Preaching Jesus Christ

I pray you're doing well and growing the grace and knowledge of Jesus Christ.

For those interested, I just wrote an article titled, "Maybe it was bad pizza?"  It specifically deals with the subject of Dreams and Visions from God.  It a very misunderstood subject and one in which believers seem to go into extremes on.  On one end of the spectrum you have believers, mainly from the Charismatic/Pentecostal side, who believe all kinds of craziness associated with dreams and visions.  Then, on the other end of the spectrum you have believers who out right reject that God communicates in these ways, or they are so skeptical that they might was well reject that God speaks through visions and dreams today.  In the article, I've tried to accurately show what the bible teaches on this subject.  

I cover:

1. Dreams in the Old & New Testament. 
2. How they are often symbolic and spoken in riddles.
3. That God does in fact frequently speak to His people today through these means.
4. Common Objections.
5. Lastly, I share many person experiences of God speaking to me and my wife through dreams.

My intent is not to in any way diminish with written word of God, but to show that in additions to God's written word, and in agreement with God's word, He has other ways in which He speaks to His people.  

If you have any questions or comments, please let me know.May the Lord bless you.
http://preachingjesus.wordpress.com/2012/01/17/maybe-it-was-bad-pizza/ 


IN Christ,


Sean Scott
preachingjesus.wordpress.com

I wanted to send out a short update and ask you to keep our evangelistic efforts here in prayer.  The Lord is blessing our efforts, and we’re starting to see the fruits of our labors.  We’ve been in Albuquerque for about a month and a half now.  Braden and I have been evangelizing every week in the apartment complexes around where we live, as well as preaching along the local bus routes that are quite busy.  Albuquerque is a city where public transportation is used pretty heavily, so the bus stops are a great place to continually preach to new people.


OCCUPY WALL STREET  

I mentioned in my last email about evangelizing at the Occupy Wall Street event that was being held at the University of New Mexico.  Well, the protest was eventually shut down by local police, ending the large gathering of people there.  We were able to continue to minister to the young Arab man that I met there.  He continued to come over to our apartment for a couple weeks, and we were able to share the gospel with him for hours on end and exhort him to put his trust in Christ.  He’s yet to become a born again believer in Jesus Christ, but he does stay in contact with me every now and then.  We’re praying that the word of God we shared with him will take root in his heart and that God will send other believers into his life as well.

BUS STOP PREACHING – NEW BELIEVER

Preaching at the bus stops has been a huge blessing.  It’s a great place because you constantly have people to share with.  You get to see new faces every day, and you get to see people that you’ve preached to before, giving you an opportunity to build upon what you’ve already shared.  Recently we’ve seen a man come to Christ through our ministry at the bus stops.  A few weeks ago, Braden and I were out preaching at the different stops.  We had just finished and were just starting to walk back to our car.  A man called out to us from behind and was wanting to talk to us.  Apparently, he had heard us talking to others at the stop.  He asked us if we were Christians, to which we said yes.  He then began to tell us about his life and how messed up it was.  He’s married and is a student at the local community college.  He told us that he was an alcoholic and that his marriage was a mess.  Having some church background, he knew the gospel and knew that what he needed was God.  We explained the gospel to him, explained how Christ could and would deliver him from the power of sin, and then prayed for him.  We invited him to come to our weekly bible study, which he said he would do.

Well, Thursday rolls around and he shows up at the bible study, with his bible in hand, ready to study the word of God.  In fact, he’s come every week, and is coming to our fellowship meetings on Sunday as well.  At one of the bible studies, we were talking about being born again, and I asked him if he believed that had happened to him.  He said yes, and I asked him when it happened.  He said that the day after we met him at the bus stop and prayed for him, he was alone at his house and was thinking about his life and the Lord.  He said he just broke down weeping and asked the Lord to save him.  Since then, he’s had a desire to follow Christ and said he hasn’t touched a drop of alcohol.  In fact, you can see the Lord working in him as he’s removing things out of his life that are not pleasing to the Lord.  He definitely seems to be bearing good fruit, and we’ll be baptizing him soon!  His name is Ronneal, if you would like to keep him in prayer. 

I think sometimes when we’ve been a believer for a long time and we’ve read the word of God numerous times and we’ve spent a lot of time with other believers in Christ, we can forget just how little people know of biblical truth.  I was out at the bus stops evangelizing another day.  I walked up to a young man, who was probably between 18-24 years old.  He had headphones on and was just waiting on the bus.  I gave him a gospel tract and started talking with him.  I was explaining to him God’s righteousness and what sin is.  We were talking about the specific sins of lying and lust, which he admitted he had done numerous times, and he said that he had no idea that those were sins.  I think he knew lying was wrong, but I don’t think he had ever equated it with sinning against God.  He really looked completely shocked and concerned.  He listened really intently and asked some good questions.  He asked me, “Are you a priest or something?”  I smiled and said, “No, I’m a follower of Jesus Christ.”  I invited him to our bible study before he got on the bus.  The interesting thing was that he said that he had just recently gone out and purchased a bible so he could read it.  I was overjoyed to hear that and thankful the Lord allowed me to be part of what he seems to be doing in this man’s life. 

I share this though to point out the reality that many people, though they know that some things are wrong, they don’t understand that their sins are against God.  I obviously believe the scriptures when they state that God’s attributes are clearly seen (meaning men cannot deny God’s existence) (Romans 1:19, 20), that God has put eternity in our hearts (Ecc. 3:11), and that God has given every man a conscience (Romans 2:15) that to some degree or another testifies to what is right and wrong.  Yet simply because people have a conscience doesn’t mean they always make the connection between their sin and God.  It’s up to us to help men see their true condition before God so that the good news of the gospel of Jesus Christ will make sense to them.  As it says in Romans:


How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching?  And how are they to preach unless they are sent? As it is written, "How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!"  (Rom 10:14-15)

People mistakenly think that everyone in America has heard the gospel.  This is completely false.  I would say that almost everyone in America has heard about Jesus and that he died on the cross and maybe even that he died for our sins.  But that is still a far cry from understanding what the gospel really is (what it says about God and what it says about man) and what it means to them personally.  Regarding much of this truth, a great majority of people in this country are still in the dark.  Christ has commissioned all of us, no matter where we are, to make this truth known to men (Matt. 28:19, 20).  I pray that wherever you live, or whatever sphere of influence you have, you allow the Lord to use you to help men see the truth of the gospel.  


EVANGELIZING  AT APARTMENTS

Along with preaching at the bus stops and on the campus, we’ve gone door to door in some of the apartment complexes around where I live.  For the most part, people have been receptive, and we’ve been able to share with quite a few people.  If someone’s not home, we usually leave a gospel tract and an invitation to a bible study.   About a week and a half ago, a lady called me because of one of the tracts we left on her door.  She’s been coming to the bible study we have on Sunday evenings and is also meeting with us during the week to study the word of God. 

So what can I say, other than the Lord has been good!  He’s bearing fruit from our labor, and we’re praying that it will increase. 

