Urgent request for Prayer and Support

Folks
Most of you know of our support for Moses in Uganda. We have been sending him money and Gospel tracts for over one year. He has reached so many with the Gospel. He is in urgent need of our prayers and our financial support. I was first notified of his illness on April 27th when I got this message from Pastor Steve Dollar:

I thought he was on the trip to produce our film about AIDS Orphans but apparently he fell ill during the trip.  He is in the hospital with typhoid and malaria.  He has to pay for each day in the hospital plus any drugs or other medication used. The cost will be several hundred dollars.  This is an urgent plea for funds to you and to all those you know. 

Moses had been released from the hospital. However, he has now been re-admitted. 
Please see the forwarded messages from Pastor Steve and also from Moses’ brother.
Would you please pray? Would you please dig deep? Would you please forward this message to your prayer partners? Your support checks can be made out to Grace Bible Church with “Moses hospital” in the memo line and mailed to:
Pastor Steve Dollar
Grace Bible Church
2355 Stoney Battery Road
Troutville, VA 24175
What follows is the email thread from Pastor Steve Dollar and Moses’ brother.

Dear Friends of Moses;

 I am afraid that I do not have good news.  Moses returned home but did not improve.  They have admitted him to another hospital.  The family is out of money, even for food.  The hospital will not provide the needed medicines until they are paid for.  It seems the first hospital did not provide the medicine that they said they provided.

We have no idea of how horrible the medical care can be in some third world country.  I would suggest thay we also add our country’s health care system to our prayer list.  If we degenerate, we could see the same sort of problems here.

I have included a couple of emails from Moses’ brother, Arthur, so you will get the true sense of what is going on.

I know that I keep asking and I am so proud of you that you keep responding with giving.  May I ask you once again to dig deep?  This may well be his life we are talking about.

Pastor Steve

Dear Pastor Steve! My Brothers health is scaring us. for a couple of days after leaving the hospital hea semmed as though he was recovering but for the last two days he is complaining of severe Headache, stomachache followed by diarrhoea. this morning he resumed Vomiting he has no apetite and feels so weak. 

i called his Doctor and suggested that ma be we could change the Hospital because he thinks there is something he refered to as S. Typhi to be still in his Body.

we plan to take him to another Hospital yet we dont have any money left for food, and much more for his treatment. we need your prayers.

we dont know what is happening but we really want to take him to a better hospital than he was in. we pray that God will Give us Grace and bring his health Back to normal. we pray he will give us Good Doctors. this doctor thinks some of the needed drugs was not administered to him or properly.

i have been writting to you to tell you about the situation but seems you havent recieved them i dont know whether you will get this letter if so please let me know.

God bless you.

Arthur

 

Good Morning Pastor Steve!

i would wish to inform you that Moses was admitted at St. Johns Hospital on Tuesday evening after having trouble in Breathing. his condition is not well. we dont have Money for his medication and everything necessary at the hospital. we really need your support. 

May God bless you,

Arthur


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The evidence of Grace through faith

Todd sent me the following email along with permission to share it:

Hello brother’s & sisters in Christ,

 “For by grace you have been saved through faith & that not of yourselves. It is the gift of God, not works lest anyone should boast” Ephesians 2:8,9.

 I have noticed in my study of God’s word that very often, if not always, when we see a promise or blessing of God it is connected to a corollary condition that secures the legitimacy of that promise or blessing in a person’s life. Here are some examples for your edification. I will use a (P), for promise & (C) for condition.   

 Romans 8:1(P)” There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are (C) in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit.” 

Colossians 1:21-23 (P) ” And you who once were alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now He has reconciled in the body to present you holy and blameless, and above reproach in His sight (C) – if in-deed you continue in the faith, grounded and steadfast, and are not moved away from the hope of the gospel which you heard.”

2nd Peter 1 8-10 (P)” For these things are yours and abound, you will be neither barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. For he who lacks these things is shortsighted, even to blindness, and has forgotten that he was cleansed from his old sins. (C) Therefore, brethren, be even more diligent to make your call and election sure, for if you do these thing you will never stumble.”

