I just got through with a tour of the Peru Bible College and was extremely impressed. God has blessed and things are in tremendous shape. The construction has advanced by leaps and bounds. It has to be some of the most impressive buildings in Arequipa. The way the business side of things is run is far away and above better than I ever did. I could not be prouder of our son, Chris, than I am. Things are being done really right.
As I looked at everything all I could think was I should have left sooner. If I had known that Chris and the team that works with him could have done such a good job I truly believe that I would have turned it over to him before I did. I really would like to invite you to come and see all the wonderful things that God is doing here.
I also just had the privilege to eat lunch with the Grace Baptist Church from Bridgeport, West Virginia. Pastor Jeff Vaughn and several of his people are here. Their church supported our family for 20 years as we worked here and we are excited to get to spend a few days with them and for them to see where their mission’s money has gone.
I hope that you will plan to make a trip to Arequipa to see the great work that God is doing. Thank you for praying for us and all that is to happen this week. Pray for the Youth Conference that starts tomorrow. I will keep you updated.
If you ever testify in court, you might wish you could have been as sharp as this policeman.He was being cross-examined by a defense attorney during a felony trial. The lawyer was trying to undermine the policeman’s credibility….
Q: “Officer — did you see my client fleeing the scene?”
A: “No sir. But I subsequently observed a person matching the description of the offender, running several blocks away.”
Q: “Officer — who provided this description?”
A: “The officer who responded to the scene.”
Q: “A fellow officer provided the description of this so-called offender. Do you trust your fellow officers?”
A: “Yes, sir. With my life.”
Q: “With your life? Let me ask you this then officer. Do you have a room where you change your clothes in preparation for your daily duties?”
A: “Yes sir, we do!”
Q: “And do you have a locker in the room?”
A: “Yes sir, I do.”Q: “And do you have a lock on your locker?”
A: “Yes sir.” Q: “Now why is it, officer, if you trust your fellow officers with your life, you find it necessary to lock your locker in a room you share with these same officers?” A: “You see, sir — we share the building with the court complex, and sometimes lawyers have been known to walk through that room.”The courtroom erupted in laughter, and a prompt recess was called.
The officer on the stand has been nominated for this year’s “Best Comeback” line — and we think he’ll win.
Well today was our first day back in Peru since we resigned and returned to the states at the end of last year. It was the longest that I have been out of the country since January of 1988. This morning I preached at 8 am at Faith then on to Smyrna at 9:30 and then from there we went to Hunter to get a tour of the new building that was just purchased beside the church. I had wanted to buy it several years ago but God just worked it out a few weeks ago. From there we returned to Faith and preached the second service. The church is doing wonderful. They are growing and reaching more people and God is blessing them financially. I am very proud of them and the work that Chris and Andria are doing there. It was wonderful to hear the great music and see so many old friends. One person made a profession of faith in the first service today.
After church at a little past noon we went to one of my favorite restaurants and had a wonderful meal before meeting with the pastors from 3 to 5. Then from there on to preach again at 6 pm. God gave us a wonderful day and I have enjoyed it immensely. Then on to a couple of hours of counseling and then a visit to the doctor to have them look at my knee and I am finally home. It has been a wonderful day and so I thank you for praying.
I think one of the most wonderful parts of the day was to hear how well things went at World Vision Baptist Church. Even though so many of our people were out of town the attendance was right where it would have been had I of been there. The church people worked very hard and we had 53 in Sunday School and 62 for church. Mark Coffey told me he was praying for 60 and God obviously answered his prayer. Thank you for doing your part to make it such a wonderful day. In a church as small as ours even one person that is absent is defiinitely missed but today we had 23 people who were not at the service. God obviously poured out his blessings.
I am also very thankful Tony Howeth who I am sure did a great job preaching all day and was such a blessing to our church. I thank God for His goodness today.
I just got off the phone with David and he and his family are fine. Obviously they are sad and will miss Mr Gates but knowing that he is in heaven is a great comfort. David was praying over his dad as he went home. To give you a few details here is a letter that April Hudson just sent out and we will keep you posted on more as it becomes available.
David Gates called me about 6pm tonight to let me know that his father had passed away roughly an hour before. David asked me to express to all of you how much he loves you and appreciates your prayers for his family during this difficult time. David truly wants all of you to know that he is thankful to have a team and Christian family that is there for him, the way all of you have been over the past few weeks. He is grateful to the Lord for your friendship and Love. He is holding up but it is very hard for him. He knows that his father is in a better place. He is comforted in knowing he is with the Lord and is no longer suffering.
Please keep David in your prayers in thoughts as they will be making arrangements over the next few days. I will let you know as soon as I hear something.
