“Jesus saith unto them, Did ye never read in the scriptures . . . this is the Lord’s doing, and it is marvellous in our eyes?” (Matthew 21:42)
I was scheduled to preach for my good friend, Pastor Richard Ullo, at Bible Baptist Church in Spanish Fort, Alabama, on the first Sunday in May. On Friday evening, I fell sick and called Brother Ullo to tell him that I might not be able to make it to his Big Day. We wonder sometimes why God allows things to happen in our lives—I know I sure do. Sure enough, I was so sick I was not able to travel to Alabama on Saturday morning. Sunday morning came, and I was still nauseous and not able to attend church services.
On Sunday evening, we were watching the services at First Baptist Church in Hammond. It is always a good day to be able to hear our pastor preach. Just as the services concluded, we received a phone call from the Baylor Hospital in Dallas. A young man had been killed in a car accident and was an organ donor. The lady on the phone asked if my wife would be interested in a new kidney! My wife has been on dialysis for nearly five years and has been waiting for a kidney to be donated. The lady said that if we could get to Dallas in an hour or two, they could start the blood work to see if my wife was a match for the kidney. At 9:00 p.m., we loaded up the car and drove to Dallas as quickly as possible. We arrived at the hospital before midnight, and Jackie completed the bloodwork needed. The hospital told us to go to a motel and wait for a call. The call came about 8:00 Monday morning, and my wife was a perfect match.
The Lord always knows what’s best even if we don’t understand. I missed not being able to be in Alabama, but I was sitting by my wife of 55 years as she was getting ready for a kidney transplant. By Monday afternoon, Jackie had a new kidney. The next day, she was up walking the hallways of the hospital (with help). After four days, Jackie was discharged, but she was not allowed to leave Dallas for six weeks. I was her constant caregiver during that time. I made two or three trips back to Longview to take care of things at home and went right back to Dallas.
I know that many of you have faithfully prayed for us, and we deeply appreciate it. Many have given to help with our expense of living away from home, and our family was so supportive and helpful. We thank you all. But if it had not been for the Lord—“. . . this is the Lord’s doing, and it is marvellous in our eyes?”
June 2022
Things are starting to return to a normal pace after my wife’s successful kidney transplant. I have been able to travel and preach at different places. I’m back to the business of raising funds for printing and shipping Scriptures. BEST Missions just sent its 35th container of Scriptures last month. BEST Missions now has three more containers that are ready for shipment;
and, of course, the only thing lacking is the funds for shipping them.
BEST Missions also started working on a project for a bus route in the Chicagoland area. They want 10,000 English John & Romans to hand out and to place on doors. The booklets should be done shortly. I’m thankful to First Baptist Church of Hammond for giving BEST Missions an offering during their annual Missions Conference in March for taking care of this need.
Best Missions is also working with a local pastor to get the Word of God to a country in Africa. He has two men who are wanting to become Bible distributors in this needy country. One of our main goals at BEST Missions is to provide the Word of God to areas of the world where it is not available.
Please pray for the upcoming BEST Missions Conference September 5-6, 2022. It is held annually at the Colonial Baptist Church, located at 1599 West Olive Street, Rogers, Arkansas. This has become a wonderful conference, because our main goal is getting the Word of God to a world that has never seen a copy of God’s Word. Please call the church at 479-631-2300 if you would like more information. I’m looking forward to seeing you there.
Needless to say, the Lord has been good to this old sinner. AMEN! Thank you so much for all of your prayers for me and my wife. We are truly humbled that you would continue to remember us. Thank you for your continued support of this ministry. We love you folks.
Into all the world,
Bob Bowen
Philippians 4:13