Restoring Hope for a Better Tomorrow

I was humbled beyond words by God’s graciousness to our ministry this past week of Thanksgiving.  Johnson Ellis, a wonderful brother in Christ, shared with us how the Lord had burdened him to seek to help our ministry as a result of a simple act of obedience to give to his ministry several years ago.  Following is the e-mail he sent us regarding this wonderful gift:

      “A couple of years ago God challenged me to run a Crusade in the  island city of Parintins located on the Amazon River of Brazil.   This crusade was held in a stadium that to that time had only been  used for the very pagan- and world famous – annual festival of  the bull.  The Pastor in that city, Elmer Lessa has a dream that one day Parintins would be known more as  a lighthouse for the Gospel than it was known for this pagan festival.

One of the challenges that we faced was where to get the resources for the crusade.  We had partnered with Team Impact -the strong men who do feats of strength – and also with The Rocketman who flew in a jet pack around the stadium. They would be the draw to the Crusade. There was the expense of the stadium, the sound system, the video screens, the buses we floated up the river for transport in the city…  I was not fearful that God would provide  us what we needed financially but while we were only about a month  away from the Crusade we still were looking for God to provide 80%  of the budget.

 I remember one evening as I was driving home I received a call  from Mike Fechner.  Mike had been standing with me in prayer the  year before the Crusade  like no one else.  He had never been to the Amazon but he sensed that God was doing a great thing and that I needed much prayer.  On the phone that day Mike proceeded to explain to me that Bridge Builders had made a commitment to Christ  to give a tithe from every dollar that God gave to them.  He said  that they had recently received a donation to the ministry and  that he wanted to tithe from that gift and give Amazon Outreach  $2,000 for the expense of the Crusade.  I remember doing a couple        of things.  The first is that I almost had a wreck because I could  not believe what I was hearing and the second was the my eyes  filled with tears.  “Lord, what is this?Bridge Builders, a ministry to the needy – to the least of these with their own list of needs now coming to a ministry in another country and being a resource to provide for the lost of the Amazon?!”  That day I learned another lesson from Mike Fechner about sacrificial giving. 

A  few months ago God put a burning desire in my heart to reciprocate that generosity Bridge Builders had shown.  God opened  the doors just two days ago for that opportunity that I would like to share with you.  A foundation that helps ministries of Christ like Bridge Builders has committed up to a $25,000 matching grant  for every dollar that is raised!  If you were planning on giving $1 God has turned it into $2 for His needy children. If  you want to step out in faith and give $1,000 or $10,000 God has provided a way to multiply that to $2,000 or $20,000!

 I  know that there has to be hundreds of you out there just like me who have especially during the last 6 months had a burning desire to encourage Mike, Laura, Velma and the host of faithful workers  at Bridge Builders.  Most of you are faithfully praying for the healing of our dear Brother.  While I know that Mike would also like to see his cancer removed, I would venture to say that his heart’s desire is even more committed to seeing the cancer of  poverty and broken hearts and those lost without Christ healed by the gift that God gave us when He died on the cross for our sins.

You will get a lot of ministry letters this time of year from many ministries that are on the front lines for Christ.  Before you stick this newsletter in one of your piles around the house please  just pray this simple prayer. “Lord teach me to give the way you would give.  Use the gift that you challenge me to give today to  encourage Mike and his ministry and the least of these that they work with right here in Dallas and around the world.” 

Please pray for God to speak to His people about this amazing opportunity to advance the Gospel to the least.  If you are interested in giving toward this matching grant, please e-mail my assistant manderwald@hisbb.org to enable us to exponentially advance the gospel this Christmas season.  I am prayerful that we will never forget the joy of giving.  Amazon Outreach is an amazing ministry advancing the Gospel along the Amazon river in Brazil to many people who have never heard the good news of Jesus Christ.  By God’s grace I had the joy to go to this very city with two of my sons and meet the Pastor and share the Gospel with many who said: “Yes, I want Jesus to be my Savior & Lord.”  What a joy it is to give our lives and our resources so that others may experience the amazing gift of eternal life through Jesus Christ.  There is no greater gift than the gift God gave when He sent His Son, Jesus. to save us from our sins.  “Who for the joy set before Him endured the cross.”  Only Jesus would count it joy to die for us so that we might live forever with Him.  I pray that we will each experience the joy of giving this Christ season. 

