Hello Church,
Wanted to take a few minutes of your time and write a quick update on what has been going on, what is going on, and what will go on over the next few weeks. God continues to prove faithful in the ministry here!! Over the past couple of weeks I have felt as if our groups, discipleship groups, have grown intensely!! With Marco, a guy I meet with on Mondays, every week he longs to know more of who God is. It is almost as a deer panting for the water. It truly is my joy to see his face every time we unpack part of the mystery that is God!! Last week we started a new group, not knowing exactly what to call it, nor even what our purpose would be, just knowing that we all longed for more fellowship with the brethren, so we started. After last week it has taken the name “Confessions”. Last week we sat in my house, drank coffee and ate lime pie that my wife made, consumed a little bit of the Word, chewed on a couple things from some dead guys, and opened our hearts to one another. It was such great communion!!! We cannot imagine what heaven will be like, but I do draw from Scripture that something of that type of communion will occur. Last week in tepito with Sebastian also went well. We are continuing through the gospel of John with him, verse by verse, and although I do not see that the Father has shed that grace on him yet, it is always a prayerful concern of mine. I am very excited about time with him tomorrow!! We will be talking about Jesus being the Lamb of God!! Please join me in praying the grace would be effectual to him!!
As I write this I am consumed with anticipation of our “Confessions” meeting tonight!! I think one of the true marks of a believer is their desire to commune with the saints!! Oh, how I do long for that!! The banana pudding that my wife and I made will also be a delightful part of our communion tonight and for that I am not sad!! This Friday we will be looking at the will of God. A very interesting subject and will lead to great conversations I think. Quickly I want to brag or share with you whats going on in a couple guys that we are discipleing: First Jorge. Jorge is 19 years old and has a great desire to preach Christ. Right now he is preparing to go to the College at Southwestern, if God allows, to study missions. He is also reading “Don’t waste Your Life” by John Piper and seems to be grasping so much!! Second Abimiel. Some of you were blessed by the opportunity to meet Abi at my wedding. Abi is also preparing to go to Southwestern, maybe a little later than Jorge. Abi as of late has caught such a huge vision for the glory of God, and as it had an effect on Isaiah so it has on Abi. He is reading “The End For Which God Created The World” by Jonathan Edwards right now, and in my opinion that is healthy for anyone!! Please join me in praying for these two young men specifically!!
The next couple of weeks will be packed!! In about a week and a half we will be hosting our first pastors conference!! This has been part of my vision from the start, and God has seen fit for it to happen. We will be meeting in Autlan Jalisco teaching men to preach espositionally!! There are a group of pastors from Louisiana, Colorado, New Mexico, and Texas coming to preach!! This will take place the 8th – 11th of November, then the following week we will be returning to Veracruz!! I am so ready for this!! Once again we will be proclaiming the truths of Christ to the unreached peoples of the world!! There are a couple of brothers coming from Quitman Tx. That will accompany us on that trip. Please pray specifically for these things!!
I know I said that this would be quick, but it is so hard to be quick with the things of the King!! I hope that each of you are having a great week, and that the Lord is continuing to shape and mold you to look more like Him!! As always I ask that you continue to hold the rope!! Thank you for all your fathfulness in pray and support!! Blessings my Brothers!!
" If the depravity and corruption of the heart is the only ground of the necessity of regeneration, then regeneration consists in removing this depravity, and introducing opposite principles, and so laying a foundation for holy exercises." Samuel Hopkins
Solus Christus,
jonathan murdock
Wednesday, October 20, 2010
Monday, October 11, 2010
Two Years!!
Brothers and Sisters, grace and peace to you,
As I am sitting here I am thinking, contemplating, reflecting, and praising God for His great abundance of grace in my life! Two years ago this day I got on a plane leaving family, friends, church, security, and comfort to answer the great call God has on my life. When we set out on this journey, you holding and me jumping, I had no idea we would see such magnificent acts of grace such as we have seen. You may not feel the same because you simply sit in front of a computer and read about them while we get the experience, my heart goes out to you for it is amazing. I truly feel as if I have the greatest life in the world!! It is my job to preach the gospel to people who have never heard, and walk along side brothers and sisters leading them into deeper communion with the Father. That’s my life!! Its great! I really wish you could all sit down with Marco and I as we meet on Mondays and walk through the great Text, and watch his eyes get so big when God reveals a truth to him and he says things like “I don’t want the time to end.” Or have a cup of coffee with a group of young men who in the last year have through the Spirit been killing the flesh and nothing is more exciting to them than to gain an understanding of a text. To experience the joy, pure joy, of being entrusted by the Father to preach to his people explaining His love of which they have never had the opportunity to hear. Sometimes I feel like I have been graced with a fairy tale life, grace alone.
Also as I am sitting here I can’t help but think of the changes this journey has brought about, changes that I don’t even know how to express. Two years ago I got here not knowing five words of Spanish, and even the few I did know I couldn’t say right. After being here a month I preached my first sermon in Spanish and now preach on a regular basis and lead Bible studies each week all in Spanish. I arrived here a single man, and as of tomorrow will have been married four months to the most beautiful girl in the world!! Definitely an example of God giving a man the desires of his heart.
I also cannot but help thinking of all of you. There have been so many times that I have entered a place that may not be the safest place in the world and had an incredible opportunity to preach in a way that has not happened in those places, then talking to you all and hearing stories how in those exact moments you were being so faithful in praying. Times when we have had absolutely no money to carry out ministry nor even for food, and simply asking the Father to place that need in your hearts, and we have yet to go without!! Not one time has He failed!! You have heard the voice of our Father and been faithful in responding to that voice and for that I am so grateful!! There are no words to express such gratitude!!
In thinking of all that God has done over the past two years I also cannot but look to the things to come. Next month we will have our first pastor’s conference teaching men to preach expositionally and teaching them the great doctrines of our faith!! Then the week after that conference we will be going back to Veracruz one of many of the places that God has opened our eyes to that the Gospel has not yet gone, and possibly another in the spring. The need is so great here, and every day God’s call for me here is reaffirmed.
With all of this said I also cannot help but think of me. How weak, faithless and frail I am. Paul writes in the 15th chapter of 1 Corinthians “By the grace of God I am what I am.” God has been so faithful in continuing His work of sanctification in my life, yet at times I feel as though He has left. He has been so faithful in His provisions for us and yet so many times I doubt. He has never once backed out of a promise and yet I fear. I also see the need to look to the future of the work of the Fathers work in my life. He is a great savior and will not fail. When I am faithless He is faithful!!! We should cling so tightly to that!!
