Friday, July 17 evening we arrived in Cap Pele and set up Loren's camp. Afterwards we went to our motel room in town called Aboiteau. We had a great supper and got to know the lady that owned it. I noticed a guy that was on a bike, obviously traveling a long distance. His name is Steve and long story short, we began to talk about his trip. He said he began in Vancouver. I told him our church had partnered with a church in Vancouver. He asked what it meaned to partner and I explained. He still didn't have a clear picture so I asked where he went to church. Steve proceeded to tell me that he didn't go to church and didn't have anything for the church nor did he read the Bible because he thinks it is just folklore. He did admit however to hardly ever reading the Bible. I told him that I know the Bible is God's inspired, infallible and inerrant word of God because I have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.
He and I agreed that religion has done a lot of damage in the world over time. I agreed because religion is man's way to get to God and it will always wind up falling short because God is Holy and we are not. Our sin separates us from God and we cannot be good enough to get to God.
Steve replied that he believes all religions do work for the people that believe them but not him. He believes he is good enough and that in the end God will accept him.
We continued to converse about this and he said that he found this conversation to be rather unusual and not normal conversation. We concluded by talking some more about his trip plans.
I rode to a town called Boudreau but couldn't find a church. I really didn't find the town, but I'm not sure because the bridge was closed.
David really encouraged me because I was tired and really discouraged because we just weren't seeing any returns.
We got a good night's rest in the hotel.
Saturday morning we went to the campground and moved Loren's gear to the new camp at Cap Tormentine. We went over the longest bridge in the world that is over frozen water. The Confederation Bridge stretches 8 miles to span the Gulf of St. Lawrence from Cap Tormentine to Prince Edward Island (PEI). The landscape on PEI is beautiful. It reminds us of KY. We saw a yellow field of Canola and lots of budding potato plants. The yellow was almost blinding.
I called Community Christian Church in the capital of PEI, Charlottetown. We met with a missionary couple from West Palm Beach, FL. The O'Brien's were very nice to share with us the history of the church. It was the 1st Southern Baptist Church in town and has a strong Chinese ministry. They teach English as a second language and have opportunities for fellowship and outreach.
They gave us a first class tour of the city and took us to tour the capital's history museum.
After our visit to PEI we paid the toll to leave and met Nancy and the kids at Cap Tormentine. Loren paddled in and we all loaded and went to our hotel in Cap Pele to make the vehicle swap.
I gave two Bibles to a husband and wife outside their room.
Sunday morning, 7/19, last day Kobee went out to play with a boy who was in the parking lot. They kicked a ball back and forth for a while and Kobee gave him a Bible. His parents wanted a Bible too. Kobee got them one each.
John and I presented Bibles to all the ladies working in the motel. They were grateful for the Bibles.
Jay called and said he was not far away so we finished packing and got ready for his arrival.
We enjoyed the fellowship and conversation with Jay on the way to the train station.
At the train station we met Gise'le Arouin. She was going to be with her husband in Ottowa. He was in the process of changing jobs and moving. They had been apart for several months while he finished one job and found another. His name is Eduardo Valdes.
I presented her with an English PWT and she was very thankful but said she had difficulty reading English. We had given our last French PWT at the motel so Kobee went and got a French tract. She was excited to see French. I was excited to see her reading it on the train several times. She said her husband spoke and preferred to read Spanish. Kobee went back and got a Spanish testament for him. She was blown away that we would have the Bible in all these languages. I told her it is God's word and she needs to read it carefully to find the truth because she said she'll listen to anything about religion.
Our overnight train ride was ok and we arrived in Montreal by 9:45 or so. At McDonald's for breakfast Kobee used his DSi to strike up a conversation with a group of young kids he had met on the train. He went on to present a PWT and some John/Romans scripture tracts. Their mom told the kids to be sure and read these. She is a believer.
We killed some time shopping around and got book bags for school and caught a cab to the airport.
We still had around 6 hours before our flight out so we shopped around in the airport, grabbed the boys something to eat and finally checking in, proceeded through customs and to our terminal. Easy breezy to Ohio from Montreal.
We rode via shuttle to the Holiday Inn and rested very well for the first time in weeks.
First thing this morning, Tuesday, July 21, I presented Tayla Steward a PWT and talked to her about her assurance of her salvation. She was not sure so after talking for about 20 minutes and explaining the Bible and the A,B,C's: Admit that you are a sinner, Believe on the name of the Lord Jesus Christ that he died, was buried and rose from the dead, and Confess Jesus as her Lord. She agreed with all this and prayed to be forgiven and turned her life over to Jesus. Praise the Lord. This was near the 300th Bible we had given over the last 4 and 1/2 weeks. The final Bible I had went to a homeless man.
Now it's time to reload for the Lord has not returned and souls are still waiting to be harvested.
To be continued...
Tuesday, July 21, 2009
Friday, July 17, 2009
July 17, Friday at Shediac, NB
We have been away from the Internet for several days now. We stayed at the cabins in Rexton for 3 days and met with believers from the Victory Baptist Church. Raymond and his family really took great care of us, even when we didn't know it was them. We decided to eat at Pizza Delight for lunch on the 13th. The waitress was really nice and we commented on how she looks so much like Lindsay Huff at our church. When she brought our drinks to the table we offered her a Bible and she was very nice to receive it. We finished lunch and went back to the cabins for cleaning up and a bit of pre-packing for Tuesday.
We ate supper at Raymond's. Everybody loves him. I went to wash my hands and saw a Pizza Delight name tag with the same name as the young lady that had served us that afternoon. No way. She walked into the the room where everybody else was and well, it was her. Funny huh?
From the cabins on Tuesday morning, I took Loren to his put in at St. Anne Marie. That name, Anne Marie, will come back later.
We loaded the car and went back for some red ice cream John had been asking for. We hit the interstate and headed to Maury Farm Campground. After several MS U-turns, and passing it several times we finally found it. Whew!
It's a vineyard with a winery, free roaming chickens and several nice travelers from out west in Canada. We gave a Bible to the owner as she checked us in and set up camp. The private beach was nice enough so the boys and I played for a while. The windmills on Prince Edward Island can be seen from there. It reminded John of our train ride to see Sissy in Germany. Lots of the landscape, scenery and villages take us back to previous trips to Germany and Austria although much of this is French Acadia territory. We went to a Soapary, where they make soap and on to a lighthouse that's a store that sells jewelery made from pieces of glass found on the beach. She explained that this area used to be an ocean dump for all the glass.
Pieces that are red are the most valuable and they come from broken car and boat tail lights. The next are the broken whisky bottles. She can date them based on how dark they are; the darker they are, the older. Some she had dated back to the late 1800's. The boys had a blast going up and down the spiral staircases to the top of the lighthouse.
We at in a barn with the chickens. They are very curious and will eat anything you drop. The boys got a kick out of the chicks. After supper we met a couple from Alberta, Canada which is way out west and the Rockies run through there. It's the province above N. Dakota and Montana. Anyway, we met them to bid farewell the next morning and the gentleman was happy to receive a testament. The lady was a retired nurse and she said she still has her white nurses testament given to her years ago.
Remember the town of St. Anne Marie, well, Misty met a girl that Wednesday morning traveling alone across NB. Misty gave her a Bible and they struck up a conversation that went on for several hours. Her name is Ann Marie. Ann Marie is a youth worker in her Catholic church. She was taking a vacation to see NB and take time to think about a few things. After talking, Misty took time to pray with her. Ann Marie was very grateful. She was excited that the Lord had allowed her to met us and named several other believers she had met along the way. She said this was confirmation that what she was doing was the Lord's will for her.
We stopped by Woodchuck's place. He's a piratey kind of guy. He built a replica of a pirate ship for his workshop. He's an amazing woodcarver. We have posted pictures and video of his work on the picasa site. We spent some time with him. He asked if I wanted 2 million dollars but I told him no thanks. Well this caused him to pause a bit, but he went on with the story if I had wanted the 2 million. Later when I told him what we were doing and gave him a Bible he said, "Ahh, then we're in the same boat. I understand why you wouldn't want 2 million dollars." For me, he said, he'd just give it all away. I agreed.
From there we finally found Cogaine which is pronounced, Cocaine. Hummm???
It was difficult to get to and even more difficult to sleep there. We made a bit of a road trip out of there to see some more coast line. We landed on a neat little spot where the beach was well below a stone shore wall. We threw lots of rocks. Avalanche!!! We recouped with an ice cream cone and went back to the campground and awaited Loren's arrival.
We went to Shediac to see if the church were meeting and it wasn't. Often churches cancel services for the summer. Blahhh. We ate at Jack's pizza. We met two guys there named Allen and Stephen. Allen was in a wheelchair and Kobee was kind enough to give up his seat so Allen could sit at the end of a table. We gave them each a Bible and I showed them some things about it and encouraged them to start in John.
Thursday we drove on in to Shediac and set up camp. Across the road is an information station and some gift shops. I met Mark there. Mark works as a remote DJ for a local rock/country radio station. He and I visited for a while and he seemed interested in the mission trip. I gave him a French testament and we visited some more.
The boys climbed around on a very large lobster and then we came back to go grocery shopping and wait on Loren. We met Mr. Jean and his kitty cat, Caramel. He received his new French Testament. We met a husband and wife that had been to Tupelo, MS and we visited with them several times. They each received their new PWT.
Loren made the comment upon his arrival that there's way too many homes for only two evangelistic churches in Shediac. Pray for an awakening of the current church people to see what we see and for more church plants or better yet, house church plants, to reach the lost and to build up the current body of believers here. We haven't met many.
Here's my thoughts on coming here as we wind down in these last few days of the mission trip. No one has approached us and asked of our eternal destination, no one has asked us if we know Jesus, no one has offered us a Bible nor a tract about Jesus. So, if we had not been sent here to ask these that are listed on these blog posts, who would have? Who have you introduced to Jesus, lately? Yesterday? Today? Just think, they may not have a tomorrow. Let's hurry!!!
We have been away from the Internet for several days now. We stayed at the cabins in Rexton for 3 days and met with believers from the Victory Baptist Church. Raymond and his family really took great care of us, even when we didn't know it was them. We decided to eat at Pizza Delight for lunch on the 13th. The waitress was really nice and we commented on how she looks so much like Lindsay Huff at our church. When she brought our drinks to the table we offered her a Bible and she was very nice to receive it. We finished lunch and went back to the cabins for cleaning up and a bit of pre-packing for Tuesday.
We ate supper at Raymond's. Everybody loves him. I went to wash my hands and saw a Pizza Delight name tag with the same name as the young lady that had served us that afternoon. No way. She walked into the the room where everybody else was and well, it was her. Funny huh?
From the cabins on Tuesday morning, I took Loren to his put in at St. Anne Marie. That name, Anne Marie, will come back later.
We loaded the car and went back for some red ice cream John had been asking for. We hit the interstate and headed to Maury Farm Campground. After several MS U-turns, and passing it several times we finally found it. Whew!
It's a vineyard with a winery, free roaming chickens and several nice travelers from out west in Canada. We gave a Bible to the owner as she checked us in and set up camp. The private beach was nice enough so the boys and I played for a while. The windmills on Prince Edward Island can be seen from there. It reminded John of our train ride to see Sissy in Germany. Lots of the landscape, scenery and villages take us back to previous trips to Germany and Austria although much of this is French Acadia territory. We went to a Soapary, where they make soap and on to a lighthouse that's a store that sells jewelery made from pieces of glass found on the beach. She explained that this area used to be an ocean dump for all the glass.
Pieces that are red are the most valuable and they come from broken car and boat tail lights. The next are the broken whisky bottles. She can date them based on how dark they are; the darker they are, the older. Some she had dated back to the late 1800's. The boys had a blast going up and down the spiral staircases to the top of the lighthouse.
We at in a barn with the chickens. They are very curious and will eat anything you drop. The boys got a kick out of the chicks. After supper we met a couple from Alberta, Canada which is way out west and the Rockies run through there. It's the province above N. Dakota and Montana. Anyway, we met them to bid farewell the next morning and the gentleman was happy to receive a testament. The lady was a retired nurse and she said she still has her white nurses testament given to her years ago.
