Oh the joy to rest in the arms of Christ!

"Listen! My beloved! Behold, he is coming, climbing on the mountains. leaping on the hills! My beloved is like a gazelle or young stag. Behold he is standing behind our wall, He is looking through the windows, He is peering through the lattice. My beloved responded and said to me, Arise, my darling, my beautiful one, And come along. For Behold the winter is past, the rain is over and gone. The flowers have already appeared in the land; the time has arrived for pruning the vines, And the turtledove has been heard in our land. Thefig tree has ripened its figs, And the vines in blossom have given forth their fragrance. Arise, my darling, my beautiful one and come along!"
-Song of Solomon 2:8-13
The sweet words of the bridegroom calling his beloved. Telling her it is time to go along and join him. "...I adjure you...that you do not arouse or awaken my love until she pleases." (vs.7) Previously the bride is "sleeping" the state of laying all her desires for her husband down and waiting for the moment when "she" (love) pleases to awake. Then it seems in this grand excitment she's ready. The bridegroom has come. "Listen! My beloved!" It seems to be shouted with this fantastic excitment! "Behold, he is coming, he is climbing over the mountains and leaping over the hills!" The bridegroom is estatic! The time has come to retrieve his bride. Verse 9 explains this idea that the bridegroom is watching and waiting. Admiring his beloved with patience until it is time to awaken his love. These next words run through my mind with joy and excitment... "My beloved responded and said to me, Arise, my darling, my beautiful one, and come along." Come along! I get so excited over the idea that the bridegroom will one day after his journey is complete, after he has crossed the mountains" will come alongside of me and ask me to "Arise, ... and come along." But how amazing is the fact that my bridegroom has already come. He has called me into a deep, intimate, love realtionship with Him. He has called me to leave my old life behind breaking the emotional bonds i have made to my idols. We have become one flesh and he has asked me to arise, ...and come along. "He has brought me into his banquet hall, and his banner over me is love." (vs 4) "I am the rose of Sharon, the lily of the valleys." (2:1) My bridegroom says to me, "Like a lily among the thorns, so is my darling among the maidens." (2:2) "My beloved is mine, and I am his..." (2:26) Yet even though we're given this beautiful picture of the call of the bride to her bridegroom, we always seem to doubt, for thousands of years we have doubted. This was and forever continues to be the "Brides Troubled Dream". Song of Solomon 3:1-5 "On my bed night after night I sought him whom my soul loves; i sought him but did not find him. I must arise now and go about the city; In the streets and in the squares i must seek him whom my soul loves. I sought him but did not find him. The watchmen who make the rounds in the city found me, And I said, Have you seen him whom my soul loves? Scarcely had i left them when i found him whom my soul loves; i held on to him and would not let him go until i had brought him to my mothers house, And into the room of her who concieved me... I adjure you, O daughters of Jerusalem, By the gazelles or by the hinds of the field, That you will not arouse or awaken my love until she pleases." (adjure= to charge solemnly) The bride has nightmares of being impatient and disobedient. Seeking after the "one whom her soul loves". "On her bed night after night, she sought him but could not find him". Why do we allow this battle of our flesh over come us through the genertions? We are solemnly charged not to arouse or awaken love until she pleases. So what happens next? We lay our doubts and dreams aside. We lie down and sleep, knowing that God will give us what glorifies Him the most in our lives. Whether it be marriage or singleness. We sleep in such a way that when the time has come, when "the winter has passed, the rain is over and gone. The flowers have already appeared in the land, The time has arrived for pruning the vines, And the voice of the turtledove has been heard in our land. The fig tree has ripened its figs, And the vines in blosom have given forth their fragrance." Our bridegroom will say, "Arise, my darling, my beautiful one, and come along!"

Mama's Little Baby Loves Shortening Bread

Ma-maw's mashed potatoes: (essentials for the skimmers)
Jesus. He's essential.
Doing research in Machachi
Teaching a Overview of the Bible class to the people in Pesillo. The purpose of the class is to equip the people with an understanding of how to study the Bible on their own.
There may be some new blog entries that interest you. Print them out and read them when you have the chance. (We, the Sluts of God; Mimicing Jesus in the Pursuit of Marriage; The Real Christmas Story)

The home-made gravy: (extras for the non-skimmers)

Amigos and amigas,
It was a very different Christmas. Saturday and Sunday (Christmas Eve) were spent, as usual, in Pesillo. A group from a church in Quito helped us Saturday, distributing gifts from clothing thrift stores and baggies of candy and animal crackers to the people of Pesillo. We had a grand celebration at the church and another in the square at Pesillo. I addressed the people both times, talking a few minutes on the meaning of Christmas. After our clowns entertained the children, we handed out the goods. People were pushing me and each other, trying to be the next to receive the precious gifts. I remembered how on the way to the town from Quito, the 2-hour drive included hundreds of groups of children about every hundred yards with their hands folded out to you in prayer-fashion equipped with puppy-dog faces, begging for people to stop and give them Christmas presents since they would surely receive none from their parent(s), who don't have the money to pretend to be Santa. Back in Pesillo, we fought the mob of outstretched hands, trying to be as fair as we could, making feeble attempts to make sure everyone got something. Everyone was shouting, "¡Para mi! ¡Para mi!," "For me! For me!," demanding more gifts and putting on their poor-me-puppy-dog faces as well. It was exhausting. At least they heard the Gospel, which was our goal. One man accepted Christ!
PTL!
Thankfully i was able to call Papa Jack and Granny Carol's Saturday night and got to talk to them, my folks, my uncles, my aunts, and my\ncousins! What a blessing! Regretfully, all phone stores were closed on Christmas Eve, preventing me from calling Alvin and Grams, my grandparents on Mom's side, for that family gathering. Christmas Day, i called Satch and Granny, on my dad's side.
Sunday morning, i addressed the church in Pesillo describing the mob that had happened the day before. I told them i was thankful that God didn't have a "¡Para mi!" attitude when He sent His only Son, our Christmas present. Realizing there selfishness, crying broke out in the congregation. God moved.
I love beggars, but i really can't stand it when they act sadder in hopes that you will take more pity on them and give them something. Some children on Christmas Eve ran up to my car at a stoplight and begged, "Give me! Give me!," doing their best to look sad in the "poor-pitiful-me" fashion. I asked them "Why are you acting sad?" Stunned that i wanted tovactually talk to them (as if they were real people) and not give a nickel, they said nothing. I said, "Don't act sad! It's Merry Christmas, not Sad Christmas!" They smiled. As the light turned green i drove away\nthrowing them some sweets. They broke into laughter and ran around. Fun times!
I was lonely Christmas Eve night. It was just me and Coco, the dog. If anyone knows any drugs i could safely dose 30-lb. puppy with to make him calm down, i'd be very grateful…maybe some Ritalin for dogs? He gets so hyper when i come home or wake up that he looses control of his bladder.
PTL!
Thankfully i was able to call Papa Jack and Granny Carol's Saturday night and got to talk to them, my folks, my uncles, my aunts, and my cousins! What a blessing! Regretfully, all phone stores were closed on Christmas Eve, preventing me from calling Alvin and Grams,' my grandparents on Mom's side, for that family gathering. Christmas Day, i called Satch and Granny, on my dad's side.
Sunday morning, i addressed the church in Pesillo describing the mob that had happened the day before. I told them i was thankful that God didn't have a "¡Para mi!" attitude when He sent His only Son, our Christmas present. Realizing there selfishness, crying broke out in the congregation. God moved.
I love beggars, but i really can't stand it when they act sadder in hopes that you will take more pity on them and give them something. Some children on Christmas Eve ran up to my car at a stoplight and begged, "Give me! Give me!," doing their best to look sad in the "poor-pitiful-me" fashion. I asked them "Why are you acting sad?" Stunned that i wanted to actually talk to them (as if they were real people) and not give a nickel, they said nothing. I said, "Don't act sad! It's 'Merry Christmas,' not Sad Christmas!'" They smiled. As the light turned green i drove away throwing them some sweets. They broke into laughter and ran around. Fun times!
I was lonely Christmas Eve night. It was just me and Coco, the dog. If anyone knows any drugs i could safely dose 30-lb. puppy with to make him calm down, i'd be very grateful…maybe some Ritalin for dogs? He gets so hyper when i come home or wake up that he looses control of his bladder.
Corporal punishment makes him scared and thus, he pees more.
Like i said, it was a very different Christmas. I forgot to stock the fridge so i had eggs and cereal with milk, now that the grocery stores and restaurants are closed. I believe i've contracted a bug from Pesillo, as diarrhea has ensued. I have a personal rule to not reject any drink or food people give me, especially while sharing the Gospel, less i appear rude and loose the opportunity to share.
I drank some hot milk that an elderly couple, Miguel and Dolores, offered me while i was witnessing to them at their home. When i enquired about the lumpy texture of the milk, they explained it was the "cheese." Skeptically, i drank most of if. I suspect the "cheese" has led to my frequent visits to the toilet. It was worth it though. I gave Miguel a Bible and explained how to use it. "The big numbers are chapters. The little numbers are verses." To see someone read a Bible, likely for the first time in their life, is worth enduring diarrhea. Praise God!

