Dear Fellow Believers,

I'm not sure what I was going through when I made these short, five shows in 2002, but if I had to guess I would say it was another financial humiliation. I was nine years into my full-time work with a wife and three young children and I can't tell you the number of times God took me to the edge of faith. So this would be my guess as to the mood of these shows.

On top of that, there is the topic. The topic is "A Mild and Quiet Life." When you don't have much money, you are forced to lead a mild a quiet life. Even so (irrespective of financial considerations), throughout my life I have a history (thank God) of making decisions FOR a mild and quiet life and FOR a life of purpose, and thus against a life of ease or convenience. In these wonderful shows, I detail some of these times.

These times include quitting college in 1979 in order to bicycle across the United States in 1980, my farmhouse wedding of 1982, my decision that my wife and I would bicycle down the east coast of Florida for our honeymoon, and of course quitting the Postal Service in 1993 to study and write about God full time.

I am clearly depressed while recording these shows. But my depression has never stopped God from putting out truth through me. In fact, He prefers (it seems) producing truth-telling content through a depressed vessel.

I have always believe in traveling through life lightly. Even if you have stuff, you can travel lightly. You just hold onto stuff loosely. You make sure that you have time in your life to sit under a tree and think, to spend more time with family, to spend more quiet time with God. This is my best advice to you today: build margin into your life. You simply can't live "on the edge" all the time—at the edge of time—without terrible consequences to your mind and body.

Tagged onto the end of the 2002 ZenderTalks is an MZTV from February 3, 2021 called, "Help My Unbelief." You know the account of the man with the demon-possessed son who, when Jesus asks him if he has the faith that He (Jesus) can heal his son, and the man (one of the most honest men in history) says, "Yes, I believe. Help my unbelief." We all have a little bit of unbelief that God and Jesus help. So this is an encouraging video for that. Don't condemn yourself.

Thanks again to Rodney Paris who dedicates much time to bringing these shows alive via video. And of course my sister Kelly in Canton, Ohio, who publishes these videos.

Thanks always to YOU, the body of Christ, who have supported me and do support me in this work through every means possible. This work has been carried on by the grace of God for thirty-three years now, through the wide hearts (that is, the generosity) of the saints. You! I am indebted to each and every one of you. This would not be happening without you.

I remain your brother in Christ and your servant in the Lord, from the edge of practically everything except time,

—Martin