Who is this?

For those who have ever spent a Christmas wondering about the identity of Jesus, or about your relationship to Him, but who now know—rejoice!

For those who rarely think about Jesus—make good use of the season to consider His claims!

For those who are still plagued by doubt—consider the individual statements and the overall impression that the Bible gives of Jesus.

The hymn is true:
Who is this so weak and helpless, child of lowly Hebrew maid,
Rudely in a stable sheltered, coldly in a manger laid?
‘Tis the Lord of all creation, who this wondrous path hath trod;
Christ our God from everlasting, and to everlasting God.
(William Walsham How)

Nate Saint's Christmas Letter

“As we weigh the future and seek the will of God, does it seem right that we should hazard our lives for just a few savages? As we ask ourselves this question, we realize that it is not the call of the needy thousands, rather it is the simple intimation of the prophetic Word that there shall be some from every tribe in His presence in the last day and in our hearts we feel that it is pleasing to Him that we should interest ourselves in making an opening into the Auca prison for Christ.

As we have a high old time this Christmas, may we who know Christ hear the cry of the damned as they hurtle headlong into the Christless night without ever a chance. May we be moved with compassion as our Lord was. May we shed tears of repentance for these we have failed to bring out of darkness. Beyond the smiling scenes of Bethlehem may we see the crushing agony of Golgotha. May God give us a new vision of His will concerning the lost and our responsibility.

Would that we could comprehend the lot of these stone-age people who live in mortal fear of ambush on the jungle trail . . . those to whom the bark of a gun means sudden, mysterious death . . . those who think all men in all the world are killers like themselves. If God would grant us the vision, the word sacrifice would disappear from our lips and thoughts; we would hate the things that seem now so dear to us; our lives would suddenly be too short, we would despise time-robbing distractions and charge the enemy with all our energies in the name of Christ. May God help us to judge ourselves by the eternities that separate the Aucas from a comprehension of Christmas and Him, who, though He was rich, yet for our sakes became poor so that we might, through His poverty, be made rich.”

(From Elisabeth Elliot, Through Gates of Splendor, 165-166)

“My testimony is that of a dishonorable man that God has saved and honored in every conceivable way. Every good thing that I’ve ever wanted to do, God has let me do; and every good thing I’ve ever wanted to have, God has let me have. That’s the way dads are to their children.”    — J.D. Crowley, missionary to Cambodia

Fall 2010 Report

Dear Friends,

Thank you for your prayers, your kind support in various ways, and your interest in our activities this fall. We are thankful for the Lord’s provision and leading—not only during these past several months but throughout the entire year. Pictures, highlights, and requests for prayer from 2010 are included below.

September: At the beginning of the month John Mark returned from Alaska, having visited multiple churches and individuals on the drive home. (Déborah and Elizabeth had returned by plane in August.) We then took part in meetings or conferences in GA, TN, and SC. JM preached twice in our church’s neighborhood Spanish service.

October and November: We are thankful for these months in our temporary home (Greenville, SC)—time which has given rest and renewed connection with both our home church and other local churches nearby. JM began work toward the Doctor of Ministry program at BJU Seminary to further prepare for our mission of assisting Uruguayan churches, particularly in the area of ministry training. (For information, along with an introduction to the Steels and the Espinels, please see:

http://www.emuinternational.org/emu_urug_theo_train.htm.)

On October 30 God blessed us with Daniel James Matías. We are grateful to God and stand in need of His grace. And little Daniel James stands in need of the gospel if he is to be inspired by his biblical tocayos: faithful Daniel (Dan. 6); James—unbelieving half-brother turned slave of the Lord (James 1:1); and Matías—ordained a witness of the resurrection (Acts 1:22). Daniel James left the hospital the day his cousin Jonatán Torres entered for another surgery in connection with his ongoing battle with osteosarcoma cancer. Please pray for God’s grace and glory.

We are hoping that by this time next year we will be making detailed plans for our move to Uruguay. Meanwhile we anticipate what promises to be a very full schedule of meetings and other opportunities for ministry and preparation in 2011. We look forward to the continued privilege of preaching, teaching, ministering musically, and—of course—communicating the needs and opportunities that lie before us in Uruguay. We learn much from this time of local church ministry, and we thank the Lord for putting us into His service in this way. Please pray that He would accomplish His good purposes among His people and that He would continue to prepare us for work in Uruguay. We do want God to use our fleeting lives and otherwise meager service to further His kingdom; but without His grace and strength we waste our time. We trust that the Lord is putting us into the churches of His choosing, but we cannot take that for granted. Please pray for God’s guidance in such planning. Travel plans this coming winter include Michigan and Ohio. Contact us if you would like a detailed itinerary.

Bible institute classes in Uruguay end as their summer begins; and preparations there are underway for the January and February camp season. Not only will many young people and families be exposed to God’s Word, but the camp ministry also provides training opportunities for Bible institute students and others. In March of 2011, Don and Pat Garwood plan to return to the States for a six-month furlough. Please pray that the Lord would provide for adequate oversight and continued progress of the work in Pando during their absence.

Friends, do pray. Without Him you and we can do nothing of eternal value. And apart from God’s forgiveness offered in the gospel, the nations die without hope of knowing and glorifying God. Consider taking a more active role in the cause that cannot fail—that of making disciples of Jesus Christ, both on our continent and beyond!