I want to thank all of you for being so faithful in praying for us and when God calls being so faithful in supporting financially our ministry here. The work is not done!! For that we must press on, fighting the good fight, contending for the faith!! I ask that all of you continue to hold the rope while we remain here in the well. I long to come to you soon, but if that is not possible I pray that you too continue in the great fight!!
As I am sitting here I am thinking, contemplating, reflecting, and praising God for His great abundance of grace in my life! Two years ago this day I got on a plane leaving family, friends, church, security, and comfort to answer the great call God has on my life. When we set out on this journey, you holding and me jumping, I had no idea we would see such magnificent acts of grace such as we have seen. You may not feel the same because you simply sit in front of a computer and read about them while we get the experience, my heart goes out to you for it is amazing. I truly feel as if I have the greatest life in the world!! It is my job to preach the gospel to people who have never heard, and walk along side brothers and sisters leading them into deeper communion with the Father. That’s my life!! Its great! I really wish you could all sit down with Marco and I as we meet on Mondays and walk through the great Text, and watch his eyes get so big when God reveals a truth to him and he says things like “I don’t want the time to end.” Or have a cup of coffee with a group of young men who in the last year have through the Spirit been killing the flesh and nothing is more exciting to them than to gain an understanding of a text. To experience the joy, pure joy, of being entrusted by the Father to preach to his people explaining His love of which they have never had the opportunity to hear. Sometimes I feel like I have been graced with a fairy tale life, grace alone.
Also as I am sitting here I can’t help but think of the changes this journey has brought about, changes that I don’t even know how to express. Two years ago I got here not knowing five words of Spanish, and even the few I did know I couldn’t say right. After being here a month I preached my first sermon in Spanish and now preach on a regular basis and lead Bible studies each week all in Spanish. I arrived here a single man, and as of tomorrow will have been married four months to the most beautiful girl in the world!! Definitely an example of God giving a man the desires of his heart.
I also cannot but help thinking of all of you. There have been so many times that I have entered a place that may not be the safest place in the world and had an incredible opportunity to preach in a way that has not happened in those places, then talking to you all and hearing stories how in those exact moments you were being so faithful in praying. Times when we have had absolutely no money to carry out ministry nor even for food, and simply asking the Father to place that need in your hearts, and we have yet to go without!! Not one time has He failed!! You have heard the voice of our Father and been faithful in responding to that voice and for that I am so grateful!! There are no words to express such gratitude!!
In thinking of all that God has done over the past two years I also cannot but look to the things to come. Next month we will have our first pastor’s conference teaching men to preach expositionally and teaching them the great doctrines of our faith!! Then the week after that conference we will be going back to Veracruz one of many of the places that God has opened our eyes to that the Gospel has not yet gone, and possibly another in the spring. The need is so great here, and every day God’s call for me here is reaffirmed.
With all of this said I also cannot help but think of me. How weak, faithless and frail I am. Paul writes in the 15th chapter of 1 Corinthians “By the grace of God I am what I am.” God has been so faithful in continuing His work of sanctification in my life, yet at times I feel as though He has left. He has been so faithful in His provisions for us and yet so many times I doubt. He has never once backed out of a promise and yet I fear. I also see the need to look to the future of the work of the Fathers work in my life. He is a great savior and will not fail. When I am faithless He is faithful!!! We should cling so tightly to that!!
I want to thank all of you for being so faithful in praying for us and when God calls being so faithful in supporting financially our ministry here. The work is not done!! For that we must press on, fighting the good fight, contending for the faith!! I ask that all of you continue to hold the rope while we remain here in the well. I long to come to you soon, but if that is not possible I pray that you too continue in the great fight!!
Saturday, October 2, 2010
Veracruz
Paul writes in the fifteenth chapter of Romans “20 and thus I make it my ambition to preach the gospel, not where Christ has already been named, lest I build on someone else's foundation,”. This has, since the day Christ saved me, also been my desire, to proclaim the glories of Christ to those who have never heard, and to those whom no one will go. Once again through the grace of God this past week we have reached yet another group of people that have never heard the gospel.
About two weeks ago a huge hurricane hit the state of Veracruz and left countless people homeless, foodless, cloth less, and some lifeless. It has always been that in times of great tragedy God sends the church to preach the gospel to those affected. We can see this in “The City of God” by Augustine. For it is in these difficult times that people’s hearts are opened to see the reality of life and begin to search for something of value. There was nothing short of this in the state of Veracruz!!
This past Sunday a group of seven of us (Ivonne and I, along with some folks involved in our ministry here), left to go to Veracruz to take some physical aid, but more importantly to preach Christ crucified and resurrected! Towns were completely in ruins from damaging wind and floods of water. Literally people lost everything. It was truly tragic to see, but more than the physical tragedy was that of the spiritual. After a long drive on Sunday we were up early and left for a small town call Tamarindo that was hit pretty hard by the storm. One of the brothers that went with us has family that lives in this town and he wanted to go there, so we did. When we arrived with cloths and a little food to leave for the people we were informed that many in this town had lost their houses because of flooding, so we began to pass out food and clothes and I began to talk with the people about Christ and found out that Christian missionaries had not reached this little town!! There is a Jehovah witness church and a catholic Church but no evangelical influence!! The true gospel was preached for the first time in Tamarindo!!
After leaving Tamarindo we went to another small town called Buenavista. We were immediately greeted by about forty people seeking aid. Before we began to hand out things we (Abimiel, Fortunato, and I) got to preach for almost an hour!! This was also the first time that the true gospel had been preached there as well. I really felt like we connected with the people in Buenavista, and feel as if we will have opportunity to return. Both of these little towns are off the beaten path and somewhat difficult to get to, but there is no price to put on the joy of being part of a people hearing the Good News for the very first time. I wish I could write to you all and say that God opened the eyes of these people and made the blind to see, and that we are rejoicing at the salvation of this town, but tis not the case. This is a town that has been influenced by the Catholic church for ages and is very hard, but we were invited back to teach more of Christ by a man named Manuel. He said that is was great that we came to help, but to understand these teachings someone would have to come and teach more! O! How the fields are white with harvest!!!!
We then spent the next two days helping people in a town called Paseo De Los Ovejas, or where the sheep pass. We came in contact with a man named Pasqual who is 86 years old and raises crops to sell. His house was flooded with over six feet of water and was left with about 2 ½ to three feet of mud inside. We helped him shovel out mud and clean his house for two days, and we also shared the story of Christ with him. I think this was probably the saddest part of the whole trip, to see a man so close to his end and no fear of the judgment that will come upon him. Please pray for Pasqual!!
Although some would say that we saw no fruit, I would argue and say that they don’t trust the gospel!! We are promised that His word will NOT return void, and I believe that!! God continues to open our eyes to pockets of people here in Mexico that are unreached!! People that have never heard of the love of Christ!! O, how I pray that God would continue to raise up His children to go!! To give everything and go to the Tamarindos or the Buenavistas, and that they would go with a passion for His name!!
