Ryan and Suzie minister amongst the 'B people' in South Asia with Baptist Mission Australia.

Anthony and Jacqueline Jenyns serve with Baptist Mission Australia in South Asia.  They bring rural farming skills to local people while building relationships and sharing the hope and truths of Jesus.  Their family of eight is spread across two countries.  Emmie and Evie live with mum and dad in their missions role, while Reuben, Sammy, Isabelle, and Lucy are settling into lives in Australia.

Hi everyone, well, what a time we live in…February, we moved through a miracle general election in South Asia. The most peaceful on record. To fully appreciate this miracle, you must remember the shocking violence during the 2024 student revolution. It's an absolute answer to prayer, and we give all credit to the Prince of Peace. Now we are in the grips of a wider war. Human hearts are fickle things, and we live in a fallen world. Here in South Asia, we are bracing ourselves for the worst (…today school was cancelled as buses could not get fuel and stations are closed or rationing). Before the War in Persia began, we had been focusing on a word from Ps 119:32. The author clearly tells us that if we run in His direction, upholding what pleases Him, He will enlarge our hearts. It became apparent to us that this is what we needed to see happen in the hearts of our national team. Yes, let their hearts be enlarged to receive the love, mercy and grace needed to stand firm in their faith. Mr A works with me at the farm and helps with herd drenching. The pressures of this world were shrinking his heart. Joy was replaced with snappy responses and patience with judgment. But we encouraged Mr  A to cling to what is good, reject bad thoughts and let Him enlarge his heart to receive truth from the word and love from your team. It's my prayer that we all enlarge our hearts by turning to Him in this warring world we live in. As King David said, “Examine my heart, O Father”   If we do this, He will surely enlarge our hearts as we run the course for Him....

So far in 2026, we have taken the bull by the horns. Lumpy Skin Disease emerged in the national herds of South Asia, and we were asked to carry out a vaccination program. By our Father’s grace, we finished all our project areas before Ramadan, and 758 head of cattle later, we nailed it. I cannot overemphasise the importance of the relationships now emerging from the Cattle Programme.  We see the dizzy heights of farmers selling a bull for a good price, and we celebrate with them, but also the depths of despair as a cow miscarries a calf. And we share with farmers that our Father is in both these spaces of joy and loss. We want the farmers to have a Romans 8 understanding. Nothing can separate them from Him when they seek Him out. Not Hardship or Success.
A simple thank you floated our team’s boat this past month of farming, when we visited a lady called Sarah who loves the colour purple and milks 4 cows. (see first picture above)She won’t have a contract with Devondale or Simplot, but her humble herd consistently produces 40 L of milk a day, which is huge for her and the family.  After vaccinating 2 of her cows, she turned to us and thanked us for keeping her herd and her family’s future secure. Instead of praising our service, we all said to her, “God willing”. We don't touch our Father’s Glory in the Cattle Program, we just point folk to Him, become less, and He becomes more....

For Jacqueline and I family is so very important. As each season has passed since we decided to follow our father's call (the past 26 years), we have entrusted our children’s needs to Him. Our Father has given us rich promises for our family. During this 2026 season, these promises hold true as we intentionally seek Him, the giver of Peace.
In early January, one of our older children was admitted to the hospital and is still there. It has been a challenging time as we often have felt that we are in the wrong place, we should be home, caring for our family… but our Father has been faithful and as we take one day at a time, actively seeking Him for that day's assignments, trusting that our Children are under the Father’s care.
It has now come to the point that we will need to take a short leave of absence for some of quarter two, to take care of Him. This will mean that our work here, both out in the field and at the school, will stop, and the girls will need to do distance learning from Grace School.  
Though we have clung to His word, stood on His promises, this past quarter has certainly been hard as a family....

Jacqueline and I have some prayer requests from South Asia. We appreciate your prayers because we all serve a Father who listens and draws near to each of us when we draw near to Him.

