It Is Time For Revival

Did you know that during 1904-05 in Wales a great revival broke out? The revival was such a move of God that within the first 6 months 100,000 had come to the Lord. During that time this testimony from a mine manager was shared that I would like to share with you:

 “The horses are terribly puzzled. A manager said to me, “The haulers are some of the very lowest. They have driven their horses by obscenity and kicks. Now they can hardly persuade the horses to start working, because there is no obscenity and no kicks.” The movement is characterized by the most remarkable confessions of sin, confessions that must be costly. I heard some of them, men rising who have been members of the church, and officers of the church, confessing hidden sin in their heart, impurity committed and condoned, and seeking prayer for its putting away. The whole movement is marvelously characterized by a confession of Jesus Christ, testimony to His power, to His goodness, to His beneficence, and testimony…” (The Story of the Welsh Revival by Arthur Goodrich ect.)

If ever we, as the church, as a town, as a country, as a people needed revival we most definitely need it now. What changes would we see if God did with us what He did with those Welsh miners! I know that it is somewhat late in the season for planning revivals but if it is the Lord’s will, then this is arriving to you just as it was intended to be. As we return to the States this fall we do so looking to see God do some great things. We are excited about the Pastors’ Retreat in KY, and the Leaders’ Training Conferences in Africa but we are also eager to see God bring revival where you are. As Ron shared earlier, two years ago there was a group of leaders who were considering whether or not reduce the number of days or to hold a revival at all that year. Concerns were shared that there was no money to pay a speaker, people would not want to attend. In short, they were feeling pretty discouraged. What I said to them that day I still believe even stronger today: “If God has given a message, a burning desire to share, then the messengers only care about giving the message. Nothing else will matter to them.”

Maybe you,  your church,  or town is also seeing the need for revival, desiring to see God move in a mighty way, but are also feeling discouraged, doubtful it will happen, or wondering if you have the money to give to a speaker to hold a revival. If so we want to hear from you! We do not ask for anything to come, other than a place to stay, if it is too far to drive from where we will be staying in Eaton,OH.  We would love the opportunity to come and work with you. If your church is also feeling the Lord’s leading for revival, and leading you to contact us please do not hesitate. Whether it be for a time of teaching others how to share their faith, going out to share the gospel, holding revival meetings, or all of the above we would love to be a part of it. Please give me a call soon at 937-307-0694 or send me an email at david@newdaycm.org so we can plan accordingly.

God Bless,
David Ingram

God loves me just the way I am...

Click to enlarge

"Do what thy will shall be the whole of the law." Or a more modern twist, "just do it"

We live in a culture today that has made this their chief commandment and as you talk with many who claim to be Christians they too seem to believe this is God's message. But does God say that doing what we want is what He wants? 

Sadly many today believe so.  You will often hear from a Christian content to continue in sin, "God loves me just  the way I am" or they may say "I know the Bible says,_________ but....."  or "God did not really say....."

"Do what thy will shall be the whole of the law" originates from Magical Diaries of Aleister Crowley. The forefather of the modern day Satanic church. Though he died in 1948 the rock and roll crowed of the 1960's took greatly to his message and became his spokesman. It is not a new message though. God's word says it is the mentality of fools:

The way of fools seems right to them, but the wise listen to advice. Proverbs 12:15

He said to them, "You are the ones who justify yourselves in the eyes of others, but God knows your hearts. What people value highly is detestable in God's sight. Luke 16:15

Sadly somehow even Christians today have accepted the notion that we can do whatever we want and all that matters is whether or not it makes us "happy". And it is true that sin and rebellion can bring a measure of joy, excitement, or what people often just sum up as "fun" or as the Bible calls it, "the fleeting pleasures of sin." and those pleasures are fleeting. But what is worse is that in the end they lead in one of two directions. For the nonbeliever they lead to the finality of all sin, God's judgment. To the wayward believer they lead to a wasted, shortened life. 

Throughout my life, time and time again, I have had to say good-bye to those I loved greatly, who I miss deeply, who also just could not get this concept down and apply it to their lives, despite many pleadings by those who loved them and did not want to see them to continue on the way they were headed.  

