Archives for April 2014

Hi Everybody,

Just wanted to send a quick update to tell everyone how I am doing.

Radiation is going very well. It has gone by so fast. I drive myself every day and usually park by the close church that has free parking and then walk five minute to the hospital. It is a really nice time just to get out and walk to and from my appointments. I have some great babysitters who are willing to watch my younger two children for the hour and a half that it takes for me to drive and get my radiation.

The side effects of the radiation have been very few. I don’t feel overly tired and my skin is doing very well—just slightly pink.

So I will be finished with radiation on May 6. Then I will continue with my Herceptin treatments until December. I meet with my oncologist after my radiation is finished to discuss hormone therapy as well.

I (and the rest of my family) really appreciate all the prayers, cards, meals, and babysitting that we have received. The Lord has upheld us amazingly through this all and looking back, we feel as though the time has gone so fast.

Thank you all for thinking and praying for us.

Here is a little quote from our middle child Quinten who is obviously used to all this now. We drove to Abbotsford today with the kids and sister-in-law. We parked at the church to walk to the hospital because we were nice and early. We pulled into the church parking lot and Quinten says, “Which doctor office is this?”

Love,

Trichelle and family

Rob Tittle and Family

I ask for your prayers for those suffering after the recent tornadoes. Please pray in particular for the Tittle family in Arkansas after the death of their father Rob and two daughters, and the destruction of their home. The Tittles were regular customers of Reformation Heritage Books, especially buying children’s books for their ministry. One of the surviving daughters posted on Facebook, “The Lord gives and the Lord takes away. Blessed be the name of the Lord.” May the Lord sustain their faith in this terrible trial, and provide for all their needs out of His riches in Christ Jesus.

What does it mean for a husband to be the head of the household? How should he lead his wife with authority, gentleness, correction, kindness, provision, and love? Join us for a six-part, online webinar, once a week beginning Tuesday, April 22. Scott Brown will lead discussions with Sam Waldron, Jeff Pollard, Derek Thomas, and myself to discuss the wise counsel for husbands found in the recently modernized book by the Puritan William Gouge, Building a Godly Home: A Holy Vision for a Happy Marriage.

I flew out on Tuesday morning, April 1, to Phoenix, Arizona, to deliver three evening messages on the sufferings of Christ (Christ in Gethsemane, Christ at Gabbatha, and Christ on Golgotha) for the ARBCA General Assembly, hosted by Grace Covenant Church in Gilbert, Arizona. The evening meetings were open to the public and drew about 250 people, most of whom were pastors and their wives.

With Dr. James Renihan

During the days this assembly, which includes about 75 Reformed Baptist churches, addressed a variety of issues related to missions work, received reports from the representative churches and various church plants, and discussed budgetary matters. David Campbell gave an address on Eric Liddell and James Renihan spoke on Symbolics, providing a summary of the London Baptist Confession of 1689.

Twelve boxes of books from Reformation Heritage Books didn’t arrive until the second day, but the ministers were such great book buyers that by the end of the following day, all but half a box of books were sold. The local church bought the balance.

With Rev. John Giarrizzo

I really enjoyed fellowshipping with many brethren here. A few of the men, such as Fred Malone, James Renihan, and two PRTS long-distance students, I had never had a chance to visit with before. It was also good to see John Giarrizzo (founding pastor of Grace Covenant), Sam Waldron (my former next-door neighbor), and other friends again.

On Friday, April 4, I flew from Phoenix to Orlando via Houston, where I had a surprise meeting in the airport with Cees VanBreugel, the brother who arranges my itineraries every other year in the Netherlands. He just happened to be on his way back from Nicaragua and landed in Houston. I also had an opportunity to evangelize a shoe-shiner, who gladly received one of my books. In Orlando, I met Mary and our daughter Lydia who had flown in from Michigan. We had a delightful overnight stay at the home of Jonathan and Alisa Bos, and then breakfasted the following morning with three professors who teach at R. C. Sproul’s Reformation Bible College, located in Sanford, Florida. The conversation was stimulating and helpful.

Marinus and Connie Staal

After breakfast, we drove to Bradenton, Florida, where we enjoyed the ocean and a male peacock showing off his plumage in an attempt to win one of three females. I then preached the following day two times for the Florida Reformed Fellowship in Bradenton to a group of twenty people. It was good to be there again—also to stay between the services with our Grand Rapids friends, Marinus and Connie Staal. (Marinus organizes the work for this group during the winter months.)

This week we are vacationing in Florida, enjoying a relaxing time. Besides enjoying my wife and daughter, and lots of walking, I have enjoyed catching up with the typesetters on editing the King James Version Study Bible, The Beauty and Glory of Christian Living (a book consisting of last year’s conference addresses), our denominational Yearbook, and a number of other smaller projects. I also caught up with grading student papers, which is always a great feeling! And I’ve even had time to prepare my sermon for the coming Sabbath and to dip into a few books I have long wanted to read. Mary, Lydia, and I hope to take a boat to Key West to spend the day there. We hope to fly home on Saturday, God willing.