Page 27 - Living Epistles

power of God. The church must turn around from the carnal doctrine of
prosperity and comfort, to the one of whole hearted and uncompromising
obedience to the Lord. There, we shall see the unfailing pot of manna and the
power of signs and wonders as we learn to lean upon nothing else but the
voice of the Lord.

The honor and privilege that God has given us in enjoying numerous
relationships with Christians and non Christians from the Pueblo, Lakota,
Navajo, and Apache Nations, to name a few, as white people, is without
expression. In the last six hundred years, in the name of Jesus Christ, much
injustice and hurt has been done to the Native American. These people have
welcomed and loved our family. We have had Bible studies where our family
were the only white faces.

We will never forget when the Lord allowed us to preach in a church in
Ganado, Arizona, in the heart of the Navajo Nation. As Jose waited to be called
up, the Lord broke him by showing him the preciousness, dignity, and beauty
of each person in that congregation. He told Jose, "you must ask these people
to forgive you, all white people, and your ancestors, for all the harm that you
caused to them. Jose, got up with tears in his eyes and asked for forgiveness.
The service stopped, numerous people from their seats replied, "we forgive
you brother and sister." Two hundred people crowded around us. We
embraced with them. We wept, they wept. A hand made bolo tie and a
necklace were placed around our necks.

Our two years living in one room allowed us to identify with the Navajo people
who live in circular one bedroom hogans. Our experience with forsaking all
allowed us to identify with believers in the Pueblo Nations, who on occasions,
have all property confiscated from them, and are expelled from living within
the pueblo upon their profession of faith in Jesus Christ. One is not fit to
minister to a group of people until he or she has been able to identify with
them at least on some points.

We have been shocked at the amazing imbalance of finances between Native
and non Native ministries within the USA. We have had the honor of serving
two of the foremost Christian Native American leaders alive today. Both of
these people are used internationally, around the world; one of them with key
government leaders.

Until very recently, these ministers did not have a secretary or even an office