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Don was an 84 year old WWII vet who had a house built in our subdivision. Right from the start, he would be on the job site at all hours of the day, talking trash and giving the subcontractors a hard time. Of course, all of his grumblings were just in good fun and we had a good time trading jabs about whether construction standards are better now or the way they did it back in the day.
He got around pretty good for a guy his age, and he credited his health to a handful of peanuts and a can of beer every day. Who’s gonna argue with an 84 year old?
Every time I tried to bring up the subject of God, Don had a comeback that would end the conversation before it got personal. He told me once, “Me and the man upstairs got our own thing going. I leave him alone, he leaves me alone.” On another occasion, he told me that after seeing the things he saw in the war, he wasn’t about to take advice from a young whippersnapper like me. Too bad he didn’t acknowledge that the message of the gospel transcends age, race, sex, culture, etc. I remember pleading with him one day to realize that a man his age could really go at any second from all kinds of different things, and it would be no surprise. Didnt his God-given will to live provide any motivation at all to get right with God? At his age, there should be even more urgency. But he would laugh and insist that he had another 40 years left in him. Each time we would have one of these discussions, I would simply smile and wait for the next chance. After all, the guy was out there all the time, and our conversations were friendly enough that I knew there would be more to come.
Even after Don moved into his new home, he would still drive around the construction zone, in his familiar blue Ford, sometimes talking trash and sometimes just hanging out with crews on their lunch breaks.
One day he and I were talking at lunch, and I felt a very strong impression that this was going to be my last chance to really lay it all out for him and urge him to commit his life to Christ. So, with trembling voice, I began to reason with him about his need to finally humble himself and surrender to God. Something amazing happened. The hard old man softened up and listened intently while I shared the entire gospel with him. I could see from his facial expression that he really understood the message. Then I begged him not to ignore the voice of his conscience and make the decision today, because he wasn’t guaranteed tomorrow. Again, he laughed and said he planned to outlive me.
It was about two hours later that I received a phone call. Don had gone home, started mowing the lawn, and collapsed from a stroke. He died within about an hour of our last conversation.
Did Don make his peace with God? Lets hope so. But this is a great picture of how much God loves people. Who knows how many people he sent into Don’s life over those 84 years? Right up until his dying day, God’s patience and long suffering never wore out in reaching out to save that man.
You are going to have eternity to worship and serve God, but you won’t have eternity to tell your friends, loved ones and neighbors about the salvation you have in Jesus Christ. This is not a game. The next time you feel the urge to share the gospel with someone, DO IT!
You never know what God might be using you for.
Believe it or not, he can and will use you if you are available for the task. Will you swallow your pride, let compassion overcome your fears, and obey God’s longstanding call of duty, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature.” Right after giving this command, Jesus said, “and lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world.”
He’s telling the truth. Go for it!

I saw a bumper sticker once that read, “Nothing fails like prayer.” Thats a sad testimony to the fact that many view God as though he should be some sort of divine butler that ought be ready to answer at their whim. When they ask God for something and he doesnt immediately come through and do their bidding, they therefore excuse themselves from accountability to him or conclude that he doesnt even exist.
Imagine if I called the White House and demanded an audience with the President. They would probably laugh at me and ask me not to call back. You need an invitation to speak to the President, and you would need to come to him on his terms. Do you think the God of the universe would be any different?
The Bible says that God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble. In Isaiah 66 God says, “To this man will I look, even to him who is of a poor and contrite spirit, and trembles at my word.” That speaks of a humble person, who knows who he is dealing with.
God teaches us in his word that our sins have cause a separation between us, so that he will not hear. Before we can expect God to work in our lives, we must deal with our sin problem.
Did you know that in Proverbs it tells us that “he who turns his ear away from hearing the law, even his prayer will be an abomination.” That means if you refuse to submit to the authority of God’s word, he will not hear your prayer. Yikes!
God is in charge of the universe. You dont come to him on your own terms. You come on his.
Thankfully, there is a remedy for our sin, and there is a way that our relationship with God can be restored, so that we can have access to him anytime we want. Its all wrapped up in the same person, Jesus Christ. When he shed his blood on the cross, he was paying the penalty for your sin, so that if you will believe in his sacrifice, you can have complete forgiveness of sins. His death was a substitute for yours, and now God can legally allow you to go free, based on the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, and now that your sin has been taken out of the way, there is no longer any separation between you and God. You have access to him any time you want!
Imagine if I told you that I knew the President, and not only did I know him, but that we talk all the time. You would probably laugh at me and tell me to stop telling moonshine. But what if I got out my cellphone, scrolled through my contacts, and dialed the President’s personal line, and had him call me by name when he answered? You would be impressed.
How much more incredible an honor is it to be able to speak at any time and any place to the God of all creation, who knows you by name and constantly has his eye on you? Wow, what a thought!
Have you talked to Him today? Do it now. You’ll be glad you did.

