Picture of the week

This week several of us gathered to discuss translation. Bill was at the meeting but was not in this picture because he was the one taking it.

Tonga update

Tonga is back in the hospital this week for her third round of chemotherapy. Keep praying for those Tonga and Dashka. Dashka needs love, grace, meekness, and perseverance to deal with his wife's long illness. Tonga needs healing but even more needs the conviction of the Holy Spirit. Dashka told me yesterday that he has noticed that his wife is more open to hearing about Jesus Christ.

Keep praying; good things are happening.

Sunday update

There has been much sickness this past week. Everyone in our family has been ill. Elsie still is quite ill.

I had also heard that many church members had been sick. So I wondered how many folks would show up at the service this morning. This was also the first Sunday morning in which most of the responsibilities were to be covered. So after wondering how many people would be at the service, I pondered how many people would forget their responsibilities.

I did not need to worry: everyone with responsibilities was there and in their place today. That was a great encouragement to me because while I am gone the Mongolians will be covering most of the areas of service in the church.

Lots of illness

There is lots of illness in the church; I mean physical illness. Chills, fevers, dizziness, coughing, headaches - I don't think that there's a family without at least one of these symptoms. I talked to another church member today who had an ingrown toenail removed. Her foot is all swollen and sore. And Ulzee has a nasty boil on her head of all places.

We were scheduled to have a special speaker for the ladies tomorrow. The special speaker was sick so I decided to re-schedule that meeting.

By God's grace, no one is so sick that they have been hospitalized or anything of that magnitude. We are just a bunch of sick people at home.

Quick update on Bob

I met with Bob today, and we talked for several hours. He still needs to humble himself and be teachable. He came to church this past Sunday; pray that he comes again this Sunday.

Also, I think I'm still recovering from my recent illness. Pray for me that I would recover completely soon and that I would be strengthened for my ministries on Sunday.

Weekly update

"In every thing give thanks." There are several nasty illnesses making the rounds in Mongolia including the normal flu, swine flu, and an unpleasant cold. Kristie caught her cold last Friday. I woke up on Saturday with a severe headache that heralded some illness. However, because I was unable to be sick on Saturday I took a Motrin and went to the church's activity. I felt good the rest of the day. During the activity, I fell into an icy stream along with Caleb. Caleb said smiling that I tried to drown him. The icy creek pictured to the right is the one we fell in.

I was unable to be sick on Sunday because we had a church business meeting and observed the Lord's Supper. I also had to fill in for Bill Patterson on Sunday night because he was sick with the flu.

On Monday I was busy trying to finish up some projects at the construction site.

So Tuesday was the first day that I could be sick; and sick I was. My head hurt and my whole body ached. But I was able to use the day in bed to read. I was very blessed by the opportunity to continue to read The Disciplines of a Godly Man. Caleb and Elsie seem to have caught this flu now too.

Pray that we will be healthy. It seems to me that I do not have time to be sick; however, God knows best.

Sunday update

The only thing that you can expect in life is the unexpected.

Sunday we had a good crowd out in the morning and a decent crowd in the evening despite the fact that the virulent H1N1 virus, nasty colds, and a severe flu bug thinned out the crowd. Still, those that we're healthy—and one that was not, more about him later—came out.

Afterwards we observed the Lord's Supper and held a church business meeting.

I had been covering for Bill Patterson on Sunday nights while he was away. I was eager for him to come back; he does such a good job of running the service. Bill returned on Wednesday morning and was at the church service on Sunday morning. But he shouldn't have come because he had the flu. He had fought it all day on Saturday and convinced himself Sunday morning that he could make it. However, he still isn't well. So he asked me to cover for him on Sunday night.

After the business meeting I met with Dashka. Hard times have been his lot since the summer began. With his wife's cancer, his own health problems, and four young children - he has plenty to keep his attention. He expressed to me his frustration with his own lack of spiritual growth. It is amazing to watch God work in people's hearts in ways that I cannot foresee or understand. I mentioned to Dashka that I've seen so much spiritual growth in him recently. Please pray for Dashka to be patient with his circumstances, his family, and himself.

I then went home to prepare for the evening service. God gave grace so that despite my lack of preparation during the week I was able to do a respectable job of leading the service. We had two first-time visitors in the evening as well. Praise the Lord.

Then after the service I had another counseling session; this time with a young man who thought that if he just had the use of $800 or so, he could work his plan and pay back the money within a year. I taught him that God wants us to depend on Him and not borrow money.

I've learned that Mongolians are full of good ideas. They often think that they have a "for sure way" to make money if only they could borrow some for a "short time." So it was a busy but good Sunday. To see growth in the lives of people to me is an encouragement.

Picture of the week

Once a month, we hold a fellowship after the English service. This week's picture is Elsie making a new friend at the fellowship.

Quote of the week

Let me reiterate what is central to my thesis and so overlooked in much academic cultural criticism. We were not suddenly transformed from customers to consumers by wily manufacturers eager to unload a surplus of [spectacularly inferior quality] products. We are many things, but what we are not are victims of capitalism. With few exceptions (food, shelter), our needs are cultural, not natural. We have created a surfeit of things because we enjoy the process of getting and spending. The consumption ethic may have started in the early 1900s and hit full tilt after the mid-century, but the desire is ancient. Whereas kings and princes once thought they could solve problems by possessing and amassing things, we now say, "Count us in." Whereas the Duchess of Windsor once said, "All my friends know that I'd rather shop than eat," we now say, "Hey, wait for me." – James B. Twitchell

Sunday update

Sunday went well for us. Both the Mongolian service in the morning and the English service in the evening were well-attended. We also had first time visitors in both services. After the evening service, we had a fellowship which is normally held once a month.

