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Showing posts from January, 2023

CREATIVE TRANSLATION WORK

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  My long-time friend Bernard Dodeler has spent over fifty years serving as a missionary in France. Now in retirement he has chosen to continue that work in a unique fashion. He is preparing a Systematic Theology for use by educational institutions in French-speaking countries. “I am editing over nine hundred pages of notes I typed years ago on a simple typewriter,” he says. In addition to the Theology, he plans to translate a Greek Grammar, various commentaries, and studies on the Church and Missiology. “It is not only France which could benefit from the biblical and theological books,” Dodeler tells me. “The French-speaking world extends across Europe. There is the province of Quebec in Canada, French Guyana in South America, and various islands in the Caribbeans. In Africa there are all the former French and Belgian colonies. Many schools in these countries are small, but they deserve sound literature written with a Biblicist approach.” To accomplish all of those goals may

INSTANT FAMILY

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  Kim and Kevin Plymel had been married for five years. When it became clear that God was not going to give them children naturally, they began the application process for adoption. Because they were in their forties they desired to adopt children as young as possible, and the agency told them their best chance of placement was to consider a sibling group. However, the chances of finding a young sibling group were slim to none. On the final day of their summer vacation in 2022, they received a phone call. A sibling group of four children needed a placement. And they were all under five years of age. A visit was arranged immediately. A few days after that visit, the agency called again. Another sibling had been born. Were they willing to pick him up from the hospital? Kim and Kevin brought the newborn, JD, home directly from the hospital and were able to introduce him to his siblings on their next get-acquainted visit. They were thrilled. One week later they welcomed JD’s four sib

CREATIVE BLOGGING

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  Dr. Gerry Carlson’s Grace Journey Blog began in 2019 when he shared the story of Ariel and Amelia. The two girls had come into their lives through fostering and then adoption by their daughter Kristi and her husband Brian. The story is a beautiful record of God at work. My own interest in Gerry’s blog came from his first-hand accounts of men who also played a part in my own life. He shared his own experiences and memories of Dr. Monroe Parker, Dr. Richard Clearwaters, and Dr. Myron Cedarholm. Indicative of the relationship he had with each of them, he called the posts: “Monk. Doc. And Cedar.” I have personally gained a greater understanding and appreciation of those three men by reading what Carlson has written. Since 2019, Gerry has contributed around seventy-five posts to his Grace Journey. The memories include personal notes about Dr. Dick Weeks, George Mensik, and Bud Weniger. He is currently working on similar posts about youth pastor Don Nelson. In addition to the histo

CREATIVE NEW YEAR RESOLUTIONS

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  According to the Wall Street Journal , two-thirds of all New Year’s Resolutions have already been broken by the end of January. Maybe the secret is to make a resolution which God will help you keep. Since God revealed Himself to us in His Word over the course of centuries, He would certainly be pleased to help us keep a resolution to increase our knowledge of Him through a study of the Word. Fifty-two DARES, founded on the attributes of God, and designed to transform your knowledge of God into practical action to the praise of His glory, fits perfectly with that resolution. Your path to keeping that resolution can be followed through the use of the book Dare to Walk on Water: Treasuring God. Discover a God without limits, God in Tri-Unity, God All-wise, God our Joy, and forty-eight other attributes which should transform not only your mind, but your actions. Dare to Walk on Water: Treasuring God can be purchased from Amazon.com or from the Bible Story Family, PO Box 28342,