When Curt and I were first married, we served in the youth ministry at Houston’s First Baptist Church. In July of 2003, we were going to help lead a youth mission trip to Tegucigalpa, Honduras. This was going to be the Joneses’ first trip to Honduras and our first mission trip as a married couple. (Curt has been back three more times and is actually there right now.) Our church had strong ties with Larry and Jean Elliott, a missionary couple who had been serving in that area for decades. Every summer HFBC sent a youth team to work with them and their mission churches.
A few months before the trip, the Elliotts were going to be in our city visiting family. They had raised their son and daughter in Honduras and were now grandparents of young children who lived in Houston. We set up a time to meet with them and the other couple leading the trip with us so that we could plan our week. I had never met the Elliotts, nor any other career missionaries, and I honestly had no idea what to expect. In my ignorance and stupidity, I thought the dinner would probably be really boring. I didn’t even want to go, but I knew I should.
I’m sure I don’t need to tell you that this precious couple shattered any preconceived notion that I had about missionaries. Larry and Jean were some of the warmest, most joyful, most down to earth people I had ever met. We fell in love with them instantly. One thing that struck me was how much they laughed, and I have to say that it was a treat to hear Larry’s laugh. He had such a good one. Larry and Jean had tons of stories to tell about their experiences in Honduras. It was so interesting to listen to them. God had given this couple an incredible twenty-six-year ministry there. The first church they planted had grown exponentially and had gone on to plant more churches that in turn planted more churches. God had His hand on everything they did. They had a passion for disaster relief, which I believe was birthed out of the devastation that Hurricane Mitch brought to that country in 1998. Only God knows how many lives they were able to touch through evangelism, discipleship, and ministering to folks in the midst of crisis.
After the dinner, I had so much to say to Curt about this wonderful couple. I couldn’t wait for our trip. Before long, we arrived in Tegucigalpa with our youth and got to work. We were able to see first hand what God had done and was doing in that area through seeds the Elliotts, other missionaries like the Torbert family, and local believers had planted.
The Elliotts had our whole team over to their house for dinner one night and served us a great meal. Just being in their home made an impact on me. I remember saying something to Jean about the house and she was quick to say, “Thank you, Lottie Moon!” If you are Southern Baptist, you may know that the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering helps support our 5,193 IMB missionaries on the field.
That night Larry showed us a slideshow and some souvenirs from his recent trip to Iraq. His passion for anyone living in devastation was burning a hole in his heart for the Iraqi people. He wanted to enable hospitals and people to have purified water and, simply put, he could help! I wish I could convey his excitement as he showed us each picture in the slide show. He and Jean were seriously seeking God about ending their ministry in Honduras and beginning a new one in Iraq.
The trip came to an end and I got a big hug and “We love you!” from Jean in the airport. I nearly cried saying goodbye to her. She was just such a dear person.
I came home from Honduras changed in many ways. For one, I had learned that missionaries are regular people – regular people who love the Lord and are willing to serve Him outside their comfort zones. The Elliotts made me realize that being a missionary was not for the highest order of pious, perfect, solemn believers, which is what I had always imagined. Instead, a missionary could actually be someone like me! Or like you! A normal person who loves the Lord, who laughs, who loves their grandkids, and who loves being with friends. Don’t get me wrong. The Elliotts are spiritual giants, but the message of their life said, “You can do this, too. God can use you!”
Just two months later, having gained some confidence that God could use a normal person like me outside my comfort zone, Curt and I began looking into an opportunity to serve teenagers in England. It would only be for five months, but that seemed like a long time to us! We would leave March 9, 2004.
Before we left, Larry and Jean came back to Houston for a visit. Larry needed to borrow a car for a few days, so we got to take him our truck. Later they both came to Tuesday night Bible study. I was so excited to have them there. Jean had been in some of my mom’s Bible studies back in Honduras. I got to send some resources from the office back to the mission field with them and they gave us a bottle of yummy Honduran vanilla, among other things. It was such a blessing to cross paths with them again. Jean told me we might see them in England sometime since that would be sort of a home base for them while they were living in Iraq.
