Mystery in the Bible? A review of G.K. Beale and Benjamin Gladd's "Hidden But Now Revealed: A Biblical Theology of Mystery"

G.K. Beale and Benjamin Gladd. Hidden But Now Revealed: A Biblical Theology of Mystery. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity, 2014. 392 pp. $27.00.

The Bible is amazing. It is a well that never runs dry, but provides life. Today, in 2015, we have access to the Bible like never before…and yet we do anything but meditate on the Scriptures (Joshua 1:8; Deuteronomy 6; Psalm 1). Part of the reason we neglect our Bible is because it can be difficult to understand. It has been picked apart, scrutinized, and denied as foolishness. And yet, “..the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men” 1 Corinthians 1:25. While the Bible can be difficult to understand we have no excuse. God has revealed his word to mankind. It is through the Bible that we come to know God and receive eternal life through his son, Jesus Christ.

The relationship between the Old and New Testaments is one of the major difficulties in understanding the Bible. G.K. Beale and Benjamin Gladd in Hidden But Now Revealed, present an extremely helpful resource for anyone seeking to understand the continuity and discontinuity between the Old and New Testaments. Specifically, Beale and Gladd zoom in on how the term mystery is used by New Testament authors to reveal their understanding of the relationship between the Old and New Testaments (18-19). They define mystery as “the revelation of God’s partially hidden wisdom, particularly as it concerns events occurring in the ‘latter days” (20).

The introduction is superb. The authors present the need for their work, a well defined thesis, helpful definitions, presuppositions, goals, and describe the audience they are writing for. Outside of the Introduction the most important chapter of the book is chapter 1 on Daniel’s use of mystery. While the term mystery is found in the New Testament 28 times, it is only found 9 times in the Old Testament and only in the book of Daniel. Thus, the authors emphasize the importance of how Daniel uses the term and how that informs the New Testament authors understanding of the relationship between the Old and New Testaments.

After the foundational chapter on Daniel, the authors have a brief chapter on the use of mystery in early Judaism. They explore how Daniel affected writings, commentaries, and other Jewish texts in their understanding of mystery from the close of the Old Testament canon until the coming of Christ. Next, in chapters 3-10 the authors work through the 28 New Testament findings of the word mystery in Matthew, Romans, 1 Corinthians, Ephesians, Colossians, 2 Thessalonians, 1 Timothy, and Revelation. These chapters represent the meat of the book and provide excellent insight and analysis of the texts. Each chapter builds off of the initial chapter on Daniel and includes how they are all connected together. After working through the New Testament the authors have a chapter dealing with mystery in the New Testament where the technical terms is not used, and a chapter exploring and contrasting how pagan religions also used secrecy and mystery as well. Finally, chapter 13 provides a concise conclusion.

Throughout the book the authors argue that “…the revealed mystery is in some form or another linked to Old Testament references and bound up with the person of Christ. The unveiled mystery according to the New Testament is is inextricably tethered to Christ and his work” (321). The authors sum up their argument by briefly tracing their argument from Daniel-Revelation before giving final thoughts about the hermeneutical technique of the New Testament authors (which they expand upon in their appendix), the importance of the mystery of the Cross, and how practically mystery should be applied to our lives by increasing our view of God and obedience to His Word.

Beale and Gladd have provided a wonderful resource for the church. It is scholarly, and technical, but not so dry that only scholars and pastors can benefit from it. The authors are very qualified to write such a work (a daunting task 7-8) and each chapter is very helpful on its own and together with the whole. I especially benefited from the chapters on Daniel and Ephesians. These chapters alone are worth the price of the book. While I disagree with some of the authors conclusions about Daniel, that chapter is key to understanding mystery in the New Testament. I recommend this work to anyone who desires to understand the Bible better, as a whole, and the relationship between the Old and New Testaments. The book would be especially beneficial to pastors, seminary students, and others who are wrestling with the tension found between the discontinuity and continuity of the Old and New Testaments. Get it, read it (fast, slow, or maybe both) and be driven to know God through the means He has given us, His Word.

*I received a free copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an unbiased review*

Book Review: “With the Clouds of Heaven: The book of Daniel in biblical theology” by James M. Hamilton Jr.

Book Review 

“With the Clouds of Heaven: The book of Daniel in biblical theology”

by James M. Hamilton Jr.