For the sake of that Name,

John Mark, Déborah, Elizabeth, and Daniel James Steel

2010 in Brief Review:

Our future co-workers, Matías and Kristine Espinel, spent a week with us in January. Please pray for them (and their Baby Boy, due in January 2011) as you pray for us.

We spent February in Uruguay—teaching at Camp Emmanuel, spending time with Deborah’s family and Maranatha Bible Church in Pando, and visiting EMU churches in the interior.

In April and May we made a significant transition to full-time ministry: preparation for Uruguay, travel, and meetings in a group of local churches that are helping to send us to Uruguay. We enjoyed conferences and services in Iowa, Colorado, and Utah.

We participated in Vacation Bible School in one church in Alaska where we presented our anticipated work in Uruguay. Pat Garwood’s parents helped to start this church in the 1950’s.

A pleased big sister with her 9 lb. 14 oz. bodyguard (At last! Non-blurry pictures of Sasquatch!)

The Torres family is in Uruguay until December 13. Please pray for God’s name to appear very big to those in Uruguay (and North America) as we watch Him work in this difficult situation. Jona’s situation affects many of those with whom we will serve in Uruguay.



Please do pray!

A couple of requests for prayer

As some of you know, our nephew Jonatán continues to fight cancer. (I will probably write more about this later.) He and his family will fly to Uruguay on Thanksgiving Day (this coming Thursday in the U.S.) for about two and a half weeks. Please pray for smooth travel, especially for Jona; for mutually encouraging time with family and friends; and for God’s effectual work in hearts as members of the church of Jesus Christ (and those without) hear their words and see their faith. Here is opportunity, potentially, with which we may never be entrusted even if God gives us years to work in Uruguay. Today we will visit the church in Greer where Jona’s dad is pastor.

A church in Calgary begins special gospel services today that will continue through Wedesday. “Pity the nations, O our God; constrain the earth to come!” Let’s pray for good news and work with them through prayer.

Another hymn worth singing . . .

One of the churches I visited this past Lord's Day sang this Thomas Kelly text.

Look, ye saints! the sight is glorious:
See the Man of Sorrows now;
From the fight returned victorious,
Every knee to Him shall bow;
Crown Him, crown Him,
Crowns become the Victor’s brow.

Crown the Savior! angels, crown Him;
Rich the trophies Jesus brings;
In the seat of power enthrone Him,
While the vault of heaven rings;
Crown Him, crown Him,
Crown the Savior King of kings.

Sinners in derision scorned Him,
Mocking thus the Savior’s claim;
Saints and angels crowd around Him,
Own His title, praise His name;
Crown Him, crown Him,
Spread abroad the Victor’s fame.

Hark, those bursts of acclamation!
Hark, those loud triumphant chords!
Jesus takes the highest station;
O what joy the sight affords!
Crown Him, crown Him,
King of kings and Lord of lords!


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From John Newton . . .

Thus, while his death my sin displays in all its blackest hue;
Such is the mystery of grace, it seals my pardon too.
With pleasing grief and mournful joy, My spirit now is filled:
That I should such a life destroy, Yet live by him I killed.

Daniel James Matías

We are very thankful for God’s blessing us with our baby boy on Saturday evening; and we praise Him for His grace and strength. We pray that our son will carry the gospel further than we ever will—for the sake of the name and fame of Jesus!

JDC at BJU

Yesterday J.D. Crowley (EMU missionary in Cambodia) preached the first of four messages during Missions Emphasis Week at Bob Jones University in Greenville, SC:

A Christian is someone who cannot bear the thought that there are places on earth where God is not famous. We make Him famous by talking about Him—not only by giving propositions but by recounting what He has done. The Story revealed in the Bible was unknown in northeastern Cambodia. It is unknown in much of the world. It is increasingly unknown in the United States. Propositions alone—apart from the contextual Story—are incomplete. “Hobbits are remarkable creatures”; “Friendship is important”; and “Sometimes you have to walk alone” have much more meaning within a much larger context.

An Offer

I believe that a man named Jesus was both a powerful prophet and the only Son of God. I believe that He was and is the rightful King—not only of the Jewish people but of every nation of the world. Both the Jews and the nations—and I myself, for I wanted no such king—nailed his living body to a wooden cross. We sinned against Him and against the Father when we did this; and we are responsible. But our doing so was by God’s design and was a fulfillment of the writings of God’s prophets. Jesus was offering His own innocent life and shedding His own blood to pay the penalty that my sin deserved and that God's holiness and law demand. He was purchasing a people for Himself, a people that God would graciously call “righteous” on the basis of their God-given faith—a people that God would relentlessly mold and change until they each would look like His own Son, who will thus be “firstborn” (preeminent) among them, His brethren. I believe that He is alive! Trustworthy witnesses saw both the empty tomb and the living Lord. And He has commissioned His people, the church, to make other disciples of Jesus—of all the nations.

If you are an unhappy sinner, come join us! (If you aren’t, then Jesus offers you no hope.) Deny yourself and come to Jesus—the only way to the Father, and the only valid Priest—and throw all your weight upon Him. He will forgive. He will give life!

