Everyone experiences times of being misunderstood, or misjudged. In extreme cases we can literally suffer verbal abuse, or even what is rightly called being attacked. While there is a definite human part in all of this, often times it is more than mere human.

We should not be surprised. This tactic is as old as old Slewfoot himself. He seeks to steal (peace), kill (reputations), and destroy (cooperation, testimony). Let me make one thing perfectly clear: I hate the Devil. While it is tempting to get angry or vengeful with people when we are misunderstood or falsely accused, may I suggest a better, yes, a higher way. Direct that emotion at Satan. Beloved, have you not heard it said that we do not wrestle against flesh and blood? OK, then let’s not. The Devil has just picked a fight. The only problem is, he knocks you in the nose and you are stunned. By the time you recover he has ducked or hidden, leaving a brother or sister standing there to whom you now direct your rage. Don’t.

I have had some cruel and vicious attacks against me over the years. It is part of the price of ministry. It also is likely a sign that you are about the strike a blow to the enemy’s plans, or are about to experience a breakthrough. This calls for real discernment.

There are quite a few scriptures which have helped to carry me through such times. Take, for instance, this passage from Romans 12:14-21

“Bless those who persecute you.  Bless them, and don’t curse them…Live in harmony with each other.  Don’t be arrogant, but be friendly to humble people.  Don’t think that you are smarter than you really are.  Don’t pay people back with evil for the evil they do to you.   Focus your thoughts on those things that are considered noble.  As much as it depends on you, live in peace with everyone.  Don’t take revenge, dear friends.  Instead, let God’s anger take care of it all.  After all, Scriptures says, “I alone have the right to take revenge.  I will pay back, says the Lord”…Don’t let evil conquer you, but conquer evil with good.” 

When this happens to you, let me share a few practical thoughts of what to do:

1. Bless and release grace to those who have hurt you. Humble yourself and seek for your part to reconcile. Indeed, your greatest defense and asset in these times may well be your humility. Pray for the “attacker” whom you feel may have been influenced by the enemy and entered into flesh warfare. Follow David’s example in PS 109:3,4. He said when men “surrounded me with words of hatred, and fought against me without cause…I gave myself to prayer.” Later in the same Psalm he says, “let them curse, but You bless.” (v.28)
2. Guard your heart. You are not responsible for the heart of another, but you can and must keep yours. Above all, you must not allow yourself to be contaminated. Praise often. Direct your gaze upward. As David concludes PS 109, wherein he had come under brutal attack, turn and use your mouth according to the purpose for which it was created: “I will greatly praise the Lord with my mouth; Yes, I will praise Him among the multitude” (v.30).
3. Guard your tongue. When called upon, present facts, then do not go any farther. If the person is curious but not one of the involved parties, the less said the better. Direct them to pray as you are. You will be tempted to seek sympathy from man, but in doing so, you forfeit the comfort which comes from God alone. Whatever you do, do not allow yourself the “comfort” of maligning or creating suspicion about another. Never stoop to fighting back. When you do, you have given the Devil a double victory. You prove that you have received the hurt of another, then have chosen to hurt them back.
4. Watch the clock. In these matters, time is a great friend. Make sure you have fulfilled the “as much as depends on you, live peaceably” (RM 12:18) part of your relationship. Then it is time to allow the fruit of patience have its affect. In the case of several of our kids growing up, I have had to discipline them not to pick their scabs after an injury. Wounds heal best when left alone. I had an ankle injury that I kept reinjuring which caused me to be inactive for a few years because I never had the patience to wait for it to completely heal. Given time, through my ankle, and relationships with people who had formerly attacked me, healed—completely.
5. Look for gold. Gold has to be mined. It is hidden and it is rare, but that is why it is costly. There are precious nuggets to be harvested in every test God allows to come your way. Fire and intense heat are added to expose and polish pure and priceless gems. When we suffer reproach or bear the scars of battle, we enter into a deeper fellowship with the One who took our reproach and was beaten for us.