• Praise Him for a smooth, non-eventful election, with no violence or disruptions.
• Pray for our family as we all move to support one of our children over the next few weeks. 
• Praise Him for Isabelle’s time here, it has been amazing, fruitful and rewarding for all parties.
• Pray for the restoration of Health. The last month we have been struggling with health- sinus infections, flu, and gastroenteritis. It has knocked us around.
• Pray for resilience in an uncertain world, living far from home.
• We praise Him for the wonderful response from Mrs Si, she has now understood the protection and deep love God has for her and us as our farming team prays with her on each field visit. 
• Praise Him that our farm manager, who stopped reading the Book for ten months, just this week became reading with me again during devotions.
• Mr A is less worried and more thankful to the father. I am sure his heart has been enlarged, and there is room now for patience, gentleness, and mercy. 
• Praise him for daily protection. From minor quakes, road travel, and daily movements.

We are so thankful for your thoughts and support throughout this first quarter.

Adity is a child we help to sponsor and support through Compassion Australia.  
She lives in Bajua, Bangladesh.  Baju is home to around 9,000 people.  Houses typically consist of dirt floors, tin walls, and currugated iron roofs.  The primary ethnic group and language is Bengali.  Typical food diet consits of fish, lentils, and rice.
Most adults in this region work as day labourers or on plantations.  Average monthly wage is equivalent to $103 AUD.  There is an immense need for clean drinking water, improved sanitation, tuition assistance, adult literacy programs, and increased incomes.
Abu attends the Bajua Child Development Centre.  Here staff provide him with nutrition supplements, medical treatment, hygiene education, games, sports, special celebrations, picnics, tutoring, uniforms, school support, educational materials, and shoes.  The Centre also provides monthly meetings for parents and guardians.

Click on the following lists to read letters from Adity.  The most recent letters are at the top.

If you would like to send a letter to Adity, please get in touch and we can help make that happen.

Abu is a child we help to sponsor and support through Compassion Australia.  
He lives in Kola, Bangladesh.  Kola is home to around 28,000 people.  Houses typically consist of dirt floors, wood or tin walls, and tin roofs.  The primary ethnic group and language is Bangla.
Most adults in this region work as day labourers, fishermen, or on plantations.  Average monthly wage is equivalent to $88 AUD.  There is an immense need for schools, education materials, and employment opportunities.
Abu attends the Kola Child Development Centre.  Here staff provide him with nutrition supplements, medical treatment, hygiene education, sports, special celebrations and educational materials.  The Centre also provides monthly meetings for parents and guardians - in Abu's case, his grandmother.

Click on the following lists to read letters from Abu.  The most recent letters are at the top.

If you would like to send a letter to Abu, please get in touch and we can help make that happen.

Ryan and Suzie minister amongst the 'B people' in South Asia with Baptist Mission Australia.

Christmas is recognized in South Asia.  Boro Din (literally 'The Big Day') is this country's name for Christmas, and is remembered with a public holiday.  Little else, though, marks this season as being different to any other in South Asia - life goes on as usual.  Despite this, we know and celebrate another reality at Christmas: "The true light that gives light to all people was coming into the world." (John 1:9).

The third week in November was quite a week in South Asia.  On the Monday 17th we stayed home under lockdown and watched on our TV as this country's former prime-minister was sentenced to death by an International Crimes tribunal for crimes against humanity.  Then on the Friday 21st, as we were packing to travel north for some training, and earthquake hit!  At 5.7 on the Richter scale, and with the epicentre only about 10km from where we live in the capital, it felt quite strong.  Lasting about 20 seconds, there was no visible damage to our apartment.  However one of the support pillars downstairs in our building sustained some cracks.  Sadly, in other parts of the city and surrounds, 10 people were killed, mostly by falling debris.  There were four smaller aftershocks in the weeks following.  But as they've faded, so it seems have the voices calling out that this country really isn't prepared for a major earthquake.  But it's one problem amongst many in this country.  We pray for God to watch over this country.

Recently we converted one of our apartment's bedrooms into a part-time recording studio.  Actually that's overstating things a bit - with modern software, not much conversion was needed to get the kind of sound quality we were looking for.  This has allowed us to start recording the audio files for our Scripture App audio Bible.  Currently we are recording the gospels.
Talking to one of our staff the other day, our conversation reminded me of the importance of this project.  Having asked this young man about his faith journey, he told me how he'd been raised in a religious school within the majority religion here.  It didn't work out for him, but nonetheless, he said he could see some goodness in the M religion.  Later, going to a dance school, he met Hindus and Buddhists and could see goodness in these religions also.  More recently, in working with our organization, he started reading our local translation of the Bible.  And like before, he said, he could see some goodness in this religion.  While I was processing this, he looked at me, smiled widely and said, "But I've become the biggest fan of Jesus!  There's just no one else like him!"
Our hope is that, through this project, many more may come to see that real hope is not found in religion, but in finding and following Jesus.

