December 9. Woke up this morning to a white winter wonderland. It has been snoleeting (mix of snow and sleet 😊 ) most of the morning, with some gusty winds whipping through the trees. I went out a couple times and got some pictures. The first time, I just took a couple from the doorway. The second time, I put on my rain shoes and went out beyond the cars. I could feel sleet bouncing off my face. The top of the snow was firm and crunchy, and my foot would suddenly sink down in with each step. Since we were stranded here at the apartment today, we listened to another message by Adrian Rogers. After lunch and after nap, I finished getting the Bible outline course in good order so, I believe, it is ready for printing and teaching. Well, I guess I do have to prepare a student copy with blanks. Then I worked on crocheting a while before preparing and cooking a pot full of carrots, celery, summer squash, mushrooms, and onion for tonight’s supper and meals to come. Listened to another of Adrian Roger’s sermons, washed the dishes, and did more crocheting. Getting close to the end of the baby blanket now. “5And whoso shall receive one such little child in my name receiveth me. 6But whoso shall offend one of these little ones which believe in me, it were better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and that he were drowned in the depth of the sea…. 10Take heed that ye despise not one of these little ones; for I say unto you, That in heaven their angels do always behold the face of my Father which is in heaven. 11For the Son of man is come to save that which was lost…. 14Even so it is not the will of your Father which is in heaven, that one of these little ones should perish.” Matthew 18:5,6,10,11,14 Jesus loves the little children, and it is a serious thing to offend one of those little ones whom He loves. He came to save that which was lost, and He wants to save the little children as well as the big ones, that is, all those who humble themselves and become as little children, putting their trust in Him. If Jesus so loved the little children, surely we should love them just as much.
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December 7. Chilly and damp this morning. We left the house by 8:00 as Connie had a get-acquainted appointment this morning at 9:00 with a new chiropractor, but we needed to get there early so she could fill out papers. I needed to put a load of wash in after we got here before we left for the chiropractor. Connie had to "write her life history" after we got to the chiropractor’s office 😊 , but once she finally had the paper’s filled out, we had a nice talk with the doctor, and it looks like her care should be beneficial for Connie. There is also a massage therapist in her office who could be of help as well. We made a stop by our apartment to get Connie’s tofu (which we had bought for her yesterday, but I forgot to bring this morning) and got back to the girls’ house somewhere around 10:00. Got the clothes out of the washing machine, and Daddy hung them outside. Then I had a bowl of fruit and yogurt with protein powder. Took time after that to do a little praying. Also printed out our itinerary/e-tickets and wrote an e-mail. This afternoon, I spent more time on MTP lessons. This evening, I worked on crocheting, and we listened to a message by Pastor Weiss from I Peter 2:9,10 entitled What A Wonderful Change. Since we have been saved, we are not what we used to be. We are a chosen people. We are a royal priesthood. We are a holy people. We are a peculiar people. We belong only to Christ. We were not His people, but now we are His people. The message reminded me of the song “What a wonderful change in my life has been wrought since Jesus came into my heart; I have peace in my soul for which long I had sought since Jesus came into my heart. Since Jesus came into my heart, since Jesus came into my heart, floods of joy o’er my soul like the sea billows roll since Jesus came into my heart.” “23Sing unto the LORD, all the earth; shew forth from day to day his salvation. 24Declare his glory among the heathen; his marvellous works among all nations. 25For great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised: he also is to be feared above all gods. 26For all the gods of the people are idols: but the LORD made the heavens. 