GOSPEL TRACTS

Currently, I’m using gospel tracts that I’ve ordered from an online company.  They’re good, but I always find them lacking, to some degree, in the truth that I want people to hear.  I’m writing a couple myself and hope to have them printed soon.  We wrote our own tracts when we were in Mexico, and it was good to have literature to pass out that clearly presented the gospel to people.  We’re also putting together a website specific to our ministry here in Albuquerque.  If you’d like to help us with ministry resources for tracts, pamphlets, etc., email me and I’ll let you know how you can help. 

NEW SUPPORT ADDRESS

In my last update, I had made a change to the address where we receive support.  I had to change it again since I just opened a P.O. box here in Albuquerque.  For those of you who mail support, please notice the new address on the website.  Here’s the link that will take you to the address on our website. 

http://www.preachingjesuschrist.com/donate.html

Thank you to all of you who keep us in prayer and support us through giving.  If you would, please keep Ronneal in prayer, and please pray for our outreaches.  Pray that God would testify to the preaching with His power and that we would see more people converted to Jesus Christ. 

May the Lord Bless you….

IN Christ,

Sean & Lisa Scott
Preachingjesuschrist.com
Preachingjesus.wordpress.com

Greetings Brethren,

Just wanted to send out a quick update regarding the Scott family.  We've recently moved from our land in the mountains to a place in Albuquerque.  We rented a small apartment in the Hispanic part of town (which is great because I can continue leaning and speaking Spanish).  As of now, we've been here for about three weeks.  It's been a blessing to be back in an area where I can daily preach the gospel to others.  Right now, we fellowship with a brother who moved here with us, and Lord-willing, another family will be moving here soon as well.  It's my desire to labor here every day and see the Lord add to our number those who are in Christ.

OCCUPY WALL STREET

If you have been keeping up with the news, you're probably aware of the Occupy Wall Street protests that have been going on all over the country.  These are protests where individuals are protesting corporate greed, the rich, social injustice, economic injustice, and a host of other things.  Over the last few weeks, the protest has spread from Wall Street to there now being protests in many states across the country.  Shortly after we moved here to Albuquerque, I noticed there was an Occupy Wall Street protest taking place at the University of New Mexico in Albuquerque.  Every time I would pass by the University, I would see people in the middle of the street and on the median holding up their protest signs.  Right behind the protesters is a campus park where many of them spend the nights and stay on the campus grounds in their protest.  If you actually get out and talk to the protesters, one thing that you quickly realize is that most of the people are not on the same page.  Everyone has a complaint, no one really has any solutions, and there are multitudes of people protesting unrelated issues.  The movement itself is supposed to be focused on corporate greed and things related to it, but you'll also see people hold up signs that say "Free Palestine" and the like, which are totally unrelated issues.  So after seeing the large number of people involved in the protest, I prayed about it and then started to go there daily to preach the gospel to those involved.  I'll share a couple stories from my time there.

One of the first guys I talked to happened to be a young Arab man who had been dancing in the middle of the street and holding a sign that said "Free Palestine."  As I was talking to him about his cause, a campus reporter came up to interview us.  He interviewed this man first and then wanted to interview me.  I told him I wasn't with the protesters and didn't really agree with their cause.  He talked with me for a few minutes and then left.  As I continued to talk to the Arab man, I pointed out some of the hypocrisy in what he was saying.  After not being able to respond, he admitted that he didn't really care about the protest and that he was really just there for the free pizza!  As I talked with him more, I learned that he had been kicked out of the army, kicked out of a college in AZ, and he was just kicked out of another school in NM.  He had then come to Albuquerque and happened to stumble upon the protest and decided to camp out with them.  I then shifted our conversation to talk about morality; and in fact, these protests can be boiled down to one issue: it's about a group of people deciding what is morally right for others to do or not do.  I personally think this is great because when the issue is about morality, it's an easy way to talk about where morals come from and then to talk about Jesus Christ.  So in a short amount of time, I was able to talk to this man about absolute truth that comes from God alone and then talk to this man about the truth of Jesus Christ.  Though he was defensive at times, overall he was receptive and listened.  In fact, for the next three days, we picked up this young man, brought him over to our place for dinner, and spent hours talking about the word of God and his need for Christ.  There was definitely a battle going on inside him, as you could see that one minute he seemed humbled by God's word and able to see his need for Christ, and then the next minute he would be defensive and become almost a different person.  After three days of reasoning with this man about Christ, I was driving to the store to buy some groceries.  I was listening to the local news, and they were talking about how a protester had been arrested for battery, trespassing, and disorderly conduct.  I just knew it was this man because of the anger I had seen in him.  (He had told me before that he was against the peaceful protest and wanted to start burning cars and looting stores.)  Sure enough, it was him.  We had given him a Bible, and my prayer and hope was that he would read it while he was in jail.  I saw him after he was released, but his heart seemed to have gotten harder. He had to leave town for a few days but said he would come by our place when he returned.  Just yesterday, he came by our house while we were out and left a note on our door.  Lord-willing, we'll be able to spend more time with him and continue to point him to Jesus Christ.  

Aside from him, I've talked to all kinds of people at the protest.  People that outright reject God, people that don't care, a college professor, and some that some that seem as if God has specifically prepared them to be open and hear the gospel.  In fact, one of the guys I talked to yesterday was a man who was totally open to everything about Christ.  There was a group of Mexicans and Native Americans that were arguing with someone about something.  I walked over to them and passed out some gospel tracts, and this one young man just stopped, sat down, and read the whole tract (while everyone else continued arguing).  When he was done, he looked at me and said, "That was really good."  I was able to spend the next two hours talking to this one man about the gospel of Jesus Christ.  This man saw his need for Christ and saw that he was unconverted, even though he did believe in Jesus Christ.  The Lord helped this man see his true condition, and this man did see that God was appealing to him through me.  It was wonderful to talk to him.

I talked to another man who professed to be a believer but confessed that he was a backslider.  I asked him to share his testimony, but like many who profess Christ, he didn't have one.  He was a false convert.  I shared the gospel with him and his need to believe and follow Christ.  He said he wanted to finish traveling and seeing other cities, and then he would seek Christ.  So he basically wanted to satisfy all his fleshly desires before seeking the Lord.  I began to open up the scripture and show him what he was really saying, how he was treating God -- that because he said he had understanding of the gospel and claimed to be a follower of Christ, he was in fact trampling the blood of Christ under his feet and subjecting him to an open shame.  I really sensed the Spirit of the Lord, and God's jealousy, as I shared with this man.  After a couple minutes of sharing, he was slowly backing up, and then he said he didn't want to talk anymore.  He was looking to leave our conversation in a hurry.  I warned and exhorted him as he left.  The word of God was definitely having an effect on this man.  To some we're the smell of death, and to others we're the fragrance of life. (2 Cor. 2:16)

NEIGHBORHOOD

While I definitely enjoy preaching and evangelizing at the Occupy Wall Street event, our main ministry focus is going to be in the Hispanic neighborhoods that I live by.  I'll be ministering daily in this area, and Braden will be joining me on weekends.  Right now, we have a fellowship meeting on Sundays and are planning to have a Bible study during the week and another on Sunday evenings.  God has already given us a lot of favor here, and we are praying and believing the Lord IS going to save people and bring them into his kingdom.  