I want to thank every one of you who helped financially and prayerfully with this trip!!! Thank you for being faithful in holding the rope!! We will be leading a group in November to return to these two places and spending a week teaching them the truths of Christ. I ask that you continue holding the rope and join me in beginning to pray for God to open their eyes and hearts for we know that unless He does they cannot hear nor understand. Thank you so very much!!
Solus Christus,
jonathan and ivonne murdock
About two weeks ago a huge hurricane hit the state of Veracruz and left countless people homeless, foodless, cloth less, and some lifeless. It has always been that in times of great tragedy God sends the church to preach the gospel to those affected. We can see this in “The City of God” by Augustine. For it is in these difficult times that people’s hearts are opened to see the reality of life and begin to search for something of value. There was nothing short of this in the state of Veracruz!!
This past Sunday a group of seven of us (Ivonne and I, along with some folks involved in our ministry here), left to go to Veracruz to take some physical aid, but more importantly to preach Christ crucified and resurrected! Towns were completely in ruins from damaging wind and floods of water. Literally people lost everything. It was truly tragic to see, but more than the physical tragedy was that of the spiritual. After a long drive on Sunday we were up early and left for a small town call Tamarindo that was hit pretty hard by the storm. One of the brothers that went with us has family that lives in this town and he wanted to go there, so we did. When we arrived with cloths and a little food to leave for the people we were informed that many in this town had lost their houses because of flooding, so we began to pass out food and clothes and I began to talk with the people about Christ and found out that Christian missionaries had not reached this little town!! There is a Jehovah witness church and a catholic Church but no evangelical influence!! The true gospel was preached for the first time in Tamarindo!!
After leaving Tamarindo we went to another small town called Buenavista. We were immediately greeted by about forty people seeking aid. Before we began to hand out things we (Abimiel, Fortunato, and I) got to preach for almost an hour!! This was also the first time that the true gospel had been preached there as well. I really felt like we connected with the people in Buenavista, and feel as if we will have opportunity to return. Both of these little towns are off the beaten path and somewhat difficult to get to, but there is no price to put on the joy of being part of a people hearing the Good News for the very first time. I wish I could write to you all and say that God opened the eyes of these people and made the blind to see, and that we are rejoicing at the salvation of this town, but tis not the case. This is a town that has been influenced by the Catholic church for ages and is very hard, but we were invited back to teach more of Christ by a man named Manuel. He said that is was great that we came to help, but to understand these teachings someone would have to come and teach more! O! How the fields are white with harvest!!!!
We then spent the next two days helping people in a town called Paseo De Los Ovejas, or where the sheep pass. We came in contact with a man named Pasqual who is 86 years old and raises crops to sell. His house was flooded with over six feet of water and was left with about 2 ½ to three feet of mud inside. We helped him shovel out mud and clean his house for two days, and we also shared the story of Christ with him. I think this was probably the saddest part of the whole trip, to see a man so close to his end and no fear of the judgment that will come upon him. Please pray for Pasqual!!
Although some would say that we saw no fruit, I would argue and say that they don’t trust the gospel!! We are promised that His word will NOT return void, and I believe that!! God continues to open our eyes to pockets of people here in Mexico that are unreached!! People that have never heard of the love of Christ!! O, how I pray that God would continue to raise up His children to go!! To give everything and go to the Tamarindos or the Buenavistas, and that they would go with a passion for His name!!
I want to thank every one of you who helped financially and prayerfully with this trip!!! Thank you for being faithful in holding the rope!! We will be leading a group in November to return to these two places and spending a week teaching them the truths of Christ. I ask that you continue holding the rope and join me in beginning to pray for God to open their eyes and hearts for we know that unless He does they cannot hear nor understand. Thank you so very much!!
Solus Christus,
jonathan and ivonne murdock
Tuesday, September 21, 2010
Update
Hola hermanos!
I wanted to give you guys a quick update on some great things that are happening: A couple of weeks ago when I met with Marco he and his wife were having problems again, but once again God was present at our meeting and continues to finish His work in Marco and now they are doing very well! Yesterday Marco and I met, normally we meet on Mondays but he couldn’t this past one, so we met yesterday and I was very encouraged by our conversation. We talked about our God given task to glorify Him in everything, and our desire to be happy. Marco had really been struggling with wanting to please God, but having a natural desire to enjoy life, and thought that these two were at odds with each other. We looked at Scripture and saw how they are not at odds, but how in fact they go hand in hand. He was so comforted by what Piper said “God is most glorified in us, when we are most satisfied in Him (or in Spanish ‘Dios es mas glorificado en nosotros cuando estamos mas satisfecho en El’.” Please continue to pray for Marco, as with us all, sin is a struggle, but he is growing and I believe God has great things for him.
I was asked to preach at a youth event once a month to help a church out here so I agreed and the first event was this past Saturday. From the time God called me to missions (which I now realize that God calls us to Himself) I have been fighting being involved in student ministry, but He is sovereign! I preached on Psalm 1 and felt like we were met by the Spirit of God and that eternal work was done. A young man named Bruno approached me after the sermon and wants to talk about his salvation. I gave him my number and he will call this week. Please pray for Bruno.
My pastor has also asked me to help him preach through a series on sanctification through Romans. This will be a very difficult and intense series so I also ask that you would be in pray as we walk through it.
I have also been asked to preach at a marriage conference Oct. 7th-9th in Acapulco. I will be preaching on “The Purpose of God in Marriage”. There are some things that require much suffering in the Lords service, this will not be one of them. We will be enjoying God’s creation of the beach and doing what we love most; teaching people to glorify and enjoy the Father more and more. Although we will be enjoying our time at the beach I do ask that you pray that God would use us in the lives of our fellow believers!!
Nov. 8th-11th we will be hosting our first pastors conference in Autlan, Jalisco. The theme of this conference is expository preaching, and with the idea that through examples of expositors we will teach true biblical doctrine. Please pray that God will enlighten the hearts of his servants that they would be more equipped in the Word of God to proclaim the glories of His name!!
Here lately God has also reignited a passion in my heart to minister to families, specifically in teaching parents how to evangelize their own children and how to have a home that is Christ centered. I have a desire in my heart to plan a family conference for this purpose. We will be looking for pastors who share this same passion to be a part of this, so if you or if you know someone please e-mail me so that we seek the Lord together in this.
Once again, I thank you guys so much for all your prayers and support!! God working through you all continues to advance His kingdom!! I ask that you all continue to pray for the things mentioned about and bring them before the congregations of the saints where you gather!! Hold the ROPE!!