27Glory and honour are in his presence; strength and gladness are in his place.” I Chronicles 16:23-27 We must declare the LORD’s glory among the heathen and His marvellous works among all nations so that all the earth may sing unto the LORD and shew forth His salvation day after day. The LORD is so great, and therefore is greatly to be praised and to be feared. Glory, honor, strength, and gladness are in His place. December 8. A nice sleep-in morning. I was thankful there was hot water this morning as I needed to wash my hair. After breakfast and Bible reading and memory verse time, we headed out to the stores. Went to Lidl’s to see if they had any more of the smoothie blenders that they had on sale several week’s ago. Praise the Lord, there was one left, and it was on the discount table so we were able to get it for 30% off. The girls needed a new one because the old one had been well-used for over two years and the motor smelled like it was burning out. After Lidl’s, we went to WalMart to get tea light candles and water. Daddy also got some coffee creamer. Then we cruised on over to the Shelby Hardware to see if they had any kerosene heaters which the girls had been looking for in case they lose power which seems to be almost inevitable if the winter storm ends up being as bad as they are predicting. The hardware store had lots of kerosene heaters, but when Daddy called the girls to talk about the heaters, they decided they would wait and just try the tea light candle set-ups for now (terra cotta pot heaters). We headed from there to Hospice Thrift Store and found a few small plates on which to set up tea light candle heaters. A couple minutes from there to home. Put things away. Have a drink of kefir. Put three gallon jugs of water in freezer (in case power goes out). Have a cup of coffee and a small snack. Write in journal. Fold and put away yesterday’s laundry. This afternoon and evening, I crocheted, cleaned the bathroom sink and toilet, deleted some e-mails, wrote an e-mail, downloaded some crochet patterns, did the dishes, listened to a sermon by Adrian Rogers. “24Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. 25For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it. 26For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?” Matthew 16:24-26
December 5. A pretty day, but chilly. We thank the Lord for His help in checking the first two chapters of I Thessalonians this morning. Then we listened off and on to the funeral service for President George H W Bush which was broadcast live on the web. The service was about two hours long, and our listening was interrupted by 1) Daddy, going back to the apartment to find his passport so he could give info to LS; 2) a visit from Mrs. S and her daughter to see Connie about a messy bun hat; 3) working in the kitchen preparing sweet potatoes and getting them on to cook for dinner; and 4) getting our dinner ready to eat. It was late when we lay down for nap; and as soon as possible after I got up, I started cleaning up the kitchen and washing the dishes. It took about an hour to get everything done. Daddy took time to help Christy by bringing her clothes in off the line so Christy could get her hair washed. I started packing things up so we could head home early and get ready to go out to Bread of Life this evening. Before we left, Connie started raking leaves out back because the ground is slippery on the hillside under the clothesline. By the time we got home, I was hungry and found something to eat. Then I made the weekly shopping list so we can be ready to do the shopping tomorrow. About 6:30, we left for Bread of Life to be with the people there for the evening. It was a blessing to talk with folks there and be in their meeting. The pastor had Daddy give a brief report and update on what the Lord has been doing. Pastor’s text was Psalm 46:10 and he preached on “the LORD of hosts” as our protector and provider. “And Jesus went forth, and saw a great multitude, and was moved with compassion toward them, and he healed their sick.” Matthew 14:14 Jesus was always moved with compassion toward the multitudes. Surely He thought of each individual in the multitude and how each one needed a Savior. Surely He longed for each one to understand his need and trust in Him. December 6. In the 20’s this morning, brrrrr! But the heavens were blue and the sun was shining. We went out early today—had three stops to make—Lidl, WalMart, and Aldi. Had quite a bit to do at WalMart, but not too much in the other two stores. Much of the rest of the day was spent working on organizing the MTP course that Daddy had written on making sermon outlines, making sure it was set up with blanks to fill in and assignments to do. I also cooked a pot full of veggies, made cranapple sauce, did the dishes, cooked amaranth, renewed the kefir, liquified the cranapple sauce in the blender and put it away, and put the amaranth away. Afterward we listened to another Sunday school lesson by Pastor Weiss on overcoming insecurity, and I worked on crocheting. “Then Jesus called his disciples unto him, and said, I have compassion on the multitude, because they continue with me now three days, and have nothing to eat: and I will not send them away fasting, lest they faint in the way.” Matthew 15:32 Again we see Jesus, a Man full of compassion, who cared about man’s every need.
