The Same God!

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There is a song we sing in South Africa called the “Same God.”  Whenever we sing it feels like the whole building shakes because of the passionate hearts are crying out to God for a miracle just as He did in the Bible.  Here is a portion of the bridge:

“You heard Your children then, you hear your children now, You are the same God.  You answered prayers back then and you will answer now…Your were providing then You are providing now …You were the healer then, You are the healer now, You are the same God…”

I found myself singing this song as I was reading through a book called “God’s Healing Grace, Taking Jesus at His Word,” by Wayne Edwards.  This was another Christmas gift that blessed me so much I thought I needed to share it with you.  The book was published by a friend Henry Miersma, who personally knows the author.

Wayne Edwards & his wife June, (not their real names in order to protect their mission work), have been missionaries in remote areas of Kenya for 40 years. They have set up and run a health clinic as well as various development projects to bless the people living in the bush.

The people group they live with and minister to are Muslims, so you can imagine the challenges they have faced. After 20 years of laboring in this hard field Wayne cried out to God asking what needed to change for them to be more effective in sharing Christ saving love. He felt Jesus say, “Do what I was doing!”

He started studying Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, and Acts with new eyes.  As he read he asked these 4 questions:

  1. Who did Jesus heal?   2. When did he heal?   3. Who did Jesus not heal?   4. Why did he not heal them.

He also looked at how Jesus gave the authority to his followers to do the same ministry as He did. He came away from this intense study and concluded, “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever,” Hebrews 13:8.

Even though healing was not talked much about in their theological background they acted in obedience and started to pray for people that God would bring to them.  It wasn’t easy and at first and they saw few results but as they continued to pray and obey they witnessed Jesus heal many people which opened the door for them to share the Gospel.

The book consists of 48 chapters which are all stories of the miracles they witnessed. These are humble servants of the Lord, not looking for praise from men but for Jesus Christ to be glorified as the healer of bodies, wounded spirits, and the one bringing people to salvation.  There are also stories of people in the US who have experienced Jesus’ healing power through their ministry as well.

As they have walked this journey of seeking to do what Jesus did they have learned some core elements of healing – confession of sin, repentance, receiving forgiveness, and forgiving others, which are the basic Christian practices.  And one key foundational practice for them is to make abiding in Jesus their daily walk.  As Jesus taught in John 15:4-5 “Abide in me, and I in you…for apart from me you can do nothing.”

I was so blessed by their stories of Jesus’ Kingdom being unleashed in healing the sick, driving out demons, and preaching the Gospel. It truly challenged me again to seek to follow in the steps of Jesus.  How our world needs to see the same God of miracles in the Bible unleash the glory of Jesus in our day.  If you want to strengthen your faith and be challenged to live like Jesus this book will bless you.

If you’re interested, you can click here to find the book online. Please note that all proceeds from book sales go directly to supporting the ministry of the author.

 

Living on the Rock!

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This Christmas season brought many blessings! One I for sure enjoyed was the gift of reading some really good books! “This is My Story, This is My Song, My Life and Testimony,” written by my 95 year old Uncle Bob DeBoer really touched my heart.

I loved the family history and pictures, and was so encouraged by his faith, a deep faith that weathered some of life’s most horrific storms. One of my very fist memories as a child was going to a funeral service on Christmas Eve for my aunt Marilyn who passed away from cancer. That Christmas grief and pain was forever etched in my mind as many tears were shed for my aunt, only 39 years years old and who left behind four children.

By God’s grace after a few years God brought a blessing to Bob in the form of a wonderful wife named Oveta.  She jumped right in to her instant family. Those were not the easiest days as you can imagine but together the made it work. The storms were far from over as all four of Bob’s children would pass away along with a grandson. He watched his two older children die from long agonizing battles with cancer, along with his grandson. The two younger adult children tragically lost their lives in accidents.

Yet in the midst of all that loss and suffering his faith never wavered. He continued to live out the words from the old hymn – “This is my story this is my song, praising my Savior all the day long.”  Instead of going inward and living with anger or bitterness at God he persevered and served God as a leader in his church and for 30 years walked alongside a Cambodian refuge church in Colorado.

I would often tell Patty when I think of my Uncle Bob the word “Rock” comes to mind. He was a rock in the midst of life’s storms because he lived on THE Rock  just like the story Jesus shares at the end of the Sermon on the Mount. One builder constructs his house on the stable rock and the other on the shifting sand.

In South Africa we have seen over and over again people quickly building literal homes on the sand or even in the midst of a dry river bed. But when the winter rains come their “shacks” are washed away, along with all their earthly possessions. It is harder to build on the bed rock, takes more time and energy, but in the long run it will stand in the midst of the battering storms.

How do you build spiritually on THE Rock? One of the main points that comes out in Uncle Bob’s book is the word “Trust!” In fact he would repeatedly tell his family,  “remember to Trust, Trust, Trust!” Trust is not easy especially in our quick fix world where we want it all now and we opt for the sand.  Trust demands we hold on to the promises of Jesus and stand on those life saving promises even when storms continue to pound us.  We must continue to dig deep into His Word and follow these truths even through the valley of the shadow of death may be ever near.

I praise God for Bob and Oveta DeBoer whose life sings a song of praise to THE Rock Jesus Christ. He is the one who they have built their life upon.  Stormy days will come but it is good to be reminded to live on THE Rock, and to “Trust, Trust, Trust!”

“Everyone who hears My teaching and applies it to his life can be compared to a wise man who built his house on an unshakable foundation. When the rains fell and the flood came, with fierce winds beating upon his house, it stood firm because of its strong foundation.” Matt. 7:24,25.

The book can be found on Amazon