Remember the town of St. Anne Marie, well, Misty met a girl that Wednesday morning traveling alone across NB. Misty gave her a Bible and they struck up a conversation that went on for several hours. Her name is Ann Marie. Ann Marie is a youth worker in her Catholic church. She was taking a vacation to see NB and take time to think about a few things. After talking, Misty took time to pray with her. Ann Marie was very grateful. She was excited that the Lord had allowed her to met us and named several other believers she had met along the way. She said this was confirmation that what she was doing was the Lord's will for her.
We stopped by Woodchuck's place. He's a piratey kind of guy. He built a replica of a pirate ship for his workshop. He's an amazing woodcarver. We have posted pictures and video of his work on the picasa site. We spent some time with him. He asked if I wanted 2 million dollars but I told him no thanks. Well this caused him to pause a bit, but he went on with the story if I had wanted the 2 million. Later when I told him what we were doing and gave him a Bible he said, "Ahh, then we're in the same boat. I understand why you wouldn't want 2 million dollars." For me, he said, he'd just give it all away. I agreed.
From there we finally found Cogaine which is pronounced, Cocaine. Hummm???
It was difficult to get to and even more difficult to sleep there. We made a bit of a road trip out of there to see some more coast line. We landed on a neat little spot where the beach was well below a stone shore wall. We threw lots of rocks. Avalanche!!! We recouped with an ice cream cone and went back to the campground and awaited Loren's arrival.
We went to Shediac to see if the church were meeting and it wasn't. Often churches cancel services for the summer. Blahhh. We ate at Jack's pizza. We met two guys there named Allen and Stephen. Allen was in a wheelchair and Kobee was kind enough to give up his seat so Allen could sit at the end of a table. We gave them each a Bible and I showed them some things about it and encouraged them to start in John.
Thursday we drove on in to Shediac and set up camp. Across the road is an information station and some gift shops. I met Mark there. Mark works as a remote DJ for a local rock/country radio station. He and I visited for a while and he seemed interested in the mission trip. I gave him a French testament and we visited some more.
The boys climbed around on a very large lobster and then we came back to go grocery shopping and wait on Loren. We met Mr. Jean and his kitty cat, Caramel. He received his new French Testament. We met a husband and wife that had been to Tupelo, MS and we visited with them several times. They each received their new PWT.
Loren made the comment upon his arrival that there's way too many homes for only two evangelistic churches in Shediac. Pray for an awakening of the current church people to see what we see and for more church plants or better yet, house church plants, to reach the lost and to build up the current body of believers here. We haven't met many.
Here's my thoughts on coming here as we wind down in these last few days of the mission trip. No one has approached us and asked of our eternal destination, no one has asked us if we know Jesus, no one has offered us a Bible nor a tract about Jesus. So, if we had not been sent here to ask these that are listed on these blog posts, who would have? Who have you introduced to Jesus, lately? Yesterday? Today? Just think, they may not have a tomorrow. Let's hurry!!!
Monday, July 13, 2009
July 11
July 11, 2009
We decided to stay in the campground again last night, so this gave us a chance to do a few more things around the National Park. Kevin and Loren drove around and found no good point to put the kayak into the water. They came back towards our camping spot and carried the kayak down an incline to get to the water. Once Loren was on his way, I went to pay for another night there. Loren will be sleeping on a beach so we will not see him until Saturday afternoon.
We spent some time on the beach and both Kevin and I noticed that people were not real open to talk. So we just enjoyed the sand and sun. The boys played in the sand but I’m the only one who got in the water. OK, maybe we all got our feet wet but I was able to go as deep as my knees. The water was so cold that it made me hurt. Well after an hour or so there we decided to go rent a canoe.
While canoeing Kevin offered a group of adults a bible. One lady spoke up for the whole group and said no. O well. We kept on having fun. The current was strong and all four of us were in one canoe. Kobee managed to help most of the time, but John he gave up shortly after we started.
I want to mention Jeremy and Melissa. They are a young couple that camped next to us. Their little boy is named Abram. He has blond hair and is 2years old. Melissa and I started talking on Thursday night. We stayed up well after dark talking to them (dark starts around 9:45 or 10). We talked about all sorts of things. Melissa is a nutritionist and Jeremy works with sheet metal. Before we went to sleep we offered them bibles. They said they would like to have French, so we said we would get the bibles to them in the morning. The next day Kevin took time to explain to Jeremy how to read the bible. We have realized that if you have never read the bible and you start in Mathew; which is where the New Testaments start that we are giving out, it can be a little boring and people have the tendency to set it down and never read it again. We talked to them several more times throughout the weekend. I really enjoyed getting to know them. They will be in my prayers.
We decided to stay in the campground again last night, so this gave us a chance to do a few more things around the National Park. Kevin and Loren drove around and found no good point to put the kayak into the water. They came back towards our camping spot and carried the kayak down an incline to get to the water. Once Loren was on his way, I went to pay for another night there. Loren will be sleeping on a beach so we will not see him until Saturday afternoon.
We spent some time on the beach and both Kevin and I noticed that people were not real open to talk. So we just enjoyed the sand and sun. The boys played in the sand but I’m the only one who got in the water. OK, maybe we all got our feet wet but I was able to go as deep as my knees. The water was so cold that it made me hurt. Well after an hour or so there we decided to go rent a canoe.
While canoeing Kevin offered a group of adults a bible. One lady spoke up for the whole group and said no. O well. We kept on having fun. The current was strong and all four of us were in one canoe. Kobee managed to help most of the time, but John he gave up shortly after we started.
I want to mention Jeremy and Melissa. They are a young couple that camped next to us. Their little boy is named Abram. He has blond hair and is 2years old. Melissa and I started talking on Thursday night. We stayed up well after dark talking to them (dark starts around 9:45 or 10). We talked about all sorts of things. Melissa is a nutritionist and Jeremy works with sheet metal. Before we went to sleep we offered them bibles. They said they would like to have French, so we said we would get the bibles to them in the morning. The next day Kevin took time to explain to Jeremy how to read the bible. We have realized that if you have never read the bible and you start in Mathew; which is where the New Testaments start that we are giving out, it can be a little boring and people have the tendency to set it down and never read it again. We talked to them several more times throughout the weekend. I really enjoyed getting to know them. They will be in my prayers.
Saturday Morning, July 11, we awoke with great anticipation. We are finally going to sleep in beds tonight. We got the car loaded and bid farewell to Jeremy, Melissa and Abram. After leaving the Natl. Park we headed on to Richebucto and Rexton to go to the cabin. We unloaded at the cabin, got clean and went to do laundry. We met Mr. Claude at the laundry mat in Richebucto. When I offered him a Bible he refused and became very agitated. He expressed deep hurt which I will not go into but I tried to encourage him to try Jesus. He would have none of it and blamed others for his problems. He left. Pray for Mr. Claude to have another opportunity to meet Jesus.
Outside, unloading laundry from the roof of the car, yes, that’s how bad it had gotten, I met Jean LeBlanc. Funny thing is, I had seen him already go by in a late 70’s Trans Am. It’s the kind from Smokey and the Bandit. I told Misty, look it’s the Bandit. He had a cowboy hat, t-tops and the works. Mr. LeBlanc and I struck up a conversation about his car and that we had noticed him earlier. He was heading to a car show in Moncton. I gave him and his wife a testament each and before they went on their way I took a couple photos of them in the car. Later in the day we were heading back to the cabins and we passed them, he noticed us and waved.
I was a bit down about Mr. Claude. As we sat waiting for the laundry to finish two ladies came in and one said that she had been at the Soverign Comm. Church where we stayed last Sunday. I told her about our prayer paddling and she was excited. She and the other lady are believers and she said that we should not worry about Mr. Claude, just pray. We will.
Yesterday, Friday, we got a glimpse of what the Lord had prepared as a harvest field. There is a Clam Festival and flea market going on. We gave a lady selling her goods a Bible. She said that her granddad had given her a Bible years ago, but she had not read it much. She was excited as I took her through the testament and showed her the helps, plan of salvation and pointed out the Book of John to begin reading.
We parked in the library and Misty began to update the emails and blogs. Kobee, John and I went to the street vendors and began to converse with them and offer them Bibles. One lady I met had Bible verses painted on rocks. The verses were in French so I took out and English testament to see what the verse said. She noticed and asked if I were a Christian. I told her I was and explained what we MS folks are doing up here in Canada. She told me she goes to the French Baptist Church on the back street. When I told her we would be there Sunday night to share with the congregation and pray, she quickly responded no you’re not, we don’t have church on Sunday nights. As it turned out, no announcement had been made. She and her husband are Elise and Aurel Vautour. The Vautour name is very popular in this area. There are several different families with that name. They asked for prayer for their children and grandchildren. We will.
Carrying on with our visits we met Laure’anne, Annette and Elva. They were selling vitamin supplements and energy drinks along with a variety of products for people with diabetes. Laure’anne shared with us how her health had deteriorated to the point doctors told her she would not live much longer and there was nothing they could do for her. She had arthritis, diabetes and had recently gone blind. A friend told her to pray. She prayed for her sight to be restored. In time it was. Another friend introduced her to these products and they, along with prayer, helped her become more active and healthy. She and the other two ladies were very happy to each receive a copy of God’s word. I shared with them the plan of salvation in the back and talked to them about the ultimate healing for our ultimate problem, sin and separation from God. They were very interested and so I gave their information to Elise to follow up at a near future time to encourage them and invite them to her church.
We bought some fresh seafood at the wharf of Richebucto for supper. I got scallops, haddock, crab claws, a whole lobster, and a filet of salmon. We needed groceries after we picked up Loren from the river we took him to get cleaned up. OOOppps, we did not get the memo that all grocery stores close up at 6 PM on Saturdays. It was 6:30 and we couldn’t get the essentials like milk, bread, eggs, etc. All we had was this seafood. Atkins diet, here we come. We stopped at an Irving gas station and found most of what we needed.
We have mastered the MS u-turn. Seldom do we pull right in to where we are looking for. It’s usually, Whoa, there it goes, anything behind us? Nope, Whip it!
Raymond Voutour is our primary contact for this area of Richebucto and Rexton. He has been so gracious and kind to help us. We met his son Jeremy Saturday evening at the cabins as he came by to check on us. That’s just a glimpse of how wonderful he is. Sunday, July 12 we got up and went to Victory Baptist Church. Raymond Vautour is such a blessing. He led the worship service this morning in the absence of the pastor who is on vacation. We and the congregation were blessed in reciprocal this morning. We met the Summers family. The Lord has done some amazing changes in their individual lives and their marriage. We will pray for them.
We ate lunch at the church and them spent some time in prayer for the church, this area and the believers.
Kobee went over to Tanner’s and rode 4 wheelers while Misty and I napped. He had fun but as usual got hurt getting on the 4 wheeler. A non-moving accident is about par for Kobee.
We went to the French Church Sunday evening and shared with them. Afterwards the pastor, Michel Nadeau, asked what our plans were for the evening. He said there is a fireworks show at the wharf at 10. We should go there to share the gospel. We agreed, prayed up, divided up and went out amongst them.
We gave out at least 100 Bibles and an untold number of French tracts, and some John/Romans gospels. We met Dennis and Jessica towards the end of the evening. They came back to me to ask if I had any more Bibles they could have for their moms. Dennis and Jessica are dating and they are seeking the truth. I was able to go into great detail about the Gospel. When I was talking about this being a personal relationship with Jesus and they can either accept him or reject him, Jessica said she liked this because I wasn’t forcing them to do anything. I went on to encourage them to don’t even take my word for all this, rather, study the scriptures to see for yourself because this is God’s word and it’s the truth. Concluding the conversation, I told them that if they believe on the name of Jesus they should unite with a body of believers that will uplift them, encourage them and help them mature in faith. I used the analogy of a hot coal in a fire. If the coal is removed from the fire it will cool off and lose its ability to heat on its own. So it is with a believer. If you are removed from the fellowship of other believers you will cool off and lose your ability to grow as well as you can when you are connected with the body of Christ.
I was able to turn over the conversation to Pastor Nadeau who told them about the opportunity to unite with believers. He spoke to them in French so I didn’t get much of what they were talking about but I know they responded with great enthusiasm. We need to pray for Dennis and Jessica. I told Dennis, you are not far from the Kingdom of God. He said, I know, I just need a little more time to be sure of my decision. We will pray.
