Looking Back

I thought I’d share a few statistics with you about this past year.

I’ve answered over 120 questions to apply for non-profit status with the IRS. I’ve rebooted my computer over 285 times after it’s crashed. I’ve watched my Internet connection drop over 780 times without my consent. I’ve called out to God for help over 1825 times in prayer.

But somewhere along the way, a new ministry was born, a new web site was created, and the gospel was preached. In the end, God’s will won out. In the end, if we yield to him, it always does.

I’m sharing this as a reminder to both me and you so we can have hope for the coming year.

Year-end letters and Christmas cards usually point out all the good things that happened during the year.

But I don’t think people leave out the nitty-gritty on purpose. I think it’s just that our sight finally catches up with our faith. We can look back over the year and see what God was doing through it all. And our daily problems that seemed so big tend to fade away when we see the big picture.

People call it hindsight. They say it gives us 20/20 vision. Now if we could capture that, reverse it, and look into the future with 20/20 vision as well, what would that be called?

Faith. “Faith,” according to the Bible, “is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.” (Hebrews 11:1)

Imagine going into next year with the same 20/20 vision as you have now when you look back at last year. You could write next year’s Christmas card now. You could focus on all the things that God is doing, then watch the day-to-day problems fade away like the morning mist.

Even though we can’t see all the details of the future with 20/20 vision, we can know this with certainty: “We know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” (Romans 8:28)

We can look forward to next year with eyes of faith. God’s will WILL be done!

Looking Ahead

As 1998 fades and 1999 arises, I’m praying for God to expand what he’s begun this year.

My guess is that my prayer will be answered like this:

I’ll have to answer over 240 IRS questions, reboot over 570 times, reconnect to the Internet over 1560 times, and call out to God over 3650 times. Now you know why I need your help!

Would you join me in praying that God will expand the fruit of this ministry as well?

I recently read that over 60% of the top 100 key words that people search for on the Internet are related to sex: everything from sodomy to bestiality, (these are some of the more tactful words on the list).

The anonymity of the Internet makes it ideal for pornography, but it also makes it ideal for people to share their real hurts so they can get real help. Please pray with me that this ministry will be a guiding light to bring many out of darkness.

People are already starting to trickle into The Ranch, even though the web site is not quite complete. Through word of mouth and some free advertising around the Internet, we are seeing God answer the prayer we’ve used at the end of every newsletter, “for people to find their way to The Ranch so they can find their way to You.”

Would you pray with me that this trickle will become a stream in 1999? And the stream a river in 2000?

Year-End Gifts

This would also be a great time to give us a financial boost for the new year. If you plan to make some year-end gifts this month, please consider us in your prayers.

We have been richly blessed as over 40 families have sent almost $40,000 this year to get this ministry off the ground. Almost half of that went towards computer equipment and start-up costs.

Our projected budget for this year was $56,530. In my mind, I thought we’d be doing good to receive $30,000, but in my faith, I prayed for $56,530 to do all that God had put on my heart to do. It looks like God is making up the difference between my mind and my faith!

If you’d like to help us make up the rest of the difference this year, we’d be thrilled! And we’d be able to finish all God has called us to do.

According to our three-year plan, our budget for next year is over twice that amount. (You can review our three-year plan on our web site.) So if God wants to accomplish all that, I’m excited to see how he does it, and through whom he does it.

Bringing Faith to Life

If hindsight helps us look backward with certainty, and faith helps us look forward with certainty, what can we do to face today with certainty?

Here’s the best way I can phrase it: “Stand up!”

I remember as a kid watching a show about the filming of the movie Huckleberry Finn. The actor who played Tom Sawyer said when they filmed a scene out on a lake, the boat accidentally tipped over, throwing him into the water. Not knowing how to swim, he struggled for air and started to scream for help. The people on shore yelled, “Stand up!” He did, then burst out laughing when he realized the water was only waist high.

There are times when our boats tip over and we struggle for air and start to scream. With the water over our heads, God calls out: “Stand up! Stand up in your faith! Have I not called you to do this? Will I not do it? Will I leave you there to drown? I know what it looks like from there, but I know how it ends! I know who wins! Stand up! Stand up in your faith.”