1st Corinthians 15:1,2 (P) ” Moreover, brethren I declare to you the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received and in which you stand, by which also you are saved, (C) if you hold fast that word which I preached to you – unless you believed in vain.”

John 15 :7 (C) ” If you abide in Me and My words abide you, (P) you shall ask what you will and it shall be done unto you.”

1st John 2:3-6 (P)”Now by this we know that we know Him,(C) if we keep His commandments. He who says he know Him and does not keep His commandments is a liar and the truth is not in him. (P) But whoever keeps His word truly the love of God is perfected in him. By this we know that we are in Him.” (C) He who says that he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as He walked.”

 Finally, the age old debate. If you are saved, are you always saved? Do you have eternal security? It is the once saved always saved question. The answer is yes. The condition is, if you are truly saved. This question comes from this passage in John. Notice the condition. John 10:27-28  (P)” My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, (C) and they follow Me. (P) “And I give them eternal life and they will never perish; neither will anyone snatch them out of My hand.

 I want to conclude by leaving you with this disclaimer. In every one of these examples where we see a condition that secures the legitimacy of the promise in an individual’s life. Never,ever is the condition the means of receiving the promise or blessing. The condition is the evidence of receiving the promise or blessing. It is the manifestation and the work of the Holy Spirit of God – working in one’s life. So lets go back to our 1st verse in Ephesians 2:8, 9 and add verse 10. (P) ” For by grace you have been saved through faith and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works lest anyone should boast.” For we are His workmanship created in Christ Jesus (C) for good works, which God had prepared beforehand that we might walk in them.

 In closing, let’s not assume that an individual is a Christian just because he or she says so. If Christ has really taken up residence in a person, you will see the manifestation of a work of the Spirit in that person. You will see a changed life. Otherwise, we would have to conclude that Christ is not a wonderful Savior. Sanctification is a part of  salvation; as a process, while we are still in this body. We know that Christ is a wonderful Savior! Therefore, if one claims to know Christ and there is no evidence of salvation or sanctification. Who is responsible? There are only 2 options. The individual or Jesus. We know that Jesus is our great Savior and He will complete the work of sanctification in a true believer. Therefore, we can be sure that if a person is truly saved and knows Christ, we will see he or her change in a way that will glorify God. 

 2nd Corinthians 5:17 “If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. Old things have passed away. Behold all things have become new.”         

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Walter and the Cross

Check out this story of how Walter was saved by “the man with the cross.”

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Relationships and Priorities

So some of you may know that Carl and I are praying about whether or not to home school our youngest.  He will be in 5th grade next year.  If you know Carl and I you also likely know that we are exact opposite decision makers.  I like the quick emotional decision making process and he likes thee thought out have every detail before making a decision.  This is why we make a great team.  He brings me back to reality and I help him see how the decision could effect other peoples lives and feelings.

Thus, I have been researching homeschooling for quite a while so i have all of the information so that we can both be comfortable with what ever decision we make.  It has been really good for me to go through this process as i have learned a lot about it. God has really been laying on my heart lately that I need to be available for my kids on their time not mine.   I have learned through my homeschool research that part of homeschooling is about building relationships with your kids.  If I want my boys to grow up and be GREAT parents I need to demonstrate to them what that looks like.  I tend to be a serious Martha…..too busy doing things that don’t matter in the big picture but have to be done anyway.  God is really convicting me of this and showing me I need to be available like Mary was.  Not only for him but for my husband,  kids, friends, etc.  This process started a year ago about this time when I gave up volunteering at the youngest school.  I didn’t realize then that it was more than my husband needing me to be home.  The picture is MUCH bigger.   I need to be available for God to use me and not so busy that I don’t have time to be a vessel for God to use.