For Sale

Though it may seem trivial, please pray for a successful yard sale (and good weather) this coming Saturday.

The timing is poor, as it coincides with a church work day to prepare the site for the beginning of a major building project. However, we are—frankly—out of time and out of space (in more ways than one). With a second baby due before the end of the month, an 802-square-foot house, an abundance of accumulated things, and plans to leave the country—we must continue to downsize. So if you live anywhere east of the Mississippi, please come and buy lots of stuff. (Since returning from Alaska, distances have lost all intimidation.) The house is not on the market (at least not yet); but for the right price, it might be. Just ask; maybe we can work something out.

An unrelated note: We have a new cell phone number. If you need to know it, let us know.

Templo Calvario

Templo Calvario (Calvary Temple) in Montevideo is celebrating its 50th anniversary. Services are being held on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday (October 8-10). A pastor from Spain, who came to Christ after hearing the gospel from a Uruguayan lady teaching children, will be speaking. Please pray for "the Word of the Lord to run and be glorified."

Southeast

Spent the first half of this week in a missions conference in Clayton; we’re thankful for the kind North Georgia hospitality shown to us there.

Early tomorrow we drive to Johnson City, Tennessee. I’ll teach S.S. in the morning; in the evening we’ll present our future ministry in Uruguay.

Next week, beginning Wednesday, we take part in another conference in Rock Hill, SC.

Thank you for your prayers for us!

Termination Dust: 5 of 5

Thoughts on Psalm 90 and September

Last month I again spent several days in Utah, an area where I lived part of my teenage years. I am now twice as old. Those years seem long ago; yet time has passed very quickly. As people “in Christ,” we have not experienced—and never will—God’s unbridled wrath. But perhaps you have become acutely aware of the brevity of life. Perhaps you have suffered in some way the excruciating effects of the Fall. Perhaps you have learned something of God’s dealings with sin and of the fleeting nature of life. And you want to respond with wisdom and with a fear of God.

How do we respond to the brevity of life? How do we respond with wisdom? Compare these two possibilities:

“Life is short. I need to get busy. I need to get up, to work harder, to study better, and to invest in my family. I need to give the gospel more faithfully. No more games! There is work to do.”

Or, “Return, O Yahweh! Be sorry for Your servants. Satisfy us with Your lovingkindness. Make us glad. Let Your work and Your majesty appear to Your servants. Let the favor of the Lord our God be upon us; and confirm for us the work of our hands.”

The first is not all bad. But the second mirrors what Moses prays in the remaining verses of this psalm. I would suggest that here we have a Holy-Spirit-inspired application and response to the brevity of life. Moses has just “numbered his days,” and they numbered 70 or 80 years (though, of course, God gave him a few more). What follows (and this is my attempt at a summary) is a humble appeal to God for grace (vv. 13-17). Or, in other words—words with which Moses began this psalm—it is a responding to life’s brevity by fleeing to the eternal God for refuge. The Christian servant may rest in the One who was here before the mountains were born. Hide in Him who, from everlasting to everlasting, is God. Pray to the Father in the name of Jesus with words like these:

“Have compassion. Make me glad! Show me Your glory! And establish. (That has the sound of permanence.) Establish—for I certainly cannot. Establish the works of my hands!”

This has implications for how we carry out the work of our Lord’s last commission to the church to make disciples. It is not merely a matter of working harder. It is not at all a matter of mustering our own strength for the task. It has everything to do with an appeal for God to show His own glory in working and in doing what we cannot do. Let’s work. Let’s work very hard! But only as we completely rely upon the grace of God.

Termination Dust: 4 of 5

Thoughts on Psalm 90 and September

Even as far south as the Carolinas, at least a hint of autumn color has appeared. Each September quickly follows last September, and I suppose that most people—whether or not they’ve ever read Psalm 90—would agree: “soon it is gone and we fly away.” The brevity of life is something that everyone eventually recognizes. Not only do people die, but they learn that this event comes very soon.

So why does Moses ask “Who understands the power of Your anger and Your fury,” implying that many don’t get it? The phrase appears to parallel his prayer that God “teach us to number our days.” Don’t countless people around the world understand something of God’s anger? Didn’t flood victims learn this month to number their days?

Not everyone who recognizes the brevity of life does so in a way that results in heart wisdom (v. 12) or does so according to “the fear of You [God]” (v. 11) (cf. Proverbs, where “the fear of Yahweh is the beginning of wisdom”). A sense of transience might urge us to any number of unwise—or at best, inadequate—responses. For example, in the words of a radio advertisement: “We’re not promised tomorrow; let’s make those memories today.” Fine, but inadequate. Or, to paraphrase something I heard this past summer: “After we are gone, Denali will remain.” Perhaps the speaker was not implying anything idolatrous; but if our sense of transience does urge us to worship anything other than the eternal God, then we have not adequately numbered our days.

“So teach [us] to number our days, that we may apply [our] hearts unto wisdom.”

Moses’ prayer is a good prayer for us.