I wanted to give you guys a quick update on some great things that are happening: A couple of weeks ago when I met with Marco he and his wife were having problems again, but once again God was present at our meeting and continues to finish His work in Marco and now they are doing very well! Yesterday Marco and I met, normally we meet on Mondays but he couldn’t this past one, so we met yesterday and I was very encouraged by our conversation. We talked about our God given task to glorify Him in everything, and our desire to be happy. Marco had really been struggling with wanting to please God, but having a natural desire to enjoy life, and thought that these two were at odds with each other. We looked at Scripture and saw how they are not at odds, but how in fact they go hand in hand. He was so comforted by what Piper said “God is most glorified in us, when we are most satisfied in Him (or in Spanish ‘Dios es mas glorificado en nosotros cuando estamos mas satisfecho en El’.” Please continue to pray for Marco, as with us all, sin is a struggle, but he is growing and I believe God has great things for him.
I was asked to preach at a youth event once a month to help a church out here so I agreed and the first event was this past Saturday. From the time God called me to missions (which I now realize that God calls us to Himself) I have been fighting being involved in student ministry, but He is sovereign! I preached on Psalm 1 and felt like we were met by the Spirit of God and that eternal work was done. A young man named Bruno approached me after the sermon and wants to talk about his salvation. I gave him my number and he will call this week. Please pray for Bruno.
My pastor has also asked me to help him preach through a series on sanctification through Romans. This will be a very difficult and intense series so I also ask that you would be in pray as we walk through it.
I have also been asked to preach at a marriage conference Oct. 7th-9th in Acapulco. I will be preaching on “The Purpose of God in Marriage”. There are some things that require much suffering in the Lords service, this will not be one of them. We will be enjoying God’s creation of the beach and doing what we love most; teaching people to glorify and enjoy the Father more and more. Although we will be enjoying our time at the beach I do ask that you pray that God would use us in the lives of our fellow believers!!
Nov. 8th-11th we will be hosting our first pastors conference in Autlan, Jalisco. The theme of this conference is expository preaching, and with the idea that through examples of expositors we will teach true biblical doctrine. Please pray that God will enlighten the hearts of his servants that they would be more equipped in the Word of God to proclaim the glories of His name!!
Here lately God has also reignited a passion in my heart to minister to families, specifically in teaching parents how to evangelize their own children and how to have a home that is Christ centered. I have a desire in my heart to plan a family conference for this purpose. We will be looking for pastors who share this same passion to be a part of this, so if you or if you know someone please e-mail me so that we seek the Lord together in this.
Once again, I thank you guys so much for all your prayers and support!! God working through you all continues to advance His kingdom!! I ask that you all continue to pray for the things mentioned about and bring them before the congregations of the saints where you gather!! Hold the ROPE!!
Tuesday, March 9, 2010
March trip 010
Brothers and Sisters,
Grace and peace I pray would be given to you from the Father and from Jesus Christ our savior.
I am sorry that it has been so long since my last update, I had fallen into a state of being discouraged in writing them. I lost my focus in why I write them, and fell in to the schemes of the evil one in thinking that no one read them or that if some did it wasn’t that important, but God has once again in His mercy brought me back to a right vision and state of mind, for I do not write to make an appeal to man but solely that He would be magnified and delighted in as he is given most glory. I will once again try to send out an update every Wednesday that will be a little shorter and more personal.
We left this past Tuesday in the evening to return to Chiapas along with some brothers from Quitman Texas. There is a man named Cary Butler (Mr. Jamie) that a lot of you have heard me speak of, he lead the team from Quitman along with a brother Daniel and their pastor Bro. James. Mr. Jamie is 74 years old, and I wish all of you knew him for truly he is an inspiration of what Paul wrote to Philippians when he told them to “press on”. He has walked with me in places where people half his age would not dare tread, and I am truly indebted to his example. I am not sure that he has ever read Piper’s “Don’t Waste Your Life”, but he could have written it! Daniel is a layman in Quitman and set a huge example of how to be gentle and merciful this past week. He was a marine and has seen some crazy stuff, but God has given him a gentle spirit that I truly envy. It was such a blessing to finally get to meet Bro. James, Mr. Jamie has been telling me of him and how much he thought that I would get along with him, and how right he was. He is an intellect and theologian, and we had the opportunity to have those great conversations that edify that no price could be made for. I am grateful for his direction in Quitman and am so looking forward to worshiping with the brothers there in a couple of weeks!!
Our team of nationals was made up of the most beautiful girl in the world, Ivonne, sorry I am pretty biased!! Abbimiel, one of the guys that I am disciplining, and hoping that one day will be one of the missionaries on staff with Sing For Joy Missions. The Lord has His hand on Abbi. This week he preached his first sermon, and loved it! And Mildred, a young lady here that Ivonne is disciplining, and truly has a heart to make known the glories of His name. All three of them are so bold and did such great job this past week, and I am so blest that God has placed them in my life!
Once again it was a long bus ride down to San Cristobal, but the Lord was so gracious in allowing me to sleep. I felt so bad for the other brothers on the team because I know how miserable it is when you can’t sleep on those buses, but really was glad the He showed me grace in that!! Our goal in this trip was to help our brother Josue with his work there in San Cristobal, but like every other time God had other plans that consisted in sending us throughout different regions in the area. I would love to share each and every conversation we had while we were going house to house preaching the goapel, but it would make this update very long. I will ask the people who were a part of this team to post to this update their experience so that you can hear a different point of view and stories that maybe I do not know. We split up into two groups so I have not even had the opportunity to hear them all. However, I will take a few minutes of your time to share a few of my personal experiences.
The first that I want to share is from the second day that we were out is a city called Tuxla. A group of us went to Tuxla to help a couple brothers with their work there. We were going house to house sharing the Good News of the Kingdom, and a young man came walking down the road. Mr. Jamie and I approached him and begain talking. Not long into our conversation he told us that his whole family were believers, but that he was not. He explained to me that he felt that he was too bad for God to save him, and that the pull of the world was too strong for him. I shared with him that Jesus didn’t come to save the righteous, but the unrighteous, that those who are not sick don’t need a doctor, and read to him Romans 5:6 and could tell that the Spirit had an effect on him. After encouraging him to cry to God for mercy, and trust in His name and the blood of Jesus he said he would and we departed. I do not know if the Lord saved him that day, but I am confident in the work of the Spirit and that if God is drawing him He will continue and will save him. The sheep will hear His voice!!!! I will just share one more thing, and this is probably what impacted me most on this trip. One night we were sitting with a pastor, who has been preaching in this region for over 30 years, talking after dinner when he begain to tell us what has been going on in that region over the past few months, then throughout the past couple of years. Here I am going to list a few places and what has happened, and although I will make these explanations short I hope that they will have some effect on you.
