"On behalf of the Klouda Family, I want to thank every one who opened their hearts and shared gifts with us during this latest season of challenge. We are grateful for the generosity shown by so many, and we have been encouraged by your notes of support and encouragement. Pinky is trying to adjust to his new limitations, but as you can imagine, this is difficult for a man who is accustomed to taking care of his family's "physical" needs. During nearly subzero tempertures, we did not have to worry about the heating bill, and we were able to begin paying medical bills as they trickle in. Pinky has new prescriptions, and since it is the beginning of the year, we have to pay the new deductibles, so the gifts we received helped us do that as well. We have groceries and firewood. We have not yet received the major hospital bills, but expect them any day. I will know what the cardiologist will advise next after January 28th when Pinky receives another echo cardiogram. Please continue to keep our family in your thoughts and prayers as we wait to see what God will do next. I want to thank Pastor Wade personally for his willingness to plead our cause and for his concern for our family."
Blessings,
Sheri Klouda
8 comments:
Never give in. Never give in. Never, never, never, never--in nothing, great or small, large or petty--never give in, except to convictions of honor and good sense. Never yield to force. Never yield to the apparently overwhelming might of the enemy.
--Sir Winston Churchill
AMEN! ...and surely, our Lord, Jesus Christ, will reward those who stand firm and never give up in the face of diversity and be most displeased with those who unjustly use their position to needlessly and devastatingly hurt HIS forthright and humble true believers who persevere in the face of the enemy's overwhelming might.
what if southern baptists didn't blog...
Dr. Klouda,
A compassionate heart is an ill fit in the breast of a near-hooligan like me. But, with all I can muster up I want you to know I do pray for you and your family. I truly loathe what has happened to you.
I also pray for Dr. Patterson, a good man, who has made some terrible decisions in recent years. I also pray for the rascal trustees who have shown themselves to be boot-strapping, boloney-eaters in their high-handed, rude behavior toward you and all the SBC to which they have forgotten their accountability.
May God have an ultimate victory in this situation wherein evil has raised its putrid head. May Dr. Patterson be reestablished as the noble man he is at heart. May the trustees repent and may the Devil take the hindmost parts with the rest of this dark thing among us.
cb
Dr. Klouda,
You do not know me or my church, but we are praying for you and your husband.
My life verse for the forty-seven years I have known the Lord Jesus of the sixty-seven years I have lived is II Corinthians 9:8. I would love to claim it for you tonight.
"And God is Able to make All grace Abound toward you; that you Always having All sufficiency in All things may abound to Every good work."
Those are not just empty superlatives. They are God's Word from His own heart to you, signed in the blood of His own Son and sealed by His resurrection from the dead.
Only By His Grace,
Phil in Norman.
Dr. Klouda,
We have been praying for you and your family. My wife and I were at SWBTS several times (graduate work for both of us) during the golden years. It has not been the same since.
We believe that God will bring you through this a stronger, wiser, and more compassionate person. Whereas someone may have meant this for evil, God will bring good out of it.
Getting to a site, which actually spoke AGAINST you, & listed other names, caused me to click on your name & arrive at your blog. Praising God for this, as I am a woman in her 40's, who was saved 6 yrs ago @ a lg. Baptist church. I took a spiritual gifts assessment(by Place Ministries) recently, in anticipation of attending a class @ my church, Finding Your PLACE in Ministry. I began questioning WHY certain spiritual gifts were excluded from the assessment. I saw the founder of the ministry that developed the tool has a degree from, I believe, a Baptist institution, so I thouht, "maybe that explains WHY he's skipped the gifts of tongues & healing," but rather than jumping to conclusions, I emailed the ministy. I received a timely reply & a document the founder written to address questions re: the assessment, but I noticed it focused only on tongues, the controversy, etc. I pointed this out & asked WHY nothing was said about healing, so then I was told I'd get a response from the founder, as he's a theologian. I never heard, so I asked why, so then I was referred to someone else who does PLACE training. I sent him a lengthy email with my questions & pointed out something I was taught last night in the PLACE class: that the spiritual gifts are for the building up of the Body of Christ. We cannot experience full the abundant life Jesus offers & the Body of Christ can't be all it's supposed to be to one another. This last sentence is a paraphrase of a section in the guidebook. To me, denying or being silent about certain gifts that are clearly in the Bible is stifling the Spirit. Seems to me it's politically movtivated, so we as a Body are no better than the world. I'm quite disappointed, but see this all as us as a Body falling into the trap of the enemy, just like what you have been fighting for, with sincere intentions for the good of NOT yourself, but for the whole. When we take a stand for truth, the persecution hits, as the darkness does NOT like the light. It will be interesting to see what kind of response I receive. I have also asked to meet face to face with the person who is teaching our class. Since I'm a woman, as women have less say & authority in the Baptist church, unless IF she has a ministry that attracts others to the church, my request might be ignored or delayed. If i were a major financial contributor &/or a man, I might get a quicker response, don't you think?
A Nobody Woman Searching Truth
Wade,
I weep as I read your journey. I was an outcast for too many years and feel your pain as I write. It took 17 years for God to finally do something in me after losing my family, my church, my beloved SBC. The scars remain, but today I can preach with conviction and clarity. You, dear brother, are simply experiencing 2 Cor 1:3-6, and God will use this experience, as dark and terrible as it is, and your brokenness, to comfort (strengthen) others. To God be glory, and honor, and praise.
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