Last Friday Carl and I went to do some more research on homeschool curriculum and see it for our selves. Trying to get a better handle on what it is all about.  WOW! Was I totally surprised.  There is so much out there.  It just happened that one of the guest speakers was Ken Ham of Answers in Genesis and he was teaching on defending your faith.  It was amazing. Carl went to all 3 of his talks.  I made one but was really amazed.  The stuff they have out is AWESOME!  If you haven’t checked it out you should. They have great resources.  Anyway- A few weeks ago we started Brendan on the E100 bible reading plan.  He reads a chapter of it a day.  He has had some interesting thoughts and expressed interest in other evangelism etc recently.  Since Carl was leaving to go out of town to spend Mothers Day with his mom I decided to take Brendan back to thee conference on Saturday to hear Ken Ham speak.  I was not sure how he would handle it but new if was worth a shot.  He and I got up drove to Arlington, TX and spent the day hanging out, developing our relationship, and learning how to defend our faith.  He got a book that has 35 commonly asked questions about the Christian faith and how to answer them bibically.  I was amazed at how much he was soaking in and how excited about this he was.

I will forever be changed by that day.  The memories we made, the conversations we had, the times we shared….all that would have been lost had God not been slowly and patiently helping me to see that spending time with the poeple he put in my ife is more important than any task that is waiting for me.
Last night we had an impromptu Nerf gun fight in our house and i took the opportunity to put down the peeler and knife and joined in on the fun.  Oh the laughter and memories we made.

If you have kids young or old i want to encourage you to be available when they ask.  Put down the computer, phone, peeler/knife, what ever is keeping you from them and engage with them.  I know I will from now on.  Oh how I wish I would have learned this lesson much earlier.  I can’t wait to see what other GREAT experiences God has for my family!

Thank you God for caring about me enough to show me what I was missing out on and give me more opportunities to experience the blessings of the family you have given me.

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Foundational Messages

Bezeugen Ministries is an ally of Living Waters Ambassadors Alliance. As such, we subscribe to the foundational messages of Living Waters known as Hell’s Best Kept Secret and True and False Conversions. In order that we are of one accord when we are witnessing on the streets, we ask all those who go out to evangelize with us to listen to these messages and then indicate that you are in agreement with them.

Please click the links below to listen to each message.

Once you have listened to these messages, please contact Carl with an email indicating you have listened to the messages, agree with them and a short testimony of your conversion to Christ. Thanks!

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500 Logistics for West End Team #4

On Saturday night following the Psalm 119 conference will be The Five Hundred in DFW. If you are not already registered, please sign up online.

We will meet at 6:45PM at Market and Corbin (point C) on the map below. From 6:45-7PM we will pray and organize. Then you will be free to witness, pass out tracts, open air preach, etc until 9PM. At 9PM we will meet back at Market and Corbin for prayer and wrap up. Those that want to stay beyond 9PM are welcome to stay longer.

The venues for the West End are as follows:

  • Dealey Plaza (site A on the map)
  • DART train station (Pacific between Lamar and Market)
  • Corner of Ross and Market (point B)
  • Corner of Market and Corbin (point C)
  • American Airlines Center will host Nickleback in concert. A good place to preach there is at the SW corner of Houston and Olive (point D). This is about half a mile walk from the West End.

The following map shows the logistics.

View Larger Map

Parking
There is a parking lot at Market and Corbin. I believe it is $4. To save a little money, there is a lot at the NW corner of Ross and North Houston where you can park for $2.50. At this parking lot you put exact change into a box. Bring singles and quarters. There is some free parking in the area at meters which mostly are not in effect after 6PM. Check the meter when you park there if you choose that option.

Dealey Plaza
We should be able to use amplification at Dealey Plaza. There is a small stage like area by the grassy knoll which is about 50 yards from the big X in the street showing where JFK was assassinated. There are some videos on my YouTube account showing us preaching in that area before.

DART Train Station

The area in the DART Train Station between Lamar and Market and also the DART transfer station on the east side of Lamar is DART property. Bezeugen Ministries has registered with DART and we have permission to engage in “expressive activity”. A summary of the policy is:
  1. You cannot block access to a DART vehicle or facility when handing out material
  2. You may not pass out material on board a DART vehicle or inside a DART building (like the transfer station)
  3. People have the right to refuse receipt of your material
  4. You may not place material on vehicles or post it on DART property.

