His first attempts were disastrous: the wobbles, then the spills, accompanied by the pain and last of all, the fear of trying again. Yet somehow in the midst of his stumbles and spills, he finally learned! Because of a wonderful church in Indianapolis, our son got an early Christmas present - a bicycle, and he has conquered it!! 

Watching my son master his bicycle, I thought of myself. fifteen years ago, I began learning the Lithuanian language and after many years of brain busting study, was able to preach, teach and win souls in that difficult tongue. Then, last year, God moved us here and I am back to language wobbles and spills. 

It's like having an operation. Once you have gone through that pain, you never want to again - yet sometimes it is necessary. So, I strap on my helmet, grab the handlebars and pedal for all I am worth. Sometimes I talk for paragraphs, other times I wobble and fall after a few words. Yet, as I prepare my first sermon in Portuguese, I am determined to conquer this language and communicate the Gospel clearly to the 11 million Portuguese God has called us to, no matter how many Band-Aids I end up wearing!

Mark Hale, Portugal