Many of us go on in this life believing that if we are a Christian we can do and say whatever we want and He will simply forgive us and we can go on doing whatever it is we want. Sadly this is a very poor understanding of life, God, and consequences.

We are warned against having this mentality many times Throughout scripture and I will share a few of those times in a moment but first let me tell you it in a way we all as parents or as children can easily relate. 

Whether it was you as a child or you now as a parent we all know what it is to be called in to the house for misbehavior. If you have children playing out in the yard with some friends and you see them do or say some things they should not be doing, you will call them to the door and give them a warning as they go back to play, perhaps a stronger warning a second time but if they continue you eventually tell them, Ok it is time to come home, come and get in the house.  You bring them in the house because that is where they need to be when they are being disrespectful, causing themselves, or causing others harm. You may even say, "We do not behave that way in this family."

Time and time again God does this very same thing with his children when He sees that it is time for them to come home. 

The Bible tells us that there is a time when God must tell the believer "It is time to come home" because of sin: "If anyone sees his brother committing a sin not leading to death, he shall ask and God will for him give life to those who commit sin not leading to death. There is a sin leading to death; I do not say that he should make request for this. All unrighteousness is sin, and there is a sin not leading to death."

This should at least give the believer pause before deciding if it is best to do what they want over what God has already told them not to do. Sadly for whatever reason they do not. 

"Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us,  fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.  Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.

In your struggle against sin, you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood.  And have you completely forgotten this word of encouragement that addresses you as a father addresses his son? It says,

“My son, do not make light of the Lord’s discipline,
    and do not lose heart when he rebukes you,
 because the Lord disciplines the one he loves,
    and he chastens everyone he accepts as his son.” 

Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as his children. For what children are not disciplined by their father?  If you are not disciplined—and everyone undergoes discipline—then you are not legitimate, not true sons and daughters at all. Moreover, we have all had human fathers who disciplined us and we respected them for it. How much more should we submit to the Father of spirits and live! They disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, in order that we may share in his holiness.  No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it." (See Hebrews 12 for the full passage.)

In closing my desire for you today is that you will not be wise in your own eyes but rather will seek to see the world through the Lord's eyes as you go off today to see what the day may bring.

God Bless,

David Ingram

Our day...

I have a story to share about our day; it is quite long so be prepared!

Epilogue: for the past 3 weeks we have been traveling back and forth from our home in Juana Diaz (aka “JD”) an 1 ½ hr to the city where we have our current Deaf ministry in Hormigueros. We have been renovating a 3 apartment condo due to water damage and poor maintenance through the years. In exchange we are allowed to stay in the 2 bedroom apartment on the weekends so we can spend more time in this area in order to make more of an impact with our ministry goals; currently we are unable to spend more than a few hours every Sunday in Hormigeuros because of such a distance from our home and traveling with small children.  After the baby is born we are looking forward to being able to stay there on the weekends and teach language classes and hold Bible studies at the local university close by.

Chapter 1: So,today we had finished apartment #1 and because I am 37 ½ weeks along we need to