December 3. The Lord has blessed us with a nice, sunny day. Daddy left a little after 8:00 this morning to go to the girls’ house and meet Mel there so they could take our cargo to Waxhaw for shipping. Had breakfast and started quiet time before getting busy in the kitchen making the weekly soup. Continued prayer time while I was working and afterward. After a short sit-down time, I washed the dishes—some from yesterday and a few from this morning. Started going through old e-mails and deleting some of them. After a while, Beth called, and I enjoyed a nice chat with her. Afterwards, I got a snack and then worked more on the e-mails until lunch time. Wanted to work on songs, and took some time to look through the song files, but I need to find the music pages for many of them so I can set up a music book to play and teach from. I tried to make the bed, but the fitted sheet was much too small so I took it down to the office. Monty said that sometimes the company gives them the wrong size sheets. He went and found a queen size sheet, and I had a much easier time getting the bed made. It was after 2:00 before Daddy got home. I had been wondering while he was gone if they would have room in the container for a big shipment like we have going. Daddy said that he was surprised when he saw how much we had. He thought Daddy was just bringing a box or two like we had done before. Daddy had told him that we were shipping our household goods and personal effects to PNG, but I guess it didn’t register with him. Anyway, there is not room on the ship going this month. Consequently, our goods won’t be shipped until the end of February. Please pray that somehow the Lord will work it out that there really will be room after all if that is His will. I was really tired by the time Daddy got home and more than ready for a nap. The soup was already done so I turned it off to let it cool while we had nap. After nap I pureed and bottled the soup, and then Daddy and I enjoyed a welcome walk in the fresh air. Spent a little time after that working on MTP lessons and getting journal notes set up for Connie. After supper, I wrote some e-mails, including sending journal notes and pictures to Connie, and sending an e-mail regarding bookings for our travel plans. Washed the rest of today’s dishes. Later we listened to a Sunday school lesson by Pastor Weiss on insecurity, and I also did some crocheting. “But if ye had known what this meaneth, I will have mercy, and not sacrifice, ye would not have condemned the guiltless.” Matthew 12:7 God is merciful, and He is more desirous of our showing mercy than of our giving sacrifices. December 4. Stopped at WM to pick up water and yogurt before heading for C&C’s house. After arrival and getting the food put away in the fridge, I prepared the turkey to go into the oven and put it in there to cook. Then I made my smoothie. The rest of the morning, I worked on MTP lessons. After nap, I was in the kitchen a long time taking care of the turkey—picking it apart, getting all the bones and fat out, dividing up the meat, putting it in plastic bags and putting the bags some in fridge some in freezer, making gravy and putting it in bottles which were also put in fridge, and cleaning up the kitchen mess. After that I acknowledged the e-mail that had come in with flight bookings and itinerary. Had a little time left to do more work on the MTP lessons. This evening, there were heaps of dishes to be washed. I also did some crocheting, and a little later we listened to a message by Pastor Weiss from Hebrews 13:1-3 on brotherly love.