One of the reasons many Christians dont share their faith is because the enemy has them convinced that they could never be useful to God since they have so many issues of their own. How can they confront a world of sinners when they have so much sin in their own lives?  Seriously, this is one of the most effective areas Satan will attack you if you purpose to become a witness for Christ. He will tell you that you are a hypocrite and thus you are not fit for the task. He will point out any sin he can find in your life and accuse you of being a false Christian. He will try to paralyze you through condemnation.  But you must remember, Satan always brings condemnation. the Holy Spirit brings conviction. Satan wants you to grovel and feel sorry for yourself. The Holy Spirit wants you to confess and be cleansed.

So, this is how I deal with the situation. (I am a sinner. It comes up often.) When Satan reminds me of my sin and tries to condemn me, I remember this simple illustration.

Have you ever had to carry something really heavy? Or have you carried something for a long distance? Then you know how your body can get tired and fatigued as you strain ahead. You can’t wait until the moment when you can lay that burden down. You also know the incredible feeling of release when you relieve yourself of that weight.
We can all relate to that on a physical level, but there is a spiritual burden that many of us carry as well. Many go about needlessly carrying around the burden of guilt over unconfessed sin. See if you can identify with David as he puts it into words in Psalm 32
“When I kept silent, my bones grew old
Through my groaning all the day long.
For day and night your hand was heavy upon me;
My strength was turned into the drought of summer.”

David knew what it felt like to be too ashamed to confess his sin. Just like Adam, he and many of us try to hide or cover up our sin. It drains your strength. Conscience won’t let you get away with it. But there is a way out! A way of release from the burden of sin. Look what he says in the next verses…
“I acknowledged my sin to You, and my iniquity I have not hidden.
I said, ‘I will confess my sin to The Lord.’
And you forgave the iniquity if my sin.”

I love 1John 1:9. I go there often to wash. “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” So that’s where I deal with Satan’s accusations. If the Holy Spirit reminds me of some sin, I go to 1 John to wash.  If Satan brings some condemnation, I simply remember his tactics and go to 1 john to wash.  Simple!

Whatever you are carrying today, no matter how ashamed you are to admit it, get before God and come clean. Enjoy the release and relief from that burden by finding forgiveness and cleansing in the blood of Jesus Christ. There is peace and rest available for you right now.

Will you trust him? Is he worth believing in? I think YES!

So take a moment to do business with God. Get cleaned up, and go tell others where to wash!  In Psalm 51, David’s prayer of repentance after his ‘royal screw-up’ with Bathsheba, he cries out to God for forgiveness. Hear his cry and what he says afterwards, starting in verse 10:

“Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me. Cast me not away from thy presence; and take not thy holy spirit from me. Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation; and uphold me with thy free spirit. THEN WILL I TEACH TRANSGRESSORS THY WAYS; AND SINNERS SHALL BE CONVERTED UNTO THEE.”

What would he teach transgressors? Would he rub salt in their wounds? No, he would teach them the same things he just experienced. That even though they are transgressors, God offers them forgiveness if they will repent.

You and I should have the same heart as David. After we experience the love of God, and we are given new hearts, we should have a love for our neighbor that motivates us into action. We should share that love. We should return God’s love and do what he says and reach out to the lost.  Are you being faithful to God and to men?

Dont be selfish! Go show others where to wash!

 

Brothers and sisters in Christ, let me challenge you a little today. Let this challenge motivate you into action to step out in faith and begin to follow Jesus and do what he says without reservations. We live in such a safe, Americanized Christian box. We have all of our ducks in a row. We plan ahead and focus our attention and efforts on making sure our future is secure, through a number of different means. There is practical wisdom involved in these things, but all too often, especially in or culture, this kind of “prudent thinking” leads to thornbushes growing up in our garden.

What do I mean by that? Remember in the parable of the sower that it was the seed that fell on thorny ground that was choked out by the cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches. What happens is that we get so caught up in trying to establish our own empire that we forget about building up the kingdom of God. Our time and effort is given over to temporal things, and we stop bearing fruit towards God.

