Gusts of chilly wind whistle through the windows & doors. Wind-borne dust hangs in the air & obscures the view of the surrounding mountains. Fall has arrived in northern Mexico!
With the arrival of November, our family, like most North Americans, begins to think about Thanksgiving. We’re planning the big holiday dinner & are looking forward to sharing it with friends & family. But, Thanksgiving is about more than a nice meal. It’s about giving thanks to God for all He’s done for us.
Despite the modern trend to remove the spiritual aspects of this national holiday, we would do well to remember Abraham Lincoln’s 1863 Presidential Proclamation that set the precedent for the national observance of the holiday:
“I do therefore invite my fellow citizens in every part of the United States, and also those who are at sea and those who are sojourning in foreign lands, to set apart and observe the last Thursday of November next, as a day of Thanksgiving and Praise to our beneficent Father who dwelleth in the Heavens.”
Note the purpose of the holiday? It was to give “Thanksgiving and Praise to our beneficent Father who dwelleth in the Heavens!” Where is that emphasis in modern America’s celebration of Thanksgiving?
Twenty-eight centuries before Lincoln was born, however, the Psalmist had already penned exactly the same urging to God’s people. What’s more, he explained exactly why & how we should give thanks to God:
“Oh that men would praise the LORD for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children of men! And let them sacrifice the sacrifices of thanksgiving, and declare his works with rejoicing.” (Psalm 107:21-22)
We should be praising the Lord for His merciful kindness toward us & that should lead us to worship Him with willing sacrifices of thanksgiving that include recounting His works with joy! May those of us who are redeemed worship our Lord this Thanksgiving by praising Him & recounting His blessings.
With this passage in mind, we want to pause & offer thanks to God for all He has done for the Pryor family over the last year. Specifically, we want to offer sacrifices of thanksgiving to our Lord for…
…Family
- For kids who want to serve the Lord – Cameron & Katy Pryor in missionary aviation, Autumn & Justin Bartron as tribal church planters in Indonesia, Bethany as she attends New Tribes Bible Institute in Wisconsin, & Matthew as he looks forward to attending the Bible Institute once he graduates from high school here in Mexico.
- For extended family – parents, siblings, aunts, uncles & cousins – who are partners in our ministry through their prayers, finances, & material help with everything from literature for the tribal works to vehicle repairs while we were traveling in the States over the Summer.
…Partners
- For all our faithful prayer & financial partners who stand with us in the Lord’s work among the unreached tribal people of Mexico. Without your active part in our ministry, we would not be able to stay on the field & continue the work to which our Lord has called us.
- For the individual partners who have such a desire to serve the Lord through their support of missions that they started an eBay business at home just to support our family & another. What an encouragement this has been to us to see someone go to such extremes to further God’s work! May we all be as diligent to seek out unique ways to fund His work & bring Him glory.
…Opportunities
- For our weekly Bible studies with our neighbors. Hector has started bringing his reading glasses & intently reads along as we go through each lesson. He’s asking fewer peripheral questions & is staying focused on the point of each lesson. He still has doubts & questions, but he is showing a growing tendency to accept the truth of God’s Word rather than his own idea of how things should be.
- For the relationships Sherri has been building with ladies in the neighborhood. After much prayer & patience, it appears that a group of ladies will soon start meeting with Sherri.
- For the literacy work among the Indians of which our family is able to be a part. Through the generous help of supporters, we’ve been able to help supply books to some of our tribal works to help the Indians learn to read. This is an important part of NTM’s strategy as it’s vital that the Indians are able to read so they may study the Word for themselves.
- For being an integral part of our tribal missionary teams through David’s ministry overseeing safety & security issues for our missionaries, & Sherri’s ministry as a language instructor in our National Culture & Language Acquisition program for new missionaries.
…Technology
- For the Internet technology that allows us to talk to our kids no matter where they are on the globe. What a blessing it is to have a free video call with Autumn, Justin & Heath in far-away Indonesia. Of course, it’s just as amazing that we can talk to & see Cameron, Katy & Gracia in Texas, & Bethany in Wisconsin.
- For the satellite technology that helps us keep track of coworkers as they travel in dangerous areas & communicate with us while they are in remote locations.
…Safety
- For protection as we traveled thousands of miles across the US this summer, & as we daily traverse the roadways of Mexico.
- For the Lord’s ongoing protection from the effects of rampant crime in this country, not only for ourselves, but for our fellow missionaries, as well. Although some have experienced incidents this year ranging from being robbed to being stopped on the road at false checkpoints, all have been preserved & come through the events relatively unscathed.
“O give thanks unto the LORD, for he is good: for his mercy endureth for ever. Let the redeemed of the LORD say so, whom he hath redeemed from the hand of the enemy; And gathered them out of the lands, from the east, and from the west, from the north, and from the south.” (Psalm 107:1-3)
We give thanks to the Lord for each of you who follow our family’s ministry & for your interest in His work here in Mexico among the 40 still unreached tribes. One day we will stand together before our King & worship Him along with the multitude of tribal people & others He has redeemed from every corner of the globe. What a glorious day that will be! May our Lord richly bless you for everything you do to for His glory.
Yours in His service,
David, Sherri & Matthew
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