December 2. Rained most of the morning; then the Lord sent us sunshine around 3:00 in the afternoon. Pastor Ogle’s first message this morning was from John 10:22-30. The feast of dedication, or the feast of tabernacles, is an eight-day feast. Today it is called Hanukkah or the festival of lights. “You must realize that God always keeps His word and He keeps it to the very details.” He referred to and read Daniel chapter 8. The message went on to give historical details of Hanukkah and some of the events associated with it. In between meetings I peeled and cut up potatoes, sorted through the rest of the kale and added it to the pan with the potatoes and water, ready to cook for dinner. I had time, too, to walk and pray, listen to music, and crochet. In the second meeting, Pastor spoke on II Peter 3:1-7, “You must allow the Bible, not the world, to determine your view of world events.” Christ is coming back. We do not know when He is coming back, but we know that He is coming back. Therefore we need to live as holy as possible in this world. 1) The reason for the writing—to stir up our pure minds. Peter never wanted them to forget what God and His word are saying. How important is God’s word to you? We are going to give an account as to what this book says to us. 2) The ribbing of the world—they will mock at the fact that Jesus is coming again. The mockers are walking after their own lust. They purposely want to be blind so they can fulfill their own lusts. Just because Christ hasn’t come back doesn’t mean He is not coming back. We should live as if He were coming back today. 3) The reservation of the wicked—they are willingly ignorant. People choose to be ignorant. The world is kept by the word of God, not by a global warming organization. The second meeting finished early. I then added the beef and veggies to the taters and kale and warmed that all up, adding a few more herbs and seasonings. Once it was warm, I enjoyed a bowlful for my dinner. Then I did more crocheting and listened to music until Daddy and the girls got home. After Daddy had eaten his dinner, we went to the shed and renumbered the rest of the boxes and other items for shipment. We were thankful that that job didn’t take long and we were able to head home for afternoon nap. Did a little crocheting after nap, and then had an early supper so we could visit Old Rugged Cross Baptist Church this evening. Pastor Allen gave Daddy a few minutes to give an update on our ministry, and the church gave us a love offering. Praise the Lord! Pastor Allen preached on The Simplicity of the Gospel, from II Corinthians 11:3. It was a good reminder of the simplicity of all that pertains to salvation in Christ Jesus our Lord. Did more crocheting this evening. “28Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 29Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. 30For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” Matthew 11:28-30 Three qualifications for obtaining rest—1) Come unto Jesus; 2) Take His yoke upon you; 3) Learn of Him. Rest is promised to those who fulfill those qualifications. And we will find that His yoke is easy and His burden is light.
November 30. A super-busy morning with extra things to do before we even left the house—like cook up a pot full of veggies—carrots and broccoli today; make some pancake mix so I can make Daddy some more pancakes before we came home this evening; find the extra things that we needed to take over to the girls’ house to add to our shipment, plus get some extra food items together. Daddy was busy loading up the car while I was still working inside. It was after 9:00 before we finally got off. We went around to the bank first so Daddy could deposit our check and get some cash. Finally arrived at the girls' place a little before 10:00. First job—put away food in fridge. Second—start laundry. Third—print out eleven update letters, address envelopes, and put all into Connie’s hands for return address labels, stamps, sealing, and putting out into the mailbox. By then, the laundry was done so I got everything out of the machine and sorted in the laundry basket for Daddy to hang outside. Finally I had a chance to make a smoothie. It was already 11:00, and I was getting hungry so the smoothie was revitalizing. About 11:45, Daddy went out to Subway for his lunch. I repacked the overnight case after he left and then had my lunch. After nap, I repacked the last two boxes and taped them up. Then I finished organizing the shipping list for SIL and printed out two copies of that, one for SIL and one for our own files. Also printed out a new copy of the detailed packing list for ourselves. After supper, I taped up the box with the folding table and then I made pancakes to take home for Daddy’s breakfasts for the next few weekends. “….and he saith unto him, Follow me. And he arose, and followed him.” Matthew 9:9b When Jesus calls us to follow Him, we should be ready to respond immediately. December 1. A rainy day. Spent a good portion of the morning sending out all the e-mail updates to supporters and to others who we know are faithful to pray for us. The rest of the morning and through most of the lunch hour was taken up with filling in forms for shipping of our goods. After nap, I transferred and edited photos and worked on deleting old e-mails. Just before we went to the girls’ house, I washed the dishes. We went over a little bit early so we could do some printing. Got all the papers printed out that are needed for shipping and also renumbered the four boxes that are in the house. After that, we all played a couple rounds of Skip-Bo. Then we prayed together, and Daddy and I came home early because we were tired. “37He that loveth father or mother more than me is not worthy of me: and he that loveth son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. 