Last Sabbath afternoon, Neil and I were enjoying some rest and rejuvenation. While relaxing, I was reading to Neil the chapter ““Let Not Your Heart Be Troubled”” from The Desire of Ages. As I was reading, one passage on page 671 leaped out at me. ““He [Jesus] rejoiced because of the abundant help He had provided for His church . . . . The Spirit was to be given as a regenerating agent, and without this the sacrifice of Christ would have been of no avail. The power of evil had been strengthening for centuries, and the submission of men to this satanic captivity was amazing … It is the Spirit that makes effectual what has been wrought out by the world’s Redeemer.””

Neil and I were struck once again both by our family’s need for the Holy Spirit and by the deep need of the people around us. Satan’s influence over people here has indeed been strengthening for centuries, and we see it every day. It can only be overcome through the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. Please pray for the hearts of the people here that they will be drawn to want to know Christ. And please pray for us, too. We need wisdom to see our opportunities.

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