Good Morning Everyone,
Our theme for this month: “Success”
Our Bible verse for today: “Pray at all times in the Spirit with every prayer and request, and stay alert in this with all perseverance and intercession for all the saints. Pray also for me, that the message may be given to me when I open my mouth to make known with boldness the mystery of the gospel.” Ephesians 6:18-19 (HCSB)
Our thought for today: “We must pray for one another’s success.”
This morning as you are reading this I am on my way to Peru. I will be leading a small medical and dental team into the restricted region of the Amazon Jungle in southern Peru near the Bolivian border.
Our ministry will be to the Machiguenga Indians who live within the boundaries of the Manu Reserve, also known as Manu National Park. Manu is 3.5 million acres of pristine Rainforest. It is about the size of the state of Massachusetts but there are only about 10,000 people who live in the entire area. The Indians live in small tribal groups scattered along the riverbanks. Our team will provide free medical and dental care, and we will look for opportunities to tell them about Jesus. However, the Peruvian government only allows us to speak about Christianity if the Indians ask first.
I want to ask you to pray for our safety. We will spend many hours on the rivers in a 50 foot canoe and we will sleep in tents in the villages. It’s the rainy season and so there are always huge downpours of rain, which often results in raging rivers. Also, for the most part, we will be out of communication with the outside world. No cell phone coverage where we’re going. Most of the villages do have a shortwave radio, but that’s it. So please pray for our safety.
But also pray for our success. The medical and dental care, and the medicines our team will be providing are all desperately needed. But even the best healthcare is temporary. Someday that person will get sick again and someday they will die. We want to give them more. We want to give them Jesus. But, they have to ask. Our agreement with the government is that we will not attempt to introduce the Indians to Christianity unless they initiate the conversation by asking questions. So, please pray that they will ask.
The Apostle Paul knew how important it was to have people praying for him. So do I. When God’s people pray, things happen. So please pray.
God Bless,
Pastor Jim
Oak Hill Baptist Church 