What a joy it was to hear Jasmine count from 1-10 in Hebrew after hearing a phone number on television. Her time at the YMCA Fun Camp paid off! "Wanna hear it in Arabic?" she asked. It sounded so natural. I asked her what other languages she could do, and she rattled it off in Spanish, thanks to Dora the Explorer (and English, thanks to mom and dad <g>). Maybe we should try Chinese next?

Friday afternoon we walked through the Old City shopping for a school backpack. She saw the one she liked but, wow, were we going to be overcharged! We walked away with a mutual understanding that we'd find the right backpack at the right price; needless to say, I was quite proud of her for understanding. I believe she's learning that when her father tells her he will provide for her she can believe it. No doubt you can see the groundwork/precedent I'm trying to establish :-)

Shirin and Jasmine began the 1st grade portion of "Jasmine Elementary" on August 1, and the session began with John 3:14-19. Jasmine and I began working on this passage last month, along with Psalm 34:8-13, and I'm amazed at her capacity for memorization! Last year we worked on the books of each Testament after learning the "Roman Road" (Romans 3:10; 6:23; 5:8; 10:9-10; 10:13). Each six week grading period has learning a new memory passage, so we'll strike while the iron is hot as well as brush up on past memory work.

I took her and her mom to biblical Bethany so they could go on a multi-night campout with the girls at the Lazarus Home. I missed them as I drove back home, but I knew they'd have a good time :-)

I saw this article in a recent Baptist Press release and was delighted by the news. I remember meeting Pastor Tom during Crossover Salt Lake City when Shirin and I were at the 1998 SBC in Utah. It was a joy to work with him then and it will be even better to work with him now in his new role.

Ever wonder what bugs me? I was listening to a baseball game where after three innings the score was 0-0, but the announcers said "at the end of three, still no score." There were no runs, but there was a score! Oh, well... maybe I'm taking the Orioles and Nationals late season dive too seriously <g>. My favorite team is usually out of the running by late April, but that's Cincinnati :-)

Anyway, ever wonder why some churches are in decline? This article may point out a few reasons.

I appreciate you :-)

+ Jasmine and Shirin were going on a camping trip for five days with the Girls Home, and you joined them in praying for travel safety and to use many opportunities to share God's love with the children... from Jasmine's "good night" phone calls I could tell travel safety was provided. From her excited recall of each day's events, those opportunities to "talk about Jesus" were abundant. Thank you for praying so specifically!

+ I promised to use the solitude to catch up on much neglected items and used your intercession to focus on each day's major task... while scheduled tasks hit snare after snare the "unexpected" opportunities to assist others went well.

+ You asked God to speak to the hearts of Saudis and other Arabs as they reflected on the recent death of King Fahd, realizing that He alone has conquered death and the grave... television schedules were interrupted for the reading of the Qur'an and for the background of the deceased king. While I haven't yet heard of Saudis coming to faith in Jesus in droves as a result of your intercession, I do believe your intercession has been remembered in Heaven (Revelation 8:3-4).

<T H I S  W E E K><

<>< Pray for Shirin and Jasmine's safe return that will tell of "one more" entering the Kingdom.

<>< We'll take on an added responsibility later this week and ask for your intercession to make sure we "do it right."

<>< Once again I'd ask your intercession as I encounter each day's "unexpected" (and planned) opportunities that allow me the chance to share the Good News with others.

><Pray for a church planting movement among the Punjabi.>

CALENDAR UPDATES

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3-4, Give God thanks for those who do such a great job with the newsletter!

* God has blessed us indeed :-)

5-6, The building of stronger relationships with neighbors

* Jasmine is swapping English/Arabic words with our neighbors, and we're looking forward to more open dialogue!

7, Ask God to bless you, our intercessors!

* Please know what a blessing you are :-)

8, safe food

* Hmm, when I wrote this request, I had no idea I'd be without Shirin's cooking; fortunately, morning fruit is plentiful and the bagged salad is still good :-)

9, Thank God for utilities!

* Floor fans make the August heat bearable, and it's good to have electricity to make them run.