THE WINDS OF THE SPIRIT ARE BLOWING!
Sorry for the length of time since my last post. It’s not that we haven’t been traveling, I’ve just not taken the time to sit down at the computer and write out what the Lord has been doing.
In January I traveled to Atlanta for the Congress on Evangelism. Felicia stayed home on this one to care for our 2 new grandbabies that were born in December. Philip (our second born) and his wife Holly had their second child, a beautiful little girl, Rachel Anne. James (our eldest) and his wife Joy had their fourth son, James William (named after my dad).
My time at the Congress on Evangelism was wonderful. I led worship for them and operated the sound system. I’ve been attending since 1980 and have led worship now for over 10 years. I’ve lost count. One of the highlights of this year’s congress was during the ministry of Terry Tekyl. Try to imagine over a thousand United Methodists lying face down on the floor of a hotel ballroom, crying out to God for a deeper walk with Him. It was awesome. I’ll never forget that sight.
In February, I had the joy of leading worship at the Ministry conference for Asbury Theological Seminary, in Wilmore, KY. There is nothing quite as moving as hearing the sound of over 500 voices loudly singing praises to God in Estes Chapel. When they sang “And Can it Be?? the hair stood up on the back of my neck. Wow! Felicia was with me on this trip and God used this time to give some much-needed direction to us about our future. More on that later.
Later in the month, we traveled to Arcadia, La, where we had a wonderful time of ministry at First United Methodist Church. We stayed in the home of a couple who have been lifetime friends, Dan and Susanne Madden. We didn’t get much rest as we found ourselves talking every night until past midnight. We just couldn’t get enough of our time together. The revival was a great time. Each night you could feel the church becoming more open to the things God was wanting to do in their community. As is true with many churches across America, there have been some tense times over the past few years in trying to incorporate new worship styles into the church. Perhaps you’ve experienced the ‘Worship wars’ in your church as well. It is a difficult transition for many and we need the presence of God’s Spirit to come out on the other side as a healthy church. I believe God is continuing to work to bring that much needed healing.
BibleQuest was a big hit with the kids. The picture will be up soon so you can get a look at how excited the medal winners were. I would have already had it up, but my laptop computer crashed last week. It was then that I learned the importance of having a current backup. I lost everything on my hard drive. I’ll be getting another picture to put up online soon. If you’ve been getting my email updates and want to continue getting them, you will need to send me your email address. Just send an email to wesley@wesleyputnam.org and I’ll be happy to put you back in the system.
I’m home this week a bit unexpectedly. The church in Alabama, where I was supposed to be ministering this week, had to cancel their Dayspring. There was no time to book another meeting, so Felicia and I have some extra time to catch up at home.
Be praying for next month’s meetings in Arkansas and Mississippi. I’m expecting great things to happen in these revivals. Mississippi is a Dayspring that was rescheduled after my heart attack forced me to cancel last year. I’m expecting good things to happen there. Be sure to follow us on our schedule by clicking on the “schedule” button on the left side of this page.
Now, back to what I was referring to in the earlier paragraph. While Felicia and I were in Wilmore we had an opportunity to visit with our good friend, Steve Harper. We told him the story of last year’s heart attack and the fact that we had been unable to handle cardiac rehab because of our erratic schedule. The next day he came to us with an incredible offer. He has invited us to come to Wilmore for six months and be “Artist in Residence”. The seminary will help to raise the money that will be lost through the revivals that will be cancelled and will provide us with an office and a place to live for the six months we are there. It will be an opportunity to mentor students who are interested in evangelism, minister in chapel services, spend time writing new songs and stories, and most importantly, rest and do the needed cardiac rehab. It is an answer to prayer.
We should be moving there in July and will be there through the end of the year.
Keep us in prayer. We will need for our donors to continue supporting us during this time, so that the continuing expenses of running the ministry can be met. We also need God’s direction for what the remaining years of our ministry are to be. Does He want us to continue doing the same things or could there be something new in our future? We don’t know. We just want to be in the middle of His will. That is the place where our lives will be most at peace. In the mean time we will trust that the winds of the Spirit are blowing and we will try to keep our sail up and ready to be filled.
In His service,
Wesley