What am I thankful for? My family and God's presence.

During this holiday season, I am working on a family video entitled “Overseas Over the Years — a decade”. I hope to have it ready by Christmas (sort of a family present). Just thought I would share some of the photo clips. Thanks family and friends for your continual prayer and support. We love you and wish you a Happy Thanksgiving, too. We appreciate the cards, e-mails and notes that you have already sent for the upcoming holidays. We wish we could see you in person, but our hearts are with you in spirit.



It is hard to believe that it has been a decade already. I praise the Lord for His presence over the years and over the seas as we serve with the International Mission Board of the SBC. What an opportunity!










“The harvest truly is great, but the laborers are few: pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he would send forth laborers into his harvest.” Luke 10:2

Surprising Visit

I watched a movie not long ago and was fascinated when two ladies from different countries and cultures bonded. They seemed to be as close as sisters, maybe even closer. I never dreamed of having such a friend, but God gave me a dear friend/sister in Natasha. I saw her a few weeks ago for a brief few minutes as our train made a pit stop in Bryansk, Russia, on our way back from Ukraine. Not having seen each other in years, we were thrilled to even have 26 minutes together. I will never be able to put into words, though, how hard it was to watch her walk away as our train pulled off. Surprisingly this past week she was able to visit us in Moscow for a day. How wonderful our time was together! I thank God for Natasha.

Prayer is a top priority these days.

I pulled up a section from my journal from 1999. We had only been in Russia a year and were moving to our first city of service. Prayer became our top priority in those days. Prayer is a top priority these days.

Buck writes in a year in review newsletter in 1999:

"We are beginning to understand why prayer is so important. A pastor once told me that God would stop the world, the sun, and the universe, if He wanted to get the attention of His children. I believe it. Sometimes I’ve wondered if one of the reasons God has led us to Russia was just to strip away from us all the superficial in our relationship to Him and simply allow us to view our standing before Him with clear vision. I believe that God desires for every man to be saved; I believe that God will send a great outpouring of His Spirit onto Russia in these last days. But I also see that God’s desire for my relationship to Him to be one of simplicity, wholeheartedness, and total dependence upon Him. That kind of relationship only comes through a life priority of prayer.

It’s really a matter of a logical spiritual function. If the world is to be won to Christ, it will take men and women of God who are filled with the Spirit sharing with boldness. 'How can they hear without a preacher?' And if men and women are to be filled with the Spirit, they must have a deep relationship with Him. 'Walk in the Spirit'. And a deep relationship with God only comes through deep, quality time with Him in studying the Word, walking in experiences with Him everyday, and unceasing prayer. It’s that simple.

We are all called to be lights of the world. We are discovering that God as simply moved our lights from one part of the world to another part. And even though the faces have changed, and the entire culture is different, our relationship to Jesus in unceasing prayer through the Holy Spirit has not changed. Or if it has, it is being called to a deeper level."

-The Chosen Path, Journal entry "the unseen battle continues to rage in the forest land", L.Burch

Devotion for the month- "believing faith"

Path Light: Read Mark 11

Key Passage: Because I’m telling you that whoever would say to this mountain, “Go away and be thrown into the sea”, if he doesn’t doubt but believes that it will happen, he will have what he asks. So I tell you, whatever you desire in prayer, believe that you will get it, and you will have it. Mark 11:23-24

This scripture has been brought to my attention a couple of times this week. Some ladies and I, who meet weekly for a Bible study, were discussing this text about believing faith. I am convinced more every day about the power of prayer, not only in its power but also in its proving of our faith. Our faith is strengthened when we believe whatever we ask for will be ours. The stronger we believe, the more our faith is revealed as solid.

Many times I grow impatient and anxious for a specific desire that I have for serving the Lord to be fulfilled. The past few years I have taken these desires to the Lord and waited for an answer, though sometimes impatiently. Within this past month, I have begun to see how the Lord is answering my deepest desires. He reminded me once again of this scripture about belief in prayer. Prayer is powerful! Prayer is also proof of our faith. God does not have to prove anything to us, because He already is the great I AM. However, our faith is tested at times. We must stand firm in Him.

Path Application:
Decide today to be a person of prayer. Do you really believe that God will answer your prayers? Do you really believe that that mountain can be thrown into the sea? Do not doubt. Believe!

Walk Farther:
1. How much do you pray? How much could you pray? What’s the difference?
2. Do you really believe that a literal mountain could be moved through prayer?
Why or why not?
-A Winter's Path, path 48, L. Burch, revised '06