We were so blessed to have Babji and Rebecca Vejendla with us on Sunday morning. We so much enjoyed getting to know them and hearing about the burden the Lord has given them for the people of India. (And Sis. Rebecca, we thoroughly enjoyed your lovely song as well.)

The Vejendlas will be leaving for a two-week trip to India on February 9 and then will return to the States for a little over a year to raise support and make preparations to move there in April 2013. Once they move to India, they hope to plant a church and establish a Christian school in Andhra Pradesh, a village where Babji’s grandmother lives. Please be in prayer for them as they travel and as they minister to all they come into contact with.

One refreshing trait I recognized in the Vejendlas is that they realize that everyone who comes into their path is placed there by God. They make the most of every opportunity and seek to build relationships with people to gain their trust to share the Gospel with them.

Bro. Babji challenged us by reading Matthew 28:18-20…

And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

He encouraged us to be ready to reach, preach, and teach. “Build friendships and let others see Christ in you,” he said. “Keep on planting seeds and the Holy Spirit will take care of it.”

In short, be burdened with the Gospel and share!

Babji and Rebecca after sharing the Gospel with our friends from Nepal

Thank you for visiting us, Vejendlas! You encouraged and challenged us in the faith. You are in our prayers and we hope to see you again very soon!

The Vejendlas with The Wainrights

“My desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better. But to remain in the flesh is more necessary on your account. Convinced of this, I know that I will remain and continue with you all, for your progress and joy in the faith.” -Philippians 1:23-25

“If you live gladly to make others glad in God, your life will be hard, your risks will be high, and your joy will be full.” -John Piper via Desiring God’s Twitter

“Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ.” -Philippians 3:8

I pray that we will be a people who refuse to gorge our spiritual stomachs on the entertaining pleasures of this world, because we have chosen to find our satisfaction in the eternal treasure of His Word. -David Platt in Radical

He will keep the feet of His saints. -1 Samuel 2:9

The way is slippery and our feet are feeble, but the Lord will keep our feet. If we give ourselves up by obedient faith to be His holy ones, He will Himself be our guardian. Not only will He charge His angels to keep us, but He Himself will preserve our goings.

He will keep our feet from falling so that we do not defile our garments, wound our souls, and cause the enemy to blaspheme.

He will keep our feet from wandering so that we do not go into paths of error, or ways of folly, or courses of the world’s custom.

He will keep our feet from swelling through weariness, or blistering because of the roughness and length of the way.

He will keep our feet from wounding: our shoes shall be iron and brass so that even though we tread on the edge of the sword, or on deadly serpents, we shall not bleed or be poisoned.

He will also pluck our feet out of the net. We shall not be entangled by the deceit of our malicious and crafty foes.

With such a promise as this, let us run without weariness and walk without fear. He who keeps our feet will do it effectually.

[from Faith's Checkbook by Charles H. Spurgeon]

Luke 3:1-4 | Sunday Morning | Pastor Steve Wainright | AUDIO

The voice of John the Baptist was crying out in the wilderness…a message of forgiveness. To understand your need for forgiveness, you must see how sinful you are.

God is willing to forgive, but repentance is a requirement. Repentance is not a work that you do to receive salvation. It is not a work of the flesh. It is a work of the Spirit.

Repentance and faith always go hand-in-hand. They’re inseparable graces. Repent = turn from old sin/Faith = turn to God [1 Thessalonians 1:9; Acts 5:31] It is God who gives repentance. The Spirit works in us to give us. [2 Timothy 2:24-25]

You can be sorry and stop doing certain things, but it is fleeting if it is in the flesh. But with godly sorrow, our hearts our turned towards God and you don’t want to sin. You have a zeal for the glory of God and a zeal to hate the things He hates. [2 Corinthians 7:9-11]

“For our sake He made Him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God.” -2 Corinthians 5:21

One reason we give up in our efforts to obey is because we obsess more over our performance for Jesus than we do Jesus’ performance for us. -Tullian Tchividjian

“Giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ…” -Ephesians 5:20

Gratitude ought to be, and I believe it is, in the heart the most powerful force in human motive. – C.H. Spurgeon

And He said, “Certainly I will be with thee.” -Exodus 3:12

Of course, if the Lord sent Moses on an errand, He would not let him go alone. The tremendous risk which it would involve and the great power it would require would render it ridiculous for God to send a poor lone Hebrew to confront the mightiest king in all the world and then leave him to himself. It could not be imagined that a wise God would match poor Moses with Pharaoh and the enormous forces of Egypt. Hence He says, “Certainly I will be with thee,” as if it were out of the question that He would send him alone.

In my case, also, the same rule will hold good. If I go upon the Lord’s errand with a simple reliance upon His power and a single eye to His glory, it is certain that He will be with me. His sending me binds Him to back me up. Is not this enough? What more can I want? If all the angels and arch- angels were with me. I might fail; but if He is with me, I must succeed. Only let me take care that I act worthily toward this promise. Let me not go timidly, halfheartedly, carelessly, presumptuously. What manner of person ought he to be who has God with him! In such company it behoveth me to play the man and, like Moses, go in unto Pharaoh without fear.

[from Faith's Checkbook by Charles H. Spurgeon]