July 2018
Dear Friends in Christ,
Summers are always full for opportunities to serve the Lord and this year has been no exception.
The month of July started with a funeral on the Navajo Reservation. The man was from a family that observed the old Navajo traditions. However, they informed the daughter that since she was “next in kin”, it would be up to her to make the funeral arrangements. Amaya is a Christian and desired a Christian burial and Sam was asked to preach since he was her pastor while we were serving in Page, AZ. It was a small gathering, but there were several that responded when an invitation to accept Christ as Saviour was given! She had been nervous about the response of the family so was excited to see their reaction to the Gospel. Only God knows the hearts, but it was a joy to see Him working. Thank you for your prayers and support that allows us to be here and be a part of this ministry.
The very next day after the funeral, we were at the Navajo Family Bible Conference held here at the El Nathan Camp Grounds in Flagstaff. We have worked with them for several years but the past few years we have been scheduled to be away during their conference and our help was limited to coordinating the Bible Study schedules so that the Navajo and English sessions would be similar. This year, Sam taught the English classes each morning and evening for the week. The theme was the armor of God and we had a great time with them in God’s Word.
This annual camp is like a family reunion for us as we get to visit with several that we helped to train and are now serving in various churches on the Navajo Reservation. One man came up to an older Navajo pastor (one of our former students) and stated that this was his “father”. This was the man who led him to Christ. Once again, thank you for having a part in helping us train these men.
This week, Janet has been helping a local church here in Flagstaff with their VBS program. It is nice to just be a helper and not have the responsibilities or organizing the program. She was glad to be able to help, but especially to have that alone time with girls that want to know how to be saved. If you have ever been able to pray with someone as they accept Christ as their Saviour, you know the thrill of seeing God at work.
Coming up this next month, we will be celebrating 50 years of marriage together! It is great to spend your life with a partner that prays and serves right along beside you and we thank God for bringing us together and keeping us together.
Right after our anniversary, another trip to Alaska is being planned. This time, we will have a group of volunteers from North Carolina to help with more work on the Thorne Bay Christian Radio project. Please be praying for this ministry. Here are some specific ways you can pray with us:
*Safety for all the summer workers-both in travel and while in Alaska
*Electricity to be made available by the local power company
(The cost for us to bring in the electric would be around $25,000 and the responsibility of repairing a power outage would be our cost rather than the electric company.)
*That the building would soon be ready for occupancy and the right man to keep the station up and running
*That God would continue to keep the property safe from vandals, weather and/or animal damage
*That the radio programs would reach many with the Gospel message
*That God would provide the $3,000 need for the insulation costs
II Cor. 2:11 “Ye also helping together by prayer for us.”
In Christ,
Sam & Janet Grammer