Rogers Update 9/1/2025
September 2, 2025
Dear Friends,
Sitting in the office of one of the top neurosurgeons in Tennessee, I listened as I was informed that there were no surgical possibilities for my condition of an aging spine. If they repaired one area, another would go bad. It was similar to replacing a leaking water hose on a car engine. The new hose would trigger weaknesses in the other hoses, and they would start to leak. Unless I could replace the whole spinal column with a completely new one, surgery would only complicate my situation and cause more damage to occur. I told the person sitting across from me that I did have a new spine on order and that Jesus was personally delivering it someday. (Just for the record, the diagnosis fit my medical history very accurately. I have had five spinal surgeries in my life, and after each one, something else has gone wrong in my spinal column.)
The Lord continues to teach me new things as well as old things in new ways. I have found in my own life that prayer tends to be about helping God understand what needs to be done. Of course, when you think about it, helping God to better understand anything is kind of a humorous concept. Prayer does not make God change! He doesn’t need to change. That brings me to a biblical truth I have known since grade school. Somehow, it keeps getting buried in life’s complications, but here it is:
You don’t have to convince God to be good or do good! God is good and always does good!
There, I said it… Wow! That changes a person’s prayer life! Prayer isn’t about changing God; it is about God changing me! My prayer now is “God, help me trust that you really do know what you are doing and help me see the events of life as you see them.” As I sat in the surgeon’s office and listened to words that were not encouraging from a human perspective, I became very aware that God was with me. It was as if God was saying, “Calm down, take a breath, relax, and trust me!”
Since surgery is no longer an option, I am now receiving treatments involving spinal injections. A year ago, the medical people tried steroid injections into my spine. Those injections didn’t help much at all. The new injections I am now receiving are nerve blockers, and they do seem to help. I just had a second round in a new area of the spine last week. These injections do not heal the body, but having pain relief does have merit! I remember an old saying I have heard through the years… “This is going to feel so good when it stops hurting!” I am receiving injections in two areas. The area directly behind the heart has been the main location for pain, but a new area of pain has developed near the base of the skull. The disadvantage of pain relief without healing is the possibility of damaging an area even more because you no longer have the pain to warn you.
When the Lord leads to other doctors and new locations, it opens fresh opportunities to share Christ with the people who are there. Last week, I started a conversation with the lady receptionist at the injection clinic. This was my first visit to this new location. I was praying, asking God to give an opening to talk about spiritual things. We chatted for a few minutes, and the discussion moved to how vulnerable the human body was when she stated, “I don’t have any concerns because I know where I’m going when I die!” It turns out she was a believer and was trying to find a way to witness to me! What an encouragement that was! I felt like she was cheering me on when I started talking with the nurse!
This month, I have been involved in more than the usual counseling opportunities. Most of these are done by phone. Pray for wisdom! Human beings live very complicated lives that only our Lord can sort out! Continue to pray for the book, The Daystar Conspiracy , that God will use it for His glory. I have given many of my neighbors at our apartment complex a copy of the book, and I am having some very interesting conversations!
Also, Beabea and I have had two good conversations (in our apartments’ parking lot) with a man who lives a couple of buildings over. The gentleman is friendly, but wary of Christians because of the way his father was treated. Our relationship with him is becoming very positive, and we have talked about spiritual things in a limited way. I have not given a book to him yet. Perhaps I will in the future, but one step at a time.
Thank you for your prayers! We have lost some support this year because I am not on the road due to health issues. Also, churches are going through some challenging times that affect their ability to support missionaries. God is not overwhelmed or confused in all of this, and He has provided for us in so many ways. He has met every need and gone beyond.
Just a reminder… We are still receiving mail at our daughter’s place. (We used her address when we first moved to Tennessee.) There is no problem getting our mail from her, but here is our actual address:
John & Beabea Rogers
235 Carta Road, APT L1
Knoxville, TN 37914
Our mission address is: (New address! Same mission!)
Barnabas Enrichment Ministries
P.O. Box 4
Goshen, IN 46527-0004
Curious about what God has ahead… Confident it will be good!
Your fellow servant,
John (and of course, my superhero, Beabea)
jtrbem@gmail.com
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