pause with ministry for awhile until after the baby is born, thus returning to our home in JD where our Dr. and hospital are for the delivery. In order to stay in this apartment we have to bring bedding, cooking + eating supplies, toiletries,cleaning supplies, food, toys, tools for repairing the condo, our bunnies and there accessories, and whatever other miscellaneous items a family of 4 needs in order to live away from their home for a week at a time. All the above fits into our Volvo and Chevy van (i.e. 2 vehicles). This morning as David was finishing up the final details of apartment #1, I was packing everything up and cleaning our apartment with a toddler in toe. This project started after breakfast, about 8am. David & Hannah began to leave to run errands in our van but discovered the battery was dead.  It took about 10 minutes to get the battery fully charged. After that little set back they finally left and I continued packing and cleaning. They returned at about noon and found the luggage,bunnies, various bags, coolers, and boxes ready to be loaded into the van. At this point Jacob was pretty bored with his movie and was getting into several different adventurous things. We all were ready for lunch as well and questions about when we were eating and where began at 5 minute intervals. We finished loading our 2 vehicles and cleaning both apartments with promises of eating at McDonald's playland before starting our 1 ½ hr trip home. It is now about 1:30pm. I followed David down our street to leave but when I came to the stop sign something odd happened…I had no breaks. At first I thought it was just the incline of the street and me not paying attention to how fast I was going and thus needed to apply more pressure to my peddle in order to stop, “Surely the breaks couldn't be bad” I thought. Then came the slowing down as I approached a speed bump and it happened again: I heard a soft “whoosh” as I pressed on the breaks and felt my foot go all the way to the floor before our car gently came to a slow halt. Jacob currently has my phone saying his last goodbyes to his daddy so I try to “calmly” ask for it back so Mommy can speak to daddy. Hannah’s antenna’s perk up at my fake calm voice and starts asking, “What’s going on?!” I get the phone back and say, “David, I have NO breaks; the peddle is going all the way to floor before I can stop”. We pull both vehicles over. Hannah is now beginning to get excited and Jacob recognizes that where we have stopped is not at McDonalds and begins complaining. David quickly realizes that the car is leaking brake fluid. We switch cars and head back to the condo. Now the children are in full mutiny. He inspects the car further and calls AT&T roadside assistance for a tow to the nearest PepBoys. AT&T gives us the terms and we agree so the tow truck service is ordered and expected arrival time is 3:18pm, it is currently 2:30pm.  Because this is PR there is not always an address to give so a person can quickly find you, many times we give step by step driving directions in order for someone to find us. In this instance the condo has no address and the tow truck driver does not speak English and our limited Spanish is useless. Both our cell phones are complaining of a low battery but my husband brilliantly remembers our GPS in the van has a feature that tells you where you’re at. We look up the coordinates and relay it to the company to relay them to the driver. About 30 minutes later we get a call from the driver wanting specific instructions…apparently he does not have a GPS.  So we call the owner of the condo and patch him through to the tow truck driver and listen in on the precise directions to the condo. We are told that the driver will be here in 35 minutes, making his ETA 3:45pm. At this point it is inevitable we are spending 1 more day in the area and I enlist my understandably grumpy daughter to help me unload some of the lighter things from the car we will need for spending the night, with the promise of snack food and another movie while we wait for the truck driver to arrive.  The snacks and movie rerun only last so long and boredom again sets in. Oh yes, at this point,cue the rain. It is now 4:10pm when we hear the long awaited sound of the tow truck arriving. However, upon his arrival he hands us his phone to speak to his boss. David is told the terms of service have been changed. As he watches our car get loaded onto the truck we’re told that instead of the $11.44 charge there is now a $3 per mile charge and AT&T will only cover the initial $50 service fee. We all quickly load back in to the van and as David is pulling out we are abruptly stopped by a light pole in our way. David and I both exclaim, "Seriously!" at the same time. We decide to inspect our bumper when we arrive at PepBoys. As we follow the tow truck to the PepBoys, in the rain with hungry & tired children, I call AT&T back to try to find out why the service terms were changed and what could be done about it.  By the time we arrive at the PepBoys I still am on the phone wondering what to do. The driver unloads the car and David once again speaks to the driver’s boss, explains the confusion and informs them that unless the driver takes debit or credit, he only has $10 in cash on hand.Miraculously the company agrees and all is settled. I reminded David to check our bumper and brace myself to hear about the damage. However, there is none, somehow! Chalk it up to being a Chevy, I guess! As often times happens with unexpected car repairs, we aren't prepared and are leery of the cost, thus we have picked up the habit of finding coupons for various repairs. David thankfully finds one for PepBoys for break inspection/repairs. He presents it to the service manager and thankfully they accept it and we get a discount on our repairs, thank you Lord!

Chapter 2:Current time is about 5:30pm. After the car is enrolled in the PepBoys system and all gets taken care of we drive next door to the long awaited for McDonald’s playland. The children play, we charge our phones, eat horribly unhealthy food,and everyone is happy or at least feeling better. About 30 min into our wait a boy arrives at the empty playland and Hannah and Jacob have a friend to play with. However 5 min later the dad comes in to announce its time to go in English. David comments, “Oh Dad that’s not fair I just got here…” The dad laughs and makes a comment about needing to go. But like most spoken conversations with strangers we have here in PR (since we are mostly with the Deaf who do not speak), we are quickly asked if we live here or are visiting. This begins an hour and a half long conversation not only with the dad but his older daughter and wife who have eventually wondered in to the playland looking for their dad/husband in order to leave. We enjoyed talking and sharing with this family immensely as we laughed and got to know one another. By the time we realized we hadn't heard from PepBoys it was almost 7pm. We said goodbye to our new friends,exchanged contact info with the promise of reconnecting after the baby is born, and David walked next door to see what progress had been made.