Termination Dust: 3 of 5

Thoughts on Psalm 90 and September

Sometimes death comes peacefully, but often it does not. Sometimes God seems to just sweep people away violently, as well might a Caribbean hurricane at this time of year. If it seems to us as if God is angry, we’re correct. No, we do not understand all of God’s ways; we might not know specific purposes or reasons for any given September event; and comparatively good people do perish alongside the relatively evil. But in general terms Psalm 90 not only tells us that God ends life but that he does so in part because of His anger (vv. 7, 9, 11). And the cause of this anger is people’s sin (v. 8). Every human—indeed, all of nature—is in some way subject to the effects of the Genesis Fall and Curse. What are the implications of this? My only possible refuge is a God who is (at the same time) angry at my sin. This leaves me miserably in need of someone to experience that wrath in my place and to propitiate God the Father. Such a gospel would be good news indeed!

Termination Dust: 2 of 5

Thoughts on Psalm 90 and September

If Alaskan “termination dust” has a strange sound to southern ears, the reality of another termination dust should not. Both hemispheres know the truth of what Moses recorded elsewhere: “you are dust, and to dust you shall return” (Gen. 3:19). God is eternal. You and I are not. People die. And not only do they die, but it is God Himself who ends their lives (v. 3). To acknowledge this in abstract terms is easy. On the personal level it is excruciating. Even as people who believe the Bible, our minds and hearts will wrestle with this problem until our own turn comes. Yet until then we are not left without at least a partial explanation of why God speaks, as it were, and the bodies of people we love return to dust.

It is not only that God can end people’s lives because He is “Lord” (v. 1) and Creator. (Though as such, He has the right to end what He started.) But the text seems to hint that death also has to do with the Divine perspective on time: God turns men back into dust because in His sight even a thousand years are as if already gone. When Grandma passed away last September, we could have wished for just a little more time. This is understandable and right. But how much more? Three days? Ten months? A thousand years? Even a millennium, when properly understood, is but the vapor of exhaled breath on a chilly Montevideo morning.

There is, however, a clearer reason for which God brings people’s lives to an end. It is a reason that takes up a fair amount of space in this psalm.

Termination Dust: 1 of 5

Thoughts on Psalm 90 and September

I suspect that Uruguayans are looking forward to spring, which in the southern hemisphere is just around the corner. This year especially, following a very cold winter, the warmer temperatures will be welcomed. Much further north, however, the prospect is different. It is early September, and on some of Alaska’s mountains “termination dust” has appeared—the first dusting of new snow that confirms summer’s end. Moses’ prayer in Psalm 90 highlights both the reality of this fleeting summer and the reality of the God who is older than these mountains. He is the Sovereign—“Lord”—and He is a dwelling place for some. And, in contrast with you and me, He is eternal. We have the opportunity today to respond wisely to life’s brevity by humbly taking refuge in Him, appealing to Him for grace.

(1) Lord, You have been our dwelling place in all generations. (2) Before the mountains were born Or You gave birth to the earth and the world, Even from everlasting to everlasting, You are God. (3) You turn man back into dust And say, "Return, O children of men." (4) For a thousand years in Your sight Are like yesterday when it passes by, Or as a watch in the night. (5) You have swept them away like a flood, they fall asleep; In the morning they are like grass which sprouts anew. (6) In the morning it flourishes and sprouts anew; Toward evening it fades and withers away. (7) For we have been consumed by Your anger And by Your wrath we have been dismayed. (8) You have placed our iniquities before You, Our secret sins in the light of Your presence. (9) For all our days have declined in Your fury; We have finished our years like a sigh. (10) As for the days of our life, they contain seventy years, Or if due to strength, eighty years, Yet their pride is but labor and sorrow; For soon it is gone and we fly away. (11) Who understands the power of Your anger And Your fury, according to the fear that is due You? (12) So teach us to number our days, That we may present to You a heart of wisdom. (13) Do return, O LORD; how long will it be? And be sorry for Your servants. (14) Satisfy us in the morning with Your lovingkindness, That we may sing for joy and be glad all our days. (15) Make us glad according to the days You have afflicted us, And the years we have seen evil. (16) Let Your work appear to Your servants And Your majesty to their children. (17) Let the favor of the Lord our God be upon us; And confirm for us the work of our hands; Yes, confirm the work of our hands. Psalm 90:1-12 NASB

Request for Prayer

Preaching from Psalm 90 in a few hours. Christians need to respond to the eternality of God and the brevity of life in a humble appeal for grace from God, our only refuge. Sinners need the propitiation of God's wrath, found in the gospel. They, too, must respond to God's eternality and life's brevity in a humble appeal for grace from God, their only refuge.

Sojourning in SC

I returned "home" this evening, having traveled from Colorado via Iowa and Ohio. It is good to be back together as a family. The Lord has carried us all summer. Thanks much to those who prayed for us! (Please don't stop!) jms

Last night in Utah

Good days here visiting people, including a former pastor on Monday. The Lord gave opportunity today to speak a few words to two LDS missionary girls at Temple Square. The trend is their use of biblical terminology, though with different meanings, and their eager agreement with my statements of truth. For example: “Jesus is the Son of God.” But the Bible first tells us of an eternal God—unchanging, with no beginning. And the title “Son of God” as used of Jesus refers to His deity, to the fact that He is of the same nature as the Father. I will never be a “son of God” in this sense.

Encouraging prayer meeting in Marysvale. Tomorrow we drive to Denver.

