James And Mary Penney Faithful Shepherds

Faithful Loving Shepherds

AN APOLOGY AND AN EXPLANATION: Just a few short weeks ago, I posted a tribute to James and Mary Penney. Many folks commented on how much they admired this godly couple from our church family. Then, somehow that post disappeared. I worked with my web site’s administrators, but they could not find it—I most probably did something crazy which triggered the disappearance—but technically it remains a mystery. So, this week’s post is a repeat effort to honor this faithful couple who so powerfully impacted our church and most especially, the little ones among us. 

I WILL CALL THEM SHEPHERDS 

I will call them gentle shepherds
for their hearts so love to gather
all those precious little ones
and place them full of joy
into His outstretched arms
filled with strength and with love
both to welcome and to hold them.

I will call them searching shepherds
for their eyes are always seeking
as they call and whistle, searching
even on the darkest evenings
while shadows seem to gather
threatening the blessed children
wandering alone in the wilderness.

I will call them loving shepherds
for their hearts will never rest
until all His precious little ones
gather close around Him who
Himself lives as their Good Shepherd—
calling out their precious names,
welcoming them up in His lap.

Matthew 19:13-15 ESV

Then the children were brought to him
that he might lay his hands on them and pray.
The disciples rebuked the people,
but Jesus said,
“Let the little children come to me
and do not hinder them,
for to such belongs the kingdom of heaven.”
And he laid his hands on them
and went away.

I praise God for people like James and Mary Penney who take to heart Jesus’ command, “Let the little children come to me . . .” Such couples humbly yet faithfully build the Kingdom of God for the future. They introduced many young and open hearts to the loving care of Jesus our Savior.

James in the Navy

James had been raised in Hokes Bluff, along with three brothers and sisters. He grew up on the “Penney Farm” now used by the Board of Education for agricultural education. At seventeen he followed in his brother’s footsteps to join the Navy. After serving during World War II, including a time at Okinawa, he returned home to Hokes Bluff and met Mary  at a picnic. They fell in love and married. They moved to Birmingham where he worked at Merita Bakery, where their oldest son, Jimmy, was born; and after two years moved back to Hokes Bluff. He worked at Hackett Engineering, associated with the Steel Plant until he retired. They built a home on Marker Avenue in Glencoe, where they raised Jimmy, Mike, Nila and Norma. They also had seven grandchildren and nine great grandchildren.

Mary Always Had
A Heart For Children

Mary had been the oldest of four children. She lost her mother when she was only eight. Her Dad worked as a carpenter; so she had to, in effect, act as the mother for the younger children. Her grandmother did help some, but Mary bore the main responsibility. Those were hard years for her, and she obviously built on her strength in the midst of that childhood difficulty to develop a great big heart of love for children.

Nila definitely remembers how her Mother prayed for and loved her own children. Nila also declares she never heard her Mom say anything negative about anyone. Those of us who were privileged to know her, can certainly testify to her loving and caring attitude toward everyone, but especially the children in her church and community.

James and Mary And Family

At Glencoe First Baptist Church James was a deacon and also worked with R.A.’s. Folks at Church truly enjoyed his tenor voice. One long-time member confessed she always sat near him so she could hear him sing. As a tenor in the choir, he inspired and enlisted other men to sing along with him. Mary participated actively, not only in children’s work, but also in G.A.’s, WMU (missions support activities) along with Vacation Bile School, and the Backyard Bible Clubs in various neighborhoods around Glencoe. I recall myself, how when I was directing the Summer Missions Program for the Etowah Baptist Association, Mary and James hosted one of our summer missionaries, treating her to lots of love and godly encouragement, of course.

Mary spent years working under Lois Pruitt in the kindergarten, and then moved into the Director’s Position. She studied at Samford University for this work. She led this ministry until she retired. In addition to her godly and loving leadership of the Kindergarten, she played a pivotal role in beginning and supporting the Children’s Church Ministry at our Church back in the late 1970’s. I had the privilege of working with her and Carolyn Snead in that ministry. I saw firsthand how deeply she loved God, how deeply she loved children, and how effectively she shared the love of Jesus with each and every one of them.

James and Mary also enjoyed their church family. He especially enjoyed the worship, while she found many wonderful Christian sisters. For instance, she and Louise Gray really enjoyed praying and fellowshipping together. I just have to say: Pity the hard-hearted sinner who had these two wonderful servants of the Lord praying for them. How blessed they were to have each other as Christian sisters and prayer warriors together.

Our Church Honors
Mary’s Ministry

Mary suffered a stroke when she was sixty-two, which slowed her down, but she lived until she was seventy-five at home with James. She did get back to church, and always had big hugs and bigger smiles for everyone. James and Mary bore the Presence of Jesus in their lives with such a genuine faith. God surely used them for His Glory. We praise God for them, all of us who had their lives so blessed by their faith.

Now, this is love
and appreciation!

GOD AND FAMILY FIRST

BRENT AND JOYCE GIRDLER
GOD AND FAMILY FIRST

I Timothy 6:11-12 KJV

But thou, O man of God,
flee these things;
and follow after righteousness,
godliness, faith, love,
patience, meekness.
Fight the good fight of faith,
lay hold on eternal life,
whereupon thou art also called,
and hast professed a good profession
before many witnesses.

This week I write to reflect on the beauty of a godly man’s life well-lived, invested with God’s redemptive love into the lives of his family, his wife, his daughters and their families, his children and his great-grandchildren. 

This man grew up in Somerset, Kentucky, the youngest of a big family raised on a lot of love, a lot of hard work, a bit of mischief, some sports and also some strong lessons in faith in the church the family attended. After high school, he chose to join the Navy during the Korean War, and served on a ship, working as a mail man and as a member of a gunner crew. During his service he was also supporting  his widowed mother. 

When he returned he went to work and married his girlfriend, who had also grown up in Somerset. He worked as a butcher and later as a mechanic. Then God called him into the ministry. Then he, his wife and two daughters, assisted by support from his family, moved to Clear Creek Bible School, where they spent three years. During that time they also added another daughter as he trained to be a Baptist Pastor. He grew in his love and understanding of God’s Word. He also began a lifelong dedication to prayer and its power as God deepened his faith and dependence on Him as his Heavenly Father. He worked along with other pastoral students building church pews. After graduation, he began pastoring in another Kentucky town.

Not too long afterward, he received a call to Indiana, in the Muncie area, where pioneer churches were struggling to gain a foothold. Here he served a number of such churches faithfully. He soon learned these small churches could not pay a salary which would support his and his wife’s family of five. God then opened work for him in a grocery chain’s warehouse. He continued working there until he retired. So, all those years he did the work of a bi-vocational pastor. He labored hard and God supplied a steady living for his family. His girls grew up and his wife went to work in a school cafeteria, where she became the manager.

Throughout all of the challenges of raising his daughters, he and his wife depended on their faith, constant prayer, their love for each other, their love for the Lord and lots of hard work, as the foundation for a tight knit family looking to Heaven for their every need.

When I first came into this remarkable family, I noticed how clearly they loved the Lord and each other. I noticed how they fought the battles we all face in living out our faith in this modern world together. I noticed how loyal they remained to each other through their ups and their downs. Then, as I got to know them better, I realized that the faith of this man and his equally strong wife, provided the basis for this love, this resilience in battle and in this unique loyalty to each other.

As I listened to him pray over and over again, my admiration and my gratitude for him and his faith grew deeper and deeper.  He prayed out of an absolute humility before God that touched me deeply. He truly prayed as one of God’s children depending deeply and completely on His Father. He had learned the trust and the faith our Lord Jesus personified in His relation to the Father while Jesus lived upon this earth.

One of those Christmas
Family Photo Shoots

As this man’s family gathered around the table to eat one of his wife’s hardy and delicious home-cooked meals, he would call us all to attention and begin to pray. His whole heart opened up in those prayers. It was during these moments I saw most clearly his mature, yet somehow childlike faith—His total trust in the good of our Heavenly Father. As we ate, he would look around the table lovingly, clearly appreciating each member of his family particularly and uniquely.

This is how he loves each daughter, the two of us sons-in-laws, and for me, most inspirationally, each of his grandchildren and his great-grandchildren. To his oldest grandson he has passed on the torch as a deeply dedicated bi-vocational pastor. How he loves to hear this one preaching God’s Word powerfully, simply and truly—even as he always did, himself. To his next grandson he passed down the basketball sports bug. They have a special bond as he communicates with this excellent athlete his deep spiritual strength. Then to the third, there is this deep, abiding love for family, this godly determination to see that every child finds in this life all of the resources they need to succeed in every way, no matter the obstacles and challenges they may face. Then to the fourth a strength of will, he has passed on a sturdy determination to get the right thing done, no matter how difficult. (In fact, all three daughters, in their own beautiful way reveal this iron will day-to-day as the world tries to have its way. Not for them. Not with God on their side and not as long as they stand.) Interestingly this fourth one is the only girl. And then in the life of the fifth there is joy in the living, wonder in the beauty of all the Lord has created. There is laughter, there is creativity, there is joy in the living. In the sixth there is a kindred wonder, a wholesome goodness, a love for one and all and an ability to get things done. Finally, in the seventh there is a deep heartfelt prayer for the strength of this one who has faced so many unfair battles, to conquer and rise above it all—the devious and hurtful ways-of-the-world which batter us each and everyone.

Now, as I look back upon all of this man’s life investment in the grandchildren’s lives, I have to say there is to found in all of these seven precious grandchildren, a mixture of all of these virtues—much like the delicious results his wife’s cooking creates in all of her dishes, whether they feature meats, sauces, vegetables, breads or desserts. Needless to say, meals at their house are always a celebration, due to the delights on the table and also found in the hearts and lives of the people gathered around the table. How fitting that his prayers before meals draw of all of their goodness together. 

Aren’t they wonderful?
The Great-Grandchildren

Plus One!

Among all of the great-grandchildren there are remarkable athletes, students, artists—in the making due to the goodness of God and the faithfulness of this man and his wife over their many, many years together, entrusting their lives, their family and their service to Him and for His glory.

And among the great-grandchildren there is a wide array of challenges, big-time challenges that life brings their way—but not without the godly resources God provides through Jesus and through their own parents, grandparents and great-grandparents. 