Anthony and Jacqueline Jenyns serve with Baptist Mission Australia in South Asia.  They bring rural farming skills to local people while building relationships and sharing the hope and truths of Jesus.  Their family of eight is spread across two countries.  Emmie and Evie live with mum and dad in their missions role, while Reuben, Sammy, Isabelle, and Lucy are settling into lives in Australia.

Jacqueline and I have some prayer requests from South Asia. We appreciate your prayers because we all serve a Father who listens and draws near to each of us when we draw near to Him.

1. Last Friday, South Asia experienced a large earthquake. Our apartment block experienced some damage, but we were not harmed. God really does watch over our coming and going each day here and we praise God that many families were left unharmed. Please pray for South Asia as the Everest Fault Line is moving. That we all remain safe and that our Father's mercy will be present at this time. The experience is still very raw and scary.

2. Mr K is our farm Accountant, and many of you prayed for his wife during the birth of their second daughter. Mr K, during this time, experienced a real closeness to his Creator. As we now share with Mr K about the power of prayer and the promises of the Father, please uphold him, as his trust in the Father grows stronger. This is really important.

3. Our Farm manager's wife is experiencing some medical challenges. She must travel to the Capitol this week. She is apprehensive and unsure. Please pray that the Prince of Peace be present with them as they visit doctors seeking the best treatment. Fear is a problem for many people regarding illnesses in South Asia. Pray that a spirit of love and patience is near to them that shame and doubt melt away.

4. Many of our farmer group members are now harvesting their Ammon Rice. We say thank you, our Father, for this rice. It has given much-needed income and food. Please pray that as we share with farmers about the goodness of the Son, they will see firsthand that He cares for them each season, each year. He will not let them go.

5. Please remember our two older daughters. Both have submitted visa applications to visit. Please pray for the visas to be issued and for the passports to be returned promptly. Our eldest daughter, Isabelle, is coming for three months. She is a short-term volunteer with our sending org. She is raising her support by faith right now. Please pray that she will have all the resources by the time she leaves in a few weeks.

6. Please remember to uphold our boys as they both will be spending Christmas separately, and without sisters and Mum and Dad.  Both boys have work commitments, which have made it impossible for them to be together. We are thankful to Jac’s family for hosting Sammy.

Thank you for your support, prayer and upholding us. We are all a team, in it together.

Hannah teaches at Nungalinya College, training Indigenous Bible translators in several language groups. As a linguist, she also works on language projects at ARDS Aboriginal Corporation. Geoff is a GP, and regularly visits health clinics in rural communities. He also provides telephone medical support to remote area nurses.

Are you a regular reader of the Bible?  If so, have you ever thought what it would be like to only have access to the New Testament, or some part of it?  Since July this year, Geoff has studied Old Testament Prophets and Writings.  These ancient books cover such a broad spectrum of human experience and God’s patient plan to save people, played out over many, many centuries.  Geoff has enjoyed all the evidence of God’s good character in the Bible and here are just a few highlights of his learning:

• Human enjoyment of the physical world, including sexuality, is important to God;
• There are ways to understand God’s creation properly (wisdom) but God is higher still (as in his response to Job);  
• God is sovereign over all nations and the complete course of history (as in the oracles against the nations and Esther);  
• God longs to be in relationship with people, in spite of our fragility and failures (hope in his promises);
• God engages meaningfully with our emotions (as in Psalms, Lamentations and Jeremiah).

This week, Geoff will write his exam in this Old Testament subject.  Over build-up and wet season (summer), Geoff will study a Theology subject, then more OT in semester 1 next year.  Here are some ways to pray for us in this time:

• Thank God for opportunities we’ve both had over the years to study theology, mostly by distance.  
• Thank God that Geoff has been able to keep up with study using his 1 day off every fortnight (in lieu of long working hours).
• Pray for Geoff as he writes his OT exam soon.
• Pray for Indigenous Christians who have limited access to all the action and character development that we enjoy in the English Old Testament.  Pray for people who learn at Nungalinya College, and for Bible translators who are working on new or revised portions of the Old Testament, for example, the recent revision and reprint of the Gumatj Shorter Bible which is on track for 2026.
• Thank God for recent and upcoming celebrations in our family - year 12 graduations for Lydie and close Yolngu kin.
• God’s help and direction for each day and in our long term service alongside Indigenous people.