Most of these points can be gleaned from PS 69. Written by David who suffered the assaults of King Saul, Ahithophel his trusted and aged counselor, even his own son Absalom, this Psalm is a masterful roadmap for how to ward off the insipid and infectious affects of betrayal and being despitefully judged. The Psalm is actually Messianic, as some parts of it could only be applied to the suffering of the Son of Man Himself. I have turned to these words many times through the years and found them to be just what the Doctor ordered for my sickness and to heal my wounds (noting at the same time what He went through was FAR more intense and horrible than anything we could go through). Bear in mind, and take heart, that though the Psalm begins with a cry to be saved from the quicksand of being wrongfully accused, it ends with the declaration that despite this seemingly unbearable setback, the purpose of God would still be fully accomplished in David’s life. David confidently announced that Zion would be saved, and cities would be built, that the people would dwell there in peace for generations to come.

“God will save Zion, and build the cities of Judah, that they may dwell there and possess it. Also the descendants of His servants shall inherit it, and those who love His name shall dwell in it.” PS 69:35,36

This should be our hope and expectation as well. And that’s why it is so important that we recognize the enemy when he raises his ugly head. Sooner or later, the Devil will attack you through the words or another. He is, afterall, called the Accuser of the brethren, a role that he relishes in day and night performance (Rev 12:10). Sooner or later, minor misunderstandings can become a full-blown war and threaten to leave you devastated and embroiled in a battle you were never meant to fight. Beloved, these things happen. Be on guard. Though Satan buffet, stand firm knowing that this same Accuser “has been cast down” (Rev 12:10). Choose not to flight against flesh and blood. Not now. Not ever.

Anna and Nathaniel were married on July 20, 2013.  Nathaniel’s grandparents pioneered an Evangelical Seminary in Germany.  His parents continued the work there and that is where Nathaniel was raised until he went to University in America.  Anna and Nate met during their first week in Medical School in the University of Alabama, Birmingham.

Anna, Mom, Liz, and Tabby all wore Indian sarees.  We road to church in a “London Cab”.

It was a joyous time for the whole family.  Just over 100 people were in attendance including from Anna’s primary school, secondary school & track team, friends from our old neighborhood, our old church here as as well as our new church.  People came from Hong Kong (family and friends), Malaysia, Thailand, China, and even the US, besides Singapore.

I had the privilege of sharing the Wedding Message and Pronouncing them Husband and Wife.  Three other pastors also participated in the ceremony.  Thanks to Pastors Ong, Lip, and James!

Joyce and I were so honored to welcome Nathaniel Rogers into our family, and to give our first daughter to marry in such a beautiful ceremony.  Many spoke of the tangible presence of God.  Liz sang “How Beautiful” to violin, cello, and flute accompaniment.  There was hardly a dry eye in this old, 1835 Armenian Church.  It must have been quite an experience for the numerous Muslims, handful of Hindus, and the smattering of of non-Christians who had come.

Thank you for sharing our joy with us on this amazing and glorious day!

ADDITIONAL PHOTOS

This shot was taken at our home before we left for the church.  Elizabeth’s boyfriend Anthony was also with us (he lives in Thailand), and even helped lead worship and accompany on the guitar for Liz’s offeratory and the recessional.

What a privilege to walk my firstborn down the aisle!  The Armenian Church was quaint and truly classic.  It only sits around 90 people, so some of the folks had to stand in the sides and back.  Still, it couldn’t have been better : )

As you can see, my “girls” except Charlotte wore Indian sarees.  I decided against it too.  But Nate, Nathan, and Jeremy also found Indian outfits which all seemed to come together just nicely.  The whole celebration was international from the gitgo.  Nate raised in Germany.  Anna in Hong Kong.  Between them the speak 7 different languages (German, Spanish, French, Mandarin, Cantonese, Arabic, and, oh yes, English).  Indian outfits, Armenian Church, all performed in Singapore for Americans.

