*** Please note sometimes people read my Update & Prayer Requests and send me criticism and advice that is not based on the Lord’s will but instead on their personal opinions apart from God and the Bible. Best for me please would be to simply pray, and Bible verses and godly wisdom based on Scriptures is welcome when people are very clear the Lord has placed something on their heart to share. Thank you so much! Right now, ongoing prayer would be the greatest blessing! ***

Dear Friend,

I haven’t shared an update in quite some time. In a nutshell, I have had a wonderful three months in Virginia in my latest location on the road full-time for Jesus with my special needs ministry dogs in the way of countless opportunities to talk to people about Jesus, share the Gospel, pray for people, minister to them, and give them my Finding the Light Gospel tracts and books I have written as well as some Bibles.

At the same time, being on the “front lines” of ministry as an evangelist and writer on the road given the state of this world right now and the extreme rebellion against God, the world’s woes, and people’s suffering, coupled with my own challenging ongoing personal struggles and long history of challenges, combined with having the usual extreme issues at the hotels where I stay, along with the devil coming at me full force much of the time trying to get me to quit life and ministry, I am utterly wiped out. I cannot even describe my emotions daily given all this plus the intensity of my work and the countless times people pour out their hearts and stories to me. Honestly, this combined with my being middle-aged now and needing to address some health issues, and the fact I am dearly still missing my beloved dogs I have lost paralyzed Mr. Simeon and Abigail most especially as my most recent losses, makes it such that I am quite certain I wouldn’t make it without the Lord carrying me through it all.

Typical hotel life for me over the course of what is now about 4.5 years of hotels except the two times I did ministry in New York City? Except for occasional breaks, much if not most of the time? Ongoing police activity, 911 calls, ambulances, prostitution, alcoholism, drug addiction, drug dealing, crime, violence, hotels workers having to break into rooms and finding dead bodies, domestic abuse, adultery, pornography, hatred, prejudice, screaming, yelling, cursing, sexual lust, extreme mental illness, worshiping falls gods, false religions, nasty people, hotel staff that won’t always address the problems, ants, roaches, crickets inside my room screeching in the middle of the night, broken fire sprinkler system, broken this, broken that, other people’s plumbing that creates banging on my walls the hotel won’t fix, no maintenance staff at times, staff being assaulted, marijuana smoke coming through the bathroom fan vent, having to be careful where I walk, who is around, when to be outside my room, when to be in it with the door locked, when to call the police, when not to, having men speak to me inappropriately, blood, vomit, dog poop not being picked up, possible child abuse and/or neglect, trying to make sure others are safe when they may well not be, and on and on. Need I say more?

You may be thinking I should just go back “home” and settle down. I don’t have a permanent residence because I have forsaken all for Jesus and was led by God some years ago to sell the little house I had. Perhaps you think I should go stay with family. Due to an ongoing situation, that is not an option for me. Yet the Lord knows as I cry out to Him for His will as I go forward I am willing to do whatever His will is. And I am indeed in a season of much crying out to Him for His will pressing on. He has already spoken much to my heart, I have already made some changes in my ministry, and I am waiting on Him for further instruction. If He desires I settle down in a little place somewhere and simply focus on my writing and do local ministry, I most assuredly will. But if He leads me to stay on the road, I will do that. I am totally sold out to Him.

Unfortunately, one of the great challenges given the state of this world is time and again I am running across businesses involved in wrongdoing and ungodly actions whereby they want me to go along with it which I cannot do because of my love for and devotion to God. This puts me in very uncomfortable situations and time and again I find myself telling business people that we will all have to stand before the Lord one day and have to give an account and that I have to do what is right in God’s eyes. The latest such situation is with my current hotel where the person in charge was not forthright with pricing. By God’s grace, I am learning to love and to forgive and to put my trust in the Lord and to pray for the salvation of the people I come across.

I am currently seeking the Lord regarding a very strong sense I have that He is sending me on to another location for at least a short while. This would be a very big deal, so I am really pressing into the Lord in prayer to make sure I am hearing Him clearly. This would involve leaving this area where I am blessed to get to see my Mom and another relative once in a while. But as much as I would give almost anything to be close to my Mom and Dad, my number one love is the Lord and He and His will are my highest priority.

Perhaps in this update you can sense the state of my heart right now. The stress has been exceeding, and sometimes I feel like things are coming at me from all sides like the apostle Paul speaks of regarding his own ministry work. I do know the Lord is with me and growing me through it all, and I am so very thankful that He continues to use me in others’ lives to point people to Him and to help them to find and forever follow Him.

I would so very greatly appreciate your prayers, and donations are always welcome.

Love & blessings,

Lara