So often in the scriptures we hear references to enlarging our tents and it immediately brings to mind a greater space to provide for our families.  Specifically,  Is. 54:2 says: “Enlarge the place of your tent, and let the curtains of your habitation be stretched out; do not hold back, lengthen your cords and strength your stakes.”  What a picture of God’s promise to His people to expect His blessing as we continue to seek His reign and rule in our lives.  These past weeks the Lord has enlarged our tent in regards to our ministry for the Lord and we are humbled beyond words.

 Several weeks ago I had the joy of leading a prayer segment for a movement of prayer and city transformation called God of the City.  Unlike any other time when I have been asked to pray, I was asked to pray for healing for those in need at this gathering.  I was humbled at the joy of praying, believing in a God who is still in the process of healing me to allow me the privilege of praying this for others. Luke 4:18-19 “The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, because He has anointed Me to proclaim good news to the poor.  He has sent Me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.” These have been a guide to my life and ministry, specifically to proclaim good news to the poor.  I remember, like it was yesterday, reading these verses in the Holy Land in the very place that Jesus spoke them.  There was a breaking of my hard heart as never before for the least, to broaden my tent and not hold back as Christ Himself came from heaven in all His glory to dwell among us and deliver us from our sins.  Amazingly our Lord’s first message was from Isaiah and a word to preach good news to the poor.  This has embedded in my heart the priority this should be for every Christian as it is for our Lord.  Recently with this season of cancer the ministry of God’s healing as He speaks of bringing sight to the blind is ever before me.  I am overwhelmed with this broadening of our tent of ministry to pray, believing by faith for others for healing in the mighty name of Jesus, no matter what they are facing.  This time of prayer at God of the City confirmed this new area of ministry as I was able to share in the power of the Holy Spirit that we are to Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all that is within me Bless His holy name.  Bless the Lord, O my soul and forget not all His benefits, who forgives all your iniquities, who heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit, who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy. Ps. 103:1-4  The Lord led me to invite everyone up to the platform who needed prayer for healing and over 100 people came forward.  I was shocked and overwhelmed at God’s goodness to let me pray over His children for a faith in a Holy Omnipotent God who is able.  I am thankful beyond words for the incredible prayer warriors that serve God of the City to unite and mobilize the bride of Christ to bring glory to God and transformation to our city. 

This past Saturday we had the joy of being a part of H.I.S. BridgeBuilders’ Thanksgiving outreach in San Antonio through our ministry there in the inner city.  My parents and twin brother, Mel, bless me by their obedience to enlarge their tents daily to embrace the least of that city.  We gave away  hundreds of bags of food and clothing.  My father asked me to share and immediately the Lord led me to Luke 8 where the woman touched the hem of Jesus’ garment and she was healed.  We asked people who needed to be healed from sin and needed salvation to come forward as well as those who needed physical and emotional healing.  In God’s providence there is now an immediate connection when you tell a crowd of people you are battling Stage 4 lung cancer. They now look at me and know I’m in need just as much as they are.  What a joy to see how God has opened the door of greater ministry through what the enemy intended for evil. 

He is enlarging our tent as well in our personal family.  This past Sunday, our son Michael asked Caitlin Sammons to marry him and they are now engaged.  We are overwhelmed by God’s goodness and grace as we love others, He meets the desires of our hearts.  Our childrens’ first response when they found out Michael was engaged was: “We have a new sister.”  Caitlin is an amazing Godly young lady.  We celebrate this marvelous blessing as He enlarges our tents in every area of our lives. 

We praise God for each of you in this season of Thanksgiving and thank you for enlarging your tents to pray for us and be a part of our ministry to the least.  We now have 115 BridgeBuilders 300’s who have committed to pray for our healing and to give $100 per month to our ministry.  If you would like to join this group, please e-mail manderwald@hisbb.org.  May God remind us daily that we are each blessed abundantly to be a blessing to others. We love you and thank God for you!

