Let me begin by thanking you for your prayers. I have been challenged recently to be certain that my prayers are aligned with God's will rather than simply tell God what it is that I want. In that same spirit of aligning our prayers with God's will, let me mention a few prayer requests.
Joy: David says in the Psalms: "Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation," and joy is one part of the fruit of the Spirit. During our recent trials with poor health and significant lack of spiritual interest among those to whom we minister, I cannot say that I exhibited much joy. Other fruits of the Spirit perhaps were more evident. Please pray that our joy regardless of our circumstances would be evident to those around us.
Discerning God's will: all of us face choices every day. Jeremiah says, "O LORD, I know that the way of man is not in himself: it is not in man that walketh to direct his steps." Here is a man who realizes that we need God's leading every day and in every activity. However, we are currently facing some decisions that will have more long-term effects than most of the decisions that we face. For example, in the next several months I will be making decisions about the property and building, about the proper balance between pursuing professing Christians and seeking out new contacts, the continuation of the Bible institute, and other decisions that will have an impact that may extend even beyond my personal ministry in Mongolia. As Hudson Taylor said so aptly, "We can make the best plans we can and hope they succeed. We can make our plans and ask God to bless them. We can ask God what He wants us to do, and then obey!" I intend to follow the third method and ask you to join me in prayer asking that I will clearly discern God's will and have the courage and fortitude to follow it.
Hudson Taylor also once said, "Unless there is an element of risk in our exploits, there is no need for faith." Maybe I need to increase the risk level a bit.
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