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| Sharing the Brain Teaser Survey at the Farmer's Market |
Greetings!
It’s been a wonderful
summer for evangelism. Thank you so much for your prayer support. We’ve given
out thousands of gospel tracts, 60-70 Bibles, and many gospels of John. Here
are some of the stories from our table ministry at Thursday Farmer’s Markets,
Friday night concerts, Heritage Days Festival in June and Allegany County Fair
in July:
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| Judith works the ministry table - Farmer's Market |
A couple with two children
took tracts. The father said, “I was born a Christian.” He said he had read the
Bible many times since he had lots of time for reading whenever he was in
prison. (!)
A young woman asked for my opinion on polygamy
because she is involved with a married man who says she is his second wife in
God’s eyes and the Bible doesn’t actually forbid it. Her parents (Christians)
later asked for prayers for her, as she won’t listen to them.
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| Heritage Days booth - lots of interest in our tracts. |
A young man with a Christian upbringing
admitted he has not yet committed his life to Christ. After hearing the
courtroom illustration and the “good judge” who must see that justice is done,
he said that was the best explanation he had heard of how the gospel works. He
agreed to think seriously about it.
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| We gave out over 500 custom hand fans for Heritage Days |
I had a long conversation
with an atheist young man whose wife became a Christian after they married. He
pointed out objections to Christianity (such as Israelites in the Bible killing
women and children). I respectfully challenged him to consider the ultimate source
of his sense of right and wrong, and how he considers God unfair. He appreciated
how we listened to him since, he said, other Christians have just told him he
was wrong.
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| County Fair - many Bibles given out. |
A young
woman said she was feeling pressured to join the Mormons and get baptized but
had some doubts. She was open to hear more about their teachings that conflict
with the Bible and how they are not another Christian denomination but a
different religion. She took a couple brochures related to Mormonism.
A young man stopped to chat at the Farmer’s
Market and then came back each week. He is clearly seeking to know God but
hesitates to make changes, such as dealing with his love life. He took books by
Ray Comfort and Billy Graham.
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| Pastor Ron shares with the vendor next to us. |
An older woman and her
daughter stopped to browse our booth at the Fair, originally from the
Philippines now living in West Virginia. The woman said she was baptized at an
SDB church in the Philippines! Each was happy to receive a Bible.
It was a
huge unexpected blessing when the Mark Cahill ministry sent us a box of tracts,
free! I had emailed them about a typo I saw on their website, and these were
their thank-you to me. Praise God for His provision! (www.markcahill.org)
In late
May I visited the Shiloh, NJ, SDB Church and gave an update on the work I’ve
been doing in Cumberland. They are on my support team and have been a great
encouragement. I enjoyed the hospitality of Pastor Don and Charlotte Chroniger,
including a meal in an Amish restaurant and a drive to see nearby historic
places.
I also
visited with church members of the Raritan Valley SDB Church that weekend. We
talked about church planting and re-planting and the resources needed for
either one. They welcome your prayers as they consider God’s future plan for
SDB witness in northern New Jersey.
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| Pastor Ron and Karen, Fran from Friendship Haven Church |
Have you
heard of prayer walks? We’ve done a few here in Cumberland and it has been good
to pray for the city, the neighborhoods and whatever God brings to mind.
Sometimes we stop to talk with residents as well, encouraging them in their
spiritual journey.
At the
end of June I served as a counselor at Camp Joy in Berea, WV, for Junior Camp.
We had times for music, crafts, lessons, meals, chores, campfire, recreation
and lots more. It was very fun, though I was glad it was only 4 days rather
than a full week!
This
summer I started riding with a local bike club, the Western Maryland Wheelman.
Every Tuesday we rode about 20 miles up and back on the GAP trail
(Great Allegheny Passage). In July I actually rode with them on the GAP 48
miles round-trip from Cumberland to the Eastern Continental Divide, with 1,787
ft. elevation gain. Got a bit saddle sore but really enjoyed it! Another good way to meet people in the community.
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| Pastor Ron & Karen Higson, Roseanna & David White, me |
The
church I serve, Full Gospel SDB, was welcomed as a new member of the Conference
at the annual meeting of Seventh Day Baptists of USA and Canada in July. We
celebrated this special moment and thanked the Lord for allowing this church to
grow and be a consistent witness here in Cumberland. Congratulations to Pastor
Ron Higson and his flock!
In
August I was happy to do evangelism workshops for churches in the Appalachian
Association: the German SDB in Salemville, PA, and Shepherd’s Fold Ministry SDB
in Johnson City, TN. I’m calling the training “Taking the Gospel to People” to
emphasize how we can engage people in conversations about spiritual things on a
daily basis in respectful, natural ways, and minimize fear. I was also invited
to share evangelism tips with the adult Sunday School class of Friendship Haven
Church, one of our partners in ministry in Cumberland.
In
September I traveled to Las Vegas for a Xango convention (my home-based
business with natural nutritional supplements and good-for-you products). I stayed with my good
buddies Gretchen Zwiebel and Pat Williams and enjoyed world-class keynote
speakers, Eric Alexander and Robert Kiyosaki.
Since
I was just two hours away from Kingman, AZ, I rented a car and went to visit
the church I previously served, the Kingdom of God SDB, spending a few days there.
What a blessing to see these friends again
and encourage them to keep up the good work.
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| Pastor Bob Peet, AZ, baptized 4 new believers |
So, what’s
up next? Here’s the plan as of today.
1. Pack the car and leave Cumberland on
September 30, taking 11 days to travel to Colorado, visiting friends, families
and churches along the way (Milton, WI, and North Loup, NE).
2. Participate in the SDB Church
Planting Conference October 22-24, in Colorado Springs.
3. Rejoice on October 24 when my son,
Paul Petersen, marries Aimée Woodard (Boulder).
4. Fly to Puerto Rico on October 26 to
serve a short mission for the new SDB church in San Sebastian, helping them
create their organizing documents (constitution, covenant), and serving where
needed. Thankfully I speak Spanish (my undergraduate degree, time in Spain and
Honduras) and I’m excited to accept this invitation from Pastora Judith Houts.
5. Return to Colorado December 14 to
celebrate the season with family and my home church in Boulder. Maybe rest a
bit…
6. Between now and year-end work with
Pastor Ben Figueroa of Seattle, WA, to seek God’s timing and plans for how I
can serve their new Spanish-speaking SDB church, the Iglesia Bautista del
Séptimo Día. Pastor Ben and his wife, Marcela, are experienced church planters.
Estoy lista para aprender! (I’m ready to learn!)
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| Ladies of the Kingdom of God Church |
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| From the bush in my back yard. Lovely Maryland! |
Please keep up the great
prayer support, and consider making a financial gift before year-end to help
cover travel/moving expenses. Many thanks. I’m praying for additional monthly
supporters, to bring my income up to cover things like car repairs and
self-employment taxes. I’m hoping to participate in a new matching funds
program in 2016 but no details yet, so gifts should still be directed to:
SDB Missionary Society
19 Hillside Ave
Ashaway
RI 02804
(401) 596-4326 Email: Office@sdbmissions.org
God
bless you as you live for Jesus and make Him famous among all people!
