Thank You For All Your Kind Words And Prayers
By David J. Stewart | November 2012
Hebrews 6:10, “For God is not unrighteous to forget your work and labour of love, which ye have shewed toward his name, in that ye have ministered to the saints, and do minister.”
I am glad that I was finally able to answer e-mails after so long. It has been such an awesome blessing to hear from so many of my web visitors. You are all a part of this ministry and I sincerely thank you all again. I received e-mails from October 28th until November 15th, as I said I would. Please understand that I've had to turn off my e-mail, because it is more than I can keep up with continually. I cannot express in words how thankful I am for all the wonderful, heart-touching and encouraging hundreds of e-mails that I've recently received from the friends of this ministry. I am awed at the precious things people have said from around the world.
Some of you have encouraged me more than you'll ever know, and you know who you are. Thank you so much! To say that your words of encouragement have been uplifting to this preacher of the gospel is an understatement. Thank you from all my heart. You are loved. I didn't realize how much my laborers in the Lord are being used by God to help others. I have prayed regularly for God to work in people's hearts, and for the Lord to show me what to preach, and God has done mighty works! Thank you to all those who have faithfully followed my online ministry for these past many years.
There are many burdens. I've received multitudes of e-mails from people who shared their incredible hardships, burdens and rough family situations with me, asking for my prayers. I would also ask that my web visitors pray for each other. The Bible teaches that prayer changes things. We learn this when Peter was delivered from Herod's sword in Acts 12:1-8. Every time that someone prayed in the Bible, God answered. God usually won't answer in the way that we want or expect Him to (Isaiah 55:8-9), but He will work in response to our prayers, for He has so promised (Philippians 4:6-7; 1st Peter 5:7).
I have received letters from Holland, Ghana and South Africa, Australia, India, the Philippines, Indonesia, New Zealand, Taiwan, England, Scotland, Canada, Brazil, Peru, France, Aruba, Germany, and from many other places around the world (forgive me if I didn't mention your country, there are so many). It rejoices my heart to know that God's Spirit is working through my humble labors. I give God all the credit, for He put the desire into my heart in 2002 to start and to continue this ministry of unconditional love.
Now that this ministry has been online for a decade since 2002, I am beginning to clip coupons as Brother Hyles used to say, that is, hearing precious testimonies from people who have been saved through this ministry and are now reaching others for Christ in their own ministries. Some people are even going to Bible college, and I rejoice with you all. That's great! I rejoice in the Lord for all such stories! It's great to know that somebody's been listening all this time (and many of you have, praise God).
I received two wonderful letters from hearing-impaired people, one from California and the other from Mississippi. The web visitor in Mississippi has a ministry helping deaf teenagers who are emotionally struggling to fit into society. Most people would never think about something like that, because we take our hearing for granted. Can you imagine being deaf as a young person and having to enter into the often cruel world as a young adult? It is frightening to them, understandably. My heart was touched by both e-mails from my hearing-impaired visitors. Thank you my friends.
I saved each and every genuine kind and encouraging letter. I thank God for all of you, for you are the book I am writing in my heart, who are known and read by all men. 2nd Corinthians 3:2, “Ye are our epistle written in our hearts, known and read of all men.” Isn't that a beautiful truth! When we invest in the lives of others, they become a living, walking, talking book that we have written, and others can see what we have authored in the lives of others. What an awesome truth!
I apologize to my web visitors that my e-mail is turned off most of the time. I literally spent 6 hours one night answering e-mails last week. You may not believe this, but it is the honest truth, on one afternoon I spent 9 hours responding to e-mails into the wee hours of the morning. That's how many e-mails I received (and I love all of you). People have burdens and share their lengthy testimonies. I care too much to hurry through them. I read every e-mail carefully. Of course, as I said, I deleted all e-mails that were rude, unkind or disrespectful in the least.
I'm here for the spiritually sick who want help, not the whole who are self-righteous and don't need help. Matthew 9:12, “But when Jesus heard that, he said unto them, They that be whole need not a physician, but they that are sick.” Jesus ignored the self-righteous Pharisees. I responded to over 90% of all the e-mails I received, which were delightful and sweet to my heart. There's no way possible that I could answer e-mails like this on a regular basis. It's a ministry by itself. Albeit, I wanted to hear from old and new web visitors alike (and I gratefully did). Thank you for all the sincere words of praise and encouragement in the Lord!