Inter Varsity Press, Downers Grove, IL, 2014

  Of all of the books in the bible, Daniel ranks as one of the most controversial and most difficult to grasp and understand.  In the fall of 2013 I preached through the book of Daniel for 12 weeks. It was an enormous task and yet an enormous blessing at the same time and the Lord used the book of Daniel in a great way within our church.  I used 20 resources before and during that period and purchased and received several more since then.  If I were to preach or teach through Daniel again (and Lord willing I will!) James M. Hamilton Jr’s With the Clouds of Heaven” would be the first resource I would turn to.  In this book review I will give a brief summary of the book, discuss strengths and weakness, and provide come concluding thoughts.  

       The New Studies in Biblical Theology is a fantastic series from Inter Varsity Press and I have read and reviewed several books within this series and Hamilton’s work on Daniel did not disappoint.  The book is broken down into 10 chapters with a series and an author’s preface.  Hamilton uses chapter one to lay out preliminaries for entire work and makes it very clear that his book is not a verse by verse commentary but instead “an evangelical and canonical biblical theology of Daniel.” (21) Hamilton states at the end of chapter one that  his “…hope is to pay close attention to the text of Daniel, in both the original languages in which it was written and in the Greek and English translations, to set what Daniel wrote in the broader context of biblical theology, and to move readers toward a clearer understanding of biblical theology, and to move readers towards a clearer understanding of how we should live today in response to the message of Daniel.” (40)  A difficult task, and yet at the completion of reading his work i believe he has accomplished such a great task.  

  Within the preliminaries Hamilton discusses his view of biblical theology, the canon of Scripture, and the details of his evangelical approach towards this study.  It is an extremely helpful chapter of introduction.  Hamilton is a seminary professor, but even more he is gifted at teaching. He does not miss the opportunity to cover issues that affect his point of view while simultaneously pointing and persuading his readers in the same direction.  In this regard Hamilton is unapologetic of his positions and is passionate about defending the historical authenticity of the book of Daniel.  

Chapters 2 and 3 continue more introductory matters but are both very helpful chapters.  In chapter 2 Hamilton relates Daniel within the progression of the revelation of Scriptures and how the progression will continue until the end of time.  Daniel reaches back to Genesis in his opening statements referring to Babylon as ’Shinar’ (1:2) and carries it forward until the ‘end of days’ (41). Hamilton does an excellent job showing how Daniel is heavily influenced by the Old Testament up to that point in time and how Daniel contributes to the continuing revelation of the coming of the end of days.  In Chapter 3 Hamilton argues that the structure of Daniel should be viewed as a chiasm (A mirroring poetic form where the top and bottom correspond and where the middle is emphasized at times).  Typically, scholars acknowledge 2 chasms within the book of Daniel but Hamilton’s argument for one chiasm is very convincing and very helpful.  He has presented it in prior works and so I was already familiar with it but his chapter on the structure of Daniel is very helpful.  

Next, in chapters 4-6 Hamilton gets into the nitty gritty of the Book of Daniel by addressing the visions, images, and dialogue between Daniel and the heavenly beings.  Much could be said about the details and delicacy that Hamilton gives in dealing with these passages.  In particular, his argument regarding the 3rd and 4th kingdoms are very helpful.  Whereas many scholars argue for the 4th kingdom to be Rome, Hamilton argues that it should more be seen as a typological kingdom that continues (over and over again) until the coming of the Anti-Christ, who is pictured as a Nebuchadnezzar (and later Antiochus Epiphanes). Essentially, Daniel’s message was to encourage his readers to hold fast during these trying times and it is still applicable to Christians today.

In chapter 7, Hamilton goes through early Jewish literature to build his arguments about authorship and dating and to show how the writings of Daniel affected later authors to copy or incorporate Daniel’s style within their own writings.  In chapters 8-10, Hamilton jumps into the New Testament and tackles passages that directly relate with the Book of Daniel from the Appendix IV in the Nestle-Aland Novum Testamentum Graece, 27th edition (179-180).  Then, he carefully handles how John uses Daniel in Revelation (though not exhaustive as he indicates has been done in several other books), even to the point of copying the chiasm of Daniel to drive home the point of the exaltation of Jesus opposed to the humiliation of Nebuchadnezzar and Belteshazzar (205-206).   

