Ray Family Update from September 2018

Dear Praying Friends,

When I think of the last year, the word whirlwind comes to mind. This is especially true of the last couple of months. I can sense the weariness of my flesh in a host of ways. The chaos saw, in some ways, its climax in the wedding of our oldest son this past week. While we are thrilled for him and our new daughter, Julie, the physical, emotional, and spiritual weight of these matters is pressing. This is especially true for my wife! As for me, I am witnessing just how emotionally and physically drained I am from the compilation of trying to complete three books at once, preach three times a week, teach four hours of Bible Institute per week, host a tent meeting, conduct outreach, and be a husband and father. I hope to see some relief within the next month. I NEED IT, and I know my family needs the breather as well!

Fountain Head 2018

We are so grateful for the privilege to host our first-annual tent meeting in the Fountain City Park. It was very well attended by our people and we were blessed to have some, albeit, minimal visitors. While we would have loved to see more visitors, there were a good number of people each night who were dispersed throughout the park who heard the truth of the gospel of Christ. Our prayers are that their eyes were opened to their need and that they will seek the Lord Jesus Christ for salvation. As far as the preaching, Pastor Joe Cammilleri preached clear salvation messages each night and anyone who heard a single message without getting saved will have no excuse when standing before the God of heaven. Before closing, I ask that you begin praying now that the door will be open for us to return to the park next year. While you are at it, pray that God will put it in the hearts of His churches to actively engage in such meetings all across the country.

Upcoming Schedule

We continue to progress through Bible History and Thessalonians in the Bible Institute, having just completed week six of sixteen. We will finish this semester in early December. As soon as I finish classes this week, my family and I will hit the road for Chelsea, Michigan, to take part in a preacher’s fellowship at Faith Baptist Church (October 2nd—4th). This will be our first time in this church, and we are looking forward to meeting some new friends in the Lord. After this meeting, at present, the next scheduled meeting comes at the end of the year with Pastor Tim Crotts and the wonderful saints at Bear Trail Baptist Church in Cana, Virginia. I always enjoy both preaching and soaking up the preaching of others at this annual Bible conference. In between these meetings, we will continue to plug along in our verse-by-verse studies of the Book of Lamentations. By the end of the year, I will have been privileged to teach or preach verse-by-verse through twenty books of the Bible.

This upcoming month should also see the arrival of One Book Rightly Divided (delivered October 18th) and the release to the printer of Psalms, Hymns, and Spiritual Songs, the song book on which I have been labouring as an editor for a good number of years. I know that fewer churches are still singing the old songs that God used in ages past, but it is our hope that this book will rekindle a love in the hearts of God’s people for good music. I can assure you that there is nothing else out there quite like this book, which will have history on nearly one-third of the songs and scripture references to a large portion of the lines of lyrics on each song.

In closing, please pray for us! We surely need your prayers.