March 9 finally came and we boarded a British Airways flight to the UK. We were really excited, but I was also nervous and worried about being terribly homesick. Just five days later, on March 14, I was checking my email and received devastating news. Jean and Larry Elliott, along with missionaries David McDonnall and Karen Watson, had been killed in Mosul, Iraq. They had been checking out different locations for water purification projects in the city when their truck was targeted and attacked by gunmen. Only newlywed Carrie McDonnall had survived.
My world was spinning and my heart was absolutely broken to pieces. “No, Lord! This can’t be! And we are here – in part – because of them!” I wanted my mother, but she was an ocean away. I wanted to grieve with everyone else and talk about the impact this couple had had on my life, but we would not be able return to the States for their memorial service in Houston.
I don’t understand how anyone could harm, even murder, such precious people – people who had come to help them! And it hurts tremendously to think about the huge loss their families have experienced. But I do know that the Lord, in a way that is hard for my human mind to grasp, honored these servants by allowing them to not only live for Him, but to also die for Him.
Today, on the fourth anniversary of the homegoings of Larry and Jean Elliott, David McDonnall, and Karen Watson, let’s give profuse praise to God for selfless, courageous people who put their lives on the line every day as they work to build up God’s Kingdom. Let’s thank Him for the advancement of Light into darkness and for the souls who will worship before the throne from cultures that are hostile toward the Gospel of Christ. Let’s pray for our Christian brothers and sisters who are enduring persecution, especially in Iraq. Let’s praise God for their perseverance and for the glory they bring to Him. Let’s ask God to bless our sweet friend Carrie McDonnall as she continues to pour out her life for her Savior. Let’s praise Jesus for the victory He has already won and for the day He will do away with death forever!
We may not want to die like these precious saints, but we want to live like them – with courage, selflessness, faithfulness, and love.
“They overcame [Satan] by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony; they did not love their lives so much as to shrink from death.” (Revelation 12:11)
“Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends.” (John 15:13)
*If you’d like to read more about these missionaries, check out these two resources:
Facing Terror by Carrie McDonnall and Kristen Billerbeck
Lives Given, Not Taken by Erich Bridges and Jerry Rankin
Amanda,
Thank you for that wonderful tribute to some obviously wonderful people. My heart about broke when you came to the part of their deaths. Not expecting that! They must have finished the mission that God had sent them for!
I am in awe of the way that you guys share your lives with us gals out here in Siestaville!
Thanks again,
Angie in SD
One year ago today, March 14, 2007, my beloved Mama Jo left this earth. She was my maternal grandmother. Her calling was to raise 6 of the rowdiest boys and love 11 grandchildren with her entire being. She was the funniest person I have ever known. And I miss her terribly. She could cook the best pecan pie you have ever tasted. She is the first person I will be looking up when I get to heaven. After Jesus.
We are a persecuted church. As Americans, we are not the majority, we are the minority. We live our lives in the face of freedom and can so easily forget those who are surviving in such a different world for His glory.
We have friends who are missionaries in Russia. Each year when they come to America we love to spend time with them. Our children will always remember our special times and the special stories told by Igor and Olga.
God bless you for sharing your heart and God bless these precious saints. I look forward to meeting them in Heaven.
In His love, Joanne
Amanda, Thank you for sharing that profound and humbling story. Yes, let us remember their courageous example and let it be an example for us. Let us also remember to lift up our brothers and sisters around the world who are suffering persecutions for our Jesus. Thank you again for sharing this with us, I’m sure it brought up painful memories for you but we are inspired by their lives and the impact they had on you and others. In Jesus’Love Kathy Knoblock
Your post and prayers are a
Sweet Aroma to our beautiful God.
A terribly touching tribute
honoring your friends & your God.