Paul says that when we’ve done all we can, we need to stand. “Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand.” (Ephesians 6:13)

Hindsight is for the past. Faith is for the future. Today, we might just need to “Stand up!”

Please Pray With Us

Thank you Lord,

• for bringing us through another year,
• and for letting us take part in your great plan for the world,
• and for giving us the strength to stand up in our faith.

And Lord, we now ask:

• for the finances to finish this year as you have planned,
• for this ministry to expand next year,
• and for people to find their way to The Ranch so they can find their way to you.

In Jesus’ name, Amen!

The screen people see on their computers when they watch “Live from The Ranch”

The Ranch Goes Live

You can now watch CNN live on the Internet. And ABC News. And Fox News.

But last month we added another choice to what people can watch on the Internet: “Live from The Ranch,” a weekly program designed to encourage people in their faith.

To me, this is the capstone of our Internet ministry. It is one of the most technologically complex features of our site. But it could also have the greatest impact.

I was thrilled to do our first broadcast. Even though it only went to a handful of people, those handful were over a thousand miles away. Using a simple phone line and a computer, they were able to hear a message of faith in Christ.

When I think of how this can multiply to other people with phone lines and computers around the world, it boggles my mind.

My previous web site, The Hall of Faith, drew over 800 hundred people a month from 72 countries simply to read stories of how God works in people’s lives. I try to imagine what kind of impact a live broadcast might have.

And the momentum for sharing Christ on the Internet is growing.

Our ministry was highlighted this month in a nationwide magazine called Ministries Today, along with some other ministries who are “taking the gospel to the web.” Our work was also discussed in a book called The Online Christian, which has a chapter on Internet evangelism.

Although we’re considered pioneers in this technology, we’re not alone.

Billy Graham, for instance, will mark another first for his ministry on October 24th when he broadcasts his Florida crusade live on the Internet. In a recent sermon, Mr. Graham said: “It is amazing how technology is being used to hurt the world. But it is also being used to spread the gospel on a scale that has never happened in the history of the Christian church.”

The pope, too, just began broadcasting his weekly prayers from the Vatican live on the Internet using the same technology.

Many have wondered if these kinds of events signal the imminent return of Jesus Christ. Whether he comes now or waits longer, it’s clear to me that God is using every available means to save as many people as possible before the end comes. For those who don’t yet know him, that’s great news.

You can watch our live broadcasts at http://www.theranch.org. We broadcast live on Sunday nights at 9pm Central Time. After the broadcast, you can join us in our chat room at The Ranch. The chat room is where we can talk with people in a more personal way, and pray with those who need additional encouragement in their faith.

If you miss the live broadcast, the messages are stored on our web site for viewing around the clock – and around the world.

Financial Update

Some of you have asked how we’re doing financially, so here’s an update.

Our budget for the ministry this year is $5,300 per month. Since our incorporation in March of this year, we’ve received commitments from people to cover about 20% of our monthly needs.

Thanks to several one-time gifts, we’ve been able to make up most of the 80% difference each month.

God has affirmed to me that he will cover the costs of this ministry, but I know that he often does this by moving on the hearts of his people. So I’m glad to share our needs with you. If you’re not already committed to this effort in prayer or financially, would you take a few minutes to ask the Lord if he wants you to be involved?

As you can see, we still need both one-time gifts and monthly commitments to operate at 100% of what God has called us to do.

Bringing Faith to Life

Does God have anything to say about the Internet in the Bible? I was surprised to find out he does when I was praying recently about this ministry.

I was reading through the book of Job this month and was up to chapter 8. I was having technical difficulties with parts of my web site, and was eager to get to work on them, not sit still and read Job for a few minutes. But I decided to open the Bible and this is what I read:

“Such is the destiny of all who forget God; so perishes the hope of the godless. What he trusts in is fragile; what he relies on is a spider’s web. He leans on his web, but it gives way; he clings to it, but it does not hold.” (Job 8:13-15)

That sure sounded like my web site that day! Fragile, giving way, and not holding! God reminded me that my trust is in Him, not in the “web,” even though he’s called me to an Internet ministry. Some of the problems got fixed that day and some didn’t. But I had confidence that God was in control because he spoke to me using words written over 3,000 years ago.