PrayeRequests:
Pray that i wouldn't look so forward to going to Peru that i miss opportunities to share Christ here in Ecuador.
Miguel's and Doris' salvation
Discipleship of Edgar, Cesar, and Rosa
He pees in the apartment at least 3 times-a-day (twice in my bed, so far). Corporal punishment makes him scared and thus, he pees more.
Like i said, it was a very different Christmas. I forgot to stock the fridge so i had eggs and cereal with milk, now that the grocery stores and restaurants are closed. I believe i've contracted a bug from Pesillo, as diarrhea has ensued. I have a personal rule to not reject any drink or food people give me, especially while sharing the Gospel, less i appear rude and loose the opportunity to share.
I drank some hot milk that an elderly couple, Miguel and Dolores, offered me while i was witnessing to them at their home. When i enquired about the lumpy texture of the milk, they explained it was the "cheese." Skeptically, i drank most of if. I suspect the "cheese" has led to my frequent visits to the toilet. It was worth it though. I gave Miguel a Bible and explained how to use it. "The big numbers are chapters. The little numbers are verses." To see someone read a Bible, likely for the first time in their life, is worth enduring diarrhea. Praise God!

PrayeRequests:
Pray that i wouldn't look so forward to going to Peru that i miss opportunities to share Christ here in Ecuador.
Miguel's and Doris' salvation
Discipleship of Edgar, Cesar, and Rosa
I'll be teaching an Overview of the Bible class for the next 3 Saturdays at 3pm. I'll be using a packet my mom made (translated to Spanish) to summarize every book of the Bible and explain the parts of the Bible. Pray they will take these tools and will study the Bible on their own long after i leave.
I'm going to try to have an MRI on my shoulder sometime this week or next, as it is still giving pain. I can work and live around it, doing most activities, but it's still aggravating.
Thanks for the prayers,
Special thanks to all who sent Christmas cards/gifts,
Love yall so stinking much,
†il the whole world hears,
corey reid pendergrass\n

teote.com


I'll be teaching an Overview of the Bible class for the next 3 Saturdays at 3pm. I'll be using a packet my mom made (translated to Spanish) to summarize every book of the Bible and explain the parts of the Bible. Pray they will take these tools and will study the Bible on their own long after i leave.
I'm going to try to have an MRI on my shoulder sometime this week or next, as it is still giving pain. I can work and live around it, doing most activities, but it's still aggravating.
Thanks for the prayers,Special thanks to all who sent Christmas cards/gifts,
Love yall so stinking much,
†il the whole world hears,
corey reid pendergrass

The Real Christmas Story

I know that you’ve probably had enough Christmas for one year; so forgive me. Nevertheless, i felt inclined to squash any traditional imagery existing that looks like this:

Here’s a stable, two proud parents of a Newborn (who’s large size makes me pity His mother) (Also note that Mary doesn’t have a drop of sweat after just delivering.), one clean shepherd, various clean livestock, three men bearing gifts wearing fancy cloaks (one is often black for diversity’s sake), and an angel (who looks like a person with wings) with her arms open welcoming all to come and behold the 30-lb. Newborn. Everyone has a fair complexion. Often Jesus has blond hair and blue eyes and is never crying. Everything is symmetrical. In the back of your mind (or Wal-mart or Christian retail bookstore, where you bought the set) “Silent Night” is playing softly.
The Bible paints a very Christmasy picture: This betrothed couple travel through 90 miles of Israeli roads (according to my crude measurement of a map in the back of my Bible) from Nazareth to Bethlehem (Luke 2:4) with divorce crossing their minds during the pregnancy (Matthew 1:19). No form of transportation is mentioned (contrary to the tradition that Joseph walked while Mary rode a donkey). I can only assume they both walked, as was the common form of transportation in the day. I’m not sure how long it takes to walk 90 miles with a woman in her last days of pregnancy, but i can’t imagine it was an enjoyable trip. Though the Bible is unclear on Mary’s age, many scholars suggest she was in her early teens, as was the custom for girls to marry older men. Joseph’s carpentry business was likely failing as no one would cater to a man who apparently impregnated an underage girl out of wedlock. Mary, covered with acne as most 15-year-old girls are, was demanding the B.C. equivalent to rocky road ice cream every 30 minutes, as she was very pregnant. When they finally arrived in Bethlehem, Joseph and Mary were hoping for a place to rest their weary backs. But wait; due to the census, there was no room in the inn (Luke 2:7). I can see it now: Joseph is ready to fight the innkeeper. Mary is probably more ready to do so. I’ve never been around too many pregnant women for a lengthy duration of time, but i do know that you don’t want to get on their bad side, especially while they’re in labor like Mary (Luke 2:6). After knocking out the innkeeper (I made that part up), they headed through the crowded streets (due to that dang census), probably asking several townspeople for help as i can’t imagine they ran straight to the barn to have the Baby. No one will help, so they must go to a filthy manger, a feeding trough. They hosed down the slop that the livestock didn’t finish that day from the feeding trough, worrying about infections for both Mary and the Baby. There was probably blood from Mary and cow manure everywhere. Cows (or whatever livestock were present) were mooing as they were being run out of the stall to make room, dogs (if present) were barking and growling at these strangers, and Mary was screaming at the top of her lungs in pain during labor contrary to the song “Silent Night” would have us believe. I somehow doubt that Joseph, a carpenter, was probably much help in the science of child birthing. Trying to keep the situation as sanitary as possible, all they could come up with was swaddling cloths (Luke 2:7) to put God in. Meanwhile, an angel invited some shepherds in from the field (Luke 2:8). I imagine they smelled awful, as sheep herders care for their animals, often getting the manure and so forth on their persons, having no where to shower. The angel probably did not look like a person with wings; rather, it possibly looked like other angels in the Bible: terrifying, covered in fire, having eyes all over, 3 pairs of wings, a head like that of a lion, and/or a flaming sword (Genesis 3:24, Isaiah 6:2, Ezekiel 1:5-14, Revelation 4:6-8). It’s no wonder the shepherds were afraid (Luke 2:9)! Suddenly a multitude of a host of angels that looked like this appeared (Luke 2:13). A “host” is an army, not a choir. I suspect at least part of the band of shepherds had wet or soiled themselves, further adding to their smell. The magi (wise men), which are never numbered in Scripture, did not come that night. In fact, it is likely they came around two years later as Herod ordered all the male children under two years old aborted in the land in order to exterminate Jesus. Sorry, but you’ll have to find another way to bring diversity to the manger; no black guy. Since the wise men were “from the east,” (Matthew 2:1) they probably looked more Asian or Arabian anyway. Evidently they weren’t too wise since they explained that they were looking for “the king of the Jews” (Matthew 2:2) which made King Herod nervous enough plan an assassination. Thankfully, his plan failed and Jesus grew into a man, probably not having too many friends his age growing up since Herod killed the all boys in Bethlehem (Matthew 2:16). Perhaps He found some in Nazareth when they moved there (Matthew 2:23).
And thus the King of kings, Lord of lords, Prince of peace, and Son of God left the comforts and glory of Heaven and entered this world of sinners in humility and suffering.

Mimicing Jesus in the Pursuit of Marriage

The last time i wrote about this subject, i believe my ideas were choppy and a little hard to follow. If you read the other two blog entries on marriage, feel free to skip this one as it will say about 90% of the same stuff, some word-for-word. If you haven’t read the former two or didn’t follow my logic, please read on…