Today let me challenge you to reverse that cycle in your life. Let me challenge you to obey the command of Jesus to “seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you.” We have a tendency to put the emphasis on that last half of that verse, and focus on all the wonderful things we will receive when we seek God first. But I would submit to you that anyone does so is not seeking God first, but is seeking the things that God can give to him. No, the emphasis is on the first half of the verse. We should be so in love with Jesus Christ that all the cares of life fade into the background, and the allure of wealth and material things is lost because our hearts are completely sold out and committed to building treasures in heaven. He is faithful who promised. It is impossible for him to lie. Seek him and his will for your life first, and let him take care of the rest.

I am going to include a quote from Francis Chan from his book, Crazy Love. In it, he says, “I wrote this book because much of our talk doesn’t match our lives. We say things like, ‘I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me,’ and ‘Trust in the Lord with all your heart.’ Then we live and plan like we don’t believe God even exists. We try to set up our lives so everything will be fine even if God doesn’t come through. But true faith means holding nothing back. It means putting every hope in God’s fidelity to His promises.
Most of us use, ‘I’m waiting for God to reveal His calling on my life’ as a means of avoiding action. Did you hear God calling you to sit in front of the television yesterday? Or go on your last vacation? Or exercise this morning? Probably not, but you still did it. The point isn’t that vacations or exercise are wrong, but that we are quick to rationalize our entertainment and priorities yet are slow to commit to serving God.
A friend of mine was speaking recently. Afterward a guy came up and told him, ‘I would go serve God as a missionary overseas, but, honestly, if I went right now it would only be out of obedience.’ My friend’s response was, ‘Yes, and…?’
Jesus said, ‘If you love me, you will obey what I command’ (John 14:15). Jesus did not say, ‘If you love me you will obey me when you feel called or good about doing so…’ If we love, then we obey. Period. That sort of matter of fact obedience is part of what it means to live a life of faith.
Imagine if you opened up a drawer in your kitchen and found twenty cheese graters but no other utensils. Not very helpful when you’re looking for something to eat your soup with. Just as there are different utensils in the kitchen that serve diverse functions, God has created unique people to accomplish a variety of purposes throughout the world. That is why I cannot say in this book, ‘Everyone is supposed to be a missionary’ or ‘You need to sell your car and start taking public transportation.’ What I can say is that you must learn to listen to and obey God, especially in a society where it’s easy and expected to do what is most comfortable.

Do you see what Francis is getting at? Why do we live our lives as though God were not even there? We all know God’s word and His promises, but when the rubber meets the road, how often do we really step out and obey him or leave things in His hands? Why do we go ahead and make big vacation plans (which isn’t wrong) but when it comes to an opportunity to do something for the kingdom, our response is, “I’ll pray about it.”

So let me challenge you today to think about your life. Are there any areas where you are not completely obeying? Are there areas where you are still planning things out just in case God doesn’t come through? Are there commands of Jesus that you ignore because of comfort or convenience? Seriously, take an honest look in the mirror and evaluate your motives, hopes and aspirations. Are they pleasing in the eyes of God? Will they matter in eternity? You will never regret making necessary changes.

God is at work on the streets. Are you?

We have been back in the U.S. for over a week now, and it has been about three weeks since our crusades in Rajahmundry.  As you have read in previous posts, after the preaching at the crusades, we pray for people individually at the altar for God to work in their lives.  We do this because we know that God loves them and wants to bless them and also because according to Mark 16, God confirms his word with signs and wonders.  Here we have thousands of people who have been worshiping countless idols all their lives, and we come along and proclaim another God to them.  They have never received an answer to their prayers from an piece of stone or wood, but now they will see that the Lord has power to hear and answer their prayers.

Every year, we receive wonderful testimonies describing how God has done miracles for them and proved himself real. Dr Kumar sent me an email detailing several of these miracles from our crusades in Rajahmundry.  While we dont put the emphasis miracles as a part of our ministry, we do believe God wants to do them and look forward to the encouragement they bring not only to the new believers but even to us and you as well. I have pasted the email from Kumar below.

Dear Brother Billy and Pastor Steve and all the wonderful team in Christ ,

Here are the wonderful Testimonies from Crusades.

1. A MAN SUFFERING WITH IRRITABLE BOWEL SYNDROME FOR 30 YEARS, HE HAS TO GO TO TOILET AFTER EVERY TIME HE TAKE FOOD AND ALSO PAIN. WHEN HE ATTENDED CRUSADES AND WHEN YOU PRAYED HE WAS HEALED AND NO MORE DIARRHOEA OR PAIN.