Requests for Prayer: 19 August 2010

Please pray for an immigration situation affecting a family in Greenville.

We would also appreciate prayer for this next week's schedule.

Sunday (22): The Lord's blessing as I present the work in Uruguay and preach in Idaho Falls.

Monday (23): Safe travel to Roy, Utah.

Tuesday (24): Good fellowship with men in Kaysville.

Wednesday (25): Safe travel to Marysvale and profitable visit there.

Thursday (26): Another day of travel (to Denver).

Friday (27): J flies to SC.

Sunday (29): Meeting in Westminster, CO.

Return to Alberta

Monday: Soldotna to Anchorage for p.m. return flight

Tuesday: Anchorage to Fairbanks. Attended evening Bible conference service.

Wednesday: Fairbanks. Attended evening prayer meeting.

Thursday: Fairbanks to Whitehorse, Yukon.

Friday: Whitehorse to Buckinghorse River, B.C.

Saturday: Buckinghorse River to Edmonton, Alberta.

Sunday (today): Taught S.S. in Edmonton. Gave update in Calgary during evening service.

On Thursday heated noodles and made coffee by the road east of Kluane. Met two men from Calgary who, by their own admission, have been “heathens” for some seventy years. We would not convert them, they told us. We are in Calgary tonight and have been reminded of the need for the gospel here. It is right to pray that the Lord of the harvest would send laborers to Alberta. Time is as short as summer in the Yukon, where autumn colors are already visible and the fireweed is nearly gone.

Summer 2010 Report

Dear Friends,

We thank you for your part in sending us to Uruguay, and we thank God for His gracious, ongoing work in you and in us. Though we do not yet know the date of our departure to South America, we believe that each day brings us closer to ministry there. While we ask you to pray that God would send us quickly, we do value these days of preparation and service among North American churches.

In the middle of June, I left South Carolina with Jonathan Blumer, a new friend from another church in town. Four days later, following planned nightly stops, we arrived in Alberta, where we presented the future ministry in Uruguay in two churches. During this week we also attended a pastors’ conference in Saskatchewan. Deborah and Elizabeth flew to Alaska, where we joined them by car. We began July with a trip to Fairbanks for meetings in two churches, one of which is currently home to a surprising number of our personal friends from college. We enjoyed the renewal of friendships and the making of others. Jonathan remained in the Fairbanks area to help with this church’s camp ministry, while our family traveled to a series of meetings in places that generally receive comparatively fewer phone calls from missionaries requesting meetings. Our time in the Alberta and Alaska churches was very encouraging to us, and each church has taken some part in sending us to Uruguay. We’re thankful for this answer to prayer.

In addition to weekly preaching and teaching responsibilities, God has also given us a glimpse into the nature of ministry in this part of the earth. The harsh environment, the history of native peoples and homesteaders, the continued remoteness of certain villages, the forces behind the ongoing arrival of immigrants from Outside, and the universal and total depravity of man create a complex picture whose only hope is God’s intervention. Indeed—and I write this for the sake of the wide variety of friends who tend to receive these reports—your only hope to be rightly related to your Creator is the intervention already accomplished in the Gospel. That is, that Jesus of Nazareth, who is rightly designated as “Messiah” and “God,” became the sinless substitute for those who will acknowledge their own sin and flee to Him for mercy.

After wrapping up our longer travels for the summer, we will continue to visit churches in the Southeastern U.S. during the coming months. At the end of October we anticipate the arrival of our second child. We thank the Lord for this, another answer to prayer. Our future co-workers, Matías and Kristine Espinel, are expecting their first in January. The Lord is always good, but we can say that we have experienced His kindness to us in exciting ways this year. Thank you for your prayers and praise on our behalf. I close with several specific requests for prayer:

Increased knowledge of and love for God and His Word

A fruitful second semester of Bible institute classes in Uruguay

A safe and healthy pregnancy and delivery of our second child (due the end of October)

Salvation of believers’ unsaved spouses and of other contacts in churches we have visited

Our parents’ and families’ ongoing ministries in South Carolina and Uruguay

Wisdom concerning planning of future meetings, travel, and ministry

Our arrival in Uruguay next year with co-workers Matías and Kristine Espinel


¡Qué Dios les bendiga ricamente! May God richly bless you!

John Mark, Déborah, and Elizabeth Steel

Sterling

Helping each evening this week with a vacation Bible school in Sterling. Pat Garwood's parents (Barkleys) helped to start the church in the 50's. The one-room schoolhouse she attended still stands across the road. Please pray for the Lord's work among neighborhood kids and for good contact with parents.

28 July 2010

The folks on Dimond Boulevard have been very kind to us for these two weeks. The guest room at the church has provided a valuable place from which to work, handle correspondence, visit churches, and spend time during the week with believers here. The two weeks in Fairbanks were similar. On Saturday we drive to Sterling.

Today's schedule

9:45 a.m. AKDT / 1:45 p.m. EDT
Sunday school: Uruguay info and Bible lesson
Morning service: music and short intro to our ministry in Uruguay

6:00 p.m. AKDT / 10 p.m. EDT
Evening service: presentation of future work in Uruguay and message

Thank you for your prayers!

