Ray Family Update from February 2016

Dear Praying Friends,

Grace and peace be with you all in the precious name of Christ, our Saviour! I trust this letter finds you striving with others of like faith and mind for the faith of the gospel. I must admit, writing this month’s report has proven to be quite a peculiar struggle. It is not so much that I dread the actual reporting of the goings on of ministry and personal life, but just feel overwhelmingly exhausted, both in body and in mind. On one hand, I know that I should not feel this way as a thirty-seven-year-old. However, I consistently put an inordinate amount of pressure upon myself to accomplish whatever tasks are set before me. At times, this has served me well; but, at other times, it has been the cause of unusually crippling stress and regret. I recall hearing a preacher warn that folks can get so busy in the Lord’s work that we forget the Lord of the work. Though I know that statement is not without its faults, it also presents a wise and reasonable warning for this preacher.

Through it all, one thing I know for sure is that power of the prayers of God’s people can never be overestimated. I once had a missionary couple tell me that they could sense the prayers of God’s people. At first, that seemed quite Charismatic, but I think the idea is that God responds to the requests of His people by supplying the needed strength. I must say that I too have sensed the prayers of God’s people of late. I graciously ask you to continue these prayers on my behalf knowing that “The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much” (James 5:16). There is truly no greater favour you can do for a preacher or missionary than to pray for him on a daily basis. I personally beg your prayers as frequently as the Lord brings me to your mind.

The Ministry of Reconciliation

Several years back, I asked my wife to take out an index card and list some of the tracts I’d hope to write at some point in the future. At the top of the list, I asked her to write the title When a Dog Becomes a Sheep. Fast forward to last week when Brother Jonathan Judy informed me that he would like to begin this year’s church-wide outreach in downtown Knoxville at a festival called Mardi-Growl where dog owners dress their dogs in all manner of costumes.

With the Lord’s help, we were able to get the tract written and printed in time for the event. The festival was very well attended and we unleashed forty folks from our church plus the family of evangelist Jim Walker. Those numbers may seem insignificant to some who attend larger churches, but what a blessing it was for a congregation our size to have that many folks willing to take a few hours to be a gospel witness!

Please pray folks will stay encouraged to witness! We have some tremendous opportunities this year to do some street preaching, gospel tract distribution, and scripture sign bombing. In fact, we hope to partner with a church from Virginia to take a gospel witness to the largest ever college football game at Battle at Bristol.

Available Publications

This is truly an exciting time for us. We expect the delivery of Reviving the Blessed Hope of Thessalonians next week. As I write, we are currently working on Daily Strength 3, as well as a book on Matthew chapter 24 with an emphasis on the end-times. We now have nearly seven hours of teaching on the home available on our YouTube channel. They are found under the series entitled Foundations for the Home. In the near future, we hope to have a music CD available featuring our choir singing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs. Please pray for wisdom and usefulness in these areas.

Prayer Requests

* Pray for continued encouragement as we reach out to our community with the gospel of Christ.
* Pray for the preparations for the King James Conference that will be held at Antioch on June 6th, 7th, and 8th.
* Pray for the young people of our church, especially for their special meetings following the King James Conference.