38And he that taketh not his cross, and followeth after me, is not worthy of me. 39He that findeth his life shall lose it: and he that loseth his life for my sake shall find it.” Matthew 10:37-39 Sobering verses as we think once again of leaving family, especially our daughters, and traveling to a far country for Christ’s sake and the gospel’s. November 28. I had quite a bit to do this morning before leaving for C&C’s house. Needed to cook both a grain and a vegetable. (We still had veggies left that I had cooked a couple days ago, but they were in the girls’ fridge.) I didn’t have enough quinoa left to fill a cup, so added amaranth until I had a cupful of grain. Dumped that into the pan and added water and salt and set it on to cook. Then I got busy preparing the veggies—mushrooms, onion, celery, and the rest of the napa cabbage. While those things were cooking, I started quiet time. I enjoyed a bowlful of grain and veggies after they had finished cooking. Then I had to put the rest away, do the dishes, strain the kefir, and pack up things to take to the girls’ house. I took all the painting supplies with me and spent the morning painting, trying to get the picture done that I had started on Sunday so we can get the painting supplies packed back up for shipping. Daddy called as soon as we got to the girls’ house and learned that the shipping deadline has been extended through next Friday so that gives us time to get our supplies to Waxhaw. (Originally the deadline was today.) Daddy had to go to Gaffney later in the morning to get the girls’ milk. I continued painting and completed the picture (except for the border) a little before 1:00. Then I cooked Daddy’s hamburger before cleaning up my painting mess. After nap, I painted the border on the painting and touched up a few places that needed it. Just before 5:30, the UPS man arrived with our packet from the Papua New Guinea embassy. He had noticed where the packet was from and kindly agreed to let us have our picture taken with him handing the envelope to Daddy. Afterward Connie took a photo of just Daddy and me holding our passports. Inside they are stamped with our visa/work permit for PNG, good for three years from date of approval, September 8. Praise God! As soon as I could, I got at the job of washing dishes. There were many, and I wanted to get them done before the evening service. Even had a little time afterward to put the first coat of varnish on the painting. Matt Northcutt preached this evening from Mark 6:45-52. 1) God knows about our storm. He orchestrated the storm. He sees us. He knows our distress. 2) God goes with us through the storm. Jesus walked through the storm, the same storm that the disciples were facing. Jesus revealed Himself to the disciples in a way that they had never seen before—walking on the water. God sends us through a storm so that He can reveal Himself to us in a special, unique way that we would otherwise have not known except through the storm. God gives you a choice of how you will respond in the storm. Jesus would have passed by them. They cried out to Him. We must cry out to the Lord in the storm. 3) It is the presence of God that carries you through the storm. When Jesus went up to the disciples into the boat, the storm ceased. The comfort of His presence carried them through. Psalm 107:23-31, It was when they called out to the Lord that His presence came and calmed their storm. After the meeting, I took some pictures of the painting, put a second coat of varnish on it, and worked on crocheting. “7Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you: 8For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.” Matthew 7:7,8 What wonderful promises! EVERYONE who asks SHALL receive; EVERYONE who seeks SHALL find; and to EVERYONE who knocks, the door SHALL be opened. And today, we received; we found; the door was opened. Praise God from whom all blessings flow! November 29. Another very cold morning. As soon as I had had quiet time and finished breakfast, we went out to do our weekly shopping. Just had a few things on the list today so it didn’t take us long to get finished and get back home. Shortly after we put away the groceries, Daddy went out again to get Connie and take her back to Ollies to exchange the heater they had bought several weeks ago. It hadn’t been operating properly so they wanted to exchange it. After Daddy left, I had more prayer time and then wrote a monthly update to let our supporters and regular prayer warriors know that we had received our visas/work permits. Then about quarter ‘til twelve, I received a text message from Connie saying they had just arrived at Ollie’s because they had been delayed by an accident on I-85. I went ahead and had my lunch and also wrote an e-mail to Pat. Praise the Lord that Daddy arrived safely home around 1:00. Connie