It didn’t end there. The next Sunday I was guest-preaching at a local church. I had brought my computer equipment to see if we could do a live broadcast from their church.

Half way through the message I began to say, “The technology’s now at a point where we can broadcast live messages on the Internet.” But before I finished the sentence, the phone line disconnected and our broadcast stopped. I saw the screen go down but I kept on preaching. At the end of the service, six people in the room prayed to receive Christ.

I was thrilled at their decisions, but I was also reminded of what I learned earlier in the week. Even when the technology fails, God doesn’t. Even when everything around us falls apart, God won’t. Even when our web gives way, God remains rock solid.

“In this world you will have trouble,” Jesus said. “But take heart! I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33)

Hallelujah! Now that’s something we can hold onto.

Please Pray with Us

Thank you Lord,

• for continuing to work even when the technology doesn’t,
• for getting us to the point where we can broadcast your message live on the Internet,
• and for sustaining us each month.

And Lord, we now ask:

• for these broadcasts to have a deep and lasting impact on those who watch them,
• for additional monthly supporters,
• and for people to find their way to The Ranch so they can find their way to you.

In Jesus’ name, Amen!

From My Heart

I recently felt like George Bailey in the movie It’s a Wonderful Life. Not the scene where he jumps off the bridge. I mean the scene where he runs home shouting, “Mary!! Kids!!” You know, when ZuZu decorates his head with tinsel from the Christmas tree.

For many months we’ve been praying for computer equipment to design and develop the web site for The Ranch. With the help of some friends, Kirk and Kelly Albrecht, we’ve been able to get up and running on some equipment they loaned us. But we continued to pray for exactly what we needed.

Then two weeks ago another couple called to ask how much we needed for the new equipment. I told them between $6,000 and $10,000. Six thousand would be tight, but ten thousand would let us buy exactly what we needed. They said, “That’s confirming because we feel God wants us to send you a check for $10,000!”

If we’d won $10,000 in the lottery, you can bet we’d be telling everyone we knew about it. How much more so when God sends the check in response to our prayers. The Illinois lottery has a slogan: “You’ve gotta play to win.” But I’ve got a better one: “You’ve gotta pray it in.”

It’s been almost a year that we’ve prayed for this equipment. But with all the changes in technology, I can now buy equipment that is three to four times more powerful than what I could have bought last year – and for less money! I’ve heard it said, “God is seldom early, but He is never late.” As we get ready to launch this new web site, I’d have to say He is right on time.

Behind the Scenes

Many people are curious how our broadcasts will work over the Internet. So here’s a “behind the scenes” description.

If you were to visit me in my home, I’d show you the office I’ve set up to do the broadcast. On my desk is a computer, with a microphone and a video camera attached to it.

When I’m ready to broadcast, I dial a local phone number that connects my computer to the Internet. I turn on the camera and microphone and start sending the signal over the phone line.

If I just wanted to broadcast to one person, this would be the extent of the setup. The other person would simply connect to my computer over the Internet. But if hundreds of people wanted to connect to the broadcast at the same time, I’d need hundreds of phone lines into my house, one for each person.

So instead, we’ve placed another computer directly on a high-speed connection to the Internet. This computer sits at a telephone company in Peoria, Illinois. I dial into the Internet locally, then connect to the computer in Peoria and send the broadcast there. It is instantly rebroadcast to anyone who wants to connect to it. The high-speed phone lines allow hundreds of people to connect at the same time.

So what you see in the picture at the top is a rack of computers in Peoria on this high-speed connection. The computer on the bottom rack at the right is The Ranch! A little dull looking from this angle, but when viewed from the Internet, it becomes a spiritual retreat center complete with the sights and sounds of a virtual ranch.

And more importantly, it becomes a place where people from around the world are able to hear about the incredible love of Christ. Come visit sometime at www.theranch.org.

Bringing Faith to Life

Does prayer really work? God did more for us this month than send us $10,000. He reminded me that prayer has the power to change people’s hearts and lives as well.

