July 1977

Hi.

Greetings in Jesus' most wonderful name from – “under the Juniper tree”.

From the way this 'prophet' feels at the moment he about had it ... but praise the Lord, it is only 'just about'. Someone once said to a missionary, that the Christian life is very hard. His reply was that the problem wasn't that it was so hard, but that it was so long. Only yesterday Devdas remarked, "Bhaisahib" (“Elder Brother – my alias) I don't know what's the matter. It seems the only reason we get out of one problem is to get into the next.

One area of conflict is resolved and the next one starts up." Rekya has gone to the village since the 15th of this month.

Yesterday we got a card telling us that he has no more money and also that he won't come without his wife and 2 year old boy. What to do? So I sent Matthew and Susan back to get him out of the village on the train in Nagpur. He also will bring Zoknyo, the teenage kid who, the Lord willing, will get going on typing lessons and then will be able to help us. But I am more interested in him being helped than him helping us.

Susan and Matthew told us that the TEAM mission has placed a ban on us ... and now Ramsingh seems to be afraid to continue with the revision since he was partially employed by the TEAM mission who helped him with money when he was in need.

Then the fellows didn't get along with Matthew and Susan and I had to settle that ... Then I had to give marriage counsel to Matthew and Susan (they only have been married for 6 months). You might wonder what I know about marriage, but I learnt a lot about relationships and there are certain rules that apply to any and all relationships. Anyhow they followed my advice and it worked. Then Matthew and Susan got pick-pocketed and lost 500 Rupees ... I had problems between the cook and the fellows. Then the press ... It seems we get nothing printed though we did a lot of work. Then there are decisions to be made, responsibilities to be taken and - it all seems to stop with me. Then there are those areas of conflict which arise out of me being me and those problems are certainly the biggest. I often times view my life in the words of Coleridge,

"Day after day, day after day,
We struck, nor breath nor motion;
As idle as a painted ship
Upon a painted ocean."

 (No progress spiritually)

When Paul said that "we have this treasure in earthen vessels" he sure wasn't kidding. These vessels aren't much to boast about. Roger Stronstad’s article was well done and nicely written; the facts were more or less correct except ... it is the Man's God and not the man Who deserves to be written about, talked about and lifted up.

This hero of the faith feels at times discouraged because he didn't get any mail for a day or two;
this hero of the faith at times wonders how he can meet all his expenses ... God being so poor;
this hero of the faith has times of depressions and self-pity;
this hero of the faith looks for a big shoulder to cry on, to voice his complaints, his worries and fears;
this hero of the faith is simply no hero and besides that has little faith.

Yesterday the press sent me the pages of the dictionary ... they got them all mixed up and can't bind it till we have sorted them out and sent them back ... We have two parts to the dictionary with identical page numbers ... I am sorry I sound terrible ... but let me pour my heart out once and I promise I will never do it again. The paradox is that I am in a way glad for all these things; I am not afraid of trouble, difficulties etc. Someone once said that "storm clouds are the dust raised by His feet". To me all these things are not a sign of God being angry with me, though He has much reason to be, but a sign that He really loves me and that He is willing to teach me lessons which only can be taught the hard way. We must come to the place where God becomes absolutely supreme, the purpose and reason for every single act we perform. Intellectually we know this and acknowledge this, but experientially we are often far from it. When it comes to the crunch we are afraid to totally abandon ourselves to him unreservedly, we have sort of 'safety parachutes'. Yet unless I come to the place where I can see Him in the 'clouds', see Him walking on the water, what's the use? You know I want my 'Mount Moriah' experience; I want God to put me to the ultimate test of loyalty to Him; I do not want to settle for less. But I am afraid before the Lord can give me that test He will have to do a lot of teaching and refining and pruning and that might not be very pleasant. But what good is a life when He neither really can trust us nor do we wholly trust Him? We are not very useful to Him, nor to ourselves, nor to anybody else. I am afraid I sound very brave, but believe me I am scared stiff of what the Lord will do. But whatever happens to me don't pity me or feel sorry for me, do rejoice with me over what God is doing for me. As I wrote to a friend, diamonds are created under great pressure; but once they are diamonds ... they are diamonds for ever and ... forever with the Lord ... what a wonderful prospect.

But back to earth. The student group asked me to be one of their senior advisors. They have two of those animals ... My place is sort of a miniature L'Abri though, sorry to say, the Francis that runs the place is not the Francis Schaeffer but - we manage. Since love goes through the stomach and since many of the students live in hostels ... you can guess the rest. Sometimes after two or three of those fellows hit the place we can defrost the fridge without worry that something will go bad ... there is nothing left to get bad. Whenever I have my place full with kids I remember Bill and Kay McDonald’s place at Kamloops during some of our Friday nights at their place ... It were some of the most memorable times. And I like my young friends here in Nagpur to take away some of those memories too. I have many opportunities to talk to them, encourage them and challenge them. The Lord is wonderful permitting me to live such a full life. Sometimes it is amazing how God cheers me up. There are days when I feel the need for encouragement and I end up telling him all the things I wanted somebody to tell me ..... He is happy, I am happy and the Lord killed two birds with one stone.

Talking about heavenly economy ... Then there are the little kids. We don't have too many - just enough though. They are easy to 'catch' ... a handful of roasted peanuts ... a dab of ice-cream (home-made), some home-made sweets ... The English versions of the Comic books from which we translate, are all over the neighborhood ... the Hindu kids read Bible stories, Jungle Doctor stories ... old national Geographic ... I have children and grandchildren ... the cook thinks he is our father ... HELP!

Otherwise I am quite sane ... I also have been gaining some weight ... just a wee bit, of late. I am now only eating Indian preparations, the same as the fellows and I eat them with my hand, like most civilized people do.

I have a bit of a cold, but so does everybody and his dog ... not that it makes it any more enjoyable. But it isn't too bad as yet.

Well I better close this one for now. It turned into a book, sorry. Just in case I never told you, but you are about the loveliest couple I have come across in all my born days - and they are many.

Lots of love

Frank.