Greetings to our brothers and sisters in Christ Jesus, October, 2009
The Lord has brought a phrase of scripture to my attention and remembrance a number of times in the past few weeks on the road. And while I have felt no liberty to preach from the passage, it has become a theme in our desire for the churches we visit. A cursory look at this phrase could suggest a selfish tone but undoubtedly Paul is recognizing the potential that this church at Corinth could have for the work of global missions should their faith be increased. Here it is, 2 Cor 10:15 … having hope, when your faith is increased, that we shall be enlarged by you…Would to God that our churches and missionaries would all grow in faith that we might enlarge the coasts of the Kingdom and God for the glory of our risen Saviour! With that thought in mind I have found great encouragement knowing that the Lord has in control who He would have assist in the financial aspect of getting to the Philippines. Our privilege then is that we might, in all churches, encourage God’s people to grow in faith through His perfect Word with expectation that personal involvement in missions would be increased as well as added prayer support for their existing supported families.
To report on our past month or so is to share an account of many miles, many smiles and many wiles, amen?! Miles that were travelled as we made a northern swing back to NY for meetings, smiles as the kids were happily reunited with Grandma and Papa, Aunt Jenny and their cousins and other of our dear friends and wiles as this month has seen some of the heaviest spiritual warfare we have faced on deputation. That said, we praise the Lord for all of your prayer on our behalf as we know that has built a hedge about us in the midst of attacks. Prior to leaving Ocean Springs to go north, Pastor Perkins gave me the privilege to preach the evening service on the day that the church would begin 40 days of prayer and fasting leading to revival. The Lord laid on my heart to preach on, yep, the wiles and subtle tactics of the “devil of desensitization.” I suppose this made us candidates to be an object lesson on the topic but we rejoice in God’s grace, deliverance and protection through it all. We arrived back in Ocean Springs for the week of revival and God moved mightily. Dr. Zeb McDaris preached a number of Spirit filled messages that moved the hearts of God’s people, including ours, praise the Lord! Some were saved, many got right and the devil was displeased when a bunch of his garbage was burned up in two consecutive nights of fires!
We find ourselves at the moment in Franklin, LA with Pastor Donnie Williams and Faith Baptist Church. He has been a gracious host and it has been a privilege to go soul willing with him a couple times in the past few days. We have a goat as our next door neighbor, the kids have been chasing lizards around and we have been trying to spot alligators in the bayou that runs right along the property. The girls have made new friends with their kids and we even eliminated one big snake from the world by running it over with Deputation Dave (our Suburban). We based here for another meeting in Pierre Port which went well and now we will start October with a conference in Zachary, LA and then have meetings all the way to San Antonio for two conferences to end October. Please pray that we would continue to see God increase our faith and our support that we might reach those God has called us to as soon as He would see fit. May the Lord bless your lives and ministries that are dedicated to the glory of Jesus Christ. Thank you again for your faithful prayer and support.
Because He Lives,
Aaron & Stephanie Putney
Autumn, Anna, Sarah and Emma
Tuesday, September 29, 2009
Monday, August 10, 2009
August Prayer Letter
Greetings in the name of Jesus Christ, August 8, 2009
Isaiah 55:8-9 For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.
How many times we have been reminded of the truth of this verse, amen? So often, we can get caught up looking at circumstances, past history, our own abilities, our resources, our time and our energy and then begin to set our expectations within those limits. In doing this, we are limiting and doubting our Lord Jesus that is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we could ask or think and Whose ways are so far higher than our ways. This month we saw the Lord provide us with unexpected meetings, unexpected contacts and unexpected support. We were again reminded who owns the cattle on a thousand hills! I spent a good part of my time this month making calls to hundreds of churches for consideration to come present our burden to for the Philippines. This process is time consuming and can be at times disheartening as you talk to countless answering machines or hear about challenges being faced around the country. Yet in doing this we are reminded of how God is in control and knows exactly how He will get us to the islands, it also reminds us of the tremendous need for prayer in every aspect of our ministry. As this was the call placed on our lives by God, we know that He has ordained the means of getting us there. As it says in Isaiah 1:19, if ye be willing and obedient, ye shall eat the good of the land. So, as things we’re moving slowly on the phone this past month, God made it abundantly clear that He can open doors in unexpected ways. In our time on deputation, we have not seen a month like this where God just introduced us to pastor after pastor that resulted in the scheduling of meetings as well as some great fellowship. Even when there was a gap in the schedule, the Lord led us to the right churches to visit and blessed us with many opportunities to serve and to share our burden.