Please understand that I have to set a policy on e-mails. If I respond to one person, then I open dialogue and they usually want to correspond. After a while I have hundreds of people desiring to correspond and I can't keep up with my ministry and life. I treat all my web visitors as equals. So I have to set a policy and stick to it. That's how I keep going. I decide how much I can handle and then trust the Lord to help me with everything.
I praise the Lord that my body is still functional in spite of my health afflictions, but the neck pain and peripheral neuropathy (burning, tingling, puffiness and radiating sharp pain) is debilitating at times. Sometimes I get home and I'm in so much neck pain. I take my medications and just knock out asleep. As I type, the razorblade-like sharp pain throughout my right leg is painful. I feel like I'm burning up inside. My right arm feels half asleep. My neck hurts badly. Most of my faithful web visitors do understand and I am so grateful for your understanding. It's often difficult to read through e-mails because of my pain. I have to be very careful not to miss something or seem insensitive. I went to order a guacamole hot-n-spicy chicken sandwich from Wendy's yesterday and kindly told the lady at the drive-thru window that she forget my drink. She had just handed it to me and I already had it in my cup-holder. I apologized. That's what my pain does to me all the time.
I have also received numerous letters from people who are suffering with cervical (neck), thorax (upper back) and lumbar (lower back) portions of the spine. I am grateful that it's just my neck that afflicts me, yet it is so close to my head and the pain radiates into my facial area. So it affects my entire being. One man, a Vietnam veteran, shared with me that he has hardware on his hardware from multiple surgeries. Another gentleman underwent 8 surgeries and is pending 2 more. There are so many people suffering.
One web visitor has a horrible skin condition which he got while in the military, which causes him intolerable itching. People share their health afflictions with me to encourage me, and to relate. I love you all and think about your testimonies. That's why I saved all the e-mails. I pray for you all daily. And I didn't forget my young college friend who has the algebra exams and asked for my prayers.
One young lady from Taiwan thought I was upset with Chinese people because of the massive trade imbalance in America. I comforted her heart and reassured her that I love all people of every nation. If anyone is to blame for the problems in America, it is us Americans, not the Chinese people. Bless her heart.
I was encouraged to hear from a friend in New Zealand, who is passing out tracts and soul-winning in that beautiful nation. Pastor Harry Ironside (1876-1951) loved New Zealand and used to go preach there all the time. He had a heart-attack and died there in 1951.
I also received a wonderful e-mail from a friend of this ministry in Brazil, who has his own ministry passing out gospel tracts and doing a work for God. Truly, we are co-labourers together in the Lord.
I also received numerous e-mails from different countries in Africa, where much persecution is happening today against Christians. There are only about four main religions in Africa and they're all apostate. It's almost impossible to find a decent Bible-believing church in Africa. False doctrines are everywhere. Africa certainly needs the Lord.
I received numerous e-mails from friends in Africa. One young man in Ghana was at a internet cafe and noticed someone else viewing my website ministry and that's how he found it. Now he's a faithful web visitor and comes to my website to get information. Multitudes of people attributed getting saved as a result of this labor of love which led them to the truth of the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. I rejoice with all of you for believing the gospel (death, burial and resurrection) of the Lord Jesus Christ.
One gentleman said he hated my website and was depressed over it years ago. He despised me, but said God was convicting his heart and he couldn't stay away. Over time the Lord opened his eyes, he got saved, and now he loves me and praises God for this ministry. He's now a faithful visitor. I get tickled over testimonies like that, rejoicing in my heart continually for all of your wonderful testimonies. I have received numerous e-mails from people who used to hate me, but now love me. No doubt, there are people who are reading this now and you despise me and my website, but one day years from now you will be a good friend and love my preaching of the truth. That is my prayer for all my enemies, that is, that God will show you how much you are loved by this humble preacher and by the Lord Who died for your sins and mine. I love you all, whoever you may be, in the Lord. I have nothing but love for all my web visitors, whoever you are.
One mother wrote to me and said that she prints out my articles and collects them in a binder, saving them for her children one day when they grow older if this website ever disappears (and it will eventually, it has too). By God's grace I plan to keep preaching the truth until the Lord decides it's time to stop. It is God's ministry and website. I do what I do for the Lord Jesus Christ. My enemies are Christ's enemies. And my friends are the Lord's friends.
I read these awesome Bible verses today, which are so encouraging to my heart...
1st Thessalonians 1:3 and Hebrews 6:10, “Remembering without ceasing your work of faith, and labour of love, and patience of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ, in the sight of God and our Father. ... For God is not unrighteous to forget your work and labour of love, which ye have shewed toward his name, in that ye have ministered to the saints, and do minister.”