Outside, unloading laundry from the roof of the car, yes, that’s how bad it had gotten, I met Jean LeBlanc. Funny thing is, I had seen him already go by in a late 70’s Trans Am. It’s the kind from Smokey and the Bandit. I told Misty, look it’s the Bandit. He had a cowboy hat, t-tops and the works. Mr. LeBlanc and I struck up a conversation about his car and that we had noticed him earlier. He was heading to a car show in Moncton. I gave him and his wife a testament each and before they went on their way I took a couple photos of them in the car. Later in the day we were heading back to the cabins and we passed them, he noticed us and waved.
I was a bit down about Mr. Claude. As we sat waiting for the laundry to finish two ladies came in and one said that she had been at the Soverign Comm. Church where we stayed last Sunday. I told her about our prayer paddling and she was excited. She and the other lady are believers and she said that we should not worry about Mr. Claude, just pray. We will.
Yesterday, Friday, we got a glimpse of what the Lord had prepared as a harvest field. There is a Clam Festival and flea market going on. We gave a lady selling her goods a Bible. She said that her granddad had given her a Bible years ago, but she had not read it much. She was excited as I took her through the testament and showed her the helps, plan of salvation and pointed out the Book of John to begin reading.
We parked in the library and Misty began to update the emails and blogs. Kobee, John and I went to the street vendors and began to converse with them and offer them Bibles. One lady I met had Bible verses painted on rocks. The verses were in French so I took out and English testament to see what the verse said. She noticed and asked if I were a Christian. I told her I was and explained what we MS folks are doing up here in Canada. She told me she goes to the French Baptist Church on the back street. When I told her we would be there Sunday night to share with the congregation and pray, she quickly responded no you’re not, we don’t have church on Sunday nights. As it turned out, no announcement had been made. She and her husband are Elise and Aurel Vautour. The Vautour name is very popular in this area. There are several different families with that name. They asked for prayer for their children and grandchildren. We will.
Carrying on with our visits we met Laure’anne, Annette and Elva. They were selling vitamin supplements and energy drinks along with a variety of products for people with diabetes. Laure’anne shared with us how her health had deteriorated to the point doctors told her she would not live much longer and there was nothing they could do for her. She had arthritis, diabetes and had recently gone blind. A friend told her to pray. She prayed for her sight to be restored. In time it was. Another friend introduced her to these products and they, along with prayer, helped her become more active and healthy. She and the other two ladies were very happy to each receive a copy of God’s word. I shared with them the plan of salvation in the back and talked to them about the ultimate healing for our ultimate problem, sin and separation from God. They were very interested and so I gave their information to Elise to follow up at a near future time to encourage them and invite them to her church.
We bought some fresh seafood at the wharf of Richebucto for supper. I got scallops, haddock, crab claws, a whole lobster, and a filet of salmon. We needed groceries after we picked up Loren from the river we took him to get cleaned up. OOOppps, we did not get the memo that all grocery stores close up at 6 PM on Saturdays. It was 6:30 and we couldn’t get the essentials like milk, bread, eggs, etc. All we had was this seafood. Atkins diet, here we come. We stopped at an Irving gas station and found most of what we needed.
We have mastered the MS u-turn. Seldom do we pull right in to where we are looking for. It’s usually, Whoa, there it goes, anything behind us? Nope, Whip it!
Raymond Voutour is our primary contact for this area of Richebucto and Rexton. He has been so gracious and kind to help us. We met his son Jeremy Saturday evening at the cabins as he came by to check on us. That’s just a glimpse of how wonderful he is. Sunday, July 12 we got up and went to Victory Baptist Church. Raymond Vautour is such a blessing. He led the worship service this morning in the absence of the pastor who is on vacation. We and the congregation were blessed in reciprocal this morning. We met the Summers family. The Lord has done some amazing changes in their individual lives and their marriage. We will pray for them.
We ate lunch at the church and them spent some time in prayer for the church, this area and the believers.
Kobee went over to Tanner’s and rode 4 wheelers while Misty and I napped. He had fun but as usual got hurt getting on the 4 wheeler. A non-moving accident is about par for Kobee.
We went to the French Church Sunday evening and shared with them. Afterwards the pastor, Michel Nadeau, asked what our plans were for the evening. He said there is a fireworks show at the wharf at 10. We should go there to share the gospel. We agreed, prayed up, divided up and went out amongst them.
We gave out at least 100 Bibles and an untold number of French tracts, and some John/Romans gospels. We met Dennis and Jessica towards the end of the evening. They came back to me to ask if I had any more Bibles they could have for their moms. Dennis and Jessica are dating and they are seeking the truth. I was able to go into great detail about the Gospel. When I was talking about this being a personal relationship with Jesus and they can either accept him or reject him, Jessica said she liked this because I wasn’t forcing them to do anything. I went on to encourage them to don’t even take my word for all this, rather, study the scriptures to see for yourself because this is God’s word and it’s the truth. Concluding the conversation, I told them that if they believe on the name of Jesus they should unite with a body of believers that will uplift them, encourage them and help them mature in faith. I used the analogy of a hot coal in a fire. If the coal is removed from the fire it will cool off and lose its ability to heat on its own. So it is with a believer. If you are removed from the fellowship of other believers you will cool off and lose your ability to grow as well as you can when you are connected with the body of Christ.
I was able to turn over the conversation to Pastor Nadeau who told them about the opportunity to unite with believers. He spoke to them in French so I didn’t get much of what they were talking about but I know they responded with great enthusiasm. We need to pray for Dennis and Jessica. I told Dennis, you are not far from the Kingdom of God. He said, I know, I just need a little more time to be sure of my decision. We will pray.
We all joined up back at the church for an afterglow celebration to say look what the Lord has done and it is marvelous in our sight.
Friday, July 10, 2009
Waves and the Word, can't stop them.
Today was an interesting day for this is the Lord’s Day.
The Book of Acts in 28:24 says, “And some were persuaded by the things which were spoken, and some disbelieved”. This is a verse I landed on this morning and it came to pass today.
On this frosty morn I was awaiting Loren as he made his morning preparations to kayak I met Eric who stopped by the campground. He owns a church, well what used to be a church, and converted it to a dry dock where he keeps and restored a boat. With this boat, Eric plans to sail to the DR and meet up with his girlfriend who lives there in the center part on a mountain. He had a little dog named Vicky that plays and plays.
I offered him a Bible and he refused. He refused on the grounds that he doesn’t need that because he’s got it all figured out. He said he is good enough. He went on to say he’d never stolen anything and he’s a very good person and he knows this in his head.
I asked how he planned to stand before a Holy God and answer for his sins. I told him to consider God’s Word that he was refusing and listen to what it says about his claims. “As it is written: ‘There is none righteous, no not one’.” “Therefore you shall be perfect, just as your Father in heaven is perfect.” I went on to explain that “our righteousness is but filthy rags before God”. Eric rejected all three. He held steadfast that God will find his good works enough to let him into heaven. He said his dad died several years ago and he was a good man and he felt certain his dad went to heaven. In the end, he still refused the Bible and rejected the Gospel that was presented to him. See Acts 28:24.
Loren and I went on down to the dock and he put in. I struck up a conversation with the guys working on restoring a boat at the pier. They invited me aboard and gave me a tour of what was completed along with an explanation of what’s to be done by this Saturday so they can set sail on a trip. I presented them each a PWT and they accepted. This brought up a conversation about traveling the world to spread the Gospel. The man that owned the boat said it’s a good thing and that he knew a Gideon that was a school teacher years ago that was active in spreading the word. He said now he’s old and not able to go anymore. Go while you can because one day the day will come when your mind or body or both won’t allow you to Go!
At the pier watch house I met Chris. He is a believer and so are his parents. I asked if he knew any Gideons in the area and he said his dad did. After a very encouraging conversation between myself and Chris, I came back to camp, got cleaned up and we all went back to Chris’ home and met his dad. We also met a man in need of prayer for his hip. I gave him a Bible and told him I’d be praying for his recovery and he said maybe your prayers will work because he’s not answering mine. I hope to meet this man again to really talk to him.
Mr. Reid came out to meet us and he was very kind. He also informed us of the local Gideon he knows and it’s the same Gideon that Shirley told us about two days ago. Hummmm, is he the only Gideon here?
After our time at the Reids, we took a detour through the community of Hardwicke. After a turn here and there we came across a church that had a sign on the front door, admission $4.00. Catching Kobee’s attention, he wanted to go back for a picture. I made a u-turn and parked in front of the church. There were neither cars nor signs of anyone when we first drove past but now several cars are pulling in behind us. A number of ladies, four to be exact, were there to set up quilts for a quilt show and that’s what the $4.00 admission was for. We went in to see the quilts and it was a bunch of them. That’s where we needed to be last night in the 3 degree Celsius temperatures.
The question always arises, what in the world are you doing here from MS. We are always obliged to explain. God sent His son to die for His glory and no other reason. When we accept Christ it is to the Glory of God. The Glory of God is why we travel to share the Gospel. Not for our own benefit.
Often when we’re asked on the street for the explanation we move into the gospel. Well here in the church I quickly began to explain that we are here to pray and spread His word. We introduced ourselves and the ladies gave us their names. One lady is from South China and her name is Xiao.
I told her of our visits to Harbin, China and how the Gospel is spreading rapidly among the young college age students. I told her of the English corners and how we engage them with the truth of God’s Word. At this statement she was stumped. How do you know when God is talking to you? OK, radar’s on…She’s a seeker but not a believer. She had some great questions about how do you know God is real and that Jesus is real. How was the Bible written by God? She said she had heard of Jesus living and dying.
I told her to look out the window and tell me if you can see the wind. She looked and thought. She answered and said that she saw the leaves moving. That’s right, you see the effects of the wind but you don’t see the wind. So it is with God, we look at creation and see the effects of God’s design. The Bible tells us that creation itself testifies of God’s existence. We looked at John 1:3, “All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made”.
Next, I explained that she needed to read the Book of John and why. See previous blogs. John was given God’s words by God via the Holy Spirit besides, John was an eyewitness. I showed her Luke and explained he was not an eyewitness, rather he gathered his information by interviewing eyewitnesses such as John and the other disciples. I explained to her that if she and I both saw a vehicle accident we would tell our story in different ways but get to the same point that this vehicle collided with that vehicle. It’s the same with the Gospel accounts of Jesus’ ministry on this earth. Four men, four points of view but the same and ultimate conclusion that Jesus is the Christ, the Messiah, the Son of God who being born of a virgin, lived a perfect, sinless life, was crucified, dead and buried and the third day rose from the dead. I told her she left this most important part out. Jesus is alive!
Now get this, in the middle of sharing the Gospel, one of the ladies interrupts and says we’ve got to get busy hanging up these quilts. I bit my tongue, took a deep breath and continued with the plan of salvation in the back of the PWT. I showed her that God loved her so much that He sent His one and only Son to die on the cross to pay the penalty for our sins.
We wrapped up our conversation by my giving my email address and encouraging her to ask God to show He is real to her through His word and I promise he will. She was very thankful to receive God’s word and the brief explanation. See Acts 28:24.
We concluded our afternoon by going out to the end of the peninsula to see the lighthouse and the ocean from that point.
The Book of Acts in 28:24 says, “And some were persuaded by the things which were spoken, and some disbelieved”. This is a verse I landed on this morning and it came to pass today.
On this frosty morn I was awaiting Loren as he made his morning preparations to kayak I met Eric who stopped by the campground. He owns a church, well what used to be a church, and converted it to a dry dock where he keeps and restored a boat. With this boat, Eric plans to sail to the DR and meet up with his girlfriend who lives there in the center part on a mountain. He had a little dog named Vicky that plays and plays.
I offered him a Bible and he refused. He refused on the grounds that he doesn’t need that because he’s got it all figured out. He said he is good enough. He went on to say he’d never stolen anything and he’s a very good person and he knows this in his head.
I asked how he planned to stand before a Holy God and answer for his sins. I told him to consider God’s Word that he was refusing and listen to what it says about his claims. “As it is written: ‘There is none righteous, no not one’.” “Therefore you shall be perfect, just as your Father in heaven is perfect.” I went on to explain that “our righteousness is but filthy rags before God”. Eric rejected all three. He held steadfast that God will find his good works enough to let him into heaven. He said his dad died several years ago and he was a good man and he felt certain his dad went to heaven. In the end, he still refused the Bible and rejected the Gospel that was presented to him. See Acts 28:24.