The mother of the bride was breathtakingly beautiful.  I was ready to get married all over again myself!  Hard to believe this was taken just days shy of our 27th anniversary.

Thanks for sharing our joyous day with us through these memories~

This blog is excerpted from the message I shared at my daughter Anna’s wedding. I have edited it for a more general application which can be for us all in many aspects of our lives, but put in the context of marriage.

“Eye has not seen, nor ear heard,
Nor have entered into the heart of man
The things which God has prepared
for those who love Him.” 1 Cor 2:9

I’d like to tell you something that I have discovered about God; He LOVES to surprise us. He LOVES to prepare these really awesome things for us, and then present them to us at just the right moment.

Consider how God prepared and then surprised Adam with Eve. Here’s the picture. God first brings all the animals to Adam to name. Now there are a LOT of animals out there, so this must have taken a very LONG TIME. The variety, the engineering, the colors, the exquisite design, their crazy and wonderful functions, had to have left Adam with an ever increasing, deeper and deeper sense of awe and inspiration. And then came the garden itself, with all its trees, varieties and flavors of fruits, plants, and flowers with all their richness of color and fragrances. I mean, I recently went to the Singapore National Orchid Garden and discovered there are 25,000 different types of orchids alone!

In case you hadn’t thought about this, GOD PREPARED ALL THESE THINGS FOR US TO ENJOY, along with the stars, and fish, and on and on…

As great as all these things were, God still had one more surprise up His sleeve. While he was sleeping, God removed a rib from his side, and out of it he made Eve. Did God need to use a rib? No. He did it to show that Eve had always been a part of him. When God designed him, He already had Eve in mind. Then just at the right moment, He brought her to him. God prepares, God orders, God presents. It is such a beautiful picture of how God works. He is constantly preparing things for and surprising those who love Him.

I know this by experience, for after 27 years of marriage I am awed that God would have done such a wonderful job of preparing my wife especially for me. Surely my eyes could not have seen, nor my ears have heard, not did it enter into my heart that God would have prepared such a remarkable person for me to spend my lifetime with.

Married couples need to hear this message today. They need a vision for what their lives can be like together. That does not mean that life has always been perfect, or will always be perfect for you. But it does mean that the memory of this verse, its truth, that God has painstakingly, meticulously, miraculously prepared a woman for a man and vice versa can help to marriages through the hard times.

Another thing about which I am convinced is when God prepares a good gift, it is not a temporary arrangement. Some think that you start off with a thrilling honeymoon and then it is all down hill from there. Not true. A lifetime is not enough time to discover the wonders of your spouse. God’s gift does not grow stale. It is not in His nature to give a gift that you would grow tired of. His way is to give things which create a perpetual novelty, an undisturbed freshness. I’ve had the privilege of seeing some couples who loved and served the Lord together for more than 60, even more than 70 years. I have been moved to tears when I have considered the richness, quality, and depth of their communion.

Here are a couple thoughts about this verse. First of all, the “eye has not seen, ear has not heard, nor has it entered into the heart of man” simply put means this: whatever you have imagined a life together under God’s plan to be, it is better. It is NOT better automatically, mind you. You still have to obey Him. You have to walk in His ways, and embrace His will. This is a PROMISE, not a GUARANTEE. There’s a big difference.

The second thought is about the word “prepared”. Now, sometimes it is really important to stop and think about a word, understand its meaning, and then really absorb and digest the implications of its use. This is one of those times.

You see, God is an incredible planner. He has never done something without putting enough thought into it. He has never contrived a half-baked idea. He has never started something well and then gotten distracted. He has never run out of time. He has never run out of resources. And he has never not had enough helpers. So in other words, when God says “I am preparing something for you”, trust me, you are in for something amazing.

Here are two instances in the New Testament where the Greek word hetoimazo is used to highlight what this really means when it says God has prepared something for you.