I arrived in Arequipa Saturday evening at 8:30. I left the Holt’s home in Santiago, Chile at 7:30 AM or 6:30 AM Peru time and flew north to Arica, Chile and then crossed the border to Tacna, Peru to catch a flight to Arequipa but arrived late and so had to take a 6 hour bus ride instead. I had two seats and so that was very comfortable for a bus.
Last night in Chile we had 138 people present and God really moved in the services. A total of 7 churches participated. God is really using His men there and I am very proud of them. Thank you so much for praying.
Tomorrow the schedule starts early preaching at 8, 9:15, 11, and 6 and then meeting with the pastors in the afternoon form 3 to 5. I ask you to pray that God will bless this special time here in Peru. Also pray for the services there in World Vision Baptist Church that God will continue to bless.
I just received the following email note from Daniel Fleming in Harbin, China letting us know that the group was on the move back to Beijing. Please continue to pray for them that God would work in each of their hearts and that He would call some to go to the country of China with the Word of God. I am honored that we have the privilege as a church in helping to open the eyes of others to the needs around the world. It is exciting to know that God is moving and working.
Our youth pastor, Trent Cornwell, and his wife Stephanie are part of this trip. I am honored to work with a young man who is full of passion to get the gospel to the world and is serving as a mobilizer to get as many to the field and work as he can.
Bro. Gardner,
I just sent the group off to Beijing. I think they had a great time here in Harbin. I wanted to let you know they all were great people all very mannerly, all having a great testimony. I am looking forward to them coming back in the future. If there is anything I can ever do for you please let me know.
God has surely blessed and we had a wonderful evening. I preached a message entitled “Now or Never” and Chris McBryar also preached a good message before I preached. God seemed to move in a very special way. There were 140 in attendance and they ran out of chairs and had to bring in children’s chairs. Over 25 have signed the banner stating that they have consecrated their lives to the Lord Jesus.
2 other pastors besides Jason and Aldo participated in the meeting tonight. God is on the verge of doing something big and I have definitely enjoyed being here and preaching in Spanish again. The church is packed. The people are friendly and the missionaries are some of God’s choicest servants.
Thank you for praying for us. I will update you one more time on the conference here as we have the last service tomorrow night.
Betty arrived in Lima, Peru today and had surgery on her gums. She will travel on to Arequipa on Friday and then I will join her on Saturday.
I want all the World Vision Baptist Church people to know that I love them and prayed very especially for the services. I still have no report on how it went but I am sure that you did great and that God blessed. I can’t wait to get home and to put into practice some of the things that God has given me since I have been here.
You don’t know how many people I’ve met who have said to me “I agree that more people need to go to the mission field, but I’ve never heard God tell me to go.”Well, the truth is that God has already told you to go in His Word. In fact, He commands you to go… “Go ye into all the world, and preach the Gospel to every creature.” ( Mark 16:15) That’s right… YOU ARE CALLED!
In fact, if you don’t go, you need a specific calling from God to stay home. Has God definitely told you not to “go” somewhere outside your country to preach the Gospel? If He hasn’t, then you’d better start praying WHERE to go, instead of IF you should go – for again, you’re already called!
2) “But God needs people to stay here to be a witness to those lost in America. There’s enough need right here!”
It is true that God has called some people to stay right where they are to be witnesses for Jesus in their daily lives and professions. But again, God is merciful and just. Since America has only about 5% of the world’s population, then only about 5% of the believers would really be called to stay in this country as a witness ( that’s only about 1 out of 20) while the rest of us should go into the parts of the world where there are almost 0% believers. (In Albania, for instance, there are only “a handful” of known believers in the whole country of 2.7 million people – less than 1/2 of 1/1000th percent!!)
3) “But God needs people to stay home and financially support those ministries and missionaries who are already all over the world. In fact, my church is already supporting some missionaries with my tithes and offerings.”
You should never have to worry about there not being enough Christians staying home to support missionaries! There will always be enough people around who will not answer the call to go – who will stay home and gladly just send a check (instead of themselves) to reach to lost. After all, nothing is easier to give than money (except nothing!).This does not mean that everyone who stays home is selfish and disobedient. As I’ve already said, there are some who know they are definitely called to stay, and they are doing exactly what God would have them do here, while they greatly support other ministries. I’m just saying that there will always be plenty of people around to financially support the pitifully few who answer the call and obey God.
4) “But my family and friends would frown upon me going.”
“He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me…” (Matt. 10:37) God is very clear about whose approval we should seek. It’s shocking to me how even Christian parents react when their children say that they’d like to go for training as a full-time Christian worker. “A missionary! Are you crazy?!” It’s as if they’ve announced they’d like to be a thief or a prostitute.It is true that God wants us to honor our parents and love our friends, but He has also made it clear in His Word that this honor and love must not exceed our love and obedience to Him and His calling on our lives. We should always try our best to explain God’s call to our families, lovingly and patiently, but the bottom line must be that we will obey Christ no matter what the cost. We should always try to get our family’s understanding and blessing when God makes our ministry clear to us, but we must also always be ready to leave “houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or farms” for His sake “and for the Gospel’s sake.” (Mark 10:29)
5) “But I need to stay here and lead my relatives to the Lord first. If I go somewhere else, how can they get saved?”
