“Grace be unto you, and peace, from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ.” (I Corinthians 1:3)
We had an exciting start to the new year, with many of our people quoting verses they had memorized. Best of all was one young lady named Wanalee visiting our church. She attends school with one of our teenage church members. Wanalee asked after the morning service, “How can you know for sure you will go to Heaven?” So, we sat down and explained to her that Jesus Christ had made the only sacrifice that was needed to pay for all of her sins. He had paid for all of her sins—past, present, and future. She soon understood that it was Jesus’ blood and not her goodness that paid sin’s debt, and she put her faith in Jesus that morning. Praise the Lord! I hope to see this many times over this year!
Special Prayer Request
In January, my wife went to have a medical exam. When the test came back with reasons for concern, we followed up with a biopsy, which confirmed she had cancer. It was then concluded that surgery was necessary, and we began to meet with the surgeons. At last, the final surgeon told us that we could not have the surgery in Thailand because they did not have all the necessary equipment. She suggested that we go back to the U.S. for surgery. We made plans to return to the States and are now at the Cancer Treatment Centers of America in Newnan, Georgia, awaiting surgery. In Thailand, the scans and tests showed many swollen lymph nodes, and they were recommending that, along with the tumors, 10 to 12 lymph nodes minimum be removed in surgery. Now the tests here are showing that there are no swollen lymph nodes. Praise the Lord! We are trusting it all to the hands of our loving God.
One blessing thus far was on my flight over. God put me beside a man named Mohamed, and we began to converse. His mother, whom he loved deeply, had died from cancer, and my wife had cancer, so a mutual compassion was shared between us. I was able to share the Gospel with him extensively; and, in the end, he said, “That has to be true! I believe that.” He said, “Jesus could have called for help from His Father, and He would have sent angels to destroy those evil people causing Him such pain. I believe Jesus loved me; that’s why He didn’t call for help. I believe this is true; He died for my sins.” I said, “Salvation is at the door,” and I shared with him Romans 10:13. He said he had to ask some people to forgive him before he could call upon Jesus. I tried but could not persuade him otherwise. Please pray for Mohamed to be saved.
There is one small change concerning my sending church: it has a new name. The new name is Emmanuel Baptist Church. The address, phone number, and pastor have not changed; only the name has changed.
Thank you for all your faithful prayers and support!
Yours for His harvest,
Andrew Long
Romans 10:14