This past week was another example of God’s leading and us following as we seek God and a greater surrender to Him and His will and not our own. For most of us, the prospect of going to the cancer hospital is not exactly the kind of ministry assignment we would desire. The Lord is showing me that this is one of the most strategic places we can minister to people in great need. This past Wednesday, as we went to our oncologist at Baylor, we continued to thank God for his leading us in our next steps. This truly is an incredible journey of faith of asking God and hearing Him answer in our time of need. God is so faithful if we will be faithful to earnestly seek Him. So often in our times of need, we seek the counsel of many men and not the leading of the Holy Spirit to direct us to the path we should take. Whether the decision is about family, financial, or physical needs, God’s word will be a lamp unto our feet and a light unto our paths.

I am thankful for the doctors at Baylor, at M.D. Anderson, and at Cedars Sinai.  They are truly a gift from God as his instruments of help.  However, God alone is the healer. It is amazing the peace that comes when you don’t look to the counsel of this world to be your ultimate source of guidance in areas of your life. The Word says “call to me and I will tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know.” God longs to give us His peace and path if you will be still and listen to His voice. I am thankful for all of the doctors, but each time we meet with them, they give us multiple options.  It is for us to pray and hear the direction we are to go. What a peace there is when you know that the God who loves you and has allowed you to be in your situation of great need is the same God who will make a way through the valley of the shadow of death. It humbles me that your prayers are lifting us up to go through this with peace and the praise of God in our hearts. Because of Him, I don’t go to my doctor expecting my healing.  I go expecting my God to heal me however He chooses and am looking forward to how I can minister to my doctors and to those in the hospital. This week my doctor was laughing and very open to our time of prayer.  We are thankful for the relationship that we are building with this wonderful doctor.  He asked me when I wanted to come back for my next appointment.  I asked him if he normally asks the patient when they want to come back. He said he’s learned with me that I will do whatever I’m led to do by God.  We are thankful for God’s leading and his peace that passes understanding that we pray is a continued witness to our doctor. 

When we were leaving the hospital, we saw a lady named Sharon who was extremely upset and wouldn’t talk to her husband about what the doctors were saying. She was anxious and fearful and couldn’t go any further in her battle against cancer. The Lord was clear, go and pray for her. I went up to her and shared with her that I too had cancer but I would like to pray for her. She was overwhelmed with gratitude. All she said was yes, yes, yes, please pray. She was shaking and completely overcome so we went together to the throne of grace to cast our cares on Jesus. We prayed and she repeated these words near the end of our prayer; “Jesus save me! Jesus help me! Jesus heal me!” When we finished praying, she was at peace and ready to take her next steps in her fight against cancer. What peace we forfeit when we rely on the world to give us what only our Creator and Great I Am that I Am can provide. After we prayed, I knew this was why I went to the hospital. Nothing was changed with my condition; there was no new information, just the joy of praying for Sharon.

I was reminded of my new ministry by my beautiful daughter Grace. She is the youngest of our 4 children, and unknown to me, did a short video testimony for our youth ministry. I was humbled by her words and God’s goodness to continue to keep my heart open to the needs of others before my own. Please go to http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TobmuRkgmak to watch Grace’s video testimony. I am prayerful, more now than ever, that in whatever situation you are facing you will fervently seek God.  Remember, He loves you and has plans to bless you and to prosper you with a future and a hope.

           Much of the journey of the life of faith is learning to be utterly dependent on an utterly dependable God.  We are living daily dependent on God with our fight against cancer and are confident that he will heal us whenever and however He chooses.  It is amazing to see how over and over God’s people are at an apparent dead-end and God makes a way for His people and for His glory.  In many of these instances God uses His people to be the very answer to the prayers of the people praying.  Clearly the gift of Moses to deliver his people is a reminder of “delayed but not denied.”  The 40 years Moses was learning to walk with God in the desert of his life, he was being prepared to be God’s agent to set his people free.  This culminated in Moses risking his life before Pharaoh to demand the release of the Hebrews.  For decades the people prayed and now their prayers were being answered because one man who encountered God in a burning bush heard and obeyed the voice of God.  I am certain that we all have said if God would speak to me in a burning bush I would certainly hear Him and obey Him.  The reality is that He speaks to us every time we open His Word, the Bible.  The question is do we listen and obey. 

