An "A" for "F"

I'm glad I have a blog to share with at times like this when I'm just full to overflowing with the joy of our life here. Paul just preached his last sermon of 2009 to an audience of little boys in their pajamas. They were a sweet group of kids, at a Fresh Air Camp, led by Student Union workers. They broke into applause when he put the Black Light on his drawing of heaven.

I like the way they were so shocked when we were driving out. I was driving, and their eyes got wide, and they all demanded to know why I was driving and not "Small Paul". I teased them by saying I was a faster driver, but eventually told them I was just helping by driving. I don't think any of them thought they'd want anyone helping THEM with the driving if they had their own cars. :-) They can't quite imagine being so tired they aren't excited to drive.

We had our annual special prison services earlier this year, on the 22nd and 23rd. We went to each section, A-G in two days, with section F being our favorite. James exulted, "They were so quiet I could hear the fan on the sound system!" They were so quiet and respectful, and responsive at the right places. And they also broke into applause at the Black Light on the picture of heaven. But they didn't have cute matching PJ's.

In some of the other sections, Paul had to compete with radios, shouting guys in other cells, and loud rushing water, so a quiet section is a blessing not to be taken for granted. There also was almost no stealing this year, as compared with other years where we "spiritual workers" fought to keep our cool as prisoners grabbed everything they could get their hands on.

Now everything is sweetened by my Mom and niece Ariel coming for a visit. DELIGHTFUL!!

Yippee! Halelujah!

For over a year I've been working on a book called 100 Houses. I'm not satisfied with it, but I decided to give it it's own space on the internet, so I made a blog called www.100houses.blogspot.com

   TODAY I FINALLY FINISHED PUTTING THE WHOLE BOOK, INCLUDING PICTURES ON THE BLOG!!!! 

OK, so it's not perfect, but maybe this way it can be a blessing to some people even while I'm tweaking it. I'd love to find a helpful Christian editor to polish it up.

For those who want to read it, I put it on backwards, so you can read it frontwards! I put it on one chapter at a time, so it looks like separate posts.

May the Lord use this baby for His glory, to encourage others who may not be brave in the matter of giving up houses and lands. He really does pay back 100 time more then we give HIM.

Full of questions

James and Gloria have been denied a visa today, and have until January 16th to leave the country. Now what? The Department of Home Affairs said they could appeal. They have already appealed and this was the answer to that.
So.....
where will they go?
what does God have for them next?
will they come back?
how do we manage without them?

James is Paul's nephew, and he does all the technical stuff here. He puts Paul's sermons on DVD, gets them in good shape for TV stations, mails them out to TV stations, updates our website, and helps with the sound system when we need it. He has copied and printed thousands of DVD's for distribution, plus stuffing them in their sleeves.

Gloria helps around the house with dishes and cooking and cleaning, plus she has had a ministry to the Spanish women in Polsmoor Prison and teaches a class of wiggley little kids in Ocean View. She regularly saves my neck when I get in over my head with too many obligations.

Their one year old, Daniel is a joy in the family. He fell in a pool today, and his mom rescued him quickly. He's just at that exciting age, 15 months, where he has to explore the entire world, and gets into all kinds of trouble as he samples hand lotion or pushes every button he can reach.

They feed our rabbit Toffee, hamster Louise, and dog Berwick when we go traveling, plus do all the other things that keep the house going while we're going around the country. They fill most of the DVD orders that come in from all over the world.

The Lord knows ! What a comfort at a time like this. We'll see how He answers the questions.

Fan mail

Paul is on TV in Kenya and Zambia, so we get some nice letters from viewers there. I really enjoyed this one today, it was encouraging, and shows that our prayers are being answered.
I'll stick it below so you can enjoy it too.

Dear Sir,

Forgive me for the brevity of this message; I am in Kenya and I am using my phone to write to you.I am a Christian but for the last five years or so, I have been battling despire, the feeling that I have lost my way, of not fulfilling my promises, of questioning my faith.I feel as though I have made all the wrong choices, as though I can no longer look ahead in pleasure and excitement.

