Newsletter June 2006

Dear Friends and Family,

It is hard for me to write these letters because I am not a writer in the least. I wish that you could be here so that you could witness first hand what God is doing here in Spain.

First as a note of praise, God is really working in the hearts and minds of Catholics here in Spain. Last month, a Catholic Church with whom we have been establishing a relationship, invited us along with the other evangelical churches in the area, to celebrate the inauguration of their new building. But not only were we invited, our church was asked to lead the service in praise and worship. This is not a typical event in the United States where there has always been religious freedom; much less here in Spain where the people recently received the freedom to be anything outside of Catholicism. I just pray that these are the beginnings of a great change in the Catholic Church world wide.

Secondly near the end of May, Lucienda Smith, one of the missionaries on our team, went back to New Jersey to fortify and raise her support. Well, when she left one the ministries that she left behind was leading the weekly young adult group; this task fell into my hands. I was honored to take up this ministry but it came with some struggles. One of those was teaching the Bible in Spanish and the other was keeping their interest.

Now, together we are five weeks into the ministry and there has been much progress. I praise God because He has made the difference. The young adults are enjoying the meetings and the Spanish that I thought I was lacking is minimal. I thank God for this challenge. Thank you, Mr. and Mrs. Thompson for my past experience.

Finally, there has been a slight change in the plans for the mission to West Africa. Three weeks ago, Virgil Amos, my mission director, paid us a visit. The purpose of this visit was to see the progress being made in the church and to discuss my progress and plans for Benin. Well, after an evaluation of the situation here in Spain, he thought it best for me to remain here for another year. This letter is hard for me to write in particular because I was prepared and feel as if I prepared you for my leaving sometime this summer. I was disappointed, but now what comforts me is knowing that this is the will of God and more than anything my job is to accomplish His will wherever He calls me.

I thank you for your support and pray that God continues to use you to do His will in your life.