Posted in Uncategorized on Oct 26th, 2009 | Discuss This Post
Jordan kids riding home with our Agutaynen neighbor
We Jordan kids think that Bible Lesson nights are fun. We get to stay up late because the meeting starts right at our normal bedtime, 7 pm. Before the meeting, we have an early dinner and then take turns riding with Dad to pick up Agutaynens who live on the outskirts of the village. Dad’s truck is not a bus, but we can still pack in 20 people at a time, sometimes more! It’s nice to help Agutaynens get to the meetings each Wednesday evening, and take them home afterward, so that they don’t have to walk for so long, especially when it’s rainy or muddy.
There are lots of kids who come to the Bible lessons, and we have fun playing with them before and after the meeting. We don’t take anything with us to the meeting, like books or toys. We need to sit quietly because we want our friends to listen to the Bible lesson, and not be distracted by watching us play. It’s hard sometimes to sit still for the whole hour. We can tell what stories are being taught because Mr. Manfred and Dad hang up pictures. But we can’t understand very much of what they are saying. We look around and pray quietly for Mr. Manfred and Daddy, and for all of the people who are there. It’s fun to see all the people who are still coming to the Bible lessons, and we pray that they will soon be our brothers and sisters in the Lord.
Posted in Uncategorized on Sep 20th, 2009 | Discuss This Post
Pondering the Truths of God's Word
Praise the Lord that the Agutaynens in our village have finally heard the Truth that Jesus died for them! Thank you for praying for the final lessons of Phase 1 that were presented last week. Praise the Lord that we now have Agutaynen brothers and sisters in the Lord!
The first question that some might ask is: “How many Agutaynens are now saved?” During the last few days, a few Agutaynens have given clear testimonies that they now are trusting in Jesus alone. At the same time, others have clearly shown us that they are still trusting in their old ways. There are many who we have not heard from either way. But God knows their hearts.
In Hebrews 4:12, it says that God’s Word is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. The Agutaynens have been clearly taught God’s Word, and the way of salvation through the blood of Jesus Christ alone. Our team has talked with several people individually, asking questions, and continuing to point them to Jesus. Please keep praying that those who have trusted in Christ as their Savior will now begin to grow in Him. And keep praying for those who are still lost in their sins, that they will make the decision to trust in Him.
So what’s next? Our team will continue teaching the Agutaynens. We will be teaching Phase 2 of the Chronological Bible Teaching on Wednesday evenings. This phase is a review of Creation to Christ. The goal of this phase is for new believers to be assured that their salvation is in Christ alone, and also to more clearly teach those who are not believers that Jesus truly is the only way.
Thank you for praying!
Posted in Uncategorized on Sep 16th, 2009 | Discuss This Post
Last week, Manfred and Stephen went through the lesson about the Death and Burial of Jesus with our language helper. After the lesson, we asked him if everything was clear, and if he thought people would understand.
He likened the Agutaynen people to being out at sea. He said that through all of the Bible teaching over the last several months, the Agutaynen people have been brought to the shore. However, they are still in the water. He said they will now need to make a decision whether or not to get out of the water.
These last lessons, he said, are clear. The people who listen to the lessons will need to make the choice to take the last remaining steps to the beach.
We praise the Lord that our language helper understands what he must do to be saved and we hope that he has already made that decision to trust in Jesus alone. We pray that others have likewise made that decision too.
Please keep praying. We taught on the Death of Jesus two nights ago. Tonight we teach on the Resurrection. So far, we haven’t noticed much of a reaction from the people. We don’t know if they are missing something, or if they are simply taking time to absorb everything before making a decision. Please pray that the Agutaynens will be freed from their bondage to sin and Satan, and for wisdom for us to know how to proceed from here.