And so it all comes down to this: One great God, His Son, our Savior, the Holy Spirit—together Three-in-One; overflowing the lives of this remarkable couple over a lifetime of years; multiplying and expanding God’s Kingdom within the hearts of this family, and to all those blessed to be around them, preparing for glory together in Heaven and deeply loving their lives in the meantime. 

Praise God! I am blessed to have been welcomed into such a family’s life, led by this one godly man and his wife. Amen!

THIS MAN’S DEEP FAITH

God Leads Us From Before The Beginning To Beyond The End

God Leads Us For His Glory
From Before The Beginning
Until After The End

Isaiah 46:8-11

”Remember this and stand firm,
recall it to mind, you transgressors,
remember the former things of old;
for I am God, and there is no other;
I am God, and there is none like me,
declaring the end from the beginning
and from the ancient times things not yet done,
saying, ‘My counsel shall stand,
and I will accomplish my purpose,’
calling a bird of prey from the east,
the man of my counsel from a far country.
I have spoken and bring it to pass;
I have purposed, and I will do it.’”

These verses speak truth to my heart and mind as I look back on our teaching careers, Becky’s and mine.  Always we have seen God as the foundation for everything involving our teaching. We have seen Him at our beginning and now, towards our ending. He stands alone as the One who has set and sustained our course. His wise counsel has blessed our students, for indeed, He has been the source of all their learning. Whether we have been teaching here in the U.S. or abroad, He has always been there, constant in His Provision and His Wisdom and most especially His Love. In each school we have taught His people have mentored and upheld us as we ministered. His Spirit has continually spoken into our lives and has brought His good to bear  because He has purposed to bless us and those we taught with His perfect knowledge and His clear wisdom. So, what can I say, but praise the Lord.

Calvary Baptist Church
Ludowici, Georgia
God began Mike’s teaching journey here.

So it all began when in 1974 God took me far away from home, or so it seemed at the time, from Glencoe, Alabama to Ludowici, Georgia and Long County High School, located about fifty minutes from Savannah. God provided housing for me graciously, though it seemed disappointing at the time. The only affordable and available place I could find was one room, with limited cooking privileges,  sharing a bath on the occasional nights when tourists from up North rented an adjacent room.  Mrs. Lawton Howard, a pillar of the town, and certainly, as it turned out,  provided me comfortable if simple accommodations. 

In Ludowici God blessed me with a loving church family at Calvary Baptist, and especially a strong Christian couple, Norman and Carolyn Mock and their son, Andy. Our Principal, Mr. Bill Owen, blessed me with his strong encouragement as I faced the realities of teaching and the rigors required in teaching ninth and tenth graders whose culture featured lots of time spent hunting in the swamps of Southeast Georgia. God taught me that wherever I am, He has already been there. He remains there with me daily and provides for my every need to sustain my service under His guidance and for His Purpose.

As it turns out, He had purposed to have me settled comfortably among the wonderful folks at Calvary so I could clearly hear His call into missions service. So, He called and I answered and after two years I returned home to study for my Master’s degree in English as a first step toward appointment as a teacher with the International Mission Board. 

God continued Mike’s teaching journey in St. Marys on the coast south of Ludowici.

After a year’s interval I found myself teaching at the St. Marys Elementary School, teaching sevenths graders. In the interim I had been put on hold with the IMB until I gained more experience. St. Mary was located south of Ludowici, on the coast, about forty minutes from Jacksonville, Florida.  Here God arranged for me to take a graduate reading course where I learned to use positive reinforcement to build strong classroom control. Under the Christian professor of this class, I discovered the use of tickets, the use of  which have delighted American, Nigerian, Nigerien, and countless other nationalities of students down through the years. 

In St. Marys I was surrounded by a loving community of First Baptist families and students in the Heaven-Bound youth group. I was shepherded in my teaching by a wonderful Christian gentleman, Mr. Charles Estes, our principal. My colleagues among the seventh grade students, Mrs. Bryant, Mrs. Stephens, and Coach Stewart, made teaching a joy and privilege. At first I had arrived in St. Marys disappointed, but before I left in 1981, four years later, I loved the people and the place, and still do. God had known His Purpose as he used your great years in St. Marys as He prepared me for service in Nigeria.

Becky attended Ball State University’s
Teachers College,
earning both a B.S. and and an M.A.E.

In the meantime Becky, living in Yorktown, Indiana, had been attending Ball State University in Muncie; and had worked at the Huffer Daycare Canter each summer, from 1976-79. This prepared her well for her first full-time teaching as a Journeyman Missionary assigned for two years to the First Baptist Nursery School in Port Harcourt where she served as the Advisor under the director, Mrs. Margaret David George as she assisted the Nigerian teachers while they taught three hundred students.  Even today she remembers having to take her turn catching and putting back into their classroom, pre-schoolers who had escaped through the open windows. Becky also discipled the teachers and worked with university students. Becky had the privilege of serving under long-time, IMB missionaries, Dale Moore and Earl and Roberta Fine. Through Becky’s time in Port Harcourt, God was definitely giving her a love for Nigeria, and for Nigeria’s open-hearted and friendly people.

When she returned to the U.S,, she began her Master’s Degree at Ball State University. She also began teaching at Christian Haven Boys Home, where she taught from 1983-87. There she taught a classroom of boys who had been placed there due to their struggles at home and/or with the law. She discovered they were all broken inside, and that they would never learn until that brokenness was addressed. They had to heal before they could deal with the school work they also needed to do. Her experience with them grabbed Becky’s attention, as God used this experience to shape and mold a stssrong foundation for her teaching career—always concentrating on both  the potential and on the challenges wrapped up inside each individual child.

Baptist High School in Jos, Nigeria continued Mike’s God-led journey in teaching.

 Back in St. Marys, Mike had found such fulfillment in teaching and ministering through his church, God had to give him a wake-up call in the form of pointed questions from some of his dear friends. They basically asked; “Just when are you going to get serious about God ‘s call to missions?” Mike responded positively and before he knew it, found himself in Jos, Nigeria at Baptist High School where he spent eighteen years (1982-2000) as a teacher and then as Principal. God richly blessed his time there, mentoring him through missionaries Ward and LouAnn Nicholson, Jane Ellen Gaines and Sandy Achenbach. God also challenged him to grow in his faith, through the inspiring lives of Nigerian teachers such as Mrs. Ekaete Ettang, Rev. Bulus Aplakah, and many others. God inspired Mike as He stretched him to feed the extraordinary spiritual hunger of many, many students, including Michael Tosan, Ayuba Iliya, and Samson Adedokun.

In 1985, on Mike’s first furlough, his high school friends, Randy and Pattie McCollum, introduced Becky and Mike, After Mike returned to Nigeria in January 1986, God worked, and they got engaged, carrying on their courtship long distance through old fashioned air grams. They were married in 1988 and after Hausa study, were both back to Baptist High in 1989. In 1990 Mike was asked to serve as Principal. As Principal he found great wisdom working alongside Nigerian colleagues and fellow missionaries. Indeed, he learned to understand how the Body of Christ operates through the God-given talents of various members working cooperatively as God leads.

Married in 1988, Mike and Becky returned to Jos and Baptist High School to continue teaching together.

At Baptist High School Becky discovered a great need when she considered the difficulty of enrolling village pastors’ children, due to the difficulty of sourcing well-trained teachers for rural schools. For this reason such students could never pass the entrance exam. So she began with two such students, worked with them throughout a school year, concentrating on basics in English and reading, while a Nigerian teacher taught them math. These two students both passed the entrance exam that year, did well at the high school, and went on for university level studies. One became a lecturer at the university level and the other became a veterinarian. Others followed in their footsteps in this pilot program for special education in Nigerian schools.

When missionary children needed similar supportive help in the basics, at Hillcrest School, also in Jos; Becky was asked to  do specialized training in the National Institute for Learning Difficulties. To be honest, the two of us were skeptical, having seen no evidence of any other such program actually working with such students. However, the structured and foundational one-on-one teaching did prove effective in most cases. Actually some missionary families were able to stay on the field due to the progress their students made under this training. Over the years Becky did extensive training in serving such students, and in Teaching English as a Second Language. In this way she was able to support students at both Hillcrest School from 1993 until 2011, and then when we left Nigeria to address needs in Sahel Academy in Niamey, Niger.

Becky led the way to Hillcrest School, also in Jos, where she helped introduce a program for students with specific learning disabilities. Mike later joined her, filling various administrative positions.

At Hillcrest Becky worked closely with an SIM (Serving In Missions) worker, Lorraine Foute, as they basically introduced and expanded a program for the students there. They were blessed to be joined by missionary mothers and Nigerian educators who committed themselves to the extensive training required, and to the intensive one-on-one sessions required. These dedicated teachers can relate many success stories today, reflected in the lives of successful students who have gone on to serve in a wide range of careers.

Throughout Mike’s time at Baptist High School he continuously found opportunities to disciple both students and teachers. These Nigerians had a keen appetite for studying the Bible and how it applied to living out their Christian lives day-to-day. At this time Southern Baptists were introducing excellent discipleship materials, including Master Life, Survival Kit, Experiencing God, The Mind of Christ and Fresh Encounter. So, Mike had the privilege of feeding really hungry hearts in depth training which made them strong and fruitful leaders for Nigerian Christians.

Baptist work had begun in Nigeria in 1850. Nigerians had accepted and grown strong in the Gospel Message of Christ throughout those years. So, progressively they took over responsibilities for the work of sharing the Gospel and making disciples. As a result the number of expatriate missionaries reduced throughout Mike and Becky’s time in Nigeria. So, the time came when there were no longer any Baptist missionary students at Hillcrest. Mike and Becky were asked to transfer to Niger where Sahel Academy had a strong need for teachers and administrators and special educators.

Mike and Becky moved to Sahel Academy in Niamey, Niger in 2012, where they finished the African portion of their teaching journey.

So in 2012 Mike and Becky arrived in Niamey to do some French language study before beginning to serve at Sahel Academy. Mike would become the Secondary School Principal and teach some English classes. Becky would teach special education. They continued their ministry there until returning to the U.S. for retirement at the end of 2018. During those years Becky effectively worked hard to do research and furnish well-targeted strategies for a wide range of students with particular learning challenges. She did training in teaching English as a Second Language, since many of her younger students spoke very little English. Again, she was able to facilitate families in their various ministries as she met their children and youth’s particular learning challenges. 

