Testing
Feb 27
I probably have mentioned before that Gary and I are always fascinated when watching the different behaviors of numerous birds landing on our seed station just outside our kitchen window during the winter. We particularly get a kick out of the Blue Jays. Seconds after Gary dumps seed and peanuts on the platform about ten Jays come zooming in over his head one after the other to grab a peanut. It’s as if they are flying in on an airport runway while squawking their thanks all the way.
One day I watched one guy go after a peanut but then spit it out to try another one and then another one several times. What was he doing? Was he testing to see which one was the heaviest or the tastiest? Was he hunting for the smallest ones so he could get two in his beak at once? I laughed when he dropped a peanut and another peer who wasn’t so picky quickly snagged it right out from under him. I laughed all the more when I saw him return to get a different one again. God must be laughing too with all of his creatures’ antics.
Scott Lockhart, our lead pastor at Hillside Church, is currently auditing a course on Tuesdays at Heritage College and Seminary. Before class he hangs out at the cafeteria to get better acquainted with some of the students. Recently he has had great conversations with a few and actually some of them have been seeking him out to talk. He longs to see one or two take the challenge of attending our church one Sunday to test it out to see if they would be interested in helping us with our outreach program. We could use your prayers for this concern.
At the beginning of this year, Gary finished his series he has been broadcasting every Thursday at 10:00 a.m. based on A.B. Bruce’s book from of old, The Training of the Twelve. He reviewed each chapter to make it more understandable in this day and age – https://youtube.com/@breakthroughpathways. He is publishing these lessons as three books, the first one becoming available to purchase on Amazon shortly. He is also continuing broadcasting every Thursday at 10:00 a.m. based on a chapter from The Master Plan of Evangelism written by Robert Coleman – same link as above. He has learned so much from the compilation of Biblical data through modern tools about what Jesus did during his life on earth e.g. the number of individuals he conversed with one on one. By watching his videos, why not test yourself on what you know versus what information he has gleaned.
Please remember to pray for our good friend Thomas in Myanmar and his current problem with getting his orphanage licensing acceptable before the local authorities. This has really been testing his faith over the past couple months. Watch Gary’s video on this family – https://youtu.be/JcQXJOwlS4s – to be better informed about his situation. Our charity Kainos International Ministries is still raising funds for him so that his orphanage will not be shut down.
In reality, there are many advantages to testing or being tested. James, Jesus’ brother, later on in life wisely commented (James 1:3) “… you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance.” You can congratulate me because this week I had to take a test to renew my driver’s license since next week I am becoming an octogenarian. I am now allowed to drive for two more years. Yay! How did I get that old?
Take care,
Wendy