Acteal: In 1992 there was a fight going on in this town between two groups of people about a piece of land. One day a group of about forty from one group went into the Catholic Church for a service and members from the opposing group came in with guns and killed them. They then took their guns and hid them in a cabin in the woods. The officials from Acteal arrested the Christians saying that they killed them because they did not like the Catholics. In January of this year they released these brothers. They spent 18 years in prison wrongly accused.
Hualenchan: I am not exactly sure of the history here, but know that within the last two years brothers have given their lives for their faith here.
Chenalo: In December three college students from San Cristobal went there to visit a friend of theirs and they all had spiked hair that upset the leaders of the community so they put them in prison, then decided that that was not a sufficient punishment so they took them to a cave that they have there which is about a kilometer deep, and they threw the three boys in it. After some searching one of the boys father paid a young man of the town 20,000 pesos to tell him that they had thrown the boys in the hole. So the government sent the army and police to send someone in the hole to search for them, and they found their three bodies along with about 50 others, including a van full of people. The people who we were working with told me that they believe a lot of these people were from this town and when they proclaimed their faith in Christ the people of the town would throw them in the hole.
Chamula: You have heard me speak often of this town and the persecution there, and it is still as strong as ever. There is a story of a young man that not too long ago heard that it was now ok to preach the gospel there, so he went with that intention and did not leave.
Agua Azul: A week before we arrived in Chiapas 40 Pentecostals came here to preach the Good News, and the people of Agua Azul got upset killed one of them, and beat the others. Hitting them with poles and cutting them with machetes.
Mitziton: There is a sign in front of this town that says that the “Elect of God” are not welcome there. In this town there are several Christian families but are denied electricity and water.
My heart is broken for these areas and many more like them in this area of Chiapas. I ask that you join me in praying for the freedom of these places, and that one day we will have the opportunity to preach Christ crucified there!!
This was truly a great trip, and as always will leave an impact on our hearts!
Food for Thought:
This past week I could not get the word “redemption” out of my mind! So many times we ask “Who are we that He would redeem us?”, but it hit me this week that it is not who we are, but who He is making us. God does not saves us based on our condition or anything found in us, but He does save us to impute His righteousness to us conforming us to His image. Sin was in us, but charged upon Him as if He was the guilty. It is not a righteousness found in us, but in another, not something inherent, but imputed! An end in Christ’s coming was to impute this righteousness to us “I do not nullify the grace of God, for if righteousness were through the law, then Christ died for no purpose.” Gal. 2:21. He stood in our stead, though guiltless as guilty, though pure as one tainted. Nothing in His nature changed, that is what made it a sufficient sacrifice, but He was charged as one who committed all the sin in the world. Why? Because righteousness could not come from the law, so through Him becoming sin we are made His righteousness in Him. He imputes His righteousness to us and we are a reflection of His glory lighting up the world. “For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you by his poverty might become rich.” 2 Cor. 8:9
I love and miss you all! Thank you so much for you prayer and support, please continue to hold the rope!!!!
Por La Gracia,
jonathan
Grace and peace I pray would be given to you from the Father and from Jesus Christ our savior.
I am sorry that it has been so long since my last update, I had fallen into a state of being discouraged in writing them. I lost my focus in why I write them, and fell in to the schemes of the evil one in thinking that no one read them or that if some did it wasn’t that important, but God has once again in His mercy brought me back to a right vision and state of mind, for I do not write to make an appeal to man but solely that He would be magnified and delighted in as he is given most glory. I will once again try to send out an update every Wednesday that will be a little shorter and more personal.
We left this past Tuesday in the evening to return to Chiapas along with some brothers from Quitman Texas. There is a man named Cary Butler (Mr. Jamie) that a lot of you have heard me speak of, he lead the team from Quitman along with a brother Daniel and their pastor Bro. James. Mr. Jamie is 74 years old, and I wish all of you knew him for truly he is an inspiration of what Paul wrote to Philippians when he told them to “press on”. He has walked with me in places where people half his age would not dare tread, and I am truly indebted to his example. I am not sure that he has ever read Piper’s “Don’t Waste Your Life”, but he could have written it! Daniel is a layman in Quitman and set a huge example of how to be gentle and merciful this past week. He was a marine and has seen some crazy stuff, but God has given him a gentle spirit that I truly envy. It was such a blessing to finally get to meet Bro. James, Mr. Jamie has been telling me of him and how much he thought that I would get along with him, and how right he was. He is an intellect and theologian, and we had the opportunity to have those great conversations that edify that no price could be made for. I am grateful for his direction in Quitman and am so looking forward to worshiping with the brothers there in a couple of weeks!!
Our team of nationals was made up of the most beautiful girl in the world, Ivonne, sorry I am pretty biased!! Abbimiel, one of the guys that I am disciplining, and hoping that one day will be one of the missionaries on staff with Sing For Joy Missions. The Lord has His hand on Abbi. This week he preached his first sermon, and loved it! And Mildred, a young lady here that Ivonne is disciplining, and truly has a heart to make known the glories of His name. All three of them are so bold and did such great job this past week, and I am so blest that God has placed them in my life!
Once again it was a long bus ride down to San Cristobal, but the Lord was so gracious in allowing me to sleep. I felt so bad for the other brothers on the team because I know how miserable it is when you can’t sleep on those buses, but really was glad the He showed me grace in that!! Our goal in this trip was to help our brother Josue with his work there in San Cristobal, but like every other time God had other plans that consisted in sending us throughout different regions in the area. I would love to share each and every conversation we had while we were going house to house preaching the goapel, but it would make this update very long. I will ask the people who were a part of this team to post to this update their experience so that you can hear a different point of view and stories that maybe I do not know. We split up into two groups so I have not even had the opportunity to hear them all. However, I will take a few minutes of your time to share a few of my personal experiences.
The first that I want to share is from the second day that we were out is a city called Tuxla. A group of us went to Tuxla to help a couple brothers with their work there. We were going house to house sharing the Good News of the Kingdom, and a young man came walking down the road. Mr. Jamie and I approached him and begain talking. Not long into our conversation he told us that his whole family were believers, but that he was not. He explained to me that he felt that he was too bad for God to save him, and that the pull of the world was too strong for him. I shared with him that Jesus didn’t come to save the righteous, but the unrighteous, that those who are not sick don’t need a doctor, and read to him Romans 5:6 and could tell that the Spirit had an effect on him. After encouraging him to cry to God for mercy, and trust in His name and the blood of Jesus he said he would and we departed. I do not know if the Lord saved him that day, but I am confident in the work of the Spirit and that if God is drawing him He will continue and will save him. The sheep will hear His voice!!!! I will just share one more thing, and this is probably what impacted me most on this trip. One night we were sitting with a pastor, who has been preaching in this region for over 30 years, talking after dinner when he begain to tell us what has been going on in that region over the past few months, then throughout the past couple of years. Here I am going to list a few places and what has happened, and although I will make these explanations short I hope that they will have some effect on you.