Teaching kindergarteners to read and speak English gave Becky a new challenge at Sahel Academy.

Mike was able to work on an administrative team which in their first school year at Sahel, dealt with the flooding of the main campus, moving to separate temporary campuses for the elementary and high school. In the midst of this natural disaster Mike saw the best in the people as the Sahel Academy pulled together to endure the flood and get the school running after just one month’s incredibly hard work. Then staff and students performed continuous difficult tasks to overcome the inadequacies of water and electric supply at both temporary campuses. Actually the camaraderie of students, staff and parents made the 2012-2013 a highly successful school year one to remember with praise to God.

Mike will never forget Friday morning chapel services on the roof of the secondary school, overlooking Niamey even as the sun rose. Students and staff carried their folding chairs from their classrooms up to the roof for those wonderful times of worship, and then back down to their classes afterward. There was such a “with God we can do anything” spirit about this year Mike will never forget. During this “year of the flood” Becky found the opportunity to introduce her services to wonderful, resilient elementary teachers, including Kathy Miller and Anisa Blomquist. Mike found joy in working along-side the Director, Brian Bliss, along with the Guidance Counselor, Mickey Schmidt, and others deeply committed Christian teachers as well.

Upon returning to the U.S., Becky eventually begin teaching with Dyslexia Connect, an on-line one-on-one teaching with students from across the country, and even from overseas. Always a determined and efficient learner, she overcame the challenges of handling computer and on-line technology and continues to support students and their families with her characteristic carefully crafted lessons suited perfectly to their individual needs. 

Mike actually had the privilege of spending about three years teaching in Westbrook School in the greater Gadsden community. In teaching there he met dedicated, deeply concerned administrators and teachers working hard to provide the best education possible with Christ as their essential foundation for learning.

First Baptist Church Glencoe, our home church, warmly welcomed both Becky and Mike home. Both have the joy of teaching senior adult Sunday School classes (Life Groups), participating with the Prayer Team, and enjoying the fellowship and learning together with others in D-Life Groups.

Now, if you aren’t too exhausted to read just a bit further, look back with me and see how God has always been leading and directing in our lives apart and then together, using every bit of experience from one opportunity of service to another to fill our lives with joy and a sense of fulfillment. While learning to live in a very different place, yet filled with wonderful, godly people, in Ludowici, Mike heard God’s Call to Mission. Then, by God’s perfect plan, he was delayed in getting to the field, and redirected to the next perfect place in building his dependence on God, in St. Marys. Here God grew and refined Mike’s teaching and leadership skills—and His faith in God and his trust in God’s people. In the meantime Becky had spent two wonderful years working with three hundred pre-schoolers in Port Harcourt, Nigeria.

Only then was he ready for Nigeria, Nigerians and Baptist High School, the sweet spot for his soul. While discipling students and staff, godly and spirt-filled Nigerians and missionary models drew Mike deeper and deeper into the life of complete faith. In the midst of this blessed time, God brought Mike and Becky together through their mutual love of Nigeria and Nigerians. They returned together to Jos where they served together at Baptist High School and Hillcrest School. During this time God planted in Becky’s heart a desire to give students with unique learning paths the very best of opportunities to learn and achieve. 

This calling and commitment led to a Sprit-filled sensitivity to those students’ challenges and their potential—and then to a determination to give them the very best. God enabled her to do so, and countless students live today blessed by the hard work she has done on their behalf. At Baptist High God opened this path for Becky, which then led to Hillcrest, Sahel and now Dyslexia Connect.

We do not consider ourselves to be at the end of this wonderful journey yet—but we do know the delights, the challenges, the glories of the path—all of them, are for God’s Glory. We are so blessed to just be His servants. 

In every teaching opportunity, literally all over the world, Mike and Becky have always arrived to find God there, eager to lead, guide and inspire.
All glory to His Name! Amen!

God The Initiator

GOD THE
INITIATOR

JOHN 15:16 ESV

You did not choose me,
but I chose you
that you should go and bear fruit
and that your fruit should abide,
so that whatever you ask the Father
in my name, he may give it to you.

DIETRICH BONHOEFFER
(In Meditating On the Word)

”If we ask how we should begin life with God, the Scripture answers that God has long since begun life with us. If we ask what we can do for God, we hear what God has done for us. If we ask how we can live without sin before God, the forgiveness of all sins in Jesus Christ is announced to us.”

Most of my Bible memory work has been verses, many of which I was taught in Vacation Bible School, or Sunday School, or Training Union, or in R.A.’s when I was very young. Some of those I still recite in the King James Version, and enjoy doing so, for the language is so beautiful. I have also learned verses in various evangelism and discipleship  programs in which I have been involved. I certainly use some of those in day-to-day life and in ministry even today. When I began teaching Bible at Baptist Hiigh School, Jos, I was challenged by the easiness with which Nigerians memorized chapters and even books of the Bible. Though I joined in with Bible classes as we learned to recite a couple of shorter books, I cannot claim to have them still on my tongue nor in my mind. I do, however, continue to keep a few chapters in my mind because they means so much to me as God continues to open up the magnificence of His loving Will for all of us He has made His children.

One of those is  Psalm 139. I treasure this chapter because it presents God as the INITIATOR of all that good and redemptive and joyful in this world, in my life, and most abundantly in the life to come. Just read these powerful promises:

DECLARING GOD’S WORD

VERSE 1
O LORD, you have searched me and known me!

VERSE 4
Even before a word is on my tongue,
behold, O LORD, you know it altogether.

VERSE 13
For you formed my inward parts;
you knitted me together in my mother’s womb.

VERSE 15
My frame was not hidden from you,
when I was being made in secret,
intricately woven in the depths of the earth.

VERSE 16
Your eyes saw my unformed substance;
in your book were written, every one of them,
the days that were formed for me,
when as yet there was none of them.

Pretty impressive, right? God  has been, is, and always will be acting to glorify His Kingdom all around me and within me. Praise His Holy Name! So, my thoughts this week center on God and how He has always initiated His relationship with me, how He continues to do, and how He will always do so. 

“Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever.”
Hebrews 13:8

1. He knew me and loved me before I knew myself.

In Revelation 21:6, God seated on the throne, says “It is done. I am the Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end.” God has always been. He is now. He will always be. Psalm 139 makes it abundantly clear He has always known me, and He has always worked purposefully to make me the man I am in order to bring Him glory. Things I still do not understand about myself, He has always known. And His Holy Spirit indwells me as His redeemed child, to reveal to me who He is and what He will accomplish in and through me.

2. He established for me a good and godly heritage.

In His perfect plan for achieving His glory through my life, God so arranged families to have me born to godly parents who had godly parents, and so on . . . My parents and my grandparents, my aunts and my uncles, and their own people lived lives of gratitude and faithfulness before God. They instilled in me, my brother and my sisters, a love for God which has led me consistently to follow Him and His Will. Even in Scripture He has blessed me with a heritage based on the lives of faithful worshippers and servants of God.

3. He encircled my life with godly mentors and teachers.

For as long as I can remember I remember godly men and women teaching me about God, His Word, His World, His Son and His Love for me. I remember Sunbeam leaders, Sunday School Teachers, Training Union Leaders, Christian School Teachers, Youth Leaders, Choir Leaders, Godly Parents of Students and Youth Group Members, Pastors, Older Believers, Christian University Professors, Principals, Colleagues As Teachers, Senior Missionaries, Fellow Missionaries and Small Group Leaders and Co-Members. It’s amazing to consider such a vast array of faithful Christian lives used by God to guide, encourage, correct and strengthen me.

4. He established patterns in my life which have deepened my knowledge of and understanding of His Way.

Again, from early on in my life, God has called me to salvation, to be nurtured by His people, to instill in me practices which deepen my faith and my love for HIm. Always I remember being taught the beauty and the truth and power of the Bible. Always I remember being taught and being included in prayer as a constant privilege and responsibility in my life as I relate to God, my Heavenly Father. Always I remember enjoying the unique joy of worshipping and learning and serving God togetherwith fellow believers in the Church. Always I remember being challenged to share all of God’s goodness with others through my words, through my actions, and even through my attitudes. 

5. He placed faithful people alongside me who have walked beside me in the path He has prepared for me.

My mission team involvement began as a Summer Missionary here in Etowah County. My mission leader, Marsha Eichenberg, and my team members over the course of five summers, taught me the ins-and-outs of sharing the love of Jesus with people who do not know Him. Then when I went to Nigeria as a single, I shared a compound with the Holcombs and the Wilsons, young couples also beginning their missionary careers. We learned together as wonderful Nigerians and senior missionaries shared with us the wisdom gathered over the course of their years of service. Then my closest and dearest co-laborer, Becky, joined me in marriage, and has been constant as a companion on the road of service and worship God has for us together. Now in retirement our Pastor, our ministry staff, my Sunday School colleagues, my D-Life colleagues, my Prayer Team colleagues—all guide me in the way God would have me go. Obviously God has never left me alone as I serve Him.

6. Even until today He both challenges and encourages me to follow and serve Him more fully.

His Command in Matthew 28:19-20 has no time limit, not until Jesus comes again. Daily He challenges me in Bible Study, in devotional writing, in prayer, in declaring and living His Word—He strengthens me for His service. What joy He brings as we believers follow Him in delivering His eternal Gospel message of salvation through faith in Jesus, until every man, woman, boy, and girl knows.

7. He is preparing for me and all of His redeemed children New Heaven and New Earth when His Will will be accomplished eternally.

The reality of that is almost too wonderful to comprehend. Maybe, there will be a moment of silence before we all break out in praise to God who has initiated it all, who has been continuously working, and who will see it achieved—one universal chorus from every people, language, tribe and tongue, worshipping and serving Him in absolute glory forever and ever. Praise the Father! Praise the Son! Praise the Holy Spirit! Amen! Amen! Amen!

ALWAYS BEFORE, ALWAYS NOW, ALWAYS IN THE FUTURE

Always before there was
the heavens and the earth,
always before there was
the sun and the earth,
always before there was
the day and the night,
always before there was
the seas and the dry land,
always before there were
living creatures on the earth,
always before there was
both Adam and Eve,
always before, He was
the INITIATOR of His plan.