Hamilton accomplishes his goal of providing a biblical theology of the Book of Daniel.  It no easy task to read let alone comprehend and communicate what exactly Daniel is conveying through his retelling of visions and dialogues with heavenly beings.  Hamilton does an excellent job of teaching as he argues.  His preliminary chapter is very helpful in preparing his readers for the following arguments without being exhaustive over introductory matters.  Chapter 3 is beneficial even if you are not studying or preaching through Daniel because of the comprehensive presentation of the Scriptures. 

Other strengths include his explanations on the early Jewish literature, the structure of the Book of Daniel as a chiasm and the corresponding nature that John uses the same pattern to organize Revelation, and the typological nature of Daniel and Joseph in chapter 10.  I would recommend anyone, scholar, student, pastor, lay-person, to begin with Hamilton’s work before consulting any other work.  I say this because of the consistency of Hamilton’s argument and the foundational issues such as structure and the typological patterns that create the bases in which Daniel writes.  Of all of the other resources I have read on Daniel none compare to this volume from Hamilton when it comes to these issues.  Other works have their strengths of course but consistently i found myself unable to rely on any particular commentary or resource throughout my study on Daniel.  In my opinion, you will not find a better resource that balances the academic and the application purposes of the Book of Daniel.  

It is rare that a reader can see progression of thought in the right way.  Anyone who reads Hamilton’s earlier works (and I recommend that you make it priority to do so) will see how he has progressed from a literal interpretation of the 70 weeks in Daniel to a more symbolic (typological) interpretation of the 70 weeks.  Though this progression does not change his final view of the 70 weeks (Hamilton takes a Historic Premillennialism point of view) it does show that he has continued to wrestle with the text.  I appreciated words like ‘appears’, ‘seems’ and ‘possibly’ that Hamilton would use in referencing the difficult passages.  He balances strong conviction with the limitations that every interpreter of Daniel faces.  Though I am not persuaded completely to his arguments concerning the 70 weeks and the millennial reign (I would follow Gentry and Wellum’s argument in Kingdom through Covenant), I do believe it is the best (and only legitimate) alternative to the Amillenial view.  It would appear the major differences between my view and Hamilton’s is the placement of the 1000 year reign and whether or not there is a gap between the 69th and 70th week.  I will continue studying and pursuing the nature of these differences but am happy with either.  

       In conclusion, I believe Hamilton successfully arrives at his goal of providing a biblical theology of the Book of Daniel and I would highly recommend it, for personal study, for scholars, for pastors, and even lay-men to continue their pursuits on knowing God better through the means He has given us, His Word.  I am thankful for Inter Varsity Press for providing a copy of Hamilton’s book for review.  I am indebted to Dr. Hamilton’s passion for teaching and communicating the truths of Scripture, the storyline of salvation through judgment, and how the Book of Daniel is applicable to my life.

Book Review: 10:10 Life to the Fullest by Daniel Hill

10:10 “Life to the Fullest”

Daniel Hill

*I received this book for free from Baker Books in exchange for my reviewing it, and I was not required to write a positive review.

Daniel Hill states on page 33 that the purpose of his book is “to paint a biblical picture of holistic, multidimensional faith, and to inspire and equip you to step into that as a new dimension of life in Christ.”  Hill certainly paints pictures, but does he actually reach his goal?  I would argue he does not.  

Hill is a great communicator.  His stories are gripping and his illustrations are on point.  But Hill lacks good exegesis.  He gives the background of his spiritual journey through various denominations and churches in which he realized that people from all of these various backgrounds had the same problem. Something was missing…Hill says it is faith.   He then goes on and describes holistic faith through three sections 1. Faith and Fear 2. Faith and Intimacy and 3. Faith and Missions.  Hill spends 4 chapters in introductory matters (and waits until chapter three to give any sort of thesis statement).  I worried during the first two chapters if Hill would ever actually refer to the Scriptures at all.  Instead it was a very self-centered description of his own journey.  When he does refer to Scripture he frequently takes parables out of their context to to align with a particular story and point he is trying to make.    

I found it ironic that his conclusion was faith and yet he does not emphasize two important things about faith.  First, Romans 10:17 “So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.” While Hill tries to tie Hebrews 11 into his argument he does not emphasize the fact that true faith only comes through the submission and devotion to the Scriptures.  All through out the Scriptures (Genesis 1, Deuteronomy 6., Joshua 1, Psalms 1, 19, 119 etc) there is an emphasis on knowing God through the means He has given us.  His Word.  Therefore. the more we read Scripture the more we come to know God, the bigger our view of God is the more we fear and obey and LOVE Him.  This is how faith is increased and rightly changes our lives. Hill though completely misses at urging his readers to read and obey the Scriptures.