Acteal: In 1992 there was a fight going on in this town between two groups of people about a piece of land. One day a group of about forty from one group went into the Catholic Church for a service and members from the opposing group came in with guns and killed them. They then took their guns and hid them in a cabin in the woods. The officials from Acteal arrested the Christians saying that they killed them because they did not like the Catholics. In January of this year they released these brothers. They spent 18 years in prison wrongly accused.
Hualenchan: I am not exactly sure of the history here, but know that within the last two years brothers have given their lives for their faith here.
Chenalo: In December three college students from San Cristobal went there to visit a friend of theirs and they all had spiked hair that upset the leaders of the community so they put them in prison, then decided that that was not a sufficient punishment so they took them to a cave that they have there which is about a kilometer deep, and they threw the three boys in it. After some searching one of the boys father paid a young man of the town 20,000 pesos to tell him that they had thrown the boys in the hole. So the government sent the army and police to send someone in the hole to search for them, and they found their three bodies along with about 50 others, including a van full of people. The people who we were working with told me that they believe a lot of these people were from this town and when they proclaimed their faith in Christ the people of the town would throw them in the hole.
Chamula: You have heard me speak often of this town and the persecution there, and it is still as strong as ever. There is a story of a young man that not too long ago heard that it was now ok to preach the gospel there, so he went with that intention and did not leave.
Agua Azul: A week before we arrived in Chiapas 40 Pentecostals came here to preach the Good News, and the people of Agua Azul got upset killed one of them, and beat the others. Hitting them with poles and cutting them with machetes.
Mitziton: There is a sign in front of this town that says that the “Elect of God” are not welcome there. In this town there are several Christian families but are denied electricity and water.
My heart is broken for these areas and many more like them in this area of Chiapas. I ask that you join me in praying for the freedom of these places, and that one day we will have the opportunity to preach Christ crucified there!!
This was truly a great trip, and as always will leave an impact on our hearts!
Food for Thought:
This past week I could not get the word “redemption” out of my mind! So many times we ask “Who are we that He would redeem us?”, but it hit me this week that it is not who we are, but who He is making us. God does not saves us based on our condition or anything found in us, but He does save us to impute His righteousness to us conforming us to His image. Sin was in us, but charged upon Him as if He was the guilty. It is not a righteousness found in us, but in another, not something inherent, but imputed! An end in Christ’s coming was to impute this righteousness to us “I do not nullify the grace of God, for if righteousness were through the law, then Christ died for no purpose.” Gal. 2:21. He stood in our stead, though guiltless as guilty, though pure as one tainted. Nothing in His nature changed, that is what made it a sufficient sacrifice, but He was charged as one who committed all the sin in the world. Why? Because righteousness could not come from the law, so through Him becoming sin we are made His righteousness in Him. He imputes His righteousness to us and we are a reflection of His glory lighting up the world. “For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you by his poverty might become rich.” 2 Cor. 8:9
I love and miss you all! Thank you so much for you prayer and support, please continue to hold the rope!!!!
Por La Gracia,
jonathan
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
Thoughts on Missions
Church,
I just wanted to take a few minutes and share a few ideas on missions that will encourage you as you pray for our trip this next week. I hope these thoughts also encourage you to continually search for your role in missions. The old guys used to say that there are two ways you can be involved in missions; you can jump in the well, or hold the rope for the ones who have. Hope these are a blessing to you all…
“3 Declare his glory among the nations,his marvelous works among all the peoples!4 For great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised;he is to be feared above all gods.5 For all the gods of the peoples are worthless idols,but the Lord made the heavens.” Psalm 96:3-5
God deserves adoration from every people in the world! At this moment in Benito Juarez His name is not honored, He is not praised. My heart’s desire is that His name would be magnified in that place, and among those people! We will declare His glory for He is great and greatly to be praised!!! Pray for His name among the people of Benito Juarez!!
“67:1 May God be gracious to us and bless usand make his face to shine upon us, Selah2 that your way may be known on earth,your saving power among all nations.3 Let the peoples praise you, O God;let all the peoples praise you!
4 Let the nations be glad and sing for joy,for you judge the peoples with equityand guide the nations upon earth. Selah5 Let the peoples praise you, O God;let all the peoples praise you!
6 The earth has yielded its increase;God, our God, shall bless us.7 God shall bless us;let all the ends of the earth fear him!” Psalm 67
God makes His face shine upon us because He turned His face from His Son. This makes me think of the old Hymn “Where You There When They Crucified My Lord”, this thought ought to make us want to tremble, and at the same time rejoice in His Grace! Pray that the Lord would be gracious to the town of Benito Juarez and that He would shine His face on them! And that that shinning would spur them on to sing for joy!!
"Missions is not the ultimate goal of the church. Worship is. Missions exists because worship doesn't. Worship is ultimate, not missions, because God is ultimate, not man. When this age is over, and the countless millions of the redeemed fall on their faces before the throne of God, missions will be no more. It is a temporary necessity. But worship abides forever." –John Piper
I was having a conversation with a man of influence in my life a little while back about the people in Benito Juarez and he told me that I may never see the fruit of our labor in Benito Juarez, but that His Word does not return void. This is so true, and often serves to us as a comfort, I can’t help but think it did for William Carey as he labored for seven years before he saw any fruit in India, but I also cling to the promise in Rev. 5:9 that tells us as that great chorus of the redeemed resounds in the heavens that there WILL be a representative from every tribe, tongue, and language in the world! God Will save at least one from Benito Juarez! His name Will be honored!!!! Please pray that we would trust this promise and as we preach, preach believing and expecting!!
I want to thank each and every one of you who will be so faithful in praying and supporting this work as His name will be proclaimed amongst those who have not heard. I will close this word of encouragement with the words of a song written by Matt Redman. It is a song of sending, and I think shares the true heart of missions. May this be a blessing to you all!
“ Let worship be the fuel for mission's flame We're going with a passion for Your name We're going for we care about Your praise Send us out Let worship be the heart of mission's aim To see the nations recognize Your fame 'Til every tribe and tongue voices Your praise Send us out You should be the praise of every tongue, Jesus You should be the joy of every heart But until the fullness of Your kingdom comes Until the final revelation dawns Send us out Every tribe, every tongue Every creature in the heavens and the earth Every heart, every soul Will sing Your praise, will sing Your praise Every note, every strain Every melody will be for You alone Every harmony that flows from every tongue We'll sing Your praise, we'll sing Your praise We'll sing Your praise, we'll sing Your praise”
-Matt Redman
We are being sent, we are going into the well…Please hold the rope!!!! May grace and peace be with you all!!
