Friday, October 22, 2004

9:01 PM Adam McLane is the Pastor of Student Ministries at First Baptist Church of Romeo, Michigan. Yesterday he sent me an email that seems like a wonderful benediction to World Focus Week.

Ray, I just wanted to drop a note to say thanks for forwarding that particular message (The P.U.I.H., May 16, 1989). It was around that time that a young lady made a decision to think about pursuing full time missions. Not too many years later, that young lady Barb Lavanau [now Evans] and her husband Dan led me to the Lord as part of their ministry with Malachi ministries. I was a lost and hurting kid. 3000 miles from home and desperate for a place to fit in. Dan & Barb were my home away from home and my refuge during a dark period of my life. As Dan discipled me as a young believer I aspired to be like him. As a Moody student, unbeknownst to me that this was Barb’s home church, I started attending at Calvary and eventually joined and started serving there. (A few years later it finally hit that the Evans had been sent from CMC.) Later, my wife and I were involved on the missions committee and as I finished my education at Moody I interned at CMC. It was never lost in my eyes that the same church that sent the people that brought me to the Lord was also a place where I later belonged and served. It was ironic that I served in the very youth group that had developed the people who went out and touched my life! All this to say, thank you for your service at Calvary. Through CMC and it’s long-reaching arms of international missions… lives are being changed. Thanks again! Grace and peace, Adam McLane

8:56 PM Rode my bike twice today—early in the AM, then late this afternoon. Right now I’m at 2907 miles YTD. On October 20, 2003 I was at 3018 miles. Last year I rode 3646 miles. My goal for this year is to ride one more mile than last year, so I’ve got 740 miles to go.