Two services in Anchorage today

10:00 a.m. AKDT / 2 p.m. EDT

5:30 p.m. AKDT / 9:30 p.m. EDT

We will be presenting our future work in Uruguay, asking for prayer, and teaching/preaching.

Thanks for your prayers.

Several requests for prayer from Fairbanks

Safe, healthy delivery of two new future co-workers: our second child, due in October . . . and . . . Matías and Kristine’s first, due in January! (And S and C's third, due in September.)

Effective ministry of U.S. Army chaplains at Fort Wainwright here in Fairbanks.

Salvation of LDS in Fairbanks (2 or 3 LDS buildings in the city).

Native Athabascan pastors to serve indigenous village churches. This has not yet been seen in Alaska. The obstacles are overwhelming, but so is the power of the gospel.

We long to see Thy churches full,
That all the chosen race
May with one voice, and heart and soul,
Sing Thy redeeming grace. (Watts)

Saturday we leave Fairbanks for two weeks in Anchorage, which will be our base for several meetings and a nearby pastors’ conference.

Important summer opportunities

Two churches here in Fairbanks are involved with two different summer camp programs this week.

MCBC is preparing for annual Neighborhood Bible School, which will be held every weekday evening next week.

A church in western NC continues with a summer Bible club program, held on Wednesday evenings for children ages 2 and up; they will run until the closing program on August 8.

Please pray that the Word of God will be clearly, accurately, and powerfully at work in these places!

The World Cup: Pray for Uruguay!

As Uruguay advances to the semi-finals on the African continent (and as I refrain from any comment on the Suarez thing), here are a couple of thoughts that might guide our prayers:

North Americans once again realize that there is a country of Uruguay (and that it is not located in Africa). Certainly this is one of the nations we should include in our efforts to follow our Lord’s last words: “Make disciples of all nations . . . teaching them to observe all things I have commanded you. . . .” Certainly here are some who fit within the apostle’s instructions that prayers be offered for all men. Certainly God is not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.

These events are immense in the life of Uruguay; there is an entire generation that has never experienced this level of victory. It is appropriate to thank God for His goodness to all (“common grace”).

Whether Uruguay advances or not, some will find that this event does not satisfy. Defeat will expose something of the idolatry that is in all of our hearts. Victory will expose something of the idolatry that is in all of our hearts. The emptiness that accompanies misplaced devotion can only be filled by God Himself. Dissatisfaction with false gods is a good thing. It is right that we pray for God to use this in His seeking of sinners.

As Matías has noted (and let me know if you would like his latest update), Uruguayan believers will use this event for special evangelistic outreach. We do well to labor together with them in prayer.

Let’s pray for good news!

Return to the U.S.

Saturday: Final day of Saskatoon conference. Good conversation with director of the new Bible college in Edmonton. Saskatoon to Edmonton.

Sunday: Presented future ministry in Uruguay during evening service in Edmonton. Very kind response from the church.

Monday: Left Edmonton. Spent night in a tent at Buckinghorse River Wayside Provincial Park. Chilly! We have left the stars behind until our return south.

Tuesday: Drove to Teslin, Yukon. Slept in car during steady rain.

Wednesday: Arrived in Palmer, AK, quite late, but ahead of schedule. Happy reunion with Deborah and Elizabeth! Thankful for Jonathan's help.

Tomorrow (Friday) we will drive to Fairbanks, where we will present the ministry in a couple of churches, spend time with friends there, and help in Bible camp ministry. Please pray for safety, fruitful ministry, and our growth in grace.

The Shepherd is currently leading through pleasant (remote, stunning) pastures.

Church planting in western Canada

A couple of you should at least pray about this possibility. There is room for you. I don't have all the data at my fingertips, but I could point you to people who might. There might also be opportunities for teaching on the institute and college level.

Saskatoon

Drove one of two rental cars from Edmonton to Saskatoon today. WCBF conference began this evening. I am mainly attending, spending time with people, and profiting from the preaching (and possibly participating musically). Please pray for churches and believers to be encouraged during these days.

World Cup: ¡Vamos uruguayos!

Uruguay advances to the next level!
To my good friends in Mexico: ¡Qué lástima!

To Calgary

Thursday: Cedar Rapids, IA, to Greeley, CO.

Friday: Met briefly with pastor in Greeley. Drove from Greeley to Rexburg, ID. Spent the night in the home of a pastor's family in Rexburg. City is something over 90% LDS, they told us. Population has swollen due to BYU-Idaho. Clear view of the nearest ward building and the Rexburg temple from the front door.

Saturday: Rexburg to Calgary.

Sunday: Spent day with church in Calgary. Thankful for this opportunity. The Lord has done great things here.

Through Omaha

On the north side of Omaha is the Mormon Trail Center. Today in passing I left a gospel booklet there for an LDS missionary whom Deborah and I met last week. Please pray that this young adult would be free to read the booklet and to spend time thinking about the Scripture contained in it.

The museum is built near the site that became the Mormons’ winter quarters during the winter of 1846-47, following a journey across Iowa that, due in part to heavy rain, had taken four months. The trip today from Cedar Rapids to Omaha took only four hours, across land that is again saturated with water—water devastating to fields of tiny corn but producing everywhere else a beautiful early-summer green.