              My heart is burdened greatly during this Christ exalting season of giving thanks and celebrating the birth of our Savior.  Every day during these next two months, our staff will encounter 1000s of people in our cities that are praying to be delivered from their current state of despair.   In this season of great disparity, our ministry attempts to meet needs of our communities.  We host a wonderful outreach on Christmas Day at 2:00 in Turner Courts gym (refer to hisbridgebuilders.org for directions).  Years ago after opening our presents in our home with my family and parents, we decided to take some bags of fruit and candy to BonTon to celebrate Christmas.  I will never forget the sight as we went from house to house – no Christmas tree, few if any toys, and an empty refrigerator.  It was no different from any other day.  Last year on Christmas day the community residents stood in line around the gym waiting to be served.  Each year we order an 18-wheeler from Feed the Children with 800 boxes of food and household supplies. We give each child one toy, give away clothing (both new and used) and feed the community Christmas dinner.  The cost for the single day is about $15,000.  I am hopeful that we will receive this necessary funding so that we can answer the prayers of the residents of the inner city on Christmas day .

                We are thankful that 112 people have said “yes” to BridgeBuilders’ 300.  We are prayerful that God will lead some of you this Christmas to become a BridgeBuilders 300 by giving $100 monthly to the ministry and praying for my healing.  If you desire to participate, please contact Mary Anderwald at 214-377-1551 or manderwald@hisbb.org.

         Today we celebrated the Habitat home dedications of Clifton Reese and Carla Robinson in Bonton.  We are grateful that a man who once slept in a car and sold drugs is now reconciled to God and to his wife, was trained as an optical lab technician in the BridgeBuilders clinic and is working in the lab and is now a first-time homeowner.  His heart is to let his house be a lighthouse for Christ for the neighborhood children as he has four children of his own.  We celebrate also with Carla who said she never dreamed she would have a house of her own.  She too works in the clinic.  At the dedication she said that her home is the “house that love built.”  I know for Clifton and Carla, their dream may have been delayed but through Christ, the church, and HIS BridgeBuilders, their dreams were not denied.   

         In over 2000 scriptures in God’s Word, He tells us to go and to give in His name to the least and the lost.  I pray the delay in the answer is not because we are not listening or obeying to the still small voice of God.  God is speaking.  I pray we are listening.  The poor of this nation and the earth are crying out.  Let’s not delay any longer.  We love you and long to walk with you to reach the lost and the least.  Please consider helping us this Christmas to continue to share His love and light through your giving, serving, and praying. 

         Prayerfully the delay will be over soon for many who are crying out to God.

                Many times we pray these very familiar words “Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done”  with no real awareness of the tremendous blessing  it is to be led by a loving God, to be about His will to seek and save the lost in the midst of our journey of life.  While the Lord clearly closed the door for surgery at this time in Los Angeles, He did hear your prayers and open the door for us to do ministry our last two days in LA.  We were blessed the evening following the bronchoscopy (a surgical procedure where a camera views behind the bronchial tree for signs of cancer) to go out to eat at a little café near Rodeo Drive.  There were three restaurants to choose from but we all agreed on the 3rd one mainly because of the price.  God is so good.  He allowed us to have a young waiter/actor named Jonathan.  Immediately I thought of my youngest son Jonathan and we began to share with this struggling actor.  The conversation, led by the Spirit because of your prayers, turned to the topic of his relationships.  He then asked if I was psychic (never had that before).  Relationships was the theme of the service God led us to at Mosaic church and was fresh on my heart.  We had prayed about which church to attend and the Lord clearly led us to Mosaic at Beverly Hills High School.  Now we were witnessing to a man half a mile from where the church meets who is seeking good relationships in his life and a new beginning.  We are praying as we shared with Jonathan for his salvation and for him to experience life changing relationships through a local church.  The next day as I was praying, there was a deep impression that we should go to an inner city community and pray.  Mike Buster had stayed with me and Laura to go to the doctors and continue to walk with us during our stay in LA.  Mike Buster and the 4 men who traveled across the country to be by our side during this season were a tremendous blessing from God.  We did some sight-seeing in Beverly Hills of famous homes and went to the Getty Center, the wealthiest museum in the world.  From the stars’ homes and the multibillion dollar museum, we went to the hood.  We put an address of a housing development in our car and drove about an hour in rush hour traffic and finally found the housing development.  The weather had gotten very windy and cold.  The housing development looked like a prison, cinder block apartments with bars.  When we pulled into a parking space there were two men sitting in the cold near our car.  Mike and I got out and began to talk to these two men.  It was surreal; they were so open to hearing about the work of God through BridgeBuilders and our church.  We both shared that we wanted to pray for them.  The minute we said this, men started coming from everywhere for us to pray with them.  Men were actually running across the street to join our prayer time and we were now surrounded by eight men.  I asked these men in the inner city to pray for my healing and they did.  I told them that by God’s grace when I am healed, we would return and plant our work in their community.  We then linked arms and prayed God’s blessing of salvation for these men, their families, and this community.  Several of the men hugged us and thanked us for coming to pray for them.  Regardless of what I am going through, I have never lived one day like these residents in the housing development.  I have been blessed with godly parents, an education, employment, a beautiful family, home, salvation, and an amazing church family.  What have I done to earn this? Nothing.  I am overwhelmed by God’s goodness and grace to show me just how blessed I am.  These men are now in my heart and prayers.  By God’s will, we will one day return to this band of brothers who prayed for me. 

