Since the birth of our newest son, Luther, came in mid-April (scroll to "Message from Joel" to read birth announcement) when I typically send out the Pentons' Progress, I decided to combine March and April into one blog post.
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| Joel and Ryan's concert setup before the doors open |
March was perhaps the busiest month this school year with 28 speaking engagements including eleven outreach concerts! By the end of the month, Joel and Ryan were ready for a break from the road. I was also ready for a little help with my two crazy sons, since I was nine months pregnant!
Some of Joel's most cherished experiences in ministry are not just speaking in front of large groups of people, but also interacting with individuals after the events. Joel shared with me an interesting interaction that took place at last concert in March. A girl named Jessica asked him to sign her free copy of Joel's book, "Seven Lies." As Joel was signing, the following conversation took place:
Jessica: The only thing I got our of tonight was this free book. (yeah, students can be a little too honest sometimes!)
Joel: You didn't like what I had to say about Jesus?
Jessica: No, I'm an atheist. I believe in scientific explanations for everything.
Joel: Even Jesus rising from the dead?
Jessica: I mean about how the world was created.
Joel: Yeah, but what about Jesus rising from the dead? That's kind of big deal isn't it?
Jessica: I think there must be some other explanation for that.
Joel: I wish I could talk more with you about this but I need to keep signing books for these people. Will you promise me to read my book and send me an email so we can continue our conversation?
Jessica: Sure.
By the time Joel got home that night he had received an email from from Jessica. She said that she had read two chapters of Joel's book and that she was already becoming more "open-minded." After finishing the book and a few emails back and forth with Joel, Jessica confessed that she now believes that Jesus rose from the dead!
Please join us in thanking God for Him working in Jessica. Pray also that she will grasp the full gospel message and be born again into a new life with Christ.
Much of April was spent catching up on ministry projects while waiting for Penton boy #3 to arrive. Joel focused on the administrative aspects of our new non-profit Stand for Truth. Finally, on April 19th, Luther Joseph Penton was born! Praise the Lord!
Some of Joel's most cherished experiences in ministry are not just speaking in front of large groups of people, but also interacting with individuals after the events. Joel shared with me an interesting interaction that took place at last concert in March. A girl named Jessica asked him to sign her free copy of Joel's book, "Seven Lies." As Joel was signing, the following conversation took place:
Jessica: The only thing I got our of tonight was this free book. (yeah, students can be a little too honest sometimes!)
Joel: You didn't like what I had to say about Jesus?
Jessica: No, I'm an atheist. I believe in scientific explanations for everything.
Joel: Even Jesus rising from the dead?
Jessica: I mean about how the world was created.
Joel: Yeah, but what about Jesus rising from the dead? That's kind of big deal isn't it?
Jessica: I think there must be some other explanation for that.
Joel: I wish I could talk more with you about this but I need to keep signing books for these people. Will you promise me to read my book and send me an email so we can continue our conversation?
Jessica: Sure.
By the time Joel got home that night he had received an email from from Jessica. She said that she had read two chapters of Joel's book and that she was already becoming more "open-minded." After finishing the book and a few emails back and forth with Joel, Jessica confessed that she now believes that Jesus rose from the dead!
Please join us in thanking God for Him working in Jessica. Pray also that she will grasp the full gospel message and be born again into a new life with Christ.
Much of April was spent catching up on ministry projects while waiting for Penton boy #3 to arrive. Joel focused on the administrative aspects of our new non-profit Stand for Truth. Finally, on April 19th, Luther Joseph Penton was born! Praise the Lord!
Until Next Month,
Bethany
Message From Joel
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Friends,
We are so grateful to announce the birth of our third son, Luther Joseph Penton. Thank you so much for all of your prayers for our family. It was very hard for us to wait a full 10 days past the due date, but of course, totally worth it! Luther is a very good baby so far. He is a champ at sleeping and eating much like his brothers...and father. Joel 3 is very helpful with "baby Woo-fur" and often asks about him. He is very affectionate and always wants to hug and kiss him. Judah, at first, didn't even acknowledge baby Luther. But now he likes to run up to the bassinet and say "Hi, baby!" with a wave. His version of "Luther" sounds like "ruff-ruff" like a dog. Here's a video of the boys saying Hi to Luther.
We named Luther after the great church reformer, Martin Luther. Before meeting Jesus, Martin Luther devoted his life to earning God's approval through good deeds and keeping God's moral law. However, he could never shake the conviction that before God, he was a rebel sinner deserving eternal judgement. It wasn't until meditating on the book of Romans, that Luther saw that Christ offers the gift of righteousness to all who simply trust in him by faith. Luther believed this good news and was born again. He spent the rest of his life proclaiming the gospel of God's free grace in Christ to all who would listen, even when it nearly cost him his life. We love Martin Luther because he loved the gospel. Please join us in praying that Luther Penton will love the gospel too.
Thank you so much for your prayers and support!
God Bless,
Joel
Thank you so much for your prayers and support!
God Bless,
