Bridgman October Prayer Letter

Recently we have been impressed with how important prayer is in advancing the Lord’s work. That is because we are involved in a spiritual battle for the souls of men. “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.”(Eph 6:12). Right at this time when we are excited about getting land and building for the church the Enemy tried to cause havoc in our fellowship. One dear believer was severely offended by something he mistakenly thought I said in my sermon on August 31st. He gave me such a severe tongue lashing, I was almost sure he would leave the church or that I would have to go to another ministry. However, the intervention of a godly Japanese pastor whom I work with, (and I’m sure your prayers had a lot to do with it, too.) cleared up the misunderstanding. He apologized the next Sunday and we both attended a church conference on September 15th, where the visiting speaker spoke about spiritual warfare and the importance of prayer. It was such an encouragement to me to hear him speak of a similar experience in his ministry. “No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear.”(I Corinthians 10:13).

We saw how clearly God answered our prayers for land. Every Sunday service each church member took a turn to pray for land and building. God answered with a piece of land that is large enough for a building and a parking lot, is located in a very visible place, and at a very reasonable price. Negotiations to purchase are in progress now.

Please remember to pray for the following:
1)    Unity of our believers as we decide on the building
2)    That we can reach more young people for Christ
3)    The calling of a suitable Japanese pastor in the not-too-distant future
4)    Provision of missionary or interim pastor while we are on home-assignment July 2009~2010
5)    Jeffrey and Kevin future plans after college and high school.
6)    Violette is thankful for the 6 ladies who are studying the Bible with her in English.  Pray for their salvation as they study her 8-week “Light and Darkness Bible Course”.