"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.

GIFTS AND GOALS

I am shocked when I see how much time has elapsed since I have updated the blog. The holiday season has come and gone, and we are now in the cold and bitter January South Dakota winter. The Sunday during Christmas weekend we did not get out to Lower Brule as we had so much snow and wind that travel was inadvisable and the interstate was closed. The next Sunday, we traveled to Chicago to meet our daughter Leah and her family. We had a wonderful time with all of them. Our granddaughters are always a special joy to spend time with. A neighboring pastor Lindell Howard agreed to fill the pulpit that Sunday morning, and a few were there to worship. Last Sunday was a "catch-up and let everyone know we are still there," and a few came for church and Sunday School. Before we left the reservation, we made several visits with the people. This Sunday was a nice day to be traveling, as it was sunshiny and peaceful. Esther and I went up the hill to West Brule and picked up some children for Sunday School. We were encouraged when two of our Sunday School girls were all dressed up cute and waiting for us out by the road when we drove up. We stopped some other places and got some more children (and some promises for next Sunday). Esther had a fun time down in the basement while she told the Bible story and talked to the kids. They have formed a bond, and this is what we are working toward. One of our regular children is especially bright, and he is a challenge to keep occupied. He responds to the stories, and he seems to assimilate the lessons although he is still quite young (six years old).When we started service this morning, we missed a man who has been faithful to be there whenever we had services the last several weeks since his wife passed away. We were singing when he came in and stood in the back. When we were finished with the hymn, he asked to speak and told us that he was not going to be able to be there as his son needed him to take him to a distant town. He said that he wanted us to know why he wasn't there, and he asked us to pray for them as they traveled. He then came down to the front and told Ray that he came to tell us that and to leave an offering. Ray reached for the offering basket, but he said, "No, this is for you for the gas you buy to come over here." He put a large bill in Ray's hand and said that he appreciated us coming, and then he went out the door. It was very touching to us. It was such a simple act, but so full of love and appreciation. This is one of the things I love about the Indian people--their simplicity and love. These little 'gifts' that God gives us is what keeps us encouraged and desiring to go to these people.

For many years I set goals for myself at the New Year, and I have made several again this year. We are hoping to set up a tentative calendar of events for Lower Brule for the next several months, and I'm hoping to set a few goals for the church. We will share this with you when we get it accomplished.

CHRISTMAS AT LOWER BRULE

Esther and Amy Susan and I left Mitchell on Thursday afternoon with high spirits to spend the weekend doing whatever could be done in Lower Brule. It is easy for a work such as the one in Lower Brule to stalemate when we are not living there and working all the time. It leads us to question if we have misunderstood God's leading in relation to this work when there is not much change for a period of time. This weekend has been a refreshing breath of air for us. We were so encouraged with many developments that unfolded this weekend. I will try to share some of these developments with you.

We have been working with some children on Sunday mornings, and we visited these homes again after we arrived this past weekend. We had a few responses, and we collected the children for the next two nights and brought them to the church for crafts and learning Christmas carols. While they were there, Esther told them the Christmas story. For some of them, it was a new story, and they were very interested in it, asking questions and making observations concerning the details. They crafted little ornaments and hung them on the tree that we had set up.

During the day, we explored some possibilities that would enable us to be among the people more, and a door has opened that was beyond any plan that I could have conjectured. It shows that God sets before us "open doors" as He plans in His perfect wisdom. It was exciting to all of us.

We had planned and advertised to have a Christmas Program on Saturday evening, and we visited many homes in hopes of stirring interest in this effort. We appreciate Amy's help in packing bags and helping set up for the program. The Kalovskys, who have shown themselves as friends of Lower Brule, provided treat bags and gifts for the children, and they gave of themselves by coming and helping us in the program. Ben read the Christmas story from the scripture as Lori and Zak and Esther arrayed the children in costumes and sent them upstairs at the proper time; and they delightfully portrayed the nativity scene. At the end of the Christmas story the children sang a couple of carols. Abraham played a violin duet with Esther, and Ray spoke to the group about 'choices.' The people who gathered responded enthusiatically during and after the program, and many pictures were taken by families. People were smiling and happy as they left, leaving us feeling happy. :)
Sunday morning brought several of the people back for morning worship service; and many of the children came back for Sunday School , as well as some who had not been at the program. One father brought his children whom we had not met before and came back and picked them up after church. Sunday afternoon we visited a lady who we had met at a wake a few weeks ago, and her brother had just passed away. We were glad to be there at that time, and we felt that it was in God's planning.

