Thank you for all the prayers you have put in for our annual camp that finished 16 days ago. We had over 70 campers on the property! No injuries or accidents. There was a great spirit the whole week, and as we got down to the last two nights, you could see God working on particular hearts. Three young adults were deeply convicted over different areas of their lives and wanted to put God back in His rightful place. Ashlie and I have talked about how neat it would be for God to call some of these to be future leaders here!
Thank you for the extra offerings that came in to help make needed repairs due to the back-to-back storms a while ago. Enough came in for us to repair the water on the property, the 100 ft fencing, and some additional unspoken electrical work.
We have been discussing next year's camp and how to continue moving the needle forward!
I am happy to report that two more students have recently joined our bible institute. We have done no advertising or promotion for it, yet people are finding out about it! A couple of days later, we got some more exciting news. Another bible institute in Brazil that has recently come on more challenging times and lost professors has been looking for materials. The three remaining pastors currently involved came across our institute, which is unique in that it is available 24/7 (pre-recorded) and has Q&A availability directly with the professor/administrator. They will be watching classes throughout the week and meeting 2x a week to discuss the classes.
Along with the institute, I have been working with others to get various resources together, such as music, curriculum, etc. Pray that God would continue to furnish connections with local pastors here and build a place that could be an excellent resource for the churches here, as there is a significant shortage here.
We will take the young people 4 hours south to a youth event on Saturday. One of the things that will take place is a bible quiz. To prepare, we have been meeting every Friday, reviewing six chapters of Genesis and asking questions. Many of these kids have minimal church background outside of coming on Sundays. It has been neat to see the enthusiasm and effort they put into this! It has also opened up some opportunities to get into the gospel. Please pray for two young people concerning salvation- Erick and Eliel.
A long while ago, I had asked for prayers for a named Mario. He has been such a help to me ever since we got here. He is not saved. He has recently started attending our services. I took another opportunity to talk about the gospel recently. Please pray that God would open his eyes and help him work past the religious blindness here.
So far this year, two different churches are coming for mission trips! Another church has been discussing setting a date for next year! We are praying hard (and them) that God would call more laborers here. Just off the top of my head, I can tell you there are four Baptist churches right now, just within three hours of us, without pastors. They already have a building, they already have a parsonage, and they have people waiting, but no shepherd.
Pray that the Lord of the harvest will send forth more laborers into His harvest!
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