The first instance is in Eph 2:10, where it says “we are his workmanship (a word which itself is sometimes translated masterpiece, meaning we are like a poem He has written, or a work of art) created in Christ Jesus for good works (created to perform some stunning things) which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.” So God has planned these really amazing things to be a product of our lives, and then He prepares the conditions, the opportunities, the people, the resources, the favor, etc. to make them happen. This is one of the places where this word for prepared is used. He is always preparing things for us to be engaged in which are all a part of the grand design of our lives, upon which His signature will be written and then displayed for all to see.

Another instance is in the last book of the Bible, the next to last chapter, which describes the consummation of all things and which comparing us, His church, to a bride who has been prepared and made beautiful for her husband. I can’t imagine a more vivid illustration of God preparing things for those who love Him than this! The preparation of a bride for her husband transcends time and culture. We need only to look at the book of Esther who lived 2500 years ago, to be convinced of this. She spent twelve months to PREPARE herself for her husband. The first six months she bathed daily in oil of myrrh to make her skin soft and supple. The next six months she was doing the Chanel makeover with perfumes and beautifying agents to make herself ready for her husband.

In the same way, God prepares exquisitely, extravagantly, and exhaustively. To put it another way, when God says He is preparing something for us, and He compares it to a bride preparing herself for her wedding day, we can say with complete assurance that this God, our God, this amazing and boundless Planner, when He says He has prepared a woman for a man, and a man for a woman, preparing and provided for your married life together, you can be absolutely certain that it’s going to blow your mind.

Since this verse is not a guarantee, but a promise, it behooves us all to receive this promise, then cherish and hold on to it at all cost. In an age when marriages are under intense attack and people in general cling to hope as to a thread, this is a message of hope. In an hour of desperation, in times of great distress, in an age when the very institution of marriage is under brutal assault, this is no small thing.. People who witness such a couple in the grip of this promise will literally be stirred to believe again…yes, believe that a happy, prosperous, honoring marriage is possible. Hallelujah.

Finally, receiving this promise is not difficult. You really only need to do one thing. Indeed, it is the one thing for which we have been made. You only need to love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your mind, and all your strength. You don’t need to be perfect. You don’t need to study Suntse’s Art of War for Marriage, or read all the latest self-help books. Get imput. Study to understand the principles of God’s Word for marriage. But the most important ingredient of a happy life together is not complicated at all. Put Him first. Let Him sit upon the throne of your marriage. Seek Him first, and all the things you want and need will be added unto you. The Father has prepared you for each other. Your eyes have not seen, nor ears heard, nor has it entered into your hearts, just how amazing a Masterpiece you will be when He is finished with you. Amen.

“And Caleb said, ‘You know the word which the Lord said to Moses the man of God concerning you and me in Kadesh Barnea.’”   Josh 14:6

Caleb understood a hugely important principle in fulfilling God’s purpose for his life:  cherish the word of the Lord to you and hang on to it through thick and thin.
How much should we cherish the word of God to us?  How about waiting 45 years for its fulfillment?  You might not even be 45 years old!  The fact that he had to wait all those years had not diminished the promise of God in Caleb’s mind.  If God promised it, He would do it.  If He had spoken it, the Word would come to pass.
Beloved, we cannot look with wonder upon those who seem to live according to a greater purpose and passion, as though they just got a better deal. They just lived by the right principles and frankly, they seized the opportunities and challenges before them.  They were tenacious, refusing to forget, be sidetracked, or distracted.
And it is not just that he would not let go of this promise either.  It was planted SO DEEP that even age, the fact that he was 85 at the time, did not slow him down or deter him from seeing the word of the the Lord come to pass. The word quickened him, emboldened him, and with it came the anointing to accomplish it.   The enemy who stood in the way or Caleb receiving his promise was formidable, and had been entrenched in those strongholds for hundreds of years.
But Caleb would not be denied. In the end, Caleb took the mountain that became the inheritance of his family for generations. In doing so he claimed Hebron, the site of the burial of some of the patriarchs.  He changed the name from Kirjath Arba, named after the greatest giant to have lived, greater even than Goliath, to Hebron, which means to unite or to join.  His obedience opened the doors of blessing and opportunity for many. Indeed, the naming of Hebron proved prophetic. Nearly 400 years later, Hebron was the very site where all the scattered tribes of Israel were united under one ruler, David, declaring “we are your bone and your flesh” (2 Sam 5:1).
Our text ends with the words, “Then the land had rest from war”  v. 14:15  Caleb’s persistence and patience paid off. As such, he becomes an example and inspiration to us all, to cherish and hold on to your promise! God will be faithful to release it to you, at just the right time.