Chapter 3: David returns to tell me a mechanic had been sent out to buy a new break line hose and we should be getting a , “We’re finished with your car” call soon. It is currently 7:30pm. About 20 minutes later Hannah comes out of the playland  crying and holding her bloody chin. We brace ourselves for an ugly scrape but cringe when we see a nice open slice on her chin instead. We look at each other and as only married couples can do, we have communicated wordlessly that we’ll be going to the ER to make sure stitches are not needed. We find Jacob, load both children into the van, and try to figure out where the nearest hospital is. Oh yes, cue the empty gas tank notification! Hannah is screaming, Jacob is confused & tired, I want to pull over for gas, David wants to go to the ER first, and let’s throw in some more raining while we’re at it. We discover hospital lights on the horizon and quickly agree that we have enough gas to get us down the road. I drop Hannah and David off at the ER entrance and try to figure out where to park for free that’s close. Praise God I find a spot quickly and the rain quite's so Jacob and I could walk to the hospital without being drenched. We arrived at the ER and upon first visual assessment there are wall to wall injured people, some standing, sitting, or lying in beds. Jacob is wide eyed taking it all in and begins greeting people by smiling and waving. A friendly security guard helps me find David and Hannah. Jacob happily and loudly reunites with his daddy and sissy while we talk about Hannah’s initial assessment. Needless to say there’s a long wait. Oh yes, cue the call from PepBoys saying our car is ready and they close in 30 min (i.e. its 8:30pm).David makes arrangements to possibly pick it up in the morning or make it thereon time. At that point a nurse arrives and wades through the crowd of people who are all wondering why they are getting passed up by this nurse for a little girl with a scraped chin. He further examines Hannah and David follows him back to an office to discuss treatment options. Jacob is not happy about Daddy leaving him behind and begins screaming, not crying, but screaming. While David is with the nurse for about 10 minutes I begin receiving curious, annoyed, and angry glances from fellow ER patients as Jacobs tantrum only worsens.  David emerges from the office and says, “Let’s go!” He tells us that since Hannah’s injury is not that severe enough to need stitches and that since the ER is crowded that evening, it would be better if we just got some supplies at Walgreens and treat her ourselves.

Chapter 4: Currently it is about 8:45pm. We high tail is to PepBoys, also conveniently located next to
Walgreens. David pays for the repairs as I shop for supplies. We also pick up some things we need for breakfast. As we wait in line to buy our items Hannah finds a PEZ dispenser shaped like a nurse. We decide to get it for her as a reward if she lets Dr. Daddy treat her without fighting. She agrees to our terms although she expresses trepidation regarding the amount of pain and whether or not she would be allowed to call for a “pause” during her treatment. As we’re leaving Walgreens I remember that as I was packing this morning the bed sheets for the kids’ bed is in with the dirty laundry for washing when we got home. It is now 9:30pm as we head to Wal-Mart for bed sheets and a shirt for me since mine are all dirty. Jacob denies being tired and Hannah is excited about getting a new PEZ dispenser. We leave Wal-Mart in record time and arrive back at the condo a little after 10pm. Jacob is asleep and carried in and put to bed. Hannah gets into position for treatment. We treat her as best we could with

the large butterfly band-aids and Liquid-skin band-aid ointment. There was some painful tears but she was brave and when finished posed for a picture holding her prized nurses PEZ dispenser.

Prologue: So, over 2,000 words later I can sum it all up in a few verses:  James 4:13-15 “Now listen, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money.” Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow.What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. Instead, you ought to say, “If it is the Lord’s will, we will live and do this or that.”

Since it is past 2am, I am assuming most of you will be reading this as you wake up this morning or while eating your breakfast. As I listen to my family sleeping I am so incredibly thankful for all the ways God was with us today! I pray that each of you will have a blessed and safe day living out the plans God has for your life! I pray that tomorrow (or rather today) we will get home safely and without incident. I know full well whom I serve and am confident that He loves me, is taking care of my family, and has an awesome plan for our _______ (insert your own adjective here describing our day) day!

