ISN'T IT JUST LIKE GOD TO ANSWER PRAYER
So many times we pray a prayer that doesn't seem to get an answer, or at least the answer we want! We have been praying for God to restore a family members marriage... and nothing seems to be happening. We pray for healing and it doesn't seem to happen when we prayed.We pray for our leaders and nothing seems to change in D.C. Well we prayed for the funds to buy a half of a load of pinto beans to feed the poor and walahhh, the funds start coming in unsolicited from sources that we didn't know existed. Now I know for sure, beyond a reasonable doubt that God has heard and is in the process of answering those other prayers, but the prayers to help the poor and needy seem to get some kind of priority on Gods agenda. Our Pastor in Church today quoted proverbs 21 vs 13 " If a man shuts his ears to the cries of the poor,he too will cry out and not be answered".Hmmm a direct tie between helping the poor and answered prayer. How about proverbs 19 vs 17 He who gives to the poor, lends to the Lord and He himself will reward him for what he has done. How about Isaiah 58? The kind of fasting God requires is to feed the hungry, clothe the naked and provide the poor wanderer with shelter, then you'll call and He will answer, then your healing will come quickly, then the Lord will be your rear guard, then your righteousness will will go before you. WOW, now I've known this for quite some time, so to get a few checks in the mail, when there is a need to buy food for the poor is just God doing what He does best PROVIDING FOR THE NEEDS OF THE POOR. So it's pretty simple, if you have a need in your life, meet the need of someone else and watch what God does. Yesterday we handed out food in the colonia for the second time this month, a double portion as it were. And while we stood around talking to the people, I asked for any testimonies from the people there to share what God is doing in the midst of the people in the colonia and one woman came up and shared about her son that had a hole in his heart on one doctor visit and after she went home and prayed, a return to the doctor found no hole!!! Praise the Lord! It was an exciting moment to hear such a testimony of Gods goodness. Another Lady shared about a severe infection in her foot that just disappeared. Another great day to be alive to see the goodness of God in the land of the living.
BUSY BUSY BUSY
Last week we drove to San Antonio and picked up John and Judy Brody after they spent a few days seeing the sites there. On the drive home, we detoured to the USS Lexington in Corpus Christy and toured the once active air craft carrier. It's pretty big, but I'm sure it pales in respect to the ships they have now. A fresh sea food lunch on the shore and we headed to our house listening to the Harbinger on the way. John and Judy live outside of Chgo and wanted to visit us for a few days to see the work we do. That's two different visits from our home church people in two weeks, Maybe they are sending people to scout out the safety here and hopefully resume Missions trips here. This week we are building an addition on a house in the colonia, while I have been supplying some other families with materials to repair and fix their own houses. We will be giving out food again today for the second time this month as the needs are growing in the colonia. I ordered a half truck load of beans to continue meeting the needs that are forever present. Another step of faith for the $7500.00 I'll need to pay for them. How about those twins, aren't they cute?
THE HARBINGERS OF ISAIAH 9/10
With all that is happening around the world and in the U.S. I was drawn to a new book out called The Harbinger written by a Jewish Rabbi. The events of Sept 11 2001 are an exact mirror of the judgement that God brought upon Israel over 2500 years ago. I have listened to the entire book twice now and have seen Johnathan Cahn on two Christian shows telling the chilling similarities between ancient Israel and the U.S. Why all the calamity in our Nation? Why the loss of our good standing around the world? Why are Muslims killing us and teaching others to do the same? Why did we suffer the greatest financial crisis in decades starting after 9/11? Why does it seem God is shaking us and testing the very foundation of our souls and our nation? Because He is!!!!! We have and continue to run away from anything to do with God no, more precise, Jesus Christ and His desire to have our nation run on what the founding Fathers had in mind. It is a great, eye opening book and it's not too late! If my people, who are called by my name, would humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, I will heal their land. Sound familiar? You can listen to a couple of segments of the Harbinger on theharbingerwebsite.com and click on the Sid Roth It's Supernatural interview with the Rabbi. The way the exact dates of the collapse of Wall Street and the Twin Towers destruction of anything in it's path except a little church, where George Washington and the newly formed gov't prayed and asked God for His guidance and protection,that sustained no damage except for a cracked window and 6 inches of dust inside. Our country started at the same site as ground zero.