Thanks and love,

Geoff and Hannah

From the 22nd to the 24th of August, the GROUNDWORX youth group embarked on an exciting journey for the first youth camp in over eight years!  The cohort stayed at Camp Kedron, beautifully located on the shores of Lake Bonney.

The weekend was filled with games, activities, great food, devotions, and plenty of fun.  

The camp’s theme, “Suffering Soldiers for Christ,” guided by devotions written by Sam Mitchell, focused on the challenges Christians may face in their faith and how we can be equipped to overcome them.

The camp was a wonderful blessing and received overwhelmingly positive feedback—the only complaint was that it was too short!

A huge thank you to our incredible youth leaders—Sam, Tiana, Debra, Toby, and Anabelle—for the countless hours spent planning, organizing, and leading, and to Pastor Jay, who joined us as our dedicated camp cook.  We also extend our gratitude to Mel Beardsmore and Louise Deroon for their vital help in preparing meals for the trip.
Finally, thank you to everyone who supported the camp through prayer, bake sales, and the hugely successful trivia night. Your generosity and encouragement made this amazing weekend possible!

Here are a few snaps from our time away.

Easter Saturday is between Good Friday and Resurrection Sunday.  As such it is caught between the death and resurrection of Jesus.  While we recognize the sacrifice of Jesus' crucifixion, we know that Jesus didn't remain dead.  God raised him to life again.  However, the disciples spent this Saturday in fear and despair.  Jesus, who had held promises of hope, was dead and gone.

Sometimes, when it comes to our prayers, it can feel like God isn't listening.  Perhaps we wonder if Jesus really cares.  In those moments of darkness and despair, when our Hope seems dead and gone, we can remember that the story isn't finished yet.  Out of the grave came life.

While we wait the joys of celebrating the resurrection of Jesus, it is worth remembering where we started in this series.  We wanted to learn how to better pursue our walk and relationship with God through the spiritual discipline of prayer.  Where else to learn how to pray than from Jesus Himself.  The Lord's Prayer affords us six powerful themes that serve as an all-encompassing pattern for our prayers.

Martin Luther has frequently featured in our devotions.  He admitted to praying through the Lord's Prayer twice every day, but not simply as words to be repeated, rather, he used it as a guide for his prayers.
Perhaps we could finish with the same sentences from Luther that we read on day one.

You can find this excerpt from Luther's little booklet here.

Today is Good Friday!
If we are going to truly appreciate how good Good Friday is, we need to grasp how bad we are.  We need to feel how dark our sin really is.
Dr. Matin Lloyd-Jones suggests,

In fact, the cross itself gives us a taste of how terrible our sin is.  

We see the depths of our sin in the extent of Jesus’ suffering.  Jesus didn’t die for fancy; He didn’t suffer for some sadistic pleasure.  Jesus didn’t endure the cross for kicks any more than you would face open-heart surgery just for the fun of it.  No!  Jesus died because of our sins.
His death involved the worst form of torture and prolonged suffering.
Jesus didn’t suffer simply because of a lack of judgment on our part, or a mis-calculation, or a raw luck of the deal; Jesus didn’t endure the cross because of an innocent accident, or poor environmental factors.  Jesus was crucified for your sin!

We can sometimes be so quick to jump to what God has given us; so quick, even, to jump to the resurrection – to Sunday – to the life we have because of Jesus, that we forget to reflect on the dark, dank depths of our sin!
But when we see Jesus on the cross; when we hear the screams and face the horrors, as much as we feel the darkness – we can’t ignore our sin.  
It was our sins that put Him there in the first place.

As another old Puritan writer, Stephen Charnock, has put it, 

This is why we fervently and desperately pray, each day, "Lead me not into temptation, but deliver me from evil."

You can listen to Martin Lloyd-Jones' sermon containing the quote above here.