Anyway, I was sitting on the couch and this tall man with huge hands was scribbling on a piece of paper and mummbling stuff, and scribbling somemore, and slowley, a picture emerged of some beautiful fruit, and a big fat water mellon. And he was saying, "...don't forget to give thanks...", and, "...prayer begins with praise."And, for the first time in a while, I felt some peace. And I gace thanks.So now, I'm thanking you for doing what you're doing, and your soft ways, and your giant hands. I am thanking you for you.So thank you SmallPaul. xxxxxxx xxxxxx


We definitely need the encouragement, especially sometimes. Last week, when we were stressing over the visa situation for James and Gloria, we decided to walk to Kalk Bay for ice cream. Paul loaded his pocket with Chick tracts for the trip, and led the pack.

This walk for ice cream is such a beautiful walk along a paved path following a rocky shore for most of the way, and then up onto the Main Road for the last little bit. (That's a good part for me too, as I like to look in the shop windows :-)

So Paul passed out tracts to a bunch of people along the way, and then, when we got on the road part, someone called to us. Paul headed over with a tract, with James alongside with a DVD, which he had been giving out a little less freely.

Turns out this object of evangelism was Pastor Percy. It can be embarrassing to give a tract to a Pastor we're supposed to know. These humbing moments make us gladder for the sweet, encouraging letters.

Virginia Ross's testimony

Mrs. Virginia Ross was our special speaker in our Ladies Bible Study, and I'd like to kick myself for not having video taped her. The whole thing was excellent, and I got a blessing in an area where I had a fear that the devil was probably going to blow up into an overwhelming thing. More about that later.

Mrs. Ross was a Young! When she was young Young, her mom died, which left her with a loneliness that she says was part of what drew her to Jesus. She was involved with dancing, boys, hairstyles, movies and everything else she could think of that would give satisfaction, and yet was so unhappy. Her friend Blanche was the same, and then Blanche got saved. She couldn't understand it. They were all Presbyterians, all church people, and didn't understand what it was that Blanche had done. She remembers saying, "Blanche is not ashamed of Jesus, and I am." They thought she must have turned Catholic, but Virginia took the time to find out more. She was very drawn to whatever Blanche had, but felt she would have to give up everything, her university plans, her entertainment, and even her family if she were to follow the Lord. She determined the cost was too high and said she wouldn't do it, but then, after a week long visit with Blanche, she was shocked to hear herself say to Blanche, "Can I get saved right here or do I have to be in a church?"

She mentioned that verse "Suppose ye that I am come to give peace on earth? Nay, but rather division." Luke 12:51. It was certainly true for her. Her whole family was in an uproar over her conversion, and then she wanted to go to Bible college instead of being the first in the family to go to university (her uncle had been going to pay). Many years later her father admitted that she had chosen well, and 10 years later her twin sister got saved too so there was sweet fruit, but only later.

She went through a very dark time of doubt almost immediately after being saved, but then, as she prayed, she opened her Bible to Revelation 3:15 and knew she was one of the lukewarm ones! From that time on she was surrendered  to whatever God had for her and soon planned to be a missionary.

She considered boys to be one of the worldly things she had denounced so planned to go as a single missionary, but God had other plans. She was all ready to go on one boat in 1949, at age 29, but her visa never came from South Africa. She couldn't understand it! Why would God allow this to happen? But very soon began to see reasons for the delay. First of all, Blanche's house was struck by lightning and burned to the ground WHILE she was bringing Virginia home from the boat she wasn't allowed to take.

Secondly, that was when her twin got saved, partly from reading The Robe and then with Virginia's help.

