CAN ANY GOOD THING BE FOUND IN THAILAND?

Acts 21:1 And when we (Paul and friends) had parted from them and set sail, we came by a straight course to Cos, and the next day to Rhodes, and from there to Patara. 2 And having found a ship crossing to Phoenicia, we went aboard and set sail. 3 When we had come in sight of Cyprus, leaving it on the left we sailed to Syria and landed at Tyre, for there the ship was to unload its cargo. 4 And having sought out the disciples, we stayed there for seven days.

The above passage is just a portion of one of Paul's missionary journeys. It reminded me of one of the most exciting times in my life. While in the Air Force I had been sent overseas to Thailand. Part of the excitement was being able to go to another country. But, another part of the excitement was having the opportunity to meet Christians from a different part of the world.

Some of my memories there as a young believer, centered on a local missionary, John Perkins. He had been in Thailand for 30 years. It was exciting to be able to co-labor with him! It was in a limited way but still meaningful to me. He was still faithful to the Lord after all those years!

In that time he had established 12 local/regional churches. By the time I had been stationed in Thailand, John's role had changed. God had already raised up pastors from within the various churches. He was in a very real sense an apostle to these churches.

In this "apostle" role, John had oversight of all the pastors and key leaders within each of the churches. On Sundays he would visit one, and sometimes two of the churches, to preach and encourage the congregations. On occasion, several of us from the base would go with him on Sunday to visit one of the churches. Here are a few remembrances of one visit:

It was during the rainy season and the road at one point was flooded. One of the congregation members met us with his boat and took us a few at a time to the other side. I remember John asking a couple of us to give our testimonies of the Lord's salvation in our lives. He said just speak for about 5 minutes. I was a little nervous. He translated as we spoke. I remember thinking after about things I should have said and ways that I could have said it better. It was exciting to hear and recognize a hymn being sung in the Thai language. I don't remember any more specifics, but it has been exciting to remember it!

Another way in which I was able to be a co-laborer with John was to be a part of an English teaching program that he had established. Several of us at the base would volunteer to teach the Thai University students.

The class was located in a building in downtown Udorn. The name on the sign over the doorway said Good News Book-room. If I remember right it was written both Thai and English. His practice was to use Christian resources to teach the students. This became a tool to disciple those students who were already believers and to evangelize those who were not.

This has been a good time for me, remembering the Lord's work in my life. I hope you have enjoyed hearing about it. From time to time as the Scriptures trigger other memories I will share more of my early life.

CiTIZEN OF MANSOUL? WHAT'S UP WITH THAT?

John Bunyan is most noted for his great allegorical work, THE PILGRIM’S PROGRESS. But he also wrote another allegory which is not as well known, THE HOLY WAR.

In my opinion, The Pilgrim’s Progress is one of the greatest works in Christian literature and should be read by all. But, that having been said, I would encourage all to read, THE HOLY WAR.

I am bringing this up because it is from this book that, for those who may have been wondering, I created the title of my blog: CITIZEN OF MANSOUL. Here is a very brief overview of the book:

Very cleverly John Bunyan married two words into one, MAN(S) SOUL. So what is Mansoul?

Mansoul was built by SHADDAI. It was constructed for His glory. It was constructed to showcase His glory. But the enemy, Diabolus, won the hearts of some of the townsmen and thereby lost full control of the town. As a result, there is a constant battle going on from within and from without. This battle, against Diabolus, is being waged by Emmanuel, Shaddai's Son. He is seeking to win back the town of Mansoul for His Father.

I have found that the book can at times be seen on two levels, one, a personal level (the individual Christian) and two, on a corporate level (all saints, the church). The names of the cities’ gates will help to show what Bunyan intended to illustrate in this allegory. Here are the names: Ear-Gate, Eye-Gate, Mouth-Gate, Nose-Gate, and Feel-Gate.

We (Christians) are under constant attack. The enemy of our souls seeks to tempt and wear us down by appealing to our senses, what we hear, see, speak, smell, and feel. This is on the individual level. On the corporate the attacks are the same.

Even though we know that the gates of hell will not prevail against us, the enemy is still attacking. Anything he can do to hinder the work of the Lord he will try. Both the enemies of Emmanuel and the friends of Emmanuel live side by side in the town of Mansoul. Emmanuel wants full control of Mansoul (Man’s Soul) and will stop at nothing to save his beloved elect town. Diabolus wants full control of Mansoul (Man’s Soul) and will stop at nothing to try to keep it.

I would encourage the reader to get a copy and read it. You will easily identify with the struggle. It gives a good picture of the spiritual battle that is taking place all the time, even when we are not aware of it.

FOXE'S BOOK OF MARTYR'S - BOOK REVIEW

I am part of the christianaudio Reviewer's Program. The following is my review of Foxes Book of Martyrs which I highly and heartily recommend. I recommend it both for the content (an historical record of Christian persecution and martyrdom) and for the audio production itself. Christian Audio (http://christianaudio.com/) offers this recording.

This Hovel Audio recording is read very well by Nadia May. The correct inflections and appropriate pauses make it easy to follow and absorb.

This work starts with the persecutions recorded in the biblical account of the Acts of the Apostles. But then, where the biblical account ends, this work presents an historical account of continued persecution ending with the story of Adoniram Judson (1788-1850), missionary to Burma.

The persecutions described in this book are at times very graphic. But despite this word of warning, this book should be listened to. Remember, similar persecutions continue in some parts of the world today. This book and others like it will create a sense of urgency and fervency in your prayers.

The pages of Scripture offers a good description of the men, women, and children portrayed in this book:

1 Peter 4:13-16 …rejoice insofar as you share Christ's sufferings, that you may also rejoice and be glad when his glory is revealed. If you are insulted for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you. …yet if anyone suffers as a Christian, let him not be ashamed, but let him glorify God in that name.

MOVED ANY MOUNTAINS LATELY?

Matthew 17:14 and when they came to the crowd, a man came up to him and, kneeling before him, 15 said, "Lord, have mercy on my son, for he is an epileptic and he suffers terribly. For often he falls into the fire, and often into the water. 16 And I brought him to your disciples, and they could not heal him." 17 And Jesus answered, "O faithless and twisted generation, how long am I to be with you? How long am I to bear with you? Bring him here to me." 18 And Jesus rebuked the demon, and it came out of him, and the boy was healed instantly. 19 Then the disciples came to Jesus privately and said, "Why could we not cast it out?" 20 He said to them, "Because of your little faith. For truly, I say to you, if you have faith like a grain of mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there,' and it will move, and nothing will be impossible for you."

How big is your faith? Is it like the grain of a mustard seed? If so, why are you not moving mountains? If not, why not?

These are questions we must ask ourselves. If any of you are like me, sadly you have not seen many mountains moved. We must go before God and ask Him to help us.

Another thought came to me while reading this - if I am not moving mountains then I must have a faith that is smaller than a mustard seed! How sad if that is true. Especially considering that Jesus called the mustard seed,

"the smallest of all the seeds on earth"

On another occasion the disciples were overwhelmed by their lack of faith,

"The apostles said to the Lord, "Increase our faith!. "And the Lord said, "If you had faith like a grain of mustard seed, you could say to this mulberry tree, 'Be uprooted and planted in the sea,' and it would obey you."

Lord, it would appear that at times we have faith that is less than a grain of mustard seed. Increase our faith! Lord, we believe but, help us in our unbelief! Help us to focus on you the One whose faith never faltered. The One whose faith sustains us even now. All Praise goes to you Lord Jesus, to the glory of the Father!