 

2. A MAN WHO WAS DIAGNOSED WITH HIV/AIDS 4 YEARS BACK, HE ATTENDED THE CRUSADES WHEN YOU PRAYED HE WAS HEALED.

 

3. A WOMAN HAD MYOMA IN HER UTERUS FOR THE LAST 4 YEARS, SHE RECEIVED PRAYERS IN CRUSADES.SHE WENT BACK AND HAD HER SCAN BUT THE MYOMA WAS NOT THERE , SHE WAS HEALED.

 

4. ANOTHER WOMAN WHO HAD CYSTS IN HER PELVIS AROUND FALLOPIAN TUBES FOR ONE YEAR.AFTER SHE ATTEND  THE CRUSADES ,SHE FELT BETTER AND SHE HAD SCAN,THE SCAN INDICATED THAT SHE DOES NOT HAD ANY CYSTS, SHE WAS HEALED.

 

5. ANOTHER WOMAN HAD OVER BLEEDING FROM HER UTERUS FOR OVER 6 YEARS, SHE IS VERY POOR, WENT TO MANY HOSPITALS BUT SHE HAD NO BETTERMENT BUT BY THE TIME YOU PRAYED FOR HER IN CRUSADES, HER BLEEDING WAS STOPPED, SHE WAS DOING BETTER. SHE WAS JOING WITH HER HUSBAND AFTER 6 YEARS.

 

6. A WOMAN HAS NEVER GOT PREGNANT FOR 15 YEARS. NOW TODAY SHE SENT ME MESSAGE THAT SHE GOT PREGNANT AFTER YOU PRAYED FOR HER IN CRUSADES.

 

7. A MAN 40 YEARS, HAD SEVERE DISC PROLAPSE, HE WAS NOT ABLE TO MOVE HIS BOTH LEGS AND HAD SEVERE BACK PAIN. HE WAS COMPLETELY HEALED, GOING BACK TO WORK AFTER YOUR PRAYERS IN CRUSADES.

 

8.  A MAN WHO IS WORKING IN BANK HAD VERY SEVERE PAIN IN RIGHT SHOULDERS , NECK AND HAND.HE HAD CERVICAL SPONDILYTES. IT WAS COMPLETELY HEALED AND HE DOES NOT REQUIRE SURGERY ,AFTER HE RECEIVED PRAYERS FROM CRUSADES.

 

9. A WOMAN WHO HAD MIGRAIN HEAD ACH FOR 20 YEARS, USED ALL THE MEDICINES BUT SHE DID NOT GET ANY HELP FROM THEM. SHE DECIDED TO DIE BECAUSE OF PAIN BUT WHEN SHE ATTENDED OUR CRUSADES RECEIVED PRAYERS, SHE WAS COMPLETELY HEALED NO MIGRAIN.

 

10.  A MAN WHO HAD CEREBROVASCULAR ACCIDENT, PARALYSED FOR 8 YEARS FULL OF BED SORES ON THE BODY, HEALED AND WALKING FROM CRUSADES.

 

11. 25 PEOPLE WHO WERE WITH HIGH BLOOD PRESSURE WERE HEALED

 

12. UNCOUNTABLE PEOPLE WHO HAD UNCONTROLLABLE DIABETES WERE HEALED

 

13. A MAN WHO WAS ALCOHOLIC AND HAD GASTRIC ULCER FOR 8 YEARS WAS HEALED COMPLETELY, HE WAS NORMAL.

 

14.  A WOMAN WHO HAD CHRONIC RENAL FAILURE FOR 4 YEARS WAS HEALED AND HER TEST REPORTS ARE NORMAL AND HER KIDNEYS WERE HEALED.

 

15. A WOMAN WHO HAD THYROD HORMONE PROBLEM NEVER HAD CHILDREN FOR 8 YEARS, SHE WAS HEALED FROM HER THYROID HORMONE PROBLEM AND SHE WAS PREGNANT.

 

16. 9 WOMEN 2 MEN POSSED WITH DEMON SPIRIT WERE HEALED.

 

17. 25 MEN CAME OUT OF ALCOHOL ADDICTION FROM MANY YEARS.

 

18. MARRIAGE  RELATION  AMONG  13 COUPLES  RESTORED AND REJOINED AFTER YOU PRAYED FOR THEM.

 

19. 5 MEN GOT JOBS, 7 MEN WERE BLESSED TO CLEAR THEIR DEBTS, 14 POOR FAMILIES HAS BEEN GRANTED THE HOUSES FROM GOVERNMENT OF INDIA FREELY, 25 GIRLS MARRIAGES WERE FIXED WITHOUT DOWRY

 

BROTHER, THERE ARE MANY MORE TESTIMONIES BUT I AM VERY SLOW TO TYPE THEM AND SEND THEM, I THANK YOU BROTHER. GOD HAS USED YOU, PASTOR STEVE AND ALL THE TEAM TO SHOW ALL THE LOST THE WAY OF SALVATION AND TO PERFORM THESE WONDERFUL MIRACLES TO HEAR ALL THESE  TESTIMONIES.