~Heather~
February 24th 2015 

Through the tears and the pain there is still hope and a future.

   

  

          My beautiful, happy, always cheerful, incredibly playful, and loving son was in tears, large crocodile size tears, just a few moments ago. He was so very upset about loosing something he must have felt was very important to him. What he could not see, that I could see, was that it was too harmful to him for him to keep as he went to bed and so I did not let him keep it. It was small, made of rubber, and could have easily caused him to suffocate the next time he put it in his mouth. All that he could focus on though was that it was gone and he still wanted it. He did not start off crying those alligator tears at first. First he tried to get it back from me, he called out "dadda" with his hand stretched out for it. As I said no again he got angry and his eyes welled up with tears. "Dadda, dadda", he would say with his lip all pouty as the desperation to get it back continued to grow, and then they came, those deep, sobbing, crocodile tears came streaming down his cheeks. I felt so bad for him. I love to see him laugh and smile, to be happy, and full of cheer. I love the way he waves to me every time we leave each others' sight or when he sees me again how he smiles real big, giggles, waves and says "Dadda". He is always smiling and happy and I do not like it when he is upset. Still I knew that it was best for him to not let him have what he wanted even though I understood how upset it would make him. As Heather took Jacob and Hannah for her time to snuggle with them before bed I could not help but think of a time, long ago now, that I too was so terribly upset and crying out for my heavenly father to help me, to change the heart of the person I loved so that I would not loose them. I remember sleepless nights up crying, full of crocodile tears, as I too was crying out, 'Daddy, daddy, please, please". Just like Jacob I was angry, sad, and desperately wanting God to give me what I felt I really needed, wanted, and just had to have.

Tonight in the tearful eyes of my son I was reminded of the great wisdom, compassion, and love my heavenly father has for me and for you. There are many times we cry out for God to move in our lives in this way or that way and we like Jacob get hurt, we bargain, plead, get angry, ask Him why, and to make it all better not realizing that by not doing what we want at that moment He truly is.

These past two months have been very hard for me in many ways. I have been so sick for so long, there have been those who have lied and sought to tear us down and damage our ministry and though the attacks are nothing new this time they deeply hurt. There were many times I asked God to just take it all a way, to turn the hearts of the ones who were attacking, and to give me back my health. I wanted so desperately to wake up in the morning and it all be better only to wake up and find that it wasn't. He didn't do what I wanted when I wanted it and how I had asked but He did speak to Heather in a dream that gave us both great encouragement, He sent a man here to minister with us and to us just when we both need it the most. He sustained me and though I felt so awful, every test I took only came back to show that I was healthy. Thankfully for over a week now the sickness has been gone, leaving as mysteriously as it came. And I learned today that the exercises I have been doing is correcting my back problem as well. I know that these times of refining are necessary and that there will be more to come until the Lord takes me home. They always serve to draw me closer to him. The long walks, those times of prayer, all of the time spent studding God's word, I can see are making me a kinder more gentler person. I have learned through the trials of life that no matter how I feel from moment to moment I can trust and find peace in the fact that the Lord loves me more than I can understand and has promised us all that He will never leave us nor forsake us.

     After Heather had her cuddle time I went in to have mine. Jacob was no longer crying and he crawled up to me and gave me a kiss and a hug and said contently, "Dadda", as he rubbed my face. He did not understand why I took the thing that I did away from him but at the same time he knew that his daddy loves him, and I do too.

     Maybe you are where I have been or where Jacob was tonight, wanting something, something so badly, and not knowing why He is not letting you have it. Can I just share with you with all confidence that He loves you too and even though you don't understand why the things are happening in your life or in the lives of those you love God still loves you and whatever it is you are facing or will face your heavenly father loves you and it will be ok.

     Let love and faithfulness never leave you; bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart. Then you will win favor and a good name in the sight of God and man. Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight. Do not be wise in your own eyes; fear the Lord and shun evil. This will bring health to your body and nourishment to your bones. Proverbs 3:3-8

God Bless,
David

Watch Your Step!

