from Lori Silsbee:
My mother recently sent me an email with the subject declaring “busy beyond words.” I assumed she meant them regarding her own household, but I’ve wondered, too, did she mean my house? We are challenged by the amount of things vying for our time, but then we don’t know many people who aren’t in that same struggle. The struggle remains manageable so long as we remember to make decisions based on our purpose for being on this earth.
We continue to meet weekly with Marge, our former Hare Krishna Filipino friend. She is so much fun to teach, and Scott does a fabulous job. I get to sit and enjoy watching the Holy Spirit at work. Marge likens herself to a young child in her Bible knowledge and is convinced our daughter Heidi knows more about the Bible than she does. We invited her to have dinner with us before our Bible study last week. It was the first time I ever prepared a strict vegetarian meal. I was so proud of myself coming up with a full meal, without any animal products, including pudding made with soy milk for dessert (don’t try it!). From a vegetarian pamphlet I’d picked up somewhere, I chose cashew mushroom fettuccine. As I put it on the table, I realized with horror that the noodles were not vegetarian noodles and contained eggs! Marge graciously forgave me and ate a small portion anyway…and then filled up on tossed salad. She then proceeded to ask if we could spend the Bible study time addressing the whole vegetarian/don't animals have souls question that had been nagging her. Scott took her to Genesis 1 and read through chapters one and two, explaining it verse by verse. The late hour kept us from continuing to Genesis 9 and onwards. There is so much more to be studied this week, and in weeks to come. That night Marge said she had never heard before that we are made in God’s image, yet she understood it when clearly presented from Scripture. As I was taking her home, she said, “God has been so good to me. I have been searching for the truth for so long, and now He has given me someone who can explain the Bible so clearly. I’ve never had that before.” She mentioned studying with the Jehovah’s Witnesses for a while but she felt that their explanations of Scripture didn’t make sense. Continue to pray for Marge.
A number of visitors have attended the church services. We are delighted to have a new family who came in search of preaching that isn’t shallow fluff. We do ask that you would pray that God would give wisdom as we seek to minister to those who visit. There are many strains of Christianity here, and not all types would be healthy additions to the church family. In a small church (we have about 30 people), the temptation exists to embrace any warm body that presents itself. Scott needs direction from the Holy Spirit to discern teachable sheep among the many who show up claiming to be believers but lacking a church connection.
We do appreciate every prayer made on our behalf. We often sense Satan attacking our family. He isn’t dumb and likes to come around on Sunday mornings, especially! Perhaps you know the feeling. :) If you happen to think of us on Saturday afternoon, that is a good time to pray for our family and ministry.
No comments:
Post a Comment