Missionary Calvin Gardner Update

March 7, 2010 Dear Praying Brethren, Greetings in our humbled and exalted Lord Jesus Christ! He, who humbled Himself to the cursed death of the cross, God hath highly exalted and given a name above every name (Philippians 2.8-9). That saving work of the cross for His own which was the joy set before Him is become our salvation and our one message. Thank you for your part in the ministry of the Wooster Baptist Temple to preach Christ in Brazil through us.

This week has flown by while I buried my head in a map and calendar, trying to fit our visit with the churches that help us in prayer and support into the dates of the three months of furlough coming up in May-August. I am making progress but I am beginning to see that I can not visit all of them. I have contacted only a few churches so far and these have graciously helped me to set up dates to be with them. Several brethren have offered their homes too. Thank you each one. Also the Lord continues to bless us with special offerings for our trip home. The original $10,000 we thought we would need for passage was thankfully whittled down to $7,000 by Mennonite Travel Services. They help missionaries by getting special rates with United Airlines. This week we received news of another special offering that completes this need for the tickets. Praise the Lord with us! I’m still not sure about transportation while home, but I expect by that time the Lord will direct us aright. Thank you for your praying for us in all these needs. Seminary-level classes in Jaciporã were a special blessing yesterday. Although I had never been fully responsible for the Seminary training of anyone, I had a great desire to prepare the men in the works here in the Word. I had a willing mind to do what I could and, by your prayers and by His grace, the Lord enabled me to do what I should. Yesterday marked the completion of fifty-six lessons of theology. Lord willing, next month two of the original five students will take the final test. I am giving these same lessons to three other brethren in Presidente Prudente. David is also supervising these same lessons to about thirty others by way of the Internet. Praise the Lord for His enablement to do this work. In spite of the itinerary hogging my time, I still have spent time printing tracts, answering mail and fielding calls. The Lord gives grace to evangelize as well. Dirceu came to our door selling sidewalk trash receptacles he had welded. In Brazil, the sidewalk is a wonderful catch-all for telephone posts, phone booths, road signs, trees and trash receptacles. The city is not responsible for the sidewalks so each homeowner does what he thinks best for his sidewalk. Therefore, the varied levels of the sidewalks and the different material used in their construction, plus being a catch-all, makes leisurely walks on these sidewalks almost impossible. Most people opt out and walk on the street instead of running the obstacle course that sidewalks become. The danger of being hit by traffic is a lesser evil I guess. But, I forgot to tell you about Dirceu. I didn’t buy his trash receptacle but I was interested in his barbecue grills. I was also interested in his soul. When I asked him if anyone had told him about Christ, he was delighted that I had asked. We talked a bit of his salvation at that time. Later in the week, when he returned for payment, we talked again of Christ. I told him I was sorry that he was a part of a Pentecostal movement. That brought us to talk about the sufficiency of Christ’s work on the cross. Anyone who is expecting their obedience to obtain or maintain their salvation disgraces Christ’s work for sin. Dirceu is considering this truth yet. Before he left, he came to my office and chose a free book. Please pray for him. This week we finally received the covers for our latest book. We began printing a thousand copies of C. D. Cole’s Volume One: Definitions of Doctrine in September 2009. Now we can put the finishing touches on it. We are thankful for the special offering from Bryan Station to do this job. While writing this letter Cristina, from down south, called me expressing serious problems in their home. As you remember, please pray. Thank-you very much for your prayers and gifts this month. The Lord is using it for His work through the ministry of the Wooster Baptist Temple here in Brazil. There are many here who give thanks for your participation in the varied ministries used to preach the Gospel here. Yours in Our Lord, Bro. Calvin G. Gardner wbtbrazil@gmail.com www.PalavraPrudente.com.br Missionary to Brazil through Wooster Baptist Temple PO Box 433 Wooster, OH 44691 Pastor Floyd Koenig 330 345-7291 fkoenig@sssnet.com http://www.woosterbaptisttemple.org Man is all outside to God – C. H. Spurgeon