $1,800! Needless to say the price tag has made us wait this long for the repairs, but the Lord is so kind to reward our patience and faith in His loving provision.
Yesterday (March 7) we had a church meeting to vote on who would help to fill in for our absence. The vote was unanimous to accept the help of Marcos a local man to fill most of the pastoral tasks. Since he cannot help in the mid-week service, the church approved Alexis a
pastor in another town and former member of our church to come every Thursday. This takes care of most of my concerns.
We also instituted some policies to help in the handling and disbursement of funds and some related matters to keep everything above board before all. I was especially blessed to see some people volunteer for new tasks without having to be cajoled. Again, God is good. Now comes the task of training people for some of the record keeping tasks. It is fun to teach new tasks to those who have nearly no computer experience. Training will commence immediately, and the tasks will be handed over with adequate supervision so that in three months there should be few problems. Pray with us that no essential details will be omitted.
Already the Lord has begun to answer our prayers concerning support. One of our dear friends and long-time supporters had to discontinue support due to unemployment. Yet just prior to this we learned that another close friend has committed to almost the identical amount which would have been lost. Earlier this week GFA informed us that a family in North Carolina wants to begin supporting us for $500 per month!
Yet another church had asked about any special needs. We gave a list of concerns for the work here as we approach furlough. The pastor said, "We will surely pray for these needs, but I was actually asking if you have any special financial needs." After picking myself up off the floor, I mentioned that our van's air conditioner has been dead for about one year. We plan to ship our van and use it on furlough, but the air must be fixed before then. The pastor then shocked me once again by saying that they will take on this project even though the estimates are at $1,800! Needless to say the price tag has made us wait this long for the repairs, but the Lord is so kind to reward our patience and faith in His loving provision.
Yesterday (March 7) we had a church meeting to vote on who would help to fill in for our absence. The vote was unanimous to accept the help of Marcos a local man to fill most of the pastoral tasks. Since he cannot help in the mid-week service, the church approved Alexis a
pastor in another town and former member of our church to come every Thursday. This takes care of most of my concerns.
We also instituted some policies to help in the handling and disbursement of funds and some related matters to keep everything above board before all. I was especially blessed to see some people volunteer for new tasks without having to be cajoled. Again, God is good. Now comes the task of training people for some of the record keeping tasks. It is fun to teach new tasks to those who have nearly no computer experience. Training will commence immediately, and the tasks will be handed over with adequate supervision so that in three months there should be few problems. Pray with us that no essential details will be omitted.
Thursday, February 15, 2007
PR Civil Code
On Wednesday, February 14 (Valentine's Day), the PR Legislature began public hearings regarding the proposed Civil Code rewrite. We took a group of students from our Christian school to express our opinion concerning this document. The above sign reads, "Here lies the morality of Puerto Rico, Victim of the New Civil Code."The proposed code eliminates the word "marriage" so as to allow for every form of moral deviation that has yet been thought of, including: unmarried live-in relationships, homosexual unions, transexual partners, and the joining of former in-laws. Additionally, the code would lower the age for consensual relations to 16, allow for sex change on demand, the reassignment of gender on the individual's birth certificate, and a Pandora's Box of the moral reprobate's wish list. Needless to say this would be a serious blow to the many decent people of PR.
Alarming is the fact that each of these newly approved unions would be considered eligible for adoption of children! Who will defend these innocent ones from the moral depredations of their "parents"?
We took 48 students and adults to the steps of our Capitol building to register our protest. We also delivered nearly 200 signatures which we had collected from Ponce. The students made a variety of signs to communicate our displeasure and the Biblical perspective on these issues. Pray with us that the legislators will not be swayed by the sophistries of "Mr. Worldly Wiseman." His type are found in abundance at such proceedings and are the architects of this disastrous scheme.
The media is not helpful either. A news report that evening did not even mention the fact that many protesters had gathered. They merely lampooned those who testified against the bill and championed the idea as giving recognition to the fact that such "lifestyles" exist in PR. The question is not if they exist, but should they be legitimized.
Our children will surely pay the consequences if this Civil Code is passed. Even now the public school system is gearing up for a curriculum rewrite which would include non-judgmental references to each of these aberrant behaviors, sex education to enhance understanding of these state-approved lifestyles, and re-education of those who harbor negative feelings toward those who practice these abominations. In fact, our education system has publicized the curriculum change for the last four years! Certainly, "evil men and seducers will wax worse and worse."
God's opinion concerning homosexuality was clearly expressed in His own Civil Code in Leviticus 18:22 and in the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah in Genesis 19. Leviticus 18 also gives detailed prohibitions concerning in-law and other close family relations. In fact, He declared in 1 Corinthians 6:9-10 that those who practice same-sex relations and immoral relations of any sort will not inherit the kingdom of God. Why then do such issues keep surfacing? Psalm 2:1-5 reveals that these are man's attempts to throw off the cords of God's authority and to overthrow the kingdom of His Son, Jesus Christ. However, God's reaction is a scoffing laughter followed by stern judgment.
Yet God's Word promises, "If my people which are called by my name will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked way, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sins and will heal their land." (2 Chronicles 7:14) Pray with us, fervently.
Thursday, February 8, 2007
Rejoicing in Heaven
Tuesday night, during our weekly visitation time, Pepe (a church member) and I (Bill) were knocking doors; well, actually, we were calling our at the gates of homes in a nearby community. Our second visit was with Maritza. After some introductory conversation, I shared John 3:16 with her and asked if she were sure that she has eternal life. She quickly replied in the negative.
I then proceeded to show her how the book of Romans unfolds God's plan of salvation. She understood and shared some comments and questions with us. When I asked her if she would like to have God's forgiveness and eternal life, she said she would. As we bowed for prayer, what a joy it was to hear her ask simply and humbly for the gift of God in Jesus Christ!
Pepe's wife, Carmen, will be handling the follow up and discipleship. In this way, more people are involved in service, and the work can go on even when we are in the States. I have also given discipleship roles to several others as we try to help new converts along. Pray for Chu, Carlos, and Nelson as well as their mentors Felix, Efrain, and Pepe. It is a thrill to see these folks added to the church and to see more hands involved in the work.
I then proceeded to show her how the book of Romans unfolds God's plan of salvation. She understood and shared some comments and questions with us. When I asked her if she would like to have God's forgiveness and eternal life, she said she would. As we bowed for prayer, what a joy it was to hear her ask simply and humbly for the gift of God in Jesus Christ!
Pepe's wife, Carmen, will be handling the follow up and discipleship. In this way, more people are involved in service, and the work can go on even when we are in the States. I have also given discipleship roles to several others as we try to help new converts along. Pray for Chu, Carlos, and Nelson as well as their mentors Felix, Efrain, and Pepe. It is a thrill to see these folks added to the church and to see more hands involved in the work.
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