Dear friends,
Today is the first day of a new month and thinking about this reminded me of the expression “Today is the first day of the rest of your life.” How often do we stop to consider where we have come from and where we are going in our spiritual journey? Yesterday, I had breakfast with a friend and we talked about how the Lord had worked in our lives during our teenage years and since then. How wonderful it is to know Christ and to live for Him!
Some of you may recall that I began writing this blog in 2011 in order to ask for prayer for Lynne McTaggart, a friend who was battling a rare form of cancer. Lynne’s parents were lifelong friends of Karen’s parents and we enjoyed talking to them when they came to our Mission conferences near Buffalo, N.Y. Lynne’s physical journey ended much sooner than we would have liked, but she left a legacy of faithful service to the Lord and devotion to her family. More information about her life and ministry can be found at: http://www.lynneslegacyrun.ca/.
Have you thought about what legacy you will leave? By God’s grace, this month marks the tenth anniversary of my appointment as Director of “La Voix de l’Évangile” in Québec. During the past ten years, Karen and I have seen the Lord transform the lives of many Québécois and others through the preaching ministry of Pastor Michel Martel, the speaker on the broadcasts since 1984. Bible correspondence courses in French and English are helping children, teens and adults understand God’s Word and will for their lives. We are grateful for the many prayer partners and financial supporters whom God has raised up to make this ministry possible.
A second reason why I started writing a weekly blog was to share prayer requests. As a young believer, I remember reading something like this: “Work for the Lord as if everything depended on you and pray as if everything depended on Him.” Karen and I have seen the Lord answer many prayers and we thank Him for His love and grace, His faithfulness and mercy, and for all that He has done for us.
In his book “Amazing Grace” Kenneth W. Osbeck tells the story behind the hymn “Face to Face.” Carrie Breck (1855-1934) was a busy mother of five girls in Portland, Oregon. Although she said that she couldn’t carry a tune, she had a sense of rhythm and sent some of her poems to a composer of gospel hymns. One of those poems was received by Grant Colfax Tullar when he “had just completed the music for a song with words that did not fully please him.” He found that the lines of Mrs. Breck’s poem fit his composition perfectly and many Christians have enjoyed singing this inspirational hymn ever since.
Scripture for the weekend: “For I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus.”Philippians 1:6 (NASB)
Thought for the weekend: “Face to face with Christ, my Savior, face to face – what will it be?
When with rapture I behold Him, Jesus Christ who died for me!”
By His grace,
Steve