                Medically, we had a very good meeting with our doctors in LA.  They will be working with our doctor here at Baylor.  It is great how these doctors are working together for our good.  We had the privilege of praying for our doctors, affirming the great work the Lord does through them every day.  The status of the cancer is now confirmed to be stage 4 as it has metastasized in the lungs and the lymph nodes.  The good news is that by God’s grace the Tarceva has shrunk the tumors significantly and the cancer found in the lymph nodes is microscopic.  The Tarceva can stop the cancer from growing for six months to several years.  Eventually in most cases, the cancer goes around the Tarceva and you must take other medications designed for this specific cancer or take chemotherapy.  The Lord has blessed us with Tarceva that is so effective against this cancer.  There are clinical tests for this cancer and the doctors are very hopeful because every day there are new “God given” discoveries that could defeat this cancer.  I am confident that our God is able to heal and that He has created this remarkable drug to hinder the cancer until the Lord brings our healing in His time and His way.  He alone is able.  Please join us in praying for wisdom about our next steps of treatment.  Thank you for your prayers and love.  We are overwhelmed by God’s goodness and grace and the open door He gave us to witness in Los Angeles and be about His will for our lives!  May we each pray with absolute abandonment, Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done.  May we live everyday knowing that they are not our own, but precious gifts from God to be used for His purpose and plan to seek and save the lost.

         Today it was my fervent prayer along with many of you that the cancer in my body would be surgically removed by our amazing surgeon here in Los Angeles.  The biopsy performed on the lymph nodes behind the bronchial tree of my lungs showed evidence of more cancer.  Therefore, surgery was no longer a good option.    We will have further information following our meeting with our doctors here in Los Angeles in the morning.  We will continue to take Tarceva which God has used to shrink the 2 tumors over 75% and trust God for His miracle of healing in another way.  He is our Jehovah Rapha!!

            I do not want to waste the stewardship of this season of my life not sharing the word with you that God spoke to me following this new information.  In Philippians Paul writes “I want you to know brothers that what has happened to me has really served to advance the gospel.”  Each day we hear testimonies of how God is using this trial to bring the truth of Jesus’ goodness and grace to the lives of so many who need Him.  This morning before the procedure I had the joy of praying with two ladies waiting for their family member who was having surgery.  There were tears in their eyes as they thanked me for praying for their family member who experienced a successful surgery.  Last Friday, Laura and I had the joy of praying with two young Christian men from Chicago who were selling their CDs on the sidewalk of Rodeo Drive.  They were blessed beyond words that we stopped and prayed for them and gave to their music career to be light in a dark culture here in LA.  We enjoyed worshipping at Mosaic Church in Beverly Hills where Erwin McManus and his lay leadership meet in six locations across the city and are making a great impact for the Kingdom of God.  We joined them in the Beverly Hills High School auditorium and had the opportunity to affirm Erwin and his team for the tremendous impact they are making on so many lives.  It was our joy to spend time with Caroline Clark, daughter of Brad and Lisa Clark.  She is such a great example of the next generation’s heart to be a passionate witness for Christ in the culture through the entertainment industry where Christ is so absent. 

