Dear
Friend of FOA,
I was recently reminded of the phrase “peace is not the absence of stress but the presence of Christ”. I don’t know about your daily life, but I am prone to get overwhelmed in the “stresses” of day to day activities. Sometimes I think to myself that if I can get through this one “stressful” situation everything will be better. Some of you may be laughing as you read that sentence because you are wise enough to know that another situation will arise. In fact, God tells us in His Word that we will have tribulation in this world. We are never promised comfort and ease. Rather we are promised that the provision God has made for us through His Son will be enough to deal with whatever problems we may face. We are told that He has overcome the world. How thankful I am for the presence of Christ within our lives that we might experience His peace and joy in the midst of tribulations and stressful situations.
We continue to press forward each day teaching the Word of God and trusting the Lord to do the work of changing the hearts and minds of the men the Lord brings our way. After our recent Covid outbreak and having to hunker down for 3 weeks we are once again bringing new men in each week and getting closer to a full house. Please pray for our men to have the mindset to stay and complete the 8 week program. We have had some over the past few weeks who want to leave after just a few days. For years now, drugs and alcohol have been a tool of our enemy and appeal of the flesh that leads to broken lives and families and sometimes death. Just yesterday, we received another call of a former student who died due to drug overdose. Please pray that our men will see that the answer to the problem is Jesus Christ.
Thank you for praying for our staff each day as we minister to the men the Lord brings our way. I would also ask you to keep our board of directors in prayer. Their names are listed at the bottom of this letter each month. These are men from our community who serve to help give guidance to our ministry. Please especially keep in prayer Mr. Phil Davis, whose wife Ginger recently went home to be with the Lord. We are thankful for her life and rejoice that she is with Christ, but we grieve with our dear brother. Thank you for keeping him and his family in your prayers.
Resting in the Presence of Christ,
Aaron Bonner