ROB BELL

As many of you know, I created a site to respond to Rob Bell's book, "Love Wins."  The site has given me many opportunities to share with people who support Rob Bell and believe what he teaches.  The greatest opportunity it has given me is to share and help other see how to read biblical passages in context.  So many people just accept what a supposed minister of God teaches without examining the context of the verses being used.  Being able to help people see the truth in the Bible for themselves has been a great blessing, one that I hope will produce lasting fruit in people's lives.  While I certainly don't claim to be one that has the biblical gift of teaching, it should go without saying that one who does have that gift (or those who teach) should want to achieve more than just imparting biblical truth to people.  Of course biblical teachers are going to want to teach biblical truth, but if that's all they do, then I don't think they've really accomplished all that God would have them accomplish with the gift he has given them.  Hopefully, teachers will see that in addition to teaching biblical truth, they should desire to teach others to teach themselves.  This is how believers can really see lasting fruit in others' lives -- teaching them how to rightly divide God's word.  Thankfully, this is what the www.HellsBell.net site has allowed me to do.  In spite of the fact that the vast majority of responses to the site have been negative and against it, it has allowed me to engage people in conversations that deal with understanding the scriptures by reading them in context.  If believers can help others do this very thing, it will keep many people from being deceived and from believing things that God does not teach.  I am hoping that God will continue to draw visitors to the site and allow me to speak with them about His word.  

180 THE MOVIE

On a side note, I want to encourage you to watch Ray Comfort's new movie called "180."  It's a thirty minute movie on youtube that shows the "spirit" and reasoning behind so many people that support abortion.  Ray Comfort will take you to another time in history when people began to accept subtle lies.  He shows how the results of believing these lies led to the destruction of masses of people, just as abortion does today.  And of course, as Ray always does, he ties everything back to the gospel of Jesus Christ.  I hope you'll watch it and share it with others.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7y2KsU_dhwI&feature=player_embedded


SUPPORT CHANGE

This primarily concerns and affects those who send financial support to us, or to the missionaries we support, through Mission Projects.  As of now, Mission Projects is no longer a non-profit organization.  They are still a Missions organization, but they currently do not have status as a non-profit.  Any funds sent to them for support are no longer tax deductible. This doesn't mean that funds cannot be sent to them; it just means that the donation won't be tax deductible.  As of now, I don't have another option for those who wish to send financial support and receive a tax deduction for their gift.  If this isn't a concern for you, and you wish to continue supporting the work we do, you can still send your support to Mission Projects, and they will still send the full amount to us.  (Though Mission Projects is not a non-profit, they do not profit off of any support they receive.)  Or if you prefer, you can send your support directly to our PO BOX and simply make your check out to myself. 

http://www.preachingjesuschrist.com/donate.html

I apologize for any inconvenience this may cause and want to thank each of you that do support us in the work we do.  If you have any questions about this, please feel free to email me.  Also, if you'd like to help or want to know of any of our specific needs as they relate to evangelism and preaching here, you can email me directly, and I'll be glad to share how you can help.  

Again, I want to thank each of you that support us through your giving and prayers.  Through your giving and prayers, the Lord has always supplied us with what we need to do what He's called us to do.  If you will, please keep our ministry here in prayer.  Please pray for me as I preach in this community and seek for the Lord to grow his church.  Please pray that God would continue to give us favor and direct our steps as we reach out with the gospel of Jesus Christ.  May the Lord bless you all.

IN Christ,

Sean & Lisa Scott
PreachingJesus.Wordpress.com

 Lately I've been working on writing a response to Rob Bell's new book title Love Win's.  For those who haven't read the book, it's a book that questions the existence of Hell and make a mockery of the Word of God.  I finished my response and have posted it onto a stand alone website.  Here's the website address:

                                             www.HellsBell.net

It is my hope that God will use what I have written to save people from the deception that is being promoted in his book.  As I've looked at other blogs that are discussing Rob Bell's book, I have been amazed at how many people agree with what Bell has written.  It is clearly a sign that many today, who call themselves Christians, do not read the bible.  I have tried in my response to keep it as simple as possible in hopes of showing even the newest believer that they can read the Word of God in context and not be deceived.

If you know anyone who has either read LOVE WINS, or who has heard of Rob Bell, or who has been affected by Emergent teaching, then I encourage you to forward them what I have written.  May the Lord use what I have written to help keep other from the deception being promoted in the book Love Win's.

Thank you to all of you who keep our family in prayer.  May the Lord Bless you all!

IN Christ,
Sean Scott 

Greetings IN Jesus Name!

FROM MEXICO TO NEW MEXICO

This will be our last update from Mexico. We have a had a wonderful time ministering in Mexico but the Lord is brining it to a close. On Friday we’ll be heading back to New Mexico and will be staying there for a more long term ministry…Praise the Lord! While I’ve usually preferred to live and minister outside the US, I am truly excited to be going back to the US because the Lord has shown us He is going to establish a long term ministry for us there. One, that by the grace of God, we’ll be able to plant and see lasting fruit. The Lord has given us so much confirmation that I am very expectant about what God is going to do and establish for His kingdom. I can’t think of another time where the Lord has given me such hope and faith that He is going to bring about what I’ve been longing to see, the salvation of many souls and a healthy local fellowship established. Again, I rejoice that the Lord has sent us to different places to exhort brethren and work alongside them. I’ve learned and grown a lot through it. But I’m excited that the Lord is planting us somewhere that we can plant roots and see lasting fruit. I’m also excited that the Lord is sending a few brethren to New Mexico for us to fellowship with and for us to labor together with. Braden, the brother who has been ministering and fellowshipping with us here in Mexico, will be moving to New Mexico at the end of May. Also, another brother and his family will be relocating from Texas sometime at the end of May or in June. When we leave on Friday, we’ll head back to our land in the mountains but will be finding a place in the city (most likely Albuquerque or Gallup) where we’ll live and do ministry. We know that in time the Lord will make all those details clear…He always does. I’ve learned that in following the Lord, He does not always give you all the details of what He is doing at once. In my own life, I’ve seen the Lord give us just enough revelation of His will to require us to believe and walk by faith. As we follow Him with the revelation He’s given us, we then see the Lord provide for our needs and give us clearer direction. For instance, when we came to Mexico this last time, we arrived in CA with a few hundred dollars. We knew the Lord said it was time to leave so we left and came this way. We arrived at Braden’s place in CA with a few hundred dollars not knowing where we would live. We still needed to find a house and furnish the necessary things needed to live in it. But it wasn’t until we got to CA that the Lord supplied the money we needed to rent a home and furnish the appliances, dishes, etc. Then when we drove down to Mexico, the Lord provided a place for us to live the first day we where here. God always gives us enough leading and confirmation to step out in faith and trust Him. And so many times He’s taken us to the very end of our ability and supply and then supplied everything we needed, and then some! I know the Lord will do the same as we head back to the US. He’ll be faithful to direct our steps…He always does.