One of the many beauties of Puerto Rico is that horses (among other types of animals) roam the land free. You may see a horse crossing in front of your house, at a stop sign, across an open field, really anywhere, anytime. Sometimes they are being ridden or put out to pasture or they are wild and just doing there “horse thing”. 

One of the byproducts of free-range horses is their manure deposits; again, at anywhere and at anytime.

This morning as I was hyperventilating on my morning jog up a nearby hill, I spotted a horse manure pile up ahead right smack dab in the middle of my narrow path that runs close to a busy street.  It was large, with multiple flies congregating around it, and it was downwind from me so it provided a distinct odor for which I was unable to avoid smelling by holding my breath since I was already in such short supply. With little time to contemplate how to go about maneuvering around it without tripping and falling either into the manure pile or into the street, I was able to successfully and carefully avoid both possibilities without breaking my stride.

Then God gave me a light bulb moment (yes, God spoke to me as I avoided falling in a pile of manure)!

On this narrow path that Christians travel on together how times do encounter a “manure pile” in our path?

The road is “straight and narrow” so there is little leeway for circumventing stumbling blocks. When we encounter a stumbling block left by a fellow believer it is never pleasant, normally we curl up our nostrils in disgust as we are forced to take in its stench, it surely is not visually appealing either, and sometimes we see others ensnared in it as well.

What do you do? There are a few scenarios that you can choose from: you could quickly look for a way to avoid tripping and falling into their “manure pile” and successfully avoid it and then continue on your way happy and praising yourself for your skills in avoiding entrapment! You could also stop and complain about it while pointing it to others as they pass by and exclaim how nasty and dirty it is proclaiming, “Unclean unclean unclean!”. You could also recruit someone to clean it up and get it out of the way for you in an effort to remain clean. Also,  you could simply ignore it, pretend it doesn’t bother you and practice the  “mind over matter” technique because who has time these days to deal with such annoyances that will only bog you down and ruin such a nice day? Or…. you could face the problem of the stinky pile; help the “depositor” of said manure pile clean it up while showing them how to properly take care of it for the next time.  Hmmm, so many choices, wouldn't you say?

You know there is a flip side to this analogy as well! Until we reach the end of our path to Heaven we will never stop encountering “manure piles” or…..wait for it…..making them ourselves. Manure piles are a fact of life even on the straight and narrow path with other believers. We all do it and won’t stop doing it until we are fully transformed. So for now, as we traverse this path together in our tents of flesh, what about you?

You make “manure piles” as well. Does yours make others stumble? Does it create road blocks for other travelers hindering their walkway? Do other travelers make the error of stumbling smack dab in the middle of your “manure pile” Your “manure pile” isn’t any more pleasant than the last guys pile a while back, you know! Hhhmmm, something to think about

Sanctification is rarely pleasant, just like cleaning up a pile of manure. And, sometimes we get the added bonus of helping out someone else bear their burdens and giving them a little extra push along the way so they can overcome their own stumbling blocks.

Manure is manure, we all do it.

The only difference is: what will we do when we do it ourselves and what do we do when we encounter someone else’s pile?

Road Weary & Yet longing To Finish Well!

              

On the road again.

  It has been an amazing adventure but like all adventures they eventually need to come to an end, don't they? This furlough like the ones before has been an exercise in faith from beginning and I am sure it will be until the end. We left PR in pretty bad shape and unable to pay the bills for the last two months we were there. We did not know where we would go, how we would get there, or where we would sleep or what we would eat. We had some ideas though, and most things turned out to be completely different than what we had thought they would. The trip has been a mixture of mountain tops and valleys as most good journeys do.

The Lord led a man we had never met to give us a car to drive throughout the course of this journey, fully insured, and it has ran great for over 10,000 miles now. We have met more amazing people than I could name here, and I have had the opportunity to preach two revivals, in two separate states just days apart. Reports back say that they are continuing to impact the communities they were in. The one in IL was the most

20 min. before revival service begins

attended they have had there and several of the churches that participated are now seeing real growth. Though several of the places we went cost us more to get to and stay for the time we were there than was placed in our donation box, others took up love offerings that made up the difference and kept us on the road headed to the next one. There have been many unplanned Bible studies that came perfectly timed and we have made new friendships that will continue to grow and flourish in the years to come and we have had several opportunities to reunite with dear friends we have not seen in years. 

