Dear family, brethren, and friends,

By the grace of God I arrived home safely from the Philippines about midnight December 20, happy and thankful to be reunited with Donna.  As a result of exhaustion and stomach pain, I spent most of Wednesday in bed and was not able to attend our midweek Bible study.  It is Thursday morning here in the U.S. as I write this notice and I woke up feeling some better.  I expect to recover quickly, God willing.  There is much work waiting to be done here at the Hebron Lane church of Christ and I will do my  best to concentrate on these opportunities to serve the Lord.

It is always uplifting to see the faith, hope, and love of Filipino saints as we labor together in the gospel!  There were 19 baptisms, but the focus of this trip was on edifying the saints and fortifying their faith as we fight to maintain our faith in this wicked world.  I especially emphasized the dangers of pornography which have spread worldwide due to such easy access via the internet and cell phones.  I also had several opportunities to preach to young people on “Selecting a Mate” for marriage.

I regret that I always fall behind on email correspondence as a result of traveling and preaching, but no one’s message has been intentionally ignored.  I simply cannot catch up with all of this correspondence, but I always continue to pray for my Filipino brethren.

May God bless everyone to have an enjoyable holiday season with your family and loved ones.

In Christian love,
Ron Halbrook