I received an email from a man in Ireland with a question that was definitely in the “difficult” category. He had become a Christian through the power of Christ, went to church, and could talk the talk about Jesus. But he went on to say that it just wasn’t in his heart. He felt he was always seeking God, but he felt God never listened to his cries. He ended the note with this line: “Well, you can imagine how I feel, living this loop of dread. Is there help for me?”

Every note I get requires much prayer and thought, but this one took days for me to even know where to start. The simple answer is “Of course there’s help for you.” But how could I convey that to this man who knew the answer in his head, but no longer believed it in his heart?

I began to pray for him. And continued to pray for him. I prayed for him when I mowed the lawn. I prayed for him each time I turned on my computer and saw his note. I couldn’t think of a thing to say to him. I just kept praying for him. Three months went by, and I still wasn’t sure what to say to him.

So I sent him a note to tell him to hang in there, and to let him know I was still praying for him.

When he wrote back, I was stunned. He started with “Well, I’ve come a long way in my walk with Jesus.” He went on to describe the changes in his life in the last three months, told me he was going to be baptized on the next Sunday and ended with this:

“your prayers are being heard by God…thank you as a brother and as a friend.”

I shouldn’t have been stunned, but I was. I hadn’t told him one thing about God – I just prayed. So I asked God, “Did my prayers for him really make a difference?”

God responded, “If you don’t think your prayers made a difference, then you’re in the wrong business!!” Thank you, Lord, for that reminder! Of course the prayers made a difference. God has promised us they would.

“Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.” (Mark 11:24)

We may not always have the words to say to someone, but we can always pray for them.

Please Pray with Us

Thank you Lord,

• for reminding us that you really do answer prayer,
• for the computer equipment to share Christ over the Internet,
• and for stirring more people to support us prayerfully and financially.

And Lord, we now ask:

• for wisdom to bring together the final pieces of The Ranch.
• for still more people to support us prayerfully and financially,
• and for people to find their way to The Ranch so they can find their way to you.

In Jesus’ name, Amen!

Don’t forget to take some time out with God today. If you want to be awed by His great power, take a look at Job 38-42. Lord bless you!

It’s a Boy!!!

We’re thrilled at the birth of our new son, Josiah Graham Elder!

He came quickly, as Lana will tell you in a minute. Our pastor said Lana was like the Hebrew women in the days of Moses who had their children so fast, the midwives couldn’t make it in time for the birth. (Exodus 1:19)

He has dark hair and dark eyes – he’s beautiful. He was born on May 21 at 7:27 p.m. He weighed 6 pounds, 6 ounces and was 19 1/2 inches long.

We named him Josiah Graham after King Josiah in the Bible who served God with his whole heart, and Billy Graham who has lived his life with integrity and led many people to the Lord.

If you don’t remember much about King Josiah, I’d encourage you to take a few minutes to read about him. He’s in the book of Second Kings, chapters 22 and 23. He became king at age eight and reigned thirty-one years. At the end of his life the Bible says this about him:

“Neither before nor after Josiah was there a king like him who turned to the LORD as he did — with all his heart and with all his soul and with all his strength…”

We pray that our Josiah will turn to the Lord with all his heart and with all his soul and with all his strength as well.

Here’s Lana’s description of the birth. As you’ll see, she had a very…

Speedy Delivery

Towards the end of my pregnancy, Makari summed up how I was feeling. She kept saying, “I’m starving for the baby to come out!”

We were eating dinner one night and I started having contractions ten minutes apart. I thought we’d better pack up to go to the hospital, but I wasn’t sure. Just then my water broke so I knew we had to hurry.

We drove thirty minutes to the hospital and when we got there, the nurse said the baby was ready to come. Ten minutes later Josiah was born! We didn’t even have time to drop the kids off, so they were still in the room with us when Josiah was born, thrilled to finally see the baby.

I’m still amazed at the miracle of birth. Even though he’s our fourth child, all I can do is just stare at him. I really do appreciate your prayers for us and I’m thrilled to see the results. God is sooo good!

Internet Update

We’re still on target to complete the new web site, The Ranch, in the next few months. We’ve gotten much of the equipment we need to develop the site. We’ve installed the phone lines and will soon install the web server to begin our tests for the live broadcasts. Feel free to drop by over the next few months and help us test it out. The address is simply theranch.org.