Hebrews 11:4 says:
Their faith still speaks
even in their deaths.
My daughter is a missionary
in Thailand —
how grateful is this mom
for your words of love.
How beautiful are the feet
of those who bring good news.
My lifelong friend, Cyd,
a humanitarian aid worker
was killed a couple of weeks ago
helping women in Afghanistan
and I posted 2/26/08.
Your words fall in humility
on His ears
and our hearts.
May our God always find us
living by faith. Hebrews 11:3
Thank you for such a moving story
of your friends
who lived their lives
lifted up to
A Greater Story.
Oh, Amanda. Their daughter is my good friend. I remember it like it was yesterday.
Yes, Praise God and humble thanks to those who serve Him well to the end!
Thank you for sharing your heart on this, and reminding us of the joy in serving the Master.
Reading such an account of love and sacrifice in the lives of my fellow brothers and sisters in Christ only encourages me more to step out of my comfort zone and be even more emboldened to help others and be an example of Jesus love, forgiveness mercy and truth. Thank you Amanda for sharing this testimony of devoted servants.
Two weeks ago, our small group had the privilege to hear from a young couple who are going for a third stint as R&D missionaries. The countries are all hostile to the gospel- Darfur, Indonesia, and now, Afghanistan. My first question was, “Aren’t you scared?” There was no hesitation. “No, not at all.” God had called.
As I hugged them after, I knew it could be the last time I would ever see them since I did not know when God would say to them, “Well done, good and faithful servant.”
You realize that missionaries are just ordinary people like you and me but who made the choice to obey God and join in the frontlines of the battle.
Sisters, the best we can do for them is to uphold them in prayer. This couple testified to moments of extreme danger tied in with people praying at exactly the same time for deliverance.
So if ever missionaries come to your mind, pray for them, will you?
Be blessed.
Thank you for the special tribute to these special poeple….I so willingly give each year to the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering and also to the Annie Armstrong Easter Offering at our church. While I have never had a desire or calling to be a missionary, I do want to support others who have answered that special calling. And indeed, it is a special calling.
What a great post! Amanda, you are a good writer, girrrrl.
I was drawn into that story from the first sentence, and was so shocked at the end- ugh I wasn’t expecting that at all.
May I recommend a great book? Anything by Gracia Burnham- she spoke here in Lynchburg, VA, a while back. You will like her stuff. Thanks so much for keeping us plugged into the world at large. It helps to get out of your own Judea and remember rest of the countries in the great commission once in a while!
I realize this post is about missionaries, but let’s not forget about our “missionaries” that are in other areas of service – policemen, firemen AND our military. I so admire those in the military, in particular, that are commanded to go into other parts of our world and serve to protect the local people, BUT also to protect them by getting to know them, praying for them, helping them learn about God’s love and just being a faithful Christian friend.
Unfortunately, to a large degree, policemen and firemen in our own country have serve as missionaries on a daily basis as well. They protect many both physically and spiritually every day of the year. And like “real” missionaries out in the field, they can be hurt right here on American ground.
Thank you for your post. As a missionary kid, I truly appreciate the reminder to remember these that give their lives, as well as those who are serving miles away from what they know and go to a place so far away and learn to integrate their culture. Today, being back in this culture, I see how God used those experiences from long ago in my life to show me that no matter where He places me, people need Him and I need to tell them, no matter what it takes.
Thank you for sharing your heart. I know it touched mine.
I remember hearing of those missionaries. How neat that you knew them! Missionaries are my heros. They are who I want to be (even though we are called). I can’t wait to see the mansions they live in in glory!
oops..Im sorry Amanda, I mistakenly addressed my comment to Melissa! I was so touched by the tribute and in a hurry to get back to work that I was not paying attention! Im praying God’s blessings on you, your husband and precious little boy.
