"Whom shall I send, and who will go for us? Then said I, here am I; send me." Isaiah 6:8. Oswald Chambers notes that God did not speak directly to Isaiah. " God did not lay a strong compulsion of Isaiah; Isaiah was in the presence of God and he overheard the call, and he realized that there was nothing else but for him to say, in conscious freedom, "Here am I, send me." Get out of your mind the idea of expecting God to come with compulsions and pleading...The quiet passionate insistence of His "Follow Me" was spoken to men with every power wide awake. If we let the Spirit of God bring us face to face with God, we too shall hear something akin to what Isaiah heard, the still small voice of God; and in perfect freedom will say, "Here am I, send me."~~Oswald Chambers

It is unsettling and unfair when missionaries give their "pitch" and conclude that anyone who is not on a mission field is cheating God out of what He wants for them. I believe that God has a perfect plan for everyone, and it is often where each person finds himself. Sometimes, God expects someone to make huge changes in his or her life and help Him build His Kingdom elsewhere. We must be open to this, but we will be obedient to God wherever He plants us. There can be damage done to God's work when someone takes it in his hands to make plans, create works (such as buildings or programs), and takes it upon himself to 'make things happen.' We are responsible to keep ourselves in the presence of God so that we can overhear a need that is meant for us, and to have a willing heart to go in God's power and love. We are responsible for our calling and the work that is meant for us. We try to do what we can when a need seems to fall 'in our court.' Please pray for us as we try to be faithful to the calling that is ours.

We started for Lower Brule last Sunday morning and turned around and came back home, as we were finding severe weather, and the traveling was dangerous. We called those who attend and let them know that we were not able to make the trip, and they were all very understanding. When we arrived this Sunday, we thought that we would go out and let the people know that we are there so they would come. We found some already started for church, and some were getting ready to come. We were happy for those who showed up this morning, although it was just above 0 degrees. Esther had some children in the basement, and she seemed to have a good time teaching and working with them. The chidren have opened up and talked to us, and we have found out many things about each one of them. They are a joy to teach and befriend. She is teaching them the Lord's Prayer, and each child gets a Bible when they've come 8 times. She was a little amazed when she told one of the young children that she has a Bible for her, and the child asked "What is a Bible?" We have much work to do.

We are contemplating doing some home services in the future, but we have to do some work on our end to get extra time with the people and to "go where they are. " Ray will be having knee surgery in a couple of weeks, Lord willing, and this will delay any thrusts for a little while. Please pray that we can be faithful in this work.