January 4, 2012

Have you ever felt that you could use a special assurance that you are doing exactly what God wants you to do?  It may surprise some, but missionaries often experience this, and YES, I did last week and God provided one of His miracle moments on the exact day that I was discouraged, frustrated and exhausted!

Late last year, in my excitement to talk with old friends at a large church, I left my 30 year old NIV Bible on the pew and the Bible ‘ walked away.’  I have a great Study Bible for devotions at home, but I would likely have back problems if I hauled the heavy Bible to church.  Plus, my home desk space is tiny, so I only use the huge Study Bible at my desk when its special helps are needed and usually relied on the smaller older Bible while working.

Soon after the Bible ‘walked’, I shared the news with you in an update, but deleted it for fear that someone would ask to replace the Bible – which was not my purpose.  My purpose was to share the reaction of my Kenyan Christian friends when they learned I had lost 30 years of notes added in the margins, atop maps and blank pages of my Bible.  Their response: “God will use your notes to speak to the one who ‘borrowed’ your Bible.  He will use it to bring that person to Him!” 

THEN the week before Christmas, we visited a mall we seldom visit to purchase Christian music gift vouchers for three special missionary kids.  With our vouchers and receipts in hand, we spotted a table to register for ‘rewards’ for shopping at the mall over the holidays.  Jack never wins anything, but he completed the required forms. 

Soon after Christmas we received a message that he was a ‘winner’ – so we returned across the city to collect his ‘gift’, fully expecting a store give-away calendar!  To our amazement, we won vouchers for 5000KSH ($60+) of shopping at the mall!  We could only think of one thing we needed that day, so we headed to the Christian bookshop for a 2012 calendar.  I had no intention of looking at the Bibles, knowing their high prices and that I was rather picky in what I wanted, but then I spotted the exact Bible – a brown/tan one – that I began to purchase in the States last year, but decided it was an un-needed purchase!  And yes, the gift vouchers covered the cost of the Bible and the needed calendar and a special lunch at a favorite restaurant! 

Why am I sharing all of this today?  I like sharing my good news!  Second, I know your ‘general’ prayers led to my unexpected Bible blessing.  And most importantly, I want you to know that as much as we need specific prayers, we also need general ones as we serve our Father in East Africa.

So, our request today is that you do pray specifically for things, such as tomorrow’s Board of Governors meeting at Kenya Baptist Theological College.  Continue praying with us that KBTC will enter this new year with newness of life, a new creation able to serve our Father. My request continues to be for wisdom and strength as I share how God is at work in East Africa via the internet, especially as I explore/ develop new opportunities.  But do pray also for the needs that we and our friends choose not to put into newsletters due to sensitive or personal reasons – especially our need for affirmations that we are obeying our Father and a sense of joy as we face difficulties/ frustrations/ discouragements which we cannot openly share! BERT

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The new “2012 Prayer Nudges from East Africa” blog can be found at (http://easternafrica2012prayernudges.blogspot.com/ ).  To view these daily Prayer Nudges by e-mail, submit your e-mail address in the FOLLOW BY E-MAIL area on the right.  To see today’s Prayer Nudge on Facebook, go to Bert’s page, https://www.facebook.com/bert.yates.