Dear family, brethren, and friends,

I left Manila on a Qantas flight at 2:45 AM Tuesday, arrived in Brisbane in the State of Queensland, Australia, and soon flew on to Rockhampton in Queensland.  My suitcase and the box of Bibles and books for distribution did not arrive in Rockhampton.  Qantas representatives assured me they would follow on another plane, so I stayed at the airport for several hours doing work on my laptop.  Alas, the next flights were no better.

Daryl Johnson brought me to my motel after we had an adventure at a fast food restaurant. After waiting at our table 30 minutes visiting, we returned to the counter looking for our order, only to learn they did not call us because they gave it to another customer!  Oh, well, we finally ate and enjoyed our visit.  I got to the hotel about 9:00 PM after a very long day.  A gorgeous full moon greeted us.

I lost part of Wednesday catching up on sleep plus, taking additional exercise in an effort to regain my stamina after another time change – we are 3 hours ahead of the Philippines and 15 hours ahead of the U.S.  I managed to catch up on some email, not all, and did some Bible study and writing.  The suitcase and box of books were belatedly delivered to the motel today.  My last exercise ended at dark and I did not see the moon, but the perfectly clear sky was studded with the bright beautiful light of Venus, which looked as close as an airplane in a landing pattern.

Thursday has been very busy with email, work on an article, and reviewing sermons to be preached for the next several days.  We are right on the Cape of Capricorn, not far south of the equator.  It is summer and the sun looks down straight from above, which has given me some sunburn during the extra exercise I have been taking to get adjusted.  The good news is the full moon is gracing the skies of Queensland again tonight!  It proclaims God’s greatness and goodness, while bouncing our messages of love to each other from distant lands!

We had another hot and humid day Friday with the temperature at about 90 degrees Fahrenheit (32 Celsius) – it is summertime in Australia, for sure. About 25 people of all ages turned out tonight at the Rockhampton church of Christ where Daryl Johnson helps with the preaching.  A series of lessons is being taught on the them “Life, Death, and Beyond.”  The topics for tonight were “Why Do We Live?” and “Why and How We Die.”

Among the questions raised in the open forum was one following up on the point that the dead have no knowledge or participation in the events of earth life.  How did Samuel appear before King Saul when summoned by the medium?  The witch did not actually have the power to communicate with the dead and she shouted in surprise when Samuel appeared by a miracle to prophesy Saul’s defeat by the inspiration of God.  Samuel’s message did not indicate that he had been observing the events of earth life from hades  but only reflected what God revealed to him.

We were blessed to have a full moon watching over tonight’s service!

Heavy rains last night made for a very hot and very humid Saturday.  I have studied today and prepared to preach tonight on “Beyond Death – Hades” and “”Beyond the Resurrection – Heaven and Hell.”  There was a good turnout with 27 present and everyone seemed to be very interested and attentive to these topics.  Several young people attended and paid close attention, taking notes.

The open forum included clarification of soul and spirit as synonyms and the second death as eternal separation from God, not annihilation.

It was a joy to work with these brethren whom I have known since my first visit with them in 2013. I urged them all to keep fighting for our salvation so that we all can complete this journey to heaven with victory in Christ!

I awoke at 4:20 AM on the Lord’s Day so that Daryl Johnson could pick me up at 4:45 to drive us to Bundaberg where Ray Ward labors as an evangelist with a congregation that has existed for many years.  About 20 souls gathered for worship and Bible study at 9:30 and heard two lessons on the topic “After Death, What Then?”

One couple drove two hours to join our worship.  Another couple who appear to be in their 20’s have been visiting for the past few months and I was able to engage the man in a short Bible study, answering some of his questions and clarifying the conditions of pardon.  He was very respectful and interested in the things we discussed and he promised to continue his study of the Bible.

Daryl and I with Ray and his wife enjoyed a good lunch of “fish and chips” (French fries) with Leighton Bestmann and his family at a park by the ocean.  Josie Bestmann is a Filipina from Bulacan in the Greater Manila Area.  Her large family recently began worshiping in their home because they are dissatisfied with trends among brethren with whom they have worked and worshiped who are drifting into liberal attitudes and practices rather than strictly following the New Testament pattern. I am getting in touch with her brother to invite him to a Bible lectureship at the Edsa-Pasay church in Metro Manila February 25-27 in the hope he can become acquainted with many sound and faithful brethren in the area.

About a dozen souls joined the evening service to study “Beyond the Resurrection –  Heaven and Hell.”  Everyone was very attentive and the open forum continued for 30 minutes. Several questions revolved around trying to understand how the spirit can exist in hades with consciousness but without a body of any kind.  How do people there recognize themselves and the other people who are present and not present?  We discussed further 2 Corinthians 5:1-10 where Paul described our existence in three states: living in this earthly tabernacle or clothing, living “naked” or without our earthly body, and living in the heavenly house not made with hands. How we will recognize each other purely as spirits in Hades is not elaborated in Scripture but falls into the class of “secret” things which belong to God alone (Deut. 29:29).  We had a very productive study and discussion.

This trip to Bundaberg turned out to be providential in multiple ways.  I met Carmel Tuesley, a faithful sister in her 80’s who is the daughter of an old-time, strictly Bible-based gospel preacher of the previous generation named Harry Wyer.  She not only has 600 of his written and typed sermons but also a good number of books from his library she wants to donate to Filipino preachers.  In addition, Ray loaded me up with numerous tracts which will be valuable in the Philippines.  I am going to box up as many of these materials as I can bring with me on the return flight to Manila and distribute them at the lectureship in Edsa-Pasay, God willing.

After a solid breakfast and delightful visit with Ray and his wife Monday, we packed the donated materials and made the long return trip.  Daryl’s wife Rosalie provided us a delicious supper when we returned to Rockhampton late this afternoon.  Then, they supplied me with tape and other items necessary to get the books and tracts packed for the return flight.  After taking a good walk for exercise tonight, I worked on email and went online to fill out the required entry document for the Philippines.  As happens at times, this Philippine government website did not cooperate well, but I finally got it done and slept by 1:00 AM.

It was a delight Tuesday to go to breakfast and visit with Pete and Carol Zussino from Gladstone, about an hour and a half drive from here.  When Jamie and Deborah (Halbrook) and their family lived in Gladstone several years ago, they worshiped with Carol and her daughter Gabby who were the only Christians there at the time.  They showed much kindness to the Williams family.  Carol attended our Friday-Saturday meeting here in Rockhampton. We had a good visit this morning discussing both family news and Carol’s continuing efforts to share the gospel, which have resulted in one man submitting to be baptized into Christ and his church.

In the late morning, Gordon and Glenda Johnson welcomed me into their home where we spent time getting better acquainted, discussing spiritual matters, and sharing a long lunch and an afternoon tea time.  Their son Cameron and his wife Christal with their daughter Abigail joined us, adding to our wonderful visit and discussions.

Gordon and I also visited sister Myrtle West, a widow whose husband I had known in past years here. She is in her 80’s but still keeping herself active.

Gordon brought me back to the motel before 4:00 PM so that I could begin packing and weighing the materials donated from Bundaberg in a way to be acceptable to the airline tomorrow.

God has really opened a lot of doors during this visit to Australia.  I am eternally thankful to Hm, to my wife, and to many other saints who make all of this work possible.  It is now time to focus on the work planned with Filipino saints for the rest of February as I prepare to fly to Manila Wednesday and Thursday, God willing.

In Christian love,
Ron Halbrook