“As an eagle stirs up its nest,
Hovers over its young,
Spreading out its wings, taking them up,
Carrying them on its wings…”     DT 32:11

I have had this wonderful fascination with the animal kingdom since the time I was a little boy. Thanks to parents who were raised on farms, and who understood the rich imagination little boys can have (I was the youngest of four), we always had an array of creeping, squawking, barking, and furry things around to keep us entertained. Curt, the Doolittle among us, had nearly memorized the entire nature encyclopedia of facts about every creature under heaven. We never missed Mutual of Omaha’s Wild Kingdom, and Jacques Cousteau was like a family to us!

There was the mouse that escaped and of all the places he found to hide, he chose my mother’s slipper. There was Matilda, the waltzing hen, who followed the mailman on his route and came a clucking when she was called, especially when a Ritz cracker was in the offering. There was Lucy the goose who made it onto the local newspaper and TV news in her short lifetime. Curt saved Wilber the rat from a science experiment’s inevitable fate, only to continue to bring it back to school for weeks in his sleeve, on his neck, or occasionally on his head. Sure we had the more typical offerings as well: dogs and cats and fish and bunnies. But not everyone in the neighborhood kept iguanas, or skunks, or 30-pound snapping turtles! Some people wonder if their neighbors talk about them. We never did—wonder, I mean.

Even here in our Asian, urban jungles, animals continue to play a role in my life. Some of the 500 turkeys we raised on our China farm made their way to our balcony, and we raised days-old kids (goats) fed from a bottle. This past week we spied a three foot monitor lizard during a hike, caught and brought home a seahorse from the beach, and prayed for a blind, sick, doomed pet turtle only to see it healed and its blind eyes opened overnight. During the school holidays what is the favorite thing for the younger kids to watch? You guessed it. Its shocking the things that Jeremy, Daniel, and even Charlotte know about a huge array of God’s amazing forest, jungle, savannah, or ocean creatures.

If God had not called me to be a missionary, I would have enjoyed being an ornithologist. I just love birds most of all. I can’t even walk by a fallen feather without collecting it for further observation, and worship. The design, the engineering, the intricacy, the array and combination of colors…wow. Perhaps that is one of the reasons why this verse in Deuteronomy grabs my attention. I mean, God Himself compares His care for Israel in bringing them out of Egypt and back to the Promised Land to an eagle’s care for its chicks. Follow me as a muse a bit about this.

First of all, I can’t help but wonder how Moses was able to describe in such detail this intimate encounter of a mother eagle with her young. He didn’t get it from National Geographic! Neither had the Audubon Society been formed back in 1440 BC. Eagles nests are in the crags and cliffs of high mountains. Do you suppose he observed and then got this revelation during those 80 days in the Presence on Sinai? Few have had the privilege to see this even to this day.

Wherever, however it happened, Moses did not have the benefit of a telephoto lens. And yet the image was sharp. The stirring of the nest, making sure there were no sharp objects, no bugs, no signs of a breach. Hovering over the young; was it to fan them, or just to let the eaglets see the expanse of the protection, and imposing strength of the protector. Landing gently on the nest’s brim, she then kept those wings stretched to shelter, cover, and comfort. The Hebrew word here can also mean to nestle, or to cherish.