The quote from Stephen Charnock is from Tim Chester's Lenten devotion, Oceans of Grace.  Perhaps you could order it in time for next Easter.

On Jesus' final night before His crucifixion He shared a Passover meal with His disciples.  Jesus had lots to teach during this final meal - John dedicates four chapters {13-16] to the discussions around the dinner table.  Part of these discussions acknowledge the temptation and destruction that the Devil brings to our lives.  
In Luke 22, after Jesus had inaugurated the bread and wine as a remembrance of His body and blood, he warned the disciples that they would soon abandon Him.  Of course, they denied that they would ever do such a thing - especially Peter.  Peter vehemently declared,

And yet, Jesus recognized that Satan would have things very differently.  "[Peter] Satan demanded to have you, that he might sift you like wheat, but I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail.  And when you have turned again, strengthen your brothers...the rooster will not crow this day until you deny three times that you know me."
There is a distinct recognition in this exchange that the Devil wants to destroy our lives.  
As you might have anticipated, today we read Luther's example of how you might pray this fifth phrase in the Lord's Prayer.  For many years Luther struggled under the weight of guilt.  It was this brutal struggle that gave him a deep understanding of forgiveness.

There is a distinct recognition in this exchange that the Devil wants to destroy our lives.  At the same time Satan's reach is tempered by Jesus' power.  God is stronger than the Devil.  Although Peter would deny Jesus that wasn't the end of the story.

Martin Luther struggled with a distinct awareness of the Devil's torturous temptations.  He frequently attributes his wrestles to the attacks of Satan.  Legend suggests there was once a stain on the wall of his study where he was said to have thrown his ink pot at Satan after facing a particularly difficult bout of spiritual attacks.
Of course, Luther came to realize that Satan was powerless before God.  That his whispers can be drowned out by the gospel truths of Jesus.  He beautifully suggested,

We would do well to note another of Luther's methods of waring against the Devil.

Which leads us to consider Luther's final example of what it might look like for us to pray the last phrase in the Lord's Prayer.  Admittedly, Luther treated them as separate phrases, but we can consider them together.

You can find this excerpt from Luther's little booklet here.

If you want to read an excellent biography of Martin Luther's life, I can't recommend this one by Eric Metaxas enough.

During Jesus' final days before His arrest he was staying with friends in Bethany, just outside Jerusalem (Matthew 21:17).  Here he stayed with His friends, Mary, Martha, and Lazarus (John 12:1).  Each day He would travel into the city; at night He would return to Bethany.
During one of these morning jaunts to Jerusalem, Jesus encountered an unfruitful fig tree.  He was disappointed there were no figs for breakfast and so he cursed the tree, which quickly withered.  Matthew tells the story as follows,

We need to be careful not to make this passage say more than what is intended.  We can't expect that God will always answer the most impossible prayers; nor can we conclude that if we can't move literal mountains we don't have enough faith.  Both of those extreme errors place the emphasis on faith and prayer alone without any consideration to God's power and will ('Our Father in Heaven...Your will be done').
What is important to highlight, though, is Jesus' emphasis on the importance of prayerfully coming to God with faith.
It is simply enough to ask ourselves and consider: when we are struggling with sin and temptation do we seek God's help through prayer and faith?
Often, our first port of call is to work harder to discipline ourselves.  We act as though we think we need to pull ourselves in line before we can come to God when, in reality, we need to seek God's help to pull us into line

Thomas Watson shares some wise words with this respect,

As we continue to reflect on the events leading up to Jesus' crucifixion, it was on or about this day when Jesus went on a rampage through the temple complex.  Mark captures the events in 11:12-19 (you can also find the story in Matthew 21:12-13, Luke 19:45-46, and John 2:13-17, although some wonder if this John account was a separate occasion).

It must have been a sight to behold, Jesus overturning tables in a zealous concern for the miss-use of the temple.  He is particularly focused on those that were using the temple practices to make a quick quid - especially by selling pigeons.  In certain sacrifices the birds were an acceptable offering if the poor were unable to afford a lamb.

There seems to be an element to this story of Jesus ridding the temple of people that were profiting from worship and obedience to God - especially at the expense of the poor.