If you intend to engage in evangelism in the DART station, please be sure to obtain a copy of our permission form from one of the team leaders.

Ross and Market

This should be a good corner to open air preach, distribute tracts and engage in one on one conversations. This area is public property. Probably we can not use any amplification. Please comply with any police directions.

Market and Corbin
This will be our main area. We will have a leader positioned at this point at all times. Please meet here at 6:45 and then meet back here at 9PM. We will provide bottles of water for our team members.

American Airlines Center – SE Corner of Houston and Olive
This is about a half mile walk from the West End. There is a Nichleback concert that starts at 6:15. However, with warm up groups, it is feasible that the crowd will still be coming when we start at 7PM. Amplification is allowed on the SE corner of Houston and Olive. Tract distribution is allowed around the American Airlines Center provided you stay within about five feet of the streets. We have open air preached around the American Airlines Center with various levels of resistance from the security of the American Airlines Center. It is best to limit yourselves to one on ones and tract distribution right around the arena and to do the open air at the SE corner of Houston and Olive.

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Week in review

This has been an amazing week for the ministry. Let me give you a quick review.

On Thursday, May 6th, it was the National Day of Prayer. We joined about 40 others in front of City Hall in Carrollton, TX to pray for our nation. It was an amazing time. People were calling out to God for people to repent, for leaders to repent, for churches to repent and for America to come back to God. Afterwards, we were talking with some people and decided that we should pray for our nation together more than just once a year. So since National Day of Prayer is the first Thursday of May, we decided we would meet at the City Hall the first Thursday of every month! The next one is June 3rd. Craig has decided to have a prayer time at his office in Dallas. And another brother has already mentioned they will do it in Ohio as well. If you are interested in participating in a First Monday prayer for the company at your City Hall or office, then post a comment with where you will be. If there is enough interest, I’ll put up a map on the Bezeugen website.

On Friday night, Mande, Brendan and I headed to downtown Dallas to check out the logistics for this Saturdays The Five Hundred outreach. We parked at Elm and North Houston near the book depository. This is near Dealey Plaza where JFK was assassinated. See point A on the map. We talked to a couple people. One of the vendors told us that on Saturday nights there are still people there until dark. We should be able to preach there even with an AMP! We then walked to the DART train station (Pacific between Lamar and Market on the map) where I handed out about 100 gospel tracts and had a couple of one on one conversations. You may have heard of our new tract that says on the front “If you’d like to reject the Gospel of Jesus Christ, please dispose of this card.” One gal was so upset that she literally ripped the card into at least ten pieces and then threw it in the trash can. Once she settled down, we did have a brief conversation where she (and her two friends) heard the Gospel. Then shortly later a gentlemen named Ray heard the Gospel after receiving the same card. He was totally open to the message of God’s grace available through repentance and faith in Jesus. He said he was going to go home to call out to God! at that point we walked up through the West End on Market Street. There should be some good places to preach and open air along there like at Market and Ross (point B) and Market and Corbin (point C). We did not walk up to American Airlines Center, however, on Saturday there will be a Nickleback concert there which will be a good place for people to open air preach and hand out tracts.

View Larger Map

On Saturday, I was in Oklahoma City with Shane, Brady and Adam. We first preached in the open air at the Carnality Ball. Brady had received a flier about the Carnality Ball about a month earlier and had been checking out the logistics. He beat us there. When Shane and I arrived there was no one outside and Brady said everyone had already go in. He asked me what I thought we should do. “Preach”, I said. So we set up the box and Shane’s Half Miler hailer. After prayer, I got up on the box first. When I started preaching, I think there was only one person outside of the farmers market building across the street. The amazing thing was that within a couple minutes, not only did a crowd form across the street, but the crowd presented some of the most antagonistic mocking of the Gospel that I’ve ever heard or seen. Two guys that were painted head to toe, came across the street and asked if they could take pictures with me while I was on the box. I agreed. Another guy came over with the video. And there were other videos from across the street in our direction. Please pray that when their videos are used on YouTube that the Gospel is not muted and many will hear even later. Shane, Brady, Adam and I took turns on the box. For over 90 minutes the Gospel was proclaimed. Across the street the group of mockers rotated. For most of it they formed a small three piece band with a clarinet, drumming on a plastic storage box and playing a symbol. They also sung songs and chants that mocked God. At one point they tried to drown us out by chanting about “Macaroni and Cheese!” The sight broke my heart. I dropped to my knees in prayer. As it got dark, we decided to go to Bricktown. At Bricktown, Shane, Brady and Adam preached down by the canal. I handed out a lot of tracts and had many one on one conversations.