Thank you for sharing this story – I have known missionaries like this too… full of joy and freedom. But I don’t think it’s the “geography” that makes them this way, I think it comes down to this acronym:
JOY…
J-esus, first
O-thers, second
Y-ourself, third
I think your friends, the Elliots, were perfect examples of this…living selflessly for Jesus and others.
Amanda,Thank you for that post. I really needed to hear that today. It was a beautiful tribute to people who were truly beautiful.
Nikki
I remember your mom talking about them in The Patriarchs video. How they were all gathered around the throne asking each other, “Where’s Carrie?” I still can’t think about it without crying.
That is a very beautiful, heartfelt tribute. Thank you for taking the time to share it with us.
Amanda,
Thanks for the tribute to those missionaries.
What struck me about your post, though, is how so many people think we missionaries are a strange breed.
Granted, there are some strange missionaries out there. But most of us are simply ordinary people who are willing to serve God somewhere else.
Life on the mission field is full of joys and challenges. Just like life in your own mission field (neighborhood, workplace) is. Only difference, we usually have to ask other people to pay our salaries. And we’re far from the day-to-day joys of sharing life with friends who look/sound like you, friends who understand your jokes and your references to home stuff… And we’re not close enough to see nephews and nieces grow up, or to attend friends’ wedding/baby showers. Or to attend LP conferences. 🙂
But we get to appreciate a different side of life. We see God at work in a different culture.
Sometimes it’s pure joy. Other times, it’s plain hard.
Thanks for reminding everyone that missionaries aren’t aliens.
Love from the bush,
Adele
Thank you Amanda for this beautiful tribute.
In this season of the Annie Armstrong Easter Offering, I hope all the Southern Baptist Siestas out there will give generously financially and in prayer to support our “home” missionaries that serve in the US & Canada. (More info is available about these missionaries & their work at anniearmstrong.com)
And ladies, get involved in the WMU (Women’s Missionary Union) at your church. It’s a great way to learn & grow in missions education and service! 🙂
Thanks again Amanda for your loving tribute.
I am weeping as I remember Larry and Jean. My family served in Honduras and had the privilege of knowing the Elliotts. You have inspired me to post on my blog a story I wrote about them. Thank you for reminding me of the anniversary of their homegoing. THEY ARE BEFORE THE THRONE OF GOD AT THIS MOMENT! OH WHAT HOPE!
Amanda:
I’m meeting with my sisters who went with me to Romania last fall on a mission trip today. Thinking back, we were so close to Him while were there, that if He had chosen to take all or any one of us home during that trip, we would have gone KNOWING we went doing PRECISELY what He had designed for us to accomplish in our earthly lives. That is all I want to be able to say at the end and your sweet friends did exactly what He instructed them to do. So He did exactly what He said He would–brought them Home. I am quite certain it was a glorious homecoming.
I’m so touched by your tribute. And so inspired by their legacy. Thank you.
Amanda,
I am so sorry for the loss you and Curt suffered personally; but, at the same time, I go back to the recent words of my wise 7-year-old son who was trying to comfort someone else who had suffered a loss and said, “Hey, they’re just up in Heaven getting the party started. They’ll save you a spot if you follow Jesus.”
I’ve not read the books but will be on my way to bookstore today to see if I can find them.
Peace,
Kim in Apex, NC
Thank you for the post. I have done mission work through out my life growing up and I am never the same. We all need to be reminded of those who are willing to work on the edge to reach the lost.
Lord, please protect your servants who are working in Iraq and other countries that are hostile to Christians. Please continue to bless their work for we know that your Word never goes out and returns void. Thank you for that promise. Help us to see the opportunities of ministry all around us and help us to remember that we don’t need to be overseas to make a difference for your kingdom. May you reign with might, power and mercy. Amen.
You have honored their lives. Thank you for sharing so deeply with us.
AJ~
Thank you for that post. Thank you for being so real and honest with your thoughts and feelings, too. I, too, have been guilty of thinking of missionaries as somber, boring people. How ignorant of us. Thanks for giving us a picture of how missionaries really are…real people, just like you and me. I will pray for their families who were left behind. I prayed after reading your post and told God that I truly want to be totally open and available to Him..to do and be and go whereever He wants me to. Thank you and Curt for being obedient to God’s leading, too.
