October 2002 to February
March 1, 2003
Dear Family and Friends,
I have been out of job since the beginning of October when I left the Utah Gospel Mission. The reason for that was because I occasionally street preach when I deem it appropriate. And I was also specifically told not to preach to the Mormon temple patrons who refuse a tract that they need to repent for trusting in their temple garments to protect them from Satan. The Utah Gospel Mission thought that certain older LDS women might possibly think of this as tantamount to sexual harassment, and my director was afraid of being hit with a lawsuit. Certain local ministers, who don't do any street ministry, deemed all this preaching as unloving, and gave my former director grief over it. My former director and I simply have a fundamental difference in philosophy of ministry, and I suggested moving on in order to find another organization that would be supportive of my style.
Finding this organization proved more difficult than I thought it would be. Ministries specifically to Mormons generally are not as confrontational as I am. I totally respect where God has them, but I was wishing that there were other organizations out there more engaged with a variety of ministry styles. I even thought of starting my own organization, but was counseled against it due to how busy I am with doctoral studies.
Well just today I finally got under another ministry organization. My good friend Kelly Neyland is on the board of Apatano Ministries. This is a Christian conference retreat center in Great Falls, MT. I met Kelly and his wife Rocky out in front of the Salt Lake Temple three years ago. They were immediately supportive of me, and continued to come down periodically to do ministry with me. They have also been very supportive of me during this time of transition. I informed Kelly of all the ministry rejections, and I proposed temporarily being under Apatano as a missionary here in Utah. I would work under them until I either get a fellowship or complete my doctorate through the University of Utah. Upon nearing the completion of my doctorate, I would then evaluate whether I would start my own mission organization while I teach in the local schools or whether I would simply teach in the local schools and do ministry informally. Kelly was my "attorney", and he wrote me today to tell me that the board unanimously accepted me!
During this time of transition I was able to have a big part in bringing my buddy Matt to Christ. I met Matt out in front of the Temple two to three years ago, and we've continued to stay in touch. Matt comes from a Catholic and Mormon background, and even served a mission for the LDS Church in Brooklyn, NY. The lights finally went on, and Matt gave his life to the Lord this past Christmas. He sent me a note thanking me for giving him the best Christmas gift he could have ever received! He's now involved in a Methodist church, and is in their training class that will culminate in his baptism. He recently wrote to say how the more he reads, the more he can't believe how blind he was. It is obvious that God has radically transformed his life, and he has already been bringing his friends out of Mormonism and to the real Christ. Please pray for his spiritual maturity, and a job.
Still shaking the beehive (2 Cor. 10:3-6),
Rob
Rob@Mormon Info.org
Mormon Info
****MAILBAG****
Hi Rob, ...I believe UGM [Utah Gospel Mission] is making a mistake, as no one is more faithful or a bigger blessing to the Mormon people than you! ...Thanks for the video tape of you... it's great! Don't know if you have this book or not [Ray Comfort, "Hell's Best Kept Secret"], but it's been a real blessing to us concerning street preaching. I just want to encourage you in your gifting + tell you to keep up the good work! Street preaching "is" the voice crying out in the wilderness, + is "definitely" an act of love! Rob, you are a blessing + an inspiration to us! The Lord has used you + your example to encourage us many times, to keep on hitting the streets! Love ya
Hey Rob, Just wanted to send you a quick note of encouragement! 1 Cor. 4:9- "But sometimes I think God has put us apostles on display, like prisoners of war at the end of a victor's parade, condemned to die. We have become a spectacle to the entire world - to people and angels alike. Our dedication to Christ makes us look like fools..." Oh, that today's evangelical church would truly deny itself, take up its cross, and follow after Him, even to the point of uncomfortability...sorry, wrong word...even to the point of death. I appreciate the decision you have made and the step of faith represented...You have spoken to a thought that has been on my mind a lot recently. Thanks for your example! Know that I'm praying for you! On the water, ... by the way...I just ran across a paper on the web that was talking about a very similar subject...if you have a moment, check it out. The paper is an argument against secrecy in missions work, and the writer has spent some time thinking about a biblical perspective on preaching the Gospel...See it here
Rob, we met a few weeks ago in front of the Mormon temple and passed out tracts with you. The impact of our trip to Salt Lake has made a tremendous impact on our daily walk. We realized that witnessing to Mormons is the calling we've been praying about. Since returning, we have been meeting weekly with some Mormon missionaries and preparing ourselves for a better witness. We are very excited and want to stay in touch and pray for your work there. I'll be returning the first week of Dec. for mandatory work related training. I'd like to meet up for coffee or dinner if you're interested. Hope all is well. We'll be praying for you and your ministry.
Hi Rob... That's surprising, your news that you're leaving KvG's organization. I hope it's not on the basis that no riots have started due to your ministry - that seems to me neither necessary nor sufficient for successful, spirit-filled preaching of the gospel. I don't think riots are especially likely in the U.S., because Christianity (even if often watered-down and merely nominal) is the majority religion of a country in which freedom of speech and freedom of religion are deeply ingrained. Anyway, I'm glad you don't have a death wish. :) I take it your main reason for breaking with Kurt is that you want to street preach. I suppose that's a calling thing - it seems to me a pretty obnoxious method and one which turns off lots of people in a big way...but there are undoubtedly some who will be reached in this way - and maybe *only* in this way. So I wish you well.
I have a quickie thought on a passage from your newsletter. You write: "Now to back this up formally: If A-->B, ~B: ~A (modus tollens). I'm sure that helps you out. Look, if A (humans) then B (Job), ~B (not Job), therefore ~A (not humans). Here's what I'm getting at: LDS say that we as humans were "all" there when God(s) laid out the earth. And if all humans were there, then certainly Job was there. But Job 38:4-7ff. seems to say that Job wasn' t there when God created the earth. So if Job wasn't there, then humans weren't there either. Further, Rom. 4:17 seems to indicate that Isaac wasn't in existence (in pre-earth or on earth) when God called him." In the first paragraph, it seems that there's an equivocation on "all there": the LDS claim that we humans were "all there" when God(s) laid out the earth just means (I assume - if I'm wrong, please correct me) that all humans, at least as intelligences, existed at that time. It doesn't mean we were "all there" at that location, that God's creative/organizational activities and purposes were present to us. In the next paragraph, I don't see how you infer anything about Isaac's not existing or pre-existing when God called him from Rom 4:17. But even if that's right, here's a way of coherently understanding that from an LDS perspective. A year ago, my new computer didn't exist, but its parts, let us suppose, did. That's not a problematic picture, but now let's apply it to the LDS view: Isaac didn't exist in that there was no human being at the time, but Isaac could be called in that one of his "parts," certainly one of his constituents - a preexistent intelligence - certainly did exist. What God is calling that doesn't exist is Isaac, Abraham's son, and more broadly the "many nations" still (metaphorically only, thank God) in Abraham's loins. All the relevant people pre-existed as intelligences, but not *as* who and what they were to be as part of God's plan in the OT.