Dear family, brethren, and friends,

The Lord continues to pour out His blessings and to open doors for spreading the gospel.  On Thursday night and Friday (Dec. 8-9) I flew from Manila to Cairns, Queensland, Australia and on to Auckland, New Zealand, a 12 hour trip.  The seats on the Philippine Airline plane were so close together my knees were against the seat in front of me.  As it turned out, I alone occupied the three-seat section where I was assigned near the back, so I was able to lie down and sleep through most of the flight.  It was almost like having a first class seat in the economy section!  “Count Your Blessings,” as the song says.

Ronnie Salunga met me about 5:30 P.M. at the Auckland airport and brought me directly to his house.  I showered, changed into my suit, ate supper with the Salungas, and then we started our first service in the basement at 9:00 P.M. with 14 of us gathered.  An hour-long overview of “The Message of the Bible: Salvation in Jesus Christ” was presented.  Then the open forum continued until 11:30 P.M. with a good variety of questions.  Our visitors participated well.  By the time I got to my room and prepared for bed, it was 2:00 A.M. – I did not need anyone to rock me to sleep!

We were surprised that Ronnie’s wife Nina was not at the house when we arrived from the airport.  We learned she had been taken to the doctor because she got food poisoning from something she ate during lunch at work.  The doctor gave her medicine and sent her home for bed rest for several days.  The level of dedication these saints have shown through the years was evident again as Nina got off her sick bed and attended every service including Friday night.  She is obviously weak and struggling to recover but wants to hear all the lessons.

Saturday I was able to talk by phone with Donna and Deborah in Gladstone, Queensland, Australia – I was glad to learn Donna’s trip had been safe and without any troubling incidents.  I prepared several lessons during the day, not knowing what kind of audience we might have.  As it turned out, some of our visitors could not come, but Angela’s boyfriend Keil was there, meaning five out of the ten present were young people (teenage-20’s).  Therefore, I presented the two-part study at 5:00 P.M. on “The Lord Builds the House: Selecting a Mate” (Ps. 127).  After our supper break at 7:00 P.M., we reconvened at 8:30 P.M. to study “Let Us Pray” (Matt. 6:9).

An extended open forum carried us to 10:30 P.M.  Then, Keil and I studied Mark 16:15-16 in detail for about 30 minutes to clarify the differences between the original teaching of Christ and various philosophies and doctrines of men.  Keil is attentive and catches on fast.  After preparing some things for the next day, I slept at 1:30 A.M.

New Zealand is well south of the equator, so it is summer here.  Temperatures are running from the mid-50’s to the mid-60’s with intermittent cloud cover, showers, and squalls.  The constant winds coming from the South Pacific Ocean and the Hauraki Gulf make the air feel cooler than it would otherwise.  Overcast rainy weather continued on the Lord’s Day.

Eleven souls were present for the morning service.  This included the five members of the Salunga family, three members of the Randy Cabrillas family, Joan Azurin, and two members of the Louneill Erasmas family (Cecillia was home with their son who suffered a reaction to an insect bite).  I baptized Louneill and Cecillia on December 14, 2014 and they continue to worship with the saints of the Meadowood church.  Roan Salunga will marry in March and Joan Azurin in May, and they hope their husbands will be able to enter New Zealand and join the work with the Meadowood congregation.  Also Rick Halnas who works in Timaru on the South Island has landed a job in Aucklnd and will join the church here in January, God willing.  Good steps and signs for the cause of Christ in Auckland!

I began the day with two lessons on “Two Attitudes Toward God’s Word: Conservative and Liberal” (Jer. 6:16).  The service ran almost three hours because again there were questions.  After lunch we studied “Giving on the First Day of the Week” (1 Cor. 16:2), and again a variety of good questions extended our study for three hours. Roan’s fiancee Marius participated via Skype from his home in Arizona.  The questions led in many directions including an extensive discussion of the woman’s role in the home and the church.

I thought I was too tired to study further after almost six hours on my feet, but Keil had arrived during the afternoon, so the two of us studied God’s redemptive plan from 8:30-10:30 P.M.  He continues to learn fast and seems to have an open and receptive heart to the truth of God’s Word.  At midnight I collapsed in the bed, my heart overflowing with joy for the privilege of studying God’s Word with precious souls who hunger and thirst for righteousness!

The Meadowood brethren love to sing and do an excellent job.  In recent years they have learned all the songs in Hymns for Worship, so now they have ordered the new songbook Psalms, Hymns, and Spiritual Songs with the intention of learning all the songs in it.

Thank you, dear brethren, for your prayers and support which make this work possible.  And, yes, I am seeing the same moon you see, and it makes me remember your love and miss you all the more!

In Christian love,
Ron Halbrook

To see good Bible study material, go to:
http://www.HebronChurchOfChrist.com
http://www.biblework.com
http://www.truthmagazine.com
http://www.CEIbooks.com