Rogers Update 7/28/2015
July 29, 2015
Dear Friends,
This year has been a year of travel across the North American Continent. I have traveled thousands of miles by vehicle and airplane. It has been an exciting year of ministry with some unexpected challenges. Here are some edited versions of updates we have sent out:
November 13th:...When I was Pre-Field Director at EBM, the administrators were asked to read a short little book titled, Who Moved the Cheese?...it was the story of some mice who became very upset when the cheese was not where it had always been. This childlike allegory had a very important message: How does one handle the situation when what you thought was a settled plan or pattern does not happen?... Sometimes God “moves the cheese” and sometimes the world does, but God is the anchor we cling to when our earthly securities cannot be found… My most recent misplacement of “the cheese” was our trip to Alaska. Through a series of circumstances our trip was moved to February of 2015. This all took place within just a couple of days. Did we experience disappointment? Yes, I have to admit that we did… Was it a good thing? Absolutely! It allowed us to help others in several counseling situations in ways we would not have been able to do had we gone. …I had a great trip east earlier this fall. I spoke in churches in Maryland and New York state… The trip to the northeast was …very special… My only regret is Beabea wasn’t able to be with me on the trip. While I was Maryland one of the pastors and his family took me to Antietam and Gettysburg battlefields… Standing on those Civil War battlefields is a good reminder that the choices of men lead to disaster. It was also a reminder that serving the Lord is a serious war with even more far reaching consequences. …Our schedule is full starting the first of the year… Continue to pray for us as we continue to counsel and encourage fellow believers in missionary and ministry service, and that we will continue to have opportunity to share Christ with those that do not know Him. Pray for our spiritual lives that we will stay close to God. Pray for our support and finances as we watch God provide in unexpected and amazing ways…
January 5th:…New Year, new opportunities: I fly out for Kansas on Friday, January 9th, for about a month to help in the ministry of…Calvary Baptist of Valley Falls…where I grew up and spent time as a teenager. In early February Beabea and I will be in a conference at McGrath Road Baptist of Fairbanks… It will be great to see so many precious friends again. The last of February and early March I will be in churches in Florida. The whole state of Florida is filled with close friends who have been such an encouragement to us and our ministry… Beabea will not be with me during the Kansas & Florida trips. She continues to work as an elderly caregiver to supplement our support. I appreciate her willing heart, but I do look forward to the day we will make most of our trips together…Finally, we had a great Christmas watching all our grandkids open presents. What a thrill to listen to Laurie (the oldest – age 5) talk about God and spiritual things with a sincere heart. Children are the “new” of the future. What a privilege to be a part of their lives!
March 31st:…From early January I was in Valley Falls, Kansas for four Sundays and ministering to the Calvary Baptist’s people. They are precious believers that were always finding ways to be a support to me in my serving of them. (The temperature in Kansas ranged from about 10 degrees Fahrenheit to low 60’s.)… The first part of February, Beabea and I flew to Alaska to speak in a Bible conference at McGrath Road Baptist Church in Fairbanks. I spoke seven times and Beabea taught the children while I was speaking. We enjoyed our time together visiting with dear friends and meeting new ones. On the last Sunday we were there, the Moose family visited in the church parking lot. Mama Moose and her two children were going for a morning walk, but they decided not to visit the services inside the building. (Oh, by the way, when we arrived in Fairbanks, the temperature was 40 below zero.) …The latter part of February I traveled to Florida speaking in several churches… When I first arrived I was involved in an exciting mission conference at New Hope Baptist Church in Parrish. I had the opportunity to meet new friends as well as seeing others that have prayed for us for years. I do remember seeing lizards running about the church’s parking lot. They were not as large as the moose. I also had the chance to return to Maranatha Baptist Church in Sebring, Florida. We know many people at Maranatha, and it is always a joy to spend time with them. Finally, I spoke at Shepherd Road Baptist in Mulberry, Florida. Shepherd Road is our commissioning church, and it was special to get to spend time with the pastor and his family as well as interacting with some friends from a long time back. (When I left Florida, it was 80 degrees.) …Since arriving back in Indiana in March, I have been spending long hours on the computer seeking to be caught up on correspondence and doing projects around the house that were unattended to while I was gone… The next couple of months, I will be serving churches in Indiana. This summer I will be in Wisconsin, and this fall in Arizona and Utah. Please continue to pray for me as I travel and for Beabea as she will probably not be with me on these trips…Please be in prayer for me as I have some medical tests coming up in April. I have had several symptoms including increase pain in my pancreas….
