January 20, 2010
Aloha! What a blessing to be back in Hawaii with all of our wonderful island friends and pastors...and oh yes, the beautiful weather! Just before we left 
Sisseton, Larry had his last challenge in "snowkota" to shovel us a pathway through five and six foot snowbanks from the front door of our home out to the doors of our car to leave on tour. He huffed and puffed, but did not complain as he knew it was the last shoveling job of this winter season at home.
Sisseton, Larry had his last challenge in "snowkota" to shovel us a pathway through five and six foot snowbanks from the front door of our home out to the doors of our car to leave on tour. He huffed and puffed, but did not complain as he knew it was the last shoveling job of this winter season at home. 
We flew out of Minneapolis on Jan. 13 with a layover in Dallas, TX on to Honolulu and arrived Wednesday evening. After a 20 hour day in the air and airports it only took one deep breath of the evenings 70 degree temperatures and the south trade-winds as I sighed, "It was worth the long trip!"It's been action-packed since our feet hit the ground. Sunday morning we were back to minister with Pastor Chris and Aurora Bartolome at Bethel Chapel Assembly of God. The service was scheduled to start at 9:00-and there were only about 20 people there. I looked at Larry and asked, "Is it
going to be just the 20 of us?" And then the pastor chuckled, "It's 9:00 Filipino time!" Before long they were pouring in the doors and within a ½ hour the church was packed. They put folding chairs everywhere they could and there were people standing in the back. There was an air of excitement as worship began. What an anointed time of worship. I left Sisseton exhausted, arrived exhausted, and as I started to worship I felt like I was receiving a blood transfusion or as if warm oil were flowing over me. The presence of God was so sweet, and God knew I needed that time of refreshing! When we got up to sing and minister the congregation was primed and ready to receive. We had a wonderful service. When Larry gave the invitation for the altar call they flowed out of the pews. Dozens of them were young couples and young people in their teens and twenties, making decisions for Christ. After the service a gentleman walked 
up to me with tears in his eyes and in broken English he expressed, "I feel good now...when you asked us to come forward, I walked up and asked Jesus into my heart." He smiled, "It's all okay now." If that had been the only one who had responded to the altar call...the 20 hour trip would have been worth it!
going to be just the 20 of us?" And then the pastor chuckled, "It's 9:00 Filipino time!" Before long they were pouring in the doors and within a ½ hour the church was packed. They put folding chairs everywhere they could and there were people standing in the back. There was an air of excitement as worship began. What an anointed time of worship. I left Sisseton exhausted, arrived exhausted, and as I started to worship I felt like I was receiving a blood transfusion or as if warm oil were flowing over me. The presence of God was so sweet, and God knew I needed that time of refreshing! When we got up to sing and minister the congregation was primed and ready to receive. We had a wonderful service. When Larry gave the invitation for the altar call they flowed out of the pews. Dozens of them were young couples and young people in their teens and twenties, making decisions for Christ. After the service a gentleman walked up to me with tears in his eyes and in broken English he expressed, "I feel good now...when you asked us to come forward, I walked up and asked Jesus into my heart." He smiled, "It's all okay now." If that had been the only one who had responded to the altar call...the 20 hour trip would have been worth it!
Seeing a familiar face, I approached Florentina Smith. She shook my hand and smiled, "I've been here every time you've been here at Bethel Chapel since the mid 90's. I've been so blessed by your music and preaching God's truth. Thank you for encouraging families." Florentina is a principal of August Ahren's elementary school in Waipahu and has been since 1995. It is the largest single track elementary school in the state with over 1300 students in pre-K to 6th grade. Thank God for Christian leaders like Florentina who have the opportunity to touch the lives of children!
We had another pleasant surprise when Agnes Bayudan greeted me, "Gloria, I remember you from 1983 when you and your husband, Larry ministered in Grand Forks, ND at Reverend Kiel's church. My husband was stationed in the military at the time. We are now active at Bethel Chapel and we were so surprised to see your poster that you were coming here. We loved every part of the service and we are so happy you are still out there ministering after all these years."
On a sadder note, this past week the world has been shocked by the earthquake in Haiti. As we have watched the news on television we sit almost paralyzed trying to comprehend what has really happened and to what depth. Even the pictures cannot describe the devastation. Amidst all the news coverage my attention was drawn to a couple clips where they showed people who had lost everything, family members, and loved ones, and were standing there with their arms raised in worship to God. That really touched me. We have heard of churches that have been destroyed and there is one where the congregation of those who survived the earthquake are meeting every day in a make-shift tent, fasting for a move of God on Haiti. I must admit I feel guilty sitting here in this beauty and comfort knowing they have lost everything. I would encourage you to fast a meal here and there and spend time praying for that nation and its people. I pray that God can use this devastation for good to start a move of God whereby thousands can find Christ as their personal savior. No matter what part of the world we are in, we are all family and need to be there for each other.
