NEW YEAR'S GREETINGS FROM THE FREDERICKS

Let me begin this new year by thanking you for your faithfulness in providing us with the support we need to serve the Lord these past ten years at Wycliffe. Without your loving, caring, prayerful support we would have never made it. But we count it such a privilege to serve the Lord and to know you in Christ what a wonderful provision He has made for us through His Body on earth.

As you know from our previous letters, these past few months have been stressful with Jenny's accident and lawsuit, Cora's health and changing directors at Wycliffe. As each of these events occurred, I felt a growing need for help from the Lord. My prayer life consisted mostly of asking the Lord to heal Cora, provide a new car, protect us against legal consequences, etc. But the more I prayed, the more I seemed to worry about each thing.

Then one morning the Lord spoke these words to me: "Be concerned above everything else with My Kingdom and with what I require, and I will provide you with all these other things." (Matt. 6:33, Good News Bible) As I thought about those words, I realized that I had completely lost sight of who God is. But He was saying if I just get my eyes off myself and onto Him, He would meet all our needs in the process without any need for worrying.

As Christmas approached, my thoughts turned toward the events leading to the birth of Christ. In Luke 1:5 20 there was a godly couple who prayed for a child for many years. It looked like God had said "no" since they were now too old physically to have children. Zechariah had given up; his plans were ruined.

But God had a much greater plan for them than they could even imagine. Because Zechariah's eyes were on his own body and broken dreams, he could not believe when the answer came. Therefore God seemed to say, "If you can't speak in faith, don't speak at all!" and he didn't until he spoke words of faith when John was born!

FOCUS I believe this is a key word for 1992. If I look at myself and require God to work the way I think He should, I will be greatly disappointed. But if I can see that I am a part of a greater plan in which God is going to do miraculous things as I look to Him, I am filled with confidence and hope.

Hebrews 10:35,36 says, "So do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded. You need to perservere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what He has promised." And so in closing I pray, Lord, that You would enable us to turn away from our own concerns and focus on Your Kingdom and Your plan. Help us to find Your will for our life, give us grace and strength to obey and perservere, and do great and mighty things to Your honor and glory in 1992. I ask this is Jesus' Name, amen. Have a wonderful and blessed new year.