Ray Family Update from May 2017

Dear Praying Friends,

All I can say is, “Wow!” This year’s Bible Conference turned out to be one of the best, if not the best, we have hosted in my years as pastor. Although I was apprehensive to change a longstanding tradition and risk disrespecting the men of God who have faithfully attended and participated in past meetings, the introduction of a theme was greatly blessed of the Lord and warmly received by the saints. For this, I am grateful. For those who were unable to attend, or would like to listen to the messages again, the sermons are available online on our YouTube channel. I am already looking forward to next year’s meeting and hope to release a general schedule soon.

LTB Publications

In conjunction with McCowen Mills Publishers, we are ready to go to print with two books: Daily Strength 4 and Josiah: The Boy Who Would Be King. The first of which is the fourth and final volume of our devotional series and the latter is the first in a series of children’s books written for the purpose of encouraging children that they can learn of the Lord and serve Him in their youth. Josiah: The Boy Who Would Be King presents the scriptural account of the story of Josiah’s life in simple terminology and with vividly colorful illustrations, coloring pages, and activities. We wrote this book in a way that can captivate and encourage young people who are saved, but also in a manner in which it can serve as an introduction to the gospel for young people who do not yet know the Lord. Both of these books are available for preorder in hopes that we can offset some of the initial printing cost of $14,000. If you would like to purchase your copy or copies today, you may do so at www.bibledoug.com/books.

We will now turn our attention to the completion of our second book in a series on the Rapture of the Church that deals specifically with Matthew chapters 24 and 25. It is our hope to complete this book before the year’s end. After that, we will move on to the reprint of One Book Rightly Divided. Additionally, although not a product of LTB Publications, I hope by the year’s end to complete my editorial role on a new hymnal that will include all the verses (many of which have been removed in modern hymnals) of hundreds of familiar songs and will reintroduce hundreds of psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs lost throughout the last few generations. We ask that you pray for us on each of these matters; however, we also ask that you help us get these Bible-believing materials into the hands of the people who need them most.

A Personal Note

I typically try to keep these letters more ministry minded, perhaps to a fault; however, this month I wanted to take the time to thank the Lord for His goodness in our personal lives. We were able to host a good number of the families from the church on our new porch provided by people from the church. It is truly a blessing and a longtime dream of my wife’s. Along the same lines, one of the men from the church came over last week to help us clean up and repair a leak that had become a major problem in our kitchen. We could not have done this on our own. Hopefully, everything will be back in place in the kitchen by the end of the week. Thank God for skilled men who selflessly help those of us who are not as skilled. On a different note, we are so proud of our son Noah who is graduating from high school. He has been an intern at a local company for several months and hopes to be hired on as a full-time employee. He is receiving training in the computer field while being paid. That being said, we are most proud of the character he demonstrates on a daily basis. Truly, “I have no greater joy than to hear that my children walk in truth” (3 John 4).

Prayer Requests

* Pray for open doors through which we can distribute our latest publications.
* Pray for our son Noah that he will make wise decisions as he embarks on the next chapter of his life.