There was once a man who wanted to follow and obey Jesus, but he said to Him, “Lord, permit me first to go and bury my father.” Jesus’ answer to him was, “Follow me; and allow the dead to bury their own dead.” (Matt. 8:21-22)This may sound cruel of Jesus not to allow the man to have a funeral for his dead father – but most likely, the man’s father had not died yet. The phrase “wait until I bury my father” was sometimes used to say “wait until my father has died.” What he was really saying was, “I’d like to follow You now, but You see, my parents wouldn’t understand. Please wait until after they’ve died, and then I’ll be more than glad to follow You!”
Jesus’ answer was appropriate… “allow the dead to bury their own dead.” In other words, “allow the unbelievers to take care of themselves, and follow Me!” Jesus doesn’t want us to throw our usefulness away because our relatives are not yet saved. The greatest witness they can see is you fully obeying the call of God on your life. Jesus didn’t want this man’s father to be buried – He wanted the young man to follow Him, and then maybe even the man’s father would come to know Him too. Obedience is truly greater than sacrifice (I Samuel 15:22) – when we obey God, He takes care of all our other obligations. (Matthew 6:33)
6) “But I need to get an education first.”
I don’t believe that God wants every Christian to go to college just because, “Well, everyone goes to college now, unless they’re too dumb!” You shouldn’t go to college unless God has definitely called you to go. Just like everything else in our Christian lives, He’s the Master, we’re the servants. He’s the General, we’re the soldiers. If you’re really a Christian, you’re at the beck and command of the King. If you’re not at His command, then you’re really not a Christian.Yes, God does call some people to go to college. Sometimes it’s to get training for a ministry calling He’s made clear to them. For instance, if you know what country you’re called to, perhaps God would lead you to learn the language and culture somewhat before you go (although the very best place to learn is within the country itself – it’s a definite “crash course”!)
Of course, another reason God might lead you to college is to minister to people right there on the campus – as well as to mature emotionally and spiritually. But be careful! Make sure you’re there in direct obedience to God, or else you’re wasting your time – and His.
7) “But I need to get married first, and then maybe my mate will want to serve God full-time on the field, rather than me going alone.”
Nothing could be a more foolish reason for putting off obeying God now. God does not want you to look for a husband or wife, He wants you to be married to Him, and trust Him for any mate He may bring into your life. I know of many single Christians serving Jesus overseas who are trusting Him for everything. And some of the most beautiful stories of God’s grace I’ve ever heard are told by couples who went to the mission field single, and then God led them to marry another whose heart was also fully devoted to serving Him there. Remember, “Your Father knows what you need before you ask Him.” (Matthew 6:8) Trust Him!
“But I have a family to support. God doesn’t want me to neglect them, does He?”
The Word of God says, “Seek first His kingdom and His righteousness; and all these things shall be added to you.” (Matthew 6:33) If you can trust God for your needs, you can certainly trust Him for your family’s needs. You would never be foolishly “neglecting” your family’s needs by obeying God’s call to go. God will show you the way. I know of so many families – some with many children – who are on the field right now, trusting God for their needs while they minister in His name. I have never heard of ONE occurrence where God didn’t meet the needs of one of His servants and their families. As King David said… “I have been young, and now I am old; yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken, or his descendants begging bread. All day long he is gracious and lends; and his descendants are a blessing.” (Psalm 37:25-26)
9) “But the mission field is dangerous. God would not have me put myself or my family in danger of disease or native hostilities, would he?”
“Why is the Lord bringing us into this land, to fall by the sword? Our wives and our little ones will become plunder; would it not be better for us to return to Egypt?” (Numbers 14:3) It is all a matter of our priorities – do we look at the temporary or the eternal in making our choices? It’s true that you will probably be in more physical danger on the mission field than you would be in the suburbs of America, but that is part of the cost that we need to count when it comes to serving God. The question should not be, “Will I be kept safe wherever I go?” but rather, “What is on the Lord’s heart for me to do?”If Jesus decided to go the way of least pain, He would have never gone to the cross. There is no place of greater blessing for you than in the center of God’s will. You must stop to count the cost, but remember one thing – the privilege of serving God always outweighs the price! “If anyone wishes to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. For whoever wishes to save his life shall lose it; but whoever loses his life for My sake and the Gospel’s shall save it.” (Mark 8:34-35)
10) “Although in the past most countries freely allowed foreign missionaries to come, most people in other lands now resent them. Why should I go where I’m not welcomed?”