Loren and I went on down to the dock and he put in. I struck up a conversation with the guys working on restoring a boat at the pier. They invited me aboard and gave me a tour of what was completed along with an explanation of what’s to be done by this Saturday so they can set sail on a trip. I presented them each a PWT and they accepted. This brought up a conversation about traveling the world to spread the Gospel. The man that owned the boat said it’s a good thing and that he knew a Gideon that was a school teacher years ago that was active in spreading the word. He said now he’s old and not able to go anymore. Go while you can because one day the day will come when your mind or body or both won’t allow you to Go!
At the pier watch house I met Chris. He is a believer and so are his parents. I asked if he knew any Gideons in the area and he said his dad did. After a very encouraging conversation between myself and Chris, I came back to camp, got cleaned up and we all went back to Chris’ home and met his dad. We also met a man in need of prayer for his hip. I gave him a Bible and told him I’d be praying for his recovery and he said maybe your prayers will work because he’s not answering mine. I hope to meet this man again to really talk to him.
Mr. Reid came out to meet us and he was very kind. He also informed us of the local Gideon he knows and it’s the same Gideon that Shirley told us about two days ago. Hummmm, is he the only Gideon here?
After our time at the Reids, we took a detour through the community of Hardwicke. After a turn here and there we came across a church that had a sign on the front door, admission $4.00. Catching Kobee’s attention, he wanted to go back for a picture. I made a u-turn and parked in front of the church. There were neither cars nor signs of anyone when we first drove past but now several cars are pulling in behind us. A number of ladies, four to be exact, were there to set up quilts for a quilt show and that’s what the $4.00 admission was for. We went in to see the quilts and it was a bunch of them. That’s where we needed to be last night in the 3 degree Celsius temperatures.
The question always arises, what in the world are you doing here from MS. We are always obliged to explain. God sent His son to die for His glory and no other reason. When we accept Christ it is to the Glory of God. The Glory of God is why we travel to share the Gospel. Not for our own benefit.
Often when we’re asked on the street for the explanation we move into the gospel. Well here in the church I quickly began to explain that we are here to pray and spread His word. We introduced ourselves and the ladies gave us their names. One lady is from South China and her name is Xiao.
I told her of our visits to Harbin, China and how the Gospel is spreading rapidly among the young college age students. I told her of the English corners and how we engage them with the truth of God’s Word. At this statement she was stumped. How do you know when God is talking to you? OK, radar’s on…She’s a seeker but not a believer. She had some great questions about how do you know God is real and that Jesus is real. How was the Bible written by God? She said she had heard of Jesus living and dying.
I told her to look out the window and tell me if you can see the wind. She looked and thought. She answered and said that she saw the leaves moving. That’s right, you see the effects of the wind but you don’t see the wind. So it is with God, we look at creation and see the effects of God’s design. The Bible tells us that creation itself testifies of God’s existence. We looked at John 1:3, “All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made”.
Next, I explained that she needed to read the Book of John and why. See previous blogs. John was given God’s words by God via the Holy Spirit besides, John was an eyewitness. I showed her Luke and explained he was not an eyewitness, rather he gathered his information by interviewing eyewitnesses such as John and the other disciples. I explained to her that if she and I both saw a vehicle accident we would tell our story in different ways but get to the same point that this vehicle collided with that vehicle. It’s the same with the Gospel accounts of Jesus’ ministry on this earth. Four men, four points of view but the same and ultimate conclusion that Jesus is the Christ, the Messiah, the Son of God who being born of a virgin, lived a perfect, sinless life, was crucified, dead and buried and the third day rose from the dead. I told her she left this most important part out. Jesus is alive!
Now get this, in the middle of sharing the Gospel, one of the ladies interrupts and says we’ve got to get busy hanging up these quilts. I bit my tongue, took a deep breath and continued with the plan of salvation in the back of the PWT. I showed her that God loved her so much that He sent His one and only Son to die on the cross to pay the penalty for our sins.
We wrapped up our conversation by my giving my email address and encouraging her to ask God to show He is real to her through His word and I promise he will. She was very thankful to receive God’s word and the brief explanation. See Acts 28:24.
We concluded our afternoon by going out to the end of the peninsula to see the lighthouse and the ocean from that point.
Tuesday, July 7, 2009
Time to play in the sand.
We all took advantage of the sun. The Boys played and Misty took a nap in the warmth of the sun.
Tuesday, July 7 Building Bridges and Opening Doors
We had a most interesting day yesterday for making God appointed contacts.
Loren had arranged for an interview at Middle Island with a local newspaper reporter. When Loren landed at MI we were getting there about the same time. The reporter was already there. Loren went into the restaurant and took care of the interview while Misty, the boys and I loaded the kayak. There was a father and daughter enjoying a day on the beach. We gave each a PWT and they went off down the beach reading their new Bible.
I had promised Kobee we would go eat at A&W for lunch, so we did. After eating the business had quited down so I went to the car to get 5 PWTs. I was not sure how many workers were in the back. I presented a Bible to Amanda at the front counter. She thanked me for the Bible and went back to ask the other ladies (2) if they wanted a Bible as well. They each said yes and got their Bibles as well. I had the other two Bibles in my pocket. One of the ladies came back and asked for another for her mom and right after that, the third lady came and requested a Bible for her daughter. When I gave it to her she lit up with a big 'ole smile, thanked me and said goodie, goodie, goodie!
There were two ladies also in the A&W. I was out of testaments so Misty got two and knocked on their car window. Misty told them who we were, where we're from and that she's with the Gideon Auxiliary. The ladies names were Shirley and Shirley. They were so excited to meet us because the Shirley driving has a brother, John, that is the President of a local Gideon Camp. She went on to tell us that our being here was prophesied over 25 years ago in that a revival of this NB land would begin here in Miramichi and spread across Canada. This is not the first time I've been told of this prophecy and was told again later in the day. She provided us with more names and contacts as we go.
I am looking forward to Moncton because there's been a request from a local church there for us to go out with them Sunday night to a park to share the gospel. Also, Shirley told us of a strong Muslim population in Moncton.
Shirley and Shirley prayed over us and for the mission and spreading of the Gospel.
Back at the Chatham Library we went in and spent time charging and updating the Internet.
The library closed at 5:00 so we went outside to finish using the computer. While there, Andrew Summers came back by. We visited for a moment and he was off to get coffee. There was a lady in a vehicle using the computer and so I spoke to her and she's from North Carolina. Her name is De'Rhoda and she's in town visiting her mom. She grew up here. After a bit more conversation I turned to the gospel and offered her a Bible. She said she hasn't read the Bible much but she did not believe it to be God's Word. Rather, she thinks it is just a book written by man. Anyway, she was kind and accepted the Bible and I told her this is God's inspired, infallible and inerrant Word. I encouraged her to take time to read the book of John because John was an eyewitness of Jesus' life and ministry and she said she would. We will pray for God to open the eyes of her heart to understand His Holy Word is real.
Here, just now at the library updating this blog on Tues, 7/7 I've met several people. Sherry is a believer here for nursing school. She speaks Spanish so I told her about Misty going to Guatemala for nursing and she's very interesting in taking part in the mission there. We gave her a Bible and she was so excited and said this was a divine appointment. I agree.
Also while here, I met Craig. He is a courier for a business. The library is closed and they wouldn't let him in. Jesus is always open and ready to let anyone in who will humble himself, repent and follow Him. I offered Craig a testament and he accepted it. He said he didn't read the Bible much so I followed the same introduction to the book of John. He said he would read it and had to go off to his next appointment. A locked door opened another.
Monday, July 6, 2009
July 5
Saturday afternoon and evening, July 4, After logging in earlier today, 7/4, we met a guy named Andrew Summers. He seemed to have knowledge of the Bible and was interested in Jewish customs and songs. Andrew said he was from Chatham which is the community we were in for the library. He said he was homeless but he had a friend that had a tattoo parlor in Newcastle and he just hung out at Tim Hortons at night. He had an ITouch so I couldn’t make much of his homeless situation. We had to go get Loren at 2:30 and it was 2:15 so he walked off but I did give him a PWT before he left.
Going to the car there was a guy sitting using the WiFi near our car. I told him there was a plug on the porch and he might get better reception there as well. I introduced myself and he said his name but I cannot begin to guess how to pronounce it, let alone spell it. He is from Kenya and he is a believer. He attends the Anglican Church up the hill in sight from the library. He came here to go to school and has been here ever since. He received a PWT and we encouraged one another as believers should do.
We went on around the street to Middle Island. The history of the island is interesting. Durning the potato famine in Ireland, boatloads of immigrants came into the Miramichi River. Whenever the boats arrived, all sick passengers were offloaded onto this island and left there. They were not allowed to go to the mainland. Thousands of immigrants are buried on this island. Since then, the government has made it a memorial and built a causeway out to the island from the mainland.
When we arrived, we could see Loren and Herman off in the distance. We climbed a replica of the first lighthouse built on the island. It’s quite different. We went inside the restaurant and freshened up as best we could. Fred was in the restaurant having coffee and we heard him talking about a guy paddling in to the Middle Island from Burnt Church. We introduced ourselves and told him of our being a part of that plan. Fred had several interesting stories of his travels while Biking for Bibles. There were several workers in the kitchen so we gave them 4 PWTs. John gave a PWT to a groundskeeper sitting in his truck. I had a chance to talk to him later. He was raking some grass and I complemented him on how nice the park is kept up. I asked him if he had a personal relationship with Jesus and if he thought about where he would spend eternity. He said he never thought about that much and so I told him now is the time to think about it by reading that Bible he was given earlier and he walked away without so much as a word.
We loaded Loren and Herman's kayak and they were off to their next put in at Eel Ground. Sounds like a happy place. We have the key and the code to the church so we ate lunch at the restaurant. Just as we sat down to eat the door opened and who should walk in but Mr. Wilson. Mr. Wilson is the man we met at Shippigan last week after our second night. He was very happy, and perhaps a bit shocked to see us. He said that he still is reading that little Bible we gave him and he will continue to read it and think of us every time. How awesome a confirmation is that?
We went back to the church and dropped off all our stuff and got clean. How neat is that? Mark arrived to get some things ready for Sunday’s after church dinner on the grounds. He was sent as a blessing because he volunteered to take our clothes home and wash them. I bent his ear telling him of several accounts of sharing the gospel with people along the way and how God had sent people into our path to help us. I told him that he is now a link in that chain of faith.
We took the boys to a playground at Newcastle called Rocky Wharf. It had zip lines, lots of ups and downs and John said this was the best vacation from our vacation yet. We met Fred and his daughter at the park. They were there for the music. There was a bunch of older folks cutting a rug to live music.
After visiting and getting very cold we had to leave to go pick up Loren. We drove to Eel Ground, took a guess at where Loren would be. Herman was there but Loren wasn’t. After a bit of directions and redirecting from Herman to Loren over the phone we coordinated a pick up under a bridge up river.
No problems. Misty and the boys picked some wild strawberries while Loren and I loaded his gear and kayak. We all went back to the church and settled in for the evening. I made a run to Sobey’s grocery store and gave a PWT to Miranda the cashier. She was closing her register so she was rather short and not interested in chit-chat.
It rained hard last night so we were thankful to be clean and dry.
We got up and got ready. Hey, we’re the first ones to church! We slept in the church last night. The church is Soverign Community Church. It was good after 3 days to get showers, clean clothes and freshly dressed. There were no beds so we slept on the pews.
As the people arrived they were bringing in more food and making preparations for the worship service. We met more and more people. Loren had to leave and go visit another church several miles away. The pastor here is Jeff Kerr. He is serving here short term for the summer and he and his wife will return to St. Louis to continue in seminary this fall. We talked for a while after service and we encouraged one another and I invited he and his wife to come to Mississippi for a break and a recharge at Cleary.
Another believer and pastor from Moncton invited us to be a part of a worship service next Sunday evening where they go to a park to share the gospel. Sounds like our cup of tea.
Going to the car there was a guy sitting using the WiFi near our car. I told him there was a plug on the porch and he might get better reception there as well. I introduced myself and he said his name but I cannot begin to guess how to pronounce it, let alone spell it. He is from Kenya and he is a believer. He attends the Anglican Church up the hill in sight from the library. He came here to go to school and has been here ever since. He received a PWT and we encouraged one another as believers should do.
We went on around the street to Middle Island. The history of the island is interesting. Durning the potato famine in Ireland, boatloads of immigrants came into the Miramichi River. Whenever the boats arrived, all sick passengers were offloaded onto this island and left there. They were not allowed to go to the mainland. Thousands of immigrants are buried on this island. Since then, the government has made it a memorial and built a causeway out to the island from the mainland.
