May 2009 Prayer Letter

Travel, travel, and more travel
The past two months have felt like one long road trip. I began the month of March sitting on an airplane while headed to Florida. After a three hour delay during which the largest snow storm of the year enveloped the Piedmont, our flight was cancelled and I slid my way home in six inches of snow. Several days later our family participated in the Mission Conference at our sending church, Canton Baptist Temple, in Canton, OH. Lisa and I then returned to Mexico City for five days where I preached at and officiated the wedding ceremony of two young people who were members of the church which we planted. I was also able to preach in the Iglesia Bautista de Fe and the Iglesia Bautista Nueva Esperanza, both located in the suburbs of this huge metropolis. Upon our return I traveled to West Virginia where I preached a four-day Bible Conference at the Grace Baptist Church in Bridgeport, WV. This is the first church in which Lisa and I served following Bible College more than twenty-five years ago. On April 19 I was privileged to preach at the Iglesia Bautista Cristo Vive here in Winston-Salem, NC. Last week I again traveled to Canton, OH to attend the funeral of Joan Stephens, one of our coworkers at EBI. She had been battling cancer for many years but God saw fit to take her home. Finally, I traveled to Chattanooga, TN to pick up our daughter from college.

I relay this travel diary to request your prayers that God would continue to grant us safety in travel and effectiveness in ministry. While the challenges of present-day missionary journeys pale in comparison to the hardships which the Apostle Paul and other first-century missionaries encountered (2 Cor. 11:23-28), they are nonetheless real. Lisa and I returned from Mexico just six days prior to the public announcement of the swine flu. On a trip to Caracas, Venezuela last year I got lost late at night in a dangerous section of the city with absolutely no idea where I was to go and with incorrect contact information. After teaching in the seminary in Trujillo, Peru several years ago my students “rewarded” me with a celebratory dinner of ceviche (uncooked citrus marinated seafood) which resulted in an agonizing six hour flight home and a bad case of Salmonella thirty days later. And just this week while traveling in heavy rain on the WV Turnpike there was a devastating accident involving a semi-truck and several other vehicles just minutes in front of me. Yes, missionary travel can be dangerous yet God often uses these obstacles for a clear demonstration of His glory.

Next Theological Curriculum course is finished (finally!)
The Old Testament Survey I course is now finished and available for distribution throughout Latin America. Many of you have been praying with us for its completion. Although the formatting and graphic work took us longer than we had anticipated, the project is done and there is rejoicing in the halls of Editorial Bautista Independiente. We now can turn our attention to the next courses on our publication docket including Bible Doctrine I, II, III, and The Family.

Be strong

“Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be dismayed: for the Lord thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest.” Joshua 1:9

God’s declaration to guide, protect and promote His people even along previously untrodden paths is a contemporarily relevant and personally encouraging promise. While the year 2008 certainly led EBI along some unanticipated and at times completely unwelcomed pathways, God has fulfilled His Word. He has ministered to our staff amidst extremely trying times. He has provided wisdom and strength to fulfill responsibilities, even those above our “pay grade” and His ministry through EBI continues to grow as current materials are promoted and new materials are developed. Although often hesitant and fearful of taking paths on which we have not passed heretofore (Joshua 3:4) God continually encourages us to press on with courage and confidence. We are grateful for God's faithfulness in the past year which provides us with great courage and confidence for the year ahead!