We pray that you have a wonderful week, knowing that God will never leave you nor forsake you and may you feel His presence each and every moment.
Gloria
P.S.
There is a winning combination here. Filipino's, food, fun and fellowship...Yes, they love to have house meetings and fellowship over lots of delicious food. Last night we were at Joe and Nattie's and Joe grilled steak, shrimp, and we had roast beef, spring rolls, cheesy mashed 
potatoes, steamed rice, salads, hot vegetable dishes, Filipino dishes, etc, etc! Yes, we enjoyed every bite of it and then they brought out their 3 ukulele's and we all sang and shared and prayed together. We all left blessed, happy and full of food! Of course Filipino's always send food 
packages home with their guests so we have lots of goodies to eat. Larry is very happy!
potatoes, steamed rice, salads, hot vegetable dishes, Filipino dishes, etc, etc! Yes, we enjoyed every bite of it and then they brought out their 3 ukulele's and we all sang and shared and prayed together. We all left blessed, happy and full of food! Of course Filipino's always send food packages home with their guests so we have lots of goodies to eat. Larry is very happy!QUOTE
"The Lord is close to the brokenhearted; He rescues those whose spirits are crushed."
- Psalm 34:18
CHUCKLE
Little Smarties
TEACHER: Maria, go to the map and find North America .
MARIA: Here it is.
TEACHER: Correct. Now class, who discovered America ?
CLASS: Maria.
________________________
TEACHER: John, why are you doing your math multiplication on the floor?
JOHN: You told me to do it without using tables.
_______________________________
TEACHER: Glenn, how do you spell 'crocodile?'
GLENN: K-R-O-K-O-D-I-A-L'
TEACHER: No, that's wrong
GLENN: Maybe it is wrong, but you asked me how I spell it.
___________________________________
TEACHER: Donald, what is the chemical formula for water?
DONALD: H I J K L M N O.
TEACHER: What are you talking about?
DONALD: Yesterday you said it's H to O.
________________________
TEACHER: Harold, what do you call a person who keeps on talking when people are no longer interested?
HAROLD: A teacher
PIC OF THE WEEK
RECIPE
Coconut Chocolate Bars
1 box chocolate cake mix
1 egg
1/3 c. butter
* Mix well and press into a 9x13 pan.
1 (14 oz.) can Eagle Brand sweetened condensed milk
1 ½ c. coconut
* Spread this mixture over the mixture in the pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes. Tip: Frost the bars with chocolate chips by sprinkling the chips on after bars are baked. Place the pan back in the oven until the chips are melted. Spread.
** Submitted by Florence Goehner and featured in our new cookbook Tastes of Friendship.
SPECIAL OFFER
 For a limited time, with the purchase of Tastes of Friendship ,  you will receive one of our best selling cookbooks, Lunchies, Munchies and Household Hintsfor FREE! To take advantage of this offer, click hereto go to our online store, and add Tastes of Friendship to your cart only. You will receive your free cookbook in the mail shortly after. You may also call the office at 605-698-7007. Enjoy! |
HOUSEHOLD HINT
Use shiny metal pans for baking cakes. They reflect heat away, producing a tender, lighter-colored crust.
Use caution when using dark nonstick baking pans or glass baking dishes. Read and follow the manufacturer's directions. Since these pans absorb more heat, results may be better if the baking temperature is reduced by 25 degrees F.
December 16th, 
then.
18th I baked a few of my family's Christmas favorites and made homemade vegetable stew…it is an annual request at this time of year.
20 inches of snow along with the warnings that the roads and interstates would be closed so he let her go a day early.
fore it hit to make sure we had plenty of food as it was predicted we would be snowbound for three days.
go because the road was still blocked with snow drifts.
All the way to Branson, we visited, sang, played games, and ate Christmas goodies that our guests brought. There's nothing like fellowship! Of those that joined us, I think about 12 of them have gone with us on several of our previous tours. It is become a yearly tradition of a "friends gathering". Once they go on a tour, they often go again and again. It was a joy to have Connie Simons and Marilee Trosen join us another year. It's always fun to have them come along!
was the Wissman family from Seward, NE. They have 13 children and they all play instruments and sing. The little 3 year old daughter stole our hearts. Of course, this family reminded me of Larry and I and of our days in ministry when we had all of our children with us. At one time we had 3 Lundstrom couples, and 8 little Lundstroms who all sang and took part in the Lundstrom TV specials, rallies and crusades. Yes…this Momma got emotional, I miss those days. 
going to be in Branson and found out where we were. We met one of the couples in the 1980s at a church rally and they've been following us through our newsletters ever since. 
with them as we've only seen them once this year for just a few hours each. Also, Happy second Anniversary, LaShawn and Liam - today!