Ganpurev's trip to the countryside

Before Ganpurev left for the countryside, he picked up a handful of Gospel of John, a dozen or so Mongolian "This Was Your Life" tracts, and about 50 gospel tracts written by a missionary here in Mongolia. He said that he was able to pass out all the literature that he took with him. Many people also praised him for his "right" living which gave him opportunities to witness for Jesus Christ. Unfortunately, because he was attending a wedding many of the guests were not entirely sober when he told them about Jesus Christ. He remarked that although there is a lot of interest in Jesus Christ and the Christian faith among the people that he met no one wants to be the first to forsake their idols and turn to Jesus Christ. We need a powerful movement of the Holy Spirit to convict people of sin, righteousness, and judgment.

Tonga update

First, a BIG thank you to those who have been praying for Tonga. She's not out of the woods yet, so keep praying.

She finished a round of chemotherapy last week. When I visited her the day that she exited the hospital, she was in good spirits. But she has grown very thin. She told me that she's down to 88 pounds. She has had several rough days since the day that I saw her. However, she has not been re-admitted to the hospital.

Her husband Dashka also had a chance to witness to her on the way home from the hospital. He told me that she seems more open to hearing about Jesus Christ. Continue to pray for her salvation.

Teaching & preaching

Because I really enjoy teaching I occasionally take an offer to teach an English class at a Mongolian public school. I always try to help teachers that I know. Yesterday I had an opportunity to help a English language teacher who regularly attends on Sunday night.

Teaching religion at a Mongolian public school is illegal which is just as well since the most likely religion to be taught at a Mongolian public school is a false one. However, during my hour long class with these students, I was able to tell them in a five minute monologue about my Father. After all, I was not teaching religion, just providing a testimony. Below our the students who heard it.

What a picture taught me

I received this picture from a friend many, many years ago. It had some part in changing the course of my life—thank you Jacqui Simonet! I began to realize that I was making decisions each day that would affect my life ... some permanently. May it be a blessing to some of you.

Weekly update

Good things are going on right now. We have two couples who are meeting with Ganpurev and me regularly to study the Bible. Another young Christian lady is also being taught God's word in our home.

Bilgee recently left on a two week journey to his home aimag (like a state or province) to bring the good news of Jesus Christ to the countryside. Ganpurev and one of his few Christian relatives are in the countryside this week to attend a wedding. However, both of them are sure to be witnessing for Jesus Christ to the folks in their home aimag. Pray that the witness of these three men will be powerful and effective. It has always been a vision of mine to see these Mongolian people go back to the places from which they came to be a witness for Jesus Christ.

It is interesting to me that the Christian relative traveling with Ganpurev to the countryside is the same Sambil that the two of us once witnessed to with seemingly little effect. God used another friend to follow up with what we said and since that time Sambil has become a Christian. Now he gives added weight to the testimony that Ganpurev has showed his relatives.

The (dis)advantages of living in Ulan Bator

Some places have sun, surf, and sand. Ulan Bator has snow, smoke, and sand ... and the sand is usually blowing sand.

There are few places in Mongolia that do not experience strong winds. We are sparred the cyclones that come from the Pacific Ocean, and I'm not aware of tornadoes. However, high winds are not uncommon. In forested areas and steppes where the grasses provide ground cover, the wind is an annoyance. However, in the Gobi the wind whips the sand and dust into huge storms that travel as far as Korea and Japan. Housewives in Korea have complained to me about the "yellow clouds" of dust that we send from Mongolia and leave a fine film of dust on everything.

The winters in Mongolia can be brutal and living in the city has both positives and negatives. Sure, there is heat in most apartment buildings. But the heat is produced by two huge, coal-fired co-generation plants in the edge of town. Because most of the ger districts do not have connections to the city heating system, they burn large amounts of coal to heat their gers and shacks. The city of Ulan Bator also sits in a river valley surrounded by mountains. The result is that all that coal smoke is trapped in the valley. Coming into the city from a distance in the winter, one can see the grayish brown smog that wraps about the city like a blanket. Many people experience respiratory problems from this cloud, and the incidence of thyroid problems most likely caused by some of the chemicals in the coal is high in Ulan Bator.

These are not complaints on my part. Just observations about the place that we call home.

On the other hand, Ulan Bator is where the people are. Mongolia is the world's least densely populated country. If you want to get away from people, Mongolia is the place to come. Yet there are almost a million Mongolians packed into this valley. Yes, it may be dusty and smoky, but it is also filled with people. That's the reason that we are here.

Sunday update

I know from looking at my previous posts that it has been a while since I posted. Maybe this week will be different. I had set aside last week to focus on some Bible translation that I had committed to finish before my furlough begins in November. Instead a plethora of unimportant but urgent items demanded my attention. One fellow had trouble at work and needed advice and help. Our bathtub developed cracks that were leaking. And another fellow kept calling to ask for money. I never did get to spend the time that I wanted on translation. Maybe another week; it won't be this week.

There have been some minor victories to report from this previous week. The young couples that have been meeting to study the Bible continue to meet. They continue to be eager to look into God's word and to apply it to their lives.

Ganpurev was headed to the countryside to attend a wedding. I know that many of his relatives wanted to leave on Friday night or Saturday morning. However, Ganpurev told them that he could not leave until Sunday after the Mongolian service. I was proud of Ganpurev for taking such a stand. Many other Mongolians would have just bowed to their relatives' wishes.

Ganaa was back to church on Sunday. She told Kristie that her husband is "acting like a human being" now. He needs to be acting like a Christian. Continue to pray for peace in that family.