A Time of Suffering

       We enjoy sending photos and stories about the good times, but this post has taken me a long time to write.  I have tried to write again and again.  It seems so discouraging sometimes that I have had to ask Kate to do most of the writing.  To be honest, if it were not for the Lord and Kate, I think I would have left Thailand a few weeks ago.
       I anticipated that suffering would come as we moved to Thailand, but I imagined it in different ways.  I thought it would be mainly physical.  The reality has been physical, spiritual, emotional, and psychological attacks.  These have pushed me to the point of saying, "Lets go home.  It's not worth it.  It is not worth loosing sanity, friends, health, our lives, or our marriage."  Times like these are when we are really tried and we have to reach the conclusion that the gospel of Christ is worth it all.  When we give our all, he alone will sustain us.  He will keep our sanity, lives, marriages, friends, health and everything else in the palm of his hand.

       Through all this I will say that I rejoice that this past month has been rough because it has truly strengthened my walk in Jesus, my love for God, and my love for Kate.  When Scripture says that suffering produces perseverance, character, and hope (Romans 5:3), it is deeper truth than we can realize.  Although spiritual attacks have come, Jesus has been using them as a refining process in my life.  In part, I wish it would have come in a different way, but I am thankful because it has caused me to really cling to Christ.  I have learned, more than ever, that we have victory in Christ Jesus alone.  Jesus has given us the victory in him over sin, death, and everything else that tries to pull us away from him.
       I have gained new insights into his word and what it is to be free in Jesus.  The Lord has shown me grace and mercy, and his word has been more active and alive in my life than I can ever recall.  I rejoice and praise the Lord that he allows us to suffer for a short time that we may see his glory and know that he is truly the way, the truth, and the life.
       God is good.  Seeing Christ through Kate has given me a better understanding of the grace and mercy of our Lord.  So, to end this somber post, times are tough and it is tough to rejoice, but we will because God is faithful always.  We will fight with all we have for our lives and the lives of others, for the gospel and salvation that is in Jesus Christ.  He is worth it all.  Persevere in the faith.

Slaves to Christ,
Phil and Kate