One by one, she would them take them up. It gets very personal at this point. This is the first stage in learning how to fly, when the rhythmic flapping wings of the parent actually lift the eaglet off the nest momentarily. It will soon be flying on its own strength, but when it actually gets up the courage to leave the nest it will quickly lose strength only to be caught and then carried by the parent eagle back to a safe place or to a new height where it can start over again. The process, courage, catching, and carrying, repeats itself until the eaglet can capture its own food and master its own takeoff, crossing its own Jordan on the way to its own Canaan.

When I was praying for Anna during her medical board exams in the wee hours of the night on Saturday the picture of being carried on eagle’s wings came suddenly and vividly into my mind. How wonderful to know, that the same God who covered and carried the Israelites, nurturing and providing for them to escape their predators, through the wilderness, raining down the quail and the manna, was there to take care of Anna.

He will be there for you as well. For as fascinating, frenetic, and fun as all those squawkers and squeakers are, they were afterall made for His pleasure, and for us to enjoy. Yes, as amazing as they are, you are the crowning act of His creation. As mesmerizing a peacock’s fan, or the Maldivian reef dwellers may be, you alone bear the image of the Beautiful One. While they each have their stories to tell, and lessons to teach us, it is only through you and I that His glory will be shown in all its splendor.

One person commits suicide every 16.2 minutes…
Nearly 1 in 6 High School students has seriously contemplated suicide…
1 in 12 has attempted suicide…
For youth between 10 to 24 suicide is the 3rd leading cause of death…

It is proven suicide can be prevented through awareness…

Check out this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2ute8Af4cq8

“He who gathers in summer is a wise son;
He who sleeps in harvest is a son who causes shame.” PR 10:5

No matter what season we are in, our goal is to stay fervent, passionate, and on fire.

Both sets of grandparents were farmers. Our friends were farmers. I worked on farms, and played in my cousins’ barns. I remember collecting maple syrup using horses with drawn sleighs as a young boy. The farming culture is a busy one. You rise early, and you work hard.

Maybe that’s why I am drawn to scriptures that use agricultural illustrations. Because I remember the intensity and urgency of the harvest season, I cannot imagine a scene where one among us would be caught sleeping while everyone else is so completely engrossed in bringing in the sheaves.

PR 10:4-5 are a couplet contrasting diligence with laziness. “The hand of the diligent makes rich” is completed by the idea of gathering in summer, the time during the agriculture cycle when it is easy to kick back and lose focus. A diligent person knows the importance of preserving a sense of urgency, and of keeping one’s eye on the goal, and the danger of distractions. He knows to stay busy during the hot and long days of summer where its easy to find an excuse to kick back.

Having lived and served with our precious brothers and sisters from the House Churches in China I have been privileged to witness a generation of believers who are as passionate about the harvest of souls around them now as they were when I first knew them, which for some has been for more than 20 years. I have asked God to give me coals from their altars to make me burn, and then help you to burn too. In fact, why don’t you take a moment to just ask the Lord to touch you with that coal right now. Lord, set me on fire, restore a passion in me for the harvest. Help me to be a wise son!

And help me NOT to be a son that causes shame. While not every field of the world is equally harvestable, much depends on our ability to lift up our eyes and see that the harvest is ripe, and not in the field itself. Jesus’ disciples did not SEE the harvest. Jesus did. This reminder itself should help to be careful. Am I guilty of blaming the harvest in my neighborhood, in my culture, among my colleagues, for not being ripe like those other fields? Beloved, there may well be a harvest out there that you are not seeing! Let’s not be caught sleeping.

“Happy are the people whose God is the Lord.” PS 144:15

This is the last verse, a consummation, of a section of scripture which is filled with tension. PS 140-144 all have in their subtitles, “A Psalm of David”. PS 142 even adds “a prayer when David was in the cave”. They were composed during some of the darkest days of David’s life. Either he was engaged in actual war, or fleeing for his life, or being viciously slandered, even betrayed, or suffering persecution. Two times in the midst of it all he cries out, “my spirit is overwhelmed within me”!! Modern day translation? AGGGHHHH!!!