That being said, the goal of this entry is to convince you, the reader, of Scriptural truths, not my opinion. If after reading, you disagree, then i apologize in advance because evidently i won’t have used enough Scripture to convince you. If you say it works for some people but not for all because of their context of culture or time or specific situation, keep in mind that those are the same arguments relativists use to ignore the offer of salvation through grace in Christ when other parts of Scripture are shown to them. If Biblical, then it applies to all peoples in all cultures in all eras of history, regardless, be it the core doctrine of salvation or a simple instruction for holy Christian living.
“Now the birth of Jesus Christ took place in this way. When his mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child from the Holy Spirit. And her husband Joseph, being a just man and unwilling to put her to shame, resolved to divorce her quietly. But as he considered these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, ‘Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit.’” (Matthew 1:18-20)
They were betrothed (a type of engagement), before their wedding, and divorce was still legally necessary in order that they separate. Hmmm. That means that somehow their betrothal made them legally married, but they still had to keep their virginity until the wedding. Biblical engagement was a time of preparation for marriage, not a final test to see if you really want to marry someone, as is the case so often in western culture. Interestingly enough, this is the type of relationship we currently share with Christ.
“I feel a divine jealousy for you, for I betrothed you to one husband, to present you as a pure virgin to Christ.” (2 Corinthians 11:2)
We have been betrothed (engaged) to Christ. He has paid the bride-price, His blood. As Christians, we have accepted His proposal for marriage and salvation. Since He hates divorce (Malachi 2:16), He’s not going to divorce us. Contextually this passage is about Judah’s unfaithfulness. She even marries a foreign god in the Lord’s sanctuary (v.11). In spite of that, He states that He hates divorce. In the same way, God could say He hates something, like rape. Because of that, you can’t justify it. Can you imagine of God said, “I hate rape, but it’s ok if _____.”? That’s ridiculous! In the same way, if God says He hates divorce, it’s not ok, ever. This betrothal we have with Christ is not a trial period. We are His. This is it. We are married to Him. We are His Bride. He has not put a diamond band on our finger, but the Holy Spirit is the seal on our hearts. (Ephesians 1:13, 4:30)
“It was also said, ‘Whoever divorces his wife, let him give her a certificate of divorce.’ But I say to you that everyone who divorces his wife, except on the ground of sexual immorality, makes her commit adultery. And whoever marries a divorced woman commits adultery.” (Matthew 5:31-32)
“And Pharisees came up to Him and tested Him by asking, ‘Is it lawful to divorce one’s wife for any cause?’ He answered, ‘Have you not read that He who created them from the beginning made them male and female, and said, “Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and they shall become one flesh”? So they are no longer two but one flesh. What therefore God has joined together, let not man separate.’ They said to Him, ‘Why then did Moses command one to give a certificate of divorce and to send her away?’ He said to them, ‘Because of your hardness of heart Moses allowed you to divorce your wives, but from the beginning it was not so. and I say to you: whoever divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, and marries another, commits adultery.’” (Matthew 19:3-9)
Jesus is not giving an excuse to divorce. He is not saying, “Divorce is wrong unless your spouse cheats on you. Then it’s ok.” No! He is saying that it is adulterous to divorce your spouse except in the case for sexual immorality. In the case of sexual immorality, divorce is still wrong (v.6b, “…let no man separate.”) but it’s just not considered adultery.
Really, the issue of divorce and eternal security are directly linked. Does Christ divorce His Bride? Nor should we. Read Hosea. Israel has played the harlot. She has submitted herself as a servant to false gods, having adultery with them. Yes, God condemns it. He is furious. However, He takes her back, speaking kindly to her (v. 2:14). God even has the prophet, Hosea, marry a prostitute so that he can relate to the Lord’s position. God is in love with His Bride and always takes her back. So should we. Divorce is wrong, period. There is no justifiable excuse for it. We are secure in Christ. He will never leave us nor forsake us. We didn’t do anything to save ourselves. Nor can we do anything to unsave ourselves, and thus, forfeit our Marriage with Him. I feel like there are greater minds on this subject, if you are interested.
“Wives, submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife even as Christ is the head of the church, his body, and is himself its Savior. Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit in everything to their husbands. Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her. that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, so that he might present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish.” (Ephesians 5:22-27)
We are to mimic Christ’s relationship to His Bride in our marriages. How does Christ love His Bride? However He does it, we should mimic it. Well, we’ve already seen that He has a mentality where divorce is not an option. Also, during this time of engagement, Christ has emotional and spiritual intimacy with us. It is as deep as we allow it to be. Interestingly enough, before we accept His proposal, we do not share this marital emotional intimacy with Him. Sure, He loves us, but with the agape love that God has for all people, but we are not loved by Him in the sense that a husband loves his bride, eros love. Before you entered into this engagement with Christ, how much romantic intimacy did you have with Him? I was incapable of having any sort of deep intimacy with Christ, where He leads me and guides me to understand more and more about His mysterious character. Biblical truths were foreign to me. I was incapable of understanding them without the guide of the Holy Spirit.
Furthermore, there was no trial relationship i had with God. Sometimes i see graffiti that says, “TRY JESUS.” I can’t help but think, “What a load of crap! You can’t try Him.” The Gospel message is reckless abandonment of my old self in order to place my faith in Christ, taking that leap of faith into the grace of Christ that saves me. Try leaping from one place to another sometime without fully committing to it, or try throwing a rock without committing to it (You people from Snowbird will remember Brody’s sermon illustration about the parallels between faith and rock throwing.). It’s impossible. You’re either doing it or not. Therefore, i either accept His proposal or not. A lost person will never be able to try out Christianity for a little while with the mindset that if they don’t like it or things don’t work out, they can always go back to their old lifestyle. Once they throw that rock and release it from their hand, there is no bringing it back. It’s gone. Our relationship with our earthly brides, if God wills us to be married, should mimic Christ’s relationship with His Bride in this.
“Do not rebuke an older man but encourage him as you would a father. Treat younger men like brothers, 2 older women like mothers, younger women like sisters, in all purity.” (1 Timothy 5:1)
How far should we go with our siblings? Emotionally? Physically? Spiritually? Now, the Bible doesn’t say, “Thou shalt not date.” But, in my opinion, dating or courting your sister is pretty gross. God thinks so too.
As an athlete, i’ve learned that i will play how i practice. 9 times out of 10, if i try to change something on game-day, it’s not going to work. I train my mind to play a certain way through repetition in practice. Is it any surprise the divorce rate in western culture is so high (50-51% in the US, i’m told)? Our culture teaches us that we must enter into trial romantic relationships before marriage. If i do that over and over again, training my mind to test out a member of the opposite sex, through repetition, and then dumping them when things don’t turn out so well, i’m setting myself up for a marriage that will follow suit. Some 50% of marriages have followed suit. Many married people are allowing themselves the option of temporary romantic relationships leading up to marriage because that’s how they’ve trained their minds to work since their teenage years. Many can’t stop this mindset and so divorce, which makes marriage a temporary romantic relationship, is the inevitable. Sure, by the grace of God, He can and does change that mindset in so many Christian homes that were started through trial romantic relationships, but should He have to?
Granted, i know countless married couples who have managed to have marriages that God uses to glorify Himself which were organized through a trial romantic relationship (dating, courting, whatever you call it). God uses imperfect people and situations to glorify Himself every moment of everyday. He's more than capable of using a marriage that was set up through dating to glorify Himself. Even so, we should not embrace those trial romantic relationships no more than we should embrace the kiss from Judas which God used through a series of events to send Christ to the cross and so make forgiveness available to all men. If something is not His Will, we should avoid it, if possible, regardless of how He may wield it in the future.
“Then I heard what seemed to be the voice of a great multitude, like the roar of many waters and like the sound of mighty peals of thunder, crying out,
‘Hallelujah!
For the Lord our God
The Almighty reigns.
Let us rejoice and exult
And give him the glory,
For the marriage of the Lamb has come,
And His Bride has made herself ready;
It was granted her to clothe herself
With fine linen, bright and pure’—
For the fine linen is the righteous deeds of the saints.
And the angel said to me, ‘Write this: “Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb.”’ And he said to me, ‘These are the true words of God.’” (Revelation 19:6)

Throughout Scripture we are referred to as the Bride of Christ, but our wedding ceremony/supper has not happened yet. However, we are His betrothed Bride because we have accepted His proposal for salvation, and ultimately, for marriage. The marriage ceremony is found here in Revelation, which will happen after the rapture. We are to be ready for His coming, always preparing for this marriage. Interestingly enough, our first physical intimacy is shared with Christ here, at the marriage. What an awesome picture it is to see my Christian friends who share their first kiss on the wedding altar! To really strive to keep physical purity until the time Christ shows us by His own example with His Bride! Wow!
“The man gave names to all livestock and to the birds of the heavens and to every beast of the field. But for Adam there was not found a helper fit for him. So the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man, and while he slept took one of his ribs and closed up its place with flesh. And the rib that the Lord God had taken from the man he made into a woman and brought her to the man. Then the man said,‘This at last is bone of my bonesAnd flesh of my flesh;She shall be called Woman,Because she was taken out of Man.’Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and they shall become one flesh. And the man and his wife were both naked and were not ashamed. (Genesis 2:20-25)
Have you ever thought about how profound it is that God put Adam to sleep? Why would he do such a thing? Was it for anesthesia? No, God could have simply made the rib area numb if He wanted to. He knew that if Adam was awake while He was forming a mate for him, he would have tried to help God by saying, “Hey God, can you make her look like this… Think like this… Act like this…” God says, “No. Go to sleep, Adam. I know what’s best for you. I’ll wake you up when I’m ready to give her to you.”
Adam had already been studying the animals finding “there was not found a helper fit for him.” Looking at the hippos, orangutans, elephants, cats, etc., Adam says to himself, “No, I don’t want any of that action!” Later, “Hey animals, have yall seen something that looks like me, except…a little different?” Thankfully, God had better plans for Adam.
About this Genesis passage, Jim Elliot, while still single, journaled…
“No one warns young people to follow Adam’s example. He waited ‘til God saw his need. Then God made Adam sleep, prepared for his mate, and brought her to him. We need more of this ‘being asleep’ in the will of God. Then we can receive what He brings us in His own time, if at all. Instead we are set as bloodhounds after a partner, considering everyone we see until our minds are so concerned with the sex problem that we can talk of nothing else when bull-session time comes around. It is true that a fellow can not ignore women- but he can think of them as he ought: as sisters, not as sparring partners!”
My fellow singles, let us now enter into a deep sleep. Let us be asleep in the will of God. He’ll wake you up when He’s ready to give you your spouse, if indeed that is His plan for you.