We spent the last month between Louisiana and Texas and had some great meetings. The Lord again provided every need, sustained us and our vehicle through many miles and much heat and brought us closer to the field. We saw the Lord move in hearts at the altar this month and after the services people often came and shared what God did for them. All I can say is that God is gracious to move in our lives much less allow us to see how He moves in the hearts of others! We had the privilege to go soul winning with different churches and rejoice in the power of the gospel. I would like to ask for prayer for Kathy who was raised at the very church I was knocking doors with but was never saved and is now married to a Mormon and has two small boys. I plead with her out of the scriptures for quite a while and challenged her to study and seek the truth as the souls of her entire family hang in the balance. While we pray God would burden us for every soul in such a way, it seems that some just end up heavier on our hearts and this was one of those times.
On a lighter note, my kids only exposure to Armadillos this month was on the side of the road (as I was warned about) but they have been having a great time and God has given them some wonderful encouragement at all the right times. This next month they will get to see Grandma and Papa again as we will head to New York in mid August for more meetings for about a month. Please pray for safety on the road and that we would continue to see God increase our faith and exceed our expectations for His honour and glory. May the Lord bless your ministry and and continuously increase your impact on this entire world for the sake of souls to the glory of Jesus Christ. Thank you again for your faithful prayer and support.
Because He Lives,
Aaron & Stephanie Putney
Autumn, Anna, Sarah and Emma
Isaiah 55:8-9 For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.
How many times we have been reminded of the truth of this verse, amen? So often, we can get caught up looking at circumstances, past history, our own abilities, our resources, our time and our energy and then begin to set our expectations within those limits. In doing this, we are limiting and doubting our Lord Jesus that is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we could ask or think and Whose ways are so far higher than our ways. This month we saw the Lord provide us with unexpected meetings, unexpected contacts and unexpected support. We were again reminded who owns the cattle on a thousand hills! I spent a good part of my time this month making calls to hundreds of churches for consideration to come present our burden to for the Philippines. This process is time consuming and can be at times disheartening as you talk to countless answering machines or hear about challenges being faced around the country. Yet in doing this we are reminded of how God is in control and knows exactly how He will get us to the islands, it also reminds us of the tremendous need for prayer in every aspect of our ministry. As this was the call placed on our lives by God, we know that He has ordained the means of getting us there. As it says in Isaiah 1:19, if ye be willing and obedient, ye shall eat the good of the land. So, as things we’re moving slowly on the phone this past month, God made it abundantly clear that He can open doors in unexpected ways. In our time on deputation, we have not seen a month like this where God just introduced us to pastor after pastor that resulted in the scheduling of meetings as well as some great fellowship. Even when there was a gap in the schedule, the Lord led us to the right churches to visit and blessed us with many opportunities to serve and to share our burden.
We spent the last month between Louisiana and Texas and had some great meetings. The Lord again provided every need, sustained us and our vehicle through many miles and much heat and brought us closer to the field. We saw the Lord move in hearts at the altar this month and after the services people often came and shared what God did for them. All I can say is that God is gracious to move in our lives much less allow us to see how He moves in the hearts of others! We had the privilege to go soul winning with different churches and rejoice in the power of the gospel. I would like to ask for prayer for Kathy who was raised at the very church I was knocking doors with but was never saved and is now married to a Mormon and has two small boys. I plead with her out of the scriptures for quite a while and challenged her to study and seek the truth as the souls of her entire family hang in the balance. While we pray God would burden us for every soul in such a way, it seems that some just end up heavier on our hearts and this was one of those times.
On a lighter note, my kids only exposure to Armadillos this month was on the side of the road (as I was warned about) but they have been having a great time and God has given them some wonderful encouragement at all the right times. This next month they will get to see Grandma and Papa again as we will head to New York in mid August for more meetings for about a month. Please pray for safety on the road and that we would continue to see God increase our faith and exceed our expectations for His honour and glory. May the Lord bless your ministry and and continuously increase your impact on this entire world for the sake of souls to the glory of Jesus Christ. Thank you again for your faithful prayer and support.
Because He Lives,
Aaron & Stephanie Putney
Autumn, Anna, Sarah and Emma
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)