Update on Dr. Jessup
March 11, 2010
| Update on Dr. Jessup’s Health from March 5, 2010 |
| The following report is from Dr. Jessup. It can also be found on the front page of our website at www.bcpm.org in case you may not have seen it.
Dear Friend of BCPM, I am doing well; in fact, I went ice fishing with Pastor Pennell on March 4. We caught a few small perch. I have changed my diet to “vegan” which is no meat or dairy products. I have a small piece of cold water fish or organic poultry once a week and one egg a week. Other than that, it is vegetables, grains, and fruit. I am on mega doses of vitamins and minerals plus a shot of B-17 three times a week. I am doing fine on this diet and have not lost any weight. I am as surprised as everyone else. As for the cancer, I had a CT scan while in Tijuana and no new tumors were found. The tumor in the lung had not increased in size. This scan was done shortly after getting to Oasis of Hope so the treatment there had nothing to do with this scan. They thought it might have been the chemo or other things I was doing before getting to Mexico. I return to Oasis of Hope on March 22 and will have more treatments during that week. I will have another scan, and we will know more then about the progress of the cancer. If the cancer is still in check when we return, we want to get back on the road and help with the church plants for this spring and summer. We will see how this goes. I honestly believe that the main factor is the number of people praying for us and asking God to intervene in our behalf. We appreciate your continued prayers for us. I still have “moments” where it is difficult to wrap my head around all this but they are fewer than before. Getting back to work will help with that. I am working everyday, but I admit I get more tired than before. Hopefully, I can get back to some consistent exercise in the next few weeks. Dr. Earl Jessup |
Johnson Update, help needed!
March 10, 2010
I am writing to inform you of an opportunity the Lord has opened for us and to ask for any help and advice you might be able to give us. We had a company in Modesto, California donate several cases of Bibles to us as we left for South Africa. We have gone through these and I contacted them the other week concerning whether they might have any more. They informed me that they had just been thinking about me as they had recently bought out a Bible distributor, and had a large number of KJV bibles that they were looking to move out. They have informed me that they have in the neighbourhood of 100 cases of KJV Bibles that they are willing to donate to us to be given away here in South Africa. These are a variety of different types of KJV Bibles all of which are brand new. Retail cost on these Bibles would probably be $15,000.00 or higher. They are located in a warehouse in Modesto, CA and need to be moved ASAP. I need help to physically move these Bibles from the warehouse, and arrange for them to be shipped over here to South Africa, as well as the finances required to ship them. As you can imagine I am very limited in what arrangements I can make from overseas, this is the reason that I am writing to ask for your help. If you have any contacts with someone near the Modesto, CA area, contacts with someone in the shipping business, or if you would be able to financially help with this project, it would be greatly appreciated.
Thank you for being a part of allowing us to serve the Lord here in South Africa,
Jeremy Johnson
Missionary to South Africa
+27-13-6597337
Sending Church:
People’s Baptist Church
710 Lawson Ave
Kelowna, BC, Canada V1P-1G8
Pastor C. Madle
(250) 763-2121
Mrs. Pat Schumacher in Glory
September 27, 2009
Dear Pastors and Supporting Churches,
It is with great regret that we tell you that Patricia went home to be with the Lord on Tuesday, September 22, 2009. She had been in the hospital for several weeks, due to an infection in her tube sight. She continued to get worst and we asked that she be moved to another hospital. When she was moved, they realized that she was in much worse condition, and shortly there after she went home to be with the Lord. The funeral service will be held Monday, September 28,2009 at Meadowlands Baptist Church in Edmonton, Alberta. We praise the Lord for the wonderful example that Pat was even in her pain. Please pray for us as we adjust to life without her.
Yours In His Glorious Service
R. Schumacher
Scripture Printing Ministry Canada
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Brethren,
Tuesday afternoon (September, 22nd), Mrs. Pat Schumacher, the wife of Reinhard Schumacher, passed away into the presence of the Lord. She had been afflicted with severe arthritis for many years. For the last several years she has been confined to a wheelchair. She suffered much pain and discomfort, yet she always had a smile on her face and was so gracious. We have lost a great prayer warrior.
The funeral will be held on Monday at 10:00 AM at Meadowlands Baptist Church, located at 23rd Avenue and 17th Street in Edmonton. The interment will follow at the Southaven Cemetery and then a luncheon at Victory Baptist Church in Sherwood Park.