FRANCISCO

I want to ask that if you feel led to, please pray for Francisco. Francisco is a man I’ve know now for a couple months. He used to live on the streets by the border fence and would spend his days shooting up heroin. One day, brother Noe was preaching down there, and Francisco left with Noe to go to a drug rehab. Since that time, I’ve been spending time with him almost every week, talking to him about Christ. He has been free from heroin all this time and you can tell that his mind is starting to come back. He’s been using heroin for probably 30 plus years. He’s been reading the Bible everyday and is coming to know the scriptures quite well. Yet as of today, he still remains outside of Christ, not having been born again. He definitely seems close, and I’m believing the Lord will complete the good work I see him doing in this man. Brother Noe will continue to minister to him when we leave.

BROTHER NOE

Probably the most difficult part about leaving will be saying goodbye to Noe and not seeing him anymore. He is a dear brother whose zeal for the Lord puts most Christians to shame. I have seen few brothers who have more zeal for God and who live as open and transparent a life as Noe does. In this regard, he is an example that believers could benefit by following. Even if he has nothing, he doesn’t let that stop him from rejoicing in God or hinder him from going to the streets to share the gospel with people. He’s one brother I know that faithfully preaches to the lost just about every single day. Together we have had a blessed time preaching at the different jails that the Lord gave us access too. In fact, he plans on continuing to preach in the Tijuana jail when we leave. The Lord has also helped us establish the Word as a foundation in his life. Like many Mexicans, he comes from a Pentecostal background. In Mexico, Pentecostalism is on the extreme end of the Christian spectrum. What I mean is that it’s very based upon feelings, emotions, and signs and wonders. Many times, there’s very little testing of these things with the Word of God. Because of that, there are all kinds of false teachings and practices in the Church. As we’ve continued to point our brother to the Word to test all things, we’ve seen him grow in his understanding of truth on many matters. It has been a joy to see. In fact, the Lord has even recently given him some prophetic dreams that he will be having conflict with his local church as he stands for the Word of God and not the practices and traditions of men. Unfortunately, this is the process that many believers find themselves in when they begin to test all things by the Word of God. But it’s also a process that God uses to grow a believer and have them trust in Him and love the truth above all things. I’m praying the Lord’s perfect work will be done in his life. Here is a picture of Noe.　He's also in the picture above in white on the left.

I will also be putting Noe up on our site for support. If you would like to help support a genuine brother who truly does labor in the gospel, then he would be a good brother to support. I have seen him live on practically nothing and yet still remain faithful to preach the gospel. I have also seen where we have given him support, and he generously shared his resources with others. He’s a brother I know where money truly does not have a hold on his heart. Right now, he lives with his unconverted brother’s family. It’s not the best living situation. They are drug addicts and indulge in some pretty wicked things. We are praying the Lord will provide him a place of his own. When we left recently to visit the states for a week, Noe stayed at our place while we were gone. Aside from ministry, he basically spent the whole week in private prayer. While we were here in Mexico, we offered for him to live with us, but I think he didn’t want to impose. But we’re praying that the Lord, through brethren, will provide enough for him to get his own place. He can get a small place for about $100 a month. If you would like to help support him, just send me an email and we can talk further.

Thank you to all of you who keep us prayer. It is greatly appreciated. May God Bless you...

IN Christ,

Sean & Lisa Scott

 
Brethren and Friends,

Greetings in Jesus Name!  Here’s an update on our stay and work here in Mexico.  First a short note on our family.  We are all doing well and for the most part have been in good health.   We’ve had a little sickness but nothing compared to what we’ve experienced in the past.  So we’re thankful for the good health the Lord has kept us in.  The kids stay busy with home school and have started taking swimming lessons at the local indoor pool.  It’s been good for them to have some activities to do here because there really aren’t that many things for kids to do in Rosarito.  The nice thing is we’re close enough to California so we can sometimes cross the border and find other activities for them to do.  That’s been a real blessing for us because it can be difficult for children in a place where they don’t know many kids and there’s not much for them to do. 

MINISTRY

Since our last update we’ve had the opportunity to preach in many places.  We preached at the border for a while but then noticed that there were actually several different ministries down there to preach and feed the people.  We felt it was best to labor in other places where there weren‘t as many ministries “competing.”  For a while, Braden and I were able to preach in a Drug Rehabilitation Center in which I preached the last time I was here.  We had an open door and were able to share the gospel there for about two months.  Braden was able to teach several times himself and also translate for me when I preached.  We were definitely able to see the Lord use our time there to give men a concern for the state of their soul.  One man named Adan has been a professing believer for many years (I remembered him from the last time we were here).  He reads the scriptures regularly and knows much about the word of God.  Most of the time you see him, he seems happy and joyful.  Yet after hearing us preach for a while, he confessed to Braden that he was not sure that he was saved.  He doesn’t remember a conversion or a changed life that followed.  He just remembers being baptized and showed us his baptismal certificate.  But after talking with him, he realized that he couldn’t put his hope in his baptism and needed assurance from God for his salvation.  I was just glad he was willing to be honest about his condition and willing to question his salvation in light of scripture.  

The reality is that so many people have the same testimony as Adan.  They’ve been awakened to the truth about Jesus; they read the scriptures and may even have a decent knowledge of biblical things; they know the right words to say when they are around believers and can even be joyful; but they can never point to a time in their life when they “first” believed on the Lord and were made a “new creation”.  They can’t recall a time when Christ was their “first love”, when they knew their sins were forgiven and they were cleansed before God.  People often say that you can’t base faith on feelings.  To a degree that’s true.  Faith is based on an assurance of biblical truth.  However, when someone believes unto salvation, feelings most certainly are part of their new birth experience.  You cannot meet the Lord, have your sins forgiven, have your conscience cleansed, be made a new creation, and become indwelt by the Spirit of God WITHOUT having some sort of experience (feelings) from the Lord, and not just feelings for the sake of feelings.  But when one is converted, there is a testimony of having a “first love”.  A real first love for God elicits feelings and actions.  In fact, leaving this condition is what the Lord rebuked the church in Ephesus for (Rev 2.4).  You certainly can’t leave what has never been a reality in your life! 

There are multitudes of professing believers who are in this place today.  If people would only follow the exhortation in the scriptures to “test themselves” to see if they are in the faith, and to “make their calling and election sure”, they would find themselves able to move from a false faith into a true saving faith in Christ.  Some people though are unwilling to think that they might not be saved.  Every professing believer should be open and willing to examine their initial salvation, their subsequent lifestyle, and their current lifestyle in light of scripture.  It’s better to see our current state before God than to continue on in a state of religious deception. 