Love,
Missy
Loved this tribute. My sister is an IMB missionary – in fact I posted a “missionaries are regular people” post on my blog in late February http://mochawithlinda.blogspot.com/2008/02/my-mission.html
Their ministry continues through folks like you!!
It helps me to remember we are all capable of destroying those who came to help us–after all, isn’t that exactly what humanity tried to do to Jesus? Desperate people do desperate things. In the circumstance Iraqis live in, can I say I’d be any different?
I hurt for your loss and the loss of those beloved missionaries but having experienced only graciousness and hospitality in the Arab world, that is where my heart is.
Mah akbar salaam, isdiqaati (with the greatest peace, my friends)!
you are such an amazing writer amanda. thank you for this…we have had some awful and unexplainable things happening around us and it is really great to be reminded to celebrate these people and their hearts so devoted to the Lord.
my roommate and i were just talking about how we get so messed up sometimes figuring out how to live in the world and not to be of it…our priorities get all out of whack. these lives are such a beautiful reminder of why we have such an unsettled feeling on this earth…because we were not made for here…and hope is coming back for us. thanks again…
Amanda–What a blessing your story is!! I was so caught up in it that when I got to the part where the missionaries died, I just gasped “oh no!” I have a heart for missions and missionaries and would love to hear more from you about this subject! (By the way, you are an eloquent writer. Any book plans?)
I remember when this happened…thank you for not letting us forget them and their memory!
Wow. Thanks for that beautiful tribute, Amanda. And Praise Him for His servants around the world.
I bought the first book you listed for my sister last year not even knowing the background behind it. I may have to ask to borrow it now. Those missionaries have left behind an incredible testimony.
That story absolutely breaks my heart. The one thing we have to hold on to as the tears flow is to remember that they are in heaven. And don’t ya know they heard “Well done good and faithful servant !!” AMEN ?? – CINDY in High Point, NC
Thank you for sharing your sincere respect and adoration for the Elliots. My mom had heard Carrie speak at an event in Amarillo and I happened across the book, Facing Terror, while I was in the line at LifeWay. I picked it up and it is currently my “bath book”. I have three little boys, so in efforts to relax, I take a bath every night after the boys are in bed and read one chapter of a book (I like long chapters). All of that just to say…Facing Terror is presently my Bath Book. I am loving it.
Your perspective on the Elliots adds even more to what I am reading. Thank you!
Oh Amanda!
I have read and re-read your tribute! I am in awe… beautiful…I wish I had words to describe how I feel… I am speechless… Thank you for sharing!
Emmy
Thank you for such a beautiful tribute Amanda. It’s so interesting how God used such a devastating event in so many ways. We lived in Germany when Carrie was brought for treatment to a nearby hospital. A dear friend of mine from church (Aggie alum, appropriately enough) was asked to help with some of the logistical details and also opened her home to people involved with overseeing Carrie’s welfare. There are huge stories and ways in which God worked that I only caught glimpes of, but the one that most opened my eyes and heart was the way that my dear friend reacted. In the middle of a regular day on her way somewhere with her sons, she received the call and used what was an inconvenient circumstance for God’s glory. She explained that, “This is what we do for people” and then instructed the boys to reverse the tornadoes that had torn through their rooms; she did the same for the house while rearranging her calendar and responsibilities for the upcoming days. I didn’t explain it very well which is a shame because boy can this friend tell a story–she is a joy to talk with. It was fascinating to hear her talk about Carrie and then have the opportunity to meet her later.