Posted in Uncategorized on Sep 6th, 2009 | Discuss This Post
Thank you for praying through another week of Bible teaching! We have been getting various reactions from the people. Some are saying that they agree with what we are teaching, and are thankful to be taught the Truth. Others are saying that what we are teaching is against the “church” and isn’t what they have been taught in the past. Both of these views assure us that God’s Word is being taught clearly, and all those who are coming do understand what they are hearing. Please continue to pray with us that those coming will choose to believe what they are hearing from God’s Word, and will accept Jesus as their own personal Savior.
Last week we taught about Jesus talking with Nicodemus (John 3), and the Last Supper and betrayal of Jesus. This week is a fiesta in our village. Rather than compete with the events that have been planned, we will take the week off from teaching, and will resume the following week. That means that we will be teaching about the Death, Burial and Resurrection of Jesus on September 14 and 16! Please keep praying!
Posted in Uncategorized on Aug 22nd, 2009 | Discuss This Post
Pray for those who are attending the Bible teaching.
Thank you again for praying us through another week of Bible teaching among the Agutaynens! We continue to be encouraged by the number of people who are coming to the teachings, and by some of the responses we’ve been hearing.
This week, the Bible lessons were about Jesus’ miracles, emphasizing that He is all-powerful and is truly God the Son. After the Wednesday night meeting, an Agutaynen couple came up to Ginger and Nadine, bursting with excitement. They shared that they know that Jesus is God the Son, and no one can be saved without Him. Others in the village have been talking about how they have been lied to through the years, and have never been taught God’s Word so clearly.
Please continue to pray for the salvation of the Agutaynens! If teaching continues as planned, we will be presenting the death, burial and resurrection on September 14th and 16th.
Posted in Uncategorized on Aug 2nd, 2009 | Discuss This Post
Thank you for praying for the teaching of the Ten Commandments. Even though it was the first lesson after returning from a short break, it seemed to be well attended. In talking with the Agutaynens during the days after this lesson, it also seemed to be well received. Then the very next lesson, on Monday, there were “only” about 120 people. This was a much lower turn-out than in the previous lessons, and we noticed several particular people who were absent. We began asking ourselves why they didn’t come. Was it because they didn’t like what was shared concerning the Ten Commandments? Was it because we took a break and they felt they no longer needed to come? Was it because of the rain? We continued to pray that the Lord would work through whatever circumstances that may have prevented people from coming.
Then, after six days of nearly continuous rain, Wednesday dawned bright and clear. We all had high hopes that we would have a good attendance. However, five minutes before teaching began, only about 50 people were there. While Stephen was reviewing the previous lesson, and while Manfred began teaching the current lesson, people continued to come in until even the missionary wives and children had to move to make room for more people to fit. We ran out of seats for the third time since the Bible teaching began! There were about 230 people who came! Again, this confirmed to us that, even though what we are teaching is different from what the Agutaynens have been taught to believe, their hearts are still open to hear God’s Word. God is good!
That evening, Manfred and Stephen taught on the Israelites’ Desert Wanderings, and the Battle of Jericho. This week the lessons will cover The Prophets through the Birth of Jesus. Please continue to pray!
A note concerning pictures of the teaching: We are sorry that we are unable to share many pictures of the Bible teaching. We are teaching during the evening hours, and our cameras have been unable to take “good quality” pictures. We also, as a team, have decided that it is too distracting to have the flash from our cameras during the teaching. Thank you for understanding and for your continued prayer!
Posted in Uncategorized on Jul 20th, 2009 | Discuss This Post
This last week was a break for our team. Our partners, the Zimmermanns, had to go to Manila for a medical check-up and fingerprinting for their visas. Their time in Manila went smoothly. Please continue to pray for Nadine’s health, that she remains strong, and the cancer stays in remission. Our time was more restful than the Zimmermanns’, and we were able to catch up on some of the things that we had put off during the busy teaching schedule.
The two Bible teachings before we went on break were again very well attended. We estimate that there were approximately 200 men, women, and children who came to the last Bible teaching. Please be praying for the meeting this Wednesday evening, July 22nd. We are unsure how people will respond to our last break, and are praying that they come back now that we are able to resume. This is a critical lesson as we will be teaching about the Ten Commandments. Please be praying that many will come to the Bible teachings. It is critical that these lessons be more than just stories. They need to recognize the Truth of God’s Word, and apply it to their own hearts and lives.