JAIL MINISTRY - ROSARITO

As I mentioned in our last update, we’ve been preaching in the local jail here in Rosarito.  It has been beyond a blessing to preach to the men we see there, almost on a daily basis.  There are some times when you preach that you can just feel the grace and presence of God.  I truly feel that way almost every time that we go and preach at this local jail.  On the weekends, Braden and I go there to share the gospel.  Lately, when Braden comes down, he has been preaching and is getting very comfortable using his Spanish.  During the week, I go almost daily to the jail with a new convert here who speaks English.  Every day there are new men and women to preach to.  Some people are innocent, and the police just put them in there; but there are also many people there who are addicted to alcohol and drugs.  Many times we’ve shown up and seen heroin addicts shivering in sickness because of their withdrawals.  Having once used a lot of heroin myself (even overdosing from it), I’m able to share with them the freedom there is in Christ and point out their greater need, which is forgiveness of sins.

A few weeks ago, I was preaching and explaining what the cross means to man, what it says about man and what is says about God.  I was speaking on the love of God to forgive any man who believes because of what Christ has done, no matter what their sins were.  When I finished preaching, one man wanted to talk more.  He spoke English, so it was easy to talk.  He began confessing his sins to me and wanted to know how God could forgive him.  He was a heroin addict, and he confessed to having killed people while in that lifestyle.  I wasn’t asking him to tell me these things; he was just openly confessing his sins because he wanted to be forgiven, if God would actually do so.  I spent some more time with him helping him to understand what Christ did for us at the cross and letting him know that God could and would forgive his sin (and make him new) if he repented and believed.  I prayed with him before we had to leave, and he seemed to have a little hope in his eyes.

There have been several occasions like this though.  Sometimes we’ve had people, when were finished preaching, straightly ask us what they must do to be saved.  Other times, men will ask questions and want to clear up doubts they have.  And of course, there are always those who have no interest in what you are saying or those who are too drunk or high to care.  Before we leave though, we also give the guys food, a gospel of John, and a tract and encourage them to spend the rest of their time in jail reading the word.  But again and again, the Lord seems to give us such grace when we preach there.  I always leave there full of joy and thanking God that we have free reign to go there as much as we like.

GOVERNMENT LETTERS

As I mentioned in our last update, Braden and I have been working on getting papers that would give us a little covering from the authorities for preaching.  We haven’t really pursued it much on the national level but had a great door open up to us in Tijuana.  Through one of Braden’s contacts at the US courthouse, we were put in contact with a man down here who is heavily involved with Mexican social work.  In fact, when we went to visit this man, he was being interview by the BBC while we where there.  Needless to say, we got bumped so he could do his interview, so we waited around until it was finished and then were able to meet with this man.  It turns out that he is well connected with the TJ (Tijuana) government and was able to direct us to someone who could help us out.  We walked across the street to a government building and met a man and explained what we were doing and what type of letter we wanted.  He ended up typing us a letter that encouraged us in our work and gave us some level of legitimacy with the local law.  So that was a blessing to have, even though at the time we weren’t doing any ministry in TJ. 

DIRECTION FROM GOD - TIJUANA JAIL

Every now and then, the Lord will speak to me through a prophetic dream.  In fact, it seems like the Lord has been doing this a little more lately.  About a week ago, I had a dream from the Lord.  In the dream, I was driving to a new jail to preach.  It was raining outside, and I was taking this really long road to get there, but I knew there was a shorter way to get to the jail.  I was going to the jail expecting to talk to just a few people, but when I got there, there were about 200 people.  In the dream, I also wasn’t preaching to men in cells.  They had taken some of the men out of cells and put them in a room with chairs, and I was able to preach the gospel to them.  I woke up and knew it had meaning, but I didn’t realize it was about to play out right before my eyes.  Since this was during the week, Braden was in California, so I was going to preach at a new jail with a local brother here.  We had been referred to a jail in Tijuana by a man that I had met.  A few days earlier, we had gone to this jail to get permission to preach there, which they granted.  So I woke up in the morning and picked up this brother to head to this jail to preach.  And just like in my dream, it was raining outside.  We arrived at this new jail, and there was only one guy there.  So we preached to him and had a great time of ministry.  But after we were finished, the judge came out and wanted to talk to us.  He told us that he knew another place that we should go to that has a lot more inmates on a regular basis.  So he made a phone call and told this other jail that he was sending us over.  He gave us directions and we headed to this other jail.  It’s a larger facility right in the heart of Tijuana.  We went inside and talked to one of the directors, and they said that we needed to come back on a Monday and talk to another man and submit what we’d like to do in writing.  As we were leaving, I asked the brother with me to ask them how many guys they usually have there.  They said about 200.  It was about the same number of men the Lord told me in the dream.  So we left and came back the following Monday.  We met with the director, I showed him our paperwork from the TJ government, and they gave us the go ahead to preach there every week. Then they took us to a room filled with chairs, and they said that we wouldn’t be going to the cells (like we do in Rosarito) but that they would bring the men into this room and we would be able to preach and teach in there.  Again, it was exactly what the Lord had shown me in the dream a few days before. 

So this past Wednesday, I was to go and preach to about 40 men and will have the opportunity to preach to new inmates each week.  It’s encouraging to know the Lord is directing your steps!


(Here's an outside photo of the jail)

NEW CONVERT

Aside from preaching at the local jail, we’ve been spending time discipling and ministering to a new convert named Fernando.  He was deported from the US and used to work in LA in the entertainment industry doing audio and video work.  He’s been in Mexico a little under a year.  I was put in contact with him through our landlord here.  We’ve been able to spend a lot time together, and it’s been refreshing to be around a new believer who has sincere questions about the word of God.  He goes to a local church here but spends a lot of time with our family, and he helps translate when I go to the jail during the week.  It’s been neat to see him count the cost in following Jesus with decisions he’s having to make in his new life.  I’m glad for the time that the Lord has put us together.  He made a comment the other day that I want to share that I thought was very telling.  Fernando comes from the entertainment industry.  He’s been around a lot of money and a lot of different celebrities in Hollywood.  He asked me one day if I was going to build God a temple (he meant a church building).  I got to explain to him how a church building is not a temple but that believers in Christ are the temple of the Lord.  I explained to him how the body is to interact with each other and how God is focused on the people.  I also told him that the building isn’t per-se the problem, but what matters is what happens when the believers get together.  Then he said “Sean, I’ve worked the production and entertainment industry, and the Sunday services look a lot like a production”.  The truth is, in many cases, he’s exactly right.  Many services have little in common with the scriptures and much in common with movie or entertainment production.  I just found it interesting that a new believer with his background was able to see what so many cannot see.

BROTHER ISMAIL   

Just wanted to post a recent photo of Brother Ismail.  This is a new convert that they recently baptized who is a part of their home fellowship.

