eNewsletter » November 2008

Dear Brethren,

November this year is historic.  It is not just the elections (important as they are), but also this is the month that our national leadership set aside a day for Thanksgiving to the Almighty God.  Americans live in a nation with unprecedented freedom to worship the Lord as the Scriptures and our consciences dictate.  No one can dictate how we do this, or when, why, or where – or if we choose NOT to worship.  Praise God for the manifold blessings of liberty, and let us pray that they continue and extend to every tribe, tongue, and nation.  There is a lost world to be reached, and by God’s Grace, we mean to reach it!

It is wonderful to be able to announce this month the appointment of Aaron and Nicole Shipe as Appointees to Tanzania, East Africa.  The Shipe family has five children, and are expecting a sixth early in 2009.  Lord willing, they will be joining Rodney and Lynn Myers in Tanzania in 2010.  This represents a significant answer to prayer; Praise the Lord for His Goodness!

On the home front, progress has been steady with Jared and Rebekah Stevenson.  Their support is almost in; Lord willing, they will be leaving for France at the end of this year, or shortly thereafter. Praise the Lord.  It has seemed a long time to the Stevenson family; while on prefield ministry their daughter Rosalyn was born.  God is Gracious, and we thank him for all of our ‘stops and starts.’  Progress is also reported with others who are on prefield ministry: Charlie and Bo Frink, and Nathan and Karen Frizzell.  We are thankful for all of these, and many more whom I have mentioned in earlier letters.

In the northeast United States, it has been unusually cold recently.  Due to the weather (as well as many other reasons), I normally like to make my visits to the South about this time of year.  It is my hope to see those missionaries which have struggled physically (Valerie Gay, wife of Michael, for instance), and others on their ‘home turf.’  Missionaries, like others, need encouragement and support from time to time, and we can do that by prayer, contacting them through the various means, and even simple acts of kindness (for their children, for instance).  Most important of all of these, of course, is prayer; ministry will never be truly effective without it.  Let us keep on Praying!

For the Missionaries,

Bruce P. Busch
General Director