What an incredible joy it is for us to be working in this land to advance the Gospel and watch God build His church. Since our last update I have been asked to lead two Bible studies, one Church, and another small community of local believers. This is not to say I am so important, because I’m not, but to say that this land is aching for Biblical leadership. They don’t need me and I couldn’t do it all, they need Jesus. Everywhere you turn there is a need. Our prayer has been not to be busy, but faithful, not to be doing a lot, but to do well what we do. We need Jesus!
We are meeting with one local, who speaks great English, on a regular basis for a meal, to answer questions, and to go through a video series on the topic: “Who Is Jesus”, (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1bZFoD0cG88) put out by trueU. It has been really fruitful and we are daily praying for his salvation. He, like us, needs Jesus!
We are also continuing to labor with a group of local believers every Saturday evening. There is now a consistent 18 of us and it continues to grow. We gather to pray, worship, hear the Word, have communion, and celebrate the life we have in Christ. We are currently going through the book of Ephesians and I am leading this study. Please pray for me to communicate such precious truths effectively. It is extremely hard to communicate some of this content in English let alone here with the language barrier and cultural differences, but it is a good continuous reminder that I need Jesus.
This week I had two of our neighbors breakdown in front of me crying in the middle of our language lesson. My heart broke as they asked me as their “priest” to give them answers to some really complex issues and I had to decline not because I didn’t know the answer but because I don’t know enough of the language. This language is so hard and continues to take so much work with little advance. We are immersed in the culture, continue with lessons daily, but oh how we need Jesus! The language is discouraging, absolutely crucial, and our primary practical obstacle to sharing the Gospel. Please pray, as we daily continue to learn, that God would give us minds to understand and absorb, and hearts to press on.
Lastly please pray for us! That we may be conformed more into Christ’s image, love those around us, boldly share the Gospel, keep the first things first, unity among the believers, and for a revival across this land. WE ALL NEED JESUS!