Dear Praying Friend,
How easy it is to pray in broad, general terms! Preaching on 2 Cor. 1:11 one Sunday, I challenged the congregation to pray specifically. That night, I caught myself asking, “Lord, please supply our support.” Am I just uttering words, or am I willing to pray with specifics? I felt challenged to ask for a specific goal and for the last few months I have been praying that the Lord would bring us to 30% by the end of May. Stuck at 19% for what seemed like forever, this didn’t seem likely.
Last week, our support increased by 6% in seven days. Altogether, we received 3 new supporters and an increase from a fourth, bringing us to 26%! We continue to pray that God would supply the remaining 4% in the next two weeks, and we are confident in however He chooses to answer. God is also providing meetings and our schedule remains full every week.
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These have been exciting times in several ways. Joel received word that his doctoral dissertation on theological mystery will be published by Paternoster.
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Joel also had an article published in Frontline magazine. “How do you reach 4 billion people” discusses the strategic role the Philippines plays as a sending station for the 10/40 window.
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We enjoyed extended time with one of our supporting churches recently, and Joel shared two series—one on theological mystery and another on Bible study. There is nothing we would rather do right now than minister the Word in preparation for our long-term ministry in the Philippines. Recently, I’ve found myself echoing the thoughts of Paul:
Life is short. The influence we each have on others is limited. But the Word of God is powerful and the gospel changes lives. We yearn to be faithful, and we look forward to seeing God work through His Word!
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