The LORD provided exactly what we needed for $6 less than our budget.

Greetings beloved brethren in the name that is above every other name—JESUS CHRIST. He is the Most High God and the Saviour of the World.

I apologize for whetting all of your appetites with the last brief email and then failing to put out the details until now. I will thus proceed, but first, let me catch my breath. I just returned from jogging around Mammoth AGAIN with my Christian banner flying. Several Gospel tracts were given out, and many saw the message of salvation. By God’s grace, I am daily progressing in my efforts to cover every inch of every street in this town. The other day, I ran from Mammoth Mountain Main Ski Lodge up on Mammoth Mountain all the way down into town (a distance of about five miles along a heavily traveled and winding mountain road). I began in the ski lodge parking lot with flag unfurled, feeling sure that many would mock and taunt. However, things turned out much different. True, some mocked, but I also heard an “Amen,” saw many thumbs up, had two people stop to take pictures, and one group of people videotaped me with their camcorder. At the bottom of the hill, I walked up into “The Village” (a ritzy shopping area) to place some tracts. I was immediately approached by four young people from Ventura, California. They had seen me running and wanted to express their joy and encouragement. All four were young Christians. Who knows? Maybe four young believers will return to their homes in southern California to become bolder witnesses for the Blessed Gospel of Truth.

Sorting Gospel Tracts for Daily Runs in Mammoth Lakes

Well, I have kept you all in suspense long enough. Let me get to the super great news. No, Jamie did not have our baby, yet. We are still anxiously awaiting that joyous bundle of provision. However, God has made provision elsewhere. As many of you know, we have been praying for quite some time that the Lord would supply us with a more suitable ministry vehicle—suitable in that it would have more interior space to safely seat and travel with our baby and more pulling-power so as to allow us to pull a live-in camper on our next missionary journey. Jamie and I both awoke on Friday morning with little expectation that the day would be any different than the ones before. We had been trying to sell our current truck for weeks with no offers or inquiries to show for it. Moreover, I had talked to numerous dealers all over the West, and all such conversations revealed that we were not even close when it came to what we needed and the financial resources we had available. However, between 11:00am on Friday (1/16) and 12:00pm on Saturday (1/17), the Lord straightened all things out. Full Proof Gospel Ministries is now the blessed and thankful owner of a 2004 4WD Double-Cab Toyota Tundra with a full backseat that could seat three babies if it needed to and plenty of power/torque to pull a suitable camper. Once again, the Lord manifested a powerful lesson to us in this situation. All we had to do was sit back and wait upon him; he would provide at the right time, and we would know that the provision came from his hand. Psalm 27:14 proved itself true: “Wait on the LORD: be of good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the LORD.” I recall Zabriskie Point in Death Valley National Park to my mind. It was there that I twice cried unto the LORD for a vehicle, and twice he heard my cry, answering in his perfect timing.

I tell you the truth, the Lord was all over this thing; provision came from many directions. First. there was unexpected financial provision. Also, an interesting little law from the state of Washington created a situation where we could actually save money by trading our original truck to a dealership as opposed to selling it for blue-book value. In Washington, one gets credit for the trade-in amount and does not have to pay taxes on it. Upon discovering this little known benefit that only exists elsewhere in Nevada and Utah, the headaches of trying to sell our truck and have it registered for the buyer in California immediately dissipated. All of the above still had us facing a budget cap that seemed far too low until, that is, I spoke with a Christian man at a Toyota dealership in Bishop (only 40 minutes away!!!!!). Finally, we were able to do business with someone at a car dealership who acted with complete integrity, was completely non-aggressive, understood the fact that we wanted to pray about the situation, and kept his word with regard to the numbers he laid out over the telephone and via email. After calling the Washington Department of Licensing, I was also overjoyed to learn that I could purchase a vehicle out of state and still register it in Washington without having to be there in person. Gone were the fears of possibly having to drive 800 miles to Washington with the high possibility that my wife would go into labor without me around. When all was said and done by noon the next day (We took a night to pray about things), we emerged from the deal having paid out six dollars LESS than our budget would allow. There is no debt, and we now have what we need. All Praise to the Most High!!!! For all of you who committed this matter to prayer, your prayers have been answered. I must admit, everything happened so quick that I questioned whether we were rushing into something that perhaps was not of God. Thus, I took the night to pray over it and seek confirmation. The Lord provided this confirmation in an interesting way. As we were preparing to leave the dealership on Friday, after having looked at the truck and getting some finality on the numbers, a lady was outside looking at our original truck. She commented upon the cleanliness and beauty of it. This sparked a conversation that inevitably led into the Gospel. I offered her a Gospel tract, and she immediately appeared dumbfounded. She was an Airborne Express courier and explained that she had picked up one of the same Gospel tracts earlier in the day. Someone had left it on the Airborne Express drop-off box in Mammoth Lakes (40 miles away). She had grabbed it about 2 hours earlier. I promulgated that God was trying to tell her something. She seemed amazed and promised to read the tract with gratitude. Now, here is the interesting part: I had placed that tract on the drop-off box about three hours earlier before Jamie and I headed from Mammoth down to Bishop and the Toyota dealership. God made it clear that we were in the right place at the right time. The rest is history. Please pray for Stacey, that she would be saved through faith in the shed blood of Jesus Christ.

