one foot in front of another
The view from my backyard early this morning: we literally walked that ridge in the distance yesterday and got over the South Mountains.
Greetings, beloved brethren. It’s been almost three weeks since my last update, and this one will be brief. We are still out here putting one foot in front of another. The above snapshot was taken from my backyard this unseasonably cool morning. We literally walked that ridge in the far distance yesterday, the crest of the South Mountains that straddles the Rutherford County & Burke County line. Late evening, after miles of fire roads, trails, and some nasty bushwhacking, we made it to US Hwy 64.
Most of the past three weeks have been spent making a wide Figure-8 circuit around my home county of Catawba. I believe we walked nearly 150 miles in our own Jerusalem (see Acts 1:8) and had many fruitful encounters.
We came into Catawba County from the north and walked a giant figure-8 before heading west into the South Mountains.
Recently, a Christian brother in Russia, a friend of mine and a faithful Gospel witness, sent out a ministry prayer report. He spoke of some witnessing encounters on a campus in St. Petersburg that he frequents, just a few minutes walk from where he lives. He said,
“This IS my Jerusalem and I continue to pray for faithfulness in reaching out to these students. Talking of the ministry in our Jerusalem I've recalled an interesting quote from Brother Jesse Boyd that I came across a few years ago: 'You see, the Great Commission begins at home. Jesus Christ told his disciples in Acts 1:8 that they would be his witnesses first in Jerusalem (local sphere of influence), THEN in Judea and Samaria (beyond their own community), AND THEN to the uttermost corners of the globe (beyond their own nation). Many believers desire to be a part of the latter, but they have not and will not be faithful to share Christ on the home front. My own life is a testimony to the fact that God will not use the missionary abroad unless he is first faithful at home (cf. Luke 16:10).' May it be an encouragement-reminder to you as you seek to reach out to the lost where you live.”
I was very humbled that someone very far away would use something I had said long ago, and the timing was perfect as I was struggling myself to complete a walking circuit of my own Jerusalem along this long walk. I always want to be a preacher who lives and practices what he preaches, even when it comes to the hard truth. In my walk with the LORD, I really did have to learn the HARD WAY years ago that I could not be a faithful witness of the Gospel far from home if I refused to be a faithful witness at home. Moreover, I really didn't care for the lost man 10,000 miles away if I didn't care for the lost man just down the street. The past three weeks really have been a blast taking the Gospel to folks all around the county where I grew up and even now live. And, I’d like to share some more detail in a future update.
I could never be a faithful witness far away, as in this scene from a remote corner of the Himalayas back in 2006, if had I not learned to be a faithful witness in my own backyard. Sadly, I had to learn this from the Lord the HARD WAY.
We are going to try to put in two more long days this week. Praise God, Carter Phillips came over from Missouri to walk another week with us, as he did for two weeks when we were much farther east. We really have been blessed these past three weeks to have many different believers come out to walk and witness with us. The company and fellowship is always welcome. On Tuesday, we hit 800 miles on the continuous route that started back in March out at Cape Hatteras on North Carolina’s Outer Banks. By God’s grace, we have had more than 500 witnessing encounters along the highways and hedges, and 27 Bibles have gone into the hands of folks who needed them.
Witnessing to some neighborhood kids in the same Brookwood neighborhood where my brother and I spent our early childhood. We use to play on those same streets just like these guys. In fact, we had a friend who lived in that same house in the background.
Next week, we will be taking a break. I’ve got to nurse some nagging injuries. Moreover, I’ve been asked to come be next week’s “resident missionary” at Camp Caraway, the Baptist camp that put us up weeks ago as we walked through, the same camp where I heard the Gospel as a child and served as a counselor the summer before I got married. It will be a nice time to get away with my family. And, the kind folks are going to let Josiah participate as a camper. It will also be a great opportunity to share Gospel truth and personal testimony about missions. I’d appreciate your prayers in this. I remember the Camp Caraway missionaries when I was a kid. Their testimonies were seminal in helping me to surrender when the LORD later came calling.
It wasn’t all the long ago when we walked down this very road and took this photo. Next week, we are going back to give testimony.
Thanks for your prayers and your interest our long walk across America. We carry the cross to point to Jesus Christ, the only hope for America. We carry the flag upside down because the country is upside down. We warn folks about the coming judgment, and we preach Christ crucified as the only escape from that judgment. We pray for spiritual awakening and call men to it. We pray for revival in the churches and call Christians to it. May the Lord use it!
May the Lord use it, even in Vale, our own rural postal route and the largest rural postal route in America.
Hopefully, I’ll have some time next week to put out a more detailed update about our time in Catawba County. So much happens each day that it is hard to keep caught up. Lord willing, we will make it over to Lake Lure and the Chimney Rock area by Friday evening. That will be a great place to stop ahead of next week at Camp Caraway. They say that a journey of a thousand miles begins with one step, putting one foot in front of another. Pretty soon, we will be able to say for certain whether or not this is so. 839 miles and counting!
If this walk across America and these testimonies are, or have been a blessing to you, please consider financially supporting our ministry to the Jew first and also to the Gentile. There are needs for travel expenses, and anything you can give is a blessing that will be used faithfully and with account. All contributions are tax-deductible, and donating online is very easy. Thank you in Jesus’ name.
May God bless and keep you all as you yourselves put one foot in front of another in your service to the LORD during these dark days. Because Daniel and his three Hebrew friends were faithful in a small matter (see Daniel 1), God used them mightily in matters of grave importance for Israel’s history. The Lord can do the same with us here in America.
Jesse Boyd