This trip has been unusually trying as far as
jet lag goes. I have had more trouble with being tired during the day and am
not sleeping well at night. It is hot, but not unbearably so if you are indoors
with fans going full blast. It is hard to keep your bible open to the
right page with all the wind. The men are struggling a bit with the
subject matter, the redemptive story of the bible. This is the idea that
the bible is one big story that gradually builds up to the gospel,
demonstrated in the death and resurrection of Jesus.
It is very hard to preach or teach the Old Testament
well if you do not understand the redemptive story, and how the passage you are
working through fits in with that story. Much like it is difficult to
understand a passage correctly without considering the context; it is equally
difficult to understand the proper teaching and purpose of any passage,
especially the Old Testament passages, without understanding the redemptive
story context. This is our first attempt to teach this in our workshops, and the
weaknesses of our training materials is quite apparent. We will have to do
many revisions for it to be more useful and effective in the future. We are not
discouraged by that. We simply have a lot to learn about how to teach this
concept in a way that is easily understood and applied, but can also then be
passed on in training to others.
It is such a delight to have Brad with me to
help with this training. He has been a friend since seminary 30 years ago, and is
such a fine godly and biblically- centered man. I am so glad he is on our
training team. Brad is an encouraging man and totally sold
out to the ministry of training others to study the bible well. It is his
first time to India and he is doing great. His insights and encouragement
to the students are wonderful.
I have been experiencing some spiritual warfare
on this trip, more than usual I think. Spiritual attack always comes in
unexpected ways, and is designed to distract or lead us into despair. This time
it has come in the form of internal accusations about my failings as a father
and husband in the past. But thanks be to God because it has really served
to drive me to the Lord and to celebrate His grace in my life. Edie has
been a great help to me in this so that the enemy’s designs have been largely
defeated. By His grace, on we go.
Al
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