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Complete the Mandate
November, 2002
Dear Friend of Mary Craig Ministries,
Paul expressed his gratitude for the help he received from those he considered partners in the gospel by saying:
Grace be unto you, and peace, from God our Father,
and from the Lord Jesus Christ. I thank my God upon
every remembrance of you, always in every prayer
of mine for you all making request with joy, for
your fellowship in the gospel from the first day
until now; being confident of this very thing, that
He which has begun a good work in you will perform
it until the day of Jesus Christ: even as it is
meet for me to think this of you all, because I
have you in my heart; inasmuch as both in my bonds,
and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel,
you all are partakers of my grace.(Philippians 1.2-7)
I, too, know that without your help over these past nine years, we could not have been fulfilling the call of God for Mary Craig Ministries. It is in unity, together, as the Body and Church of Christ that we complete the mandates given to us. As we bear one another’s burdens given to us by the Lord, we fulfill our individual and corporate task in the cause of Christ.
In 1989, God called me: to bring healing and restoration to the Body of Christ, to prepare the Bride for His return, and to call the nations to repentance where He would send me. In 1999 that call was extended to calling the nations to resurrection. Since that time MCM mission teams have been sent by God to 46 nations, regions world-wide, all major waterways, and six continents.
In March 1999, I was commanded by the Lord and commissioned to go to Jerusalem, to the gate that was locked, to open that gate that the Jewish people might come to Jesus. Many of you know how supernatural that mission turned out to be. Though no ministry helped us, God did. Because of His divine intervention, we were able to stand in front of the East Gate in Jerusalem and do all that God had commanded me to do.
That trip also began a command to fulfill Acts 1.8, which says: But you shall receive power after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and you shall be witnesses unto Me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.
The first continent called in was South America, in March 2000. Since that time, six continents have been called to resurrection, with their respective nations, islands, waterways, and people groups. Now we have been called literally to be witnesses unto Jesus Christ "unto the uttermost part of the earth."
This December an MCM mission team of four will be traveling to Antarctica, the seventh and last continent to be called to resurrection. Why Antarctica? Do people live there? Won’t you just be "preaching to the penguins?"
Antarctica completes the command to take the gospel to the whole world, to every creature, to the uttermost parts of the earth. (Mark 16, Matthew 24.14, Acts 1.8) People do live in Antarctica. And yes, we will preach to the penguins and to anything and any one who will listen to the gospel of Jesus Christ! We will take this gospel to all creation, to proclaim its saving, healing, and delivering power to the ends of the earth, even to the forsaken places of the earth.
We have called in every nation on the earth, some 195 nations. You won’t see Antarctica on a list of nations because the people living there are from many different nations. It has been described as a classless society because everyone dresses in these red government-issue parkas so that you can’t tell who is rich, poor, educated, or uneducated. Mobility is what gives someone status.
One of the wonderful benefits of being sent all over the world is the research aspect of every mission trip. Before going to a nation or region, research is done on its history, geography, religious and spiritual significance, etc. This research helps form the basis of our intercession and pleading. Some of you have been involved with this over the years and know the insights and understanding of God’s love for the cosmos that it brings.
From National Geographic, for example, we found that Antarctica is Earth’s fifth largest continent and nobody owns it. The Antarctic Treaty of 1959 set Antarctica aside as a natural reserve devoted to peace and science, with protection extended to surrounding oceans in 1982. Forty-five signatories represent about 65% of humanity. People from all over become colleagues collaborating to promote science and preserve resources. In 1991, treaty nations agreed to ban attempts to get to the gold, platinum, and copper until 2048, making science the major industry.
Antarctica is known for its harsh extremes. It is the coldest, highest, windiest, driest, darkest continent on Earth. This wilderness continent has an alien majesty drawing scientists and a few tourists to its active volcanoes, fast-flowing glaciers, violent squalls, mountainous seas, and mysterious history. Mount Erebus shares its name with the gateway to hell in classical mythology. It towers 2.5 miles over the Ross Sea. Ross Island serves as the classic gateway for expeditions to the interior.
King George Island has become a melting pot like Manhattan. Argentina, Brazil, Chile, China, Poland, Russia, South Korea, and Uruguay maintain year-round bases there. Other nations like the U.S., Ecuador, Peru, Germany, Netherlands, and the Czech Republic, operate summer camps. Port Lockroy, a place where we will be going, is an old whalers’ anchorage. (Smith, Roff, "Frozen Under," National Geographic, December, 2001, pages 2-34)
From the same National Geographic magazine we have learned that trees and plants once flourished on Antarctica. Coal and petrified wood have been found there. Scientists believe Antarctica to be part of a supercontinent they call Gondwana. One reason is that chips of petrified wood, believed to be Glossopteris wood, have been found. This deciduous tree also lived in South America, Africa, India, and Australia, indicating a linking of the continents.
Many of you probably saw the Ernest Shackleton saga on T.V. This British explorer (1874-1922) placed an ad in the London newspapers in 1900 as he prepared his National Antarctic Expedition.
MEN WANTED FOR HAZARDOUS JOURNEY. Small wages, bitter cold,
long months of complete darkness, constant danger, safe returndoubtful. Honor and recognition in case of success. Ernest Shackleton.
(Bennett, William J., The Book of Virtues. (New York, NY: Simon & Schuster, 1993, page 493)With some 5000 men responding, Shackleton said, "It seemed as though all the men in Great Britain were determined to accompany me, the response was so overwhelming." I wonder what the response will be to help us with our mission to take the gospel to Antarctica this December, to proclaim that Jesus Christ lived, died, and rose again from the dead and that there is forgiveness of sins available to all who will repent and believe in Him. The anointing we carry is an anointing to:
We need your fervent prayers, prayers that are strong, forceful, targeted, and burning with the passionate heart of the Holy Spirit to glorify Jesus Christ on earth as in heaven. We need your financial help to offset the $15,000 remaining in expenses. We need you to stand with us as the Body of Christ as we travel to what has been described as "a frigid expanse of hostile solitude."
On the home front, Pastor Jim and I both want to express our gratitude to all of you who are participating in the blessing of Craighouse. Already, we have Bible study and healing prayer Friday nights, prayer for personal needs on Saturdays, worship Sunday afternoons at 4:30 p.m., discipleship classes Wednesdays, and "Revival!" Tuesdays from 7:00 to 9:00 p.m. For more on what we’re up to, check out www.marycraig.org. We’ve added a Visitor’s Page, and you can give us your comments.
So many opportunities are opening to this ministry. Each one requires prayer, agreement, and financial support. Just look at our Christmas Wish List as an example! I know that God will bless your faithfulness as we work together for the Kingdom of God with determined faith to obey the mandate to take the gospel to the ends of the earth. Thank you for standing with Pastor Jim and me.
To the uttermost part of the earth,
Mary Craig
P. S. We are looking to expand our Christian library of books, tapes, and videos. We also need Bibles and Hymnals. Can you help?
Happy Thanksgiving
From
Mary Craig Ministries
And the
Craighouse Staff
For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord
Shall be saved. How then shall they call on Him
In whom they have not believed? And how shall
They believe in Him of whom they have not heard?
And how shall they hear without a preacher?
And how shall they preach, except they be sent? (Romans 10.13-15)
© 2002 Mary Craig Ministries, Inc.
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