Some news from Mongolia

I found out this week that Bilgee and Saikhnaa are expecting their first child. I rejoice with them in this good news.

Weekly update

We spent Christmas Eve with my family and Christmas Day with Kristie's family. It was a blessing to be with loved ones during the Christmas season. This week Kristie's grandparents are traveling from Idaho to spend some time with us. We are also glad to be in the Portland area during Christmas because the temperatures are much warmer here. Christmas Day in Ulan Bator the high was -15 F and the low was -40.

I have been busy with preparations to start traveling and some speaking opportunities at Westgate Baptist Church. It feels so comforting to minister in my native language.

The church in Ulan Bator, Mongolia continues to have good attendance. Please pray for the Pattersons this week. I'm sure that there is a certain loneliness in being in Mongolia at this time of year.

God's provision for a vehicle

One of the great needs for missionaries is for a vehicle to use during the ministry in the United States. Most missionaries are back for a year or less. Often they are financially strapped: these are not people making six figure incomes that can afford to purchase a vehicle outright that they only intend to use for some months.

Some missionaries borrow and commit to large monthly payments to purchase a reliable vehicle. There are some people that work to provide vehicles for missionaries who are in the States. However, I am not aware of anyone like that in our part of the country.

God has been gracious and provided a van for us through a man in our church. It is a comfortable van and easily accommodates the whole family. We thank God for His goodness to us.

Quote of the week

"Once biblical authority is surrendered it leads to the most undesirable consequences. It will end in apostasy at last. It is my opinion that it is next to impossible to stop the process of theological deterioration once inerrancy is abandoned." — Harold Lindsell (quoted in Promise Unfulfilled: The Failed Strategy of Modern Evangelicalism by Rolland McCune).

Family picture

Wow! It has been too long since I updated the site. We have been busy at Westgate Baptist Church since our arrival. The children are getting adjusted to attending school rather than home school. I have preached twice, covered as a substitute teacher once at the Christian school (I love to teach!). And Kristie has been holding everything together while moving into a new home. According to my count, we have rented or owned seven different apartments since we were married fourteen years ago.

I have included the most recent family picture taken since we arrived in Oregon. All my dates are filling up fast. There are not as many dates when you only plan to be in the United States eight months instead of a year.

I will be trying to update this blog more regularly now that I am back on my feet. So check back often for updates.

Weekly update

We are now in Oregon. Westgate Baptist Church was so kind to help us move in. Many families participated in donating furniture and household items so that we moved directly into a duplex that we are renting for our time in the U.S. Also, a man at Westgate Baptist Church provided a van for us to use during our time in the States. We are all very grateful for the Lord's bountiful provision.

The kids, Kristie and I are truly grateful for the chance to be with family during Thanksgiving and Christmas. My brothers, who live in Alaska, will also be able to travel down to be with us. Kristie's brothers live in Oregon, and we have been able to see them.

Arrival in the U.S.

It has certainly been too long since I posted to my blog. Sorry for the complete silence.

We arrived in the United States without any trouble on Wednesday. The trip to Oregon was uneventful—just like we like it. We will be in North America until late July, serving at Westgate, reporting to our churches, and enjoying time with family.

I am still struggling with jet lag which is why I am typing this at 2 in the morning.

Sunday update

The services of this previous Sunday were a victory to me. We have been trying to make the transition from Kristie and I doing most of the planning and work to the Mongolians doing most of it. In that regard this previous Sunday was a complete success. Someone was there early to open up so that by the time I arrived twenty minutes before the service, the church was open, the lights were on, and a greeter was there to welcome people. Without prompting, Bilgee started off the service with Bible reading and call to worship. Then Dashka led the singing. Finally, faithful Ganpurev preached the sermon. Later I would teach a Bible lesson to the adults. Bill Patterson will be taking my teaching responsibilities while I am away. I was grateful to God to see the Mongolians taking their responsibilities seriously and being in their places.

Bob was there again for the second Sunday in a row. This is the first time that he has come to church two Sundays in a row in perhaps ten months. And he was in attendance despite the fact that he had experienced a significant disappointment in the previous week that I knew he could have used as an excuse to not attend church.

We will be returning to the States in two weeks. Anytime we leave Mongolia to spend an extended period in the States, there are so many details to be considered: packing, putting items in storage, arranging for bills to be paid, arranging for plants to be watered and birds to be fed. Please pray for Kristie and me as we try to take all these details into account during the next two weeks.

We have a Mongolian friend who will be traveling with us from Mongolia to the United States and spending about ten days with us in Oregon. I know it would be a treat for some of you at Westgate to host him for a dinner and ask him questions about himself and Mongolia.

The cold weather is upon us

Every year this happens: the weather starts to turn cold, and I think to myself—I can handle this cold weather. And then the weather turns really cold. The first, I can handle this kind of cold weather has finally arrived. We have awoken the past two mornings to temperatures below zero. That is -17〫for those of you used to Celsius.

The weather is predicted to warm up into the low forties some this week before dropping into the twenties for a high by the weekend.

Still, as I mentioned before this is the I can handle it type of cold. In a month or so—after we leave—temperatures will plunge into below zero for a high and -30 or even -40 for a low. At -40 it does not matter whether you are using Fahrenheit or Celsius. It is the same temperature. And that's cold!

Sometimes weekly quote

"Whitefield and Wesley might preach the Gospel better than I. But they cannot preach a better Gospel." - Spurgeon