Here is a schedule so you can pray specifically for different aspects of this trip:
Sunday 24th- Leave Mexico City at 6 p.m.
Monday 25th- Arrive in San Cristobel at 8 a.m. then take a van to Comitan, then another van to Sabanilla (2 ½ hours of this trip will be on a dirt road going 10-15 mph). Around 6 p.m. arrive in Sabanilla.
Tuesday 26th- 6 a.m. Leave for Benito Juarez (about a 5 ½ hour walk, 9.5 miles, through the jungle). 12 p.m. arrive in Benito Juarez and begin proclaiming the Gospel.
Wednesday 27th- We will spend this whole day preaching in Benito Juarez.
Thursday 28th- 6 a.m. Leave for Chumzero (2 ½ hours walking through the jungle). Arrive about 9 a.m. and we will spend the morning and afternoon preaching here. 4 p.m. leave for Sabanilla and arrive at about 7 p.m.
Friday 29th- 3 a.m. Leave for San Cristobel and arrive around 10 a.m. We will spend a few hours resting here until we get on a bus back to Mexico City around 6 p.m.
Saturday 30th- 8 a.m. Arrive in Mexico City.
I just wanted to take a few minutes and share a few ideas on missions that will encourage you as you pray for our trip this next week. I hope these thoughts also encourage you to continually search for your role in missions. The old guys used to say that there are two ways you can be involved in missions; you can jump in the well, or hold the rope for the ones who have. Hope these are a blessing to you all…
“3 Declare his glory among the nations,his marvelous works among all the peoples!4 For great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised;he is to be feared above all gods.5 For all the gods of the peoples are worthless idols,but the Lord made the heavens.” Psalm 96:3-5
God deserves adoration from every people in the world! At this moment in Benito Juarez His name is not honored, He is not praised. My heart’s desire is that His name would be magnified in that place, and among those people! We will declare His glory for He is great and greatly to be praised!!! Pray for His name among the people of Benito Juarez!!
“67:1 May God be gracious to us and bless usand make his face to shine upon us, Selah2 that your way may be known on earth,your saving power among all nations.3 Let the peoples praise you, O God;let all the peoples praise you!
4 Let the nations be glad and sing for joy,for you judge the peoples with equityand guide the nations upon earth. Selah5 Let the peoples praise you, O God;let all the peoples praise you!
6 The earth has yielded its increase;God, our God, shall bless us.7 God shall bless us;let all the ends of the earth fear him!” Psalm 67
God makes His face shine upon us because He turned His face from His Son. This makes me think of the old Hymn “Where You There When They Crucified My Lord”, this thought ought to make us want to tremble, and at the same time rejoice in His Grace! Pray that the Lord would be gracious to the town of Benito Juarez and that He would shine His face on them! And that that shinning would spur them on to sing for joy!!
"Missions is not the ultimate goal of the church. Worship is. Missions exists because worship doesn't. Worship is ultimate, not missions, because God is ultimate, not man. When this age is over, and the countless millions of the redeemed fall on their faces before the throne of God, missions will be no more. It is a temporary necessity. But worship abides forever." –John Piper
I was having a conversation with a man of influence in my life a little while back about the people in Benito Juarez and he told me that I may never see the fruit of our labor in Benito Juarez, but that His Word does not return void. This is so true, and often serves to us as a comfort, I can’t help but think it did for William Carey as he labored for seven years before he saw any fruit in India, but I also cling to the promise in Rev. 5:9 that tells us as that great chorus of the redeemed resounds in the heavens that there WILL be a representative from every tribe, tongue, and language in the world! God Will save at least one from Benito Juarez! His name Will be honored!!!! Please pray that we would trust this promise and as we preach, preach believing and expecting!!
I want to thank each and every one of you who will be so faithful in praying and supporting this work as His name will be proclaimed amongst those who have not heard. I will close this word of encouragement with the words of a song written by Matt Redman. It is a song of sending, and I think shares the true heart of missions. May this be a blessing to you all!
“ Let worship be the fuel for mission's flame We're going with a passion for Your name We're going for we care about Your praise Send us out Let worship be the heart of mission's aim To see the nations recognize Your fame 'Til every tribe and tongue voices Your praise Send us out You should be the praise of every tongue, Jesus You should be the joy of every heart But until the fullness of Your kingdom comes Until the final revelation dawns Send us out Every tribe, every tongue Every creature in the heavens and the earth Every heart, every soul Will sing Your praise, will sing Your praise Every note, every strain Every melody will be for You alone Every harmony that flows from every tongue We'll sing Your praise, we'll sing Your praise We'll sing Your praise, we'll sing Your praise”
-Matt Redman
We are being sent, we are going into the well…Please hold the rope!!!! May grace and peace be with you all!!
Here is a schedule so you can pray specifically for different aspects of this trip:
Sunday 24th- Leave Mexico City at 6 p.m.
Monday 25th- Arrive in San Cristobel at 8 a.m. then take a van to Comitan, then another van to Sabanilla (2 ½ hours of this trip will be on a dirt road going 10-15 mph). Around 6 p.m. arrive in Sabanilla.
Tuesday 26th- 6 a.m. Leave for Benito Juarez (about a 5 ½ hour walk, 9.5 miles, through the jungle). 12 p.m. arrive in Benito Juarez and begin proclaiming the Gospel.
Wednesday 27th- We will spend this whole day preaching in Benito Juarez.
Thursday 28th- 6 a.m. Leave for Chumzero (2 ½ hours walking through the jungle). Arrive about 9 a.m. and we will spend the morning and afternoon preaching here. 4 p.m. leave for Sabanilla and arrive at about 7 p.m.
Friday 29th- 3 a.m. Leave for San Cristobel and arrive around 10 a.m. We will spend a few hours resting here until we get on a bus back to Mexico City around 6 p.m.
Saturday 30th- 8 a.m. Arrive in Mexico City.
Monday, January 18, 2010
Next Trip!
Dear Church,
In every one of Paul’s letters he starts with a greeting that includes “Grace and peace to you”, and that is my greeting to you all, that the grace and peace of God would be multiplied to all of you. That through the ordination of the father, the actions of Christ, and the workings of the Holy Spirit you would be sanctified into the image of Christ that the world would see the rightness of God.
Thank you all so much for your faithfulness in praying and supporting the ministry of Sing For Joy Missions! God is doing amazing thing right now, and continues to open more doors that we can speak of the Christ to those who have not heard!