Pastor David J. Harness
Victory Baptist Church
Johnson Update – August 09
September 4, 2009
“For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD. ” Isaiah 55:8
As I sat down to write this letter, this portion of scripture came to mind as I thought of the happenings
of the past few months. It never ceases to amaze me that when all our plans and ideas fail, God steps in
and shows us what He will do if only we will allow Him free reign in our lives. Often we have our life
planned and leave no room for God to work His plan in His way and time. I am so glad we serve a
wonderful, loving God who has our best interest in mind and cares even for the little things in our lives.
We have been in South Africa for eight months and have seen God do some wonderful things in our
life. One thing we desired to do was secure housing and get settled into some type of normality. We had
tried everything that we could think of; looking for houses to buy, rent or even build if necessary. I must
admit it was a bit discouraging to see our ideas and plans take us no where. But God had a plan, and all
we had to do was let Him work it in His timing. God has opened the door for Bro. Geoff Porter and his
family to move north to Zimbabwe. They have desired to go into this country for some time. With this
departure, their house will be vacant. They have asked us to stay in the house rather than leave it empty.
We thank you for your prayers regarding a place for our family to live. God’s ways are always best!
God has also allowed for me to begin classes to learn the Zulu language. Beginning September 5th, I
will be taking a course at a university in Johannesburg, about 11/2 hours away. The course is taught 4 hours
every Saturday from September thru November. My wife will be unable to attend, but we are praying that
I will be able to teach her as I am learning. We would greatly appreciate your prayers as we so desire to
learn this language to better reach the people to which God has called us.
Since our last update, I have had the opportunity to preach in one of the local high schools After
preaching at one of the opening assemblies, I was invited to go into the school twice a week and teach for
15-20 minutes to a group of students during their morning break. At the beginning we had about 8 students
that came; but praise the Lord this past week, we counted over 45 in attendance. God is working in these
young people and it is very refreshing to see their hunger for God’s Word. My heart is heavy for the young
people here in SA as most come from broken homes and are continually surrounded by sin. They desire
for peace in their lives and are searching for happiness. Please pray that God would continue to work in
the hearts of these students and that we would be able to reach into other schools in the area.
Our family is adjusting to our new life. Rebekah is doing fine with the
pregnancy and all seems to be healthy with the baby. Titus is growing like a
weed and is such a joy (and at times a challenge) to our life. He is always busy
and loves to play outside in the dirt! We thank you all so much for your prayers,
encouraging letters, and support. Our desire is that God will use us to see much
fruit added to your account through the work here in South Africa.
Prayer Requests:
- Health and safety of our family
- Baby due December 30th
- Language classes to begin Sept. 5th
- Wisdom & understanding in the ministry
- Health of Pastor Dlamini (national pastor)
Jeremy, Rebekah & Titus
Address: P.O. Box 8402~Witbank 1035~RSA
Ph: 27-13-659-7337~E-mail: jrjohnson@fastmail.fm
Jessup Update
March 21, 2009
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NOTE: We are sending our contribution to Dr. Jessup at the end of March. Our Goal is $500!
Luke 6:38 Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom. For with the same measure that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you again.
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March 21, 2009
Dear Friends in Christ,
It was good to get away and get some rest during February. I did not realize until afterwards how helpful it would be for Beth and I to have some time to ourselves and also with some of our grandchildren.
We are now prepared for a very busy spring. We have five church plants scheduled between now and the end of May. Three of these will be in the United States, one in Canada and one in Scotland. Please pray the Lord will bless and use these in a great way. Read more
Shumacher Update
March 19, 2009
March 18,2009
Dear Pastors & praying friends,
Psalms107:1 Oh give thanks unto the Lord for he is good and his mercy endureth forever.
We praise the Lord that Reinhard has been released from the hospital.
He had therapy for 6 weeks at the Glen Rose Hospital after having a stroke in January.
God has been so good to us. We want to thank the many who have prayed for us
through this trying time & for those who have helped out with love gifts. We are also thankful
for your faithfulness in your prayer and financial support.
For the next while Reinhard we’ll be having speech therapy once a week. He will continue to
improve from his stroke over the next year. Reinhard had the stroke on the left side
of his brain which affected his speech, writing skills, comprehension & reading skills. There has
already been much improvement. We are so thankful there was no physical paralysis.
Thank you again for all your Christian love and concern.
Reinhard & Pat Schumacher.
Scripture Printing Ministry
Sherwood Park, Alberta
Maureen Sullivant Update February 09
February 13, 2009
Hello folks,
In case some of you were wondering, I have not expired. I have been a busy girl the last couple of months.