Always, every single moment
and through ever single day,
always in my waking and
even in my sleeping,
always in my going forth
and even in my coming back,
always in my working
and even in my playing,
always in my speaking,
and even in my silence,
always in my beginning
and even in my ending,
always even now, He is
the INITIATOR of His plan.

Always forever in the future
and forever eternally,
always for my tomorrows
and for my eternals,
always for the next year
and for my next decade,
always for my hopes to come
and for my dreams fulfilled,
always for His promises
and for His covenants made,
always for His steady plan
and for His glorious design,
always He will be
the INITIATOR.

Praising Our God

PRAISING GOD WITH ALL OUR HEARTS, SOULS, AND MINDS

Praising Our God

How quickly the years pass by now that I am in my seventies—now past the three score and ten which measure a person’s full life. (Psalm 90:10) It really does seem just like last year when I sat down to write out seventy—two praises for our great God, as He had blessed my life with Himself, His Leading and Guiding, and His People. Now, as I begin year Seventy-Three I feel led to focus on the centrality of His Excellence and His Being. I confess that throughout the days which make up my swiftly flying years, I feel truly convicted: I never do praise God enough. NEVER! Ironically, after praising God, my heart feels light, my soul sings with joy, and my mind rests at peace. So, I seek to consecrate this week’s writing as I focus all my attention and praise on our wonderful God. Rev. Dr. Musa Bawa, my first principal at Baptist High School in Jos, Nigeria, always loved to have the students sing this now 150 year-old hymn:

“To God be the glory, great things He has done,
so loved He world that He gave us His Son,
who yielded His life an atonement for sin,
and opened the life-gates that all may go in.

Praise the Lord, praise the Lord,
let the earth hear His voice!
Praise the  Lord, praise the Lord,
let the people rejoice!
O come to the Father
through Jesus the Son,
and give Him the glory,
great things He has done.”
(Fanny Crosby, 1875)

So, join me as I give glory to God: The Father, God: The Son,  God: The Holy Spirit: God and His Earth, God and His Gospel, God and His Church, and God and His Throne.

PRAISING GOD OUR FATHER

God: The Father

Acts 17:28 ESV

. . . for “In him we live and move
and have our being.”

My God and my Father, I come to You with PRAISE.

I praise You as my perfect Father.
I praise You as my eternal Father.
I praise You as my omnipotent, my all powerful Father.
I praise You as my omniscient, my all knowing Father.
I praise You as my omnipresent,
everywhere present, Father.
I praise You as my Creator Father.
I praise You as my Redemptive Father.
I praise You as my Perfecting Father.
I praise You as my always attentive Father.
I praise You as my loving Father.

PRAISING GOD
FOR THE SON

God: The Son

John 1:1 ESV

In the beginning was the Word,
and the Word was with God,
and the Word was God.

My God and my Father, I come to You with praise for Jesus, my Savior.

I praise You  for the Incarnation (God coming to live among us) of Jesus.
I praise You for His  humble birth in Bethlehem.
I praise You for providing His parents on Earth, Mary and Joseph and their faithfulness.
I praise You for His deliverance and His escape to Egypt.
I praise You for His childhood and youth in Nazareth among common people.
I praise You for His love for and understanding of the Scriptures, even as a twelve-year old.
I praise You for His perfect obedience, even when facing Satan in the Wilderness.
I praise You for His teaching, His healing, His day-to-day just living comfortably  among His people.
I praise You for Jesus’ perfect example of
trust and obedience.
I paise You for His ultimate sacrifice on the Cross, and for His victory over sin as he arose triumphant
from the Tomb.

PRAISING GOD
THE HOLY SPIRIT

God: The Holy Spirit 

2 Corinthians 13:14 ESV

”The grace of the Lord Jesus Chirst
and the love of God
and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit
be with you all.”

My God and my Father, I praise You for the Holy Spirit who lives in my heart and daily comforts, corrects,  and guides me.

I praise You as He has sealed me with Salvation.
I praise You as He daily convicts me of my sin.
I praise You as He enlightens my mind
as I read Your Holy Scripture.
I praise You as He strengthens me as I face daily battles.
I praise You as He gives me peace in the midst of storms.
I praise You as He delights me with joy
at the marvelous works of Your hands.
I praise You as He perfects Your love in my heart.
I praise You as He develops within me the Fruit of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, and self-control.
I praise You as He guides me clearly
on Your Pathway for me.
I praise You as He reveals Your glory to me.

PRAISING GOD
FOR THE EARTH

God: His Earth

Revelation 21:3 ESV

And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying,
“Behold the dwelling place of God is with man.
He will dwell with them, and they will be His people,
and God Himself will be with them as their God.

My God and my Father, I praise You for this beautiful, though sin-corrupted Earth, and for the New Earth you have promised.

I praise You for the grand scale of creation
which inspires my heart.
I praise You for the sun, the moon,
and the stars which inspire me.
I praise You for the oceans, the mountains,
and the valleys, which fill my mind with wonder.
I praise You for animals, small and large,
which illustrate Your grandeur.
I praise you for the parables for life
the animals teach me.
I praise You for the patterns in Creation
which guide me as I daily live.
I praise You for all your provisions; air and water and food, which You abundantly supply.
I praise You for particular beauties; sunrise, sunset, rainbows, flowers, birds and people
which brighten up my days.
I praise You for the Holy Spirit’s inspired desire
in my heart for the perfection of the Earth.
I praise You for the New Earth as
Your Guaranteed Promise.

PRAISING GOD
FOR THE GOSPEL

God: His Gospel

John 3: 16 ESV

”For God so loved the world,
that He gave His only Son,
that whoever believes in Him
should not perish
but have eternal life.”

My God and my Father, I praise You for Your Eternal, Your Perfect Gospel.

I praise You for providing from eternity Your plan
for saving every one of Your children.
I praise You for seeking each of us so we can be found.
I praise You for eternally overcoming evil with good.
I praise You for redeeming every one of us who turns away from this world to You.
I praise You for the way you call to us
over and over and over again.
I praise You, for by Your mercy, not giving us the penalty for sin we deserve.
I praise You, for by Your grace, giving us freely
what we never could deserve.
I praise You for Jesus being Your Perfect Lamb
and sacrifice for our sin.
I praise You for raising Jesus victorious from the dead, defeating Satan and Sin and Death.
I praise for Your Promise of Eternal, Glorious Life
as Your forever redeemed child.

PRAISING GOD
FOR THE CHURCH

God: His Church

1Timothy 3:14-15 ESV

”I hope to come to you soon,
but I am writing these things
so that, if I delay,
you may know one ought to behave
in the household of God,
which is the church of the living God,
a pillar and buttress of the truth.”

My Father and my God, I praise You for making me through redemption a member of Your living Church.

I praise You for seeking out, calling and finding me.
I praise You for claiming me through redemption through Jesus’ blood sacrifice.
I praise You for uniting me through the Holy Spirit
in koininia Christian love
with my brother and sister believers.
I praise You for making us One even as You, the Spirit and the Son are One.
I praise You for the privilege of loving Your world with the Gospel of Jesus Christ by the power of the Holy Spirit.
I praise You for the privilege
of being a member of the Body of Christ.
I praise You for the privilege of lifting praises to You
as hope in the midst of a desperate world.
I praise You for the privilege of being inspired
by Your saints who have gone before.
I praise You for the privilege of being taught by Jesus,
the Living Word, and the Bible, the Written Word, through Teachers gifted by You.
I praise You for that incredible Day when all of us,
Your Universal Church, gathered from every people, every language, every tribe, and every tongue;
will join together in praising You upon Your Throne.

PRAISING GOD
BEFORE HIS THRONE

God: His Throne

Isaiah 6:1-5 ESV

In the year that King Uzziah died,
I saw the LORD sitting on a throne,
high and lifted up,
and the train of His robe filled the temple.
Above it stood seraphim; each had six wings:
with two he covered his face,
with two he covered his feet,
and with two he flew.
And one cried to another and said:
”Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of hosts;
The whole earth is full of His glory!”

My God and my father I praise you for Your Promise that will allow me to see and worship You upon Your Throne.

I praise You for the Gift of the Holy Spirit,
who lives in me, confirmation, that I will see You
in glory upon Your throne.
I praise You for the sure hope of seeing the perfection of Your eternal throne’s final victory over sin and death.
I praise You for the indescribable joy my heart will experience when Your own
surround and praise You on Your throne.
I praise You for this promise fulfilled:

“ . . . that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow,
in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord,
to the glory of God the Father.”
(Philippians 2:10-11) ESV

I praise You for the eternal presence of all good
and for the external absence of all evil.
I praise You for eternal life
with no mourning nor crying nor pain.
I praise You for my eternally becoming
the child of God He created me to be.
I praise You for life eternal
learning more and more about His glory.
I praise You for the adventure of exploring New Heaven and New Earth forever and forever.
I praise God for eternally remaking me
as one among His perfect children.
I praise God for the privilege of seeing Jesus face-to-face.

That’s seventy praises. So, allow me add
these three more to make it seventy-three!

Oh, God, my Heavenly Father,
for the miracle of being created
and then redeemed and re-created
as Your beloved child,
I praise You.

Oh, God, my loving Savior,
for Your perfect, Your living  sacrifice
and your glorious resurrection
on Your child’s behalf,
I praise You.

Oh, God, the Holy Spirit,
for Your presence dwelling within me,
cleansing, correcting, keeping me
by Your holy Power,
I praise You.

Amen! Amen! And Amen!

One Great Big Faithful Family

ONE GREAT BIG FAITHFUL FAMILY
IT’S ALL ABOUT JESUS:

ROY DONALD AND DOROTHY RUTH GRAY

Proverbs 3:3-4

”Let not steadfast love and faithfulness
forsake you: bind them around your neck;
write them on the tablet of your heart.
So you will find favor and good success
in the sight of God and man.”

FAITHFUL AS A FAMILY

Faithful as a family
in the harvest field
of our Lord and Savior Jesus.

Working hard together,
playing just as hard
modeling Heaven for the Lord.

Providing for their own
family every need
they had as the Lord enabled.

Laughing hard together
helped them do their best
in holy labors for their Lord.

Demonstrating goodness
among all their neighbors,
by God’s Hands they were blessed.

Especially on those long days
when it seemed they could not
rest—they gave God their best.

Always they found God faithful,
always He found them true
doing what families do.

