September 2021 Prayer Letter
Property we hope to purchase
Once again, we take an opportunity to share great news from Bolivia! Wonderful things are happening in the ministry that I believe would be an encouragement for you to know.
Last month when I flew back to Bolivia for one week, not only were we able to complete the jobs needing to be done at our second church, we also had a special baptism service in the newest work. We had 5 newly redeemed souls who were ready and waiting to be baptized. What a precious time we had! It was also an opportunity to show some of the other new believers what baptism is about and encourage them to take the same step of obedience. This ministry is continuing to grow, and we are loving the opportunity to be a part of what God is doing!
The first week of October is also expected to be exciting. I fly back to Bolivia for 2 very special events. First, on October 3rd we plan to officially turn Bearing Precious Seed Baptist Church over to the national pastor. While he is already pastoring in our absence, this will officially make the church autonomous as we turn our focus toward the next church plant. The pandemic has greatly changed how we had planned to lead in this church, but God has had His hand on the process the whole way. What a glorious time to see them venture out on their own!
The other special event will be the 3rd anniversary of our first church plant, Mount Carmel Baptist Church. We started laboring in the area over 3 years ago, but October makes 3 years since we had our first official service. As our first church plant, Mount Carmel will always hold a special place in our hearts. As a side note, I would ask that you help me pray for Pastor Francisco as he and his wife have been facing some specific challenges recently.
Jessica and Ellie have still not been released to fly yet. Due to the risk of blood clots, we were advised to wait until we receive the doctors' approval. While she still has some issues such as soreness, Jessica is doing much better. Ellie has started physical therapy and is probably going to continue this until the screws are removed from her elbow. This extends our medical leave further than we expected. Knowing months ago that we planned to turn over the church in October, we also planned to start a furlough in November. Even before Ellie broke her arm in March, I had already booked meetings through a good portion of next year to update our supporting churches on the ministry.
After I return from Bolivia next month, I will start traveling to the meetings scheduled for the purpose of updating, raising new support, as well as presenting the needs of the new church plant. In its 1-2 years of existence, the church has had to move to 4 different locations. Every time it moves, we lose people we are trying to reach. I believe for the testimony of the church it needs property of its own which will provide the stability of a permanent location. Our goal for our upcoming furlough is to raise the finances needed to buy property and construct a building as we have done for our 2 previous churches. Would you please help us pray over this? I believe $40,000 will cover all the material needs as we strive to turn it into an autonomous church over the next 2-3 years.
We praise the Lord for the advancements in the ministry; baptisms, autonomy of the church and a church anniversary. And to remember that He allowed you and I to be a part of His great plan is astounding. Thank you for your help in all that has been done thus far in Bolivia.