            We have also had our fill of bumps in the road as well. Sadly the Bible I have

So what are my choices?

taught every Bible study, preached every sermon with, each revival, and every church start since I was 14 was lost on this journey after having been placed on the roof of the car while kids and materials were being loaded from one church to the next. In truth each one of us have lost more than one thing on the trip. It is to be expected really with all there is to keep up with, the lack of sleep, and those endless miles something is bound to get lost along the way.  We have also been battling illness. For three weeks we each had our time with the flu, both congestive and stomach. Poor Jacob’s temp reached 103.7 and it prompted a trip to urgent care. Since we do not have health insurance as we travel, medical costs are typically high for us. Thankfully Jacob and all of us are back to our healthy selves. May God grant us health and safety the rest of our time here.

Here it is now mid Jan. and we are wondering what is next, longing to be back home in PR, we have not yet met our ministry’s fully funded goal, we have spoke at most of the churches we have in the past, new opportunities are not opening up like they did when we first arrived, and we have even lost existing support as we have traveled (though new support has balanced that back out now). We are not that much further ahead in committed monthly support than when we left PR.           

           Yesterday I was feeling pretty discouraged as I thought on these things and also

Birthday surprise with friends

from the response I received from a church I had reached out to earlier in the day when I received a text from my best friend.  We have been best friends since High School (20 years) and though we do not always get to spend as much time together as we would like to visiting with each other and our families or talking over the phone because of our schedules, we do seem to know how the other is feeling just in the way the other will say hello. Having not heard from me in a while he texted me with encouragement on the journey and hope for a good and what he felt would be a well earned ending, even though he knows that means we will be an ocean apart once again. His text came at just the right moment with exactly what I needed. One of only a few times I have seen Eph. 4:29 fulfilled to its fullest by others in my life:

^“Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear.” ~Ephesians 4:29

        His words surely fit the occasion of my life at the moment and I am grateful both for my friends love and encouragement and for the Lord’s leading and timing in our lives.

Those words reminded me of another portion of scripture that are often needed and to easily forgotten:

“And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up.”~ Galatians 6:9

The journey continues.

This coming month will be our last month of furlough. I do not know yet where we will go, who we will meet, what opportunities or challenges lay ahead but I do know with the Lord and the love and support of our family and friends we will press on being encouraged to not grow weary of doing good and looking for the time of reaping of all that has been sewn. 

          Maybe things have not gone as you had planned or working out quite the way you felt they would. If so let me say to you with all confidence and with all the love I posses that God loves you and has far better plans for your life than you or I can even imagine at this moment and that this is my prayer for you,

…”that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding;  that you may walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing Him, being fruitful in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God; strengthened with all might, according to His glorious power for all patience and longsuffering with joy; giving thanks to the Father who has qualified us to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in the light. He has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the of Son of His love, in whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins." Col.1:9-14

 

God Bless,

David Ingram

New Day Christian Ministry

Isa.43:18-21

www.newdaycm.org

PS. Any church, Sunday School Class, or small group that you are a part of that would like to have us come and share about this marvelous work the Lord has called us to we would love to have the opportunity to come and share before we head back and continue on with what the Lord has called us to. 

Update: After writing this blog post we faced a very scary challenge later in the day. While I was on my way back from the store Heather called very upset explaining Jacob could not lift his head or craw and that he was in a lot of pain. Hannah had been playing with him, thinking she was entertaining him. She lifted him up about a foot and dropped him on to her air mattress thinking he would like it. We did not know how badly he was injured and was 40 minutes from the hospital which was the only place prepared to work with children in the area. When we arrived they looked him over thoroughly and decided that nothing was broken and that his muscles in his neck, back, and shoulders were strained. He has been bathed in prayer since we left for the hospital and we are grateful for all who have been in prayer for Jacob. He struggled to go to sleep and woke many times through the night. Today we are happy to say he has improved greatly though still recovering. He is able to sit up, hold up his head, and has crawled. He is still recovering and clinging close to Heather but we are encouraged by all of his improvements this morning.