Lowell in prayer, as he is struggling with Parkinson's. I went back to Sisseton to be with my Mother, brother and family for Thanksgiving.
also gutted out all the bay areas doing year-end inventory and reorganization of our ministry equipment and products. We left South Dakota last August 11th and the motorhome, which is our office, won't return to Sisseton until next May, 2010. As you well know paperwork and "stuff" piles up! Larry has been busy booking 2010 and I've been kept busy with office work and phone calls. What better place to have to work than in toasty Arizona. 
NE, but the temp was to drop to 23 degrees and it was to be one of the pivotal points of the storm. At that point we had to abandon our plans and make a quick decision to get out of Nebraska. We definitely didn't want to get caught in a snow storm and have the plumbing and pipes freeze and explode. We quickly packed up and headed off. The first day we drove from Nebraska to Kansas, into the corner of Oklahoma and on to Texas. The second day we scurried in to Albuquerque, NM with the storm nipping at our heels all the way. Just as we pulled into Albuquerque, about 2 hours later, the rain poured and temps dropped to 30 so we hunkered down next to the Victory Family church to wait for it to pass. The next day, Albuquerque had what we'd call a South Dakota snowstorm. While the storm was dumping a load of snow, Pastor Jerry and Geanette Bernard looked at us and said, "Larry and Gloria, did you bring this? We haven't seen a storm like this in many, many years." We confessed, "Maybe we did -ha!" 
Let me back up, before we left Nebraska, we had two wonderful services. On Wednesday night we were in O'Neill, NE where three Pastors had joined together for a wonderful evening service. There was excitement in the air and we were all thrilled to see those who made decisions for Christ. 
invited us to come. They put a lot of effort and prayer into the outreaches and God has definitely honored it. Sunday morning, there were close to 60 who responded to the altar call. This included several young families - what a thrill! When I looked in the counseling room and saw those precious families, it brought tears to my eyes. It's those moments of people coming to Christ that keep us going. God is so faithful, and we are still willing to go.
Saturday evening and well over 50 people go forward on Sunday morning; many for the first and many of those were children and young people. Words like faithful and consistent should be used in describing Larry & Gloria's ministry. They very unselfishly lift up Jesus Christ and allow Him to draw "all" unto Himself. They come to build up a church by kindling a relationship between people and Jesus Christ. Thank you for coming and for your incredible faithfulness!"
and tears of joy made the trip out east worth every soul that came to Christ. 
We also met them in the early years of our ministry and are thankful that their burden for the Lost and their influence to bring us in saw a great harvest come to fruition. They shared:
"I saw 6 or 7 youth who recommitted their lives to God. One of them had professed to be a Christian but didnot remember the specific time when he accepted Christ as his savior, so this became his moment of personal decision. I think several others had accepted Christ in the past and had come to the point where the cares of the world were having a bit of asmothering effect on them. Through your ministry on Sunday, I believe that God spoke to them and rekindled the flame of their commitment. I also had the opportunity to speak to another young believer about the assurance of salvation, which I believe he had been seeking, and I pray that God will use this moment as a time to which he can look with assurance that Christ is Lord of his life. In addition to these happenings, I thank you for giving Shanita the opportunity to be a counselor to the younger children. I think it was really good for her. And I appreciated the challenge that you have given me to look outward more than I do. That's an ongoing process that God is working in me."
Watching them, I remarked, "Larry, look at all those geese." He looked up and heard them honking and he said, "Well if that won't give you hunting fever." I commented, "Boy they are really moving fast - they feel that chill in the air and are heading south- I think they're smarter than us, we are heading north." Just then I saw about 15-20 geese going the opposite direction - north! I figured they must have an instinct and a compass like me, which is not good! I can get lost in direction by just blinking my eyes. 
my life." What they don't know or want to believe is that their own free Will is going take them to an eternal destination that they won't like and when they get there it will be too late to turn around.