When we arrived, we could see Loren and Herman off in the distance. We climbed a replica of the first lighthouse built on the island. It’s quite different. We went inside the restaurant and freshened up as best we could. Fred was in the restaurant having coffee and we heard him talking about a guy paddling in to the Middle Island from Burnt Church. We introduced ourselves and told him of our being a part of that plan. Fred had several interesting stories of his travels while Biking for Bibles. There were several workers in the kitchen so we gave them 4 PWTs. John gave a PWT to a groundskeeper sitting in his truck. I had a chance to talk to him later. He was raking some grass and I complemented him on how nice the park is kept up. I asked him if he had a personal relationship with Jesus and if he thought about where he would spend eternity. He said he never thought about that much and so I told him now is the time to think about it by reading that Bible he was given earlier and he walked away without so much as a word.
We loaded Loren and Herman's kayak and they were off to their next put in at Eel Ground. Sounds like a happy place. We have the key and the code to the church so we ate lunch at the restaurant. Just as we sat down to eat the door opened and who should walk in but Mr. Wilson. Mr. Wilson is the man we met at Shippigan last week after our second night. He was very happy, and perhaps a bit shocked to see us. He said that he still is reading that little Bible we gave him and he will continue to read it and think of us every time. How awesome a confirmation is that?
We went back to the church and dropped off all our stuff and got clean. How neat is that? Mark arrived to get some things ready for Sunday’s after church dinner on the grounds. He was sent as a blessing because he volunteered to take our clothes home and wash them. I bent his ear telling him of several accounts of sharing the gospel with people along the way and how God had sent people into our path to help us. I told him that he is now a link in that chain of faith.
We took the boys to a playground at Newcastle called Rocky Wharf. It had zip lines, lots of ups and downs and John said this was the best vacation from our vacation yet. We met Fred and his daughter at the park. They were there for the music. There was a bunch of older folks cutting a rug to live music.
After visiting and getting very cold we had to leave to go pick up Loren. We drove to Eel Ground, took a guess at where Loren would be. Herman was there but Loren wasn’t. After a bit of directions and redirecting from Herman to Loren over the phone we coordinated a pick up under a bridge up river.
No problems. Misty and the boys picked some wild strawberries while Loren and I loaded his gear and kayak. We all went back to the church and settled in for the evening. I made a run to Sobey’s grocery store and gave a PWT to Miranda the cashier. She was closing her register so she was rather short and not interested in chit-chat.
It rained hard last night so we were thankful to be clean and dry.
We got up and got ready. Hey, we’re the first ones to church! We slept in the church last night. The church is Soverign Community Church. It was good after 3 days to get showers, clean clothes and freshly dressed. There were no beds so we slept on the pews.
As the people arrived they were bringing in more food and making preparations for the worship service. We met more and more people. Loren had to leave and go visit another church several miles away. The pastor here is Jeff Kerr. He is serving here short term for the summer and he and his wife will return to St. Louis to continue in seminary this fall. We talked for a while after service and we encouraged one another and I invited he and his wife to come to Mississippi for a break and a recharge at Cleary.
Another believer and pastor from Moncton invited us to be a part of a worship service next Sunday evening where they go to a park to share the gospel. Sounds like our cup of tea.
Saturday, July 4, 2009
Wednesday evening, July 1 we went to the Baptist Church in Tracadie. We had a great worship time and testimony time. Kobee played the drums while Loren and Robert played guitar. Pastor Joel played the keyboard. We sang a few songs and shared testimonies.
Loren talked about the beginning of the mission till now and the vision the Lord had given him. Carmen said that when she heard about Loren’s plan she thought it was a bit crazy but the Lord told her not to underestimate what one man in a boat can do.
I shared that we had been many places in the world and that we have seen that the Spirit of God is alive and on the move. From China to Guatemala, from India to Honduras and now in Canada, God’s word is going forth and “it will not return void and it will accomplish that which it is sent to do and prosper where it is sent” Is. 55:11.
The believers were encouraged. I was encouraged because the pastor’s son, Mikal, is going on a mission trip to a camp this summer. He will be there several weeks sharing the gospel. I gave him an American PWT and a Canadian PWT I found at the church and shared with him how he can take and use the helps in the front and plan of salvation in the back to aid in leading someone to a saving knowledge in Jesus Christ. I am excited to see young people like I met in Honduras and here in Canada that are 13-16 years old and eager to go and serve God with their lives by telling others about Jesus.
Our camp for the night is at Val Coumeau. Misty took the boys to the camp store and bought Kobee some moccasins. She gave the worker ladies a Bible each. I gave several kids a Bible in French. There was a language barrier and we didn’t speak to much but they took their Bibles when they left on their bikes. We left the church service and grabbed a late bite to eat at Tim Hortons. It was crowded with lots of older folks. From there we went to our camp at Val Coumeau. It’s rainy and yucky.
Thursday morning, July 2 I helped Loren off. He had a bit of trouble getting into the ocean with the waves. It seemed as though the tide were running from him. He eventually made it in reverse and was on his way. We packed camp and got out by 11:00. I called Jay and we met him at their work and he led us to his grocery store. What a blessing. Man, this is so much like the church in Acts, believers helping believers. Each has different gifts, abilities and resources to help get the gospel out. It’s nothing short of a God thing for us to meet different groups of believers yet have the same bond of unity in Jesus.
We grabbed lunch at Jay’s grocery store along with lots of new food supplies to get us through the week. We drove on I-11 to Tabusintac. We made it to New Haven Campground. It’s still dreary and cloudy. I met with the owner of the camp and he asked what we were doing this far out and I explained about the prayer paddling and gave him a Bible. He said he was Catholic but accepted the PWT. His wife, granddaughter and another lady came into the store. I offered them Bibles and they said no. I asked if the little girl would like to have one and the grandmother quickly said no.
Anyway, we got checked in and set camp. Meanwhile, Kobee and John went to work spreading the Word. The little girl, Kayli, got a Bible from Kobee and John. You should have seen how happy she was and how proud she is of her little Bible. Kobee explained the Gospel to her. She put her name in the front and pranced about the campground showing it off and talking about it. She brought it to me to show it off. Other boys and girls accepted a Bible too. Kobee sat on a stage and explained the Bible to several guys. Unfortunately one of the boy’s grandmothers didn’t let him keep the Bible and made him bring it back to Kobee.
I got Loren to dock and up to camp. Later we dropped him off up river for him to paddle to another point. I got some good wild life footage of a beaver, a crane and a moose on the loose.
We had a real good campfire and got clean. We watched some movies from the camp store and hit the hay.
Friday morning, July 3, Loren, John and I went to a drop off point at a wharf called Wishart. There were some good ole boys there getting a boat ready for fishing. John tried to offer them a Bible but they were very short and gruff with him and said they did not want the Bibles. I tried a little later after sending Loren on his way and they were just as rude with me. We shook the dust off and went on back to camp.
While packing, Misty had a chance to talk with the grandmother and the grandmother had told the little girl, Kayli not to be reading or talking about the Bible with her because religion is a personal thing. Kayli said she would go to the restroom to be alone and read her Bible. The lady was a curt with Misty about us praying for them. She asked why you think we Canadians need prayer. Misty simply answered that all of us need prayer. Hey, they may not accept a Bible but they cannot stop us from praying for them. Pray for this grandmother’s heart to be softened to the gospel. Also, pray for these little kids that are hungry and thankful for God’s Word but are hindered by hard-hearted adults.
After pulling out of Tibusinac, we trekked on to Neguac. We found the main wharf and met two men and a kid loading lobster traps. We all walked over to where they were and they were very kind to show us how they set the traps. They answered a variety of other questions and the owner of the boat made a comment about how man is destroying himself. I told him I agreed and that was why we were there. I said we have the answer and the answer is Jesus. Oh, yes he replied. I offered them each a testament and they were happy to receive the Word of God. He told me he was Catholic but I told him that didn’t matter. All that matters is a personal relationship with Jesus because he has all the answers to man’s problems. I showed them the plan of salvation and after a word of witness I let them get back to work. I really like seeing the smile on the young and old when I look back.
What’s that? A Confederate Flag on a fishing boat in Neuguac , NB?
I met Talbott there. He is a Micmac Indian and lives nearby. The boat with the flag belongs to his brother. His boat was inherited from his dad when he retired from the fishing business. Talbott recognized how remarkable it is how I would be from MS, recognize the flag and come to inquire about it. Furthermore, it was interesting that he really didn't need to be there, he had just happened to come by to warm up his boat. God has been putting us in the paths of others and others in our path to meet spiritual, and physical needs.
I talked to Talbott and he said he hoped his eternity was secure. I pointed to scripture from Romans 10:9 "That if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved." That is assurance we have as believers that the world cannot waver. We talked on more about how more is less and less is more when it comes to the eternal. The more stuff we have, the more we worry about that stuff and the less we are concerned about the eternal. He took three Bibles for himself and his family to share.
After speaking with Talbott, we went on to a Neguac public access area. We ate picnic style in a lighthouse that was under construction for use as a visitor center. I dropped down a picnic table and it gave us a chance to be out of the wind and mosquitos for a bit while we ate.
John found a chipmunk scurrying around trees. We teased it out of a hollow tree with some rice crispy treat. I got it on tape and some photos. John was also impressed by a seagull dumping down the side of the lighthouse and a dead rotting crab. Good thing we were finished with lunch.
There were some guys cutting grass at the area. When one got close enough I got his attention and he came over to the car where I presented him a Bible. His name was Francouis (sp?). He listened intently to the gospel and said he appreciated the Bible and that he would take time to read the plan of salvation and the Gospel of John. This was the only Bible he has ever been given.
We met with Lloyd Augustine and Mark. They both brought their kids so Kobee and John played with them and a puppy they brought. As the kids played we prayed.
Lloyd is a leader in the Micmac Nation of Native Indians. He knew Talbott and remembered him coming to Bible Camps. We prayed for Necuac, Burnt Church and the other communities nearby. We also prayed for the people who had received a witness and a Bible along the way.
Soon as we finished with the Amen, the bottom dropped out. Misty and I wheeled the car around and picked up the boys. Loren went off in the kayak.
During the rain we went to Tim Hortons. We had some coffee and donuts. Misty went to sleep at the table. John gave four Bibles to the counter worker and he took them to the ladies in the back. One of the ladies came out and said out loud across the restaurant, "Thank you sweetie!" That got John back on track. "Those are my first ones", he replied. Another lady came in and we gave her a Bible and another man came in. He looked a little rough around the edges but was very kind to receive the Bible. We gave it to him as we were on the way out. His car had bottle caps in the grill. I'll come back to him further on in the post.
We went out to Hay Island which is on the Micmac Reservation. Lloyd met us out there and visited a bit more with Loren while we set up camp in a pavilion. At least we have cover but nothing else. No water, no electricity, no toilets except for the pp tepee.
Kobee spent time on the water kayaking. He handled the boat really well. I paddled about for a bit as well.
Misty got a great fire started and cooked soup and grilled cheese sandwiches. MMMMMM, Jummy!
We sat by the fire to dry off and warm up until around 10:00 PM. It's still daylight that late.
Saturday, July 4, we slept pretty well. A few vehicles drove through but didn't bother us. I helped Loren off this morning. Before he left out he asked if we had met a hippy guy the day before. I said yeah, at Tim Hortons. Loren said his name is Zoel and he works as a night watchman at the dock. Loren met him when he went to charge his phone last night. Loren went to offer him a Bible and Zoel asked, "What, one of those blue ones like they gave me at Tim Hortons? I can't read."
Loren tried to share the Gospel with Zoel but it was difficult. Loren offered to send him some audio information from home later on.
Happy Fourth of July, ya'll!
After breaking camp and loading the car we drove through Burnt Church to see the burnt school. Their school burned this spring because of electrical problems.
We drove on into Miramachi and found a McDonalds for a late breakfast. We got directions from a very nice young couple to Walmart. The girl got so tickled at our Southern accent. We were disappointed however, when we offered them a Bible the guy answered and said, "We're just not in to that". Very well. We left for Walmart.
After Walmart we pulled over to check on a charger we bought. While sitting on a dead end road a car pulled up beside us. It was a Constable with the local police. He and his wife waited on us to get situated because I had to go in to return the charger.
