I hope that this letter finds you and your families doing well. I received an email from the brethren of the Marinduque and Santa Cruz Philippine churches yesterday asking me if I am ready to do the crusades. Well of course I am! The second question from them was, "how much money is in your budget for the Crusades?" I did not know how to answer them. I just told them that I have no money yet and that they should pray that the Lord provide for His work. I did not know what else to tell them! No, I am not mad, I am smiling because getting mad or upset would not make a bit of difference in this circumstance. The way it is, is the way it is, and there is nothing that I can do about it. I am facing flak from my wife who thinks that I should go and find a job because we do not have an income. I tell her to have faith and she just calls me lazy. I will not let this deter me from what I have been called to do. She thinks like most people however.
These people think that we have to provide for ourselves and maybe God will see how good we are and help us! I am not sure but alot of people have that mistaken idea in this world of selfish and self-centered ambition. Oh well, I guess you can't have everything. She thinks that when I pray for the Lord to provide and not go out and find a job and work instead of do this work that I am being lazy. I know that part of what she is saying comes from being pregnant and part of it is the thing about women wanting to have security most of all. This makes me wonder how many people will be in heaven if they inherently do not trust and have a need of security instead of hope and faith that the Lord will provide for them that trust in Him and not in themselves. She even use to get mad when we stay for lunch after I preached because she thought that we should be providing our own food.
There are these guys who come over here from the United States, from conferences all over, who provided everything including their own food and she thinks that I should do the same thing because all the other foreigners do it. She forgets that they have salaries from their conferences and or from their boards that provide all their expenses. They had a nice 100 year celebration here in Manila and all the conference men stayed in one of the most expensive hotels in Manila. That was a nice way of saying that the work is being done while the missionaries and pastors in the field have no money to hold crusades. Just like the ones we are going to have here in the next few weeks. I guess their budget was blown in the big party, the airfare, the hotel and restaurants.
No dear reader, I am not upset or disillusioned. We were told by Sister White that this would be the way it is in the last days and she was not wrong. I just wish she was! Anyway, I have not the money for the Crusades and do not know what we will do. We have no vehicle to get down there with or LCD projector or any of the other things that we need for the work. No surprise really, as far as what man does! I know that the Lord will make it all work out anyway no matter what. So, that is where my trust is and who I rely on. No, it is only God that I rely on and no one else. Only God is trustworthy so says the very center text of the Bible, Psalms 118:8. Have a great day or evening and drop me a line when you get the chance. Hope you have been paid so you have your needs taken care of. Bye for now.
Please pray for our upcoming Crusades! Beginning April 3,2005!