First, we had Christmas. It was a very different Christmas for us this year. Thailand is not a Christian nation, so Christmas is only observed by businesses that have European, North American or Australian ownership. It was different to drive to town and really not see any Christmas decorations other than the stores I’ve already mentioned. We bought ourselves a Christmas tree – and what a tree it was. The trees on the display at the store were all green, so we didn’t think there was any need to check in the box. Wrong! We brought the thing home. We opened the box. A gasp echoed throughout the house. It was bright irritating red. I gasped because I was horrified. The kids gasped because they thought it was just beautiful. It was so bad that when Michael walked through the room, he turned his face away from it. We cut out snowflakes from paper and added some ribbons. We also made a stable and manger from cinnamon sticks, which are dirt cheap here. We grabbed some grass from the yard and pretended it was hay. It was pretty cute.
Our first Christmas gift was some rice pancakes wrapped in a banana leaf from one of the Hill Tribe pastors. Another pastor brought Michael a new Bible bag that his wife had made. Christmas Day, we went to the Christmas service at church. We had gifts for all the kids at the home, the Nong Loam Village and the church members children. That was good for our kids to see past their toys that they thought they had a right too, to those kids who were getting one toy for Christmas. The Christmas Season was also a good opportunity to pass out tracts. Because we are obviously from a western nation of some kind, the Thais would wish us “Merry Christmas.” It was easy to then hand them a Gospel tract and tell them that the tract would explain all about Jesus. This last month, I had two people run after me, and ask for additional tracts for their families. We are praying that these seeds will bear fruit in their hearts.
Then we had some special meetings in the beginning of January. Evangelist Jacob Geisbrecht came a week before the meetings and he and Michael started building pulpits for all of the preachers associated with the ministry. A group from our home church came for the meetings as well. It was a real blessing to enjoy Christian fellowship with some of our church family. Speaking in English seems so easy now. The Lord blessed during the trip and many souls were saved and baptized. Michael’s parents (also our home pastor) came and stayed for a week after the church group left. Our kids had a ball. Dad was also very flattered when folks asked if he and Michael were brothers. I don’t think Michael found it to be quite as flattering, but oh well.
I believe there was over 40 people who accepted Christ during the missions conference. That was also a blessing.
Right after Michael’s parents left, the Horns, Michael and some men from the church went for a 12 hour trip to another part of Thailand where there is a couple wanting to see a church started. They have donated some land and have already built a building for folks to meet. There is a man from another ministry close to us that feels called to that part of Thailand. This trip was sort of a survey trip for this man. Forty-nine people came over a mile to this couple house and crammed in for a service. Nineteen people trusted Christ, and four of them asked to be baptized. They then headed down to a filthy leach infested mud puddle to baptize. While they were preparing to baptize, three more folks stopped by to see what all the ruckus was about. Some folks witnessed to them. They got saved and asked to be baptized as well. Michael had the privilege of baptizing four of them. This was very exciting for Michael as this was the first time he has been able to baptize Thai folks. Definitely a highlight for him. Please pray for these folks in Yasotorn.
There is a man who has been trained by a Thai national here who would like to start a church in Yasatorn. He has a bit of a financial problem. His fiancé’s father wants 150,000 Baht for her (approximately $5,555 Canadian). This is apparently a reasonable price, as some Thai brides can go for up to $50,000 US. This may help explain why Thais generally don’t get married until their thirties. If any of you are happening to be taking a Valentine’s Day offering, maybe you could think of this man J We have been bugging him that he should settle for someone ugly. He doesn’t seem to want to negotiate. I’m sure that he could find some girls here at the church that would pay him for the privilege of marrying him, but he just seems to have his heart set. Poor guy. I hope for his sake he saves up his money before he is a senior saint.
Speaking of baptisms, Pastor Dad couldn’t come to Thailand fast enough. Jessica has been wanting to get baptized for a long time, but was convinced that no one but Grandpa was capable of doing it for her. Jess got baptized while Dad was here and it was a blessing. She told me that since she was saved and baptized, all she had to do now was live the rest of her life for the Lord. That is definitely our prayer. We praise the Lord for her tender heart towards God.
Now we are back into our regular routine. I have started teaching the high school girls how to sew and am teaching a couple of the college girls piano lessons. That has been a blessing for me to see my language studies starting to pay off.
Last week, we had Dr. Fred Schindler here for five days teaching the church people and Bible students. He was a blessing to us and encouragement to the people here as well.
Thanks for your prayers for the political situation here. There is still protests probably every other weekend. Lately, there have been a few fist fights in the streets, but no ‘major’ violence. The government is cramping down on immigration visa renewals, but praise the Lord we have work visas now, so we should be OK.
