Going Through Purgatory

Don’t panic! It wasn’t that bad. Actually, it was quite good – just very busy!

This past weekend was full of blessings, actually. On Saturday morning, the women of the Las Palmas church had their first regular Bible study. (Lots of clarification there, of course – there have been regular Bible studies for adults, and lots of women’s activities, but I don’t think we’ve had a regular women’s study until now.)

As you might have guessed, I (Jim) was not there. However, from the reports I heard it was a great time. A great turn out, everyone sharing… very cool. And, on Sunday, more women showing interest (e.g. purchasing the Bible study book they’re using).

Sunday evening was the first men’s study. And as seems to be a common trend in the world, fewer numbers! But actually we had fewer men in the first place, and one got called into work, another got sick… so we had a small study. But it was a fun one – that’s where we went through purgatory.

One of the men had been talking to some people in the week and had received a paper about how biblical purgatory is. So we took some time to look at some of the Bible passages. (Spoiler – purgatory actually is not biblical. So although we went through the topic of purgatory, no one will actually go through purgatory!) And, as is often the case, God surprised us with a lot of truths that had a very person application for us.

On Sunday morning we were counting the chairs and wondering if we should buy some more. Yes, we were full up – men, women, teens and children. Some of our regular people were away, but there were also lots of visitors. So we were taking time in our service to explain how we do things, and to make sure people had access to information about our church. And sharing songbooks, because we didn’t have enough.

I always have extra respect for people who visit – it’s a brave thing to visit a church for the first time. Especially around here – sadly, we hear horror stories about people who visit churches and have a very bad experience (many of these would not be biblical churches at all – a reality in this area). So I hope we made everyone feel welcome.

I don’t think it’s a coincidence that many of you have been contacting us lately, telling us that you’re praying, asking what you can pray for. We even recently enjoyed a couple of special prayer times with coworkers via video chat. And if you’re part of our Support Team, you’ll be getting a newsletter in the next week or two (Lord willing) with news and prayer requests.

It did feel like a battle going into the weekend (and coming out of it!) for various reasons. But sometimes opposition reminds us that God is working in a special way.

So thanks for your prayers! Do continue to pray for the many new people we’ve been coming in contact with, especially those who do not yet know the Lord.