This week we were told that the quarantine would continue for another 25 days, then there was a big governmental meeting and now it is reduced to 15 more days.  Why is this important you might ask?  Every day we are not out there in the public sharing the Gospel of Jesus Christ is a huge loss to the kingdom.  Every time we are not allowed to meet together in churches, we are obeying man’s law but disobeying God’s.  He told us in Hebrews 10:19-25  Having therefore, brethren boldness to enter the holiest by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way, which He hath consecrated for us, through the veil, that is to say, His flesh; and having a high priest over the house of God; Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water.  Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; (for He is faithful that promised); And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works:  NOT FORSAKING THE ASSEMBLING OF OURSELVES TOGETHER AS THE MANNER OF SOME IS; BUT EXHORTING ONE ANOTHER: AND SO MUCH THE MORE AS YOU SEE THE DAY APPROACHING.

I know times are scary, the virus, the economic shutdowns, the isolation.  We are a people of faith.  We cannot stay behind closed doors forever, if we do, we allow nefarious entities to take over complete control of every movement of our lives.  Through the centuries there have been plagues of illnesses during times, when there were few physicians, and even fewer medications.  The world did not come to a stop and the whole world did not die.  But if we give up our basic freedoms out of fear, we become slaves to those who may have more nefarious plans.  The Bible says it is appointed unto to man to die once.  The Bible says God wrote down the number of our days in HIS BOOK.  I refuse to walk in fear.

So why did I write all the above, I have a call of God as does EVERY CHRISTIAN, to “Go into all the world and preach the Gospel, baptizing them in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to obey WHATSOEVER I HAVE COMMANDED you!”  Then comes HIS PROMISE:  “Lo I AM WITH YOU ALWAY.”  I believe there is no “s” on the world ALWAY because God is saying “I AM WITH YOU ALL THE WAY!”  EVEN UNTO THE END OF THE AGE!

Now for what is going on with us here in the Dominican.  Millions are not able to work because of the quarantine.  Unless your job is considered essential, families have no income.  That means families are going hungry, can’t pay their rent or electric bill or buy groceries.  Every day we get calls from Pastor’s brokenhearted because members of their flocks are hungry.  Almost everyday we get requests “can you help us to get some food?”.  Yes, and we are though right now because of the need the cost of rice and beans which are staples here are going up.  Tim and Trena missionaries here at La Casa Grande Centro De Misiones Internacional and Wayne and I have been purchasing large quantities of ten pound bags of rice and beans, tomato sauce, etc.  Today we sent food up to the mountain to be delivered and are providing a surprise for the young men at a rehabilitation center.  We have purchased complete chicken dinners with cookies and soft drinks for them.  They have had nothing but rice and beans, etc. for a long time and we just wanted them to know they are not forgotten by us or God and are loved very much.  We have provided this for them out of our own pockets as also all the food purchased above.  Many of these men have been led to the Lord this year and they are working hard to beat these addictions and get back to their families to take care of them and to share the Good News of Jesus Christ with their families.

As many of you know we also build chapels here, and that has been put on hold for weeks, but we made the decision to start building the trusses for the two churches that we will be working on next.  We are still assisting with the huge addition on the church that feeds and teaches 200 plus children in a very destitute area of the city.  The Pastor’s own home had a roof that was falling in and the inside would be flooded every time it rained.  Praise God we got them a new roof finished just before all this started.  The new church we built up on the very remote mountain is completed and thriving.  We have recently gotten two more requests for chapels and are working on repairing another roof of a saintly elderly woman that took good care of us when were were building the chapel next door to her.  Every time it rains she has about a foot of water to slosh through in her home.

The Pandemic has stopped our being able to go into the cancer hospital to pray and share the Gospel, and other hospitals.  But I have to tell you that each week we were leading a lot of people to the Lord and praying for healing. The scripture says that we are to pray for the sick and they will recover.  I personally have been miraculously healed three times.  But during one visit at the hospital a patient and her family were sobbing because the orderlies would be there any minute to take her to surgery to remove her leg from the knee down.  She had severe diabetes and that morning the doctors said her leg no longer had any circulation, it had turned blackish and was cold, no visible pulses.  God moved upon me to ask if I could lay hands on her leg and pray for her to be healed.  She agreed.  I pulled back the covers and put my hands on her cold blackened leg and began to lovingly caress the leg up and down gently and prayed for the Lord in His mercy to speak life back into her leg and heal it.  While I was praying and just as I finished I realized the orderlies and nurses were there to take her to surgery to remove the leg.  But there was a strong presence of God in the room that everyone could feel.  I couldn’t explain it but I knew I had felt warmth come back into her leg just as I finished praying.  The next day, I received a phone call from a member of her church who had been with me at the hospital.  When they wheeled her into surgery, removed the wrap, there was a totally normal warm leg with pulses and no blackness, just normal flesh!  The Surgeon and staff were flabbergasted but they wheeled her back to her room.  She is home to this day with a healed leg!  Can I explain this.  NO, am I special because I prayed? NO!  But I know who is Special and who has the power to SAVE and TO HEAL!  JESUS CHRIST MY LORD!

Please join with us in praying for these curfews to be lifted for people to stop living in fear and get back to work and especially back to doing what God has called us to do.  Please pray that we are able to continue to purchase much needed food supplies for the hungry.  Pray that we can get back to our ministry to the Blind, building chapels, planting churches, preaching the Gospel and leading multitudes to Christ.  Please pray that we can get back into the prisons, jails, hospitals, schools, parks and churches.  Please pray that God will open the doors for us here at La Casa Grande Ministries so that teams can come back into the Country and we can continue to teach them evangelism and lead multitudes to Christ.  The teams coming here are a major part of the support of the ministry here and what we are able to do in many areas.  There is much work to be done.  Time is running out.  The mandate from Christ has not changed “GO YE” and Go we SHALL!