I must admit that we were somewhat saddened to part with our original ministry vehicle. God miraculously provided it, and we drove that 2003 Toyota Tacoma 23,000 miles in six months. It helped us share the Blessed Gospel with many people. We slept in the bed of that truck many a cold night, and the front passenger seat provided much respite from the bicycle and wind-swept pedaled highways. Therein, God saved us from at least two terrible accidents; and Scripture magnets attached to the tailgate and doors proclaimed TRUTH from sea to shining sea. I think of some words from an old song by Neil Young:

We’ve been through some things together
With trunks of memories still to come.
We’ve found things to do in stormy weather.
Long may you run.

Long may you run,
Long may you run,
Although these changes have come.
With your chrome heart shining in the sun,
Long may you run.

Please pray with us that the Lord will use this new ministry vehicle to do the same and MUCH MORE for the Word of God and the Testimony of Jesus Christ . . . and that one day we can say the same of it: Long may you run! Also, pray that He will provide us a camper shell without having to go through the trials of the last camper-shell situation. Right now, no company even makes a shell for this truck, and these will not be out for about another month. In the interim, may God provide the financial resources to make this happen. We will need this shelter for sleeping quarters when we eventually endeavor to complete the last leg of our current journey. Moreover, while pulling a camper on the next missionary journey, the shelter created by a camper shell will provide necessary storage space for Bibles, Gospel tracts, evangelism materials, and baby gear.

Now, let me get to other things. We continue to place Gospel tracts all over town, and these are not returning void. Zac, the unsaved young man who is currently staying with us, works as a bellhop at a really nice lodge just up the street. The other night, he revealed that he has seen numerous people in and around the hotel reading Gospel tracts—I had previously laid out. May the Word of the Lord not return void. Yesterday (1/17), we met up with a local missionary at June Mountain Ski Resort. He invited us to attend a small worship service he holds each Sunday morning right on the ski slopes. This experience allowed for proclamation of the Gospel and the placing of more tracts all over the lodge and cafeteria. Moreover, my eyes were opened to abundant ministry opportunity that at once seems barred by closed doors and economic barriers. The Lord must open some doors, if it be his will.

Starting on Friday, I will be hosting a weekly Bible study in a local coffee shop. We have purposely sought out several Christians who seem willing to be bold for the Gospel and desire to share their faith but possess little understanding about how to do so. I will be guiding these folks through the Book of Acts in hopes of instilling in them a passion for the Gospel. As we see how the early Christian Church carried out the Great Commission with boldness, may we too act accordingly. From this Bible study, it is our prayer that God will gather warriors who will carry on the public proclamation of the Gospel in Mammoth Lakes long after we have departed. Who knows, maybe this nucleus will spawn a Bible-believing church that will be a bold beacon of light in this community until the Lord returns. God’s will be done. Please pray that we would have wisdom and that people would come with open hearts.

Well, I am sure that there will be much more to write at a later date. Until then, we carry on. I am overjoyed to report that in the midst of composing this update, I took a break to go rock climbing in a nearby canyon. On our way back, Dylan and I, along with another Christian friend. picked up a hitchhiker from Portland. We drove her a few miles into town and Holy Spirit allowed the Gospel to be communicated. Please pray that Jessica will read that Gospel tract and place her faith in Jesus Christ unto everlasting life. The encounter was no accident.

Right after finishing this route called Clip Jr., we picked up a hitchhiker from Portland and gave her the Gospel.

All Praise to Almighty God for the truck!!!!! Thanks for all your prayers and support without the which our striving could seem forlorn. Until next time, we remain respectfully yours in the service of Christ Jesus, the bright and morning star (Revelation 22:16). Truly, he is a KING and not a beggar. “Let him that is athirst come” (Revelation 22:17).

Jesse & Jamie Boyd
Full Proof Gospel Ministries
Luke 8:1

long may you run