We, the Sluts of God

“‘I also swore to you and entered into a covenant with you so that you became Mine,’ declares the Lord God…‘But you trusted in your beauty and played the harlot because of your fame and your poured out your harlotries on every passer-by who might be willing...How languishing is your heart,’ declares the Lord God, ‘while you do all these things, the actions of a bold-faced harlot…You adulteress wife, who takes strangers instead of her husband! Men give gifts to all harlots, but you give your gifts to all your lovers to bribe them to come to you from every direction for your harlotries…Nevertheless, I will remember My covenant with you in the days of your youth, and I will establish an everlasting covenant with you…I have forgiven you for all that you have done,’ the Lord God declares.” (Ezekiel 16)
This is one of the most difficult passages of Scripture for me to fathom. Hopefully you will go back and read the full chapter soon. God goes into great detail confessing His salvation of His Bride, Jerusalem (Israel). He had made a covenant with Her with Abram before they were even known as Israel. Note that since He is God, He knew everything she would do before He chose her. That blows me away.
Jerusalem took the very beauty and talents that her Husband gave her and used them to prostitute herself with the surrounding pagan countries. She stopped preserving her love for her Husband, God, only and worshiped the pagan gods. He even points out that she is the worst of prostitutes, not receiving pay for her harlotries, but actually paying to perform harlotries.
A friend of mine had a roommate in college one semester who was sexually promiscuous. Once she asked my friend, “Do you think I’m a slut?” My friend replied, “No, sluts get paid for what they do.” Perhaps it wasn’t the best way to try to win this person to the Lord, but she made a good point: At least prostitutes get some compensation for their deeds. Her roommate was doing it for free. And Israel was at the other end of the pendulum, paying her lovers for her services.
Whenever we crawl back to our sin, it is the same thing. We, the Bride of Christ, the true Israel (Romans 9:6-8), have nothing to use except the talents Christ has given us, whether to serve Him or commit adultery against Him. Every skill, every piece of material, every spiritual gift, every talent, every body part, and even the air we are breathing has been entrusted to us by God to use to His glory. So many times i’ve use them to serve other gods. If you knew the retched perversions i think and do, you would not listen to anything i have to say. Rather, you would run away in disgust. Christ has the characteristic (not the privilege) to be omniscient and see everything we do and think. He sees all that and loves us still. This boggles my mind. I am not worthy of His grace or His love.
Since He refused to divorce us, Israel, in Ezekiel 16, in spite of our harlotries then, He certainly will refuse to divorce us now under our everlasting covenant. Note that something everlasting, by definition, has no end. There is no Christian ever to have lived that has managed to make it through this betrothal/engagement (2 Corinthians 11:1-2) period without committing adultery (sinning) against our Husband. He has yet to divorce one.
The prophet, Hosea, endured this. In order to give Hosea the opportunity to experience how He feels, God instructed him to marry a prostitute (Hosea 1:2). Imagine Hosea prophesying to the people of Israel, imploring them to repent from their sins. Men come up to him, mocking him, “Hey prophet! Isn’t your wife that slut?” Others call out, “Hosea, you’re telling us to repent. Why don’t you go prophesy to your own wife!” Still a few could have jeered, “Hosea, guess what! For a few dollars last night, your wife pleasured me. It was great!” Before i go on let me say that nothing will get a man fired up worse than you talking about his woman. The restraint Hosea must have shown! God experiences this every time His Bride commits adultery against Him. The Devil says, “Hey Jesus, Your Bride just slept with me last night, and the day before, and 7times last week, and…” “Hey God, Your child, corey [feel free to insert your own name], serves me daily with the life You gave him.” Why does God love me, us, His Bride still? It is an incomprehensible passion He has for us. I cannot begin to explain it. Never has such unconditional love been felt by anyone.

!!ETADPU SAMTSIRHC

The chicken sandwich: (essentials for the skimmers)
Edgar got baptized and Jesus saved 2 others!
Survived Guayaquil last week
I'm house sitting for the next 3 weeks
Entertained kids in Cuchupamba one day
Had a Christmas fancy shindig with pastors from the region.
My Peru date got moved up to January 17!
Teote.com has been updated (New newsletter and James' profile).
Bobby Lane (my best friend and missionary in Peru) is engaged to Maridith Wade!
Prayer requests are below.

The soggy pickles: (extras for the non-skimmers)
Dear Familia en Cristo,The trip to Guayaquil was a dandy. I was able to meet with a few powers-that-be, including the president of the Ecuadorian Baptist Convention, and promoted the Xtreme Team. It sounds like they were very interested in involving Ecuadorians my age in this mission. Praise God!I found out Sunday afternoon that Edgar, who i led to Christ a few weeks ago, was baptized that morning at my house! I missed it! Ignacio, who has been discipling Edgar as well did the honors. I was in Pesillo for the weekend, but it was worth the missed baptism for i was able to help lead Rosa (Roh-sah), a woman who lives there, to Christ! Also, Cesar (Say-sar), a guy Jose and i led to the Lord a couple weeks ago, is showing signs of a hunger to learn and be discipled. Praise the Lord!The Cargile missionary-family has left Quito to visit their relatives in Texas, bequeathing me their 3 bedroom apartment to house sit for 3 weeks. Coco, the puppy, and i have the place all to ourselves.My boss in Peru, Jeremy, moved my date up to January 17 to leave to go to the Xtreme Team! This is very exciting. Yes, worriers, i will still be patiently waiting until February before punishing my knee.

PrayeRequests:
Pray these baby Christians would become disciples bent on reaching telling everyone about their Savior!
TEOTE Missions... Pray that God would continue to guide it.
Pray that He would glorify Himself in my life.

Happy Kwanzza!
†il the whole world hears,
corey reid pendergrass

¿Quien Vive? ¡Cristo!…

Elder: "Who lives?"
Congregation: "Christ!"
E: "What is His name?"
C: Glory!"
E: "Where is His town?"
C: "In Victory!"
Those words shouted in the church in Pesillo every Sunday multiple times throughout the service (in Spanish, of course).

The books: (essentials for the skimmers)
Over 60 (out of 150) people were removed from this mailing list when they didn't reply! After being notified around 20 have repented (some with good excuses) and have been welcomed back to the fold.
Adam Vinson, former SWO staff, and i (in my spare time) are creating a SWO-based mission board called TEOTE Missions. Teote.com has been updated.
I went to a futbol game, lost my car again when one of our missionaries got out of jail, got sick for a morning (morning sickness?), the knee is good, and wrote a blog entry about my trip to one of the coolest churches on God's green earth.
I'm in Guayaquil, Ecuador for a few days.
Prayer requests are below.

The sandbags: (extras for the non-skimmers)
Dear Bride of Christ,I was hoping to give yall an idea of how big the city of Quito is. The population is 2.3 million. That's a little better than 1/4 of the state of North Carolina. In other words, it's a big town.Russ Bare, an IMB missionary here, was parked in traffic when another driver wrecked into him the night of Thanksgiving. Even though it wasn't his fault, the law here says that if you are involved in an accident and people are injured and you aren't, you go to jail. So he spent a full week in jail (where your only source of food is family/friend visits) while the police sorted it all out during election week. He got out and need a car, so mine went to his family while his is being repaired.That put me riding the bus to the Pesillo church which made me car sick and forced me to end a fast i'd been working on. Nevertheless, i'm back to 100% and glad to be eating.Many of you have been asking about my physical health. My foot (which had surgery in summer '05) is doing great. Sometimes it aches but so does the rest of me. -Nothing to fret over. The knee (which had surgery recently) is having no problems, whatsoever. I can't even tell anything was wrong with it. I've been forced to run on it a couple times (Remember the futbol blog entry?) and it's done excellent. My shoulder (which had surgery a couple years ago) is constantly hurting. Bone spurs? I covet your prayers on the shoulder.I'm currently in Guayaquil, the largest city in Ecuador, for a few days doing God knows what (I don't mean that in a Lords-name-in-vain way, but in a Lord-hasn't-told-corey-what-is-going-on way.)! I'm going to try to advertise for Xtreme Team and do some people group research while in town. The 11-hour bus ride yesterday was... the only way an 11-hour bus ride can be: grueling. I got to sit beside Jorge, who claimed to be a Christian. During several good conversations i encouraged him to not have 2 girlfriends.

PrayeRequests:
We are talking to Edgar about being baptized, which he's interested in having done. He was not so interested in inviting his family and friends which are Catholic. There is a lot of friction between Evangelicals and Catholics in Latin America and it'd be showing them publicly that he was no longer one of them. Pray for his courage and boldness to share the Gospel with others, including his loved ones.
TEOTE Missions (The Ends of the Earth Mission, briefly known as SMOi, Snowbird Missions Outreach International)... Pray that God would guide it.
Pray God would work through me, not inspite of me. Pray that He would glorify Himself in my life.

Love yall, siblings!
†il the whole world hears,
corey reid pendergrass

The Paul-Barnabas Complex

Read some Acts. The missionaries Paul and Barnabas were a team. They had been through so much together: Winning many souls to Christ and receiving severe percecution. But in Acts 15 something happens. Paul wanted to check up on the churches they had planted. Barnabas wanted to take Mark with them. Paul had not yet forgiven Mark for deserting them in Pamphylia. "And there occured such a sharp disagreement that they separted from one another, and Barnabas took Mark with him and sailed away to Cyprus. But Paul chose Silas and left, being committed by the brethern to the grace of the Lord." (v.39-40)
I reckon it was a sad time for both of them. Nevertheless, was tis such a bad thing? Neither Paul nor Barnabas are mentioned to be in the wrong or in sin with their opinion. Could God not have instilled their disagreement within them for a greater purpose? The effect of this disagreement was that now 2 groups of 2 missionaries were traveling instead of 1 group. The Gospel was being moved rapidly over twice as much ground.
There are different opinions on how missions should be done. Some groups are humanitarian-focused, feeding the hungry, healing the sick, housing the homeless, and parenting the orphans, etc. Some, like the International Mission Board, are focused in taking the Gospel to those who have never heard. Some are focused in discipleship. These different opinions on how missions should be done have caused groups to go in different directions. The fact is, all of these types of missions are necessary in different parts of the Globe. God has seperated us for His higher purposes, and this can be a good thing.