Thank you for your interest in Lower Brule, and we appreciate your prayers as we try to find the right way to guide the work there.

THE FRIEND

We sang this hymn in church this morning. Everyone wants a special friend that we can trust to always be our friend regardless of what life hands us. I am happy to have some earthly friends, but the fact that Jesus is my Friend is of untold value to me. I also appreciate the fact that we can share this friend with others; and this morning we wanted especially to help one to receive this Friend.

We mentioned in the last blog that we visited a lady in the hospital as she was passing to the other side, and we attended her wake this week.

The Lord helped us at the wake, and we were honored to meet more of the Indian people who live in Lower Brule. We appreciate the help of missionary friends who served in Lower Brule under the Wesleyan Church. They are now pastoring in Lake Andes, South Dakota; and they called to let us know of this lady's illness and hospitalization. They went ahead and visited the family in the hospital in Sioux Falls, and they told the family that we would be coming. The family was expecting us and accepted us as friends of their friends. These missionary friends and us also attended the wake in the same night, and they introduced us to other people there.

We were pleased when the husband of the lady who passed away came to church this morning, and he tarried for several minutes after church to talk with Ray. He said that he and his wife had been married for 56 years. Both Ray and John had been in the service of our country; so they found much in common. Please pray for John as he passes through this lonely time of grief and loss.

Esther had only a few children in the basement this morning, but they are such lovely children. Several of the children were gone to relative's homes for Thanksgiving and had not yet returned. She is telling them the story of David; and I think we are all gleaning from her studies while she prepares.

Christmas is coming :), and we are hoping to try for a Christmas Program. We are planning to try something that we tried at Ravinia and felt that it was successful: we want to have a three-day mini-VBS during the week before Christmas on Wednesday- Friday to tell them the Christmas Story, and to help them "tune up" for the program on that Saturday night. We are excited, and we are still working on the logistics of this endeavor. Please pray that we will be able to work out the many details of this. We will keep you posted.

THE OPEN DOOR

There is much said in the scriptures about a 'door.' A door is used as a barrier to protect the one who is inside from what is outside. A timeless piece of art is the painting of Jesus standing at the door and knocking--it is a picture of Revelation 3:20: "Behold, I stand at the door and knock..." In the Song of Solomon, the image is presented of a lover who is standing outside the door with his beloved inside, and he is continually knocking to get her attention so she will open the door to him. Revelation 3:8 is quoting what God has said to the church of Philedelphia: "Behold, I have set before thee an open door." In 2 Corinthians 2:12, Paul is reporting that "...a door was opened unto me of the Lord." These scriptures give me sufficient reason to believe that He orchestrates the opening and closing of the door of opportunity, and especially within Kingdom work. We have been searching for an open door in many areas related to the mission work in Lower Brule since we began working there in June. God has been opening some doors of opportunity, and we are trying to be sensitive to God's timing in these areas. Thank you for praying that we will have wisdom in relation to the work in Lower Brule.

On Saturday, we went to the hospital to visit a lady and her family. She was very close to the crossing, and we heard when we came in to church on Sunday morning, that she slipped to the other side during the night. This lady had been very influential in the church when it was Wesleyan, and her husband told us that she had desired to come to church many times since it was started again, but she was very sickly. We are planning to get to her wake and, hopefully, her funeral.

Esther had a full little van this morning, and she had a lively group of children downstairs. They love to sing, and they sang their hearts out. They were an interested audience. We were happy to have some very small children upstairs with their mother, too.

Willard is a faithful man who has come almost every Sunday since the church has started up again, and he was rejoicing this morning because he has some beautiful new teeth. He has suffered with toothache for months, and he had all of his teeth taken out in one surgery, and his new teeth given to him. Just before he left this morning, he spoke to me and gave me an extra-big smile to show his bright new teeth. :) We appreciate Willard, and we feel that God has something special for him.

We are encouraged, and we are happy to see God working in behalf of the Wesley Sioux Chapel in Lower Brule. Keep praying for us.