On the financial side, we feel like we’re off to a good start, although we’re still very much in start-up mode. Some friends have loaned us some of the equipment we’re using, so we’ll need to purchase our own soon. We’ve also received several one-time gifts, but we still need a broad base of people to commit to support us on a monthly basis.

Billy Graham once had a man offer to underwrite his entire ministry, but he declined. He said he might lose thousands of prayer supporters as well, and without prayer, his ministry would go nowhere. We agree! A response card is enclosed if you would like to be part of this project. Please join us if you can!

Bringing Faith to Life

The Hall of Faith web site continues to generate a steady stream of people who write in for prayer and guidance. A woman from Canada asked a question that I think all of us ask from time to time. She wrote: “I find myself (at times) wondering if it really matters how we live our lives. We are, after all, all sinners whether Christian or not. So does it matter how I live my life?”

I wrote back and shared with her some of the reasons God says it matters, but I sensed there was still something missing from my reply. One night God shared with me the missing piece.

I was at the copy shop late one night working on the paper for The Ranch. I was wearing down, feeling all alone at the back of the store and tired from a long day. The store was about to close and I was discouraged that after all my work, I still wasn’t done.

Then, from behind me, I faintly heard singing: “You’re just too good to be true…”

I turned to look over my shoulder … it was a song on the store’s PA system, but somehow the words were directed at me! “Can’t take my eyes off of you…” I looked again and thought, “God, is that you?!?”

Then, as if in answer to my question, the chorus rang out:

“I LOVE YOU BABY!
And if it’s quite alright I need you baby,
To warm a lonely night,
Don’t ever leave me baby,
Please don’t leave me!”

God was singing to me! I laughed as I listened to Him sing the rest of the song to me, not sure if I could believe it was really Him. But then I remembered a verse in the Bible that says, “the Lord your God will rejoice over you with singing.” (Zephaniah 3:17) He really was singing to me!

Then He spoke to my heart: “Eric, there’s so much junk going on in the world that when I see someone following me and doing what I want them to do, it brings a smile to my face. You may feel like what you do doesn’t make any difference, but it does. You may feel all alone, but you’re not. I’m right here with you. I can’t take my eyes off of you. What you’re doing brings me great joy!”

I don’t always choose to do what God wants me to do. But God showed me that He rejoices whenever any of us make that choice. My attitude changed for the rest of the night. I had a smile on my face. I got a second wind and thought of the verse, “The joy of the Lord is your strength.” (Nehemiah 8:10) Knowing that He took joy in what I was doing gave me strength to go on.

And I remembered the woman in Canada asking, “Does it matter how I live my life?” You bet it does.

Not only will you be blessed, but it puts a smile on the face of God. The Bible says: “Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.” (Galatians 6:9) And just maybe we’ll get to hear him sing to us again, “I LOVE YOU BABY!”

Please Pray with Us

Thank you Lord,

• for loving us and rejoicing over us with singing!
• for the safe and healthy birth of Josiah Graham,
• for the funds to start this ministry,

And Lord, we now ask:

• for the rest of the start-up funds for this ministry,
• for a broad base of ongoing support,
• for people to find their way to The Ranch so they can find their way to you. In Jesus’ name, Amen!

Lord bless you! Have a great day!

From My Heart

It feels great to write this letter to you and let you know we have formally established our own ministry, Eric Elder Ministries.

We got word last week from the Secretary of State’s office that the incorporation process was complete. When we got the news we were ready to celebrate! This is an answer to many prayers over the years, many of them your prayers, so we know you’ll celebrate with us! Thanks so much.

We’ve enclosed a brochure which describes the ministry in more detail. The bottom line of the ministry is to share the message of Christ throughout the world using any and all means. Our primary focus for the next few years will be an Internet outreach called The Ranch, hence the name of this newsletter.

We’d like to send you this newsletter from time to time to keep you updated, as well as to encourage you in your own faith. I’ve included a section on the back called Bringing Faith to Life to encourage you that God is alive and active today.

Back Home Again

We moved back to Illinois on March 1st after a year and a half in Dallas. Our time there was fruitful, but it’s always nice to come home again.

We moved to a town called Streator into the house where Lana’s Mom grew up. After several years of renting it out to people, her Mom asked us if we’d like to live there and restore it to its original condition.