Roy Donald and Dorothy Ruth Gray married in 1940, and in time welcomed nine children into their family: Donna Ruth, Richard Allen, Eleanor Frances, Carris Elaine, Paulette Lynn, Roy Wesley, Helen Rebecca, and Flora Capitola (Cappy). As they lived out remarkably hard-working, faithful, joyful lives together, they established what I would call: ONE GREAT BIG FAITHFUL FAMILY which richly blessed their church family and their community friends.

Roy Donald Gray was born on August 19, 1911 in Carrollton, Georgia. His family moved to Alabama where he began his adult life as a farmer in Glencoe. In the meantime, Dorothy Ruth Guest was born October 17, 1922 in Duck Springs, and also eventually moved to Glencoe. They married on September 28, 1940. How they met seems to be a bit up-in-the-air; two sisters tell different stories. Kathy says her Dad was out trick-or-treating when he came to the Guest house. When their Mom answered the door, they met for the first time, and were married a year later, although her grandfather seemed less than enthusiastic because of the gap in their ages.  Lynn tells it this way: Their Mom was walking downtown with a friend. She dropped something and stooped to pick it up. Their Dad just happened to be driving along that street, when he saw her drop it. He stopped the car, jumped out and got it for her. He got back in the car and declared he was going to marry that young lady. And about a year later he did. I love both stories, so maybe both actually happened.

Donald always worked his farm. He also worked at the Steel Plant for eleven years, and at Goodyear for thirty years. He would get up early and do a day’s work in the fields, then come in, clean up, eat a big lunch, and head to work the second shift, afternoons and evenings.

 Dot worked to cook and feed and clean and clothe their nine children. Both always got the most out of every day. Then on Sundays they attended church, then spent the afternoons relaxing, and playing basketball  or other games. In earlier years their Dad occasionally picked up an ice block from an ice house, so they could make ice cream. Then it was back to church on Sunday night. Imagine getting their big family of eleven (and often their Grandmother Guest) to church on time. Now, two of the Gray children remember occasionally getting left in the hustle and bustle of getting everyone home after church. Somehow, I can just imagine all of the kidding and laughter that took place once “the prodigal” was returned home.

I believe you will be as impressed about this as I am; all six of the living Gray children took time to write about their love for their Mom and Dad, and their often hilarious and always delightful stories from their growing up  years in the Gray household. These days Cappy, the youngest,  is especially happy to be living next door to the old home place. She remembers how the neighborhood children tended to gather at their house because there was so much fun to had there. Helen remembers a very special Christmas, after reading the Christmas story at Roy and Carol’s house, and their being asked to share their blessings. Then their Dad stood up, pointed at the crowded room and declared, “You all are my blessings!” Now, that’s a faithful family. Kathy remembers lots of hugs and good feelings being shared among the family members that day.

Roy remembers riding behind the mule and plowing in the fields even as a young boy. He recalls being found asleep on occasion. He also remembers his Dad taking all of them to the Christmas Party at Goodyear. He and his Dad enjoyed hunting rabbits and also deer when Roy got older. Lynn remembers being born at home on the same day as a litter of pigs and a baby calf. She used to tell folks she was born with some pigs, and a calf. She also recalls falling asleep one day after working on the farm, only to be found sleeping out in the fields by her older brother, Richard, as a storm was coming. She also remembers how they painted “Jesus Saves” on their old barn just so the pilot who flew over to check the power lines occasionally, could read it. When they heard and then saw him coming, they would climb up the TV antenna to the roof, to wave at him. He would smile and wave back at the children, and tip his wings. Such fun!

Now, a childhood confession of my own: At Church on Mother’s Day back then, the church always gave a pretty corsage to the youngest mother present, to the oldest mother present, and to the mother present with the most children. Now, the Bishop children and the Stonecypher children were always hoping Mrs. Gray and her many children would somehow miss a Sunday, so their Moms might get a chance with their fairly large families of five children. However, the Grays always seemed to show up so their Mom could claim her annual prize. Now, I know she certainly deserved it. Lynn remembers their having a Seven Sisters Rose Bush outside their house, appropriately named, from which the seven sisters would each pick a rose to wear to church on Mother’s Day. 

As a high school student Carris was always an inspiration to me. She was a bit older, and on Youth Sundays gave the best inspirational talks, I thought. Carris remembers her Mom as a caregiver for those in need around them, both family and friends. She particularly remembers how important her Dad and Mom took their tithes and offerings for the Church. Carris carried on her parents’ Love for the Lord in taking mission trips to India, Guatemala and South America. 

Kathy recalls how her Dad raised both peanuts and popcorn, so they could enjoy those treats throughout the winter months. She also remembers all of those watermelons, cantaloupes, grapes, strawberries, peaches and apples they raised. Their Dad also raised cows, pigs, and chicken, so meat was not a problem. He also raised a huge variety of vegetables: green beans, peas, butter beans, corn, okra, squash, cabbage, bell peppers, carrots, radishes, tomatoes, potatoes, turnips, and turnip greens. Talking about healthy diets—the Gray family had just about anything and everything to eat—all because of the family’s hard work—inspired, of course by their Dad and Mom.

Their Dad actually taught Roy and me in his high school boy’s class, along with several of our friends, Richard Smith, Greg Ables, Mike Marker, Mike Hale, Tim Alvis and Jimmy Laseter. Their Dad also enjoyed playing ball with teens from the church and community on Sunday afternoons. Their Mom also did more than her share, assisting with the Cradle Roll as they called it back then.

Both their Dad and their Mom lived out their faith in very practical ways. As he sold lots of produce, he always added a little extra to make sure his customers got their full amount. Once on a Sunday a man desperate for corn stopped at the house to buy some. Their Dad told him he could not sell anything on a Sunday. The man kept begging, so he was given a bag and told to help himself to what he need. There would be no charge. That way, no one was selling and no one was buying on Sunday. Now, I would say that man went away with a lot to think about. I would also say their Dad understood fully the principal of loving and sharing with others, and just maybe, especially on Sundays.

Their Mom had to learn to give her oldest, Donnie, shots daily, after she came down with diabetes as an eleven year-old. So their Mom used that skill to help neighbors and relatives with shots they had to have down through the years. She also cared for several elderly relatives right there in the house when they got to needing special and constant care. In fact, Helen pretty much said it all, when she said her mother became like a doctor to many of those who needed her.

In the end, their Dad died at 85, from Asbestos Lung Disease due to his exposure all of those years at Goodyear. Doctors told the family he had the heart of a twenty-five year-old. Ironically their Mom died a few years later when her own heart gave out. She had worn it down doing so much for her family and friends.

Surely you would agree with me: Donald and Dot Gray, and now their faithful children, have as a family lived out Proverbs 3:3-4. Steadfast love and faithfulness illuminate everything about the lives their parents worked so hard to build through their family. Both godly love and faithfulness are so beautifully written on the tablets of their hearts. They as a couple and as a family have certainly earned God’s favor and our own admiration. Praise the Lord for such families as the Grays, families who blessed their churches and communities through their faithfulness to our Lord Jesus Christ.

Matthew 25:21 ESV
“ . . .Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little. I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.”

PRAYING FOR REVIVAL

REVIVAL BEGINS WITH PRAYER

I WILL GIVE THEM A NEW HEART 

Then you will call upon me
and come and pray to me,
 and I will hear you.
You will seek me and find me,
when you seek me with all your heart. I
 will be found by you, declares the Lord, . . .
Jeremiah 2-14a ESV

You may wonder why I would be writing this week about revival. I can give my answer truthfully and urgently. We ourselves, certainly including me, we who follow Jesus as Lord, desperately need revival in a world whose darkness threatens to overwhelm us. What is revival? Well, we repent of our selfishness and rebellion. We ask Emmanuel to restore our sanity in the midst of the chaos and the conflict which surrounds us. We need vision from our Loving God to inspire us. We need His holy inspiration to call us and direct us back to life as He would choose for us to live it. We need to give our complete affirmation to all that God does for us as He redeems and transforms us. We need His complete victory in and through us over the evil which darkens our world. We need His perfect, His self-sacrificing Agape Love. For those of us who have been redeemed, we now live as His reborn children. We must begin in humble, open-hearted, truthful prayer. No revival will ever break out until we are fervent, urgent, even desperate in our prayers. As Jeremiah records God’s invitation: “Call upon me and come and pray to me. Then, I will hear you. When you fully, truly seek me, you will find Me. When you seek me with your whole heart you;  then I will be found by you.” This is a declaration from our God. When He declares it, it is so.

Why is prayer so necessary? God honors us as He not only invites, but commands us to pray—to open up ourselves, our whole hearts, our very souls, our seeking minds to Him in trust and faith and an eagerness to hear Him and obey Him. In prayer we recognize our complete dependence on Him. We literally place our souls in a kneeling position before His Throne. We confess He is great and we are small. We profess His holiness compared to our worldliness. We plead for Him to conform the earth to the perfection of Heaven. We open the door and ask for His empowering Presence to conform us to His perfection. He must accomplish REVIVAL or there will be no REVIVAL at all. REVIVAL  always begins with prayer. So, as we look for REVIVAL we need to turn to heartfelt, deeply rooted prayer individually and collectively before our Loving God and Father. We can further explore seeking REVIVAL through the seven calls discussed below.

SEVEN CALLS TO REVIVAL

A CALL FOR REPENTANCE

Repent therefore, and turn back,
that your sins may be blotted out,
that times of refreshing may come
from the presence of the Lord,
and that he may send the Christ
appointed for you, Jesus.
Acts 3:19-20 ESV

We are called to repent before our Holy God. We are called to step away, turn around and leave our sinful ways. Then God will blot out our sins because of what Jesus accomplished on the Cross, shedding His blood in place of our own. Then Jesus invites us to share in His Eternal Victory because of His Resurrection. The Holy Spirit renews us in the presence of Jesus, God’s appointed and anointed Messiah.

A CALL FOR EMMANUEL

Draw near to God,
and he will draw near to you.
Cleanse your hands, you sinners,
and purify your hearts,
you double-minded.
James 4:8 ESV

We are called to then draw near to God, for He welcomes and He awaits us—He gave us Jesus as our Emmanuel, His very Presence among us. In this process we are cleansed of our sins, and our hearts are purified, even as our hearts are refocused on Him and Him alone. We no longer focus on ourselves—for we have been created to be blessed as we continuously look upon and worship Him.