They led us into the town of Chatham across the river bridge to a library. The library was closed but we can access the internet. He came to the car to make sure we were ok. When I offered him a Bible he said with excitement that he was a Christian and attended the local Presbyterian Church. He accepted the Bibles for he and his wife. I told him that the Lord had placed them in our path to help us and we were thankfull.
Loren talked about the beginning of the mission till now and the vision the Lord had given him. Carmen said that when she heard about Loren’s plan she thought it was a bit crazy but the Lord told her not to underestimate what one man in a boat can do.
I shared that we had been many places in the world and that we have seen that the Spirit of God is alive and on the move. From China to Guatemala, from India to Honduras and now in Canada, God’s word is going forth and “it will not return void and it will accomplish that which it is sent to do and prosper where it is sent” Is. 55:11.
The believers were encouraged. I was encouraged because the pastor’s son, Mikal, is going on a mission trip to a camp this summer. He will be there several weeks sharing the gospel. I gave him an American PWT and a Canadian PWT I found at the church and shared with him how he can take and use the helps in the front and plan of salvation in the back to aid in leading someone to a saving knowledge in Jesus Christ. I am excited to see young people like I met in Honduras and here in Canada that are 13-16 years old and eager to go and serve God with their lives by telling others about Jesus.
Our camp for the night is at Val Coumeau. Misty took the boys to the camp store and bought Kobee some moccasins. She gave the worker ladies a Bible each. I gave several kids a Bible in French. There was a language barrier and we didn’t speak to much but they took their Bibles when they left on their bikes. We left the church service and grabbed a late bite to eat at Tim Hortons. It was crowded with lots of older folks. From there we went to our camp at Val Coumeau. It’s rainy and yucky.
Thursday morning, July 2 I helped Loren off. He had a bit of trouble getting into the ocean with the waves. It seemed as though the tide were running from him. He eventually made it in reverse and was on his way. We packed camp and got out by 11:00. I called Jay and we met him at their work and he led us to his grocery store. What a blessing. Man, this is so much like the church in Acts, believers helping believers. Each has different gifts, abilities and resources to help get the gospel out. It’s nothing short of a God thing for us to meet different groups of believers yet have the same bond of unity in Jesus.
We grabbed lunch at Jay’s grocery store along with lots of new food supplies to get us through the week. We drove on I-11 to Tabusintac. We made it to New Haven Campground. It’s still dreary and cloudy. I met with the owner of the camp and he asked what we were doing this far out and I explained about the prayer paddling and gave him a Bible. He said he was Catholic but accepted the PWT. His wife, granddaughter and another lady came into the store. I offered them Bibles and they said no. I asked if the little girl would like to have one and the grandmother quickly said no.
Anyway, we got checked in and set camp. Meanwhile, Kobee and John went to work spreading the Word. The little girl, Kayli, got a Bible from Kobee and John. You should have seen how happy she was and how proud she is of her little Bible. Kobee explained the Gospel to her. She put her name in the front and pranced about the campground showing it off and talking about it. She brought it to me to show it off. Other boys and girls accepted a Bible too. Kobee sat on a stage and explained the Bible to several guys. Unfortunately one of the boy’s grandmothers didn’t let him keep the Bible and made him bring it back to Kobee.
I got Loren to dock and up to camp. Later we dropped him off up river for him to paddle to another point. I got some good wild life footage of a beaver, a crane and a moose on the loose.
We had a real good campfire and got clean. We watched some movies from the camp store and hit the hay.
Friday morning, July 3, Loren, John and I went to a drop off point at a wharf called Wishart. There were some good ole boys there getting a boat ready for fishing. John tried to offer them a Bible but they were very short and gruff with him and said they did not want the Bibles. I tried a little later after sending Loren on his way and they were just as rude with me. We shook the dust off and went on back to camp.
While packing, Misty had a chance to talk with the grandmother and the grandmother had told the little girl, Kayli not to be reading or talking about the Bible with her because religion is a personal thing. Kayli said she would go to the restroom to be alone and read her Bible. The lady was a curt with Misty about us praying for them. She asked why you think we Canadians need prayer. Misty simply answered that all of us need prayer. Hey, they may not accept a Bible but they cannot stop us from praying for them. Pray for this grandmother’s heart to be softened to the gospel. Also, pray for these little kids that are hungry and thankful for God’s Word but are hindered by hard-hearted adults.
After pulling out of Tibusinac, we trekked on to Neguac. We found the main wharf and met two men and a kid loading lobster traps. We all walked over to where they were and they were very kind to show us how they set the traps. They answered a variety of other questions and the owner of the boat made a comment about how man is destroying himself. I told him I agreed and that was why we were there. I said we have the answer and the answer is Jesus. Oh, yes he replied. I offered them each a testament and they were happy to receive the Word of God. He told me he was Catholic but I told him that didn’t matter. All that matters is a personal relationship with Jesus because he has all the answers to man’s problems. I showed them the plan of salvation and after a word of witness I let them get back to work. I really like seeing the smile on the young and old when I look back.
What’s that? A Confederate Flag on a fishing boat in Neuguac , NB?
I met Talbott there. He is a Micmac Indian and lives nearby. The boat with the flag belongs to his brother. His boat was inherited from his dad when he retired from the fishing business. Talbott recognized how remarkable it is how I would be from MS, recognize the flag and come to inquire about it. Furthermore, it was interesting that he really didn't need to be there, he had just happened to come by to warm up his boat. God has been putting us in the paths of others and others in our path to meet spiritual, and physical needs.
I talked to Talbott and he said he hoped his eternity was secure. I pointed to scripture from Romans 10:9 "That if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved." That is assurance we have as believers that the world cannot waver. We talked on more about how more is less and less is more when it comes to the eternal. The more stuff we have, the more we worry about that stuff and the less we are concerned about the eternal. He took three Bibles for himself and his family to share.
After speaking with Talbott, we went on to a Neguac public access area. We ate picnic style in a lighthouse that was under construction for use as a visitor center. I dropped down a picnic table and it gave us a chance to be out of the wind and mosquitos for a bit while we ate.
John found a chipmunk scurrying around trees. We teased it out of a hollow tree with some rice crispy treat. I got it on tape and some photos. John was also impressed by a seagull dumping down the side of the lighthouse and a dead rotting crab. Good thing we were finished with lunch.
There were some guys cutting grass at the area. When one got close enough I got his attention and he came over to the car where I presented him a Bible. His name was Francouis (sp?). He listened intently to the gospel and said he appreciated the Bible and that he would take time to read the plan of salvation and the Gospel of John. This was the only Bible he has ever been given.
We met with Lloyd Augustine and Mark. They both brought their kids so Kobee and John played with them and a puppy they brought. As the kids played we prayed.
Lloyd is a leader in the Micmac Nation of Native Indians. He knew Talbott and remembered him coming to Bible Camps. We prayed for Necuac, Burnt Church and the other communities nearby. We also prayed for the people who had received a witness and a Bible along the way.
Soon as we finished with the Amen, the bottom dropped out. Misty and I wheeled the car around and picked up the boys. Loren went off in the kayak.
During the rain we went to Tim Hortons. We had some coffee and donuts. Misty went to sleep at the table. John gave four Bibles to the counter worker and he took them to the ladies in the back. One of the ladies came out and said out loud across the restaurant, "Thank you sweetie!" That got John back on track. "Those are my first ones", he replied. Another lady came in and we gave her a Bible and another man came in. He looked a little rough around the edges but was very kind to receive the Bible. We gave it to him as we were on the way out. His car had bottle caps in the grill. I'll come back to him further on in the post.
We went out to Hay Island which is on the Micmac Reservation. Lloyd met us out there and visited a bit more with Loren while we set up camp in a pavilion. At least we have cover but nothing else. No water, no electricity, no toilets except for the pp tepee.
Kobee spent time on the water kayaking. He handled the boat really well. I paddled about for a bit as well.
Misty got a great fire started and cooked soup and grilled cheese sandwiches. MMMMMM, Jummy!
We sat by the fire to dry off and warm up until around 10:00 PM. It's still daylight that late.
Saturday, July 4, we slept pretty well. A few vehicles drove through but didn't bother us. I helped Loren off this morning. Before he left out he asked if we had met a hippy guy the day before. I said yeah, at Tim Hortons. Loren said his name is Zoel and he works as a night watchman at the dock. Loren met him when he went to charge his phone last night. Loren went to offer him a Bible and Zoel asked, "What, one of those blue ones like they gave me at Tim Hortons? I can't read."
Loren tried to share the Gospel with Zoel but it was difficult. Loren offered to send him some audio information from home later on.
Happy Fourth of July, ya'll!
After breaking camp and loading the car we drove through Burnt Church to see the burnt school. Their school burned this spring because of electrical problems.
We drove on into Miramachi and found a McDonalds for a late breakfast. We got directions from a very nice young couple to Walmart. The girl got so tickled at our Southern accent. We were disappointed however, when we offered them a Bible the guy answered and said, "We're just not in to that". Very well. We left for Walmart.
After Walmart we pulled over to check on a charger we bought. While sitting on a dead end road a car pulled up beside us. It was a Constable with the local police. He and his wife waited on us to get situated because I had to go in to return the charger.
They led us into the town of Chatham across the river bridge to a library. The library was closed but we can access the internet. He came to the car to make sure we were ok. When I offered him a Bible he said with excitement that he was a Christian and attended the local Presbyterian Church. He accepted the Bibles for he and his wife. I told him that the Lord had placed them in our path to help us and we were thankfull.
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
Kobee (Wednesday)
Last night we were miles away from civazation (in a cozy cottege), ate berries (blue & strawberry), leaves (leduce), and some kind of dead meat.(steak) It has rained alot. I got a slight headace. I am enjoying this trip verry mutch. Today Mr Laren is takeing a break. He deservs it. I am enjoying this trip verry mutch. God has just answered uor prayrs. A nice man has offered to take us back to batherst at the end of our trip.This saved us around $400.00.
Recoup, repairs, encourage
After a great night in the Losier home we had a real good breakfast and packed Loren off to the Tracadie River wharf. We met Robert and Al there. Our plans were to go back, pack the family and meet Al at his office around noon. We would go for lunch and then out to the cottage on up the river at Leech.
Plans changed a bit as we were leaving the wharf. Robert noticed a headlight out on the car. We went on and met Luke, a believer and Joel a pastor. They had finished breakfast. Luke had to take his kids swimming and Joel needed a ride so we went back to Robert's home.
There we checked on the light. After I took it out, he called a dealer to see if they had a bulb to replace it. When I put the bulb back in, it worked! In the process of putting it back in Robert was appalled at the condition of the battery. It was corroded.
He took the tractor out of the barn and I pulled the car in. We closed the overhead door and went to overhauling. Robert and Larry Wigley are one in the same. Robert was excited to be finding things wrong with the car. We took off the + post and it was practically corroded in two. He put on a new + connector on the hot wire while I steel brushed and sanded all the corroded extra parts that hold the battery in place.
We filled the battery cells with water, painted the battery holding plate and replaced a blown fuse to the cigarette lighter and power rear view mirrors. Misty arrived and we cleaned out the entire car, vacuumed, blew dry the floor mats which had at least three beaches worth of sand, and armoralled the inside vinyl. Misty moved the luggage racks apart and now we can store an extra bag on top. Hurray, the boys have room to breath. In the process of hooking the battery back up and cleaning the inside, Robert had hit a parking light switch and turned it on. We didn't know so we couldn't figure out why the park lights were on. He called the dealer and the dealer said he gets more calls about that than anything else. There is a park light switch at the top of the steering column. Yep, that fixed it.
After loading the car Robert was worried about the tire pressure and rightfully so, they were low. We aired the tires up and after a great lunch and a quick power nap Loren arrived. Al had met him at the cottage in Leech and brought him back to the Losiers. Loren finished up his blog and we went on to Al's office.
He he is quite the visionary. He sees a project, draws He and Loren led us to the cottage which is a big nice cabin. All wood on the inside. Upstairs are 2 bedrooms and a full bath. Downstairs is a full bath, kitchen, dining area, and living room. His grill is in a large screen room off the end of the house. Down the concrete path is the dock where Loren landed.