We are in the middle of the dry season right now. Most of the trees are turning color and dropping their dinner plate sized leaves. Except for the mulberry trees – they are blooming and bearing fruit. They sort of remind me of Psalm chapter one and the righteous man. Even when everyone else is shriveling up and dying, when we are living by the Stream, we can still bloom and bear fruit.
The Thais are burning off the jungle right now. The air is pretty smoky. Last week, they burnt off one of the mountains across from us. The flames were as high as the tree tops. It was close enough for us to hear the flames, but the wind was blowing the smoke the other way. That was a blessing. I really miss smoked meats like ham and bacon here. Maybe I should go hang some meat outside at night and see what kind of results I can get.
As I right, we have a service man here working on an air conditioner. Wyatt (our two year old) is singing ‘Victory in Jesus’ in Thai to the serviceman. I think it’s cute to see that even a two year old can be a ‘Little Missionary.” Wyatt loves that song too, except he sings it ‘I can be a wido missionawy.’ I reckon that is exactly what he is.
Thanks for your love and prayers. Thanks also for the letters and emails and birthday cards. Yes, I had a birthday. I’m sweet sixteen once again.
God Bless,
Maureen
Jessup Update January 2009
January 23, 2009
January 23, 2009
Dear Praying Friends,
When I was younger, much younger, I was often told that as you get older the days and years pass so quickly. I did not believe it then, but I certainly do now. This year has rapidly passed by, and I realize there is much to do and little time to do it. We are so thankful for all the Lord has accomplished through this ministry in 2008. It will be hard to pick the highlights of all the Lord has done.
The Johnson Family leaves for South Africa!
January 14, 2009
Dear Pastor and Praying Friends,
By the time many of you receive this update we will be on our way to South Africa.
Our departure date is set for January 13, 2009!!
After 14 months of deputation, our final meeting was Sunday, November 30th. We returned to our home church in Kelowna, BC, on December 1st and began to prepare our things for shipment on December 19th. Amidst much snow and ice and the temperatures hovering around -18oC, we were able to get the container loaded and on its way. The container is expected to arrive in South Africa the middle of February allowing us some time to prepare for its arrival. After all the preparation and work involved in packing the container , it was nice to have a few weeks of rest and time with our friends and family over the holidays. We left Kelowna on December 30th and spent a week with each of our parents before departing. It is very hard saying goodbye to our family and friends and leaving behind all that is familiar to embark upon a place where everything is new and many of life’s daily activities will need to be learned again. We have had so many emotions running through us; that at times, it seems overwhelming and confusing. The excitement to be where God has called us is so great, yet there are many anxieties and some fears as well.
We have expressed in past updates how good God has been to us, but it never ceases to amaze us how His goodness and faithfulness continue. Just when we think that God has done all He will do, He supplies another need in a way we never thought possible. We would like to say thank you to the churches that have recently taken us on for support and to those who have committed support in the coming months. Thank you also to the churches and individuals who sent Christmas cards and gifts for our family. What an encouragement to read letters and cards from folks we have met along the way.
Our family is healthy and well. Titus is so full of energy and life and seems to never tire. He always keeps us on our toes and at days end has succeeded in wearing out his mommy! We are looking forward to finally settling into one place and getting back in to a routine as a family. The months ahead will be a time of adjustment for us as we look for housing, purchase a vehicle, and begin to adapt to the culture and people. We would greatly appreciate your prayers over the next few months as we begin to settle into our new life and ministry.
Please continue to pray for the people of South Africa. The need of the gospel is tremendous and the openness to receive the Gospel is great. We look forward to representing each one of you as we carry the Gospel to a lost and dying country. Thank you for your faithful prayers and support.
Your Servants for Christ,
Jeremy & Rebekah
PLEASE NOTE NEW PERSONAL CONTACT INFO:
Mailing Address:
Jeremy Johnson
P.O. Box 8402
Witbank, 1035
South Africa
Phone: 011-27-13-659-7337
E-mail: jrjohnson@fastmail.fm
All finances should be sent to our home church
Schumacher Stroke Update
January 5, 2009
Bro. Reinhard’s condition seems to be more serious than I initially understood. I say seems to be, because when it comes to hospitals and doctors, families and friends, the information is sometimes contradictory, or confusing, or scant, or all of the above. Any way, he is still in the emergency waiting for a bed to open up. He is not able to talk, but was moving both arms when I saw him last night. My son-in-law, Gregory Vaal, who is a paramedic, is going to try to go by and get some better information today. The Schumacher’s daughter is flying in today and will be able to be with Pat.
Thank you for your prayers for him. I printed off the responses and took them up to the hospital last night, which was an encouragement to him.
Pastor David J. Harness
Victory Baptist Church