texted me when he left their house (as I had requested) so I could get his hamburger cooked for his dinner so it would be ready when he arrived. After he ate, we had our nap. This afternoon, Daddy looked into flight bookings but we didn’t come up with anything definite. He proofread the monthly update, and then I wrote acknowledgments on the ones that will be printed and mailed to supporters. And we went for a very short walk—it was getting icy chilly out. This evening, we took down the folding table so we could pack it up to send to PNG. Daddy had brought the card table over from the girls’ house after he took Connie to Gastonia so we set that up in place of the folding table. It is much smaller so a bit crowded, but I’m sure it will do until we go. Daddy also called Mel, and Mel thinks he can help take our things to Waxhaw on Monday so we need to make haste and get the last few boxes packed up and taped up and finish filling out all the forms. Listened to Pastor Weiss’s message from I Peter 2:4-6, Living Stones. The Prophecy, v6. Isaiah 8:14; 28:16. Everything is built upon Jesus Christ, the chief cornerstone—creation; the word of God; God’s plan for this world…. Whoever believes on Him will never regret it. You will never be confounded or ashamed. The Cornerstone, v. 4. He is a living stone, eternally alive. He was disallowed of men—men did not want Him. Mark 15:5-15. He was chosen of God. Luke 16:14,15. He is precious. To whom coming—we have come to the One whom God has chosen. The Complimentary Stones—you and I. We are part of the building. A building needs a cornerstone, but a building is not just a cornerstone. Jesus has always had the purpose of building the church upon Himself, a church that would glorify God. Without us, God would not have been able to fulfill the purpose for which He sent His Son. Who am I? I am nothing. We are built up together to make a house. We are each part of the same building. A building is made of a cornerstone and many other stones, not just one or two. We are built up together—we need each other. As a holy priesthood, we have a purpose—to offer up acceptable sacrifices. How are we doing at our task? Are we a group of lively stones built upon the cornerstone, Jesus Christ, and offering up acceptable sacrifices? Christ has chosen to use us to accomplish His purpose.
November 26. Had vitamin drinks and Bible memory time, breakfast and Bible reading. Started prayer time while my roast was in the microwave thawing. When it was done thawing, I put it in the crockpot, seasoned it, and started it cooking. Daddy went out to WalMart to get water and a couple other things. There was almost no water on the shelves, he said. After he came back, we set to work checking I Thessalonians chapter 3. It was short and went quickly so we did chapter 4 as well. Praise the Lord for His help with that portion! Also had time to get those two chapters set up in the print file, as well as the English for chapter 5. After that, I seasoned the ground beef and got it ready for making Daddy’s hamburger for dinner. The little fry pan, our one and only fry pan, was dirty because I had cooked eggs in it for Daddy’s breakfast, so had to wash it out before I could cook Lewis’s hamburger. Cooked one hamburger for his dinner and put the rest of the meat away for the next few days. Once his lunch was ready, I warmed up a large cup of soup for my own lunch. During lunch hour, I started writing the October progress report. I just got to thinking yesterday that I had never done that, and here it is nearly the end of November and will be time to write the November progress report. After nap, my roast was done, so nice and tender after several hours in the crockpot. I turned off the crockpot and left the roast to cool. Of course, I tasted it too. Mmmm! Delicious! Too bad Daddy doesn’t like roast. Who will share my roast with me? I finished writing the October progress report and started looking over the translation of Hebrews (it is still in its rough draft form) so it will be ready for us to check when we get to it. I had just started when Daddy suggested that we go out for a walk. That sounded good to me—some fresh air and exercise. There was a cold wind blowing, but the sunshine and fresh air felt good. When we came back in, my roast was cool enough to put away, but not before I savored another couple bites. Then I finished looking over Hebrews chapter 1, and afterward got journal notes ready to send to Connie. By then it was after 5:00, and I still needed to cook veggies for supper. Prepared a pot full of carrots, napa cabbage and onion and set those on to cook. While they were cooking, I transferred photos to the computer and edited them. Then my veggies were done so I enjoyed a bowlful of veggies and roast beef (beef stew?). Afterward I washed up the day’s dishes and then sent journal notes and photos off to Connie. Then Daddy and I listened to a message by Pastor King who preached at MBC’s mission conference on faith giving. It was an excellent and stirring message. While he was preaching, and afterward, I crocheted three more little granny squares. “And enquired not of the LORD: therefore he slew him, and turned the kingdom unto David the son of Jesse.” I Chronicles 10:14 Oh, that I may not be guilty of forgetting to enquire of the LORD. November 27. This morning