Did you welcome the Gospel before you were saved? The Word says that we should save some, “snatching them out of the fire,” (Jude 23) Some people just don’t want to be saved! That’s exactly why we need to go to them. The more unwelcome, the better. If they resent Americans, then you have an opportunity to show them that Christian Americans can be humble with the love of Jesus in their hearts. For the Word says, “He who is wise wins souls.” (Proverbs 11;30)
11) “But I could not afford to get the training, and raise the necessary finances to place myself (or my family) on the field.”
Don’t worry, God’ll help raise the money you need. Wherever God guides, He supplies – even if it means helping you get a job! Problems and worries about finances are usually only a surface excuse when it comes to obeying God to go. In your heart you know He’ll make a way for you!
12) “But I don’t have any special talents or abilities that would qualify me to be a missionary.”
Then you’re just the person God is looking for! Sure God can use nurses, teachers, accountants, and mechanics on the field, but it always blesses God to greatly use the one who seemingly has nothing to offer. It is this person who has the opportunity of purely representing Jesus in the endless “common” tasks that are part of the daily life of a missionary. “When I am weak, then I am strong.” (II Corinthians 12:10; also see I Corinthians 1:26-31)
13) “But how could I commit myself for years and years to go to the field without having a chance to see what it would be like?”
It is true that in past generations a foreign missionary had to make almost a lifetime commitment before he could go to the field. Then in most cases, he had to go to college for at least four years, and then seminary for two to four years before he could even begin his missions training and service. But today there are missionary organizations that have short-term programs for people who want to receive training and find out what serving God in other countries is like. These programs last from a few weeks to a few years in length. So now there is an opportunity to “take a look” before making a much longer commitment.
14) “But God wants me to stay in this country and prosper. The reason the rest of the world is so poor and unconverted is because their heathen religions and idolatry have caused them to live in ignorance and poverty, without God’s blessing.”
This has to be THE most selfish reasoning I’ve ever heard for not going – and I’ve heard it! Of course they live in ignorance and poverty, that’s just the reason you should go – to bring the enlightenment that comes from knowing the truth about Jesus, and to bring them the true riches of knowing Christ. If you don’t believe that the reason God has blessed you with abundance in this country is so you can be a blessing to others – then you have never understood the Gospel of Jesus Christ! “Freely you received, freely give.” (Matthew 10:8)
15) “I’m just not ready to make that kind of a sacrifice and commitment.”
Ah! That’s just the point. That’s probably the underlying reason for almost every one of the above objections. In fact, you might just as well have said, “I’m not willing.” You need to decide whether or not you are a disciple of Jesus – that is the question. If you are His disciple, then “you are not your own…you have been bought with a price.” (I Cor. 6:19-20) And if you truly love Him, then you will not feel bondage, you will feel incredible excitement at being chosen to represent Him in the world! To be a servant of Jesus Christ, an ambassador, a missionary, is the highest calling a man or woman can attain to!
God blessed tremendously tonight. Jason asked all of us to pray for over 100 and God sent 115 people. Then a 23 year old young man accepted Jesus as his personal Savior. It was his third time to be in the church and so exciting to see God work. Then a young man was also called to preach.
Lori Holt has become quite the piano player since she arrived in Chile. It is wonderful to see her doing whatever it takes to get the work of God done here.
Jason Kenney preached a good message. Jason Holt is a very good translator.
I ask you to please be praying for the services here. Pray that God will work in hearts and lives and that He will provide young men and women to begin studying in the Bible School that Jason and Also will be starting.
Also check out the web page and see that we are now featuring the missionary of the week and I want you to keep up with each of them.
Betty, my wife, is on her way to Peru right now and is sitting in the Miami airport. Thanks so much for praying.
Dick Frost was my first field director while serving as a Missionary to Peru with Macedonia World Baptist Missions. He just sent me the following joke and though I hardly ever forward things I thought this one was good enough to get a place here.
A very self-important college freshman attending a recent football game took it upon himself to explain to a senior citizen sitting next to him why it was impossible for the older generation to understand his generation.
”You grew up in a different world, actually an almost primitive one,” the student said, loud enough for many of those nearby to hear.
“The young people of today grew up with television, jet planes, space travel, man walking on the moon, our spaceships have visited Mars. We have nuclear energy, electric and hydrogen cars, computers with light-speed processing ….and,” pausing to take another drink of his beverage……
The Senior took advantage of the break in the student’s litany and said, “You’re right, son. We didn’t have those things when we were young……..so we invented them.
Now, you arrogant little moron, what are YOU doing for the next generation?”
“But I have a family to support. God doesn’t want me to neglect them, does He?” 