June 14th:…Well, I have been passing through a series of experiences I don’t understand. For the past several months I have had increased pain and internal bleeding. Not too much fun to talk about. The doctor’s have been taking me through a series of tests that involved the month of April, May, & June… The conclusion from the tests is I have chronic pancreatitis. (Nothing new about that.)… Why does one pass through such things? There are no simple answers from a human perspective. I am sure God has multiple purposes in what He is doing. I will share one area that He clearly used. I arrived at the hospital to do a MRI of my pancreas. As I am talking with the technician, he asks what I do for a living. I shared some things with him including my involvement with conflict resolution. That caught his attention, and he kept asking questions… it became clear he was a believer. All through the MRI as I lay in this tube that was designed to cause claustrophobia to anyone inside it, he kept asking me questions through the speakers about dealing with conflict... When I was done, I was escorted by him back to the changing room. He asked more questions. I closed the door and began changing when I heard him in a discussion outside the room with his assistant. Apparently there had been a conflict situation that had formed between them, and he was now using the principles we had talked about to try to resolve it… Also, during all this testing, I had the privilege of being in a special church in northern Indiana while their pastor was away on a long deserved vacation… The people were so gracious to me. It was such a privilege to spend time with them. The Lord has really blessed me this year. Every place I have ministered, the people have made me feel loved. One of the great joys of heaven will be fellowshipping with the many brothers and sisters in Christ I have met on earth.
Now for another one of those items I don’t understand. About a month ago I had a call from the pastor of my largest supporting church. The church was in a period of decreased income and…they were going to have to drop our support. I know this church, and they would never have done this if they had any other choice…I don’t understand the plan of God that includes losing $365 a month in support; but what has been amazing is the Lord continues to provide through gifts and even some new support coming in. Our current support level is now at 39% after all the changes.
The book of Habakkuk finishes with the conclusions that God is sovereign and trustworthy. How discouraging it would be if God was trustworthy but had no power to keep His promises or defend His people. Even more so, how terrifying it would be if God was all powerful but not trustworthy. Habakkuk ends with the prophet stating, “Although the fig tree shall not blossom, neither shall fruit be in the vines; the labor of the olive shall fail, and the fields shall yield no meat; the flock shall be cut off from the fold, and there shall be no herd in the stalls: Yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will joy in the God of my salvation.” (Habakkuk 3:17-18). This is the equivalent of saying today, “Although there is no money in the bank, no gas in the car, and no food in the fridge – yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will joy in the God of my salvation.”
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So how am I doing health wise? The pain in my abdomen is much lower now, and the internal bleeding I was experiencing has stopped altogether for now. I had about 8 extensive tests (thousands of dollars) trying to identify what is happening. What they have discovered is lesions on the pancreas and the adrenal gland. There are some concerns involving the liver. At this point there is no cancer to be found, but they have made it clear that I will need to be tested in several key areas next year. They are not certain why the pain has let up, and the bleeding stopped. I told them I had a lot of people praying for me. One doctor smiled and said that might well be the answer.
Because God is still on the throne! (Habakkuk 2:20)
John
John (and Beabea) Rogers
7265 West 320 SouthRussiaville, IN 46979Home: (765) 889-3264Cell: (765) 753-0056
Commissioning Church: Shepherd Road Baptist Church, P.O. Box 1054, Mulberry, FL 33860
Barnabas Enrichment Ministries
P.O. Box 229
Elkhart, IN 46515-0229
(765) 667-2532
www.barnabasenrichmentministries.org
Please send all financial gifts to Barnabas Enrichment Ministries with a note designating the gift for the ministry of John & Beabea Rogers.
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