Count your blessings, name them one by one;
Count your blessings, see what God hath done . . .
Blessings are easier to discover when we intentionally seek them out, and I am grateful to the Wentzel family for reminding me of this truth through their article (p. 21).
And where better to practice searching for blessings than among the stories our missionaries have shared with us this month?
Are you ever burdened with a load of care?
Praise be to God for providing wisdom to Kerigma David (p. 25) and the Solis family (p. 7) as they study the language and culture of Japan, discovering insights they can connect to Bible truths and stories to later share with the unreached as God works His plan and orchestrates meetings in His divine and perfect timing (Song, p. 24, Mamoulelis, p. 34, and Ivisan, p. 36).
And it will surprise you what the Lord hath done.
And while God gives wisdom, He also provides His strength to accomplish project goals, such as He did on the Pnong project, where the Christiansen Adventist School was handed over to the local Cambodian Adventist Mission after growing it into a beloved institution within the community (Theunissen, p. 8).
So, amid the conflict, whether great or small . . .
Throughout the year, we have shared in the trials of missionaries and the unreached and grown with them in their understanding of God’s unfailing love and abundant goodness (Jara, p. 22). We have witnessed His protection from a multitude of dangers and illnesses (Brizendine, p.18), and His deliverance from demonic oppression. And we praise God for the comfort of knowing that Jesus walks alongside us and carries us when necessary (Babienco, p. 12).
Your reward in heaven, nor your home on high.
Of course, we must not overlook the blessing of participating with God in His work, which He invites us into not only to bless others but also to refine us and increase our joy as we pray for the unreached and our missionaries and give so they may go (Treasures article, p. 4).
What other blessings will you mine out of the field of stories in this month’s issue?