However, what really stands out in this story is Jesus' motivation.  He was not just concerned with justice and prayer, He was concerned with what God wanted.  John records (John 2:17) how the disciples were reminded of Psalm 69:9, 

Jesus was concerned, not just with right and wrong actions, but with what God wanted.
Sometimes we can think of sin as a line.  We want to know 'how far is too far'; we want to know precisely when some action becomes sinful; we want a nice neat list of ethical rules that we can follow - when does an action becomes sin.  Yet, sin and righteousness runs much deeper than a series of nicely defined dos and don'ts.  Sin and righteousness can be defined by one's 'zeal for God.'
The Apostle Paul highlights this in Romans 14:35,

Jesus echoes this understanding of sin when He pointed out a story from the life of King David - Matthew 12:3-7

This is a far more challenging understanding of sin and temptation.  It is no longer just about following a series of rules and 'sacrifices', it is about where God places in our lives. When we understand sin and righteousness to be a matter of our 'zeal for God and His ways' there are many more instances of how far we fall short of His standard - far more instances of evil than we might care to admit.  

Dr. Martin Lloyd-Jones puts it this way when he refers to another of Jesus' statements in the days leading up to his crucifixion (Matthew 22:37),

Martin Lloyd Jones' comments can be found in his sermon series through Ephesians. 

This week, each day's devotion draws from the events of Jesus' final days before his crucifixion while also offering some wisdom from other learned men.  Together they help us pray, "Lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil."

Yesterday was Palm Sunday.  It is traditionally remembered as the day Jesus entered Jerusalem on the back of a donkey to the welcoming shouts and cheers of the crowd (see Luke 19:29-44). However, despite their fervent excitement, in only a few days, their cheers would turn to jeers.  Jesus wasn't who they thought He would be.  He wasn't who they expected.  He wasn't who they wanted.  They wanted a King; Jesus came as a servant.  They wanted to oust the Romans; Jesus came to deal with their guilt and unrighteousness.  They wanted power; Jesus came with humility.  They had their dreams of what a Saviour would mean.  God had different plans.  Better plans!

God often works like that, especially when it comes to our prayers.  We might have a particular idea of how and when God should answer, but God has other plans.  Certainly, that is often true with regards to our temptation and wrestle with sin.  Couldn't God just do away with our sin altogether and make us practically perfect?  Why doesn't God fix my sinful urges as soon as I ask Him?
John Newton has some insight to offer:

John Newton made this comment in a latter to Hannah Wilberforce (Auntie to the more famous William Wilberforce).

Today is the sixth and final Sunday in our series through the Lord's Prayer.  This final phrase is no less important for our everyday lives.  Today we will ponder the phrase of the prayer, "Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil."

Of course, if you can't make today's Sunday service, a video will be posted below at a later time.

As you might have anticipated, today we read Luther's example of how you might pray this fifth phrase in the Lord's Prayer.  For many years Luther struggled under the weight of guilt.  It was this brutal struggle that gave him a deep understanding of forgiveness.

Luther goes on to add the comment,

You can find this excerpt from Luther's little booklet here.

In his book, Mere Christianity, CS Lewis makes some simple yet powerful observations about forgiveness.

Mere Christianity is a book every person should have in their library.

When I think of stories that exemplify the kind of forgiveness that we can offer through the strength of Jesus, I can't help but think of Corrie Ten Boom.

Corrie and her sister Betsie were Dutch ladies captured by the German Gestapo during World War II and imprisoned.  They had been trying to hide and save Jews from the Holocaust.  They were finally sent to the Ravensbruck concentration camp in Germany.
At Ravensbruck they witnessed all the horrors of the camps that have since become all too familiar.  They were surrounded with women that faced terrible torture and horrific suffering at the brutal hands of their captors.
Each morning they were forced to stand, rain, hail or snow, for 2-3 hours for roll-call.  In her book, the Hiding Place, Corrie recounts the events of one morning, in the middle of winter, when a guard began to whip and beat a young disabled girl two rows ahead of the sisters until she stopped screaming and lay still in the street.
“Betsie,” Corrie whispered to her sister, “what can we do for these people?  Afterwards I mean.  Can’t we make a home for them and care for them and love them?” 
“Corrie, I pray every day that we will be allowed to do this!  To show them that love is greater!”
Corrie, goes on to write, “…it wasn’t until I was gathering twigs later in the morning that I realized that I had been thinking of the [disabled], and Betsie of their persecutors.”

