ADAPTABILITY

I met an American missionary named Granny Haldeman in Haiti in the 1970s. She went to Haiti at age 54 and

when I met her she was nearly 80 and still on the field. The singing group I led called The Smite Singers of Liberty Baptist College and I listened as Granny told the the three keys to missionary success on a very dark Haitian night.

The first key, she said, is adaptability. She went on to tell us stories of her first years in Haiti. We laughed and we cried. The stories were truly shocking. Then she said the second key was like unto the first. She smiled and said “It is adaptability”. She told us even more shocking stories and we laughed harder and tried not to cry too loudly. When she got to the third key of missionary success and said it was also adaptability I thought she had been on the field too long. Granny Haldeman is one of my heroes these days.

Well, over 35 years have come and gone and Granny Haldeman was right. If you cannot adapt to change that

makes you laugh and weep, don’t leave home. Missions is about adapting your life and love to fit the place God has placed you.

Right now Pam and I are adapting again. There has been laughter and tears. There has been weariness and wonder. It is all good as long as we adapt.

NEW STRATEGIESWe have taken a temporary break from our retreats in the Abide Center in the mountains. We decided to adapt to a new strategy of going into Brazlian churches and doing all day at church “retreats”.

Using our marriage material and the Satisfying life course we have been able to teach more people this year than in any other year here in Brazil. We adapted for now.

We have accepted more marriage retreats that churches organize where we do the teaching. In the past two months we have spoken to over 280 couples. I may break my record of sleeping away from home 140 days in one year! Adapting to travel has been tears and laughter.

Bud & Pam McCord

FACEBOOK

BUDPAM

emailbud@abideinternational.org

websitewww.abideinternational.org

+55 11 9 6636-8484

PRAYERWould you pray just one prayer for us this month? Pray that we will adapt to God’s will for us here in Brazil. Whenever you have to adapt to God’s will where you are, just add the McCords to your prayer. It is all good if we adapt to Him.

Bud and Pam McCordAbide International

Brazil, South America

NEW OPPORTUNITIESBrazil’s largest Bible publisher has asked Abide Ministries to consider producing a devotional style Spiritual life Bible. They think there are enough study Bibles in Portuguese and there is a real need for a Bible that follows Jesus from Genesis to Revelation. They print and distribute a million Bibles a month! Such an invitation means huge adaptations to our schedule should we accept. Can I adapt to a project of this size? Is this one of those moments to laugh or cry?

BUDPAM