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Early one morning fire broke out in a house on a dark street. A policeman on duty sounded the alarm. Before the fire engines could get to the scene, however, flames were leaping high into the air. Suddenly a young man appeared at an upper window
in his pajamas. Firemen quickly placed a ladder against the burning building. But to the consternation of all, the man refused to come down, shouting back that he had to get dressed first. The firemen pleaded, "Come as you are!" but to no avail. From below they tried to ascend the stairs, but were turned back as the wind fanned the flames into fury. When a rescuer tried to enter through a window, the heat and smoke forced him away. Suddenly the stairs gave way and the roof fell in. The man had waited too long and was buried beneath the ruins.
How much GREATER tragedy awaits ALL who refuse to "flee from the wrath to come." Our sins have placed US in a far more perilous situation - with JESUS as our ONLY " fire escape."
But many reject God's provision of salvation and safety in Christ because they want to get "dressed up" in the clothes of self-righteousness or religion (Matthew 7:21).
Others procrastinate thinking, "I have plenty of time to decide" (Acts 24:25). Some delay their response because of concern about what others might think (cp. John 12:42).
Many simply do not understand the reality and danger of their predicament (2 Thessalonians 1:7-9). Others reject rescue attempts because they are clinging to material things which will soon be consumed (Matthew 6:19-21). Still others refuse to listen and trust the very ones who are warning them of DANGER (Matthew 23:37). Their delay could cost them their SOULS!
God will not allow the world to continue along on its present course indefinitely!
"He has appointed a day on which He will judge the world in righteousness by the Man whom He has ordained. And He has given assurance of this to ALL by raising Him from the dead" (Acts 17:31).
The alarm has sounded: "The day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will melt with fervent heat; both the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up (2 Peter 3:10).
But, Christ has come to the rescue! Delaying your response could have tragic consequences! Don’t delay! Come as you are! Come as you are, placing your trust in God (Hebrews 11:6), repenting of your sin (2 Corinthians 7:9-10), confessing Jesus (Romans 10:9-10), being baptized (immersed) for the forgiveness of your sins (Acts 2:38), AND committing the rest of your life to following Him (Colossians 2:6).
Please, just come as you are!
D.A. Sargeant
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GHANA CAMPAIGN 2004
This morning we will be dividing our group up and worshiping with three of the congregations in the Bunkpurugu area. If the work was successful, Ted will be worshipping with a new congregation of the Lord’s church in Gbatimong. The people in this area speak the language Bimoba. So all the services will be done with translation. Brothers Niipaak and Samson Laar will be helping us with the translation. Samson had a stroke last fall and we are very thankful that he is nw able to travel and continue his work in preaching the gospel and building up congregations in this area. After services the group will meet back at Bunkpurugu and have lunch and rest up a little bit.
Around 5:30 pm they will all drive back to Gbatimong. At 7:00 pm they will begin showing the Bimoba version of the film Jesus. This film tells the story of Jesus based following the Gospel of Luke. (This is the same film that we watched on Wednesday evening, only narrated in Bimoba.) The film runs around 2 hours. After the film we will have an hour of public preaching. If all goes well we should be back in Bunkpurugu around 11:30 pm.
On Monday we will be conducting a mobile clinic at Gbingbani from 8:00 am to 1:00 pm. The chief medical officer of Bunkpurugu along with one or two of his staff nurses will be assisting us with the clinics. We will be assisting them in conducting the clinics and acting as sponsors for the clinics—providing all the funding, transportation and medicines. Usually between 150-200 people are treated per day. Most of these are mothers and children. Many of the people cannot afford to travel to government clinics and cannot afford the medications that are prescribed so often they just stay home. These clinics provide them to receive the medical care that they need. This being the rainy season most of the cases that we will be treating are malaria, pneumonia, flu, etc. Cases that cannot be treated locally will be referred to the government hospital in Yendi.
On Tuesday the group will begin their long journey from Bunkpurugu to Tema. After leaving Bunkpurugu they will pass through Saboda. There is a church there and brother Niipaak Laar will be moving his family there later this year. From there we will be driving through Tamale and then will head west about 2 hours and spend a day in the Mole National Park. The following day we will drive back to the main road and continue south through Kumasi and on to Tema.
On Friday we will spend the day in Accra. That evening Patrick Ford will depart and begin his flight home. The rest of the group will be attending a prayer meeting in Tema.
On Saturday the group will be visiting the fort at Elmina.
PRAYER FOR THE WORK
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