July 2024 Australia, UK
AUSTRALIA What a wonderful day it was this week in Perth WA when brother Mark was able to baptize his uncle DAVE, brother of his mum, sister Connie. Connie's 91 and Dave is 90. So. The Lord never gives up and we can always respond. Full marks to all who did their best to make this witness over the years and now to help Dave to the priceless hope of the Kingdom. All praise to the Father and our Lord Jesus yet once again. The video is really worth seeing
https://youtu.be/rvxcZz3x3_k Mark writes:
"The apostles had faith/trust in the Lord Jesus; faith/trust in his compassionate mercies toward weak resistant people like themselves; faith/trust that he will return again and by his grace, find a place for them in his kingdom. The apostles took their faith/trust in these matters and brought it to people without faith/trust in these matters, and some of the people that they spoke their faith to, responded; responded without any Biblical evidence; just the evidence of a man or womans testimony (Paul, Silas, Aquilla, Pricilla, whoever). Some responded immediately; some said, "We will think a little more on these things" and some responded not at all. Our new bro Dave was a "We will think a little more on these things which sister Connie has spoken", and by God's grace and patience and the gentle persistence of a sister, faith produced faith in Dave.
I have never seen Uncle Dave choked with a tear of relief? happiness? emotion of any sort, but after his baptism there was a brief moment when he was choked for words coupled with a tear. This was a big emotional roller-coaster for a hard-knuckled outback Ozzie bushie of 90 years of age. We rejoice with angels".
UK
Continuing the theme of 90-year-olds serving the Lord, brother Marcus at 91 is on YouTube sharing the Gospel at https://youtu.be/9ilNPW_X9XE
This week we were happy to get around the UK meeting various online followers of our Croydon Church in a Pub videos and broadcasts.
RICARDO is a nurse living in St. Ives, Cambridgeshire. He'd studied with the JWs and through much research and Bible reading had come to reject the bad and keep the good. What a lovely sincere man. He commented as do many that churches want you to accept their entire package of thought and culture, rather than just accept a person as they are if you only agree with some of their ways. Any intelligent person like him who wants a Bible based faith will not be able to agree with all the package of demands and traditions placed upon people by most standard churches in the UK. And so there are a growing number of out of church Christians who seriously want to come to the Lord in spirit and truth. The challenge is to help such folk find at least some form of fellowship after baptism. Our Zoom breaking of bread meetings on Saturdays at 9 AM UK time are steadily growing in number of attendees [all are welcome-
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/6697401754?pwd=K0VWNDlScGwzaThPM2tiU0didmNyUT09
Meeting ID: 669 740 1754 Passcode: XPb9Sz.].
But we are open to other suggestions of how to provide ongoing fellowship. Ricardo was baptized in the Great Ouse River on a beautiful Summer's Day just outside the quaint town of St. Ives, despite the river being so muddy.
Video at https://youtu.be/roSvTr_aVkw
And then was JOSEPH in Winchester. A chef who had turned to God and the Lord Jesus very seriously, with a very sensitive conscience, but didn't find his home in any standard church. He was so eager to do the right thing before God. He lives walking distance from one of the most ecologically clean river areas in the UK, and it was his desire to be baptized there. The place was idyllic, making us think this was what the Garden of Eden would've looked like. Which was all well and good, but we rather ignored the many warning signs "Deep silt keep out of water... DANGER DEEP SILT". Our first attempt went wrong with Joseph sinking into the silt up to his waist. Extricated from that, we found a more solid place. And what joy there was for us all on earth and the Angels in Heaven. You can hear Joseph's very sincere prayer in the
video at https://youtu.be/HaWahBYeF5U
UKRAINE and ISRAEL both require our continued prayers, as the fighting in northern Israel and northeastern Ukraine steadily encroaches upon our brethren there. We continue supporting as far as we can when needs arise.
PRAYER POINTS
- For those recently baptized
- For elderly people who wonder whether they can be baptized
- For all those disillusioned by church politics, that they focus upon the Lord Jesus
- For our brethren in war zones in northern Israel and northeastern Ukraine
With love from your brothers and sisters of Carelinks