It’s been a fun project for me, especially to see it take shape before my eyes. Maybe that’s why Jesus liked carpentry work in addition to ministry.

Lana’s Lament

When I asked Lana to write a section for this newsletter she said, “What would I say? And what would I call it? Lana’s Lament?!?”

With three kids at home, another due in June and taking care of me, I thought it was a good title! So Lana, with that in mind the keyboard’s yours…

There are a lot of times I really do feel like saying, “Woe is me. My house is a mess from the move, I’m tired and I’m getting too large for only being 7 months pregnant. My children will have to make new friends. I haven’t even started to teach my children Spanish as a second language. They’ll never make it to college. ” And I could go on and on.

But the Lord shows me yet again that my focus is way off. I’m so worried about me that I forget to look at all He’s done.

He has taken us through some difficult times. I am so thankful for a house to live in. My prayers for another child have been answered so I don’t really care how large I get. When it all comes down to it, my children will be just fine. God is watching out for them just as He is for me.

The book of Lamentations says,

“I remember my affliction and my wandering, the bitterness and the gall. I well remember them, and my soul is downcast within me. Yet this I call to mind and therefore I have hope: Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. I say to myself, ‘The Lord is my portion; therefore I will wait for him.’ The Lord is good to those whose hope is in him, to the one who seeks him; it is good to wait quietly for the salvation of the Lord.”

I believe it’s okay to cry out to God in the difficult times. But I don’t get too far before I realize once again how good he is – really good. Then I pray that I will have the strength to wait quietly for his salvation here on earth and in eternity.

Bringing Faith to Life

Billy Graham was asked, “How do you know there’s a God?” He answered, “Because I talked with him this morning.”

Last month God spoke to me as I lived out my own version of the showdown between Elijah and 450 false prophets. Although this talks about how God answers prayer, the best part was that he spoke to me as he answered my prayer…

I had been praying that our house would sell between February 15th and February 28th – a two week window of time — and less than two months away. I knew it was a tough request to fulfill.

But three weeks later, we had a buyer. We closed on February 26th, packed up the truck on the 27th, and pulled out of town on February 28th.

Yet I still wondered if it was God or just a coincidence, so I asked the Lord to confirm to me if this was truly an answer to my prayer. A few days later, I received this letter from a realtor who had seen our “For sale by owner” sign. She wrote:

It’s now been a couple of weeks since you began trying to sell your house by yourself, and for your sake I do hope you will be successful–although the odds are not with you.

I say this because currently in this area there are some 470 full-time real estate professionals who are working 7 days a week to sell homes like yours. Yet even with so many professionals on the job, it is still taking an average of 30-120 days to get a listed home sold. Now, if it takes 470 full-time professionals over 4 months to get a house sold, how long will it take you — working part-time by yourself?

She was right, I worked part-time. But God worked overtime! Immediately I thought of Elijah and the false prophets, so I looked up the story in I Kings 18. It’s a great story – you should take a look at it yourself if you need some encouragement.

The story said that Elijah challenged 450 false prophets to a showdown. He even shouted at them at one point saying there was only one of him but 450 of them (close enough to the 470 realtors mentioned in the letter that it gave me goosebumps).

After the false prophets spent the whole day shouting and dancing and calling on their god to come down from heaven with fire, nothing happened. So Elijah stepped up and prayed, “Answer me, O LORD, answer me, so these people will know that you, O LORD, are God, and that you are turning their hearts back again.” At that moment, fire fell from heaven, consumed his offering and the people fell to the ground and cried, “The LORD– he is God! The LORD– he is God!”

Realizing that God had indeed answered my prayer too, I cried the same thing: “The LORD-he is God! The LORD-he is God!”

Please Pray with Us

Thank you Lord,

• for answering prayers to sell our house and find us another,
• for the formal incorporation of Eric Elder Ministries,
• for sustaining our baby through 7 months of pregnancy.

And Lord, we now ask:

• for provision for the right equipment to start this ministry,
• for provision for the monthly costs to carry out this ministry,
• for people to find their way to The Ranch so they can find their way to you. In Jesus’ name, Amen!

Lord bless you! Have a great day!