BVOV Magazine 2013 - present

August Read Through the Bible Old Testament / New Testament Fri 1 Job 12-13 / Rev. 5 Sat 2 Job 14-15 / Rev. 6 Sun 3 Job 16-17 / Rev. 7 Mon 4 Job 18-19 / Rev. 8 Tue 5 Job 20-21 / Rev. 9 Wed 6 Job 22-24 / Rev. 10-11 Thu 7 Job 25-26 / Rev. 12 Fri 8 Job 27-28 / Rev. 13 Sat 9 Job 29-30 / Rev. 14 Sun 10 Job 31-32 / Rev. 15 Mon 11 Job 33-34 / Rev. 16 Tue 12 Job 35-36 / Rev. 17 Wed 13 Job 37-39 / Rev. 18-19 Thu 14 Job 40-41 / Rev. 20 Fri 15 Job 42; Prov. 1 / Rev. 21 Sat 16 Prov. 2-3 / Rev. 22 Old Testament / Psalms Sun 17 Prov. 4-5 / Ps. 1 Mon 18 Prov. 6-7 / Ps. 2 Tue 19 Prov. 8-9 / Ps. 3 Wed 20 Prov. 10-12 / Ps. 4-5 Thu 21 Prov. 13-14 / Ps. 6 Fri 22 Prov. 15-16 / Ps. 7 Sat 23 Prov. 17-18 / Ps. 8 Sun 24 Prov. 19-20 / Ps. 9 Mon 25 Prov. 21-22 / Ps. 10 Tue 26 Prov. 23-24 / Ps. 11 Wed 27 Prov. 25-27 / Ps. 12-13 Thu 28 Prov. 28-29 / Ps. 14 Fri 29 Prov. 30-31 / Ps. 15 Sat 30 Eccl. 1-2 / Ps. 16 Sun 31 Eccl. 3-4 / Ps. 17 “Read Through the Bible in a Year Plan” written by Marilyn Hickey, and used by permission. ******************************************* Faith for a Miracle News trickled from one of the port cities that two men in the hospital there had been given up to die. The men were in the terminal stages of tuberculosis. Stanley stood at the bedside of one of the dying men with absolute confidence that God would heal him. He and his brother anointed the men with oil and prayed for them. The story whipped through town like a wind-driven wildfire. The men didn’t die! They’d been healed! Their doctor flew the men to the capital of San José for medical verification of the miracle. The men returned home, walking the streets of the city alive and well while Stanley and his brother preached the gospel. So many people accepted Jesus as their Savior that they planted a church there. “My brother and I were both called to the ministry,” Stanley explains. “He was three years older so he left for the U.S. ahead of me. In 1958, I moved to Greenville, S.C., to attend Holmes Theological Seminary. “Before moving to the U.S., I thought I knew English. My father had sent us to a private English school in addition to our regular classes. But at the seminary I didn’t understand a lot of what I heard and I could speak even less. I spent hours at night praying and weeping before the Lord. I went to class every day with eyes red and swollen from crying. After class I went back to my room to weep and pray some more. This went on for months.” Stanley stayed with some missionary friends in North Carolina over Christmas. While visiting the family’s church, their pastor invited him to preach the following Sunday. Knowing that his English wasn’t good enough, Stanley declined. Back in his room, Stanley felt as though he’d grieved the Lord. Falling on his knees he cried out to God. “Lord, You opened a door for me to preach and I slammed it shut! I’m sorry!” Stanley went back to the pastor. “I’ll preach,” he said. “My sermon may only be one or two minutes, but I’ll preach.” Stanley remembered the confidence he’d felt about praying for the men with tuberculosis. He’d seen in the Bible that it was God’s will to heal and had known that if he did his part, God would do His. Maybe he needed that kind of confidence now. On Sunday, Stanley trembled when the pastor introduced him. Walking to the pulpit, he looked out over the audience. Taking a deep breath, he spoke. That single act of faith activated the power of God on his behalf. Stanley Black received a vocal miracle; he preached the entire sermon in perfect English. From then on, Stanley spent his summers preaching revival meetings all over the South. While in Greenville, he also met his wife, Pearl. The couple married in October 1961, and returned to Costa Rica under the umbrella of the Pentecostal Holiness Church. In Costa Rica, they sat in on a meeting with the leaders of their denomination. The topic on the agenda was a tiny mission in Santa Ana. Numerous pastors, including most of the men in the meeting, had tried to make the mission succeed but it had never taken root. They voted to close the mission and sell the property. “Sirs, I disagree,” Stanley said. “I don’t think the Lord is in the business of shutting down churches. Everyone else may have failed, but God hasn’t failed. I ask that you let my wife and me take the mission for six months.” “Sit down young man! When we want your opinion we’ll ask for it!” Stanley sat in silence and listened to the argument that ensued. In the end, they agreed to let Stanley and Pearl take over the mission. It was so small that the few congregants met in the tiny parsonage. In truth, it appeared dead. However, Stanley Black had believed in the power of resurrection since the day he gave his life to Jesus. “I’ll build a church,” he said. Finding Life in the Jungle People thought he was crazy. Build a church with what? they wondered. There was no money. Build a church for whom? they laughed. There were no members to fill it. Besides, he didn’t even have a builder. 12 : BVOV

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