Thank you Brother,

Dr.Kumar and Jean Mary.

I hope you are blessed and encouraged as you read what God is doing for his children in India.  We are thankful to God for your prayers and support for this wonderful ministry.

 

India 2012 Day 11,12

Saturday was a day that we had set aside for people on the team to fill their shopping lists and get all their souvenirs for themselves and for people back home.

In the evening, it was back to Chengalpattu for the second night of our weekend crusade.  Steve Whinery gave a powerful message to a crowd of almost 4,000 people, and many souls were added to the kingdom of God.  It is amazing to see so many people come out to hear the gospel, and then to respond in such numbers.  The people of india are in bondage, and Jesus Christ is setting them free! To a people in such darkness, the gospel really is good news.  Again, we were very happy to lay hands on and pray for many sick people, many people with family problems, work problems, alcohol problems, etc., and for many young people seeking wisdom for their exams coming up.   The second night of crusades was a big success, and we are hoping for another big night on Sunday.

Sunday is our last day in India.  We have another full plate of ministry, and everyone is filled with expectation and anticipation, knowing that this is the biggest night for crusades and also that we are going home!

The team split up for two morning church services.  Steve, Kyle, Ryan, and Bryan went with Josh to his church, while Billy, Zach, Cassie, Kayla, Sandy, Jackie and Abbey went to Caleb’s church in Vandalur .  At Vandalur, Zach gave a brief encouragement before Billy taught on 2 Peter 1.  After the service, everyone played with the children and passed out candy before we jumped into the van and met the rest of the team for lunch.

Our last night at the crusade was pretty impressive.  The crusade grounds were completely packed out.  There was standing room only inside the grounds, with people spilling out into the streets and all sides, even listening from behind buildings.  It was estimated that there were about 7,000 people listening to the preaching of the gospel!  Billy K preached the last message, and again, thousands came to the Lord Jesus Christ.  We stayed and prayed for many people again.

We went back to Josh’s place to take showers and pack up, then headed down to the airport to board the plane for our 4:00 am departure.  Our first flight took about 4 ½ hours from Chennai to Dubai.  Then, after a quick two hour layover, we got on a small puddle-jumper which will take us to Seattle in a mere 15 hours.  As I write this last update, we are at the North Pole, which is just about halfway to our destination.

See you all soon!  Thank you so much for your kind prayers and financial support.  Once we get home, the team will share our photos and videos among each other, and soon after that, I will post a blog with links for you to go to and enjoy visuals of all you have been reading about.  Until then, may God richly bless you for your part in this wonderful ministry!

 

 

India 2012 Day 10

It has been a long trip, and it has been a short trip. For those of us who have left family at home for two weeks, time has a way of dragging on and on.  But on the other hand, when we look at the amount of ministry we have packed into the last 10 days, it really hasn’t been all that long.

Today we had our last pastor’s conference in Chetallapakkam at pastor Rajendran’s  church.  Steve and I arrived at about 10:30 to find about 20 pastors waiting to hear the word of God from us.  Steve did the entire teaching, encouraging them and strengthening them with solid, practical instruction.  It was good to see some of the same pastors that we have been working with for several years.

The rest of the team went to a handicapped children’s hospital for a few hours.  This was very hard for some of them.  A couple of people were still weeping when we met up with them for lunch.  I don’t know exactly what they were able to do with them other than spend some time giving them love and attention, but it must have been difficult.  Although I must admit, it was a great blessing to see that their hearts have really been impacted. Not that I thought they had hard hearts to begin with.  This is what I hoped for when we built the team.  You want people to come home different, and after this and many other experiences, I am sure that the entire team will never be the same.

This was our first night of big crusades in a place called Chengalpettu.  It could be called Chenglapet as well. It is spelled differently on street signs and store fronts, so I’m not sure which is correct.  We have been wanting to hold crusades here for a few years, but we haven’t had the budget for it.  This is where pastor Joel is from. He is very well respected among the local pastors.  When he wants to do something, everyone wants to be involved, so we knew that if we did any kind of pastor’s conference or crusade with him, they would be big.

