 with
guests:
Frank & Florence Wilson
Frank: What I want to share with you all started with my youngest son.
One morning he walked into my room, and I remember that my head felt like it was
about 10 feet thick -- because I had drunk quite a bit the night before.
My wife and my children (we have five boys and one girl) used to go to
church. And that morning my young son reminded me that every week the pastor
prepares a message, and then only a few people go to church. He said, "Dad,
I want you to come."
That really spoke to me. Deep inside I knew that I should be taking this kid
to church, instead of him asking me. So I accepted the invitation. But I made
sure that I got a back seat at church, and when the service was over I was gone.
My own parents were Christians, but I guess I had gone off on the wrong trail
in life. But I had been watching the local pastor and his wife very closely to
see how they lived. They were very kind people, and they always welcomed me back
to church.
That went on for awhile, but I wasn't really walking with the Lord. Then I
attended a meeting in the town of Arborg with about 500 to 600 people there.
Evangelist Barry Moore was speaking and, for some reason, he took me aside to
speak with me. I think that was my real turning point. That's when I said,
"Lord, I'm sorry I've let you down. Forgive me."
Coming back from the meeting that night I felt free from my sins! There was a
peace in my heart. It's hard for me to explain, but there was peace.
During that summer another preacher was on our reserve holding meetings. I
had come to know that Jesus Christ was real -- I believed in Him and had
received Him into my life. So at the reserve meetings I went forward and made a
public commitment before my people at Peguis.
I went along growing in Christ, reading the Bible. The more I read, the more
conviction I had, and it brought me closer to the Lord. I realized that the Word
of God corrects you and helps you to grow closer to Christ.
And it's amazing what God can do! I just praise Him for what He has done in
my life. I am not perfect, but I realize that God can help me and He has shown
me great things. It's about 36 years now since I allowed God to work in my life.
Seems like it was just yesterday, but it's been great. We've been involved in
serving the Lord in many ways.
Florence: I was also raised at Peguis. I did go to church with my mom
and grandmother, and I still remember sitting around the kitchen table one time
with my mom telling us the Easter story. When we heard how Jesus suffered and
died on the cross, all us children cried because we thought that was so
terrible. So at that young age I was already thinking about Jesus and how He
died for our sins.
Later I had to go away to boarding school, and while I was there they asked
me to teach Sunday school. So I learned a lot about the Bible that way. The
Sunday school supervisor was, I believe, a true Christian and she spent time
going over the lessons with us. From what I remember, they were salvation
stories and they really touched my heart.
Then when I came back from boarding school and began teaching school, I
taught with a girl who was also a Christian. So the Lord was putting these
people in my life to show me His love and to be an example to me.
After Frank and I got married, it wasn't quite a year before our twin boys
were born. Then every year after that we had a new baby in the house, and times
seemed really hard for me. Frank worked hard, and there were the times, too,
when he was out drinking, and leaving us for a long time.
Sometimes it would be all weekend long that he'd be gone. I remember one
night when I was reading the Bible and I read I Thessalonians 1:6. It says
there, "And you became followers of us and of the Lord, having received the
Word with much affliction." I felt that I was having lots of problems, but
I always knew that I should turn to the Lord for help.
Then God sent more people into my life when we needed help the most. I was
teaching school, and Frank had broken his ankle, and our boys were too young to
help feed the cattle. But, without us asking, two Christian men started coming
by to feed the cattle and help around the farm -- showing Christ's love to us.
Then the next summer our boys were old enough to go to camp. We went down to
visit with them the night before they were to leave camp. After a wiener roast
they had a prayer time -- that is when I really dedicated my life to the Lord.
That night I had such a good sleep -- I went to bed feeling so peaceful.
And I remember being very excited when, one day, Frank said to me, "What
would you think if I started going to church?" I said, "Oh dear, that
would be really great!" When I told the boys that Dad was thinking about
going to church with us more often and becoming a Christian, they were excited,
too.
And when he did, there was such a change. Frank just wanted to do everything
with them, too ... coaching and playing hockey with them, curling, and we
traveled a lot with them. They were just about teenagers then.
We've had lots of trials, but the Lord has always been with us. I guess the
biggest challenge was when our former pastor left and there was no one to
replace him. We were left to keep the church going. For me, that seemed very
hard because we had to do everything -- cutting the lawn, doing the books,
keeping the wood stove going, and more.
But there were three ladies in the church who were very faithful. They came
every Sunday and when we considered closing down the church, they said they
wouldn't come with us to another church. Those ladies set an example for us as
prayer warriors. They were trusting the Lord to send someone, and He did when
the Hills arrived!
The church has grown, and we're so thankful that we don't have to do all
those things that we had to do before -- we mostly just sit back and enjoy the
fellowship with all these young Christians in our church who are so willing to
work. I thank the Lord for them.
Frank: Another way that I've been able to serve the Lord is through
the Gideons. We place Bibles in hotels and motels and give Scriptures out to
Grade 4 and 5 students, and also to police and nursing graduates.
It opens the door for me to share the Gospel. You see, it is God's Word and
it helps people to know Jesus Christ in a personal way. I want my people to
realize that they need to receive Christ as their personal Saviour. We can
believe, but believing is not enough. We need to receive Christ into our hearts,
and ask for forgiveness of our sins.
We are all born sinners. "All have sinned and come short of the glory of
God" -- that's what Romans 3:23 says. Romans 6:23 says, "But the gift
of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ." Distributing these Scriptures
opens a door to make sure that my Indian people will hear about Jesus Christ.
After cattle farming for many years, we started a roadside dairy bar business
about nine years ago. We've been very blessed with that business. Christ helps
me in this business -- it's His, really. He owns it -- I'm just using it.
Everything that we learned to do since we became Christians, we've always
dedicated to the Lord. Christ is first within our lives. God is good. I give Him
thanks for all that He does.
What you have just read was adapted from a television broadcast of Tribal
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