A Monk's Request

Dear Friends of the Midwestern Monk,

Would you please uplift my family in prayer right now? We are sensing a strong attack from the enemy after an incredible two weeks of internship training and talking to our most interested recruits.

I have felt a strong oppression over me the last three nights as I have gone to sleep. Last night when I did finally go to sleep, I heard a voice in a dream telling me that I didn’t need to recruit people to go (undisclosed African country) because these people don’t matter to God. As you can imagine, when I awoke I felt all the more drive to get up and pray about our upcoming work in that region. In addition to this unrest, Lindsay and I have both seen how the evil one is trying to bring disunity into our office and marriage. However, God has used these challenges to bring our team and family even closer together. I really feel that we are of one heart and mind.

On top of the emotional attacks, our car and air conditioning in our home just broke down.

I don’t know how you view spiritual warfare but I fully believe the enemy is trying to discourage, blind and confuse us as we minister to recruits who are praying about going into missions. God used this last week to bring us 3 applications to become missionaries and 3 requests for applications for internships in 2008. God is doing some amazing work and for some reason, He continues to work through our family.

If you are willing please pray:
1) for the recruits who just made decisions to trust God with their future. I don’t want to lose a single one of them.
2) pray for all the recruits who feel conflicted about taking that next step into missionary service.
3) pray for our interns in Papua New Guinea that they will be united in Christ and overcome the culture stress.
4) pray that our family will continue to be used by God to bless the nations.

Praises:
1) I am so jazzed about these new recruits. In this current application field is a gentleman who is going to help us with administration and grant writing, a literacy specialist who is interested in helping the various people groups in East Africa learn how to read, a Bible translator, a photographer, a writer and a young lady who is interested in doing language survey. Wow! Our God is good.
2) I have had the opportunity to come along so many people and offer prayers, petitions and pastoral advice.

Immediate Needs:
1) A teacher for a missionary family who is serving in Guinea
2) I.T. worker for International Service Center in Dallas

PLEASE KEEP PRAYING

Nathan