They had some problem with getting permits for the meetings from the local police, for various reasons.  One, being that there is a new nuclear plant being built near here, and they don’t want any foreigners coming around.  Apparently, some protestors from Australia came and made a big raucous and now they are super sensitive to allowing foreigners around the area.  Secondly, because exams are in a couple weeks for the students and they don’t want loud music and noise in the city when the students are studying.  But, eventually we got the permission and moved forward, planning on keeping it a little more low-key than the original plan.

The first night, we had about 2,000 people come out to hear the word of God.  Billy preached the gospel and nearly every person in the crowd stood during at the invitation to call upon the name of the Lord and receive the forgiveness of sins.  We asked them to come forward with their prayer requests, and hundreds of them came for a touch from God in their lives.  It is such a blessing to be able to pray with people for the needs in their lives.  Just as in Rajahmundry, the crowd at the altar swelled as people pressed in, desperate for God to do a miracle for them.

I was reminded of the times in Scripture when crowds would follow Jesus and the disciples and press in upon them. People are no different today.  We may have technological and medical advancements, but when it comes down to it, people still want God to move, and many people in many parts of the world have no other hope than a miracle.  We believe God is the same yesterday, today, and forever.  We don’t serve a dead God. Jesus Christ is alive, and he has the power to hear and answer prayer.  So we prayed for every single person who came forward, expecting the Lord to show them his mighty power and to prove to them that he isn’t just another God to add to their stack of idols, but He is the only true and living God.

The team piled into the van and headed back, praying and singing psalms and hymns together, excited for what the Lord has in store for us tomorrow, and grateful for all the prayers and thoughts of our supporters back home!  Thank you!

India 2012 Day 9

Today we have another pastor’s conference with about 120-150 different pastors in a different area of Chennai, where we had held a conference previously last year.  The rest of the team will be taking 13 of the gypsy children to the zoo and having a blast with them while Steve and I spend the morning and afternoon having a blast with a bunch of pastors.

Those going to work with the gypsy kids left at 6:00 again, in order to get to the day care center in time to bathe the kids, clothe them and have breakfast with them before taking them to the zoo.

Steve and I left with Josh around 8:00 and made our way through the city to pastor Christudas’ church, where the pastors meetings are being held.  Steve did all the teaching again, as he is our most valuable resource to bring wisdom and experience to them.  The teaching was very well received by the pastors, and at the end of the conference several of them came to the front and shared what God had been speaking to them through the lessons.  Some of the pastors were so overcome with emotion as Steve talked about the purpose of suffering that they openly wept, and one pastor, who sends out a monthly Christian magazine to over 1000 pastors, asked if he could have a copy of Steve’s outline so he could translate it and publish it.  Of course, Steve had no objection.

Then we met the rest of the team back at Josh’s home and talked about how the day went at the zoo.  The Chennai zoo has a lot of animals.  Lions, tigers, giraffes, snakes, white tigers, lots of deer, elephants, etc.  Some people were even able to get a ride on an elephant.  The kids were very well behaved and had a lot of fun.  These are kids who are very wild by nature.  The gypsies are a group of vagabonds who live in wild places. They set up their tents and settle wherever they can find a piece of land. They make beads and trinkets to sell for some rupees, but most of their food is what they can catch. Anything that moves is considered food to them, so they are hunters.  None of them are educated at all, and there is a lot of incest, since they do not marry outside the gypsy camp.  The kids we are ministering to are a group whose parents have deserted them just over a year ago.  The local villagers came and destroyed the gypsy camp and beat anyone they could get their hands on, including the women and children.  So, the next day the gypsies broke camp and split, but they left their kids behind with Caleb’s church since they had been working so closely with them for several years. They have no hope for a better life as long as they remain in the gypsy camp, so they gave up their children in the hope that they will be able to get some sort of education and eventually break the cycle of poverty. It is a sad thing, but at the same time we believe God will turn it around for their ultimate good, as they are now in school and are being taught the Bible and how to follow Jesus.

In the evening, we had another small crusade in Sithalapakkam, the same village where we held big crusades back in 2010.  When we realized we were going to have a surplus of funds, pastor Rajendran asked if we could do a crusade on his church grounds.  There were about 100-150 people there, among whom were many hindus.  Ryan Orozco gave a brief introductory message on the importance of sincerity in worship, and Steve preached the gospel, expounding out of John 4 with the woman at the well.   At the altar call, he asked those who wanted to become Christians to come forward and stand before the altar to pray.  About 50 people came forward to receive Christ.  After the prayer of repentance, Steve presented the pastor to them and encouraged them to begin coming to the church and fellowshipping with the Christians.

We laid hands on and prayed for almost everyone there. People come forward for all sorts of reasons, whether they are sick, poor, in need of deliverance from addictions, having family problems, etc.  Most of the young people come forward asking for wisdom in school to get good marks, and the young girls come asking for a good husband.  We are happy to stay as long as it takes so that everyone can receive prayer.