Secondly, all throughout the gospels and especially the book of Acts the words “faith” and “repent” are used interchangeably.  Therefore to truly have faith is equal to repenting and vice versa.  Hill, however, does not go into the topic of repentance.  Instead in chapter 10 Hill emphasizes our own fears and Satan as what hinders us from having true faith.  Hill never gets the the main thing that separates mankind from God, SIN.  When one reads throughout the Scripture one thing becomes clear.  Man is sinful and God is Holy.  This is what makes grace so amazing, that a Holy God would conquer sin in order for us to be with Him again.  Hill misses a great opportunity to call his readers to repentance.  

Readers will certainly like Hill’s stories and the fact that he will appeal to your flesh and seem to give a new approach to what “real” faith is but ultimately he falls short.  If you are a new Christian or someone who has run away from rules and regulations then this book might appeal to you…but it won’t ultimately point you in the direction you need to go.  I would recommend “Desiring God” by John Piper instead.  John 10:10 is certainly a wonderful promise…just one that Daniel Hill does not right exegete.

Book Review: Dynamic Women of the Bible

Dynamic Women of the Bible
Ruth A Tucker
Baker Book 2014

I signed up to begin reviewing books for publishers.  I received my first group a few weeks ago and have finished up the first batch and will post reviews within the coming days.  

Unfortunately the first book review is not one that I'd recommend.  If you are looking for a good women's book the check here. 

        "Dynamic Women of the Bible" seemed to have potential, I wanted it to be a resource I could pass onto women in my church and maybe use for women’s small group studies and such. However this book is dangerous. Don’t get me wrong, Tucker shows in some sentences she is a scholar but then it goes down hill. Fast. One of the primary things you learn from studying hermeneutics (how to study the Bible) is that context is king. Tucker goes throughout the Bible and takes women out of their intended and beautiful contexts, provides a brief info and then gives her own interpretation. This is where this book becomes dangerous. Tucker adds in the “what if’s” and basically turns each character into who she wants them to be. This is known as eisegesis and is the opposite of exegesis. When you read someones thoughts on someone else's words it is important that the one commentating uses exegesis and not eisegesis so that the point the original author was trying to make is what is conveyed to the reader. Tucker fails at this. Repeatedly.  
Tucker is right that women in the Bible are authentic and approachable (xiii), she briefly mentions that Joseph is a type of Christ (xiv) and that briefly mentions the importance of Genesis 3:15 (the protoevangelium page 5-6) but other than a few glimpses of scholarship, the rest is all down hill. Rapid down hill and it was difficult to read. I am all for asking questions and wondering but when it comes to Scripture there are boundaries one must have when questioning to stay within the context and intention of the authors.  
For instance when talking about Eve, Tucker questions if she even understood Genesis 3:15(5-6). What Tucker fails to do is allow what Moses is trying to say be heard. Instead of asking questions and giving our opinions on things that the Scriptures are silent on, we should be asking and interpreting what is given. The point of Genesis 3 is that Adam failed.  Adam failed to communicate God’s word accurately to Eve. Adam failed to protect Eve and rule over the animals. But after they fall the glorious thing about Genesis 3:15 is that it is the gospel. Adam and Eve were told is you eat of this tree you will die. They eat.  Then they hear you are not dying today. That’s grace, that’s mercy and how do they respond to this news? They both have faith. How do we know? Because the text tells us it is after all of this that Adam then names his wife Eve. What does Eve mean? Mother of the living!  Adam and Eve believe Genesis 3:15 and they are saved by grace through faith like everyone else since. They are then clothed by animals skins by God and in Genesis 4 we do have actual words (though brief I agree) from Eve and what is she doing? Praising God that she has gotten children. Why? Because it will be though women having children that all of mankind will be saved. What an important and glorious role to celebrate and live in.  Tucker fails at giving what is there in the text.  
Tucker forces things into the text of Genesis 1-4 by saying things like “Eve has no way of knowing that she had been formed out of this man-creature’s rib (3).” Again Tucker says of Eve “does she know God personally the as Adam does(4)?” This is clear eisegesis. Tucker is forcing her own understanding of something that happened 6000 (approximately) years ago and in doing so belittle’s Eve and God. Unfortunately is doesn’t get any better through the rest of the book. Whether it’s bashing Sarah (and almost exalting Hagar) and neglecting to mention that she is the only woman in the Bible that other women are called to emulate (a huge miss on Tucker’s part) or saying things about Mary’s appearance and thoughts about Jesus never really having a childhood (240), Tucker misses the golden opportunity that her title speaks of. Instead of looking at the dynamic women of the Bible as the Bible presents them this book is simply Tucker’s misleading thoughts or comments about women in the Bible. I cannot recommend it in anyway. It was painful to see such an opportunity missed completely. 