CHILDREN

Sunday morning was a crisp, clear morning in Lower Brule, and Ray and I arrive to find the church warm and inviting. We do not have a van to pick up the children; so we are using our little minivan. We realize that it might soon become impossible to use our van, but we are operating one week at a time. We are happy that some of the children are beginning to attend regularly on Sunday mornings. I drove around and picked up the children and brought them back to the church. They are very enthusiastic children, and they are fun to be with. They had intelligent input while I was teaching them their Sunday School lesson, and it is always encouraging when I realize they are absorbing and processing what they are taught.

"There's a wideness in God's mercy

Like the wideness of the sea;

There's a kindness in His justice,

Which is more than liberty.

There is welcome for the sinner,

And more graces for the good;

There is mercy with the Saviour

There is healing in His blood.

For the love of God is broader

Than the measure of man's mind;

And the heart of the Eternal

Is most wonderfully kind.

If our love were but more simple,

We should take Him at His word,

And our lives would be all sunshine

In the sweetness of our Lord.

Because I wanted to be upstairs to help during the song service, I asked the children if they would mind sitting upstairs during that time. They were very cooperative, and they appeared to enjoy finding the songs and singing them with us. The adults were happy to have the young people upstairs with them, and I saw smiles on their faces. One of the children chose the hymn that is quoted above, and the words spoke to us during the singing of it more than it ever has before: if my love were but more simple, I would take Him at His Word. I miss so much of God's love when I view things through the complicated eyes of this world. This uncomplicated view of life is one of the things that I admire about the people of this culture.

The children missed Esther and her helpers today, but she was in Huron preparing for an afternoon concert with the Huron Symphony. We appreciate the Fort Thompson people allowing us to crash in on their Sunday dinner before we headed back to Huron to enjoy the concert. The symphony did a wonderful job, and they received a well-deserved standing ovation.

Thank you for your interest in the work in Lower Brule, and we appreciate your prayers as we make decisions that will affect the work there.

A CABIN, COFFEE, CHILDREN, AND CHURCH

It has been two weeks since we reported from Lower Brule, and I will try to catch up on the happenings there. We decided to stretch last weekend, and we took the last couple of days off work, rented a cabin with missionary friends in the Black Hills, and stayed there for a couple days of rest. It was a very relaxing and refreshing time, and we returned to Lower Brule on Saturday evening. We spent a nice night in the church there.

Sunday morning was a quiet but worshipful service, and we were happy to have our friends the Kalovskys come again to join those of us who were gathered to worship. Their boys help Esther in the Sunday School when they are there, and we appreciate their input. Unfortunately, the old blue van decided to misbehave and left them stranded part way through housing. They ended up walking back to the church and did not get to pick up any children. They were very disappointed and we found out today that some of the children were dressed and waiting for them. It is frustrating when we have a mechanical failure and it interrupts our ability to work with the people. Oh, well; it is all in a day's work. We always enjoy our fellowship with the Kalovskys, and they 'pitch in' to the dinner that we have together after church. Lori makes the best coffee, and we sit over coffee after dinner and enjoy each other's company. This is a very important aspect to us as a family. Today was very good. We did not know what to do, as the old van is not working; so we just took our own van and went up the hill and stopped at some houses. The children needed a chance to get ready for church, and so we started the round again. We collected a good number and Esther had Sunday School in the basement with them while the adults gathered upstairs. We had some adults who came in to worship with us, and we came away encouraged in the Lord. We feel that God has given us some wonderful people with which to work.

We have many goals and ambitions that we would like to meet at Lower Brule, but it requires time and patience. I have been reading My Utmost For His Highest by Oswald Chambers in the mornings, and they have been directed especially at missionaries. I have gleaned much from his writings, but some have especially come home to my heart. He has been discussing the missionary who wants to 'do' and to see activity; and he presses home the point that God wants most of all that we would have a special relationship with Him so that He can do a work in the hearts of those to whom we minister. He warns that the tendency to be busy and create activity so that we feel like we are 'doing something' can actually hinder the work of the Holy Spirit. I have a personality that likes to see action and things being done; so I have taken this in to the prayer closet with me. May God help me to be an open channel for Him, and to have the patience for Him to work as He desires.

Thank you for your prayers for and interest in the little lighthouse in Lower Brule.