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.

SUNDAY SCHOOL, CHURCH, AND AN ORGAN

Today was a very nice morning. The weather was a little cool, but much warmer than it has been. I felt that church was a refreshing time, and we all enjoyed it. Only a few came to worship with us, but our worship is not based on how many are attending. Ray gave a good message, and he spoke of the many miracles that God worked for the children of Israel when they were fleeing from Egypt; and he left us with the question, "How big is your God? Is He big enough to solve the problems of your life? The God of Israel is big enough, if we are serving Him." I left feeling challenged.

Ray and Esther went around and tried to get some children to get out of bed and come to Sunday School and they were successful. Esther had a few in the basement, and they had a good Sunday School. The children seemed happy when they left, and they promised to come next week. God has given her the ability to make relationships with young ones.

I was so happy when some friends donated an organ for the chapel. (Yes, it was an organ donation!) I love to play the organ, and it sometimes seems so much more worshipful to have organ music.

We are encouraged, and God is helping in Lower Brule!

REVIVAL CHALLENGE

It is an understatement to say that we felt overwhelmed this week when we were trying to do all that needed to be done to have revival services. So many things that looked impossible worked out easily, and the work was done on Thursday evening. Becky Yoder came and helped by playing the piano because the regular piano player could not be there, and it was such a lift to those who were there. We also appreciated the help that Ben and Lori and the boys gave us during that week. Ray got our old blue van running {a miracle in itself :)} and towed the camper out to Lower Brule and parked it beside the church. This made a comfortable spot for us to stay in during the day.
We appreciate Cecilia and Joe coming to Lower Brule--they were both an inspiration and comfort to us. She also spoke directly to the Native people about their own issues. The people accepted her message well. We also appreciate the people from Lower Brule and Fort Thompson who attended the services. The Fort Thompson church brought their people and came to our service on Sunday evening. Thank you to the Fort Thompson people for their support.

Different people from the community visited the services, and we were happy to see several new faces. Our children's services were very low key, and only a few children attended; but the mother of one girl attended the services, and another family came on Sunday night. We were so pleased with the new contacts. We are fairly certain that the children who came will be the beginning of our Sunday School.

I suppose the highlight of the services came on Saturday night when we could sense the Lord's working among us. At the end of the service, Cecelia asked those who would like us to pray for them to raise their hand. Every native person who was there raised his or her hand. This is a challenge to us, as we must be faithful to pray for each one of them. These are sincere people who want a relationship with God. Some of them are serving Him now, some have served Him and fallen away, and some have never known Him. We have a huge responsibility. Please pray for us that we will not fail them.

We have often been impressed with the potential among these people. Even the children seem bright and eager, and they are a joy to work among. It is a long road each week to come to the people, but it is worth every mile. :)

WORKING TOWARD REVIVAL

As the time for revival services with Cecelia Spotted Bear approaches, we are finding ourselves busier and busier. This weekend saw some accomplishments, and we appreciate the Lord's help in that. Ray has wanted to put up a new sign that would be set on an angle in the church yard so that it could be easily read from both directions. He and Esther dug the holes and set the sign Saturday. It made us happy when it was done.

The basement of the church has presented a challenge to us, and we did not know what to do to improve it. Some friends of the mission noticed the problem and bought and donated a dehumidifier for it. We thoroughly cleaned and bleached the basement and set up the dehumidifier. It has made a tremendous difference that can be noticed as soon as we enter the door of the church. Esther has been an inspiration to us, and she has some wonderful decorating ideas for the basement that will make it kid friendly. We hope to get a chance soon to put these ideas to work.

We had several men who gathered to worship with us this morning. These men are very interested in the things of God, and we appreciate them. We pray that this revival will prove a blessing to them and to the whole community of Lower Brule. Revival starts this Thursday, and we have some details still to work out. We would appreciate if you would pray that these would go easily into place.