Dear Friends,
Thank God for Christians who are willing to sacrifice so that ministers may be sent out to preach the Gospel! Paul said in Galatians 1:4, "Christ gave himself for our sins that he might deliver us from this present evil world and that was the will of God." If one wonders how evil this world is, he needs to come to London for the whole world is here. London is an international city with a population that is 70% foreigners who have brought their religions with them. They have come to Britain for a better life, only to bring with them what has destroyed their nations, a devilish, Christless religion.
The bulk of the British knows very little of the Bible contents, yet it is what made Britain great. This nation at one time evangelized the world. Now it is difficult to find a church that has sent out one missionary. National news recently reported a survey done among the Anglican priests. Only 2% could quote at least two of the Ten Commandments. As Christians heading into the 21st century, our aim and goal in this wicked world is to lift up Jesus. We must go to the devil's den and not expect an invitation. He is not going to give people up without a fight and the battle is the Lord's. He is calling for an invasion!
MAN SEES LIGHT: I was preaching Christ to a crowd that was unleashing venomous remarks against God and me. I must admit that a couple of times I had to tell some in the crowd to shut up because the devil was coming out of them. Christians were spread out in the crowd and were shouting, "Amen." One then asked, "How can I know Christ?" In the midst of the chaos, I thought he was mocking. "If you want to know God, then come here." He walked in front of me and stood. "Get on your knees." He did and then I realized that he was serious. This shocked me because around a hundred people were watching and most were out of their minds. I pulled off my hat, got on my knees with him, and led him in prayer. People were laughing, cussing and mocking him, but Christians from the crowd circled him to some degree and helped bring him into the Kingdom as we all prayed. We were still on our knees and I asked, "Do you believe now in God?" "Yes!" "How do you know?" I asked. "Because He has come into my heart," he answered. Oh, bless God for His power!
MAN HITS BOTTOM: John Fuss and I had ministered together for years back in Pensacola. Unfortunately, one problem after another beat him down and drove him to the bottom of life. On drugs, depressed and contemplating suicide, he was bitter against the church and Christians in general. He turned to the world for comfort and quickly found out there was none to be found there. I was informed of his state and called him. He said that he had never met a true Christian and all were hypocrites. I said, "It sounds like you know what a Christian is John." "I do," he said, "and I haven't found any." I replied, "John, you come over here to London and show me what a true Christian is and I will follow you." I invited him to come over and he said, "I'm really messed up, I want to kill myself and will cause you nothing but problems." "That's OK," I said, "come on over." John has miraculously recovered. He has been in the Word three to four hours a day and is anointed. Here is his view:
"I have been preaching in the squares of London at the top of my voice, the simple, but offensive Gospel of the Cross. I go and am shocked at the ignorance of the Bible and the attitudes and behavior here that is far worse than America. It is easy to shore your beliefs inside the confines of the sanctuary among believers but this is the trenches. In the crowd are the curious, the ignorant, the tourists, the religious, the atheists, and the mockers. I have spoken personally to people from well over 50 countries of all religions and philosophies. A few have been won to Christ so far and much seed is sown, but the work of grace in me of increasing effectiveness and confidence in ministering His Word is exciting.
BACK TO WORK! For the next several months, we'll be working again on the building here. We all got pretty worn out after three months of renovating when we first moved in, so we took a break before starting the rest of the projects. The main one will be turning our cellar into housing quarters far visiting groups. Looking at the cellar, this is going to take some work! Praise God, He's sent us some help with this. Thank you so much for all your love, support and prayers. You are helping to make all this possible.
With love and appreciation,
The Wood Family