Weekends in Pesillo

Every Saturday morning a man of God by the name of Jose meets me at my house in Carapungo around 7:30am. It's Latin America time so that means 7:30 is the earliest he'll be there. Jose is pretty good about not being late most of the time. If i haven't wrecked my car or lost it to a senor missionary (as the case this week) we'll take it to Pesillo, about 2 hours away. If not, we'll take a bus to Cayambe and from there to Pesillo which is a much slower trip. Once in Pesillo, we make our way up the hillside to the only evangelical church for several miles. Jose is the pastor. It is a mud-brick building sitting on a packed dirt floor topped with a tile roof that's seen its better days.By this time several children are waiting patiently* in the church for their lunch consisting of a bowl of rice and if their fortunate enough, a small boiled potato. I like to take this time to talk with them or play a game. Once they eat, we bid them farewell and start unpacking our travel gear. Mine consists of a hammock and sleeping bag which i strap to the the old wooden rafters of the church. This will be my bed for the night.*(By "patiently" i mean fist fighting one another.)
Lately we've been building a small (2x3 meter) bathhouse of cinder blocks (no two blocks are the same size). We'll work on it as long as the weather and daylight cooperate. At dusk we head to town (walking, if without a car) for visitation. Please pray for Luis (family?) and Cesar (husband and father of 4 girls) as we witness to them over several weeks.
Sunday mornings are busy. Two weekends ago Jose had the wonderful idea to do visitations at 7:30am. Evidently the man who we were visiting didn't think it such a wonderful idea. He cussed us out from his bedroom window and went back to sleep. When not getting cussed out, we are tidying up the church or working on the bathhouse before 10am rolls around.
The 2-3 hour service begins at 10am. The 10(+/-) member congregation walk to church, some very elderly. We start with a 15 minute prayer. Everyone is praying out loud at once. All the men are on their knees facing their chair. Their knees are protected from the dirt floor by a straw mat or piece of cardboard or a folded feed sack -whatever they could find. Sometimes i'll stand and read a chapter God lays on my heart. If someone who knows how to play the guitar shows, we'll have music. Sometimes we sing anyway. If someone is late, the preaching stops and everyone greets the late person with hugs and God-bless-yous. Even the preacher gets a hug! If this person happens to be the one who can play the guitar, the preaching will pause for even longer to allow us to sing about 10 songs. Feel free to listen in...

to my Husband

Romance me, O my Husband!
You lavish Your arms around me.
Where could i go where i would be outside of them?
There is no where You are not!
I dance and sing before You.
There is nothing You do not possess.
Yet You want more of me.
Haste the day when We become one flesh!
You are God of the universe!
You know every harlotry i've done,
Yet You find me beautiful.
I am captivating to You.
Your mercies are too much for me.
I cannot bear it!
Your grace is too deep for me.
Thus You swim with me.
O Your reckless Love for me!
O the price You paid!
Am i worth it?
You make me so!

Futbol!!!

In case you were unaware, futbol=soccer.
Last Friday night. Quito (Liga) vs Guayaquil (Emelec). Playoffs (i think). 40,000 fans in the stands.Ben Haley, another IMB missionary, and i got to the game 30 minutes late. No matter. Emelec was up 2-1. We were at Liga's stadium but the only section left was the one reserved for Emelec fans. Ben was wearing his Liga jacket so we had to sneak past the guards. As soon as we got to that section a woman, wearing and Emelec jacket, looked at me, pointed at Ben and started punching her fist as if to say she was going to hit him, since we were in the wrong section. We got away from her and went to the other end of those bleachers.
Liga scored in the 2nd half and tied it up, 2-2. Then one of the Emelec players accidently scored on his own goal, putting Liga in the lead. Ben was jumping up and down so i had to remind him to not celebrate too much cause we were still in the wrong section.
One of the ball boys for Liga was slow returning the ball so one of Emelec's players started a fight. 20-30 police officers flooded the field and there was a 5 minute fight among the players. They cleaned it up and continued playing. A fight broke out behind us in the stands next. A police officer got shoved down and so 3 other officers pulled out their night sticks. People scattered like cockroaches.
The time ran out with Liga ahead and we rushed for our car, as to beat the crowd. Riot police blockaded the exit stairs for the Emelec fan section. I was in the front of a line of people shouting, "WE'RE LIGA!" All of a sudden the started pushing me from behind, my face against a plexi-glass riot shield. We busted through the line of cops and i had to run fast to keep from getting run over (sorry Dr. Jennings).
Once back in the car, we had to pass the road that was in front of the stadium. Pedestrians flooded the street, making it impossible to drive more than a few feet a minute. Another fight broke out in front of my car! Some guy kicked another and the victim fled, being chased by the kicker. What a night! So fun!
I've never seen anything like it.

Faith Healing

"Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord." James 5:14
That's just what i did. But first...I've been dealing with a shoulder problem for close to 2 years. I had surgery on it at the start of that time and it was never 100% since. Bone spurs were removed and they seem to have come back sooner than expected. Especially during the summer, i started having severe pain in my right shoulder. It's actually been so bad that i was able to do my push-ups in order to get in shape for the Xtreme Team. It's been a rough ride-- all these ailments. Nevertheless, i was continuing to try my push-ups on my own strength and failing miserably. Last week i tried doing the 6 sets of 30 push-ups according to the workout schedule. Discouragingly, i could only pull of 3 sets of 15 girl push-ups (leaning forward on a wall instead of pushing off the floor). I was desperate.
Last weekend at the 5-10 member dirt floor church in Pesillo, i asked the pastor, my friend, Jose, to follow this verse in James 5:14. Since the church was so small and everyone was older than me, they all got up and Jose spread a handful of vegetable oil on my head (I think it's silly to buy special "blessed" oil at the Christian bookstore. The grocery store has some oil that works just as good for a lot cheaper.) Now, i'd like to say this: I don't believe that the oil itself has any healing power, in and of itself. I believe the power of healing to come from God alone through faith. Like baptism, anointing with oil is symbolic of an act of faith that God is doing through me.
Not feeling any better, i was still certain that my shoulder had been healed. That's what faith is: Knowing without seeing. So the next day, it was time for my push-ups. Just before starting, i thanked the Lord for healing me, even though it still hurt a little. I did my first set on the ground (real push-ups)... all 30 of them. Then another set, then another. Within 10 minutes all 6 sets were complete. I had a moment of praise to Him, not that i wasn't doing it since the anointing the day before. Yes, i still felt a little discomfort in my shoulder, but the difference was night and day. I have been able to do all my exercises this week free of severe pain. I'm very excited about this and wanted to share what God is doing with this old wine skin/clay jar that He's chosen to reach the nations with. Glory to Him!

Well Butter My Behind and Call Me a Biscuit! Happy Thanksgiving, America!

The meat and taters: (for the skimmers)

• A guy named Edgar got saved, God tested my faith, and God is teaching me some strange things. Several stories like these are posted on the blog.
• Jeff Hill, from Texas, will be joining the Xtreme Team in February with me.
• Prayer requests are below.

The milk and cookies: (for the non-skimmers)
Dear cloud of witnesses,
First, i want to ask yall if there's anyway i can be praying for you. As i asked this back in the summer and ask it now because Satan wants to put things in your lives that will stop you from thinking/praying for your brothers and sisters overseas (including me). We can't afford that. Plus, this is not a religion where you have my back but i don't have yours. Back to back, we fight our spiritual battles.I was able to lead a local named Edgar to Christ! PTL! Read the story . A week later, we visited him again and his family was there. Maria (mom), a little girl (sister?), and a boy/girlfriend couple (sister?). They are not believers but are interested in learning more. We shared the Creation story. Edgar has started reading the book of John in the Bible we gave him. He has a tough living situation with a women who is married to someone else.
Jose and i are working on a very small bathhouse on the weekends. We started last weekend. Once i realized he had no intentions of making it square and i could stop worrying, i felt a lot better. Laying blocks is very different in the States. We hope that this bathhouse will attract the town´s people to the church, many of whom don´t have a shower or toilet. Glory to God!
We celebrated Thanksgiving at the house with about 50 missionaries from Ecuador. As you might have gathered, the Pilgrims didn´t settle the coast of Ecuador, so it´s not a holiday most of the nationals know or celebrate. It was some good eating though! I even met a girl named Katie Kaley who was a camper at Snowbird the last 2 summers! What are the odds?!

PrayeRequests:

• Pray for Igancio and i as we disciple Edgar and minister to his unbelieving family.
• Pray for me as i have no face-to-face accountability with English-speaking guys my age. There are none here. This has been the biggest loss i've suffered thus far. Props to my accountability guys back home who email me.
• Pray that i would not miss opportunities to serve and witness to souls that are ripe for the harvest.
• Jeff Hill is in training in VA at the moment. Pray he doesn't tear his ACL, etc.
• Unspoken request. Just kidding! Those aren't in the Bible. (Think about it.)
  

Love yuns!

†il the whole world hears,

corey reid pendergrass

wo who!!!

This weekend Mirjam and I are planning on taking Felipe to the mountains across Guimaca. We´re going to hike to the highest point in Guimaca and are praying for opportunities to share Christ with the peoples in the mountains. A friend of mine that teaches at the Catholic school in town tod me there are quite a bit of people living up there that never come down and need to hear about Christ. Please pry that God would open up opportunitie and that we would get the official go ahead from the Jefe. Everything else here is going amazing. I cannot believe snowbird gets here friday. Please pray fr healing of mine and Mirjams ankles. We took a group of 10 older boys to the mountains for a camping trip this past wekend and it was amazing but we both twisted our ankles. Ironic eh? Mine is actually getting a lot better. Tuesday night I had the opportunity to talk to one of the watchimen...Modesto. We talked for about an hour in the 40 degree...yes i said 40 degree weather here in Honduras. I asked him about his beliefs and shared with him the gospel, but he stated he knows the gospel but isnt ready to be obedient. Pleae pray for him and for further conversations. Helene has been asking more and more questions about the Lord and salvation, she even talked to Wade about salvation. She is searching and seeking hard cre, PLEASE pray for her and This morning i was doing my Bible study in the living room (usually i do it in the bed room) but Sabrina came to me and asked me what I was doing and why and i was able to show her how to have a Bible study and show her the many reasons elievers study the word daily instead of only in church. It was a very fruitful time please pray the Lord would continue to work on her heart as well.