            The city is beautiful but it breaks my heart for the lostness of this place. People openly sell marijuana through “medical” clinics and overtly pursue materialism,  fame, and every lust of the flesh.  The people are desperately seeking to fill the void of their lives that only Christ can fill.  From movies stars to beggars, this void is the same.  This city urgently needs the body of Christ in the streets modeling His love and compassion to the homeless, lost, and least.  I’m burdened and prayerful that God will one day let us come to this city with a loving compassionate witness for the Lord Jesus Christ.  I may not have come here for my healing after all but to get a burden for these dear people who need healing from our precious Savior.  The remnant is here and vibrant but oh how they need reinforcements.  Please join me in praying to be a faithful steward of what God has shown us and what our part is in sharing the gospel to so many who are desperately seeking.

            In addition, Paul writes “I will rejoice for I know that through your prayers and the help of Jesus Christ, this will turn out for my deliverance.”  I want each of you who has fervently prayed for us to be greatly encouraged as we commit to be faithful stewards of your prayers to continue with every breath of my being to:

• Proclaim the good news and grace of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ without ceasing.
• Pray for you in your time of need for God to meet you as He has so faithfully met us in our time of need and the needs of our ministry.
• To give my life whole heartedly without reserve for the furtherance of the Kingdom of God.
• To serve the church and the least of these as selflessly and sacrificially as I have been served.
• To believe by faith with you that God is a miracle working God who can do anything at anytime through anyone to bring himself glory.
• To run with endurance the race that is set before me, keeping my eyes on Jesus, and counting it all joy. 

            I pray that I will be a faithful steward of all God’s goodness and grace, your love, and your fervent prayers.  These are His days for His glory to fulfill His purpose alone.  Pray for me as I pray for you that we will be faithful stewards of all that He has entrusted to us.  Thank you for loving and praying for me, my beloved family, and the ministry of H.I.S. BridgeBuilders.  You are loved.

Today, before I went to hear the results of my C.T. scan, I was led to Psalm 118 “Oh, give thanks to the Lord, for He is good; for His steadfast love endures forever!  What a treasure to be loved by God.  No matter what we are going through in life, our Creator, Sustainer and Redeemer loves us.  The Psalmist continues by stating: “Out of my distress I called on the Lord; the Lord answered me and set me free; The Lord is my strength and my song; He has become my salvation.  I shall not die, but I shall live and recount the deeds of the Lord.

            What a great and awesome God we serve who hears us when we cry out to Him and answers us and sets us free.  We thank God for this opportunity, through cancer, to let God be our strength and our song, for He alone is my salvation.  We proclaim by faith that we will live for His glory and recount His mighty deeds. 

            Today, the doctor informed us that the 2 tumors in my lungs have both shrunk about 65%!!!  This is a miracle from God.  We praise Him also that there were no new evidences of cancer on the C.T. scan.  We believe God and God alone is worthy to receive all the praise and glory for this wonderful report.  We leave this Wednesday to go to Cedar Sinai Hospital in Los Angeles and prayerfully will have surgery on October 26th to remove both tumors.  Please pray for Dr. Fuller and their team.  We rejoice as well that this same day, we are now at 101 BridgeBuilder 300’s, individuals who are praying for our healing and giving $100 each month to H.I.S. BridgeBuilders.  This miracle of His continued provision and healing is almost too much to comprehend.  Each of you is an evidence of God’s steadfast love to me and to those we minister to in the cities.  It is my fervent desire to continue to be a bridge of His love to the least and the lost.  As God has so graciously demonstrated His steadfast love for us, may we today demonstrate love for those around us who so desperately need to be loved and led to Jesus.  Pray for us as we get to go and minister in Los Angeles through this cancer.  We are excited about a new day and the opportunity we have to be used by Him to bring Him glory and advance the gospel.  You are loved and your prayers are a gift from God.

This past week we have seen the Lord open doors for our ministry that we know are the direct answer to your prayers.  There is a tremendous opportunity in West Dallas to be a part of a collaboration to train people from the community and develop micro businesses in construction, culinary, dental technicians and automotive.  This has the opportunity to provide a platform for the gospel and make disciples of hundreds of people that will have an impact on thousands in our city.  Each one of these outposts is an open door for people to come in and meet Jesus and to have hope for tomorrow.  Recently, one of our staff members shared about a prostitute who came to our eye clinic, but was so tired and on drugs that she could not even get her eyes examined.  Our staff prayed fervently for her and told her Jesus could change her life and set her free from her pimp and that life style.  Each time she would come to the clinic, the pimp would wait outside for her and wonder why she was taking so long because our staff was ministering to her and letting her rest.  When the pimp would come in and try to go back in the back to see her, the staff told him he could not go back into the patient area.  They protected her and gave her a refuge from this storm of her life.  Thirty days passed and the same lady came into the clinic and asked if they remembered her.  She said, “I asked Jesus to come into my life, left the streets and am living with my grandmother and I want to come to the clinic for optical training so I can get a job and begin my life again.” How I praise God for the open door these clinics and businesses are in the city for people to open their hearts to Jesus and be saved.