TRIP TO NEW MEXICO

In April, we plan to take a trip and visit the land in New Mexico.  It will be a nice break and we’re looking forward to fellowshipping with some friends who will be coming to visit us.  There’s a possibility we may take another week and visit some brethren in  a couple other states as well before we would head back to Mexico.

Thank you to all of you who keep us in prayer.  If you will please continue to keep our ministry in Mexico and our upcoming trip in prayer.  May the Lord bless you….

IN Christ,

Sean & Lisa Scott

Greetings IN Jesus Name!

MEXICO


We’ve been in Mexico for about three weeks now and have been able to get situated in our new home.  We have definitely experienced the grace of God in His leading us in our move and ministry here.  In fact, it has been much easier this time compared to the last time we were here.  The Lord, with great ease, has given us a place to live and has directed our steps in ministry here. 

BRADEN

As I said, we left our place in New Mexico about three weeks ago and headed to Braden’s place in San Diego.  It was about a twelve hour drive without any problems.  Braden is a brother I’ve know since 1997.  I met him shortly after Lisa and I were converted.  We’ll be working together primarily with Braden while we are here.  Braden is almost fluent in Spanish, and this will be his first time doing ministry in Mexico.  He works a full time job during the week and comes down here on the weekends to do ministry together and to fellowship.  Lisa and I are very joyful to be working together with our brother in Christ.

IN Christ,

Sean & Lisa Scott

Greetings Brethren IN Jesus Name!

LAND

We’ve been here on the land for just under a year and we‘re almost finished with the work the Lord would have us to do here.   I have to say, even though this is a beautiful place our time here really has been a trial and test from the Lord.  It would be hard for most to imagine that it would be more difficult to be here in the US than being in either India or Mexico.  But while we were in both of those countries our time was filled with ministry with brethren and ministry to the lost.  And while those things are done unto the Lord they certainly bring one joy and satisfaction as well.  Aside from the preparations the Lord has had us do here I can see how God has used this time to humble me and help me see regardless of what God has you doing, as long as you are in His will doing what He would have you to do, that is what should bring you joy and satisfaction.  How easy it is to elevate things like evangelism and public ministry and equate them to “really serving the Lord”.  But that’s certainly not the case.  Being obedient to God in whatever He would have you to do or where He would have you to be is what is important.  I know believers often say these things and agree with them, but it’s one thing to say them and another thing for God to test you in it.  And while I do recognize that God has provided this land and everything on it for us and brethren in Christ, at times it really was a trial.  I can’t tell you how many times I really did want to leave to preach and be around brethren.  But, as good as those things are I had to die to them and trust in what the Lord was doing.  But, it’s been a good and valuable lesson for me and one that now I’m glad the Lord has taken me through.

GODS PROVISION

As you know the Lord has given us this land in preparation for the future.  Not only for us but for brethren as well.  These last 10 months the Lord has continued to supply what we needed here as we’ve worked on the land.  Being up in the mountains, one of the difficulties people have here is getting water.  We’re up at almost 8000 ft and there really is no surface water supply.  Because wells here are so deep most people haul water from places that allow it.  That is what we have been doing the entire time we’ve been here.  Lisa and I have prayed about the water situation many times.  A few months ago the Lord answered our prayers!  A brother in the Lord felt compelled to ask if we wanted help in getting a well drilled on our land.  This was a huge blessing and we could not deny that God was again providing for us and others here on this land.  So, for the last two months we’ve had well drillers out here drilling us a water well.  They just hit water a few days ago at a depth of 1300 ft!  That’s a deep well.  Right now they are finishing the last of their work and should be done in 4 or 5 days.  It’s always amazing to see God’s faithfulness to provide for whatever He calls His children to do. 