So months later, visa in hand, she tried again. This time she was one of 12 passengers on a cargo ship. As she came on the ship, she was told that there was one other missionary on board. She was glad, thinking he was probably an older missionary from whom she could learn. His name was Archibald Macintyre Ross, 2 years her junior. They were assigned to the Chief Engineer's table, right beside each other for 3 meals a day, for 3 weeks. You can imagine what happened. She was impressed with his looks, and that he knew the Bible better then she did. She would argue with him, but he was winning all the arguments.

She was in the habit of reading the Bible each night before bed, so one night she read the last 2 verses in Proverbs and a chapter in the New Testament, (she didn't say which, but I guess it was 1 Corinthians 14). The first opened her eyes to the fact that God valued married ladies, and the second opened her eyes to the fact that Archie was right in their argument about women preachers.

The next day when they met before breakfast, she said she had read some scriptures. He said, "Was one of them Proverbs 31:30, 31?" to which she answered, "How did you know?" and then he asked, "Was the other 1 Corinthians 14?" She wondered if he was a mind reader! "How did you know?" she asked again.

The answer left her dumfounded. "Because I prayed that if you were the girl for me, that He would have you read those two passages."

"Where does that leave me?" she sputtered, rather amazed at that unique proposal.

"Just where you've always been. I have my guidance, now you'll have to get yours," came the reply. All this happened on the equator, she told us, but she held off saying yes til they came into Cape Town.

Things were complicated for a bit there, as he was assigned to Zambia and was with the Brethren, while she was to go to the Transvaal with her group. So it was at least a year and a half before they got everything squared away. She became Brethren while in Durban, and he got malaria and had to leave Zambia so they finally got married and were married for 54 years.
They had 4 children, 3 girls and a boy. The boy is in Parow and the girls are in the States and New Zealand.

It was sweet to hear her talk about her husband of 54 years. She used a lot of "very"s. He was very Scottish, very good looking, very smart, very godly, and very humorous. She said the last 2 years with him were the best "because he did everything I told him to." :-) But then she said really they were the best in fellowship. He was paralyzed from a stroke, so they were living in the States, but unable to afford help there. Her back was going from helping him, so they ended up moving to Cape Town where they could afford to hire nurses to help him. She said he wanted to go to heaven ever since the stroke, but the Lord left him those 11

 (I think) years, and she really enjoyed him. He could still preach, but he couldn't walk without help as it was his entire left side that was paralyzed.

She learned a lot during his illness. She started driving at age 78 (My friend Mary is totally inspired by that one!) and learned to use the computer at age 81. She confessed she's a little proud about that, because there are only 2 of the old ladies where she lives who have learned the computer and she's one of them. I think she lives in the Retirement Hotel in St. James.

She talked about love, and how there is nothing better in this life then to lay down your life for another, and how sweet the time was for them as a couple while they went through this time of ill health. That is the part that particularly encouraged me! I was under the impression that it just kind of got worse and worse and then you died, but she describes it as better and better with the Lord, and the difficulties are just incidental.

She did share about difficulties like impatience with her husband, hip surgeries, a prolapsed uterus after the birth of her son (10 1/2 lbs which is about 5 kilos!!!) and so forth, but able to see how God had worked in those situations. 
                                                 
                                           February 2014

It's funny to re-read this now, four years later.  Virginia has become my good friend, and Evangel and I visit her frequently.  She is now 93, still driving, and still on Facebook.  She is setting me, and others, an example of keeping on with the Lord.  I hope to be such a good listener as she is, and so enthusiastic about life when/if I'm ever 93.  She is very deliberate about reaching out to other people, inviting them in to mentor.  Evangel said she took notes the last time she went to lunch with Mrs. Ross. 

I just stuck the picture in, of Mrs. Ross at a book signing at the Casa Labia.  Her book is called Love Letters from Africa and is her letters home from her early days in South Africa, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. 

I got her to speak at our Ladies Bible study in 2013, since most of the ladies hadn't heard her when she spoke to our group in 2009, and she was so generous with those books.