Amazing Grace

(Later) December 20, 2011

Dear Praying Warriors,

Here is some more VERY exciting news from Cameroon that I wanted to pass on to all of you from my dad. Enjoy!

So let me ask you--who is harder to reach for Christ--a 56 year old
Muslim Imam who has heard very little about Christ or a 5 year old
little boy who has been raised in a Christian home hearing of Christ
everyday?
In all honesty, many of us would be tempted to say it takes more of
God's grace to reach the Muslim man than the little boy but that would
reveal a terrible misunderstanding of each person's depraved and lost
condition before God in their unredeemed state.  You see, it is as
hard to reach the little five year old boy who has been raised in a
Christian home as it is the 56 year old Muslim teacher for the simple
reason that each of them is born a sinner with a heart disposition
that hates, is opposed to, and is antagonistic toward God.  Certainly,
the Muslim man simply by virtue of his 56 years has lived out his
heart's depravity to a much greater degree than the little boy who has
only had five years to do so.  But, make no mistake the awful,
deceitful, God-rejecting heart of depravity is seated as securely in
the little boy as it is in the Muslim man.  One’s age, family
background, or religion does not diminish in anyway the distance
between man and God when it comes to sin.  Apart from the wonderful
and purely amazing grace of God neither the boy nor the man could or
would be saved from his sins and his sinful condition.  Christ’s
atoning sacrifice for the little boy was as costly, brutally painful,
and precious as that made for the Muslim man.  It took no less of
Christ’s blood to save the boy as the man.
All this simply to announce to you another great joy that was ours
yesterday. 

You see in the morning God saved the 56 year old Muslim
Imam from his sins.  In the evening as Peter and I were driving home
from the orphanage he told me of his need to be forgiven by Christ for
his sins.  As I explained the Gospel to him for probably the hundredth
time, the scales fell from his eyes and his heart was freed to see
Christ and the work of Christ on his behalf and he believed.  Hearing
him pray confessing his need of Christ and then his profession of
faith in Christ alone as his Lord and Savior brought great joy to my
heart.
As Nancy and I reflected later in the night about the salvation of
Adam and Peter on the same day it was as though God was
communicating to us the simple truth that salvation is always of the
Lord regardless of whom, when, and how.
As always, thank you for praying for us!
With much love and thanksgiving,
mark, nancy & kidsHeld by Grace,
Sara