Encouraging responses from the saints in Florida after hearing the burden of getting into the ministry publications.
After the speaking, we allowed 20 to 30 minutes for testimonies of the saints' experience of reading the ministry publications. The saints were very appreciative of the visits and they all eagerly received and confirmed the burden. We focused our sharing on building up a daily 30-minute habit of reading the ministry, becoming a "scholarly" family by reading and accumulating books, and lending books. We recorded the testimonies of saints who gave us permission to share their testimony on the internet. We collected a minimum 10 testimonies per meeting. These will be used in our weekly newsletter.
The net effect of the church visits was not only a renewed appreciation of the ministry publications for personal and corporate enjoyment and distribution, but the visits were an encouragement and shepherding to the saints as well. The saints in Ft Meyers/Seabring were especially happy and receptive to the sharing, even promoting the ministry publications during their testimonies using the LSM flyers that we brought.
Both Samuel and I felt that there is a benefit to sharing the burden church by church. Moreover, there was great value in having Ted join us to gain a perspective of each church's local situation. This provides good foundation for his future revisits to the churches.
SUMMARY OF FLORIDA TRIP
- June 2 Fly into JAX
- June 3 Afternoon Jacksonville
- SE Responsible Brothers' Meeting
Afternoon meeting with about 100 responsible brothers from Florida, Atlanta, Tennesee, South Carolina, and one brother from Brazil. We reviewed Br. Lee's burden for the leading ones to get into the truth, participate in building up a local book service, and leading the saints into the truth. Rick Scatterday was present and gave an excellent, short concluding word.
Documents distributed to brothers: LSM Sept 30 letter, eleven ministry exceprts, Propagation of the Truth in the Lord's Recovery, LSM package and CWWL flyers, booklists for LSM packages, outline: Fellowship on Establishing a Book Service, outline: How to Lend Books, outline: Faithful and Diligent Spreading of the Truth, excerpt from CWWL 1997, vol 1, "We Become What we Read", Ray's sheet containing accounts of David Livingstone and Hudson Taylor borrowing books.
- June 3 Evening Jacksonville
- Evening mtg with about 25 saints from the church in Jacksonville
- June 4 Jacksonville Lord's Table with about 50 saints
- June 4 Tallahassee
- Dinner with four responsible brothers then church mtg~15 saints.
- June 5 Gainesville (with a few saints from Ocala)
- Dinner with two brothers, then church mtg~25 saints
- June 6 Orlando
- Dinner with~ six brothers, then church mtg~25 saints
- June 7 Tampa
- Dinner with~ six brothers, then church mtg~25 saints
- June 8 Ft Meyers (with Seabring)
- Dinner with six brrothers, then Spanish-English meeting -34 saints
- June 9 Miami-dinner with seven brothers
- June 10 Miami (with Fort Lauderdale and Boca Raton)
- Spanish-English meeting ~200 saints.
For the ministry propagation brothers,
Michio