What an example she was of showing that it isn’t the perfect moment, the perfect person, the perfect house, or the perfect children that makes a good Christian or a missionary, it is someone willing to be a part of what God is doing. Her socks were blessed off in the process and she will be on the mission field also at some point.
thank you for that word! I had just read about that in my at his feet devotional today! we may be persecuted for Christ’s name, but not even a hair on our head will be touched bc He loves us so! How fortunate you were to know that couple! And on a completely side note (sorry)…blogging siesta…I made that diet 7-up cake today…simply amazing! 🙂 Anyways, I join you in prayer and praise Amanda!
Amanda,
A dear friend (thanks, Mel!) told us today that you had posted something about Mom and Dad. I don’t believe we’ve ever had the privilege of meeting you, although you may have met our sister Gina. We did have the privilege of meeting your terrific mother right before the memorial service in Houston in 2004. Thank you so much for your wonderful tribute! Today, Scott, the kids and I (also an MK) drove up to the old country church where they are buried to put new flowers on their gravestone.
A couple of weeks before the Lord took them Home, He gave me a verse that I thought was meant for them as they traveled from their familiar relatively safe life in Honduras to help people in the dangerous war-torn country of Iraq. Later I realized He was preparing us for their departure. He said: “Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous! Do not tremble or be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.” (Joshua 1:9) Truly, He has been with us every step, every heartbeat, every tear, and every smile of the way – just as He was with them the day He took them Home. And He has been so very good even in the midst of those darkest hours as we were laying their earthly bodies in the grave. But we know that, just as our Savior rose from death to life, so He raised their souls to be with Him!
It has been four years and although it sometimes seems like yesterday, our family has been blessed by the Lord and can attest to His goodness! Yes, we miss them all the time, but the Lord has been with us all the time, and we are assured that we will one day not only be reunited with Mom and Dad, but will get to see our Precious Lord Jesus face to face!!
longmeadow mama ~ they were not angels…. they were all human, but they loved the Lord Jesus, yielded to Him, and dedicated themselves to His purpose for their lives. And they got better over time as the Holy Spirit transformed them! 🙂 Just as Jesus poured Himself out as a sacrifice for us all, so He enabled them to pour out their lives for Him. It is He Who is to be glorified. Oh, that we would be found so faithful and the Lord so glorified in and through us when our short lives are said and done!
Amroosie & Adele ~ Amen! We as followers of Christ Jesus are all missionaries whether in the USA or anywhere else in the world God may call us to! In fact, the followers of Christ in this great nation need us to stand up for Christ like never before, right here and now!!
John ~ It’s been a while since we last saw you. Thank you for your continued faithfulness and service to the Lord! Your family has been and continues to be a inspiration to us! (Say hello to your precious Mom and Dad for us…. tell your dad that we’re still married after he and Dad (Larry) wed us nearly 22 years ago!)
Thanks so much to all of you for your wonderful words of encouragement and love of the Lord! May the Lord bless each of you as you seek to follow and glorify Him above all else!
In Christ’s love,
Leia Elliott
PS- If anyone wants to contact the Elliott family you can visit Scott’s site at: http://www.electionprojection.com
and/or e-mail: [email protected]
That was such an encouraging post to me. I just celebrated my 26 birthday here in nepal as a career “m” and I can testify that “m”s are just simple ordinary folks that are defionatly not spiritual giants. If anything I have realized more about my sin nature then ever since living here and serving God.. but in the midst of that I have seen God’s grace in such powerful ways. If you ever want to read about my journey here check out http://www.reachsouthasia.blogspot.com
blessings
jenn
Amanda,
Appreciated your post, and have been enjoying the LPM blog.
I just wanted to echo what some of the other missionary women who’ve written in have said – we are nothing more than followers of Christ. Good days and bad days, good times and hard times. What amazes me more than anything else is that our God extends this privilege to us, equips, strengthens, sustains, works, changes lives… and changes us.
Some Ms never see incredible and dramatic life changes in mass numbers, yet they remain faithful because the One who enables them is faithful.
Others do… and they remain faithful because the realize it was neither them nor their effort, but their God who accomplished His plans.