CALIFORNIA & MEXICO
While the well guys were still drilling Lisa and I had the opportunity to take a two week break from the land. In fact, we were able to take a trip to Texas and California to visit brethren. We drove 11 hours to Texas and were able to have my mom watch the kids for us so we could fly to CA for 9 days. It was a real blessing, especially for Lisa, because this was the first time in probably 7 years that she’s been able to take a real break from the kids! So after we visited some friends in Texas we flew to San Diego to visit a brother in Christ named Braden. I’ve known Braden since shortly after my conversion in 97. Since we were so close to Mexico Lisa and I wanted to visit the town that we used to live in when we were preaching there with Josef and Lina. The interesting thing is that the Lord was giving Braden dreams about going to Mexico as well. So it definitely seemed of the Lord for us all to go there. Braden, who’s fluent in Spanish, had a few reservations about going. After all, every news story about Mexico has to do with people being killed along boarder towns. Not only that, he works for the federal government and the FBI had warned them saying there was a bounty on the heads of all federal workers! But it was good because he didn’t let fear keep him from going. He just prayed about it and trusted the Lord. So while we were there we were able to go down to Rosarito Mexico twice. We were able to show him some of the places we were familiar with, where we lived and did ministry, and preach to a few people while we were there. One night we went out to eat at a place that has a lot of seafood restaurants. It’s sort of outside of Rosarito by the ocean. You have to park along a long wall and then walk to the restaurants. It can actually be a little overwhelming trying to pick a place to eat there. As you walk down the road the restaurants workers from each place come out and try to get you to go to their place. So you end up walking down the road with like 4 or 5 people getting right up in your face trying to get you to eat at their place. The funny thing is they all sell the same thing so in the end it really doesn’t matter where you go. Anyway, we picked one and had dinner. While we were there I met a young man in his twenties. I was able to talk to him for probably a good thirty minutes about the gospel. He told me that he ran a drug rehab in one city but then he was also trying to hook me up with drugs and prostitutes when we were there! Needless to say it was a great lead in to talking to him about sin, judgment to come, God’s nature and character, and salvation through Jesus Christ. I could tell at times he would come under conviction but would then try to change the subject to shake it off. Though he didn’t repent and believe I am believing God ordained our meeting for whatever He is doing in this mans life. I’m hoping to be able to talk to him again. After we finished dinner we headed back to the car. When we got there we noticed that the passenger door was open and the glove box was open. While we were having dinner someone had broken into Braden’s car. They had smashed the door handle and were able to open the door. Thankfully they just stole papers out of the glove box and left behind more valuable things that most people would steal. Having his car broken into was a real trial for Braden. He was already pressing through his hesitations about Mexico and now his car had been broken into. The great thing was was that he saw this trial as something from God. He told me that he had recently prayed to God about his belongings…about giving them to God and them not having a hold on his life. He saw this as God’s way of seeing if he had really let go of these things. I see so often that the love of material things, not wanting to suffer loss (materially or physically), and fear so often hold people back from giving all to God. People don’t realize the very things they cherish and won’t let go are the very things that actually keep them in bondage while they think they are free and keep them from being used by God. But it was good to see this brother begin to rejoice in his trial. And when we truly understand that God works all things for the good of the those who love Him, and understand that God is indeed Sovereign, we can as Paul said “rejoice in trials and tribulations”. If we know that God allows and brings certain situation into our lives then we can rejoice knowing that even, or I should say especially, through suffering and loss He is conforming us into the image of Christ. It’s a road very few people will allow the Lord to take them down because they really haven’t “forsaken everything from the heart” including their own lives. But it was a joy to see a brother rejoicing in a trial that God had brought his way. I know that when someone begins to embrace trials as God ordained in their life they will begin to know God in ways they have not known before. It really is wonderful to see.
HATS OFF TO THE JW’S
I hate to say it but I have to give credit where credit is due. If some of you have read my updates from when I was in Mexico you’ll know that I often wrote about the ministry of the JW’s there. I was constantly running into them and had several opportunities to preach to them and even to some of their elders. One thing was for sure….you could get up almost any morning and drive around and find some JW’s going door to door spreading their faith. I have to say, even though their doctrine is completely false they must really believe what they say they believe. Even if the reason they share their faith has selfish and false motives they believe it enough to be diligent about it. I found the same thing to be true when I was there this time. As I was preaching to the hotel manager he told me of people who would come by and hold bible study with him. I just dropped my head because I knew who it was. I asked him if it was the JW’s and he said yes. They were still going faithfully door to door sharing their faith. I spent a good while with him helping him to see the Christ of the bible and the falsehood of what the JW’s teach. Then later that evening I was talking to another one of the hotel workers about Christ. He was hard as a rock. He kept telling me about the “goofy Charismatic Pentecostals” who hit people on the head and make them fall to the floor. He talked about how they say people are healed when they really aren’t healed. He saw it all as a big circus (and I agree with him). For me the two encounters with these two workers just reiterated how backwards much of what is considered Christianity is today. It’s sad that people who don’t know Christ would see Christianity as a laughing joke and see the JW’s as those who take their faith seriously. And it’s true, while many churches seem to have their own little isolated club the JW’s are traveling land and sea to make one convert. We certainly do live in days of lukewarmness and apostasy. Now I’m not advocating that every believer begin a door to door evangelism ministry. While we’re all called to evangelism we are not all called to full time evangelism as a calling. That is something God calls men to and He sends them out. But I am convinced that if more professing believers were truly serious about their faith and had actually laid down their lives then they too would be sent by God and burdened to share with others the true riches that are found in Jesus Christ. True faith should and does produce a serious commitment to God and His kingdom. So much so that all other pursuits become foolish and vain in light of the truth of being a part of God’s unending kingdom. It’s a sad day when a cult is more faithful to what they believe then professing Christians who say they know the ONE who gives and has eternal life. It reminds me of the Keith Green song “Asleep in the light”. If you haven’t heard it you can listen to it here: 
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ik-XOVZcwow
MOVING TO MEXICO
As many of you know I truly have a heart felt desire to return to India and preach. And though I’ve wanted to go, at this time God has not confirmed that it’s His will or made it possible. (While I’m still hoping the Lord makes it possible sometime soon I want it to be in His will and not just my desire). However, surprisingly to Lisa and I, God has confirmed that He is sending us again to Mexico for a season. It’s certainly not a place that we ever thought we’d return too but we’re glad to do so in God’s will. We know the Lord at this time would have us to return to Rosarito and do evangelism ministry with Braden. Braden is fluent in Spanish and definitely feels called by God at this time to do ministry there. So for us it’s a joy to see the Lord put us together with him for a season to do ministry in Mexico. As of now, we’re planning on leaving on Oct 8th to head to San Diego and then to Rosarito to find a place to stay. We’ve been working with a lady in Rosartio who is helping us find a furnished place. That way we’ll be able to show up with just our clothes and a few other necessary items. How long will we be there? We could be there just through the winter or maybe longer. Only the Lord knows. We are though looking forward to working with our brother in Christ and preaching in Mexico. Also, given the fact that we’re so close to San Diego I’m praying about spending some time preaching in the Muslim community there.

BROTHER ISMAIL
As I mentioned in my last email brother Ismail was able to purchase a motor bike with the monies that some of you sent. Here’s a picture of him on his new (used) bike. Thanks again to all who helped!

If you will, please keep us in prayer regarding our upcoming move and ministry. And we truly thank each of you that pray for us, support us financially, and for those who have sent us encouragement through email. It’s a wonderful feeling to know that brethren you know, and brethren you don’t know and may never meet this side of eternity, are lifting you and your family up in prayer. May the Lord bless you….
IN Christ,
Sean & Lisa Scott & Family (Hannah, Hadassah, Ethan & Jeremiah)
www.preachingjesuschrist.com
www.preachingjesus.wordpress.com

Greetings in Jesus Name!!
 
Just wanted to give an update about our time here in New Mexico. Things have finally started coming together and we’re just about finished with the work here. Everything was kinda put on hold due to an accident I had. Myself and another brother who was visiting us from California were working on a barn that we are converting into living space when I broke three fingers on my right hand (We still live in our trailer. We are converting the barn for other saints to use when that time comes). In New Mexico there are very high winds here. I had my hand right near the door hinges when a gust of wind slammed the door shut on my hand. It was very painful and I ended up with three fingers broken right below my knuckles. I just recently got the cast off and am able to bend my fingers enough to type. I’m still not able to make a fist but my range of motion is improving every day. Thank the Lord!

MINISTRY ON THE LAND

For those who don’t know the state of New Mexico is called the Land of Enchantment. However, I think the majority of people, at least where we live, are Enchanted by evil spirit and are in bondage to all sorts of wickedness (especially drugs and alcohol). The Lord has bless us by having different contractors and people come to do various work here for us. So far everyone who has come is either on drugs or an alcoholic. The good thing is this has given me a steady stream of people to share the gospel with even when I don’t leave and go into town! We had an electrician do some work for us that was continually strung out on crack. In fact, he showed up one night at 2:00 am and worked till 5:00 without telling me he was coming. The whole time he was here that night all he did was hang one light! He was really strung out. But the Lord gave me so many opportunities to share the gospel with him and also to share how God through Christ delivered me from that lifestyle as well. This man would also bring a different worker with him every day which gave me someone new to preach too. Even though the guy took FOREVER to finish his work that should have taken him about two days to finish I saw that God had him here so we could continue to preach Jesus to him day after day.

Even today we had a final contractor come out to give us an estimate to complete the barn conversion. After we finished talking about the barn he asked me if I believe in aliens. That really came out of nowhere. Nevertheless, it was a great way to be able to spend the next three hours talking to him about the Gospel. I could definitely see the Lord was testifying to what I was sharing. The Lord gave me the grace to answer everyone of his objections and questions and to point him personally to Christ. He had some very real and genuine questions like.. Why does God allow suffering? Why did an all knowing God allow sin to come into this world? How could God kill whole peoples in the Old Testament? ect…ect. Those are all really good questions and it reminded me of when I had similar questions before I was converted. We as believers, need to realize that those are real and valid questions. We need to have the patience and ability to share with people the answers to these questions all the while continually directing people to their need for Christ. I really felt the Lord was doing a work in this man and he acknowledge that God “probably” had him here as well…though I’m quite certain He did!