Amidst the pouring rain we had a spot here and there where the sun peeked through so we could enjoy the fall scenery. Arriving in the beautiful state of Vermont, I was mesmerized by the countless white steeples of churches peeking through the fall leaves displaying their brilliant colors of red, yellows and oranges. As we were driving down the road, we saw a bumper sticker that read "I live in Vermont…..and I can do whatever I want." That sticker resonated the reality of the mindset of a godless generation. I am sure if you follow the news, you are aware that on April 15, 2009, the Verm
ont Supreme Court judges passed the law of same sex marriages. Plain and simply put, it made it legal for a man to marry a man or a woman to marry a woman. You and I definitely know this is not God's law. Vermont is also the home of the infamous "Ben and Jerry's Ice Cream". The day the law was passed and men began marrying men, Ben and Jerry's made a special ice cream advertising it for same sex wedding celebrations. They switched the name from "Chubby Hubby" to "Hubby Hubby". How appalling! As you know, several states are following suit on same sex marriage. The bumper sticker "I live in Vermont ... and I can do whatever I want" is a very apparent outward burst of rebellion. While in Vermont, Larry and I talked to many college age students and young couples and inquired int
o their view of the new law. The overwhelming answer we received was "Well ya, I agree it is kind of weird, but now we are used to it, and ya, that's just the way it is". God help us not to continue to "get used to sin", and the collateral damage it is causing the upcoming generations. Christian moms and dads…grandpas and grandmas…stand up and fight for your children and grandchildren while we can still make a difference. We need to do it while we still can. Ok, so you can see I am fired up, but frankly we need to be! Our children and grandchildren's futures are too important to stay silent!
onnecticut and drove through New York City (sure glad Larry was driving as I was a stress wreck). The more I saw the graffiti, the more I prayed our car wouldn't break down. Ha. From New York we drove on to Philadelphia and arrived just in time for rush hour traffic. We pulled off downtown Philly and hunted down a small restaurant that has been there since the early 1900's. Our daughter LaShawn keeps telling us you can't go out East without having a fresh lobster. She said, "Mom and Dad, it is only $20 for a 2# lobster." That got Larry's attention as 
well as mine. We drove through the old streets of Philly where they are so narrow that I am sure they were built only for Model T's or today's smart cars. We finally reached our destination and happily ordered the lobster. It was scrumptious, as you can see by the photo of Larry. Of course, I had my own. It may be several years before we get lobster so I figured, "Why not? Yummy!" We are now in Pennslyvania and are making our way towards Cumberland , Maryland, for weekend services. 
knowing where to go, Larry and I said simultaneously, "We need to get directions again." We at once noticed that there was a Sheriff's car parked about 200 feet ahead of us. "Perfect!" we thought! Certainly we would be able to get directions from the sheriff as this is his/her territory. Larry pulled the Suburban up close to the Sheriff car, and I motioned to the uniformed individual in the car hoping to get a response, but there was no response. I waved again and again, and after still being unable to attain a response, it dawned on me that the sheriff had fallen asleep on duty. Giving the benefit of the doubt I told Larry, "It must be time for his lunch break and he's taking a little nap." 
Still in pursuit of directions to a Perkins, we eventually made our way down the street hoping to find someone willing to help. We finally found a lady willing to help and relayed our curious experience. She said she had driven down the street for weeks and never realized it was a dummy in there; the whole time she thought it was a real policeman. It goes to show "Things are not always as they appear!"
small piece of paper with a string attached. She asked that we write our prayer requests on it and tie it to a balloon. She then beckoned us to go out onto the balcony of the beautiful A-framed lodge that was nestled among hundreds of towering pine trees. In a quiet moment, we prayed over the requests represented and then released the balloons (along with the needs/burdens represented) go. They soared up, up, up and soon were in infinity.
the words, "If you find this balloon, please call Park Rapids Assembly of God at this number to let us know where you found this balloon." 
On Sunday morning, Larry and I sang and ministered in the two morning services at Oak Creek Assembly of God. It has been a joy to watch my brother's church grow through the years from less than 20 to over 2300. Jerry and Sherry's hearts beat for the lost and hurting and so do ours, so we are a good fit for ministry. We love that church. They never fail to welcome us with open arms and an excess of love! It is always exciting to see what God is going to do next at Oak Creek Assembly of God.
weekend with Larry and Gloria. Larry presented the message of salvation in a way that anyone could clearly understand, whether they came from a churched or unchurched background. 88 decisions for Christ were registered that morning, with many of them being first-time decisions.Thank you for being such a great blessing to all of us at Oak Creek Assembly of God!"
invitation for those to come to Christ, he raised his hand and went forward. You know how tough 19 year olds are to reach, but without hesitation, he responded to receive Christ this morning. Your trip here would have been worth it even if it were just for my son." 
a private meal and evening gathering. Several prayed the prayer of salvation that evening answering the prayer of Leo and Dorothy that lives would be changed.