A CALL FOR VISION

Restore us, O God;
let your face shine, that we may be saved!
Psalm 80:3 ESV

We are called to a new and sanctified vision of our God. In restoring us God shines forth in His glory and as we praise Him we experience the complete joy of becoming His very own children. As we bask in His glory we are fully and eternally saved from the darkness of our self-centered past. His vision for a redeemed, resurrected, and reconstructed world in His image becomes our own.

A CALL FOR INSPIRATION 

Then we shall not turn back from you;
give us life, and we will call upon your name!
Psalm 80:18 ESV

We are called to experience heavenly inspiration. The Holy Spirit then inspires, enlightens  and guides us so that we do not turn away from Him. In this we have life, eternal and perfect even as we call upon His Holy Name in praise, in worship, in adoration, in trust and obedience.

A CALL FOR VICTORY 

All the ends of the earth shall remember
and return to the Lord,
and all the families of the nations
shall worship before you.
Revelation 22:27 ESV

We are called to God’s own victory as the entire earth remembers and returns to the Lord. This victory includes all of the families of Nations; Africa, America,  Antartica, Asia, Australia, South America and Europe, The saints from every  nation, people, tribe and tongue will gather around the Throne and worship God. Hallelujah!

A CALL FOR AFFIRMATION 

Behold, God is my salvation;
I will trust, and will not be afraid,
for the Lord God is my strength and my song,
and he has become my salvation.
Isaiah 12:2 ESV

We are called to give affirmation to God’s Holiness, His Perfection, and His Salvation which is certain and true. As we do, He will enable our trust in Him and His Goodness, and will remove all of our fear, forever. We will declare with all the saints that He, the Lord God is our strength and song, that He has become our Salvation.

A CALL FOR LOVE

And he said to him,
“You shall love the Lord your God
with all your heart and with all your soul
and with all your mind.
This is the great and first commandment.
And a second is like it:
You shall love your neighbor as yourself.
Matthew 22:37-39 ESV

We are called to Love God, as we were created to do—with all of our hearts, with all of our souls, with all of our minds. Then we are called to love our neighbors as ourselves, for truly, He makes them our eternal brothers and sisters, those who choose to honor and worship Him with us—all who give Him absolute sovereignty over all we say and do. 

THAT IS: Crying For

Repentance—turning away from ourselves and sin to complete trust in Him, our God.
Emmanuel—looking to Jesus not only as Savior, but as our absolute Lord and King.
Vision—gazing upon the glory of God and recognizing with joy, His eternal glory.
Inspiration—finding in Him pure and enlivening energy eternally.
Victory—as all nations, peoples, tribes and tongues ultimately worship Him.
Affirmation—declaring before all of Heaven gathered around the throne our own testimony.
Love—for God with our very essence, our hearts, souls, minds, and our neighbors as ourselves.

Bearing Fruit Like Jesus

IT’S ALL ABOUT JESUS

Bearing Fruit Like Jesus

Galatians 5:22-23 ESV

”But the fruit of the Spirit is love,
joy, peace, patience,
kindness, goodness,
faithfulness, gentleness,
and self-control;
against such things there is no law.”

What does a spirit-filled Christians life’s look like? Well, such a person looks a lot like Jesus. He or she lives a lot like Jesus. He or she speaks a lot like Jesus. He or she thinks a lot like Jesus. He or she acts and reacts a lot like Jesus. Paul said Spirit-filled Christians exhibit these fruit of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Now, if we had been privileged to be in Peter or Andrew or James or John’s shoes, we would certainly know what what such a life would look like; for they walked with Jesus day-by-day. Jesus bore  for them the Fruit of the Spirit always.

Matthew 26:28 ESV

“ . . . for this is my blood of the covenant,
which is poured out for many
for the forgiveness of sins.”

Just think, the disciples saw Jesus act out love and these other beautiful attributes daily. They knew what it felt like to be loved by Jesus as He patiently explained and re-explained, and explained again, all that God had for Him to teach them. Remember, Jesus did not just teach God’s Redeeming Truth—He lived it; He spoke it, He acted it out over and over again. Only Jesus in the history of the world ever exemplified every one of the Fruit of the Spirit.

Remember how He loved, how He chose to love Peter, Andrew, James and John every day, even when it meant encouraging, correcting, redirecting, forgiving, redeeming them and the other disciples. CHOOSE is the crucial word for His kind of love. Jesus made the CHOICE every single moment of every day to lay down His life to give the disciples what they truly needed from Him at that precise moment. Truly He CHOSE to love them. 

Philippians 4:4 ESV
Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice.

And because Jesus CHOSE love, he experienced Joy—the delight which arises from a heart completely and willingly surrendered to God. Such joy never goes away—no matter the challenges nor the disappointments that come our way. We know God is Good. We know His Way is good. We know darkened moments in our day never prevail over the good plans God has for us. So, we, like Jesus discover the joy of fully living out trust and obedience in God.

John 14:27 ESV

“Peace I leave with you,
my peace I give to you.
Not as the world gives
do I give to you.
Let not your hearts be troubled,
neither let them be afraid.”

Then, as we experience love and joy, we discover peace which overcomes our worries and our fears. Look at Jesus in the midst of the storm walking on the Galilee, or on another stormy night, sleeping through the storm in back of the boat. Jesus knew perfect peace because He knew the Father held even the stormy seas in His hand. Jesus knew peace because He knew the Father held only good for Him. We, too, can know that peace more and more and more, as we grow in our faith and our understanding of essential goodness. “All things (do, indeed) work for the good of those who love Him. . . “

Ephesians 4:2-3 ESV

“ . . . with all humility and gentleness,
with patience, bearing with one another in love,
eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit
in the bond of peace.”

Jesus never ran out of patience with His disciples. He certainly corrected them, rebuked them, questioned them hard. Still, He never gave up on them, but instead, He demonstrated such patience as He walked with Peter after their post-resurrection breakfast by the sea and asked asked him again and again, and yet again; “Do you love me?” He patiently provided for Peter one opportunity to declare His love for each time his fallen disciple had denied him on the night of Jesus’ trial.

Ephesians 4:32 ESV
“Be kind and compassionate to one another,
forgiving each other,
just as in Christ God forgave you.

And what kindness Jesus showed to women who had been rejected by their own. Alone with the Samaritan woman at the well, Jesus kindly offered Himself as the Living Water her battered and scarred soul needed, after she had lived a life abused and misused by men. Notice again the kindness of Jesus, who welcomed the outcast woman whose body would not stop bleeding all those disgraced years, as the power from His body went out into hers, and she was healed. More than that, she was returned to her family, her friends, her neighbors a brand new woman, saved by the kindness of Jesus. And then in front of the Temple, when the woman caught in adultery (Where was the man?) was brought before her, the kindness of Jesus saved her life, forgave her sin, and delivered her into a brand new, victorious life removed beyond her sinful past.

Psalm 31:19 ESV
”Oh, how abundant is your goodness,
which you have stored up for those who fear you
and worked for those who take refuge in you.”

You see, there was an essential goodness (an impossible to ignore god-likeness) about Jesus. Those who deep in their hearts truly longed for and loved God, could not help but love Jesus and His godly goodness. Those who in their hearts rejected the love of God, even some very religious men, hated Jesus because He not only accepted God’s love, but rejoiced in that love. He shared that love as He related to every girl and boy, woman and man. To be with Jesus meant to be in the Presence of God. To listen to Jesus meant to hear the Word of God. To follow after Jesus, meant to follow after the goodness of God, which makes every such follower, girl or boy, woman or man, a godly person, no doubt.

1 Thessalonians 5:24 ESV
He who calls you is faithful,
and he will surely do it.

You might have heard it said, “He is faithful to a fault.” Well, how can that be true? How can faithfulness become a fault. Jesus, being faithful, full of faith, and so, perfectly  trusting and obedient before the Father; remained faithful to the end, when on the Cross, he prayed, “Father, into your hands I commend my Spirit.” When faithfulness meant delightful evening hours under the stars He had named, enjoying the company of His dear friends, His disciples—Jesus enjoyed the Father’s presence among them. When faithfulness meant walking hot and long and dusty roads to get to the people who so desperately needed His message of God’s Love and Mercy—Jesus drew strength from His Father’s presence among them. When faithfulness placed Him, hanging on the cross, deserted by all but faithful John, His loving mother and the few women with her—Jesus bore the weight of our sin and remained faithful to the very end.

Isaiah 40:11 ESV
He will feed his flock like a shepherd,
he will gather the lambs in his arm,
and carry them in his bosom,
and will gently lead those that have their young.

Though he was raised to do tough, hard labor in the home of a carpenter’s son, Jesus knew what it was like to look with gentleness into the eyes of a child and laugh as they giggled along with Him. He knew what it was like to look with gentleness  into the eyes of the desperate Jairus, whose daughter was dying, and take the weight of that grief upon Himself. And somehow, even dying on the cross, Jesus looked into the eyes of that terrified, dying thief with a gentleness which offered deliverance and redemption where there only seemed to be death. Yes, Jesus was a gentle man.

1 Corinthians 10:13 ESV
No temptation has overtaken you
that is not common to man.
God is faithful, and he will not let you
be tempted beyond your ability,
but with the temptation he will also
provide the way of escape,
that you may be able to endure it.

Then in the wilderness Jesus had to battle it out with hunger and thirst and exhaustion and worst of all, the Enemy of all goodness and life and love. In the face of all the tempter’s most carefully crafted tests, Jesus remained self-controlled, choosing the Truth of God which seemed so hard, in order to save a lost and dying world. Standing on God’s Word,  Jesus met each test with self-control,  which arose from his absolute trust in and obedience to His Father God.

We praise God we have a Savior who perfectly exemplified a life perfectly living out the fruit of the Spirit, not just in the face of great challenges, but in the quiet moments of everyday life on this earth.  

Now, the Apostle Paul tells us Spirit-filled believers will also live in such a victorious, wondrous way which invites others into the Kingdom everyday. I must admit I have not in my rather long life discovered any person who so perfectly as Jesus illustrated all of this rich and luscious spiritual fruit. But, thank God, I have known a few who have consistently surrendered their lives to Jesus, His love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control; revealing the glory of God. I want to briefly mention them here—only to encourage us as to how  Jesus, given the opportunity in our own lives,  can share these delectable spiritual fruit even as God builds His Kingdom.