We now have only three days of ministry left before we fly out of India.  Please do not stop praying for us as these last three nights will be our big crusades and we are expecting lots of opposition.  Please pray for the message to come in power and for many lost souls to come to Jesus Christ. Pray for God to confirm his word with signs and wonders.  When there is lots of opposition, there are great things about to happen, and we all have a sense of expectancy as to what the Holy Spirit is about to do.

Thank you for your support!

India 2012 Day 8

6:00 in the morning comes pretty early when its on the heels of a day of ministry, travel, and a late night getting settled into a new place. But rise we did when the time came, because there were a lot of exciting things on the plate for the day.  Josh’s place is very accommodating for a big team like ours.  The girls all shared a room with an attached bathroom, while Billy and Steve shared a smaller room next door which also had its own bathroom and shower.  Kyle, Ryan, Zach and Bryan all shared a small flat on the bottom floor of the building.  Although it is kind of awkward sharing a bed with the pastor, I was glad to be on the top floor because this is where the wi-fi is.  Not only that, but I only need to compete with one person for the bathroom.

We left early because where was a lot of ground to cover in a short time.  We arrived at a leper colony around 8:00 and began making our way down the street, giving love and attention to the suffering people there.  They invited us into their homes and asked us to pray for them. I was impressed to see members of the team boldly and fearlessly shaking hands, hugging, and laying hands on bodies that were infected with the deadly disease.  This is a separate colony from the one we were working in over that last few years, so all of the faces were new to me, but still we gave them love and attention, as well as tangible things like food and other supplies that they can use.

After spending some time with them individually, the villagers came together at a meeting hall to hear the word of God from us.  As we entered, they greeted us with fresh coconuts with straws poked into them.  This was very refreshing for those who were brave enough to drink it.  Jackie Gillette spoke for a few moments and shared the gospel clearly with them, and about half the crowd of about 40 prayed to receive forgiveness of their sins and to receive Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior.  This was the same Jackie who told me several times that she did not want to speak because she didn’t do well in front of crowds.  Praise the Lord!

From there, we met pastor Joel at his mother’s house which vas very close by to the leper colony, where the team freshened up and got into some clean clothes for the pastor’s conference.  We had a small meal and made our way over to the meeting hall and enjoyed some dynamic worship.  Before the worship started, I leaned over and whispered to one of the team members, “We’re about to blow the roof off this place.” The Indian people are extremely animated when worshiping the Lord.  They get very involved and give everything they have when praising the Lord.  Some people have their own convictions on what worship should look like, but as you stand with them and clap your hands, you can’t help but be drawn into the worship yourself as the Spirit of God fills the room.

Before Steve took over the microphone for the teaching, we dismissed the rest of the team and sent them off to the other leper colony, where they would spend time ministering to the lepers as Steve and I stayed back at the pastor’s meeting.  The 100 or so pastors at the meeting were very attentive during the message and we had great feedback from them afterwards.  Many left the conference insisting that this was the best one they have been to.  It made me glad to have such a valuable resource on the team in our senior pastor.

The rest of the team went to the leper colony that we put in the water tanks for.  They did basically the same things as we did in the morning.  We provided 6 150 lb bags of rice for them, loved them, and spoke to about 100 of them who had gathered in the meeting hall.  Kayla Pratt stood and shared the good news of the gospel with them and everyone present sought God’s forgiveness as she gave an invitation to come to Him.

They came back to pick us up from the meeting place and began the hour and a half drive back to Josh’s place, where we would have about an hour to freshen up again before rolling out to a crusade in the slums.  On the way, we stopped at a store so the girls could purchase some Punjabi clothing.  Josh thought we would be received better if they showed some respect for the culture and dressed accordingly, and the girls did not complain about the prospect of shopping, as you can imagine.  To their credit, they only spent about an hour there before each of them had a couple of changes of Punjabi garb.

The crusade at the slums was in the middle of a street section.  There were about 50 people gathered when we arrived, but soon that number swelled to about 150.  Billy K preached the gospel, expounding on the teachings of Jesus from Luke 18, and half the crowd stood boldly to their feet at the altar call and called upon the name of the Lord.  This is a very strong hindu neighborhood, so most of the crowd were not Christians.  Now most of that crowd are Christians!  We laid hands on and prayed for many sick people, for many young people asking for wisdom for their exams coming up, for many people struggling with addictions to drugs and alcohol, and much more.  We are eagerly anticipating hearing testimonies about how the Lord is doing miracles for them.

