Following the Cloud - A Personal Update from Jim & Anne Steel

And the LORD went before them by day in a pillar of a cloud, to lead them the way; and by night in a pillar of fire, to give them light; to go by day and night: Exodus 13:21 KJV

What we are doing.

We could title these past few months as "The Summer of Surprises!" ...and they have all been good. The Lord has simply opened one door after another as we have sought His will day by day. While we take no pleasure in the uncertainty of our future, we take great pleasure in the constancy of our God who has kept our needs met, but more importantly, has kept us in the heat of the battle

And ours IS a battle, a horrendous battle against the forces which have been infiltrating the church of Jesus Christ. Friends who understand the issues and know what we are doing have begun to rally behind us in our struggle to warn and inform God’s people concerning the passive spirit of complacency. Those who oppose this gracious, but militant, opposition to apostasy and false teaching, have become more distant, a fact we lament. However, no path is lonely which follows in the footsteps of our Lord.

By addressing current biblical issues lovingly, but directly, we have watched folks walk out of our services. But we have also seen folks at the end of those same services lining up to learn more, to encourage us, and to thank us for standing firm. A few of their comments come to mind as I write this:

From a former historicist interpreter in California: "I am a Dispensationalist - and I now truly know why I am!"
From a retired Reformed pastor in Oregon: (After hearing my defense of Israel) - "Every word you said regarding Reformed theology was true. Thank you."
From a new convert in Colorado: "Thank you for teaching me about the emergent church. These people have been working hard to convince me. I now know why they are wrong."
From a church leader in Northern California. - "The largest church in our town was recently split by the same teaching you are warning us against. Thank you for warning our flock."
From a church leader in another California town - " I received a lot of requests for the message you gave... I believe there is a lot of confusion about Israel and the ties between Israel and the USA. People seem to push it to the back of their mind. It made them stop and really think about it."

More importantly, we have seen men, women, and children confess their need for Christ in almost every church we have ministered to!

What we are finding.

We have not reported these things for any other reason than to glorify our Lord and to encourage those of you who pray for us and support us so faithfully. We believe in what we are doing and are grateful to God for your part in this ministry. Most of the churches to whom we minister are not capable of meeting all of our needs - by any stretch. THANK you for your ministry to them.

In a word, we are finding hungry bears. Without exception, we had requests from every church we were in this summer to return as quickly as possible, with more teaching and information. Response to straightforward teaching regarding the advance of apostasy and doctrinal error has been OVERWHELMING. There is still a remnant of grace who want the whole truth! We are finding that the gap between those pastors who are willing to see false teaching rebuked, and those who prefer to remain passive is widening.

Upcoming changes.

Speaking metaphorically, we truly ARE following that same Cloud which Moses and Israel followed. We do not know from day to day where we will end up or how long God will use us. All we know is that, at this moment in time, we are being used for a special purpose.

In order to facilitate our ministry, we have now become an active part of Breadcrumbs Ministries. You can visit our site at www.BreadcrumbsMinistries.com. At this writing, Breadcrumbs, a 501c3 ministry, is gearing up accounting software in order to handle gifts and tax deductible receipting for us. *Feel free, however, to continue supporting us through Cornerstone Bible Institute (see address below).

What you can do.

1. After praying, one important thing you can do is talk to your own pastor about having a Biblical Intensives seminar in your own community. We have an informational packet which we can forward (preferably by email) and interested persons can always check us out at www.BiblicalIntensives.com.

2. Pastors who have had us in their churches are invited to send a quick note of recommendation which we can use in our introductory materials.

3. Pray especially that we will be able to produce the kinds of materials which will be most helpful to folks who need edifying in these areas.

Thank you so much for your partnership in our ministry!

Jim and Anne Steel
1604 Martin St.
Hot Springs, SD 57747

*Until our change to Breadcrumbs Ministries in complete, please continue to funnel our support through Cornerstone:

CORNERSTONE BIBLE INSTITUTE
PO BOX 1158
HOT SPRINGS, SD 57747