Six months after her arrest Betsie died in the concentration camp.  Before she died she told Corrie, "There is no pit so deep that God is not deeper still."
Less that a fortnight after her sister's death Corrie was mistakenly released due to a clerical error.  Only a few days after her release all the women in her age group were executed by the guards.
When the war finished Corrie ran a recovery center in Holland for all the people who needed a home.  Not just for the disabled and her fellow prisoners, but even the 'traitorous' Dutch who had collaborated with the Germans; many of whom were outcast by society.  Additionally, Corrie travelled the world sharing her story, preaching the Gospel, and encouraging people to forgive.
Then one day, only a year after she had been released, speaking in Munich, Germany, one of her S.S. prison guards approached her after the service.  She writes,

Corrie goes on to write,

You can read the dramatic story of Corrie and the Ten Boom family in The Hiding Place.

Hearing stories of radical forgiveness are both challenging and inspiring.  They challenge us because we don't always like the idea that perhaps we are called to such radical forgiveness.  They are inspiring because they demonstrate that it is possible.

In early 2001 a middle-aged missionary couple in the Philippines, while celebrating their wedding anniversary, were abducted and taken hostage.  For the next 13 months they trekked through the jungles of the Philippine islands at the mercy of the Abu Sayyif – an Islamic terrorist group ultimately ran by Osama Bin Laden.  
Martin and Gracia Burnham were American missionaries with New Tribes Mission.  The things that they saw and the traumas that they endured were atrocious.  Night and day they were dragged through the jungle while their captors tried to stay one step ahead of the Philippine army – often they seemed on the verge of starvation, always they were under threat of bullets and bombs.  
Gracia Burnham, who wrote their story, talks of her horror at seeing the levels to which hostages would stoop – stealing and ransacking from hospital patients, for example, horrified her at first.  
‘People that are only concerned about their own needs will stoop to any length,’ she noted.  But then she admitted that by the end of her captivity she too had come to the bottom of such rungs.  
Her husband, Martin, commented to her one day during their captivity, ‘You know…here in the mountains I’ve seen hatred; I’ve seen bitterness; I’ve seen greed; I‘ve seen covetousness; I’ve seen wrongdoing.’  
Coming from a hostage who has spent months in captivity such an observation is no surprise.  Gracia wrote that she nodded her agreement, but then Martin added, ‘I’ve seen each of these things in myself.’

Martin and Gracia spent 13 months as captive hostages to the Abu Sayyif terrorists.  Then came a rainy afternoon following weeks of hunger, and long days and nights of marching.  They set up camp, tied up their hammocks, and began to drift off to sleep.  
All of a sudden the familiar sound of gunfire erupted.  This time the rebels and their hostages had been outwitted and caught in a precarious situation.  As Martin and Gracia desperately tried to exit their hammock and get to the ground – the missionaries were hit in the shooting.  
Gracia took a bullet to the leg; Martin was hit in the chest.  Gracia lay over Martin knowing he had been hit bad.  She knew he was alive and breathing but they played dead in the hope that the terrorists would flee without them.  Without a sound they lay listening to the roar of gunfire.  Then Gracia felt Martin go limp.  
Sure enough the terrorists fled; Gracia was free but her husband had died in the firefight.  After 13 months of mayhem, Gracia returned home a widow to three fatherless children.

Most of us will probably never be faced with the severity of hurt and offense that had been dealt to the Burnham family.  Yet, most of us would struggle to come to the level of forgiveness they have shown.  The Burnham family now do phenomenal things in ministering to the same people that have terrorized a family for the rest of their lives.  Gracia has set up a funding arm which works to minister to the very people that held her captive.  They supply Abu Sayyif members with Bible study materials.  They fund translation work for the native language.  They buy hand-made crafts from Abu Sayyif prisoners and inform them that Gracia Burnham is their customer.  She regularly exchanges letters with one of her captors and the family support Abu Sayyif prisoners like many of us support starving children.
Such a story of forgiveness is not just talk and sentiment.  This is the kind of genuine forgiveness that is able to seek the best for the very people that were forgiven.

