A Beginning

We have made a beginning of our summer journey in the States. During the month of May my time was mostly occupied with travel, getting the family settled for our time here, the German block class I was taking, and the Hebrew class I was teaching. I'm grateful to have passed the German course and to be getting ready for the next class: Aramaic—which will be an independent study.

Since we arrived we've been staying with our dear friends the Moores in Clarkston, MI. It has been great to have a chance to catch up with them and to report on our ministry to their church, which also supports us, First Baptist Church, Lake Orion. Last week we were with our sending church, InterCity Baptist. It's always a joy to be back home with our family there. I'm looking forward to a few more opportunities in the coming weeks to reconnect with area friends and report to partner churches.

One important announcement is that due to some changes with Feedburner, I will be needing to move to another venue for these kinds of updates. I will be in touch with more information about that as I determine the best next steps.

Please keep us in prayer as we travel not only that we would be safe and healthy but also that the Lord would use these opportunities to refresh and deepen our partnerships in the gospel.

Departure

We’re seated at the food court at the airport. I think we’re past all the security check points and Covid test checks. After a couple of very busy weeks, we’re on our way to visit our partner churches in the States.

After several weeks of lockdown it looks like EBC will be gathering again next week. It will be sad to miss that, but we are glad to have an opportunity to meet again with many of you over the next few months.

Keep us in your prayers as we travel, and pray that I’m able to continue to fulfill my responsibilities here. Among other things I’ll continuing to teach Hebrew online while we’re stateside.

Your partnership in the gospel is a continued source of joy. Thank you for your faithfulness.

Full Schedule

I teach this class in Zambia via Zoom.

It's been some time since my last update. We have been busy at work, healthy and glad for our Lord's faithful guidance in our lives and service. Here are some updates and prayer requests.

• Please pray for my Hebrew classes. This year, I'll be fulfilling a lifelong dream in teaching a full academic year of Hebrew. While I have introduced the language to students in several forms, this will be the first time I'll make it all the way through a textbook with students. I'm teaching both members of the pastoral staff at Emmanuel Baptist and students in Zambia at Central Africa Baptist University. It’s exciting to have this opportunity to teach classes in both Zambia and Kenya simultaneously, but it’s a challenging class. Pray that love for the Word of God would motivate and result from this class.
• I've officially moved into the offices at EBC as an associate pastor. While many of my responsibilities remain the same (discipling in counseling and training), this does represent a deeper commitment to the mission and people of the church here. I'm so grateful for this opportunity. Pray that our role as pastors at EBC would result in a body well-equipped for one-another ministry so that we may grow "to the measure of the stature which belongs to the fullness of Christ” (Eph 4:13).
• Pray as we prepare for a short furlough in the States this summer (just the East Coast this time). We need several travel documents that we were not able to get last year due to COVID restrictions. Lord willing, while in the States I'll also be completing a modular class I've begun in pursuit of continued training.
• Pray that the Lord would use Jenny and me as we parent our children that we all might live for his glory and for the good of others.

Happy New Year!

 

Happy New Year!