            Medically, the Lord has also opened a door for our healing.  Several weeks ago I received a call from a doctor in California who is the son in law of one of our members at Prestonwood.  He is a Thoracic Oncologist at Cedar Sinai Hospital in Los Angeles.  When I spoke to him I was immediately encouraged by his words of wisdom and concern.  We have received a diagnosis from this doctor that is only found in 1% of patients with cancer.  His diagnosis, after receiving our biopsies and medical records is that I have synchronous primary.  This basically means that my 2 tumors formed at about the same time, but one tumor did not come from the other.  This means that surgery is now an option and that I am in Stage 1b or 2 and not Stage 4.  We are overwhelmed by God’s continued grace in our lives and your fervent prayers.  I will get C.T. scans done tomorrow to have as a measurement of how the Tarceva has worked, by God’s grace, to shrink the tumors.  We know that Jesus is our only healer and that he can use any method or doctor at any time to heal me for his glory.  We will go to our doctor on Monday here in Dallas and will blog the results of our tests this Monday evening.  Based on the results of the C.T. scans, we are prepared to fly to California next Wednesday for further tests, with a potential surgery on October 26th to remove the two tumors from my lung.  We know that God has opened this door for His glory and our good. 

            We love you and covet your prayers more now than ever before to continue to believe God by faith, to walk through the doors He opens for each of us to be His ambassador of healing and salvation to the hurting and the lost.

The words of Paul to “follow me as I follow Christ” are a true challenge for all of us.  Where would the people closest to us say that we are leading them?  For many like me, in my twenties, I would have led you to a pursuit of worldly things.  True, I was a Christian, but I was a carnal Christian.  I praise God that in my late twenties through the love of my godly wife, the preaching of Jack Graham, and the faith and prayer life of Velma Mitchell, my heart was awakened to truly surrender to Jesus.  Yes, I still sin but the desire of my heart is to seek Jesus and His will for my life.  As I have fallen more in love with Jesus and long to follow His example of loving all people in spite of what the world says of them. This change of direction in my own life has not only altered my priorities and passions, but also  looking to me for leadership. 

Recently with my battle with cancer I have seen this all around me but especially in my beloved family. My wife, and co-laborer in ministry, has continued faithfully alongside me in this journey as we watch our children follow us in this ministry. All of my children are more connected than ever before to the ministry of H.I.S. BridgeBuilders. Daniel, while at UTSA, goes down to the inner city in San Antonio with my brother, my parents and the college department of his church to mentor young children.  Grace continues to show a growing love for the children of Bonton and encourages me by her gentle, servant heart.  Michael continues to bless me by his love for God and the least. He recently revised our website and is truly engaged in every element of the ministry.  Michael’s love for Clifton and Seandra, a couple from Bonton, is an example to me of the fruit of his life of loving God and others more than himself. Recently, Jonathan, my 15 year old wrote a paper for school that brought me to tears. 

                        Something I Wish to Complete in My Lifetime

                                                by Jonathan Fechner

“One day I hope to be the President of H.I.S. BridgeBuilders not to just follow in my Dad’s footsteps but to serve God and the community of Bonton.  I want to do this because the environment is so happy and the people are such a blessing to be around.  The people of Bonton want to change but they need the opportunity.  It is because of this that I want to serve the community and offer them classes to get through high school, training to get jobs, and a relationship with Christ so that they can support their families and give them a strong spiritual base.  I believe I can do this because of my love for my God and the people of Bonton.  I have already seen many miracles happen in the community.  Two drug dealers become Christian leaders in the community and a homeless drunk stopped drinking, accepted Christ and is trying to find a job. When my Dad gives up the job of being President, someone will need to take his spot, and I feel that person could be me.  I love the Bonton area and I look forward to going down there every week and getting to see the kid’s big smiles and providing them spiritual guidance.  I wouldn’t change anything with BridgeBuilders.  I think it is set up perfectly and has the correct goals.  In order to be President of BridgeBuilders you have to have good people and business skills to partner with other organizations such as Habitat for Humanity and to run micro-businesses.  Business relationships are needed to provide good jobs for people such as a cafe, dental clinic, eye clinic and optical lab and find them jobs at stores such as Walmart.  I believe all these are needed to be the President of BridgeBuilders.”