On Monday, Craig, Todd and I went to Brookhaven College in Dallas over lunch time. We handed out about 75 bottles of water, over 100 Gospel tracts and were pretty much continually involved in conversations with the college kids for an hour and fifteen minutes. While sharing the Gospel with a group of four young people, I took them through the Law. When I asked if they had every lied, one gal said sincerely, “I guess I am going to hell!” I told her that Revelation 21:8 said that she was right. I shared a couple of more commandments with them just so they knew that was not the only issue. They agreed they would go to hell. She said it was hopeless because she could not undo what she had already done. I said, yes, we all deserve to go to hell. I then explained that there is a mediator between man and God – Jesus. When I finally told her that if she were to repent and trust in Jesus alone, that God would remove all of her sin and He wold see her “white as snow.” Her face absolutely shown when I shared that. I don’t know if she came to faith right there on the bench she was sitting on. But, she thanked me for the time. And since she does not have a Bible, I mailed one to her!

Looking to the week ahead, we have plans to share the Gospel in the Dallas West End on Thursday, door to door Thursday night, in Dallas for the 500 on Saturday night, at Arbor Hills for Project Ezra on Sunday and then back to Dallas on Monday at lunch. It should be a fun week serving the Lord.

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Half Price!

See that little FatCow icon over at the side of the BLOG? When you click it, it takes you to a special offer for web hosting. The offer is HALF PRICE of the regular web hosting fees. You get a great web hosting service for your ministry, school, church or business. At the same time, you help Bezeugen spread the Gospel? Through the affiliate program, we give 100% of the commissions from this program to the ministry. A win win!

Take action today. The HALF PRICE sale is now until the end of May!

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First Thursday – Prayer for the Nation

Today was the National Day of prayer. We joined about 40 other believers in front of the Carrollton (TX) City Hall and prayed. We prayed for our leaders. We prayer for our nations. We prayed for repentance. We prayed that our churches would preach Biblically. It was a blessed time. Afterwards we enjoyed some fellowship with the other believers that were there.

While talking, we thought, “why do we only do this one day a year?” So we quickly discussed it and decided rather than waiting until the first Thursday of May 2011, we would meet back the first Thursday of every month. I announced the plan to about 10 people who were still there. We heard a resounding, “see you next month.”

So we have decided to have a prayer meeting in front of City Hall the First Thursday of each month. Will you join us? If you live in Carrollton, will you come on June 3rd and join us? If you don’t live in the area, will you go to your City Hall and pray there for your town and our nation?

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Full time/Part time

So today my wonderful husband and I had a discussion about the future of our evangelism efforts.  I know it is my husbands dream to be in full time evangelism and WOW would he be GREAT at it.   The problem is funding and how do we fund 2 kids colleges, activities, etc.

We have had several ideas but none of them seem to work.  I personally think it is my failure that is causing this but can’t be sure.  So I am asking for your prayers on how to fund full time ministry.  Wee have 2 thins we are looking at right now.  The first which won’t fund it but would give us a home based business tax break is my DesignsbyMande business.  This is creating and implementing bulletin boards for classrooms/schools/churches etc.  I love doing this kind of stuff so I figured why not make some money doing what i like to do.  The second one is called Life Settlements.   It is an alternative investment opportunity.  We havee done some research on this and found it to be very good.  If you are interested in this let me know and I can get some information to you.

Thanks for your prayers in this area.

 

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