Multiple people shared with me that they are depressed. I recommend doing nice things for others. I ordered a Korean King James Bible recently for a Korean waitress in a local restaurant. She is a very sweet lady. I gave her a gospel booklet by Dr. Curtis Hutson a long time ago, but she said that she cannot read English. Recently she mentioned to me that she still has the little booklet I gave her. She goes to a Korean church. So God told me to buy her a King James Bible in Korean. With shipping it cost me $105 but I won't tell her that. I'll give her the sealed Bible, new, but she'll never see the price tag. It's a gift from the Lord. Christ's Spirit wants to work through us if we'll yield to Him daily. Galatians 2:20, “I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.” Amen, that's good stuff!
If you're depressed, get out of the self life, that is my best advice (next to becoming a born-again Christian of course). This is how we're supposed to live anyway. Philippians 2:4-5, “Look not every man on his own things, but every man also on the things of others. Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus.” When I feel down, I think of something nice that I can do for somebody else, and then I go do it.
As Christian believers we should all just endure hardness. 2nd Timothy 2:3, “Thou therefore endure hardness, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ.” The Bible teaches to overcome evil with good. Romans 12:21, “Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good.” Anytime that people do evil to me, I go do good for others. The Bible teaches not to defend ourselves; but rather, to let God fight our personal battles and avenge us (Romans 12:19). That's why I have learned to just let stuff go. I used to hang onto feelings and things. It became so overwhelming that I just had to let everything go into God's hands or I was going to go under.
I realized one day that Philippians 4:6-7 is teaching for us not to worry about anything, but to bring every burden (in every thing by prayer) to the Lord and leave it there! That's why I am a happy person inside. I give my burdens to the Lord and trust Him. It's hard to do that at first, but as we learn to trust the Lord, then we can rest in casting our cares upon Him as 1st Peter 5:7 teaches. I have many sorrows, afflictions, heartaches and frustrations; but I have perfect peace like a river in my soul and I am happy in the Lord. Most people don't understand my health afflictions and I'm always lonely in my pain and suferring. John 16:33, “These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.”
The apostle Paul realized one day that others couldn't return the depth of love which he was giving to them, because He had grown so much in the Lord. 2nd Corinthians 12:15, “And I will very gladly spend and be spent for you; though the more abundantly I love you, the less I be loved.” That's a precious Scripture! The more we love others, the less we are going to be loved in return. That's ok, it's part of being like Jesus in our daily life.
As Galatians 2:20 says, we are crucified with Christ, yet we are alive, because Christ lives in us and through us. Here's Galatians 2:20 again, “I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.” Don't miss that all you fellow believers... THE LIFE WHICH I NOW LIVE IN THE FLESH I LIVE BY THE FAITH OF THE SON OF GOD. Most of our problems as Christians is that we fail to live by the faith by which we we're saved. We worry instead of trusting God. We complain instead of trusting God. Many young Christians are choosing worldly paths in life to make money, instead of going down the path God wants them to go down that won't make them self-sufficient and wealthy.
Proverbs 3:5-6 says to acknowledge God in all our ways and He shall direct our paths. The Bible teaches us God's ways. Every Christian believer ought to strive to please God by living by faith. THE LIFE WHICH I NOW LIVE IN THE FLESH I LIVE BY THE FAITH OF THE SON OF GOD. The Christian life is a life of faith in Jesus Christ. As I grow older, I am finding sweet peace in simply letting go and having faith in my Savior. I bring my burdens to the Lord in prayer and I leave them there. If things get worse, then at least I know that I have petitioned God and He is guiding my steps as He promised. Psalms 37:23, “The steps of a good man are ordered by the LORD: and he delighteth in his way.” My health afflictions are permanent and I'll have to struggle with this for the rest of my life, but I know God is with me and has promised to guide and help me.
Philippians 2:13, “For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure.” That is why this website is here, i.e., because God has done a work in my heart to will and to do of His good pleasure. Amen and amen!
I plead for your continued earnest prayers for this ministry and me daily, just as I pray for all of you (and your loved ones that you've asked me to pray for) daily. This ministry is much bigger than me, it's about the Lord Jesus Christ, Who is THE WAY, THE TRUTH, and THE LIFE (John 14:6)! HEAR YE HIM!
“Even so, come, Lord Jesus” (Revelation 22:20).
I love you all in the Lord, whoever you may be!
Tomorrow's Guarantee of God's Provision
1st Thessalonians 5:25, “Brethren, pray for us.”