Once we got the team back home, some of us went out for a quick dinner and enjoyed good fellowship and reflection on another fruitful day in the Lord’s work.  Tomorrow is yet another huge day with lots of exciting things happening, so stay tuned in and be encouraged by what God is doing in India!

Thanks again for your dedicated prayers for us.  We are drawing strength and anointing from them.  God bless you!!

India 2012 Day 6,7

We awoke to another hot and humid day, but by now we have all grown accustomed to perpetual sweating and the constant stickiness of our clothes.  No one has been complaining and we all have fun with it, so we have been blessed not to have allowed it to spoil our joy.

After breakfast and a team devotion, we hopped into the vehicle for a long day of travel.  The singing and worship in the vehicle continued as we all lifted up our voices together and praised the Lord during the long hours in the car.  We went to the village clinic first, where about 20 people were gathered to receive medical treatment.  Kumar gave a tour of the grounds and explained the vision for the future of the village clinic, and then Steve spoke to the people who were gathered together. He shared the gospel with them and asked if any would want to commit their lives to Christ and all of them did.  These are very strict hindu people who are hard to reach.  The medical camps are very effective because they show the love of Jesus Christ with them and it opens a door to share the good news with them.

From here, we traveled some distance to visit a very small church in an extremely rural community.  We pulled up to the church and were all amazed at what we saw.  It was nothing more than a hut with an opening so small we had to crouch down to enter in, but as we stepped inside, it was quite larger than it appeared from the outside and was even a lot cooler than the blistering heat.  We counted about 85 people, including our team, that fit inside the hut.  Cassie Smith shared briefly from John 6 about Jesus coming back for us, followed by Zach Smith teaching from Psalm 65.  Billy K then preached a message on how to have joy in the midst of our trials by looking to the promise of the resurrection.  The church was strengthened and encouraged by the meeting, and we laid hands on and prayed for everyone there.

The drive back to town was very long, and everyone was glad to get out of the vehicle and relax in Kumar’s home for about an hour before we had to get to the next meeting. It was an open air setting in another strict hindu community.  We knew full well that our amplification was sending the message throughout the entire village.  Kayla Pratt opened with some encouraging scriptures before Kyle Skinner  taught from 1John 4. Then Steve gave them a message from Ephesians 4 about how the body of Christ is supposed to work. Then he boldly shared the gospel with them and several people responded to the altar call.  They were very nervous about standing up or identifying themselves in any way because there were many hindus watching. Again, we prayed for all the people before giving out candy to the children.

We took the long ride home and got some laid down to sleep for the last time at Kumar and Jean Mary’s place.

Tuesday was our last day in Rajahmundry, but that doesn’t mean we couldn’t squeeze in a little more ministry before hitting the airport! We had planned baptizing some new believers since the beginning of the trip, and today we had the time to do it.  We took a slight detour on the way to see some of the Hindu temples that line the Godarvi River.  It is the second most holy river in India. A few years back, more than 80 million hindus came to Rajahmundry to take a holy dip in the river. Today, we were going to give a new meaning to some newly converted hindus on what a holy dip in the Godarvi was all about.

We parked the car on a hill overlooking the river, and as we began to make our way down to the water, a herd of water buffalos was also trying to get to the water at the same time and we had to compete with them to go down the trail.  Of course, as foreigners, we probably looked silly when we were somewhat intimidated by these huge beasts, because the locals casually shoed them away like cows while snickering at us.

We got to the water safely and waited for the new converts to show up. They arrived shortly after us and we were pleased to see 23 women  coming to make a public declaration of their faith in Jesus Christ.  The pastors had already given them instruction on baptism and what it is all about, so we did not have to have a teaching time. We simply prayed with them, and baptized them.  Then we gave Bibles to each of them so that they will be able to grow in their knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.

While we were baptizing, there was a man, his wife, and child nearby tending to their fishing equipment.  He was watching everything that was going on and asked if he, too, could have a Bible.  Pastor Steve briefly shared with him and gave him not one but two Bibles so that he could give one to someone else as well.

The trip back to Kumar’s place seemed to take forever when everyone had wet shorts and was in need of a shower after braving the murky water.  We showered up, packed up, and headed to the airport just in time to get through security and rush onto the plane. A couple of quick jumps on Jet Airways to Hyderabad and finally to Chennai, and we are ready to begin our second week of ministry in india in a whole new city.  We’ll keep you posted and begin showing pictures as soon as we have some decent internet service!

Thanks again for your wonderful and faithful prayers for the team.  God has been doing incredible work!