"Ok, corey, POP QUIZ" -Jesus

Ever had a pop quiz from God? I had one Saturday night.
Jose and i were at the church in Pesillo, getting ready to spend the night and have church the folowing morning. We needed to go to a neighbor's house but, even though i´d managed not to wreck the car this week, i did lock the keys in it. I started to call AAA but 1) They aren´t in Ecuador and 2) i'm not a member. I´d seen coat hangers used in the movies so i began describing a coathanger to Jose with hand motions since i lacked the Spanish word. We came up with one and jimmied the window space for about 15 min.
Jose is a wonderful man. He says "Glory to God!" about 4 times an hour for ever situation, good or bad. He spits in his hands to wash them. He has a heart for Jesus as hot as i've seen yet in Ecuador.
He suggested praying. So i began praying with faith that God would open the lock. I have often thought of myself as a person who is able to seperate scientific explicable situations from the reality of God´s unexplicable works and power. But, is faith knowing that God can do miracles, or is faith knowing that He´s going to do it, period. The latter is much harder, in my case. Sure, i knew without a shaddow of a doubt that God could unlock the door with or without our seemingly endless failures with the coathanger. I told Him that i knew He could do it. He replied, "But do you know that I will do it?" This was the pop quiz. I confessed that i did not, but i asked Him to give me this kind of faith, something i have very rarely experienced. He gave it to me. Jose continued with the coathanger a few more minutes and it popped open! We danced hugging one another in the field for a few moments. What joy!
We had a very fruitful conversation with the man and i believe he accepted the Lord. We´ll be following up with him next week.

New brother: Edgar!

Last night, i went with Ignacio to the small town of Llano Grande, where he had a contact of this guy named Edgar. We found his house and talked to him for maybe an hour and a half. Ignacio presented a clear message of the Gospel. He kept making excuses why he couldn't be saved. Most dealt with his past sins being too many to deserve forgiveness. We went through John 3:16, Romans 3:32, Romans 6:23, Ephesians 2:8-9, and finally Romans 10:9. I told him that he would make a decision tonight to accept or reject the salvation of Jesus. I explained, "You know in your heart that Jesus is real and He can be your Savior. [He agreed] Also, you are listening to Satan giving you reasons to not accept Jesus. How long will you listen to Satan?" He decided to stop listening to the Devil. He prayed for Jesus to save him and forgive him of his sins. He asked Jesus to make him a new man. He told us he meant it in his heart. That gave way to me jumping around the table and hugging him big time, telling him he is my brother. Rejoice with me, Church!

We will visit him again next Tuesday.

... Obedience ...

"The flesh is impatient in all delay, both in decision and action; therefore all carnal choices are immature and premature, and all carnal courses are mistaken and unspiritual. God is often moved to delay that we may be moved to pray, and even the answers to prayer are deffered that the natural and carnal spirit may be kept in check and self-will may bow before the will of God."-George Muller
"The workman of God needs to wait on Him to know the work he is to do and the area where he is to serve Him."
"...the safe guide in every crisis is believing prayer in connection with the Word of God; and that continued uncertainty as to ones course is a reason for continued waiting."
"conviction compelled action for in him there was no spirit of compromise"
"For every defect in our service there is a cause, and the one all sufficient remedy is the throne of grace, where in every time of need we may boldly come to find grace and help!"
2 Tim 2:15 "Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, accurately handling the word of truth."
I am constantly and consistantly being encouraged by the life of George Muller. I can only pray to follow in the foot steps of such a man of faith as i seek the Lord following the example of Christ as he did.
Because of our culture and selfish, impatient hearts a lot of us struggle with waiting.
God keeps telling me to share this so, here you go...
Journal Entry:
10Nov06
These quotes by George Muller hit it home for me. So often i struggle with waiting. With wanting to know and plan for my future. This first quote above is similar to my struggle. So often i make quick desicions. I dont wait on God and say this is what I am going to do. My planning for Peru last year, my first summer at snowbird, my entire previous relationship. God says no... You're not ready, be patient, seek my face, grow in the knowledge of My truths and promises. Yesterday i ended up at the Xtreme team website viewing the missionaries and the work going on down there. I desire so badly to be a part if it, but God decided I wasn't ready last year, and now I agree. I am blessed to have the freedom in Christ to serve God as a single woman. God has graced me with a clear mind and focused heart in that area. As i read George Mullers autobiography in so many ways we have a similar story. Both sinners, saved by grace, dying to the sin of minipulation and leaving one we chose to love in the passion and desire of our flesh. He left his "love" for Christ as have I, and I can only pray that He blesses me as He blessed George Muller. He sent Muller a spouse with the same self sacrificing mentality, the same passion for Christ and Godliness. They were like minded, true servants, true partners. They were one. I desire to experience that passion as a bride of Christ. I want to be completely consumed with Christ that nothing matters...my hopes, dreams and passions become that of Christ. Muller is such an inspiration. He consumed himself with Christ to the point where he wouldnt make a single decision without Him. I jump on the opportunity to do something new. I always want change, adventure, I want to LIVE, to live life abundantly, but sometimes i mix the abundant life with the hard, adventurous life of suffering for Christ, not the daily abundant life in which i pursue holiness and grow in love, patience and diligence. Where people see the gentle Spirit of Christ in me and are drawn to his character. I see at times when i allow myself to become distracted, selfish. Focusing on what God is going to use me for (not for the glorification of others, but for my own "self fulfillment")... assuming it is something huge! Something spectacular. Using me to bring people to know the Lord in the jungles of the Amazon or in the mountain tops of the Andes in the peoples heart language. Who am I that God would even use me?!? I have to have an attitude of self-denial. Deny myself all things of the flesh so that Christ can use me to the fullest. I need to be patient and wait on the Lord, allow Him to open doors instead of minipulating situations so that i pry the doors open. This step in faith to Honduras was the first time I did not orchastrate anything. God provided everything and sent me as He willed. And it has been the most amazing time of growth and insight into the heart of God. It is the first time I have ever been able to follow through with something because it wasn't me tearing my way through, but God clearly paving a narrow, straight path for His work to be done. Praise God! It is my prayer that God would give me the strength, teach me to persevere, teach me to consume my mind, heart and spirit with His character and nature. My biggest battle is in my mind. I constantly wrestle with my decietful heart. A godly man i respect and look up to once said to me, "Racheal, I want to see you wearing alpaca fur in the mountains of Peru telling those people about Jesus whether you are single or married." If thats what God has called you to than do it." He is 100% right. I know myself and several other woman who desire to be missionaries struggle with going on the field as a single woman, but to wait on a man to be sent out to your field and work along side you is unscriptural and therefore wrong! I don't know if God will take me to the Amazon, but i pray that i would have a patient, persevering heart. And that I would continue to have opportunities to share Christ with the people here, and where ever i go! Whether its family members or people in Graceville. Whether its children in Honduras or the people at the end of the earth, that i would always proclaim the saving power of Jesus Christ!
Be encouraged!

Well, well, well. Look what the catfish drug in.

Attention skimmers!

The essentials (meat and taters):

Thanks to the wisdom of one, Carrie Stallings (IMB missionary to Spain), skimmers no longer have to search for the pertinent information. It's all here at the top.

I'm learning more Spanish. I've been doing research and evangelism in smaller mountain towns. I wrecked my car. I don't want to clutter anyone's email box so everyone that wants to continue to receive these updates must reply UNLESS you did so to the last email or joined since then. Prayer requests are below. If time and love permit, read on...

Ok, now for the milk and cookies:

Dear people who have time (ha ha),
Here's my usual schedule so you can be praying for me during the week, if you like:

Mondays-Wednesdays: Might be in the office, but hopefully i'm in a rural community doing research and evangelism where few or no evangelical church exists. I have Spanish class on Mondays and Wednesdays from 3-4:30.

Thursdays: My off-day. Usually doing yard work at the house and reading in the hammock

Fridays: Same as Mondays-Wednesdays minus the Spanish class.

Saturdays: Go to Pesillo (2.5 hour drive), a Quichua mountain community, with Jose and visit with families, evangelizing.

Sundays: Morning church with Jose, the pastor of the church in Pesillo. i return to Quito and go to the youth meeting at a local church in the afternoon. I usually get to hang out with some of boys from there and disciple them.

Here's a journal entry i made this weekend about the wreck:

"Nov. 11, 2006

"Here's a nice scene from Thursday, my off-day. I was wrapping up the last couple of chapters from A.W. Tozer's Knowledge of the Holy in my hammock, strung up to a couple avocado trees, beneath my rain tarp sounding the pitter-patter of a light rain of the early afternoon. So relaxing.

"Now contrast that with what just happened: Today [Saturday], Jose and i were traveling to Pesillo. Passing through Cayambe, a truck in front of me slammed on the breaks. Not wanting to give him a Rock Hudson [hit him in the tail] i switched to the right lane. Low and behold, this was occupied by a parked car very close. Realizing my situation had not improved, since my car was not slowing down fast enough, i pulled onto the sidewalk which was free of pedestrians. That's when i realized that i was on a collision course with a 3ft wide concrete planter, full of earth. Boxed in by the wall to my right, i was searching for the words to Carrie Underwood's "Jesus Take the Wheel." The planter was disintegrated, as was my car's alignment and my pride." We were unscathed, but i can't say the same for my car's front suspension. It's currently at the mechanic of Cayambe getting well.

PrayeRequests:

* That God would speak through me. My Spanish is lacking and i'd rather Him give me the words, even if it was in English. Just this weekend i had conversations with people in Spanish about biodeisel, relationships with the opposite sex, nuclear fusion, and all the local foods i need to try (rodents and intestines, etc.). All these complex conversations make me want to learn Spanish. I've also been invited to speak to the youth group.

* Pray that i'd be able to effectively and efficiently do research in these communities. Pray that Christian churches would be planted. Catholicism exists but it's quite different from Catholicism in the States. If you ask someone if they are a Christian they are likely to reply with, "No. I'm Catholic." In some communities the local Catholic church is known to incite violence against Evangelicals, who are in the vast minority.

