Prayer Letter | August 2022

August 2022

“Who can find a virtuous woman? for her price is far above rubies.” Proverbs 31:10

Grace, mercy, and peace, my brethren. We are a people who understand what Christ did to receive our undivided fidelity. Considering him, who both endured and finished, it is only reasonable that we would carry on as living sacrifices on his behalf. Further considering his love us-ward, why would we fail to keep close quarters with our Lord and God? By his own admission, Christ came to seek and to save that which was lost; why would we refuse him his find? I fail to understand how closeness to Christ enriches our lives in every way, yet man is determined to place him outside, knocking. Is it some sense of the thrill of the chase, but with eternal consequences? When Christ saves that which was lost, he rejoices. When that which was lost is saved by Christ, they keep one foot near the leaks in Egypt. As you can imagine, this makes relationship maintenance somewhat tense.

The love of Christ for the redeemed is illustrated in God's word by husband and wife. I perceive that many marriages fail, and many who belong to Christ fail precisely because of this game of chase. No relationship can survive if both parties are not thoroughly involved. August 4th was my wife's birthday, and I must echo the Lord's sentiment; her price is far above rubies! I cannot overemphasize my wife's value. She is a help that is meet for me, and in so many ways, she far exceeds. We have been married for eight years, but I cannot remember, nor am I able to imagine life without her. She is a selfless servant and happily follows my clumsy leadership. Our children thrive in wisdom and stature because they have a faithfully concerned mother to care for them. I will thank my God well into everlasting for the gift he gave me in this life: my wonderful wife. An exciting development regarding my wife is a new ministry in the works. She desires to minister to the Ugandan mothers in Masaka Independent Baptist Church. She will spend time with them monthly, focusing on practical matters related to having a godly home. Please pray for her as she plans and establishes this ministry.

With family in mind, August opened with yet another Tri-Annual Bible Institute. The Lord helping me, I intend to spend the rest of my days teaching the word of God to anyone who will listen. This early August, TBI majored in Biblical Families. For my part, I was tasked with teaching Disciplined Children as well as Adultery & Fornication. As we observe familial interaction here in Uganda, we are amazed by the dynamics. The strange admixture of the modern world and the deep shadows of Ugandan village superstitions make for strange bedfellows. Decisions regarding children are made in accord with deeply rooted cultural beliefs. The word of God seems to play no role in family relationships. We are pleasantly surprised to meet a family that is at least somewhat biblically oriented. This TBI was desperately needed and appeared to be well received. Of course, time will tell if that reception found any place in their homes. Both husband and wife were free to attend this TBI; please pray for these families as they try to break the cultural cycle that hinders them.

Brother Keith allowed me to further add to this cultural confrontation by teaching Titus chapters 2 and 3. This semester's last class allowed us to explore some great biblical concepts. One notable idea unique to Uganda is that they literally have few aged men. Uganda is peculiar in that they are a very young population. Mindless immaturity is deeply rooted in their society; they have no grumpy-aged men to rebuke them for the many childish affairs that characterize Ugandan public life. In most societies where Christianity is present, the aged men and the aged women fail to teach the young men and the young women, respectively. It is a ministry that is rarely taken up. In Uganda, they simply fail to have aged men and women; who knows if this vital ministry would be taken up if they were present, but for now, they are not. And this fact is made manifest by the brutish nature of a young society. Furthermore, when I examine the direction of the Western world from the outside looking in, this same barbarity is rapidly emerging. Please pray for Uganda as they mitigate their strong cultural pulls to establish biblical lives.

We continue to confront the culture by way of public ministry. As of August, we have been street preaching in Masaka Town now for one year. The ministry has been a tremendous blessing. About one dozen church members have proven faithful through this ministry, even when it is difficult. Ugandans are the most receptively uninterested people I have encountered. Praise the Lord; they receive the tracts, but the longer I am here, the harder it becomes to confuse it with sincere reception. More often than not, I believe they are simply trying not to be rude or curious to receive something free, only to lose interest when they see what it is. I will not fail to be excited that thousands of tracts are received by lost souls every month; even if they are not genuinely receptive, it is better to get God's word in their hands. The realization is that we are not sowing seed on ground that is as good as we thought; it turns out it may be a bit stonier than we anticipated. Either way, because it pleases God, we will continue to break up the fallow ground, sow seed and water, and pray for God to give the increase. Please pray for us as we preach the gospel of Jesus Christ to needy people.

But the results are not all bad. One particular man I have been meeting with is fruit from street preaching. Since we started our public ministry at the market, a man named Laban has often walked over to talk to me. He has a Pentecostal background but is wonderfully receptive to God's word. He has a testimony of salvation, though it was somewhat concerning in the beginning. According to him, over time, he has listened to the men from our church preach God's word on the street, took note of their preaching, and then preached it in his Pentecostal Church. He has clarified his gospel position, adopted a biblical perspective on tongues, and is coming around to biblical ideas regarding eternal security. He is now meeting with me weekly, on Wednesdays, to study the Bible together. He is a hard worker, he has a wonderful spirit, and I see much potential in him. He asked if he could meet with me but continue to attend his church, though he finds himself believing contrary to his church more after each meeting. I am inclined to think that if he continues with us, eventually, he will not be able in good conscience to continue with his Pentecostal friends. Please pray for him as we try and work with him.

Thank you so much for reading this report, and thank you so much for praying. There will also be an audio version of this update at www.plenteousredemption.media. Thank you so much for your faithful support; even in these difficult times, our supporting churches have held firm. Please continue praying for the new ministries as we prepare for them. As a reminder, they are: taking our street preaching on the road, the pastor's school, and my wife will be ministering to Ugandan mothers. The translation ministry is moving along very well. Please continue to pray for Michael and Gross.

God Bless,