Updates from John and Beabea Rogers

Dear Friends,

I continue having conversations with "Jim", one of the neighbors in our apartment complex. "Jim" tells me that I am his resident expert on God. However, he is very clear that he doesn't agree with me on most of my responses. He is a good reminder that we don't talk with people about the Lord because they will agree with us and respond as we think they should! We do it because we care and because God has told us to do so! Jesus is their only hope as they face eternity. Keep praying for "Jim"! God is able to break through when there seems no chance of reaching someone! He has done so before, and He will do so again!

I have been thinking about my future resurrected body that God will give someday. That will be so cool! Perfect hearing, perfect eyesight, a godly brain, and a fantastic spinal column that will never go bad. No shabby workmanship! Designed by God with a warranty that has no expiration date! Can't wait to take it for a test drive! Still, the body that God has given us now serves a great purpose. God uses its frailty and weakness to accomplish His purpose and put us where He wants us to be. Only God knows how to use this old model T body in the way that enables us to serve Him! How can we not be grateful! I'll have an eternity to cruise Heaven in the new model, but for now God has given me this time on earth, filled with the adventure of serving Him, and that is way cool!

My latest adventure is the dentist gave me a special mouthwash to help with an infection. It turns out that I had a very serious reaction to the mouthwash! Seriously? Mouthwash?! Why, God? How does this help in serving you? I'm not shot as a martyr or eaten by lions… Instead, I am painfully miserable because of mouthwash! My conversation with the dental hygienist led to a discussion about the God who doesn't make mistakes. It was a great conversation, and God didn't make a mistake!

BEM now has a YouTube channel and a Podcast channel. Both are still in development, but you should check them out! I believe God has plans for these two channels that we haven't even thought of yet.

People have been asking about the novel I wrote titled, The Daystar Conspiracy. I am receiving some very good comments and the books continue to sell. We are in the early stages of promotion, so keep praying for God to accomplish His purposes in His way. Amazon and Walmart online are having competitive sales that are over half off. This would be the time to buy copies of the book if you are planning to do so.

My final item in this newsletter is to encourage you to attend the Small Church Conference in Utah on April 18th next month. Sadly, I will not be able to attend because of health issues. I truly would love to be there. I believe this conference may well be the most important one we have ever held. I don't believe you will be disappointed.

Curious about what God has ahead… Confident it will be good! (Romans 8:28)

Your fellow servant, John (and of course, my superhero, Beabea—known as Wonder Wife, Servant of God, and The Incredible Grandma!)

Dear Friends,

In our last newsletter, I mentioned a man who lives in our apartment complex not far from us. I also shared that Beabea and I have had a couple of really good visits with him in the parking lot. Since then, the Lord has provided many opportunities to talk with him. It seems he finds us regularly when we check our mail or walk out to our vehicle. Let me tell you about "Jim" (not his real name). Pray for "Jim." God will know who you are referring to!

Jim was raised in a religious home. He shares that his father was "trying to buy his way to heaven" by giving lots of money to the church they attended. However, when his dad needed help from the "church" and the people in it, they did nothing. Apparently, his dad was bitter toward God after that, and Jim has lived with that reality in his life ever since. Jim has told me that he can't stand religion. He seemed surprised that I agreed with him! I told him that instead of having a religion, I have a relationship with God through Jesus Christ. He then asked the million-dollar question, "What's the difference?" I was able to share the truth about God from the Bible, and he listened.

Jim is not a believer, not yet. However, he has started finding other Christians in the apartments where we live and asking what they believe about God. He is also reading my book on Christ's return and asking many more questions—good questions—some tough questions! He often stops me when I check the mail or am outside the apartment for some reason and asks even more questions.

Our last conversation was about how to get to Heaven, especially if none of us are good enough to be acceptable to God. I finished that conversation with the story of Charles Blondin, who in 1859 crossed Niagara Falls on a tightrope more than once. The story is told that on one of his crossings, he pushed a wheelbarrow in front of him. When he arrived on the other side, a man in the cheering crowd shouted loudly that he truly believed Blondin could walk back and forth with a wheelbarrow many times and never fall. Blondin challenged him to get in the wheelbarrow, but the man refused.