Posted in Uncategorized on Jun 28th, 2009 | Discuss This Post
We are excited for another week of Bible teaching that the Lord has enabled. Praise the Lord for each and every Agutaynen who is coming to the teaching. This week we estimate that there were about 150 people who came on Monday, and possibly up to 180 who came on Wednesday evening, including children!
On Wednesday, as we were arriving to the meeting, Stephen shared that he had just seen Manang Nimpa in the village. She is a very friendly lady, and we were very disappointed that she wasn’t in the village when we were inviting people to come to the Bible teaching. Now she was finally here, and we didn’t know in time to invite her to come!
Shortly later, as people were beginning to arrive, Manang Nimpa came in! We were very surprised to see her, and asked her how she found out about the Bible teaching. She said that she was planning on going back to her other village that night, but two young Agutaynen ladies told her to wait because she should come to the Bible teaching! Praise the Lord that many are coming to the Bible teaching, and bringing others with them!
Unfortunately, Manang Nimpa has returned to the other village where she seems to be living now. But how thankful we are for that brief opportunity we had to visit with her, and the Bible lesson she was able to attend. Please pray for Manang Nimpa, and all the Agutaynens that they would crave hearing more of God’s Word! Please pray that the Lord would direct Manang Nimpa to return to our village so she can hear the Bible teaching.
This week, our team will be teaching about Abraham & Isaac on Monday night (June 29th) and about Moses & the Plagues on Wednesday night (July 1st). Thanks for your continued prayer!
Posted in Uncategorized on Jun 21st, 2009 | Discuss This Post
Our partner, Kevin Stroud-Lusk, arrived in our village this week. He will be able to stay for about three weeks, before he needs to return to his ministry at the school for missionary children in Manila. We are so thankful for the missionaries in Manila, and for the churches at home who provided for his trip to our village. We are thankful to have him here during the Bible teaching!
The day after Kevin arrived, we sent him back to the main city on our island with a patient. A three-month-old baby girl was showing signs of jaundice. The hospital in our nearby town treated her for an infection, and requested an ultrasound be done. The ultrasound indicated possible problems, and the doctor then requested a CT scan. The CT scan can only be done in the city, so that’s why we sent the family with Kevin.
Kevin was able to take this family to several different doctors in the city, and they ran several tests, including the CT scan. There are mixed results of the tests, varying from problems with the kidneys, the liver, or the spleen. No matter which organ is affected though, the prognosis does not sound good. We are thankful for all the time that Kevin spent with the family, taking them from doctor to doctor. Having Kevin be able to help in this way greatly freed up Stephen and Manfred to continue their daily Bible lesson preparations.
Now the family has some hard decisions to make concerning treatment. We are praying for wisdom for them, and for the doctors, knowing that our Great Physician holds them in His hands.
Posted in Uncategorized on Jun 21st, 2009 | Discuss This Post
Our second week of Bible teaching is now completed. We again had a full crowd, with approximately 150 people in attendance, including children. We are thankful that the Lord enabled us to build a big enough building for everyone to fit under the shelter! And there is still room for more. Pray that the Lord will continue to bring the Agutaynens to hear His Word.
In reminiscing with a friend this week, Stephen was reminded of what the Agutaynens thought about us when we first moved in amongst them. Stephen’s friend said that people thought we were just coming to search for lost gold. Then he said, “Now we know that you came to bring us a different kind of gold, from above.” How thankful we are that God’s Word is going forth! It is a precious treasure, and will bring many precious souls to Himself!
This week our lesson on Monday night will be about Noah & the Flood. Wednesday night will be about the Tower of Babel & Abraham. We greatly appreciate your continued prayers.
Stephen and Ginger Jordan Church Planting among the AGUTAYNENS