*I received this book free from the publisher to write this review. 

Old Testament Survey

          This past monday I completed teaching Old Testament Survey for a class going through the BTCP training in our association.  BTCP is essentially a non-credited mobile seminary used to train pastors world wide.  It is a fantastic and transferable way to train pastors and leaders.  There are 10 total courses and it was a privilege to teach the Old Testament.  Normally in seminary you have 2-3 courses that cover the Old Testament (typically OT I and OT II) and spend anywhere from 24-28 weeks going through each book.  Even in Seminary this was not an easy task to complete.  
           
           For this class we chose to meet for 20 weeks (a huge commitment) for 3 hours on Monday night.  I chose to follow the Hebrew text as far as the outline and schedule. We want to approach the Old Testament in the same manner that the New Testament looks at the Old Testament and specifically how Jesus looks at the Old Testament.  The best passage is Luke 24 where Jesus breaks down the Old Testament into three books or categories: Torah (Moses), Prophets, Writings (Psalms). This is how the nation of Israel referred to the Old Testament as well as the authors of the New Testament.  The Scripture of the Hebrews was also referred at the TaNaK.  This is an acronym for the headings of the three sections.  Torah (Moses), Nevi’im (Prophets), and Ketuvim (Writings/Psalms).  Here is the order of the Old Testament books as presented in the Hebrew Bible.


Torah (Moses) Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Number, and Deuteronomy
Nevi’im (Prophets) Joshua, Judges, Samuel, Kings, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and The Twelve
Ketuvim (Writings/Psalms) Psalms, Proverbs, Job, The Five Scrolls, Daniel, Ezra/Nehemiah, Chronicles.

          The author of Chronicles is traditionally been recognized as Ezra (though no official author is ever stated within the book itself). As Ezra is a part of the rebuilding project of the Temple after the exile and return from Babylon he is realizing that though there has been a physical return back to the Promised Land there has not been a spiritual return or exodus that the prophets have indicated would happen. Therefore Chronicles ends with the decree of Cyrus, one of the two Servants prophesied about by Isaiah.  By ending in this manner, the Chronicler has organized the Old Testament in such a way to provoke hope in the Messiah.  The second Servant mentioned in Isaiah.  That is what the nation of Israel and the world is waiting for as the Old Testament closes. We are looking for the seed of Adam, the seed of Abraham, and the Seed of David.  Which is why, Matthew begins his book with a genealogy about Jesus, the son of David, the son of Abraham. 

          It was a joy to teach and train students in the Old Testament and I look forward to doing it again in the future.  The books that influenced my teaching and approach the Old Testament the most were:
Dominion and Dynasty by Stephen Dempster
God's Glory in Salvation Through Judgment by James Hamilton
Kingdom through Covenant by Stephen Wellum and Peter Gentry
The Temple and the Church's Mission by GK Beale
The Faith of Israel by William Dumbrell

Though there are many more that could be included and have shaped my view of Scripture these were the primary resources I used week in and week out.  

El Salvador Trip Notes

 

 
 
 



Thank you to everyone who prayed for our team while we were in El Salvador last week.  It was an amazing week of ministry.  There are so many who have gone before us that set such a great foundation.  Through their efforts the Lord blessed our trip and we are eternally grateful for their work.  Here are some thoughts and recap from our trip.

The Team
I went with a team of 15 members from 3 churches in South East Missouri with ages ranging from 13-68.  By God's grace our team had amazing chemistry even though we did not know each other very well before the trip.  I have been on a lot of teams and trips overseas but this by far was one of the best "team" experiences I have ever had.  There was no complaining or whining (even when we lost power at our hotel and when our schedule kept changing).  There was flexibility and humility.  Most of all there was joy and excitement to be able to serve the Lord.