before we left the apartment, the maintenance man came to check and see why we continually had water on our bathroom floor in the doorway. It seemed to be coming up from under the floor, and we were having to keep a rag there so we wouldn’t be tracking water around. This morning, the rag was quite wet so Daddy went to see if he could get some rags from Monty and tell him about our wet floor. So Monty sent the maintenance man down. He discovered that the water is coming from the toilet so somehow must be running under the floor and coming up through the tiles by the doorway. At least it seems to be the pipes coming into the toilet as the water is clean and there is no smell. He said that our apartment is one of the few that has not been remodeled yet. After the maintenance man fastened the toiled down a little tighter to the floor, we left for the girls’ house, arriving around 9:00. The next problem was trying to transfer a file to Daddy’s computer from my file on a flash drive that we had forgotten to dispose of. That flash drive apparently picked up bad files from Daddy’s computer before, and when he tried to transfer files from it again, it messed up all his publisher files so they all said they are internet files. Too bad we forgot about that flash drive being bad. I threw the flash drive right out, and Daddy ran a full scan on his computer but it didn’t show any problems. Don’t know if it helped or not. I, in the mean time, went through a few of my old e-mails (mostly newsletters) and prayed for the requests. Then Daddy and I went out for a very short walk because the wind was cold. And after that we checked the last chapter of I Thessalonians. Then I made corrections in the computer and set that chapter up in the print file. By then it was time to fix Daddy’s hamburger for his dinner. While it was cooking, I got the print file set up for starting II Thessalonians. Also warmed up my soup for my own lunch. Crocheted a little during lunch hour; and after nap, I looked over the second chapter of Hebrews. After supper, I crocheted a little, washed up a mountain of dishes, crocheted a little more. Daddy checked online again to see if our passports had been sent back yet and learned that they are in transit. I shed tears of relief and joy. Before we came home, Daddy read Psalm 100, and the rest of us quoted it with him as he was reading. Then we had prayer together. . After we got home, we noticed that they had been in and fixed the toilet. I’m thankful that they worked on it while we were gone. I had a little snack and then crocheted until bedtime. “8….your Father knoweth what things ye have need of, before ye ask him. 32….for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things. 33But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.” Matthew 6:8,32,33 Thank you, heavenly Father, that you know all that I need even before I ask. May I be faithful to be seeking first your kingdom and your righteousness. Here is a special update from Mom and Dad "7Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you: 8For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened." (Matthew 7:7,8) Since we just sent out our quarterly newsletter a couple weeks ago, there isn't a lot of news to share. We are wanting to let you know right away, however, that after many delays; many months of waiting; and asking, seeking and knocking, in the late afternoon of November 28, UPS delivered a small packet from the Papua New Guinea embassy, containing our passports stamped with our long-awaited visas/work permits. All glory to God! The Lord has also delighted our hearts with another special provision. We have a small trailer load of personal and household goods ready to be shipped to Papua New Guinea. The deadline for the current shipment was the day that we received our visas. The next shipment would not go out until March of next year, and it would be about three months after that before the ship would arrive in PNG. Lewis decided to call anyway and see if there would be a chance that the current shipment had been postponed. It had! Praise God! We have an extra week to get our belongings to the organization that will be handling the shipping. Note: the items to be shipped are being taken to that organization today. They are on their way! There are some very important items in some of those boxes and containers. Please pray that there will be no problems getting these things through customs. Thanks! We do covet your prayers for us as we can now make preparations for travel - (1 for the transport of our goods to the shipping point; (2 for their months of travel across the ocean; (3 for booking flights and making sure we have everything ready for our trip (we are aiming for early January); (4 for available accommodations upon arrival in the town of Goroka as we will need to spend two or three weeks there to purchase supplies before we fly into our village; (5 for the work of repairing and remodeling our home in the village; (6 and for preparation of our hearts to faithfully fulfill all that God has planned for us there. How can we say thank you to you who so patiently waited and labored with us in prayer during the past year and a half. And we also say thank you to Almighty God who hears and answers prayers and is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think! Amen.