In Cedar Rapids several weeks ago, while participating in the church’s neighborhood visitation, a group of us met a young couple that had been affected by the severe Midwest flooding of 2008. It seems as if the Lord might have used this experience to help prepare this man to respond to the gospel. The two have begun attending Lord’s Day services. Please pray for their salvation.

I praise God for the gospel—good news for any sinner who will come to God through Jesus in the way explained in the New Testament. I’m thankful for the privilege of dedicating my time to gospel ministry, specifically in preparation for teaching in Uruguay. Please pray that we will rely on His grace to be faithful to this task!

Spring 2010 Report

Dear Friends,

Thank you for your prayers and encouragement to us as we prepare for work in Uruguay. This month (May) we left our Greenville jobs and began to devote ourselves to full-time preparation and ministry in local churches.

Two years ago this month we visited the city of San Ramón on the northern edge of the department of Canelones. Here the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints had predictably built one of its meetinghouses, while we looked in vain for an entirely sound church in this town of approximately 10,000. Though this 1 to 10,000 ratio of Mormon buildings to people may not hold true throughout the country, the LDS Church claims over 92,000 members in Uruguay. If this is accurate, then one out of every 38 Uruguayans is a Mormon proselyte.

The Lord has not led us to San Ramón at this point. But someone should go. Someone who is convinced that every person in that town is responsible before their holy and glorious Creator. Someone who believes words like “Trinity” and “incarnation”—the Bible’s teaching that the Creator Himself, the Son of God, while remaining fully God became man to suffer righteous punishment for sinners. Someone who is prepared to preach the message of salvation by grace through faith in Jesus Christ. Someone who can oversee a biblical, balanced ministry.

Someone should reach San Ramón and other needy towns. The Uruguayan churches are reaching out beyond their own immediate locales, opening new gospel-preaching works; but there remains much work to do. Our task is to assist them in doing this, specifically by helping to provide further Bible training. The importance of Bible and ministry training is represented by a conversation John Mark had in February with Ruben Rodriguez, the pastor of an EMU church in Treinta y Tres, Uruguay. Ruben shared his experience of testifying to false teachers and of grappling with the subject of the Trinity. In his city of approximately 35,000 are three LDS meetinghouses.

We write from Wasatch County in Utah, not far from Provo, where John Mark lived during his last year of high school. Shortly following graduation, many of the students of Provo High went through the LDS Missionary Training Center (just blocks away) in preparation for missions around the world. We hope to see the Lord open doors for ministry to the LDS in Uruguay. Whatever the case, their presence is part of the context in which Uruguayan pastors are serving. This past week in Utah Valley we met a former Mormon missionary (to Paraguay), now attending a gospel-preaching church, an example of God’s power to save from false teaching.

Thank you for your prayers for us and for Uruguay (and for Utah). Since our last report, we have had good meetings, missions conferences, and visits in like-minded churches in North and South Carolina, Iowa, Colorado, and Utah. We anticipate a full summer of travel and meetings, and we will need God’s grace for each day.

We would appreciate your prayers for several specific requests:

• Increased love for God and His Word
• Fruitful ministry in Alberta and Alaska
• A safe and healthy pregnancy and delivery of our second child (due the end of October)
• Salvation of Rick, Justin, Jamie, Mindy, Steve, Linda, Brian, Jim, Serena, and Arturo
• Wisdom concerning planning of future meetings, travel, and ministry
• Our arrival in Uruguay early next year with co-workers Matías and Kristine Espinel
  

In grateful preparation for work in Uruguay,

John Mark, Déborah, and Elizabeth Steel

The Steels to Uruguay: video link

A permanent link to our video presentation is now posted to the side of this page. The video introduces the country of Uruguay, our family, EMU International, and the specific ministries we anticipate.

Full-time Deputation: Week One

A week ago today we began full-time deputation, which for us is a period of ministry in local churches with whom God has given us relationship. These churches are among those that will, we trust, participate in sending us to Uruguay. We conclude this because (1) we believe that God has called and led us and because (2) we believe that the Lord’s people will desire to be involved in what He is doing.

We spent Thursday evening in Cedar Rapids again. Please pray for the salvation of a young couple met during this evening’s neighborhood visitation.

On Saturday we arrived in Greeley, Colorado, for a missions conference that will end tonight. Please pray for the Lord’s gracious work in all of our hearts. On Friday and Saturday we will drive to Utah.

Miscellaneous Good News: 27 April 2010

The Lord was very good to us in Cedar Rapids; He has many gracious people there.

In six months we have a meeting scheduled in Greenville, SC: Elizabeth's sibling is due to arrive on my birthday.

We are thankful for our home church's vote this past Wednesday evening.

The Bible institute students in Montevideo are praying for the Espinels' and our arrival in time for the beginning of the school year next March.

The eastern Tennessee detour around the I-40 rockslide is very, very lovely in the spring. (Jesus is fairer!)

I-40 has now been re-opened.

Kentucky again has an elk population. (No, I didn't see any.)

Iowa and Indiana

This week’s missions conference in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, ends this evening. We will visit some other friends in town before returning to Cedar Lake, Indiana, for a night or two. Please pray for the Lord to continue His work in all of our hearts in tonight’s service; for safety in travel; and for the Lord’s grace for our last couple of weeks in Greenville before beginning full-time summer travel.