You can read the Burnham's story for yourself in Gracia's book, In the Presence of My Enemies.  It is a gripping story that is moving and challenging.

As we considered yesterday, praying for forgiveness happens in the context of confessing our failures – both things we know and things we don’t, both actions and attitudes.  Such confession is an important part of the Christian life.  It reminds us of our sinful propensity, and dependance on God.  However, confession can’t happen properly without the confidence of our forgiveness.  Unless we are confident of our forgiveness confession only acknowledges our guilt; and if we don't have a way of dealing with our guilt we will be destroyed by it.  So genuine, deep confession can only occur in proportion to our confidence in our forgiveness.  

David Brainerd was a passionate missionary to the American Indians – he gave his life in an attempt to reach them.  However, as one author reflects when introducing Brainard's diaries,  

As the life of David Brainard suggests, confession itself can become destructive.  The only way we can rightly approach confession is through the cross of Jesus and the previous statements of the Lord's Prayer.  As John Smed adds:

Deep confession, then, should remind us and lead us to complete and utter gratefulness because of God’s forgiveness in Jesus.  Genuine confession should lead us to increased faith in Jesus.

You can find a copy of David Brainard's diary here.  The reflection was from the introduction by Jonathan Edwards

The fifth phrase in the Lord's Prayer prompts us to seek our own forgiveness with the first phrase, 'forgive us our debts.'  It is important to note that our salvation and acceptance before God is not dependent on our ability to recall and confess all our failures so that they can be forgiven.  Certainly, without an initial confession and repentance before God we would never find His salvation; however, post salvation, once we are made part of His family and given a new life, confession remains an important practice for our spiritual health.  For two reasons:

First, confession is a constant reminder of our failures and dependence on God.  If we live with the imagination that we are perfect we will be deceived into thinking, more and more, that we need God less and less.  Confession is a constant reminder to ourselves that we are entirely dependent on God's forgiveness.

Second, confession maintains a posture of humility before others.   Such humility is needed when it comes to being ready to forgive those who have wronged us (the next part of this fifth phrase in the Lord's Prayer).  We will struggle to offer such forgiveness for as long as we assume a 'better than thou' attitude.  Confession, and rehearsing our forgiveness, pulls us back down to the same fallen field as everyone else.  Dietrich Bonhoeffer hints at the dangers of a failed humility, blinded to their own sins.

Elsewhere Bonhoeffer suggests:

We need the kind of humility confession fosters before both God and others.  
Of course, such confession is not easy...that will be tomorrow's devotion.

The quotes from Bonhoeffer are taken from his excellent book, Life Together.

As today is the fifth Sunday in our series through the Lord's Prayer, this is a simple reminder to join us for our Sunday service.  Today we will ponder the fifth phrase of the prayer, "Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us."

Of course, if you can't make today's Sunday service, a video will be posted below at a later time.

I know it is a kid's story, but sometimes the biggest lessons are contained in simple stories.  You may have heard, seen, or read this before but it is well worth listening to again in light of our prayer, "Give us this day our daily bread."
Take a moment to watch this video below.

We often need Eric's simple reminder that everything we have is ultimately given by God.  In fact, it is important that we remember such a simple truth.
As John Smed warns us:

If you want this book to read to the children, or even for yourself, find it and others here.

Martin Luther offers practical examples of how one might pray through each phrase in the Lord's prayer.  So far, we have pondered each of his examples.  Today, read through his example of praying 'Give is this day our daily bread.'

You can find this excerpt from Luther's little booklet here.

The life of George Muller provides countless examples of God literally supplying daily bread.  Muller started a series of orphanages in Bristol, UK.  He operated with a principle of faith; trusting that God would supply their needs.  The staff were instructed to never ask anyone for anything 'that the hand of the Lord may be clearly seen.'  Instead Muller depending on praying and asking God.
Between the years of 1838-1846, the program was living on shoe strings.  Over and over again, during this time, the orphanage lived donation to donation.  Muller considered these eight years as a time of strengthening their faith.

One particularly famous example was recounted as follows:

Muller's story is an inspiring example of asking God for 'Our Daily Bread.'

There are plenty of online resource about George Muller, including a website dedicated to his resources.  If you are looking for a good biography that contains the story recorded here, check this one out.