November 25. Very foggy, misty morning, but warmer than yesterday. Sunshine later in the morning and throughout the afternoon.. Pastor Ogle finished his teaching on the seven churches this morning and said he won’t be back to Revelation until after the New Year. Today he covered the rest of chapter 3. Revelation 3:7-13, Philadelphia, the church that is holding fast. They faced persecution particularly from the Jewish people. Their commendation: their works provided them more open doors; they kept God’s word. No condemnation given. God promised to keep them from the hour of temptation, because they kept His word. Christ is coming back—suddenly. These believers would stand tall like pillars. We ought to stand tall like pillars even though the world may be crumbling around us. What kind of doors does God open for you? Revelation 3:14-22, Laodicea, the church with the temperature problem. No commendation. The condemnation: they were lukewarm; they thought they needed nothing; they were actually the opposite of everything they thought they were; they felt they had no need for God. We need to be needy in order to keep dependent on God. Their correction: their faith needed to be tested; they needed riches only God could give them; they needed vision alteration which only God could give. Sometimes it is only in the fire that God is seen in our lives. How do you respond to God’s counsel? If you don’t have daily time for God, you are too busy. We need to do self-examination. He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches. In between meetings, I made and enjoyed a smoothie, walked and prayed, crocheted, and listened to music. The message in the second service covered II Peter 2:19-22, The Mastery of False Teachers. What does grace really mean, and how does it apply to our salvation over all? You must understand that grace is freedom from sin, not freedom to sin. 1) A license to sin: Titus 2:11; I Corinthians 6:19,20; Romans 5:20-6:1. True liberty is living as we should, not as we want to. Satan is not offering you liberty, he is offering you bondage. 2) Limited by sin: Sin brings us into bondage. What has you in bondage? 3) The latter end of sin: Professing Christians who turn to the world are many times far worse than those who have not been exposed to Christianity. Hearing truth raises our accountability. 4) The law of nature: a dog is a dog, and a pig is a pig. Eventually people go back to what they really are, unless there has been a true change on the inside. After nap, I finished crocheting the one motif that I nearly finished before we left the girls’ house. Then I painted the rest of the afternoon and into the evening. Daddy turned on a message from Pastor Weiss for us to listen to while I was painting, so I didn’t get to take notes on it. It was a message based on I Peter 2:2 called Sincere Milk and brought out how, although we should be mature enough to have the meat of the Word, we should never get tired of having milk as well. “3Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 4Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted. 5Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth. 6Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled. 7Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy. 8Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God. 9Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God.” Matthew 5:3-9 In these seven verses are seven of nine blessings pronounced in Matthew chapter 5, all accompanied by specific promises: Those who are poor in spirit are promised the kingdom of heaven. Those who mourn are promised comfort. Those who are meek are promised an inheritance. Those who hunger and thirst after righteousness are promised satisfaction. Those who are merciful are promised mercy. Those who are pure in heart are promised that they will see God. Those who are peacemakers will be called the children of God. |
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