My list includes imperfect people (like all of us) who in my life have pointed me to God through their day-to-day  lives acting out the His Presence through the Fruit of the Spirit.

I’ll begin with folks who inspired me during our years in Africa. Some are international missionaries living out their lives there, while others are Africans by birth.

Jane Ellen Gaines could not be easily ignored. Full of energy and enthusiasm and a love of God like no other, she truly inspired me during my first years at Baptist High School in Jos, Nigeria. All of the Fruit of the Sprit played a part in her ability to effectively invite people to faith in Jesus. Love, Joy and Goodness certainly characterized her wonderful and godly personality.

Brother Mike Abraham is a dear man who shared many of my brightest and darkest days at Baptist High School, Jos. His love for God kept him going in the face of some overwhelming circumstances along the way; but with self-control, faithfulness and joy, he has constantly persevered, certainly carrying the light and life of God’s Love in midst of it all.

Samson Adedokun brings to life the adventuresome joy of trusting Jesus as he so naturally shares a delectable spiritual love for Jesus with a gentleness which opens up the hearts of others to respond to his Gospel witness. God’s goodness in His life shines through as he continues to lead his church and his family for the glory of God.

In our home in Jos we were blessed to have wonderful Christian co-workers, who enabled us to be fully immersed in the various ministries that God gave us. Of these I mention the most godly gentle man I have known, Gideon Ali, who was a household manager for us in Jos; shopping, cooking, keeping the yards in shape. All the while, he blessed us with his ever gentle smile and self-control in the face of keeping a household going in the face of every challenge imaginable.

In Niger I met Hajara Abou, who knew French and Hausa inside-and-out, but so much more than that, loved God and His Word with all her heart. She always had her Bible at her desk day-to-day, and demonstrated her faithfulness in a difficult place for believers. Along with her husband she tirelessly equips others to share the Gospel. In the midst of every trial God’s peace and her faithfulness in the work, keeps her strong. Always, every single day, she has been an encouragement to me.

Here in the States I think of Ramona Weems. She always went out of her way to bring joy into the lives of others. She always loved others in very practical ways. She stood in the face of long term health challenges with patience so real, she still managed to influence others with her godly kindness and gentleness. Her smile always lit up every room because it shone with beauty of the Love of God.

I must also mention Mary Penney who had enough of God’s Love for everyone she knew. She particularly loved children,  and God used her kindness and gentleness to inspire so many of those she cared for, to grow up loving Jesus—her model. When situations got complicated, her patience often showed the way forward as God brought folks together to see His Will accomplished. 

Marsha Eichenberg Cooke was used by God to fully reset and fix my life on His path and not mine. Her godly love was a tough one—her whole heart given to loving people in need of His Love. Her Kindness also came with a tough edge—demanding the people of God to do the work of God in loving and serving Him. Still, remembering her heart-warming smile, gives me strength and hope to trust in His Goodness, as does she.

Vince Whittington loved the Gospel like no other man I have ever known. He believed the Gospel and claimed its promises for every person he knew or got to know in order to share the Good News. He had a joy about him that gave others confidence in what might seem like uncomfortable situations. His faithfulness made it seem natural to him to tackle a new challenge for God, for his family, for the Church, and for the people next door.

My PaPa, (Dewey Stonecypher) was the smallest big man I ever knew. I don’t believe he ever weighed more than 130 pounds. That’s okay, because he was the most faithful, the hardest worker I ever knew. God’s love lit up his eyes and his smile in a way that delighted every child. He never knew a stranger, but as a truly gentle man, always brought peace into the room. He loved Jesus with all of his heart and demonstrated the Savior’s love with a remarkable kindness in an often hard world.

All over the world
and among all the peoples
people are praying for the Love of God,
they are searching for the Joy of God,
they are desperate for the Peace of God,
they are hoping for the Patience of God,
they are seeking for the Kindness of God,
they are hungering for the Goodness of God,
they are thirsty for the Faithfulness of God,
they are praying for the Gentleness of God,
they are longing for the Self-control of God—
and all of them need Jesus!

Ordinary Men Need An Extraordinary God

ORDINARY MEN NEED
AN EXTRAORDINARY GOD

Ordinary Men Need An Extraordinary God

You and I, we are ordinary people
by His mercy and through His grace
called and born again into the wonders
of His Kingdom glorious . . .

. . . and there are days He leads us through valleys deep,
and there are days He leads us
by streams of still waters refreshing
as he strengthens and prepares us . . .

. . . for days when he leads up to the top of steep
mountains where He shows us His
glory and transfigures our hearts for
service back down in the valley . . .

. . . and deep in our hearts and in our minds we know
He will never forsake nor
will He leave us as He implores all
to come into His bright Kingdom.

Peter, James and John were ordinary men in need of a Savior. They were fishermen. They needed a deeper purpose. They were simple men. They needed a teacher. They were earthy men. They needed the way to Heaven. In a word, they needed Jesus.

Jesus calls Peter, Andrew, James and John.

Jesus came to them in the midst of their lives as fishermen. He called them and promised them he would make them fishers of men. They left their nets, but not all of their earthly ways. Jesus constantly challenged them with His actions, His thinking, and His teaching.

Jesus had extraordinary plans for each of them as they followed Him. Over and over again He amazed them with His words, His compassion, His healing, and His power. Over and over again He focused their hearts and minds on loving and so, serving God, and then on loving other people. Over and over again He demonstrated how He loved and obeyed God the Father, and how He loved every other person. Over and over again He demonstrated His power, giving sight to the blind, feeding the five thousand, and walking on the water. 

And yet these ordinary men individually and collectively struggled between belief and unbelief, between enthusiastic feelings of faith and desperate pangs of doubt. Each of these one-time fisherman ultimately had to choose, complete surrender to Jesus as their peoples’ long awaited Messiah, or rejecting Him and all He offered, to return to their lives of fishing the uncertain waters of the Sea of Galilee.

James and John
and their mother
pled with Jesus
for special places
in His Kingdom.

So, as Jesus marched deliberately toward Jerusalem and the cross, He knew Peter, James and John much better than they knew themselves. James and John and their mother asked for thrones next to Jesus in His Kingdom.  When challenged by Jesus about the cost involved in taking such seats, James and John readily insisted they would readily accept any challenge. They had no idea about the future challenges they would face, but Jesus did.  Peter dared to confront Jesus when He tried to explain His coming sacrificial death and glorious resurrection. Jesus gave Peter a strong rebuke, because, without understanding, he was parroting the enemy’s own conniving pitch to Jesus, Peter’s own confessed Messiah.

Why did Jesus take these three sincere but imperfect followers up on the Mount of Transfiguration? This is exactly what they needed, for He knew what they would be called to do, what they would be called to suffer in their future lives even after they suffered the shock of His arrest, His crucifixion, His burial, and His resurrection. 

Jesus Transfigured
With Moses and Elijah

They needed this shocking encounter with His true glory so that they would find their faith strong in the face of life-and-death situations to come. Peter, James, and John would need deep and essential faith to be His Apostles to begin the process of taking the Good News of the Salvation of Jesus to the world.

According to Matthew, Chapter 17, this is how the Transfiguration happened:

1 And  after six days Jesus took with him Peter and James, and John his brother, and led them up a high mountain by themselves. 

2 And he was transfigured before them, and his face shone like the sun, and his clothes became white as light.

3 And behold, there appeared to them Moses and Elijah, talking with him. 

4 And Peter said to Jesus, “Lord, it is good that we are here. If you wish, I will make three tents here, one for you and one for Moses and one for Elijah.” 

5 He was still speaking when, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them, and a voice from the cloud said, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to him.” 

6 When the disciples heard this, they fell on their faces and were terrified.

 7 But Jesus came and touched them, saying, “Rise, and have no fear.” 

8 And when they lifted up their eyes, they saw no one but Jesus only.

9 And as they were coming down the mountain, Jesus commanded them, “Tell no one the vision, until the Son of Man is raised from the dead.” 

Peter, James, and John needed to experience the Presence of the Power of God in their Master Jesus. This is how God accomplished His Purpose in the Transfiguration of their Master, Jesus:

Peter, James and John
were terrified.

1. Jesus was transfigured before them. His face shown as bright as the sun. His clothes glowed like light itself.
2. Moses (representing the Law) and Elijah (representing the Prophets) appeared with Jesus.
3. They were talking with Jesus.
4. Not surprisingly, Peter was overwhelmed; and so he suggested they erect three tents, one for Jesus, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.
5. God intervened in the form of a bright cloud, in effect, to say, “Here is My purpose.”
6.  “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to him.” 
7. Peter, James, and John fell on their faces in terror.
8. Notice what Jesus said: “Get up. Don’t be afraid.”
9. They looked up. Moses and Elijah were gone.
10.  Jesus told Peter, James, and John not to tell anyone about these amazing events until after His resurrection.
    

    “Take, eat
    in remembrance of me.”

    
    
    In the meantime, Jesus spent precious time with Peter, James, and John and His other disciples. He taught them many powerful truths. He prayed for them. He washed their feet. He shared with them the Bread (His Flesh) and the Wine (His Blood.) He pleaded with them to pray with Him in the Garden of Gethsemane.  They fell asleep. He was arrested. Peter tried to fight, but Jesus admonished him. They all fled. John did make his way to the trial and then to the Cross, where he comforted Jesus’ mother. Peter made his way to the trial, where he denied Jesus three times, and then fled.

    After Jesus’ death, burial and resurrection He appeared to His disciple and promised them the coming of the Holy Spirit. Beginning on the Day of Pentecost and continuing throughout their lives, Peter, James and John led the way as the Gospel took root in Jerusalem and spread throughout the world. They served Him faithfully, remarkably, and courageously.

    Actually, as one of the leaders of the early church, James became the first martyr when he was arrested by Herod Agrippa in Jerusalem and beheaded. I have to believe that, having seen Jesus, both transfigured and resurrected, James must have given strength in the face of his persecution. He did, indeed, drink the cup of his Master’s suffering.

