Prayer

The power of prayer
Prayer is the key.
Prayer puts the power with God and not with man.
Prayer helps us get out of the way and puts God in the forefront of the ministry.
Prayer helps us focus not on ourselves, or the ministry, or the people we are ministering to.
Prayer helps us focus on God and His will for us, the ministry, and the people we are ministering to.
Prayer: the essential element!

A long time ago I heard this story of a missionary and the power of prayer…

This missionary lived and ministered in a country that was divided by a large river. He lived and ministered on one side of the river. One day he felt that God was leading him to begin to pray for the people on the other side of the river. So he began to spend the mornings ministering on his side of the river, and the afternoons he spent praying for the people on the other side of the river. After about 20 years of ministry he had only visited the other side of the river a few times and other missionaries had only visited a few times as well, but he had continued to pray for the people to come to know the Lord. After these 20 years he was amazed to find on the side of the river where he lived and ministered quite a few people had come to know the Lord, but on the side of the river where he only visited a few times but spent each afternoon praying for the people, many, many more people had come to know the Lord. It is amazing what God can do through the prayers of his people!


James 5:16b: “The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.”

Thank you for praying for the ministry to African immigrants in southern Spain.

An African Church Service

Christ Movement Ministries in Roquetas del Mar, Spain is an African church that we visited one Sunday morning.

Pastor Nathaneil Ikeh from Nigeria spoke on Godly Rejection with a text from Judges chapter 11.

The pastor preached about how many people in Africa are rejected by their friends and family because they became Christians. “The reason we must be rejected by our families is because of the divine deposit of Jesus in our lives.” He also said, “Do not allow the rejection you receive from your family, your friends and others to weigh you down.” “You are a divine child of God.” “There is a divine touch of God in your life.” “Let them [family, friends, etc.] know that you are a divine child of God.” You are a divine instrument.” Pator Ikeh read from Judges 11 the story of Jephthah the Gileadite warrior. He was rejected by his family and then later they asked him to be their commander so that they could fight the Ammonites. Pastor Ikeh encouraged the African congregation that maybe one day their families will say they are the leader of their family or the commander in chief.

Worship Song:

“I know that I can make it
I know that I can stand it
No matter what may come my way
My life is in His Hands.

“With Jesus I can make it
With Jesus I can stand it
No matter what may come my way
My life is in His Hands.”

Closing Prayer:
“When men and women reject us may it be for your glory, let them reject us that your mission may be completed.”

It was an amazing experience to hear these people who have experienced rejection like most Americans cannot even fathom, encourage one another in continuing to serve the Lord. We prayed, along with them, that one day they would have the opportunity to lead the very people who rejected them because of their relationship with Christ, to a personal relationship with Christ for themselves.


King of the Jungle

Recently we took what Megan calls “a home school field trip.” We went to what one might consider a “Spanish zoo.” We had a great time seeing lots of different animals. On the way there we listened to an appropriate song by Steven Curtis Chapman. I hadn’t heard this song in a long time and the words seem to jump out at me. I am so thankful that we know who is King of this jungle!

King of the Jungle by Steven Curtis Chapman

“Well, the day is just begun and I’m already running late
With two many irons in the fire and too much on my plate
I’d be pulling out my hair if I could just get one hand free
And I’d stop this world if I could find the key.

Chorus:
“What I feel is telling me I’m going crazy,
But what is real, says God’s still on His throne
What I need is to remember one thing
That the Lord of the gentle breeze is Lord of the rough and tumble
And He is the King of the jungle

“People say this world’s a jungle and sometimes I must admit
I’d be scared to death if I did not know who was King of it
But the truth is God created this whole world with his own hand
So everything is under His command

Chorus:
“What I see is telling me this world’s gone crazy
But what is real says God’s still on His throne
What I need is to remember one thing
That the Lord of the gentle breeze is Lord of the rough and tumble
And He is the King of the jungle

Reprise:
“He’s King of creation,
Ruler of earth and the sky and the sea
He’s always in control
He is the King of kings
He’s sitting on the throne
He is the King of kings!

Deuteronomy 4:39 “Acknowledge and take to heart this day that the Lord is God in heaven above and on the earth below. There is no other.”
Deuteronomy 10:17a “For the Lord your God is God of gods and Lord of lords, the great God, mighty and awesome”


Does Your Donkey Talk?