VISITING THE "FRONT LINES"
A few weeks ago, Den and George Georgopulos called and said they wanted to come and visit us for a few days and encourage us and see our work in Mexico. They own an Insurance Agency and have been faithful partners in our Ministry for many years, but have never been on one of the several missions trips sponsored by Moraine Vally Church. Den shared the need to visit the "Front Lines" of those of us in the field of battle against poverty and spiritual darkness. They had never seen such poverty and were amazed at the conditions of some of the families that live in the colonia. We spent the last few days meeting some needs and showing them all that God had done there in the last few years. Yesterday was the best day of all when we decided to have a mid month food outreach instead of the end of the month outreach that we normally do. It came about as a result of driving through the colonia and people telling us they had no food and waiting two more weeks for beans and rice would hard, asking if we had any food now! Knowing we had plenty of food in the warehouse at home, we posted a sign on our fence announcing the outreach on Saturday at noon. Den and George wanted to do something extra for the people, so they purchased enough soap, shampoo, tooth brushes, tooth paste and razor blades for every family that would possibly come. We took everything across the border Friday morning and spent several hours making up the food and gift packages. Friday night Bob and Donna Giffin came over for supper, Den had been supporting their ministry for over twenty years as they have been Ministering in Mexico. We invited them to come with us on Saturday and Bob agreed to share the Gospel with the 150 families that came. I got up early Saturday and cooked three hundred hot dogs to take over as well. As we gathered everyone for prayer and the Message, we handed out a box of bibles to everyone that needed one and Bob shared from John 3 vs 16 about God so loving the world and giving us His Son and all we had to do was receive the gift of eternal life. At the invitation to receive the "Gift" a woman named Maria and a Man named Roberto raised their hand to receive Jesus Christ as their only hope of Salvation. A great moment of eternal significance for those two souls. Another hour of handing out the food and gift bags followed by everyone eating as many hot dogs as they wanted. Some kids were still eating one when they showed up in the line for another. One little girl ate six hot dogs and was smiling ear to ear with every bite. I know the whole experience for Den and George will impact how they live from now on after visiting the "Front Lines". They have always been a part of what we do with their prayers and financial support, but now they will be a part of it with their hearts as well.
FORGOTTEN BY MAN, REMEMBERED BY GOD
For the last several weeks, the Mexican Government was giving families concrete floors to those that needed them. If they formed a room with walls with any kind of wood, they would come and pour the floor at no charge. Many people would use scrape wood for the enclosures until they received the concrete and then remove the make shift walls. Well a few families had no such wood and were passed over for the free concrete, even though they had a need. Paula and I wanted to help those that were "passed over" and last week they got their concrete floors, not from us, but from the hand of God that sees their need and provided.
IT'S NOT JUST A TRADE SCHOOL
As we look for opportunities to reach the lost in the colonia, Paula,along with Theresa, June and Esther whom drove from San Antonio, held a kids bible school in the trade school yard Saturday with about 50 kids attending. They taught them about Jesus and how the Ten Commandments lead us to a place of needing Jesus to rescue us from an impossible task of obeying the "10" to be right with God. Although many have been taught to obey the "10", we like to teach them about the Grace of God, apart from observing the Law. Since no one will be justified by observing the Law as laid out clearly by Paul in the book of Romans chapter 4, it's important to teach the Truth to these little ones that are so eager to learn about Jesus. I find it very difficult to teach "seasoned" Christians about the fact that Jesus fulfilled the Law so we don't even have to try, why? because it's impossible that's why! Christ came to redeem us from the CURSE of the Law. Why a curse? Because it was not mixed with FAITH. It was a total works salvation that could never be achieved. We are justified freely by faith in Christ plus NOTHING! Billy Goat theology wants to put BUT in there But there ain't one. Oh there's that license to Sin, no Chamaco, there's the freedom to SERVE. Sorry I get carried away on the subject. Anyhow, the Trade School makes an awesome meeting place for larger groups to meet and we will utilize it any time we can. Later that day the girls attended Talitas' 4th birthday party, how pretty is she? Elizabeth is P.G. with twins and looks tired already, stay tuned! I recieved a message that the people from the colonia down the road, came and took the water tank that they gave me last year to put on top of the tower we built on the East end of the colonia. When we drove across the bridge yesterday we could see the tower with the tank missing, how sad. All the help we give them and they don't even respect us enough to present the need for either returning the tank that was theirs or buying them one, they just unhooked the lines and spilled 2500 gallons of water on the ground while we were not around and threw the tank down 20 feet to the ground. How did Jesus put that? "LOVE THOSE THAT HATE YOU, AND PRAY FOR THOSE WHO USE YOU".
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