Whether I see His hand working in the repentent heart of my preteen, in a developing friendship with a dear lady around the corner, in the sudden realization that I actually understood all of the announcements at church – given in the local language, or in a single “known” decision made to follow the Lord in 7 years of ministry… there is no longer any question in my mind. It is all about God and about His working.
And, as I started off saying, I’m just absolutely amazed that He has chosen me to play even this small part. Most of the fellow Ms I know, I believe, would echo that same feeling. Thank you for your tribute to this couple, but more importantly to their God who chose and enabled them.
Thank you for sharing this. I remember these people and it was nice to hear such wonderful things about them.
Amanda. Thank you for this! My husband and I are two of the 5,193 and we serve in a place close to Iq where things are quite unstable, but indeed – the Lord IS our Refuge and Strength. And believe me siestas – He will use the ordinary every day YOU to reach the nations. We don’t have to be extraordinary to do it – because we serve a God who already is!!
and it’s not about us being anything…it’s about Him reaching others through us – His unworthy vessels! Any worth we have comes ONLY from Him! Amen?
I do remember hearing about that…
I am in a very mission-focused church, and I often think about the possibility of persecution and even death on the mission field-I also lament that I feel like a self-preserving, wimpy christian and hope that if I were to ever be in that situation, that I would not deny Christ and be a bold witness-
To depart and be with Christ is really far better than here, but it is more needful for someone for me to remain here now; They loved not their lives unto death-hmm
katiegfromtennessee
I didn’t want to leave a name but the Lord knows My Daughter and My Family . I just found out by the grace of God that my eleven year old is cutting herself and found out about sailor moon and emos and about the goth . Can you please pray for Her and that the Lord leads me to the right person . I’m going to see my pastor about it. Thank You and God Bless!
Although I didn’t know him well, David McDonnall and I grew up in the same church in Lamar, Colorado. Let’s just say that I’m a LOT older than he was… so I didn’t know him well. His mom would keep mine posted on what he was doing, and then my mom would pass the information on to me. It’s hard to believe that he’s been in Heaven for 4 years. Thanks for the special tribute about the Elliotts and Carrie.
A chaplain serving in Iraq and from our church, just returned with our 4th Brigade at Fort Bliss. He spoke at church today and asked for prayer, not only for our soldiers, but for our Christian missionaries. They are under horrible persecution and many are being tortured and murdered. Many are leaving the country and those that remain need prayer. Please pray for the persecuted church in Iraq. The “enemy” is using all means to drive them out of the country. Also, our mission board just received a letter from our missionary partners in Europe. They asked for prayer because they are receiving 60 cents to the euro and they can barely pay their home and pay for food. The enemy attacks in all ways. Let’s stand firm and pray for our missionaries in Europe – they too are being persecuted. Thank you siestas. In Christ, Susie in El Paso
“He is no fool who gives up what he can not keep for what he can not lose.” – Jim Elliott (Elizabeth Elliott’s husband who was killed in the mission field in the 50’s and was the object of the recent film “The End of the Spear.” That says it all. May we all live this way. God bless these people who live lives of living sacrifice – no less than what Jesus asks us to do.
Amanda, I know you get hundreds of comments, but I thought I’d bog you down with one more! =)
Thanks for the encouragement and amazing testimony to God’s grace, mercy and will. My Dad’s a Mission’s pastor. He travels all over to spread the gospel. Next month he goes to Kazikstan (okay, can’t spell that one). Everytime he goes, I release him into God’s hands. So thanks for reminding me that it’s God’s will EVERYDAY (not just the days that Dad’s on a trip) that I should be ready and willing to praise the Lord for.
The Journey Continues ~
Amanda “Siesta” and family,
I am waving the Palm Branches for Jesus on this Palm Sunday!
What a touching tribute to all that WALK IN THE WAY OF THE LORD!
Praises!
With “Heaven bound” blessings,
Kim http://www.kimsafinathejourneycontinues.blogspot.com