Any of these things constitute circumstances more difficult than most of us will face in a lifetime; yet they are recorded for us as happening to one man in just a couple of pages in your Bible. In this context, to conclude by saying that he was happy?! I don’t know about you, but this really makes me wonder how?

Thankfully, David does not just make a suggestion. He does not just give us a couple of bright ideas. Fact is, he gets downright specific. So here we go, check out these survival keys:

1. “Lord, I cry out to you.” We’ve all heard of the primordial scream, right? Well, this “crying” is not at all the same. The one who will learn to press through trouble and every kind of conflict has to have this weapon in his arsenal. He knows how to CRY unto the Lord. There is a world of difference in crying about and crying to.
2. “My eyes are upon you.” David did not fix his eyes upon his attack or his attackers. He didn’t look for blame, pity, or an escape. Rather than dwell on his circumstances and surroundings, David teaches us the secret of staying focused completely on the Lord who alone was his comfort, his refuge, and his salvation.
3. “I remember the days of old.” The wise person understands the folly of being fixated on the present. He reaches back to find his anchor in the faithfulness of God who has never left or forsaken in the past. He knows to dig up the wells of his forefathers. He knows to recount over and over the Red Sea crossings of his journey. With every remembrance his confidence grows. Yes, the wise person’s faith is firmly established upon the numerous deliverances and victories of the past.
4. “Cause me to hear Your lovingkindness.” One of the greatest services we can pay to others and to ourselves is to study and recall the nature and character of our God. His power, His patience, His sovereignty, His steadfast love, His mercy. Paul said, “to know Him, and the power of His resurrection”. It is not enough to know what God can do; we must know who it is doing it.
5. “Let my head refuse it.” David knew that much of the battle is either won or lost not in the field, but in the mind. David was being lied to, and threatened, and attacked. If he believed the lies, he would have succumbed. He would have grown weaker and not stronger. If he had attempted to fight Goliath with his brain, he would have reasoned his way to the back of the line, back to “safety”, and back to defeat.
6. “Bring my soul out of trouble.” Our emotions too must be brought under submission. They cannot be suppressed, but they can be managed. When confronted with trials and conflict, we will be paralyzed if we allow fear or depression to sit in the driver’s seat. We do not deny, or ignore our feelings. But we need to tell them to sit in the back, quietly, so as not to dominate the conversation and stay as far away from the wheel as possible!
7. “I will sing a new song to You, O God!” Lastly, David leaves us an example of one who never ceases to praise the Lord. The song does not change His circumstances; it changes him. In praise all the previous six keys are brought together. When he praises, he elevates spirit above reason and feelings. He cries out to the Lord in a song, and as he exalts, his focus naturally turns to the object of his attention rather than on the situation or people which have overwhelmed him. In his song, he recounts the great things God has done. As he worships, his lips declare the goodness, grace, and glory of the God of his salvation.

Although I do not know the origins of the phrase, “I’m not a happy camper”, I can easily imagine where it came from. As someone raised in Vermont, I had many opportunities to put the happy camper theory to the test. Indeed, sometimes camping was fun. The weather cooperated, the equipment did not break, and my fellow campers ground their axes before they came. Some of my best memories come from such vacations.

At other times camping has been a nightmare (I wonder if Robin Williams will ever rent an RV in real life?). I am been visited by bears, angry, frog-stabbing men, black fly onslaughts, and hornets. I have met snowstorms while in shorts and a T-shirt, and had holey tents (not holy tents, mind you) in torrential thunderstorms. I have gotten sick, and have met campers who I am sure had horns under their hats, and a pitch-forks parked in their lean-tos.

Indeed, life is an adventure much like a camping trip. Sometimes the ride is smooth; at other times it is bumpy, even harrowing. Sometimes there is peace; at other times we meet with hardships, conflicts, and adversity. No matter where you happen to pitch your tent, do not forget these seven survival keys that David has laid out in his “Camper’s Guide”. If you do, I am sure you will find yourself earning the most prestigious Boyscout badge given among men. Better than being an Eagle Scout; you can proudly say, “I’m a Happy Camper”.