    Peter’s arrest by the same Herod Agrippa followed not long after, and the tyrant’s plan was to win favor with the Jewish leadership by having him beheaded also. However, God sent an angel to rescue Peter, and he continued to take a leading role in the early church for many years. Eventually, we believe he was crucified in Rome by the Emperor Nero,  and if church history is correct; he requested and was granted his desire, to be crucified upside-down, insisting he was not worthy to die in same manner as His Lord. Again, surely Peter faced death with the images of His transfigured and resurrected Lord in mind.

    John lived a long life, leading and serving the church, spending time in exile on the prison island of Patmos, where he received and recorded the Book of Revelation. No one really knows how he died in the end. There is one remarkable tradition that he was boiled in oil in Ephesus, but did not die. We do know he remained faithful throughout his life. John had the unique privilege of seeing Jesus transfigured, resurrected and glorified in Heaven as the very triumphant Lamb of God.

    Jesus, as always, led by our Heavenly Father, chose Peter, James, and John to accompany him up on the mountain to experience His own heavenly magnificence, accompanied by Moses and Elijah, so they would never forget His Holiness, His Power, and His Glory, no matter what they faced in their demanding lives of service to Him, their Savior, their Lord, and their Messiah.

    In your life and mine there come mountaintop experiences which overwhelm our hearts and minds with the glory of God and His perfect Will in bringing us salvation trough Jesus and the power of the Holy Spirit guiding and comforting us day after day. In my life I remember a beautiful, starry winter evening in Ludowici, Georgia, when God gave me His Call into missions. I also remember a seemingly normal spring day in St. Marys, Georgia, when my seventh grade students knelt with me and prayed, before receiving the phone call from Richmond, Virginia, informing me my appointment as a missionary had been approved. I remember my very first day at Baptist High School in Jos, when I felt God’s confirming Presence as He assured me this was His place for me to serve Him in His Kingdom.

    And there are so many more mountaintop encounters with His glory . . . when in Nigeria I received by mail Becky’s acceptance of my proposal for marriage and missionary service together in Nigeria; . . . when our Rachel was born in Jos;  . . . when John David was born in Ogbomosho; . . . when we were cleared after my bout with cancer to return to missionary service at Sahel Academy in Niamey, Niger; . . . and I could go on and on and on . . . God has been more than faithful to remind me over and over just who He is, and how He is working to perfect His Kingdom inside my heart and around the world. Praise be to His Holy Name.

    Why don’t you take a few moments and list some of those mountain-top transfiguring moments from your life as an encouragement to praise and thank Him for loving and keeping and transforming you for His service?

     

     

    

    Revelation 5:13-14

    ”And I heard every creature in heaven and on earth
    and under the earth and in the sea,
    and all that is in them, saying,
    ‘To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb
    be blessing and honor and glory and might
    forever and ever!’”

GOD USES WEAKER VESSELS

Philippians 4:13 ESV
I can do all things
through him (Christ)
who strengthens me.

If there has ever been an atypical missionary appointee, I confess it was probably me. I’m thinking in terms of practical do-it-yourself, everyday skills. My Dad was great at that. My older brother, Ray, is great at that. My son, John David, is great at that. Me? I would honestly give me a P for pathetic. I even had to take lessons from a friend to learn how to drive a straight-shift car at missionary orientation. My adventures with driving continued in Nigeria on my first trip into town from my home outside Jos. As I was taking a road leading me downtown, I was met by several police, who stopped me and told me I was going the wrong way on a one-way street. They kindly left me off with a warning. I am proud to report, however, that I learned how to jump start my ancient Toyota Corolla most mornings before school. While my missionary men mentors could do all the household and auto fixes for the typical issues we all faced in Nigeria, I had to quickly learn how to call on James for electrical issues, Joseph for plumbing fixes, and Dayo for auto repairs. And in my first fifteen years, we had no phones. We had to ask our fellow missionaries to somehow get an S.O.S. to them by word of mouth. I was surely inept, not adept in term of typical missionary survival skills.

But you know what? That didn’t seem to matter to God. He had called me to Nigeria, even when He knew my obvious weaknesses. He never failed to meet my need for assistance in surviving the everyday challenges life brought my way. And even though there were dark nights without electricity, dry days without water in the pipes, and sometimes periods of catching rides when and where I could; God always saw me through. He focused my mind on His calling for me to serve students and teachers at Baptist High School, Jos in the Name of Jesus. He consistently gave me great joy as I had the privilege of sharing His Word with students and teachers desperately hungering for His Truth. If the IMB had given me a practical exam on survival skills for the mission field, I would have failed miserably. That was never an issue. God made sure my life was all about serving Him as I lived out my witness to His Love daily. Praise God He often uses weaker vessels like me.

David

I Samuel 17:37 ESV
And David said, “The LORD
who delivered me from
the paw of the lion
and from the paw of the bear
will deliver me from this Philistine.”

The youngest of all Jesse’s sons, David had been secretly anointed to be King. God had given him the heart of a godly king, no matter his young appearance nor his daily work as a lowly shepherd. Yet, before Goliath God lifted him up as a champion for God’s honor and His Kingdom. God provided through David’s line the Promised Messiah who would offer salvation to the whole world.

 Daniel

Daniel 6:22a ESV
“My God sent his angel and
shut the lions’ mouths,
and they have not harmed me, . . .”

Imagine being raised in a privileged Jewish home, only to lose everything during Jerusalem’s fall to Nebuchadnezzar and mighty Babylon’s army. Add to that, being marched in captivity to serve in the tyrant’s pagan court. For Daniel and Hananiah/Shadrach, Mishael/Meshach,  and  Azariah/Abednego, it was their God who gave them strength and wisdom and integrity to stand for His glory and His power before the King. Under Nebuchadnezzar, Belshazzar, Darius and Cyrus, Daniel continued to bring praise to God as he served with faithfulness and excellence.

Josiah

2 Kings 2:25 ESV
Before him there was no king like him,
who turned to the LORD
with all his heart and with all his soul
and with all his might,
according to the Law of Moses,
nor did any like him arise after him.

Josiah became King of Judah when he was only eight years old. Although his father had been so wicked he was murdered by his own servants, Josiah reigned for thirty-one years. Even as a sixteen year-old he began to seek the God of David. This conversion led him to have the high places, the Asherah, and the altars to Baal destroyed. Then in his eighteenth year, Hilkiah, the high priest, found a Book of the Law, probably most of Deuteronomy.  This book was sent to Josiah,who tore his clothes as a sign of repentance once he heard the message. He began a time of far reaching religious reforms. This religious revival led Josiah to be remembered as “a king who turned to God with all his might.”

Jeremiah

Jeremiah 1:5 ESV
“Before I formed you
in the womb I knew you,
and before you were born
I consecrated you;
I appointed you a
prophet to the nations.

When Jeremiah was around seventeen, God spoke to him. This is what he had to say:

“Before I formed you in the womb I knew you,
and before you were born I consecrated you;
I appointed you a prophet to the nations.”

Understandably he was overwhelmed and replied, “I am only a youth.” God basically replied by reminding Jeremiah it was not about Jeremiah’s fears about his readiness. It WAS all about God’s anointing and enabling call and presence. Then God placed His hand on Jeremiah’s mouth. His service to God would depend on God’s Presence, not Jeremiah’s ability. He would accomplish mighty deeds for the Kingdom through Jeremiah as His prophet and His courageous and faithful servant.

Mary

Luke 1:31 ESV
“And behold, you will conceive
in your womb and bear a son,
and you shall call his name Jesus.”

Mary was also young, probably around 16 when Gabriel announced she would give birth to Jesus, the Messiah. Mary’s practical reply was to ask how she, a virgin, could bear a child. Gabriel replied by explaining how the Holy Spirit would perform a miraculous conception so Jesus would be holy, unique, without the joining of a man and woman. Mary both simply and profoundly believed. She accepted God’s calling in spite of her youth. Her obedience gave God glory as He brought Jesus into the world to save us from sin and death. How beautifully and powerfully God works through His servants to bring light into a too often very dark world.

Anna

Luke 2:38 ESV
And coming up at that very hour
she (Anna) began to give thanks to God
and to speak of him to all who were
waiting for the redemption of Jerusalem.

As a young woman Anna married, but after seven years her husband died. She devoted her life to service in the Temple for the remainder of her life. She worshipped, prayed and fasted continuously. Seeing Mary and Joseph dedicating the infant Jesus in the Temple, Anna gave thanks to God and spoke of Him to all who were anticipating the coming of redemption of Jerusalem. For all her life God had been preparing her heart for His appearance. Hers had been a simple life of faithfulness before God. Now He used her along with Simeon to bear testimony to this baby boy born to be the promised Messiah for Israel.

Mark

2 Timothy 4:11 ESV

”Luke alone is with me.
Get Mark and bring him with you,
for he is very useful to me for ministry.”

As a young man, Mark had the privilege to accompany Barnabas and Paul on their first missionary journey. Then for some reason he left them and returned home. When it came time for another journey, Barnabas wanted Mark to accompany them again. Paul refused because of his failure to finish the first time. This caused Barnabas to take Mark one way, while Paul took Silas and went another. Though he seemed to have some struggles as a young man, this same believer went on to earn Paul’s own commendation, and to write the Gospel of Mark based on the preaching and teaching of the Apostle Peter.

Timothy

I Timothy 1:1-2  ESV

”Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the command
of God our Savior and of Christ Jesus our hope.
To Timothy my true son in the faith:
Grace, mercy from God the Father
and Christ Jesus, our Lord.”

Timothy was taught the Scriptures by his mother, and his grandmother, Lois. It is thought he might have been fully converted during Paul’s first missionary journey. Paul called him a child in the faith. On Paul’s second missionary journey The Apostle recognized how Timothy was respected among the believers. Later Paul actually sent Timothy on crucial missions. Paul testified to Timothy’s compassion and commitment. He was actually listed with Paul as one of the authors of six letters. Paul actually wrote two letters to Timothy. These letters serve as good models for those in ministry advising younger ministers they are mentoring.

While everyone of us has been made in God’s image, He has given us the challenge to invite Him to make MUCH for His glory, rather than taking the MUCH He has given into our hands and making it small. He will transform us by His mercy and grace until we are truly fit for His Kingdom. Yet, He will not force us; He will allow us to refuse every good thing He offers until we are fit for absolutely nothing. Seeking Glory for Him: Good for us. Seeking glory for ourselves: Terrible for everyone. If we make it all about Jesus; that’s always going to be good. If we make it all about ourselves; that’s always going to be bad.