Well, I’ve been back for 2 weeks now and it seems like we’ve done a lot in that time: found a house to rent, signed a contract, bought a dog, attempted to train him (that’s still a work in progress!), and began looking for furniture and a car.  God has been so good in guiding me along through this process making the decisions clear and fairly simple.  Thank you to all who have prayed with me about those things!

Of course, the reason I am here is ministry, so let me update you on that…I’ve spent the first couple weeks just kind of observing, getting back into the language, culture, etc.  It has been great to reconnect with some of the ladies in the batey and the girls that I was discipling.  Here is a quick update on different facets of the ministry.  Note also there is a special prayer request at the bottom of the page.

Relationship Building

I had the chance to sit down and talk with my friend Leidy a little bit this week.  Continue to pray for opportunities to share the Gospel with her and Miguelina.  Also, Annie started a jewelry making project with a couple of the ladies to sell to the tourists who have been coming by the batey.  They are excited about the opportunity to make a little money and have been working really hard.  This has also been a great time for us to sit down and chat about life, get to know them a little better, and share a little about our walk with God. 

Niños para Cristo

Our Saturday morning kid’s club, Niños para Cristo, is going well.  There are still about 30-40 kids coming each Saturday to hear and memorize God’s Word.  My first Saturday back, the kids had a lot of fun playing with the parachute that my college volleyball coach, Dr. Vickie Denny, gave me to use with them. 

Sunday School

This week, I will begin teaching Sunday School again.  I’m really looking forward to continuing to walk through the Bible with the kids (and any teens/adults who decide to stay around after the service)!  This week we’ll review what we already learned about the journey of the Israelites through the wilderness, and then next week we will pick up in Numbers with the Israelites entering the Promised Land.

Reading Wednesdays

This past Wednesday, we went out to the elementary school to work with the kids on reading.  Typically what we do is pull the kids out one by one to work with them on whatever level of reading they are at (some of the younger ones are still working on learning the letters A,B,C  while most of the older ones are able to write sentences and read short books).  I was very excited to see the progress each one has made since I was last in the school with them.  Between Mike and Annie going out each Wednesday and finally having a consistent teacher in the school every day, the kids have really begun to improve a lot.

Special Request

Please pray for a woman in the batey named Tati.  Tati is a dear, sweet elderly lady who made a profession of faith in Christ a few years back; however, because she is very ill and weak, she has been unable to attend services for some time now.  It is obvious that the Lord will be calling her home soon as she has lost a lot of weight and is in a great deal of pain.  By far, this is probably the most difficult thing that I have seen yet in ministry.  It is hard to even visit her and see the condition in which she is living.  She is literally just skin and bones.  I’ve never seen anyone so tiny.  She is too weak to even get up and use the bathroom, so we are trying to provide her with Depends or bed protectors so that she won’t have to lay in her own urine.  Yet in all of this, she still hugs Annie and I each time we visit her and asks how our families are doing and how things are going.  Please pray for her comfort and encouragement in these last days.  If anyone would like to help sponsor Tati, let me know.  We'll be spending about $50 a month to provide her with Depends, bed protectors, blankets, etc. to keep her as comfortable as possible.