On January 24th, next Sunday, a group of 8 Mexicans, and 2 gringos (Americans) will leave from Mexico City and we will head back down to the jungle in Chiapas to Benito Juarez. As many of you know from the last update that this is a region of indigenous people who have never heard the story of Christ, and we will be sharing the Gospel with them for the first time. Each one of the people going with us are involved in the discipleship classes that Ivonne and I give each week. Each week we meet with one or two in a group and are teaching on the attributes of God. She meets with the ladies and I the guys. We are so excited to start seeing some fruit of the labor that has been done. It is our prayer that one of the people going with us will receive a calling from the Father to eventually live among the people of Benito Juarez and serve as a missionary to them. I ask that you would join us in petitioning the Father to place a calling in the life of one of these. It has always, from the day the Lord poured out His grace on me and saved me, been a desire of mine to be part of reaching the un-reached and to know that we have that opportunity has given me Joy that is truly inexpressible!
Below I will post a list of names of the people that will be part of this trip, and I ask that in your churches and in all places you would gather this week and intercede for these saints. As you pray I ask that first you would pray for things Spiritual. Pray for each individual and their communion with the Father. That this would strengthen that relationship, and would serve as an encouragement for them. Also that God would keep them from the evil one. The place we will be is a very spiritual place, and that type of warfare will be there. Pray that each would be so eager to spend time in the Word daily learning more of the Father, and that the things they learn they would apply and practice.
Secondly, I ask that you would pray for things physically. This will be a very strenuous trip. We will be taking a twelve hour bus ride all night Sunday, then all day in vans 2.5 hours of which will be going about 10 mph on a dirt road only to arrive at a town called Sabanilla from which we will be walking 9.5 miles into the jungle. Needless to say it will be difficult. Pray that in the mist of the difficulties physically we will exhibit the love of Christ with one another. I am so excited and encouraged though knowing the difficulties physically each of the people on this team has said that the physical cost of going on this trip does not compare with the fact that these people have not heard of Christ!
This past week I have not been able to leave Paul’s letter to the church in Ephesus. And as I ask for you to pray make these verses part of that prayer Eph. 6:18-20 “18 praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints, 19 and also for me, that words may be given to me in opening my mouth boldly to proclaim the mystery of the gospel, 20 for which I am an ambassador in chains, that I may declare it boldly, as I ought to speak”.
Once again I want to that all of you for your prayers and support! God is doing great things and using His people to do it, and it is very exciting! I ask that you continue to be faithful to the voice of the Lord in holding the rope and your role in that. Also in all of Paul’s letters he closes them with “Grace and peace be with you”, that also is my closing to you all. May your life be overflowing with the grace and peace from God. Continue in the race with your eyes fixed on the Father! Remember that Jesus said “And this is eternal life, that they know you the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.” Spend your life and everything you have learning of God and the Christ! In 1968 Swiss Reformed theologian Karl Barth wrote in a letter: “In the Church of Jesus Christ there can and should be no non-theologians”. Theology is the study of God and what will consume eternity, do not waste your life here!
Por La Gracia,
jonathan
In every one of Paul’s letters he starts with a greeting that includes “Grace and peace to you”, and that is my greeting to you all, that the grace and peace of God would be multiplied to all of you. That through the ordination of the father, the actions of Christ, and the workings of the Holy Spirit you would be sanctified into the image of Christ that the world would see the rightness of God.
Thank you all so much for your faithfulness in praying and supporting the ministry of Sing For Joy Missions! God is doing amazing thing right now, and continues to open more doors that we can speak of the Christ to those who have not heard!
On January 24th, next Sunday, a group of 8 Mexicans, and 2 gringos (Americans) will leave from Mexico City and we will head back down to the jungle in Chiapas to Benito Juarez. As many of you know from the last update that this is a region of indigenous people who have never heard the story of Christ, and we will be sharing the Gospel with them for the first time. Each one of the people going with us are involved in the discipleship classes that Ivonne and I give each week. Each week we meet with one or two in a group and are teaching on the attributes of God. She meets with the ladies and I the guys. We are so excited to start seeing some fruit of the labor that has been done. It is our prayer that one of the people going with us will receive a calling from the Father to eventually live among the people of Benito Juarez and serve as a missionary to them. I ask that you would join us in petitioning the Father to place a calling in the life of one of these. It has always, from the day the Lord poured out His grace on me and saved me, been a desire of mine to be part of reaching the un-reached and to know that we have that opportunity has given me Joy that is truly inexpressible!
Below I will post a list of names of the people that will be part of this trip, and I ask that in your churches and in all places you would gather this week and intercede for these saints. As you pray I ask that first you would pray for things Spiritual. Pray for each individual and their communion with the Father. That this would strengthen that relationship, and would serve as an encouragement for them. Also that God would keep them from the evil one. The place we will be is a very spiritual place, and that type of warfare will be there. Pray that each would be so eager to spend time in the Word daily learning more of the Father, and that the things they learn they would apply and practice.
Secondly, I ask that you would pray for things physically. This will be a very strenuous trip. We will be taking a twelve hour bus ride all night Sunday, then all day in vans 2.5 hours of which will be going about 10 mph on a dirt road only to arrive at a town called Sabanilla from which we will be walking 9.5 miles into the jungle. Needless to say it will be difficult. Pray that in the mist of the difficulties physically we will exhibit the love of Christ with one another. I am so excited and encouraged though knowing the difficulties physically each of the people on this team has said that the physical cost of going on this trip does not compare with the fact that these people have not heard of Christ!
This past week I have not been able to leave Paul’s letter to the church in Ephesus. And as I ask for you to pray make these verses part of that prayer Eph. 6:18-20 “18 praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints, 19 and also for me, that words may be given to me in opening my mouth boldly to proclaim the mystery of the gospel, 20 for which I am an ambassador in chains, that I may declare it boldly, as I ought to speak”.
Once again I want to that all of you for your prayers and support! God is doing great things and using His people to do it, and it is very exciting! I ask that you continue to be faithful to the voice of the Lord in holding the rope and your role in that. Also in all of Paul’s letters he closes them with “Grace and peace be with you”, that also is my closing to you all. May your life be overflowing with the grace and peace from God. Continue in the race with your eyes fixed on the Father! Remember that Jesus said “And this is eternal life, that they know you the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.” Spend your life and everything you have learning of God and the Christ! In 1968 Swiss Reformed theologian Karl Barth wrote in a letter: “In the Church of Jesus Christ there can and should be no non-theologians”. Theology is the study of God and what will consume eternity, do not waste your life here!
Por La Gracia,
jonathan
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