Ladies and Gentlemen – This is my friend “Land”

Today I am introducing my friend “Land”. He is one of the many new readers and visitors to this Blog over these past months. “Land” lives in China and attends University at this time. Soon he will travel abroad to study in England. “Land” and I speak to each other using Skype and we also ‘chat’ using our keyboards. It has been a joy getting to know this young man. You will see that he has left comments on this Blog after certain postings.

“Land” and my worlds have certainly changed over these years. From the beginning of my ministry, where I looked after an immediate flock of people as their pastor, to now be reaching around the world from my computer keyboard simply staggers my mind.

At this moment a person from Ghana, in West Africa, is reading the pages of this Blog. His search on the computer took him to a January 2007 posting that I had done. A program on my computer and at our server – has told me that he is looking into our Blog using Microsoft XP, his Monitor Resolution is set at 1024 x 768, and he is using Firefox Mozzilla Browser to read the Blog. My computer tells me all about him.

And just before that a person in Pakistan at a commercial business has been reading a posting I made on December 31, 2007 regarding “Polygamy – Polygyny – Polyandry & Monogamy vs Marriage”. Think of this fact for a moment – a person in an Islamic country is reading a Christian Blog on some touchy subjects. This person’s Google Search was for “sociology polygyny wikipedia” and Google gave them our Blog….and this posting!

At about the same time the person from Pakistan dropped in to read – another person in Kampala, Uganda dropped by and came to read the posting I did on March 19, 2008 about Dr. Charles Ratz…by asking the telling of Google “i am looking for carman pentecostal church ,canada.”

And again – about the same time someone from Lazio, Italy – near Rome – came looking for images of Pioneers. Their request was for “Qui sotto c'è l'immagine nel suo contesto originale nella pagina” On July 2, 2007 I did a posting about my volunteer work at Lang Pioneer Village and had posted an image with that entry of a “Steammonster” – a great steam powered tractor of the old days.

Further… on March 22. 2006, the second month of our posting to this Blog, I had shared with our audience about the Revival of 1857. This revival in communities of Ireland, Scotland, Wales, and England a year or two later was well Blogged as part of my sharing the Bible Study Notes that some were not able to get at the last meeting. Today someone ‘Telford and Wrekin’ area of the United Kingdom came looking for information on this topic.

For the fun of it I went to my Google Earth Program and searched for Telford, England….and Zoom I was there over Telford, at 6.34 Kilometers above the town, via a satellite image. Take a look with me at the image – you can see the automobiles parked in the parking lot below. Wow!

The other 96 people that have looked in today are mostly in North America at this time – because the rest of the world is sleeping now. When we go to bed – Asia wakes up and reads – so does “Land”.

My world has changed big time. The ministry that I accomplish now is far bigger than in 1974 when I began as pastor of the Walkerton Pentecostal Church, in Walkerton, Ontario.

In 1974 I remember the days that I walked to the Post Office to get our mail. I prayed earnestly for God to show me what I was to do in ministry as a pastor. I was brand new then as a Minister. I wanted to do my best as a pastor and help the community around me. But what was the community’s need? Where would I fit in? My heart nearly burst as I asked this huge question.

Now 34 years later I realize that the community around me is so much bigger than my small prayer and thinking. In one click of something called a ‘mouse’, I send my thoughts and care around the world – in picoseconds (A picosecond is one millionth of one millionth of a second (0.000 000 000 001 seconds).

I would like you to meet “Land” and then pray for “Land” that he will be successful in all that he does. Pray also for his mother…who is a believer in Jesus. From what “Land” told me, his mom is active in church. She was also wondering what churches in North America looked like. Together they viewed my granddaughter’s water baptism on YouTube.

“Land” asked me what our church was like – so I made a video of our church and mounted it on YouTube….now many people are attending our church via YouTube. Already 40 people from all over the world have walked through the doors of our church from this simple video. I made the video for my friends in Africa and Asia. I would like all of them to visit when they can. That has all happened in 24 hours.

Ladies and Gentlemen – This is my friend “Land” – together we are going to do amazing things.

Oh... sorry I have to run now...Mohamed DoDo has just called me on Skype...he is in Algeria and wants to talk to me...gotta run...

~ Pastor Murray Lincoln ~
PS…
Did I tell you that I love China?!

References:
"Welcome to Northview Pentecostal Church" - http://youtube.com/watch?v=EcfbPhd3Nu4

Emma Lindsay’s Water Baptism Easter Sunday March 23, 2008-04-24
http://youtube.com/watch?v=jDZSSy-7JTM&feature=related

National Geographic Video of China
http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/video/player?titleID=1496340460&catID=12

Photos of “Land’s” friends
http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2008/05/china/whats-next/hoffmann-photography
Note: please see “Holiday travelers pack the Guangzhou Railway Station in Guangdong Province.”