May 2020: Even against Corona, #GodWins

​For all the disastrous effects Corona has had on global economies and being a catalyst for widespread assault on our civil liberties, God has made provision. I’ve received many messages from friends and colleagues sharing stories of miraculous healings and unexpected financial blessings to help make ends meet. There are also the beautiful testimonies from folks whose lives have been changed spiritually and they’re walking a new path, divinely designed with great purpose in Jesus, our Messiah.

​​In my case, I haven’t worked steadily for about three months, yet God has been faithful in providing a few on-the-side contract jobs allowing me to build websites and provide tech-assistance to clients.

There’ve also been the blessings of soul-food provided by the many churches who are broadcasting devotionals, worship, Bible studies and preaching around the globe. We are a global church and it has been good to be in service with Christian brothers and sisters that we’ve previously not had the privilege of enjoying services together so consistently. 

I participate in near-daily cyber-services with my brother and his wife, Pastors Ken and Bela Cooper of Mairinque, Brazil. In those, I’ve been able to enjoy some bible studies and devotionals from some of the most anointed ministers in the world, who’ve been stepping up to be guest ministers in the broadcasts.

​God’s just laid out a table full of help to keep me encouraged and spiritually cared for through the Corona social restrictions. Though the debils have manipulated circumstances to bring chaos, fear and harm, God continues to produce great good from the mess.

​Angels on High

​Click HERE to get it from amazon

While we’ve been in shutdown, I’m grateful for the time available for reading. One of the books I’ve just finished is a revised version of an old favorite by Walt Deecki Sr., titled Angels on High. It’s available on Amazon in for Kindle, paperback and hardback.

​I first wrote a review for this story several years ago. When I began revisiting it, I’d forgotten how wonderful it feels to be immersed in this exciting tale of a small town, nestled high in the mountains and their interactions as a community with God’s touch and influence in every nuance of their lives, including the supernatural assistance and visitations from the host of Heaven.

​I hope you’ll read it too and get the same blessing I get when reading it, something akin to feeling like being cuddled by God as He reads along with you. It’s a great story for young adult readers and up.

​​Another reason I hope you’ll read it is that you’ll be supporting the independent work of a retired U.S. military veteran. Bravo Zulu on your fine work, Mr. Deecki! It’s been a blessing and I’m looking forward to reading the sequels!

P.S. Books make great gifts!

​Dr. Tamara Miley and the Maumee Reading Nook

​Before the shutdown, I was blessed to have gotten acquainted with Pastor Kevin and Tamara Miley, of Maumee Church, near Owensville, Indiana. Although we’d never met prior, we discovered that we have loads of friends in common even a few familial connections. We’ve only known each other since December 2019, but it already seems we’ve been friends for a lifetime. 

When the social-restrictions began, the Mileys and the Maumee Worship Team began live-broadcasting the church services. This was new territory but they met the challenge and learned how to improve their productions along the way. 

Maumee is a vintage building and had minimal equipment to produce the broadcasts. However, with some help from good friends with a passion to share the Gospel, they made it happen.

Now, I gotta include a ShoutOut to Michael Philpot and The Hills Church in Evansville, Indiana for lending their video-expertise and production equipment to Maumee, while they’re in process of establishing their own system. Props!

Not long after their service broadcasts were underway, Tamara, a local college professor and former elementary school teacher, decided to do something special for the Gibson Southern High School graduating class of 2020. The students aren’t getting to enjoy the traditional graduation ceremonies due to social restrictions. The 2020 class is special to Tamara. She taught several of the graduates in elementary school.

The gift was a video of her reading a book for them, one of her favorites. This was a regular activity Tamara incorporated into her teaching that she and her students loved. 

The reading was emotional--completely understandable considering the circumstances. It’s a good guess you’ll be experiencing something similar when watching the vid. The featured book is one of her favorite stories, “What a Wonderful World.”

Enjoy...

Tamara’s reading was a hit, and I’m thrilled that she plans to continue the productions as an ongoing series.

Post Tornado Blessing for Chatanooga Church

Sunday evening, April 14, 2020, a tornado descended on Chatanooga, Tennessee ripping through area homes and demolishing the new worship center of Cornerstone Apostolic Church. What happened inside the church, you can see in the video posted below, but what it won’t cover is the post-trauma response of the congregation and locals who quickly set up stations in clear areas of their property to prepare food and other types of necessities for those in their area left in need after the storm.

Pastor David Sizemore of First United Pentecostal Church of Rockwood, Tennessee expressed great sympathy and sincere praise for the Chatanooga congregation, explaining how they moved quickly to share what they had to help with the needs of their neighbors even when left with so little themselves. He encouraged anyone who was moved to make a donation to help with their recovery efforts could do so via the church website’s building fund.  I used it myself and was able to make a donation quickly and without any problems.

Moving forward...

God has not been intimidated by Corona. He’s carrying on with His usual, glorious and surprising plan. We’ve been rerouted to the same destination. We’ve been upgraded with new technology to reach beyond the walls of our worship structures. People are receiving the gospel, getting baptized, getting healed, becoming stronger in prayer and praise. 

These murky waters in the days of Covid must give way to the Light of the World. I’m trusting His plan. 

Thank you for your visit today and pray you’ll stay encouraged until the shutdown ends and we endeavor to move forward to whatever God has prepared for us in the rebuild and looking forward to having you visit again for the next edition of ​By the Way...

Shalom