Balaam was an interesting guy – even before his donkey started talking. When he was first asked to visit King Balak, his response was one I want to learn: “’Even if Balak gave me his palace filled with silver and gold, I could not do anything great or small to go beyond the command of the Lord my God,’” Numbers 22:18. Oh, that we might live our lives in absolute surrender to each and every plan that God has for our daily lives, that we might not do or say anything great or small that would go beyond the commands or even desires of our God.
Later in the story, Balaam goes with the men to visit King Balak riding on his faithful donkey. Many know the story of how the donkey sees the angel of the Lord three times and tries to stray from the path, each time suffering a beating from his master, until finally in verse 28 the Lord opens the donkey’s mouth and she speaks to Balaam – finally getting his attention. Then in verse 32, “The angle of the Lord asked him, ‘Why have you beaten your donkey these three times? I have come here to oppose you because your path is a reckless one before me.’” As I read these words, I wonder how many times we continue down a reckless path, not heading or being sensitive to the gently nudging of our Lord. I want to pay attention to what the Lord wants me to do each day in such a way that he does not need to cause my donkey to talk to get my attention. As we strive to live the abundant life that comes through absolute surrender to each and every plan that the Lord has for our lives, I pray that we will seek His will in such a way, but if we miss even the smallest direction, I hope that the donkey will talk to get us back on track.

"It Takes a Child"

Isaiah 9:6: “For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given, and the government will be upon his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.”

Our co-worker, Dr. Robert (Bob) Newel, who serves in Athens Greece, has recently written a series of Advent sermons. In the first sermon he refers to the “African proverb, ‘It takes a village to raise a child.’” He goes on to say that he would like to turn that saying around and look at it in a different way for the theme of his sermons: “It takes a child.”

“Indeed, the heavenly perspective, as revealed most keenly in the Bethlehem event, affirms the power of this reality. Advent and Christmas stand as stark reminders that ‘It takes a child’ to raise the hopes of humankind; ‘It takes a child’ to raise the awareness of a decimated and discouraged world of God's faithful compassion! ‘It takes a child’ to raise the desperately damaged vision of what each of us was intended to be; ‘It takes a child’ to raise, anew, the possibility of destinations where the Almighty has dreamed that we should go. ‘It takes a child!’” (Taken from the 1^st sermon in Dr. Newel’s Advent series.)

It is amazing to me that God chose to send His Son to us as a baby.

This Christmas season may we be ever thoughtful and thankful “for unto us a child is born!”

"May it be to me as He has said"

Luke 1, 26-38

“In the sixth month, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendent of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. The angel went to her and said, ‘Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.’

“Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be. But the angel said to her, ‘Do not be afraid, Mary, you have found favor with God. You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end.’

“’How will this be,’ Mary asked the angel, ‘since I am a virgin?’

“The angel answered, ‘The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God. Even Elizabeth your relative is going to have a child in her old age, and she who was said to be barren is in her sixth month. For nothing is impossible with God.’

“’I am the Lord’s servant,’ Mary answered. ‘May it be to me as you have said.’ Then the angel left her.”

One might wonder what it was about Mary, a young girl that “found favor with God.” Quite possibly it was her attitude of absolute surrender which is obvious in her statement that she is the Lord’s servant. In the Beginner’s Bible for children, Mary’s response to the angel and thus to the Lord is simply, “’I believe you,’ said Mary. ‘I will do whatever God wants.’”(p. 271.) God desires each of us to come to the place of absolute surrender in our lives in which we will do whatever He wants. Then He can bless us with the abundant life. During this Christmas season, may our hearts be more like Mary’s.

Thanksgiving

Often when I wake up in the morning, I find myself thanking God for the many blessings in my life. I am thankful for the home that God has provided for my family – our terrace apartment in southern Spain. I am thankful for Cooperative Baptist Fellowship. I am thankful that God has used CBF to send us here to minister to people from West Africa. We have had the opportunities to become friends with people from the places in Africa where we previously lived and learned the languages. It is so much fun to greet these precious people in their language from home. We have had the opportunities to meet people from Senegal, the Gambia, Nigeria, Ghana, Guinea Bissau, Equatorial Guinea, Mali, Cameroon, Mauritania, Morocco, and Algeria, as well as people from Latin America and Romania. I Chronicles 16:8 “Give thanks to the Lord, call on his name; make known among the nations what he has done.”

I am very thankful for my three precious children and my husband.

I Thessalonians 5:18 “Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” I am even thankful for the times when I am really missing my extended family back home in Texas. A friend once reminded me that if I didn’t have such a great, encouraging, and supportive extended family, I wouldn’t miss them so much.

The key to happiness…might simply be found in being thankful to God for the blessings He has already given us.

One Day Jesus Will Call My Name

When I was in college, I remember going on retreats and sitting around the campfire in the evenings. A couple of guys would usually pull out their guitars and we would all sing choruses. One that I have been thinking about a lot lately goes something like this…

“One day Jesus will call my name

As the days go by I hope I don’t stay the same

I want to get so close to him that it’s no big change

On the day that Jesus calls my name.”

As Christians we strive to grow closer to God each day so that when we reach the end of our days and go home to be with Him, hopefully we will know Him well and it won’t be a big change.

We can grow to know Him better each day, by spending time with him in prayer and reading our Bibles.

2 Peter 3:18, “But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and forever! Amen.