I shared with Jim that there was an important difference between believing Jesus can take a person safely to God and actually trusting Him to do so. I then shared that safety is not found in our trust, but in the One who holds God's wheelbarrow of eternal life. Pray for Jim that he will trust our Lord to give him eternal life and take him safely to God! Salvation is more than facts, it's a relationship!

I had hoped that the new type of injections into my back and neck would help with the pain in my aging spine. It looked promising, but the last injection barely lasted a week, and I became very sick from it. Pain is discouraging, but God is amazing. We are not alone in this world, nor are we abandoned by God! In the weeks ahead, I am scheduled to see several doctors. Pray they have wisdom.

Pray for the many counseling opportunities God keeps opening up. They are mostly by phone. What a privilege to help others and experience God working in their lives! I have been asked more than once what our future plans are, considering all that is happening with my health. I don't have answers, but God does. I want to thank all of you who have helped us serve our Lord through the many years. You are precious to us!

Curious about what God has ahead… Confident it will be good! (Romans 8:28)

Your fellow servant, John (and of course, my superhero, Beabea—known as Wonder Wife, Servant of God, and The Incredible Grandma!)

Dear Friends,

Sitting in the office of one of the top neurosurgeons in Tennessee, I listened as I was informed that there were no surgical possibilities for my condition of an aging spine. If they repaired one area, another would go bad. It was similar to replacing a leaking water hose on a car engine. The new hose would trigger weaknesses in the other hoses, and they would start to leak. Unless I could replace the whole spinal column with a completely new one, surgery would only complicate my situation and cause more damage to occur. I told the person sitting across from me that I did have a new spine on order and that Jesus was personally delivering it someday.

The Lord continues to teach me new things as well as old things in new ways. I have found in my own life that prayer tends to be about helping God understand what needs to be done. Of course, when you think about it, helping God to better understand anything is kind of a humorous concept. Prayer does not make God change! He doesn't need to change. That brings me to a biblical truth I have known since grade school. Somehow, it keeps getting buried in life's complications, but here it is: You don't have to convince God to be good or do good! God is good and always does good!

There, I said it… Wow! That changes a person's prayer life! Prayer isn't about changing God; it is about God changing me! My prayer now is "God, help me trust that you really do know what you are doing and help me see the events of life as you see them." As I sat in the surgeon's office and listened to words that were not encouraging from a human perspective, I became very aware that God was with me. It was as if God was saying, "Calm down, take a breath, relax, and trust me!"

Since surgery is no longer an option, I am now receiving treatments involving spinal injections. A year ago, the medical people tried steroid injections into my spine. Those injections didn't help much at all. The new injections I am now receiving are nerve blockers, and they do seem to help. I just had a second round in a new area of the spine last week. These injections do not heal the body, but having pain relief does have merit!

When the Lord leads to other doctors and new locations, it opens fresh opportunities to share Christ with the people who are there. Last week, I started a conversation with the lady receptionist at the injection clinic. This was my first visit to this new location. I was praying, asking God to give an opening to talk about spiritual things. We chatted for a few minutes, and the discussion moved to how vulnerable the human body was when she stated, "I don't have any concerns because I know where I'm going when I die!" It turns out she was a believer and was trying to find a way to witness to me! What an encouragement that was!

This month, I have been involved in more than the usual counseling opportunities. Most of these are done by phone. Pray for wisdom! Human beings live very complicated lives that only our Lord can sort out! Continue to pray for the book, The Daystar Conspiracy, that God will use it for His glory. I have given many of my neighbors at our apartment complex a copy of the book, and I am having some very interesting conversations!

Also, Beabea and I have had two good conversations (in our apartments' parking lot) with a man who lives a couple of buildings over. The gentleman is friendly, but wary of Christians because of the way his father was treated. Our relationship with him is becoming very positive, and we have talked about spiritual things in a limited way.

Thank you for your prayers! We have lost some support this year because I am not on the road due to health issues. Also, churches are going through some challenging times that affect their ability to support missionaries. God is not overwhelmed or confused in all of this, and He has provided for us in so many ways. He has met every need and gone beyond.

Curious about what God has ahead… Confident it will be good!

Your fellow servant, John (and of course, my superhero, Beabea)