We survived the evening eating fresh berries and fruit, lettuce, and nuts. We also managed on rice and a piece of meat called steak. Al and his wife Murielle are great hosts. They have a heart to help people. They are relatively new believers and they are on fire for the Lord. They fire me up. As I mentioned, he is a visionary and he sees them in the near future starting an orphanage in this area. They will adopt from around the world and bring the children in to a home where they are taken care of by a young married couple that will stay full time with the kids.
These people are so kind. Another man we met is Jay. He has bent over backwards to help and encourage us. The pastor Carole Fournier and her husband came over. We had an opportunity to encourage them just as we had Pastor Robert and Carmen. We were surprised to find out that they consider their congregation of 20-30 people to be large for this area.
The people are sensing God's hand moving here and Jay said that he sees our mission visit as God beginning to send them help into the harvest fields. He went on to say that it is like breaking into a coconut by dropping it. Each drop cracks it a little more. We are picking it up and dropping it, so to speak, and so we are breaking into this area a little more. They really want help here to reach the people. They are small in number but they are united in Spirit and Truth to preach the gospel to the unreached people right here. We played a part in encouraging them and they definitely encourage us to press on.
There are historical divisions here that divide the people. The French are predominantly Catholic and the English are predominantly Protestant. After the French and Indian War, the English deported/exilled many of the French people or treated very badly those French that stayed here. Many French went to Louisianna. Others went over to Nova Scotia and down in to Maine and other areas in Canada and the U.S.
Anyway, the tension is still there between the French and English, so, anytime we present the Gospel and offer a Bible to the French people who are Catholic, there can be some resistance because as Al said, they see it as something from the English therefore they reject the Bible or witness more from a cultural standpoint than spiritual.
Please pray for these divisions and tensions to be put aside as we proceed with the Gospel and that Jesus would we received and not rejected for any reason.
Today is Wed. July 1, Canada Day. We hope to get to some beaches and see people at camps to share the gospel with. We are refreshed and ready to jump back on the trail.
Plans changed a bit as we were leaving the wharf. Robert noticed a headlight out on the car. We went on and met Luke, a believer and Joel a pastor. They had finished breakfast. Luke had to take his kids swimming and Joel needed a ride so we went back to Robert's home.
There we checked on the light. After I took it out, he called a dealer to see if they had a bulb to replace it. When I put the bulb back in, it worked! In the process of putting it back in Robert was appalled at the condition of the battery. It was corroded.
He took the tractor out of the barn and I pulled the car in. We closed the overhead door and went to overhauling. Robert and Larry Wigley are one in the same. Robert was excited to be finding things wrong with the car. We took off the + post and it was practically corroded in two. He put on a new + connector on the hot wire while I steel brushed and sanded all the corroded extra parts that hold the battery in place.
We filled the battery cells with water, painted the battery holding plate and replaced a blown fuse to the cigarette lighter and power rear view mirrors. Misty arrived and we cleaned out the entire car, vacuumed, blew dry the floor mats which had at least three beaches worth of sand, and armoralled the inside vinyl. Misty moved the luggage racks apart and now we can store an extra bag on top. Hurray, the boys have room to breath. In the process of hooking the battery back up and cleaning the inside, Robert had hit a parking light switch and turned it on. We didn't know so we couldn't figure out why the park lights were on. He called the dealer and the dealer said he gets more calls about that than anything else. There is a park light switch at the top of the steering column. Yep, that fixed it.
After loading the car Robert was worried about the tire pressure and rightfully so, they were low. We aired the tires up and after a great lunch and a quick power nap Loren arrived. Al had met him at the cottage in Leech and brought him back to the Losiers. Loren finished up his blog and we went on to Al's office.
He he is quite the visionary. He sees a project, draws He and Loren led us to the cottage which is a big nice cabin. All wood on the inside. Upstairs are 2 bedrooms and a full bath. Downstairs is a full bath, kitchen, dining area, and living room. His grill is in a large screen room off the end of the house. Down the concrete path is the dock where Loren landed.
We survived the evening eating fresh berries and fruit, lettuce, and nuts. We also managed on rice and a piece of meat called steak. Al and his wife Murielle are great hosts. They have a heart to help people. They are relatively new believers and they are on fire for the Lord. They fire me up. As I mentioned, he is a visionary and he sees them in the near future starting an orphanage in this area. They will adopt from around the world and bring the children in to a home where they are taken care of by a young married couple that will stay full time with the kids.
These people are so kind. Another man we met is Jay. He has bent over backwards to help and encourage us. The pastor Carole Fournier and her husband came over. We had an opportunity to encourage them just as we had Pastor Robert and Carmen. We were surprised to find out that they consider their congregation of 20-30 people to be large for this area.
The people are sensing God's hand moving here and Jay said that he sees our mission visit as God beginning to send them help into the harvest fields. He went on to say that it is like breaking into a coconut by dropping it. Each drop cracks it a little more. We are picking it up and dropping it, so to speak, and so we are breaking into this area a little more. They really want help here to reach the people. They are small in number but they are united in Spirit and Truth to preach the gospel to the unreached people right here. We played a part in encouraging them and they definitely encourage us to press on.
There are historical divisions here that divide the people. The French are predominantly Catholic and the English are predominantly Protestant. After the French and Indian War, the English deported/exilled many of the French people or treated very badly those French that stayed here. Many French went to Louisianna. Others went over to Nova Scotia and down in to Maine and other areas in Canada and the U.S.
Anyway, the tension is still there between the French and English, so, anytime we present the Gospel and offer a Bible to the French people who are Catholic, there can be some resistance because as Al said, they see it as something from the English therefore they reject the Bible or witness more from a cultural standpoint than spiritual.
Please pray for these divisions and tensions to be put aside as we proceed with the Gospel and that Jesus would we received and not rejected for any reason.
Today is Wed. July 1, Canada Day. We hope to get to some beaches and see people at camps to share the gospel with. We are refreshed and ready to jump back on the trail.
Tuesday, June 30, 2009
Sunday and Monday June 28-29
Sunday afternoon we crashed at the camp. John gave four Bibles to four kids. Later that evening, during night prayers, he told me that they gave them back because they are Catholic. He was disappointed but I told him that several people I offered a Bible to were rather direct about not wanting one. We prayed that the Lord would put someone in front of John that He had prepared to receive God’s Word and they would be very happy to get a Bible.
Sunday evening we sat around the campfire and prepared for the rain moving in tomorrow.
Monday morning Loren and I awoke and toted the kayak to the Pokemouche River. He took off in the rain and wind. I drank left over coffee from yesterday and cooked pancakes in the rain. Misty and the boys slept on into the morning. After washing dishes and Misty getting our tent organized we went to the camp store to charge batteries and wash clothes.
We had washed them the night before and left them because the store was closing. Some of the towels soured so we had to wash them again. All’s well now. They smell better than us.
We all drove to the Inkerman Warf and picked Loren up. We all donned our Frog Togs and braved the elements of wind and cold horizontal rain. Every one played a part in getting him loaded. Afterwards he wanted to take a look at the ocean on the outer banks. The waves were reported as 10 foot. Not a place for a kayak. Later that evening we heard the sad news a kayaker drowned. He decided to stay inside the bays and go up river to Pastor Robert Losier. We went back to the campground and ate grilled cheese sandwiches made with hamburger buns, pb&j sandwiches, pretzels and chips.
Meanwhile it’s still drizzling and blowing but we’re managing. I took Loren to Poulette Bay (Chicken Bay) and boy was it rough there. We passed a porcupine alongside the road. The wind was about 25 knots and the rain was coming at us sideways. We got him on his way and I waited for a moment. He paddled back in and I was wondering if he was calling it quits. Nope, he forgot his watch.
I called Misty and she said it was not raining at the campground. It certainly was raining on me. It’s crazy; as soon as I drove into the camp it started raining. We scrambled around and packed up inside the tents and then loaded the bags on the roof. After the roof, we started smash packing the rest of our stuff inside the car. We broke down the tents and then lashed them to the roof. Soaking wet, we four squeezed into the car and drove to the gate. I was sure to turn in the gate pass card to get my $10.00 loonies back.
We drove from Pokemouche Campground to Tracadie. We parked at a church inside town and called Pator Robert. His wife, Carmen, answered and she gave great directions to their farm home. When we arrived at their home it was still raining. Kobee, John and I went to the barn and watched Robert boil lobsters. They were fresh from the day because it is the next to last day of lobster season and he had been to the wharf and purchased some from a friend. They boil them, cool them off in water, wrap in wax freezer paper and freeze them for the winter. We ate fresh lobster tonight. “MMMMMM jummy!”
Pastor Robert is very interesting. He is a sport fisherman, farmer and he restores old anything. Their house was built by his great grandfather and he has restored it as well as the barn, very nice.
I drove the car down to the Petit’ Tracadie River which is at the back of Robert’s property. After waiting only a few minutes, Loren paddled on in to the dock and we got him loaded, you guessed it, in the rain. Back at the house, we dried out, changed clothes, and ate lobster. What a treat. Kobee lit up. He smiled during the entire meal.
Robert coached us as to how to get to the meat. John only ate potatoes and meat. We topped the meal off with a strong cup of latte coffee and blueberry cake. We finished the evening with a bit more conversation, put the boys to bed with a couple beanie weenie stories, and prayed together.
Sunday evening we sat around the campfire and prepared for the rain moving in tomorrow.
Monday morning Loren and I awoke and toted the kayak to the Pokemouche River. He took off in the rain and wind. I drank left over coffee from yesterday and cooked pancakes in the rain. Misty and the boys slept on into the morning. After washing dishes and Misty getting our tent organized we went to the camp store to charge batteries and wash clothes.
We had washed them the night before and left them because the store was closing. Some of the towels soured so we had to wash them again. All’s well now. They smell better than us.
We all drove to the Inkerman Warf and picked Loren up. We all donned our Frog Togs and braved the elements of wind and cold horizontal rain. Every one played a part in getting him loaded. Afterwards he wanted to take a look at the ocean on the outer banks. The waves were reported as 10 foot. Not a place for a kayak. Later that evening we heard the sad news a kayaker drowned. He decided to stay inside the bays and go up river to Pastor Robert Losier. We went back to the campground and ate grilled cheese sandwiches made with hamburger buns, pb&j sandwiches, pretzels and chips.
Meanwhile it’s still drizzling and blowing but we’re managing. I took Loren to Poulette Bay (Chicken Bay) and boy was it rough there. We passed a porcupine alongside the road. The wind was about 25 knots and the rain was coming at us sideways. We got him on his way and I waited for a moment. He paddled back in and I was wondering if he was calling it quits. Nope, he forgot his watch.
I called Misty and she said it was not raining at the campground. It certainly was raining on me. It’s crazy; as soon as I drove into the camp it started raining. We scrambled around and packed up inside the tents and then loaded the bags on the roof. After the roof, we started smash packing the rest of our stuff inside the car. We broke down the tents and then lashed them to the roof. Soaking wet, we four squeezed into the car and drove to the gate. I was sure to turn in the gate pass card to get my $10.00 loonies back.
We drove from Pokemouche Campground to Tracadie. We parked at a church inside town and called Pator Robert. His wife, Carmen, answered and she gave great directions to their farm home. When we arrived at their home it was still raining. Kobee, John and I went to the barn and watched Robert boil lobsters. They were fresh from the day because it is the next to last day of lobster season and he had been to the wharf and purchased some from a friend. They boil them, cool them off in water, wrap in wax freezer paper and freeze them for the winter. We ate fresh lobster tonight. “MMMMMM jummy!”
Pastor Robert is very interesting. He is a sport fisherman, farmer and he restores old anything. Their house was built by his great grandfather and he has restored it as well as the barn, very nice.
I drove the car down to the Petit’ Tracadie River which is at the back of Robert’s property. After waiting only a few minutes, Loren paddled on in to the dock and we got him loaded, you guessed it, in the rain. Back at the house, we dried out, changed clothes, and ate lobster. What a treat. Kobee lit up. He smiled during the entire meal.
Robert coached us as to how to get to the meat. John only ate potatoes and meat. We topped the meal off with a strong cup of latte coffee and blueberry cake. We finished the evening with a bit more conversation, put the boys to bed with a couple beanie weenie stories, and prayed together.
Sunday, June 28, 2009
Sunday Scouts
We made it through the night all tarped over to keep the rain out. Not real high, and definitely not real dry. Kevin cooked breakfast and Misty went to get ready for church. At the bathhouse Misty met Angela. Angela said that she is a den mother for the boy and girl scouts staying there at the campground. After a bit of small talk Angela went back to the campsite.