Request for Prayer: April 1

For those who pray for us from time to time, please pray that we will be in Uruguay a year from today: April 1, 2011.

We don’t know everything that must take place between now and then in order for this to happen. We do know that everything that will take place between now and then has been designed by God to conform us into the image of Jesus, the end to which we have been pre-destined by grace alone (Romans 8:28-29).

Our responsibility, and the task at hand: to love and serve God and neighbor in His strength among His Church.

Soon enough He will say, “Set them apart for the work to which I have called them” (Acts 13:1-3). Until then we say, “If the Lord wills, we will live and begin service in Uruguay the first of April, 2011” (James 4:15).

Music Training

A question that continues to arise as we visit churches has to do with the use of my music training. While in Uruguay last month, many people expressed to me their interest in receiving instruction in music. This could probably occupy all of my time if I am not careful to guard what I view as my primary calling. However, I do expect to make use of the musical preparation that the Lord has given me. Already we have seen God use my limited knowledge of Uruguayan art music to open doors of contact with unsaved musicians and within the Uruguayan public school system. People also seem to appreciate our interest in folk music. There will be abundant opportunity to participate in local church music ministry, and in that context my desire would be not only to participate but to train others to take that place in the body. Within the institute and college program, there will certainly be opportunity both to teach music and to develop some kind of music program (a choir, for example) that would serve to train students for local church ministry.

Winter 2010 Report

Dear Friends,

Thank you for your prayers for us this past winter, especially during these weeks in Uruguay. There is much to be done, and we know that the work is the Lord’s. We’re thankful to have a small part in a cause that cannot fail.

From February 15-20 we participated in a week of family camp at Campamento Emanuel, attended by families and individuals from churches around the country. I was asked to speak on the subject of music, both during family camp and during the EMU workers’ conference (February 22-25). The Lord provided for all three of us to travel to Uruguay and to attend these camps. Matías and Kristine Espinel were also able to spend approximately the same month here. God gave us a very profitable time with many of those with whom we will soon work. We are thankful for the encouragement of people here and for the gracious reception we received from Uruguayan missionaries and pastors. Progress was made on plans for a Bible college program, which we hope will eventually provide opportunity for many to receive training beyond what is already available on the institute level.

For much of the rest of our time here we have stayed in Pando, where Deborah’s father works. The Lord has graciously provided in many ways for Maranatha Bible Church. There is a great need for the Word of God to change hearts in this area north of the city, where sin has broken many lives and destroyed many homes. A good group of women, young people, and children attend services, and a core of these has come for many years. Please pray for men and for families to receive the Lord and for strength and wisdom for Don and Pat Garwood.

Before our return to the U.S., we plan to join our mission board director for a short trip into several cities in the interior. This will give us further familiarity with the Uruguayan churches—and them with us. The Lord has given strength for a full month, which by the time we leave will have included over thirty teaching or preaching opportunities.

In April we expect to leave our jobs and to begin full-time travel. Already we have seen the Lord provide a vehicle to make this possible. This coming spring we have meetings scheduled in North Carolina, Iowa, and Colorado. We then plan to continue through Idaho and Alberta and on to Alaska. Our goals are to introduce ourselves and the work in Uruguay, to request prayer, and to serve among the Lord’s people as He gives opportunity. We trust that this will result in our soon return to Uruguay—in 2011 if the Lord should so allow.

Uruguay’s summer is coming to an end, the camp season is over, and Christian young people are returning to schools to be surrounded by unbelieving classmates in a secular educational system. Bible institute classes will soon start in Montevideo and in other parts of the country. We know that God will protect and keep His own. Please pray to this end. Please pray for Uruguayan laborers to be raised up and trained for work in the many towns still without a faithful, Bible-preaching church. Please pray for churches to be known for their holiness, for their love, for their faithfulness to sound doctrine, and for their unity with other faithful believers. Please pray that the day will come when Uruguayan churches will help to lead the way in spreading the gospel around the world, if the Lord should leave His church here that long. In the same breath may we pray for His soon return!

Assisting Uruguayan churches in evangelism and ministry training, and asking you to do the same through your prayers,

John Mark, Déborah, and Elizabeth Steel

Update and request for prayer: February 20, 2010

Thank you for your prayers during this past week of family camp at Camp Emmanuel. We are in Pando overnight at Maranatha Bible Church. Tomorrow afternoon we go to Montevideo, where we will participate in an evening service at the Cerro. We will spend the night there before returning to camp for several days of workers' conference. Please continue to pray for the Lord's blessing on the preaching.

To Uruguay!

Today we leave for a month in Uruguay. Please pray for safety in travel and for wisdom in preaching and teaching. These weeks will in some ways lay a foundation for future ministry there, and we will need the Lord’s grace. Above all, we want to love God with all our hearts and to seek Him daily!

The Steels to Uruguay

We invite you to view our ministry presentation here (about 17 minutes long). If you have trouble viewing, you might try pausing it until more of the video loads.

Special thanks are due to the following:

Forward Design (Mark Ward) (production);

Samuel Arnold (family photos);

Pinner Publications, Majesty Music, and The Wilds (music background).