Updates

Hello from Myanmar!

 Since the start of November, the prevailing rains have subsided, for the most part. The months of November through February are considered the most pleasant of the year.

After some lengthy delays, our “Books for Burma” shipment has arrived with everything intact. Numerous Bible visuals, books for children, and Bible study resources for preachers will be put to good use. We are grateful for our missionary friends who managed the shipping logistics.

Recently we submitted our requests for visa renewal. We praise the Lord that our visas were renewed for 12 months. This is a big answer to prayer for us, especially during these difficult times.

The October calendar in Myanmar includes a multi-day national holiday. Pastor Thaung decided to host a two-day “Children’s Camp” at church during this time (“Children’s Camp” is comparable to a Vacation Bible School). The theme was “True Riches,” with Matthew 6:20 as the theme verse. We organized the church teens and older orphans, preparing them each with their place of responsibility. Transportation went to some area neighborhoods. An interpreter was used for all lessons…READ MORE

Hello from Yangon,

 At present, uncertainty overshadows all aspects of Myanmar life. Destructive flooding, rapidly increasing inflation, and lengthening power outages erode the prospects for a better future. Pray as we do our part to share the truth of the hope found only in Christ. As we see believers here holding fast to their profession, we are encouraged.

 You might imagine what a wonderful time it was to have our kids visit for three weeks. Luke and Annette helped teach in the Christian school, the Sunday School class, and Sunday Bible Club. They returned to the states mid-August with Jennifer’s mom (who we were blessed to have with us for about seven weeks). We sure had a wonderful time with them and are happy to see them continue on for the Lord.

 Luke and I took a short to trip to Mandalay, a large city in central Myanmar, where we fellowshipped with two young pastors. We also spent time at two special places in Baptist missions’ history—the sites where Adoniram Judson was imprisoned from 1824-1826. We have added a QR code below that will take you to a video we made at the site of the first of these, the Le Ma Yoon prison.

 In August we organized a Bible quiz competition for the Christian school. Ten teams of four students quizzed against each other until only two teams were left. Tensions were high as the final quiz ended in a tie, taking the quiz to one final question to determine …READ MORE

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Warm greetings from the Golden Land of Myanmar! Since our last prayer update, we finished the last of our deputation meetings, taught two week-long block courses at Fairhaven Baptist College, received a commissioning send-off charge from our home church, and said a lot of “temporary” goodbyes to dear friends and our family. We left for Myanmar on Monday, January 31 and arrived February 2, when we were graciously met by Pastor Thaung and his wife.

By God’s grace we have been blessed with good health, safety, and progress in “getting settled” here. Our first few days consisted of the expected logistical matters such as securing housing and establishing accounts. I was given the tremendous opportunity to preach our first Sunday in the country at Bethany Baptist Church, with Pastor Thaung as the interpreter. What a joy that was. The following day I spoke in the morning devotional to the students of the Christian school. They are all working to learn English; so, this talk was not done through an interpreter. Another great privilege—to speak to children and teens. Our prayer is for a generation of Myanmar young people to commit their entire lives to the Lord and His service.

We look forward to helping in the Christian school as we work our way through our language learning. Many of these children are orphans with no living relative to care for them. How can …READ MORE

Since our last prayer letter we have had the opportunity to speak in 14 churches. We also spoke in several Christian school chapels and a Spanish church service. I also had the opportunity to do some street preaching while out in the state of Washington. We pray for lasting fruit from each service and outreach opportunity.

While in meetings in the western part of the United States, we received word that Jennifer’s father would soon be placed into hospice care. We decided to have her travel back to her parent’s home in West Virginia. She was with her father and mother when he passed into glory. The funeral service honored both the Lord and the memory of Jennifer’s dad. I am grateful for his godly influence on my life. Pastor Mike Edwards, Jennifer’s pastor throughout her teenage years, shared the message at the service. We praise the Lord for heaven!

Blessings and prayer requests:

1. We are thankful for safety in travel as we drove from Indiana to the West Coast of the US, and then back.
2. We thank the Lord that Jennifer’s father knew the Lord and is in His presence now.
3. We are grateful that we are now at 80% of our support level. We have purchased our plane tickets to Myanmar. Thank you for your interest and investment in this work. Our departure date (pending visa acceptance) is Monday, January 29. …READ MORE

James 4:14 asks, “…what is your life?”  A pointed question seeking a personal response.  Since our last prayer letter, several dear friends (some older, some middle aged) passed on into eternity, reminding our family of life’s brevity, and in so doing, life’s worth.  Time and effort are either invested in the eternal, or are eternally lost.  May we all live by this undeniable truth!

Last month was filled with meetings, as August also will be.  We were refreshed at our home church, attending midweek services around the time of our daughter’s wedding.  August introduces much change in our family. We saw our oldest daughter Juliana get married …READ MORE

This update comes to you from the “South,” where we will be for much of this month.  Our meetings include stops in Florida, Tennessee, Alabama, Kentucky, and West Virginia.  To start this month, I was blessed to share about our mission field at the church I grew up in (this month’s update video was taken there).  Each meeting we meet believers faithfully serving the Lord where He has them in their churches.

We “closed up shop” (essentially) on our home of many years at the end of May, and now are full-time “on the road.”  We are thankful for the Lord’s blessing for safety as well as for a good schedule of meetings through the end of the year.  Through the commitments of several more churches, our support level stands now at 36%.   …READ MORE

While selecting a website name on which to put our missions information, I was struck by the thought that the very first pronouncement after our Savior’s birth was a message of salvation for all the world, and that this good news was to be shared with all mankind.  The Scriptures are replete with the truth that the provision of salvation is a message for all the world.  Isaiah 59:19 says, “So shall they fear the name of the LORD from the west, and His glory from the rising of the sun.”  And so, we chose goodtidingstoall.org.

Since our last prayer update, while continuing to serve at Fairhaven Baptist College, we had the privilege to speak at First Baptist Church in Oak Creek, Wisconsin; Maranatha Baptist Church in Lyons, New York; Grace Baptist Church in Urbana, Ohio, as well as in our home church.  In addition to sharing the field of Myanmar we were blessed by wonderful Christian fellowship at each church.  The missions conference at Grace Baptist in Ohio allowed us time with our son Levi and his wife Bethany…READ MORE