Misty prayed to try and figure out a way to give all the Scouts a Bible. As Misty was walking out of the bathhouse and Misty met Angela heading back to the bathhouse. Misty stopped her and asked if she could give her a gift of a Bible. Angela was happy to receive the testament.
Misty went on to ask if she could give the rest of the campers in the Scout group a Bible. Angela said they would like it very much.
Misty went to the car and got 12 French PWTs and took them to the Scouts. The scouts sat on the picnic bench and each received a copy of God's Word! The Scoutmaster translated for Misty as she shared the Gospel with them. She showed them the helps in the front and went to the plan of salvation in the back. As she explained, Rene' the scoutmaster, interpreted. Soon after she finished, Angela's parents arrived and we were able to present them with their testament as well. The Scouts lined up and said with sign language, "Merci Beaucoup" which is "Thank you very much" in French. They said word for word it's Sea Beautiful Cut.
We went to a Pentecostal Church that Loren had made contact with. It was a lady pastor and as it turned out her dad is a Gideon in Bathhurst.
We had the opportunity to share about our trip so far. Kevin told about the two young guys that had never heard of Jesus. Kobee told about giving a Bible to two guys early yesterday and one guy yesterday evening. Misty told about the encounter with the scouts.
We met a really nice family by the last name of Friolet. Jean Marc, Annie and three cute little girls. One little girl looks like Gabby Wade. Same hair, same smile.
One of the members showed up at the campground and picked Loren up and took him to buy us chicken for lunch. This is a great blessing and meant alot to us. We pray that the Lord will bless him for taking care of us.
Saturday, June 27, 2009
In Pokemouche
In Canada now at Pokemouche Camp ground. Gave PWTS to two guys last night, never go to church, never had or read Bible, never heard the gospel, never heard of Jesus. They each have heard the gospel, they have a Bible and they marked their place in John to begin reading. Pray they will understand and someone will be in their life soon to water the seeds planted. There are many more testaments that have gone out but this was rather surprising in Canada. I am finding this to be more of the norm than the exception. I gave one Bible to Leon on the tip of Miscou Isle, the farthermost point north possible (one of those ends of the earth kind of places) Leon is a believer and was very happy to receive his testament because he said God saved him from his cancer last year. I gave one to Mr. Wilson and he said he was a good Catholic when I asked if he had a personal relationship with Jesus. We got in to a good conversation and he was thankful for his Bible.
Some are not so interested in having a Bible. Mr. Landry was kind enough to allow me and Loren to launch his kayak from a point in his back yard. I offered Mr. Landry a testament and he asked what it was I clarified that it was a Bible. He refused and said, "A Bible? No! I don't believe that stuff!" Pray that Mr. Landry gets another chance because the Lord came to him today and he told him not to stay. Mr. Landry is 82 years old. Time is short.
Kobee got to give Bibles to two guys this morning we met at the campground. He also gave one to Joseph at Pokemouche Campground this evening. There is definitely an English/French language barrier here but technology crosses the boundaries and Kobee is using his DSi to catch the attention of the kids around the camps and then it opens up to him presenting them a Bible. John tried to give one to a little friend that is 6 but he couldn't understand that it was his to keep. Misty gave out several to the manager of the campground, and a family from Ottowa, Canada.
Some are not so interested in having a Bible. Mr. Landry was kind enough to allow me and Loren to launch his kayak from a point in his back yard. I offered Mr. Landry a testament and he asked what it was I clarified that it was a Bible. He refused and said, "A Bible? No! I don't believe that stuff!" Pray that Mr. Landry gets another chance because the Lord came to him today and he told him not to stay. Mr. Landry is 82 years old. Time is short.
Kobee got to give Bibles to two guys this morning we met at the campground. He also gave one to Joseph at Pokemouche Campground this evening. There is definitely an English/French language barrier here but technology crosses the boundaries and Kobee is using his DSi to catch the attention of the kids around the camps and then it opens up to him presenting them a Bible. John tried to give one to a little friend that is 6 but he couldn't understand that it was his to keep. Misty gave out several to the manager of the campground, and a family from Ottowa, Canada.
Friday, June 26, 2009
Friday
Today we spent much of our time unpacking and trying to repack the car. This is very challenging. After we were able to get all the supplies and the four of us in the car we moved on.
During packing there were some guys working on a building. They took a break so I took a moment to visit with them. One guy is from Canada near here and he teaches wind surfing. The guy with him is from Tunisia. It is a nation in the north coast of Africa. They both accepted a testament and I told them how the most important decision we could make is to have a personal relationship with Jesus. The guy from Tunisia was quite interested in his Bible. Tunisia is a closed nation to the Gospel. We meet Loren at Wilson Point around 2:oo. He ate a PB/J and then hit the water again. We visited the lighthouse and Kevin at the northernmost point. Kevin gave a Bible to Leon. Leon was happy to receive it. He said that he had cancer in his stomach and the Lord had healed him. His answer was yes that Jesus was in his heart. At this time I am sitting out side a bibliotheque publique; I think that means public library. The boys have gone to find a bathroom. Every time we stop to do something we try to give some Bibles to people. From here we'll try to find a campground and Loren, whichever comes first. On to Shippegan.
Today we spent much of our time unpacking and trying to repack the car. This is very challenging. After we were able to get all the supplies and the four of us in the car we moved on.
During packing there were some guys working on a building. They took a break so I took a moment to visit with them. One guy is from Canada near here and he teaches wind surfing. The guy with him is from Tunisia. It is a nation in the north coast of Africa. They both accepted a testament and I told them how the most important decision we could make is to have a personal relationship with Jesus. The guy from Tunisia was quite interested in his Bible. Tunisia is a closed nation to the Gospel. We meet Loren at Wilson Point around 2:oo. He ate a PB/J and then hit the water again. We visited the lighthouse and Kevin at the northernmost point. Kevin gave a Bible to Leon. Leon was happy to receive it. He said that he had cancer in his stomach and the Lord had healed him. His answer was yes that Jesus was in his heart. At this time I am sitting out side a bibliotheque publique; I think that means public library. The boys have gone to find a bathroom. Every time we stop to do something we try to give some Bibles to people. From here we'll try to find a campground and Loren, whichever comes first. On to Shippegan.
Wednesday and Thuresday,
Well Wed. started off a little hard for Kevin. He took his perscribed antibiotics on an empty stomach and 30min. later he was sick. We managed to get a granola bar down him while smelling rubbing alochol ( trick a great nurse I work with tought me). He stay horizontal for a few more minuets and then we went to eat. We had a great breakfast and Kevin was back to normal within the hour. We had seveal hours to wait before we could go to the train station, so we took a chance to walk around Montreal.
Walking around, we ran across the guys from India, or so I thought. They were from Tamil but had lived in Montreal for some time. The were protesting the treatment of the Tamil people in Sri Lanka. They said the government was treating them as terrorists and all of them were missing at least one family member. I shared that on a recent trip to India, a Tamil guy was our guide. After some more conversation, I offered them a New Testament. The leader of the protest gladly accepted the Testament and we said we would pray for their family members.
The train ride was great. Well maybe not great. The ride itself was great, the sleeping was a little on the challening side. The set up was two seats, table and two seats. Kevin and Kobee sat on one side and John and Misty rode backwords facing them. We ate left over pizza from lunch for super. John was so excited he was hard to contain.
Kobee presented Yves, our car attendant, a Bible. He was very appreciative but quite busy so he didn’t have time for much talk. Kobee did a great job getting the Word out though.
At the camp ground called Vague Leonard met us. He said they were not open yet but graciously received us. He was so helpful to get us aquainted with the campground and give us suggestions to fight the mosquitos. He brought us firewood and mosquito repelant.
I met Charlie Smith, a neighbor to the campground. Charlie, Leonard and I had a good conversation and I explained how we were going to travel the coastline sharing the gospel. At that, I took out a PWT. Charlie said he already had one and no thanks but Leonard was very happy to have one and asked if it were in French. I told him this one is English but I do have French. He said he would like that so on the way to pick up Loren, I gave him 3 French for him and each of his sons.
I finally found Loren on down 313 at the end of a road. We loaded and headed down the road back to camp. We ate pork chops, and mashed taters and good ole sweet tea.
Well Wed. started off a little hard for Kevin. He took his perscribed antibiotics on an empty stomach and 30min. later he was sick. We managed to get a granola bar down him while smelling rubbing alochol ( trick a great nurse I work with tought me). He stay horizontal for a few more minuets and then we went to eat. We had a great breakfast and Kevin was back to normal within the hour. We had seveal hours to wait before we could go to the train station, so we took a chance to walk around Montreal.
Walking around, we ran across the guys from India, or so I thought. They were from Tamil but had lived in Montreal for some time. The were protesting the treatment of the Tamil people in Sri Lanka. They said the government was treating them as terrorists and all of them were missing at least one family member. I shared that on a recent trip to India, a Tamil guy was our guide. After some more conversation, I offered them a New Testament. The leader of the protest gladly accepted the Testament and we said we would pray for their family members.
The train ride was great. Well maybe not great. The ride itself was great, the sleeping was a little on the challening side. The set up was two seats, table and two seats. Kevin and Kobee sat on one side and John and Misty rode backwords facing them. We ate left over pizza from lunch for super. John was so excited he was hard to contain.
Kobee presented Yves, our car attendant, a Bible. He was very appreciative but quite busy so he didn’t have time for much talk. Kobee did a great job getting the Word out though.
At the camp ground called Vague Leonard met us. He said they were not open yet but graciously received us. He was so helpful to get us aquainted with the campground and give us suggestions to fight the mosquitos. He brought us firewood and mosquito repelant.
I met Charlie Smith, a neighbor to the campground. Charlie, Leonard and I had a good conversation and I explained how we were going to travel the coastline sharing the gospel. At that, I took out a PWT. Charlie said he already had one and no thanks but Leonard was very happy to have one and asked if it were in French. I told him this one is English but I do have French. He said he would like that so on the way to pick up Loren, I gave him 3 French for him and each of his sons.
I finally found Loren on down 313 at the end of a road. We loaded and headed down the road back to camp. We ate pork chops, and mashed taters and good ole sweet tea.
Tuesday, June 23, 2009
Day one in the air to get there
The Lord began by answering 3 prayers quickly. Our prayers were to arrive safely in Atlanta on time and make our Montreal connection. Done. Secondly, we prayed for safe travel into Canada and to receive our luggage. Done. And most importantly, regardless of what happened with the first two requests for our convenience, was to have the opportunities to share the gospel with someone.
Kevin sat next to the President of Canada NAPA, the auto parts store, on the flight from Atlanta to Montreal. Seeds were planted. The pwt was not received after two offers but we did our part.
We are at our Hotwire deal hotel, the Hyatt in downtown Montreal. We went out for a bit of supper. Afterwards, we took a stroll around the fountain and dropped our feet in the cool water. The walk around the block from the hotel was rather, shall we say, informational for the boys, especially if they spent time "window shopping".
I tried the head bobble on a group of Indians to try to start a conversation but they didn't bobble back. I'll try again tomorrow as we have most of the day to stroll the city blocks.
After some DQ ice cream we are chillin' in the room.
Kevin sat next to the President of Canada NAPA, the auto parts store, on the flight from Atlanta to Montreal. Seeds were planted. The pwt was not received after two offers but we did our part.
We are at our Hotwire deal hotel, the Hyatt in downtown Montreal. We went out for a bit of supper. Afterwards, we took a stroll around the fountain and dropped our feet in the cool water. The walk around the block from the hotel was rather, shall we say, informational for the boys, especially if they spent time "window shopping".
I tried the head bobble on a group of Indians to try to start a conversation but they didn't bobble back. I'll try again tomorrow as we have most of the day to stroll the city blocks.
After some DQ ice cream we are chillin' in the room.
Friday, June 12, 2009
Preparations
Hellooooo! We are packing. We have checked the weather and it is cold and rainy there. Loren and Nancy and kids have already headed up in their car. Pray for their safe journey and good hotels.
Many have asked us what it will be like, what we will be doing, and where will we be going.
Stand by for news...'cause we don't know.
It's exciting to just GO!
Many have asked us what it will be like, what we will be doing, and where will we be going.
Stand by for news...'cause we don't know.
It's exciting to just GO!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)