I share this humbled by God’s grace to save me and give me a second chance to be used for His work. I pray that you and I would always remember that people are following us, the question is where are we leading them?

Medically we are 10 days away from the CT scan to determine what effect the Tarceva has had on the tumors.  We are believing God will deliver us through your fervent prayers.  We love you and thank you for continuing to walk with us as we all follow Jesus.

 This past week I had the joy of traveling to Washington D.C. with 3 brothers in life who each serve in our ministry. It was wonderful to watch these 3 men who come from diverse backgrounds come together with me to advance the cause of the least at our capital. I was struck by the WWII memorial and a quote that said “we did not come to conquer but to liberate.” That resonated with my heart as soldiers came from across the country to advance the cause of justice and freedom around the world! When there is a war and you are called to fight you don’t have time to argue about non-essentials. You realize your lives depend on your trusting God and each other to advance the mission. 

Marvelously the 4 of us, were from different churches from Methodist to Pentecostal, different areas of the city, different ages (me being the oldest), different races, and different educational backgrounds but together in Christ with a common cause to bring liberation to those in the war zones in the heart of our city. To see a Pastor of a mega church in South Dallas, who possesses a fervor for doctors in our medical clinics, mentors men through our training, provides school supplies for kids and wholeheartedly supports the ministry take 2 days of his schedule to use his influence on Capitol Hill to help the least was humbling. I will forever be indebted to Pastor Bryan Carter and the amazing congregation of Concord Missionary Baptist Church.
It is equally a joy to see the owner of a large Machine Tool & Die company, who hosts our Machine Shop Skills training class in his company, has hired 5 of our graduates, and hosts a weekly Bible Study come with us to show his burden for the least and use his influence to help us get grants for employment training and the opportunity to exponentially invest in more lives. Chris Tedford is a true kingdom focused business man. He tells me all the time, that when I lead Bible Study I should just think of his company as my church. It is Chris who helped me realize that businesses are not just locations for economic development, educational and employment training sites, and places to make a living but could also be used as a place of worship on the weekends and help avoid the costs of a church building. I am humbled by this man of God.

Lastly but not least, Clifton Reese a man from the inner city who calls me Daddy. He is the essence of all that we are about. A man in the inner city, separated from his wife and children, and dealing drugs. Through the grace of God, Clifton got his GED, connected with a mentor – my son Michael, and went on and followed his Brother in Faith Roderick Yarbrough and graduated from our optical lab technician training. Clifton now works at the Eye Clinic, reconciled with his wife, and we are currently building a home for him with Dallas Area Habitat for Humanity in the very neighborhood where he used to sell drugs. Praise God that his testimony spoke volumes to the Faith-Based Office of the White House. Faith in Jesus truly does transform lives. 

These three men are a beautiful example that when we all keep our eyes on Jesus and our mission to transform souls and society for Christ we will realize that we are in a spiritual war that demands we die to self and separate ourselves from the things of the world. We must stand under the united banner of the cross to liberate, through the good news, those who are hurting and the least of the land. We praise God that we are now at 83 people of the BridgeBuilders 300. If interested in praying for our complete healing and giving $100 a month to support this work of God you can donate through our website at www.hisbridgebuilders.org or by contacting Mary Anderwald at 214-377-1551.

Medically we are 15 days away from our first CT scan to measure the effectiveness of our believing prayers and the Tarceva to shrink the two tumors. I am expectant of miracles! There are some new potential medical opportunities that I will inform you of in the next several weeks. We are the still collecting data but I will keep you posted. I am humbled by God’s goodness to entrust me with cancer to prayerfully bring glory to His name and advance the Gospel. You are gift from Heaven to me, my family, and my ministry.