Dear Intercessors,

“Our fathers have told us the deeds that you did in their days…”  PS 44:1

Joyce and I just arrived in Hong Kong to attend her nephew’s wedding.  They had a spate of gruesome murders over the weekend that has this city in a spin.  2 Tim 3:1 says in the last days perilous times will come followed by a list that couldn’t better describe the days we are living in, and which includes the word “brutal or savage”.  I am determined to tell of the GOOD NEWS lest we the people of  God become discouraged.

Sister with LUPUS 7 years up LEAPS out of her wheelchair

Kingdom Invasion

The conference was amazing.  The 7,000 seat auditorium had overflow crowds for the last night as news of the tangible presence of God was there, and as there were many wonderful healings. A boy was healed of club feet, and I have taken a picture of a girl who got up out of her wheelchair after suffering with Lupus for seven years.  She was literally leaping for joy!  Check out the link, https://www.facebook.com/kingdominvasionsingapore

I was privileged to be a host.  A highlight for me in this role was receiving Heidi Baker’s Iris Cambodia team, whom I then introduced to Steve Hyde who has the most mature and effective ministry in Cambodia (I visited Steve in Cambodia and he was a speaker at our recent retreat).  Heidi joined us for lunch as the connection brought together the wisdom and maturity, and the cry for laborers, with youthful, spirit-filled, willing to die for Jesus young people who see themselves in Cambodia for years to come.  I know this meeting will bear much fruit for years to come.

Weekend Ministry

I ministered three times this past weekend.  While Sunday morning was a powerful time at the Rock of Ages Church in Singapore, Saturday and Sunday evenings were a part of the 80^th anniversary celebrations of a Singapore company which has been owned by a Christian family for three generations and which has expanded to have many branch offices in China.  Saturday was an evangelistic message to all their managers from Singapore, Malaysia, and China, and then Sunday night was just with the China team.  Beloved, my deepest memory was for more than two hours on Sunday night all the China managers sat around and asked me sincere questions about the gospel.  I mean ALL.  The whole crowd was riveted to my sharing, though not one of them was a Christian before the weekend.  I don’t know how many came to Christ over the weekend, among whom were professionals who have graduated from China’s Harvards and Yales, but I can hardly use words to express the privilege it was for me to have presented the gospel with such clarity, taking illustrations from their own Chinese history, culture, and language, to these precious Chinese souls.

China Trip

Joyce will return to Singapore on Saturday while I will be back in China until April 8^th.  We are hosting another training of Chinese pastors from 6-7 provinces.  Most of these pastors have been coming to our trainings for the past 3 years, and are now ready to commit to a unified vision and to forming a Body for the purpose of mission, fellowship, and accountability.  It will culminate with 11 receiving ordination and then two intensive days of hammering out policies and principles of this Body together with Elim leaders and a select team of Apostolic leaders chosen to represent the rest.

There will be much to report from this time!  Pray for our security, and for the Lord’s hand to be upon Joyce and the kids while I am away.  In the meantime, don’t be discouraged by all the bad news that is out there.  “Lift up your heads”.  There is a lot of good out there too!

PS.  I didn’t even mention that Tabby is back and quite transformed from her mission trip to the Philippines.  She took some awesome pictures, which I will try to pick at least one out for you some time as well.

Nate Rogers & Anna Graves

Well, I told you that I had good news for you : ) Anna met Nate Rogers the first week she was in med school. Within a few months a friendship was blossoming and through time and prayer it has become clear that this was of the Lord!

I met Nate while I was back in the US last August. He and Anna traveled with me during a part of my preaching tour. Then he came to Singapore for Christmas. He had to pass the Jeremy, Daniel, and Charlotte litmus test, which he did with flying colors. If Anna had said no, he would have to answer to them!

Most on this later!!!

Kevin & Joyce