* God would be glorified.

Finally, be sure to check the blog on teote.com as other missionaries and myself update it more regularly than this email newsletter.

Love yall,

†il the whole world hears,

corey reid pendergrass

Stop It, America.

This is getting old...

Contrary to popular opinion people don't see these and say, "Oh Christians are so witty! I want to be one!"

A Call...

Societal Conotations vs Definitions

I was musing the other day about how many catagories of people i could fall into by definition only. Of course, i couldn't say i'm most of these things because of the conotations our society attaches to them, but it was still interesting to me. Negating society's perceived ideas of these, by definition, i could say...

I'm Orthodox: of, pertaining to, or conforming to the approved form of any doctrine, philosophy, ideology, etc.

I'm a Muslim: one who submits to God

I'm Messianic: of or relating to a messiah

I'm Episcopal: based on or recognizing a governing order of bishops

I'm Pentecostal: of or relating to (the day of) Pentecost

I'm a Jehovah's Witness: practitioner of active evangelism

I'm a Baptist: person who baptizes

I'm a Hippie: person who opposes and rejects many of the conventional standards and customs of society

I'm a Methodist: person who relies greatly or excessively on methods or a particular method

I'm Christian: of, pertaining to, or derived from Jesus Christ or His teachings

I'm Liberal: characterized by generosity and willingness to give in large amounts. Also free from prejudice or bigotry. Also favoring or permitting freedom of action

I'm Catholic: having broad or wide-ranging in tastes, interests, or the like. Also pertaining to the whole Christian body or church

I'm a Protestant: one who protests against the decision of the Diet of Speyer in 1529, which had denounced the Reformation

I'm Evangelical: pertaining to or in keeping with the Gospel and its teachings

I'm a Sinner: a person who sins

I'm a Saint: a person of great holiness, virtue, or benevolence

I'm an Adventist: a member of any of certain Christian denominations that maintain that the Second Advent of Christ is imminent

I'm Apostolic: of or relating to or deriving from the Apostles or their teachings

I'm an Animist: one who believes in spiritual beings or agencies

Presbyterian: pertaining to or based on the principle of ecclesiastical leadership by elders

Quaker: one who quakes and trembles

What are you? Just some food for thought..

I am ALIVE!!!

With knowledge comes responsibility. This is true not only for the Word of God and gospel of Jesus Christ, but with missions as well. When i first came to Emmanuel i was captured by these children, their need for love and desire for attention. I was overwhelmed with the desire to give them just that. At that point i was a volunteer... Playing with the toddlers in the morning, taking the boys to the mountains in the afternoons. It was a blast! Amazing... i was blinded to the powers and principalities at work in this ministry. Then, i started working on the farm. For some reason i am always drawn to work with my hands, to be more constructive. The farm is absolutely amazing and I am learning more than i couldve ever imagined. From raising chickens and continuing the entire cycle of life to death, and providing food for these kids whether it be the vegetables we grow or the pigs we raise. It is amazing. But after working on the farm for a week i was put in charge of the chicken process and some of the boys. The first two weeks were the worst experience and hardest struggle i have ever encountered in my life. I delt with boys with little to no respect for women, who think women should be in the kitchens and cleaning their rooms. They wouldnt listen to me and cursed me at every opportunity. Every day i would go to my house broken and weaping for these boys and the condition of their hearts. But God heard my cry, he gave my the strength and determination to fight for these boys and it was amazing, over the period of a week it was as if they just realized i wasn't going any where, and that they were going to have to work with me, listening and respecting me. Now, if someone says something hurtful or ugly to me my boys are very quick to protect me. This gave me just a glimpse, and I cant imagine how broken, angry and disgusted Christ is over our sin. He died so the world could have life, and so many people push him away, cursing His name and spitting in His face. Yet, to encounter suffering for the sake of Christ for the love of those people is a blessing, a priviledge, yet we arent even worthy to suffer for Christ. As i spend more and more time with these boys, speaking with them and encouraging them, they have begun to grant me this level of trust that i dont deserve. They pour their hearts out, their pain, suffering, frustrations everything in search of what they lack. The one thing they need and the only thing i have to give them. Christ. They hear the Word of God daily, they memorize the Word of God in abundance yet they lack true, intimate fellowship with Jesus CHrist. They miss the nessecity of a relationship with Jesus Christ. Sure they believe in God, they even believe in Jesus... they know who He is, but they do not know Him! They have not experienced CHrist. Knowing and believing is not enough! The demons believe in God and they shudder! You have to have an intimate relationship with Jesus Christ, and that is what i am trying to teach these boys through my actions. My spanish is improving by the day, but as the days pass they seem to pass faster and faster. The farm never stops... never! You are always moving, always going. This is good for production, but awful for ministry! I find myself getting frustrated because i don't have time to talk with the boys about there days any more. The more responsibility that is given to me, the less time i have with the boys on an individual bases. It seems as though i wake up, go to the farm, work and in no time the day is gone and the boys are locked in the houses. This issue has effected me quite a bit lately. It seems as though i am doing more work than ministry, and I am here to give these kids Christ... They have teachings, they have rules, but they need relationships. They need true examples of how to live! They need someone to be a shoulder to cry on when theyre angry and frustrated, they need someone to guide them in the ways of the Lord face to face... not only from the pulpit! They need arms of grace and compassion, but also Godly discipline and guidance. Not some one saying hey...work faster, move quicker... youre lazy, be a man! They hear it to often and it breaks my heart! I have had little opportunity to build realtionships with the girls which is also something that I am praying about changing... I have built three stong relationships with the girls. They all actually turned twenty last week. Gloria, Dilcia and Yenny. Amazing ladies. We can just sit down and talk forever about what is going on in their lives and see what the bible says they need to do. Yet, i am blown away, because they will tell me there problems and they know what they need to do. So we pray for strength, wisdom and endurance.___________________--Mirjam and I have been taking groups of kids to the mountains every Saturday when we have time off. We have found some amazing views and a water hole we take the kids to swim in. I have found that this is the time where i get to know the kids the most. I finally was able to share the gospel message in Spanish with one of the boys Saturday in the mountains. He is one of the new boys and as I was asking them all questions leading to the gospel he said he wasnt a Christian and he wanted to know what it was, and why we were Christians...it was amazing. Please continue to pray for these children and staff here at Emmanuel. I love you guys.

and then there were 18

sometimes i just don't trust God to take care of things. i tend to go about my life as if my worry and insecurity were gonna add days to it. why do i do this?
hank and i have been worked up into a frenzy (ok, I'VE been worked up into a frenzy.. hank's just playing cool) trying to plan these spring break 07 trips to honduras. in august as i was writing the application & reference letter/forms, sending emails, calling youth pastors, and answering endless questions, i thought for sure we would fill up the 24 spots in no time. but as of last wednesday (1 month out from the absolute deadline) we only had 3 students committed to going. i was really discouraged because we weren't getting the feedback i hoped for after i put all of me into planning this trip. so that morning, i decided to take the initiative and put out an email to anyone at all who had remotely inquired about the trips. i wanted to give all these youth pastors the benefit of the doubt, in thinking that with everything going on in their individual ministries, that honduras just slipped their minds. well, i was right! not even an hour after i clicked send, the phone started ringing and the second week was OVER booked! for the rest of the afternoon, people kept on calling and emailing me wanting to know more about the trips! they were all so thankful for my email... they only needed to see the words Honduras and Spring Break in the same sentence to remind them! God turned those 2 weeks and my doubtful heart upside down in a matter of hours, in the way only He can!!
earlier that very same morning, i started studying through the book of john. for me, it's just good to go back from time to time and read stuff that i think i already "know". often i try to sell myself the lie that if i heard it in awana that i've already mastered it. see? not true! so.... i opened God's word to the fourth gospel, sat back in my chair, sipped my coffee, and prayed for God to make real to me the miracles that the multitudes were becoming bored with in chapter 6. and little did i know that just a few hours later, He would make chapter 1 verse 16 as tangible and nourishing as food.
from the fullness of His grace we have received one blessing after another...

What Is Church?

As an U.S. American Christian (more specifically, a Southern Baptist) i’ve always been surrounded by elements of "church." But how many of these are Biblical? Choirs, buildings (and building funds), preachers (and preaching), pews, senior pastors, youth groups, sanctuaries, Sunday school, church clothes, people being "slain in the Spirit," baptisteries, parking, tithing, and switching pastors (and members for that matter) are a few things i have yet to find in the New Testament (If they’re there, please show me. Granted, tithing is mentioned but always in a negative or time specific context.). I don’t mean to imply that any of these things are wrong (though some may be so), these are just ideas that don’t come from the New Testament and, therefore, just aren’t necessary to have Biblical "church."

What about elements which aren’t taught against in the Bible (rather, possibly condoned) but are generally frowned on by U.S. American churches? Church on the Sabbath ("Sabbath" is the Hebrew word for "Saturday" that somehow remains untranslated in English Bibles after all these years.), lay-people baptizing others, women baptizing others, the gift of tongues (only taboo in some U.S. churches), deaconess (see Romans 16:1), informal atmospheres, and eating during meetings.

It’s constantly becoming more evident to me the honor and responsibility i have to introduce the idea of church to people who've never experienced or even heard of church. When i join the Xtreme Team in February (and hopefully before then here in Ecuador), i'll be taking the Gospel to people groups who will most likely believe whatever i say church is supposed to be. I have no aspirations of turning the indigenous of South America into U.S. Americans. So, here’s my dilemma: I feel like i have all this church baggage that i’m accustomed to, some ok, some bad. I need to separate the Biblical and the extra-Biblical. The only way to do that is to study the Bible myself. Please be praying that i would be able to present the Gospel and the concept of Church and church in a Biblical way to the indigenous of South America. Also, your incite on Bible verses could help. Thanks, friends. Love yall

The Ten Commandments

What are the Ten Commandments? We see them church walls, bumper stickers, yard signs, Field of the Wood (pictured here) but where are they from? The Bible? Where in the Bible?

