Friends,
My tutor is heading back to her home province this Friday. She and I have been studying Ephesians 2 last week and this and I do so hope, so deeply yearn that she would leave town with the Gospel planted deep, a seed that will sprout in true faith soon. May it be God!
It's strange... we've been in the Word not because she told me she's hungry for God or because she believes that the Bible is the Book from God but because she's been willing to accomodate to my study plan. She's been hearing more and more about what I believe and several times in the past few weeks (we've listened to and studied lots of good material lately) she's teared up as I've explained what we believe.
But there's still very little feedback. I've asked her what she thinks and she thanked me for sharing with her. Just not much else from her....
Would you ask that the Father would open her heart with questions and answers in the last few days we have together? Or perhaps give me patience to wait on his work in her heart...
I'll try to update for how the days go... thank you dear friends
- the two of us
AND...
This link has me thinking lots about my dear tutor friend. Would that the Lord give us bold and fearless grace to preach the mystery of his good news with penetrating clarity! Click on the link and join me in mulling over this good word.
Monday, June 25, 2012
marked as with Christ
It still makes me gasp to remember this evening last week.... That I could be there for this... knelt down in the bathroom with four other women present to hear this new sister profess in Uyghur "Jesus is the Messiah, the Savior from God, and I will follow Him." She was baptized in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.
We had prayed for her just before she went into the water... and I cried as I stumbled through three languages in prayer: "We're not surrounding her with our support and our joy because we believe that her life will be marked with ease and comfort now that she's following you. We believe what your Word says, that she will be persecuted and that you will be with her on that day, giving her wisdom and the words to say, being her rock to protect and defend her. We praise you God that you will not let her go, that she is safe because she is yours. And you are eternally worthy of all the suffering she might endure for your name. Keep her in You God. Make her faithful and give her the grace to stay, to stand firm in you til the end."
And now she's leaving town... heading back to her family, back to the province where she's not ready to dare bring a Bible into her father's home. But she's got it on an encrypted drive on her computer and she'll be able to read and pray through the Word.
Would you ask that the Father would give her wisdom for how, when, if to connect with a few other Uyghur believers in that city? Pray that she would be given wisdom, maturity, courage and strength as she begins her first days apart from the missionary community through whom she's come to Christ. Pray that the Lord would make her a bold ambassador of His name to her people. Pray for her protection and that she would be given wisdom to evade her family's strong pressure to yield to their plans for her to have a muslim husband. Pray for her to continue to grow in His grace and bear much fruit for his glory.
And friends.... dance with joy with us that the Lord would so kindly afford us this high privilege... that seems to be the first that our eyes have seen of many lambs ahead, to come into the True Shepherd's fold.
We Rejoice!
We had prayed for her just before she went into the water... and I cried as I stumbled through three languages in prayer: "We're not surrounding her with our support and our joy because we believe that her life will be marked with ease and comfort now that she's following you. We believe what your Word says, that she will be persecuted and that you will be with her on that day, giving her wisdom and the words to say, being her rock to protect and defend her. We praise you God that you will not let her go, that she is safe because she is yours. And you are eternally worthy of all the suffering she might endure for your name. Keep her in You God. Make her faithful and give her the grace to stay, to stand firm in you til the end."
And now she's leaving town... heading back to her family, back to the province where she's not ready to dare bring a Bible into her father's home. But she's got it on an encrypted drive on her computer and she'll be able to read and pray through the Word.
Would you ask that the Father would give her wisdom for how, when, if to connect with a few other Uyghur believers in that city? Pray that she would be given wisdom, maturity, courage and strength as she begins her first days apart from the missionary community through whom she's come to Christ. Pray that the Lord would make her a bold ambassador of His name to her people. Pray for her protection and that she would be given wisdom to evade her family's strong pressure to yield to their plans for her to have a muslim husband. Pray for her to continue to grow in His grace and bear much fruit for his glory.
And friends.... dance with joy with us that the Lord would so kindly afford us this high privilege... that seems to be the first that our eyes have seen of many lambs ahead, to come into the True Shepherd's fold.
We Rejoice!
Tuesday, June 12, 2012
summer guys
A little while ago we asked for you to join us in praying for a guy that was coming to serve in this area for the summer. Well, by the grace of God we ended up with guyS.... and they've all been a blessing. We're so grateful for the arrangement between our missionary sending company and a certain Christian university where two of their top business students were chosen to come join us for a few weeks. (The whole deal was arranged pretty late in the game.... I think it was May before we were sure they were coming... and they were here early June.)
So... thank the Lord with us that these guys have come, that they've encouraged our family, that they've played such strategic roles in helping the work of missionaries who have to struggle through running businesses in foreign lands. that they've engaged with this unreached people group and will hopefully go back home changed forever and inspired to inspire others to go too...
So... thank the Lord with us that these guys have come, that they've encouraged our family, that they've played such strategic roles in helping the work of missionaries who have to struggle through running businesses in foreign lands. that they've engaged with this unreached people group and will hopefully go back home changed forever and inspired to inspire others to go too...
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