ONWARD Page 2 March 2003

(Epiphany Letter continued from P. 1) Both Peter and I have discovered our yearning for a sense of permanence and rooted-ness. Yet, as we continue our journey, we also look forward to learning new things and to being open to the joys and surprises of a New Year. This is also our wish for you: that in hearing familiar stories and traveling new paths you will find something new to learn, and that you too will be blessed in all your journeys!

Peter, Jill, Anna and Christian Vogt

(Peter Vogt was born and raised in the Moravian Church in West Germany. After graduating from Moravian College in Bethlehem, he earned a Ph.D from Harvard. He wife Jill, is an ordained minister who served as a pastor in Massachusetts. They moved to Germany last year with their two children, and he is interning at the Niesky Moravian Church, and will be ready for ordination this summer. Our prayers go with them as the learn and serve.)

SS TEACHERS SAVE THE DAY

Brendan Miniter, writing in The Wall Street Journal, pointed out that Ron Lantz, the trucker who phoned in the tip to police to arrest the suspected Washington, D.C., area snipers, and Todd M. Beamer, who led the attack again hijackers on United Flight 93 on Sept. 11, 2001, were both Sunday school teachers.

In an opinion article, Mr. Miniter described Mr. Lantz’ turnaround to a religious life after promising his dying adult son that he would give himself in service to God. Since then, Mr. Lantz has worked hard for the Central Church of Nazarene in Fort Wright, KY. He leads the men’s ministry at his church, brings food to the hungry and teaches Bible classes on Sundays.

The Journal described how he organized a prayer service at a truck stop to seek God’s help in finding the snipers. The following week he pulled into a highway rest stop after his shift, spotted the snipers’ car and immediately called 911. Police arrived quickly and arrested the men without incident.

Mr. Beamer, who cried his now-famous “Let’s roll!” before leading airline passengers in a failed attempt to overpower the hijackers, also prayed before his heroic actions, reciting the Lord’s Prayer from the Bible. The Journal pointed out that both men drew from the Scriptures for their strength, concluding with a thought-provoking comment: “Perhaps there’s a reason that again and again it is the Sunday school teachers who are helping deliver us from evil.”

BIBLICAL PRINCIPLES ARE GOOD BUSINESS

Truett Cathy, founder of the Chick-fil-A restaurants, believes Sunday is a day of rest. So he keeps his outlets closed.

“People appreciate you being consistent in your faith,” Mr. Cathy says. It’s a silent witness to the Lord when people go into shopping malls and everything is bustling and you see that Chick-fil-A is closed.”

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution profiled Mr. Cathy, who was keen to speak of how the Bible shapes his life and work.

Mr. Cathy’s son, Dan, says that his father both teaches and lives out the Scriptures: “We were learning Scripture verses from early childhood, but more importantly, he lived a life of integrity. He was the same at home and teaching Sunday school as he was in the restaurant.”

The U. S. House of Representatives wanted to hear his views about good business practices. Before he spoke, he told the newspaper, “We all in America are covered up in greed. The best solution is to get back to the Bible and get back to the Ten Commandments.”

NEWS FROM SUSAN MARSH

The Good News is Field Training, which began on September 2^nd, was completed on November 23^rd. We learned about the history of Russia, the Russian Orthodox Church and Russian culture. We visited several of the area churches. This information will make living in Russia more understandable. On October 26^th I went to Helsinki, Finland to get my visa renewed. It was a very good and restful trip. While I was waiting for my visa, I walked around the sea and took pictures. I went into a Cathedral and sat quietly for several hours and prayed. My focus was on Psalm 24:1-2: The earth is the Lord’s and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it; For He founded it upon the seas. I returned to Russia on October 31^st. I lived with a Russian landlady named Valentina. We developed a good relationship. It was a good opportunity to practice my Russian. I have learned about the Russian way of life, mindset and culture by living with her. Susan_Marsh@sil.org