Exodus 20:1-18 gives the traditional Ten Commandments. But, as you read, no where in the text is the term “Ten Commandments” used, nor does it talk about the stone tablets in which they were written on. Sure, you Bible’s subtitle might use the term, but that was added in the last 50 years or less.

The stone tablets have yet to be mentioned at this point. They won’t show up until Exodus 24:12 and again in 31:18, but in neither case are the Ten Commandments they bear listed. 32:15-16 describe how God fashioned the tablets, but by v.19 Moses had broken the original tablets, not once listing the Ten Commandments that were on them. Two chapers later, God gives him a second chance. Read Exodus 34:1-28, where it lists them.

Wow! Here the author lists ten laws/commandments, written on stone tablets (v.1) and referred to as “the Ten Commandments” (v.28). I don’t want to destroy anyone’s dreams of trying to get the Ten Commandments back in schools and courthouses or cover hillsides with them, but if you must, get the Ten that the Bible calls the Ten, not a false product of tradition.

So, the real Ten Commandments are not listed in Exodus 20, but rather in Exodus 34. If i’m missing something, please, tell me. During my study, another passage caught my eye. Turn to Dueteronomy 5:1-22. Here the traditional Ten Commmandments (found in Exodus 20) are listed and said to be written on two tablets (v.22). This is kind of confusing to me, since the author(s) of the Torah has already established the real Ten Commandments in Exodus 34. I find restitution that these ten in Dueteronomy are not referred to as the Ten Commandments, they were just on the tablets. Dueteronomy 9-10 gives a recap of Moses’ story of the Ten Commandments. How there were two sets since one was broken. I know what you’re thinking. No, they weren’t different. He records specifically in Deuteronomy 10:2 and in Exodus 34:1 also that the words on the second set were the same as the first.

Yes, the ten laws listed in Exodus 20:1-18 (and Dueteronomy 5:1-22) can be good rules to live by, but they are just 10 of 613 laws of the Torah (aka. Mosaic Law). For that matter, the 10 laws (or Commandments) listed in Exodus 34:1-28 are merely 10 of 613 laws as well. God just chose to put them on the stone tablets and dub the Ten Commandments.

The thing is, we have graduated from the Law. In Matthew 5:17, Jesus told us He came to fulfill the Law and the Prophets, not destroy them. He accually went on to give us just Two Commandments. Matthew 22:34-39 list those two. When you think about it, if you obey those two to their fullest, you can’t be in sin.

Este es mi primero... oh wait... yall don't speak Spanish

Dear faithful few, I'm up to my eyeballs in Spanish and loving it! I'm experimenting with audio updates, so tell me which you prefer. Written or audio? The update for last week is attached as a wav file. Since i made that file, it's been a wonderful weekend. I have a car now. I didn't take me long to get stopped by a cop, though. Friday morning, on the way to my doc appt, i got lost so i made a U-turn right in front of this tunnel that goes under a mountain. The cop stepped out in front of my vehicle, got in the passenger seat and told me to drive. We parked at a convenient spot. He explained that this was a serious offense. He went on and on about something that i didn't understand so i kept telling him it was my first time in Quito and i that i'm sorry but i didn't understand what he was saying. He finally got frustrated and left. No fines. And so, corey reid pendergrass evades the wrath of yet another traffic officer.Saturday i made some friends as a youth group of about 10-15 students came to my house to meet me. I shared a little of my heart for the lost through Eze. 37 and the vision of the dry bones. I asked them who will share Christ with the dry, dead souls walking around them everyday. The response was good. What i thought would be an hour lesson turned into a 2.5 hour discussion! Please pray for these students (photos attached). I was able to make a trip all day Sunday to the community of Pesillo where there is a small congregation about about 20 people, most of which are small children without parents (photos attached). Jose, the pastor there has a vision for the all the surrounding communities to have an evangelical church, which 3 out of about 15 do. I intend to help him make this vision a reality, Lord willing. Please pray for Jose and many others involved in this movement. Love yall, each and every one, †il the whole world hears, corey reid pendergrass

C.T. Studd - I know it's long, but read it.

“Nov. 2 1915. Hugh Jones, mine host, brought in a doctor, who forbade me to go out and speak that evening, and said that I must go home at once. I laughed and spoke for an hour and a half; next day Canarvon two hours; then Bangor three meetings, and then Aberystwyth. Oh, these train journeys! So slow and so cold, but God is always there.

“There are more than twice as many Christians uniformed officers at home among peaceful Britain’s 40 million evangelized inhabitants, than the whole number of Christ’s forces fighting at the front among 1,200 million heathen! And yet such call themselves soldiers of Christ! What do the angels call them, I wonder? The ‘Lets-save-Britain-first’ brigade are in the succession of the ‘I-pray-thee-have-me-excused’ apostles.

“Christ’s call is to feed the hungry, not the full; to save the lost, not the stiff-necked; not to call the scoffers, but sinners to repentance; not to build and furnish comfortable chapels, churches, and cathedrals at home in which to rock the Christian professors to sleep by means of clever essays, stereotyped prayers and artistic musical performances, but to raise living churches of souls among the destitute, to capture men from the devil’s clutches and snatch them from the very jaws of hell, to enlist and train them for Jesus, and make them into and Almighty Army of God. But this can only be accomplished by a red-hot, unconventional, unfettered Holy Ghost religion, where neither Church nor State, neither man nor traditions worshipped or preached, but Christ and Him crucified. Not to confess Christ by fancy collars, clothes, silver crosiers or gold watch-chain crosses, church steeples or richly embroidered altar-cloths, but by reckless sacrifice and heroism in the foremost trenches.

“When in hand-to-hand conflict with the world and the devil, neat little biblical confectionery is like shooting lions with a pea-shooter; one needs a man who will let himself go and deliver blows right and left as hard as he can hit, thrusting in the Holy Ghost. It’s experience, not preaching, that hurts the devil and confounds the world, because unanswerable; the training is not that of the schools, but of the market; it’s the hot, free heart and not the balanced head that knocks the devil out. Nothing but forked-lighting Christians will count. A lost reputation is the best degree for Christ’s service.

“I am more than ever determined that no ring nor limit shall be placed around us, other than that of our Lord Himself, To the uttermost parts,’ ‘To every creature.’ I belong and will ever belong to ‘The Great God’ party. I will have nought to do with ‘The Little God’ party.

“The difficulty is to believe that He can design to use such scallywags as us, but of course He wants Faith and Fools rather than talents and culture. All God wants is a heart, any old turnip will do for a head; so long as we are empty, all is well for then He fills with the Holy Ghost.

“The fiery baptism of the Holy Ghost will change soft, sleek Christians into hot, lively heroes for Christ, who will advance and fight and die, but not mark time. Let us race to heaven; an accident means dashing into the arms of Jesus—such accidents are God’s choicest blessings. Don’t be a luggage train.

“Fools would ‘cut’ the devil, pretending they do not see him; others erect a tablet over his supposed grave. Be wise; don’t cut nor bury him; kill him with the bayonet of evangelism.

“Hugh Latimer was an inextinguishable candle; the devil lit him, and ever since has been kicking himself for his folly. Won’t someone else tempt the devil to make a fool of himself again?

“Nail the colours to the mast! That is the right thing to do, and, therefore, that is what we must do, and do it now. What colours? The colours of Christ, the work He has given us to do—the evangelization of all the unevangelized. Christ wants not nibblers of the possible, but grabbers of the impossible, by faith in the omnipotence, fidelity and wisdom of the Almighty Saviour Who gave the command. Is there a wall in our path? By our God we will leap over it! Are there lions and scorpions in our way? We will trample them under our feet! Does a mountain bar our progress? Saying, ‘Be thou removed and cast into the sea,’ we will march on. Soldiers of Jesus, never surrender! Nail the colours to the mast!

“Such as look to Jesus become grasshoppers in their own sight, but giants in the estimation of the devil.

“‘Follow Me,’ says Jesus. ‘I will,’ we reply, yet somehow forget that Christ pleased not Himself, deliberately made Himself poor to save others and became the first foreign missionary. We all pray to be like Jesus, yet refuse to pay the price. How can Dives be like Jesus?

“The crumbs of Dives are not a dainty dish to set before King Jesus. Try ‘cake’ for a change, and don’t forget to put all you’ve got into it.

“‘But what if C.T. dies?’ This frequent and foolish question must have its answer. Here it is from C.T. himself, ‘We will all shout Hallelujah. The world will have lost its biggest fool, and with one fool less to handicap Him, God will do greater wonders still. There shall be no funeral, no wreaths, crape, nor tears, not even the Dead March. Congratulations all round will take place. “And I, if I be offered up, rejoice and congratulate you; do ye also rejoice and congratulate me.”—Phil. 2:17 and 18 (Lightfoot’s Translation). The Wedding March, by special request. Our God will still be alive and nothing else matters. The first Heart of Africa Mission funeral will take place when God dies, but as that will not be ‘til after eternity, cheer up all. Forward! Every man straight before him. Hallelujah! ‘To die is gain.’

“Some wish to live within the sound

Of Church or Chapel bell,

I want to run a Rescue Shop

Within a yard of hell.”

-C.T. Studd, missionary to China, India, and Africa during the late 1800s and early 1900s, an excerpt from his journal.