We’ve also developed a great relationship with a family that lives about a mile behind us. It’s a husband and wife in their late 20’s and they have five children. Again the husband is an alcoholic but is very functional as far as still being able to talk and work. I met him one day in the winter when I was stuck in the snow. I was having a terrible day. One of those days where everything seems to go wrong. Then at night when I was trying to drive off the land, when I was about 20 yards from the exit, I got stuck in the snow and ice without a shovel. I was quite frustraighted at having to walk over a mile, in the dark, back to our place. When I finally got the shovel and made it back to the car our neighbor who I had not met, named Ben, had pulled up when he saw that we were stuck. He helped us get unstuck and I was able to share with him a little about Jesus. I realized that the whole ordeal was ordained by God. I was really repenting for my frustration and attitude as I saw God's greater plan. Since that time I’ve been able to spend many hours with Ben. Seems like almost every time we get together we’re able to spend a couple hours talking about God and the Gospel. The refreshing thing is almost all of his questions were sincere and asked out of a lack of knowledge. Many times when you talk to people about Christ you have to deal with one objection after another. That hasn’t been the case with him and his family. It’s really been a joy. In fact, when I explained to him the reason for Christ death on the cross he was really amazed. He said he had never heard why Christ had to die. It’s been a real joy sharing with him and seeing him gradually come to understand the truth that can save his soul and bring him to God.
Lisa has also had many opportunities to share with his children. Their children are about the same age as ours. One day Lisa was asking his kids if they knew about Jesus. They looked at her and said “Who’s Jesus?”. Pretty amazing. These kids knew nothing. Another time Lisa was in the trailer making a grocery list. She was kinda talking to herself as she wrote each item down that we needed to buy. One of his kids looked at Lisa and said “I hear voices in my head too!”. This young girl then proceeded to tell Lisa how she would hear voices talking to her. This was clearly demonic. Lisa was also telling this girl about the Lord and the girl kept telling Lisa that God was dead! Lisa spent time with her telling her about Jesus and His resurrection from the dead…telling her that Christ was alive. All of the sudden the girl opens our trailer door and yells to her brothers and sisters outside “you guys are wrong - God is not dead He’s alive!”. It was a joy to see. I'm sure demonic spirits and principalities were reeling at that proclamation!  Since then their children have been very open to the things of God. We try to have them over as much as we can so we can sow the Gospel in their lives as well.

                                                                   Ben, Tasha and their Children

NEAR MISS

A few days ago I took my car into Albuquerque to have it worked on. It was going to take all day so I figured I’d just walk the streets and find people to talk to about Jesus. As I was walking down the sidewalk next to the street I hear a car engine rev up and the horn blowing. I turned around and saw a car coming right towards me. I literally jumped out of the way and then heard the car crash into another car and then turned around and saw it spin and hit the median. It’s was a really close call for me. No one was hurt but I stayed around till the police showed up. During that time an older man walked up and started talking with me. It wasn’t too long before I was able to start talking with him about Christ. It was really sad actually. He was from an Assembly of God Church. He proceeded to tell me all about being a founding member, about how they don’t believe any doctrine or teaching unless there are at least three scripture reference..ect..ect..ect. He could tell me all these things about his denomination that mean absolutely NOTHING and couldn’t tell me anything about knowing a personal living Christ and walking daily with Him. I was able to point this out to him in a gentle way and exhort him with his need for true saving faith. But I couldn’t help just thinking how many millions of people are just like this man. Able to tell you everything about their denomination, doctrines they believe that make them special, all about how their church functions and yet they know nothing of Christ and His salvation. Nothing of having Christ dwell in their hearts by faith, nothing of the witness of God’s Spirit, nothing of expecting the blessed hope of Christ return. Just dead empty tombs, void of the life of God, with a façade of Christianity that has no power. I really felt the whole ordeal was from God so I could speak to this man about the true condition of his soul. I’ve come to see in my own life that many situations that appear to be bad are often used by the Lord is such good ways. Either giving us opportunities to share the gospel or opportunities to be more conformed into the image of Christ. If you can see (and it really is true) that every situation no matter how bad can and is an opportunity for you to exhibit the fruits of the Spirit and bring you into more conformity to Christ..you can rejoice! When you truly understand this you can really give thanks to God, from the heart, no matter what situation you find yourself in.

BROTHER ISMAIL

For those who pray and periodically send support for brother Ismail - he and his family are doing well. They recently had to move from their house to a new location in the city. The place where they are now living is in even a more dense Muslim area giving them new opportunities to preach to their new neighbors. Brother Ismail still has his home fellowship and continues to minister and build up the relatively new converts that attend. He is also working on translating the “AnseringIslam.com” website into the Telegu language making the resources accessible to more believers. On a personal note, brother Ismail’s motor scooter recently broke down. It was their families only personal means of transportation. In fact when I was in India Ismail took me to several villages on his motor scooter. It was in such bad shape I really wondered if we would make it back and forth to the villages. Thankfully we did. But it did finally quit working. I want to say thanks to those of you who have recently sent support for Ismail. With the support, that came at the right time, he was able to purchase a new motor bike for him and his family almost paying it in full. He was able to purchase it from another brother who’s letting him pay the rest off in a month or so. Either way, Ismail and his family were extremely thankful and praising the Lord that they were able to get another means of transportation so soon.

WHAT’S NEXT? - INDIA TRIP

While I continue to do ministry around where we live I’m also praying and planning a trip to India by myself. Provided the funds are there, and the Lord brings it all together, I am praying and planning on making a trip to India soon. Lord-willing, I plan on staying for about 4 or 5 weeks and visiting some brethren as well as preaching in a heavily Muslim populated area in Northern India. Right now I’m tentatively planning on visiting a brother in Southern India as well. He and his wife are missionaries from the US and have been in India for about six months. From there I would be going to see brother Ismail who is preaching among Muslims about two hours from the village our family used to live in. I plan on holding some meetings together with him to preach the Gospel to the Muslims he’s working amongst. From there I would go to Northern India - West Bengal- and minister along side a brother and his wife who are working in a Muslim area where they are constantly persecuted for their faith (hopefully brother Ismail will be able to go with me as well).  In fact, one of the believer's daughters was recently raped by one of the fanatical Muslims because they left Islam. They also face continual intimidation, have their bibles stolen, and sometimes are beaten for their faith. These believers meet and congregate in home fellowships. I will be able to hold meetings to exhort the brethren and hold meetings to preach the gospel to Muslims in that area. I believe the real thrust and purpose of this trip will be to work along side these believers in this dense Muslim area in Northern India. Lord-willing, as all this comes together I’ll send out another update. If you would like to help with the trip or find out more details you can email me directly. Again, this is something I’m praying about and seems to be a door that the Lord is opening for me at this time. Please keep me in prayer regarding this trip.
Thank you to each of you who have kept us in prayer and encouraged us as we’ve sought to continue preaching the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

IN Christ,
Sean & Lisa Scott

www.preachingjesuschrist.com