The Training
It was difficult for me to break away from the group each day but the main reason I went on this trip was to train El Salvadorian Pastors in the Old Testament.  We met Monday-Wednesday from 8AM-4PM and Thursday from 8AM-12PM and worked through the Pentateuch.  We spent time during the introduction to the Old Testament to talk about the structure and order and how Luke 24 shows us how Jesus read the Old Testament.  Then we spent a lot of time in Genesis.  Genesis is so crucial because of the foundation it provides the rest of the Bible and typically we read through it quickly or assume we "know" it and we miss the structure and patterns that then keep reappearing throughout the Bible.

It was a challenging task teaching all day and using an interpreter but it was so worth it.  The pastors were hungry to learn and showed great signs of taking in and being able to process and apply what we discussed.  The pastors also had great questions and reflections and we had to park on several texts and theological issues.  It was a blessing to be able to show them how true 2 Timothy 3:16 is and to wrestle with the difficult texts found in the Pentateuch.

The Church Plants
Churches in our association here in Missouri have begun partnering with church plants going on in El Salvador.  This trip our teams were able to visit these locations and talk with the pastors about how we can help them going forward and in some areas they were able to evangelize and minister to the surrounding villages.  We got great feedback and ideas going forward to help plan for future trips with specific needs that those teams can meet.  This is huge as the nature of trips will be transitioning from how they have gone in the past to how we can help in the future.  We were able to worship at the church plant in Apaneca one night and spend the day evangelizing in some surrounding villages and saw a great need for a VBS team to come back and not only run a VBS but also train the members in Apaneca how to have a successful  children's outreach ministry.

Church Services
Apart from one night at Apaneca, we spent each night at Santa Catarina for church services.  We had a team that ministered to the children doing various teachings, puppets, crafts, and singing.  We also had a group lead the youth a couple of times (even though they were only given a few moments notice that they were going to minister to the youth) and the rest of us did panel discussions with the adults.  The panel discussions led to incredible discussions and questions.  Issues such as identity, spiritual gifts, marriage, idolatry and etc were brought up in our discussions.  You could tell that great strides were being made each night we had these discussions.  They normally went very long and we would have to end the discussions, even though they could have kept going.

The People
Again our team was amazing but it was also so encouraging to see brothers and sisters in El Salvador.  I remembered many who I had met in November and we were able to work with amazing translators and pastors while there.  Roberto (the main translator) quickly took our team under his wing and was a great source of information, entertainment, and was the glue that kept us all together.  It was a privilege to get to know the pastors while in training and the pastors of each church we worked with.

Fun Day
On Friday our team broke up and some went shopping in A Taco and the rest of us went Zip Lining in Apaneca.  The Zip Line was an awesome experience and there were some amazing views of the mountains, coffee plantations, and the city of Apaneca.  After meeting the rest of the team for lunch in A Taco we went to a Mayan ruin for the afternoon.  It rained...no it poured on our way to the ruin and several us in the back of the pick-up truck we were in got soaked.  It was still raining when we got to the ruin so we did not stay long but it was very interesting looking into the history and technology of the Mayans.

El Salvador Trip

This Saturday I will be heading to El Salvador with a group of 15 members representing three different churches from South East Missouri.  We would greatly appreciate your prayers for us while we are there (June 7th-14th).  I will be teaching Old Testament Survey to about 20 pastors who have begun the Bible Center Training for Pastors while others from the team will be visiting schools and doing door to door evangelism in the town of Apaneca.  Each night we will also be visiting with churches in the area for fellowship and training.  

Please pray...

1. That the Lord would bring glory to His name through our trip

2. That the Lord would open doors for evangelism in homes and in schools

3. That the Lord would save those who we share the gospel with

4. That the Lord would encourage and strengthen pastors while they are being trained

5. That the Lord would grant us endurance (Endurance to teach, endurance to listen and learn, endurance to share in schools, homes, and churches), strength, and health. 

6. That our team would have safe travels to and from El Salvador and safety within the country. 

7. That our team would have unity and humility as we serve. 

8. That our families at home would be protected while we are away. 

Lord willing, I will make a few posts while on the trip and a follow-up post once back home.

You can also follow along on facebook here.