Subic Bay Children's Home – January 2024 to April 2024Dear Friends,
Greetings from the Philippines! We are in the middle of our dry season and it has been extremely hot. It is a blessing that we live in the mountains, with much trees, so we have a nice breeze, to keep us cool. Although we are located in the mountains, we are 5 miles to the nearest beach. Often times we will bring the kids to a park that is by the ocean, where we will enjoy our family Friday night. This past February 24th was Nanay (Mom) Ligaya Fulfer’s 76th birthday and we celebrated it by overnight camping on another island. It took two pump boats to get all of the children and staff over to the Island. Seeing the children full of life and laughter is such a joy, especially when you know exactly what they were rescued from.
This month, we took in five siblings, four boys and one girl. The siblings have gone through harsh beatings at the hands of their own parents. The worst came to the only girl who suffered sexual abuse from her father since she was a toddler. She had been beat and raped everyday up until 10 years old. It is truly horrific what our children have been rescued from. Please continue to pray for them that they will fully comprehend God’s love and always be grateful and never feel entitled. We have seen time and time again those children who have come to understand God’s love for them and live with gratefulness, are successfully living a life of service to God. On the other hand, there are those who feel entitled of God’s love and live miserably complaining, despite being rescued from a gruesome life.
I would like to share with you the testimony of one of our young girls.
This was written by her and translated by Ms. Annalisa Valbuena.
My name is Mira Chelsea Joyce. I am now 9 Years old. I was taken into SBCHome when I was 6 years old. My first day was scary but happy. I soon learned that it is because of God’s love for me and that is why I was rescued and given a beautiful home and food to eat and a school where I learned to read and write and a church where I learn of God’s love and how I should live. This year, while Pastor Odek Valbuena was preaching, I realized that I wanted to receive Jesus Christ and accept him as my Lord and Savior. I came forward and accepted Jesus Christ into my heart. My favorite verse is Joshua 1:9, “Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the Lord thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest.” I am so happy knowing that God will always be with me from now on, no matter what.
Prayer RequestJericho and Mikko, are our two boys that suffer from Epilepsy and Cerebral Palsy. They have monthly checkups; test and are on a steady dose of meds. A few years back, I put out a prayer request for the need for funds for medical and we received many donations. It has been awhile now since anything has come in for medical and our medical fund is nearly exhausted. Jericho has another MRI test coming up soon and that will cost $500 or P25,000 pesos, so I would like to appeal to you all once again for prayers in this matter.
Another Retaining Wall Project 2024As you may remember I have mentioned that our SBCHome is situated in the mountains. We are in the process of putting up a much needed retaining wall to keep the dirt from eroding. Whenever we have a specific project we will count the cost and put it out for those who would like to sponsor that project. For this particular “Building project” $13,000.00 is what is needed.
Lastly please pray for our monthly support. Most recently, we have had 3 churches drop support for SBCH, for the reason of a decrease in their church membership. Our prayer is that the Lord will bless all of you because of what a tremendous blessing you all are to us!
Thank you very much for your love, prayers & support!
Annalisa Fulfer-Valbuena
Subic Bay Children's Home
61 Jasmin St, Purok 5, New Cabalan, Olongapo, 2200 Zambales, Philippines
Field Mailing Address: PO Box 102 SBFZ 2222 PHILIPPINES
US Phone 409.356.6054; 409.356.5403
www.sbchome.org
McCoy Family's Update – April 2024Praises- 2 Souls saved in Bahamas
- Safety in flying
- Contacts made for future trips
- Church building projects
Prayer Requests- Witness opportunities
- Family sickness
- Juggling many things-use time wisely
- Upcoming Trips
2 Corinthians 12:7-10And lest I should be exalted above measure through the abundance of the revelations, there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I should be exalted above measure. For this thing I besought the Lord thrice, that it might depart from me. And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ’s sake: for when I am weak, then I am strong.
God’s grace is sufficient. If we have God, we have all we need. Just some personal situations over this last month make me appreciate that grace again and again: Dealing with multiple government jurisdictions and agencies while helping the four churches with their building projects, traveling to the Bahamas and facing much opposition preaching the gospel on multiple islands, bad weather so flying can’t happen when or where it was planned, lack of fuel so some flights have to be canceled and those islands skipped for now, mechanical issues that come out of nowhere, flu like symptoms for several weeks, and these just to name a few. At the end of the day the gospel continues to go forth and I stay close to the Lord, the only one who can really do anything about whatever it is. He is faithful, that’s my Savior!!!
We continue to help several churches with their building needs. Victory Springs is making forward progress with exterior metal framing happening for the brick and stucco front to be completed. The church is raising funds and inching along and prays for the remainder of the needed funds to come in ASAP. Grace Bible Baptist has made some more progress and now missionary builders are there to assist with some more framing and concrete demo in preparation for sub-contractors. I plan to go for a few days to help where I can. Vision Baptist should get their permit set of blueprints soon, maybe even this next week, and then we can help with permitting and the other construction documents and pricing out of all the different parts. Ocoee Baptist has met with an architect and their building remodel is in the design phase. I will meet the pastor and a local builder this coming week to finalize April 2, 2024 their process. We could not find help for Tabernacle Baptist on Freeport, Bahamas but churches in North Carolina did give funds for some locals to be hired. The materials were ordered and delivered and the building is under construction again for the first time since 2019.There is an opportunity in the coming months for a small crew of ceramic tile layers to help at a mission house on Long Island Bahamas if a brother or two were interested. Please contact me for the details.
Our Bahamas trip this month was a doozy, ha-ha. The plan was to visit multiple islands and have preaching meetings on four. Lack of fuel for the airplane, at times, and bad weather had us change things up and cancel a couple of surveys of new islands. I came down with the mystery crud and battled that the whole eight day trip. AJ James @ Emission-Air and I would land on an island, make contact with a local, go out canvassing and door to door, and then finalize a meeting. We took turns singing, giving our testimony of salvation, and preaching. We saw two calls on the Lord for salvation and made many new contacts for trips in the future. We came eye-to-eye with false prophets on two different occasions. These have many of the people deceived and in bondage. We met with one pastor that invited us back in July time frame for more soul winning and meetings and some men activities for the locals. Please be praying for opportunities in the future to preach and share the gospel there. Many of the churches have closed and there are not many preaching the truth or showing people how to be saved. We also talked with this same pastor about helping them establish a consistent Bible institute. They have the students and facilities and the want-to but need a little help getting it all going.
We enjoyed a great Easter service and even had some family down from Michigan for a couple of days. Thank you each and every one for your prayers and partnership. We can only go and do as you help in these efforts. Knowing that you are with us and for us gives us that wind in our sails
In Christ,
Kevin, Sonya, Bethany, and Jon McCoy
Training Center International
Email: Mccoysincostarica@yahoo.com
Kevin 850 777-0097
Sonya 850 698-1694
The Mortensons' Prayer Letter – April 2024Thank you for your faithful prayers and financial support. We hope that you all are well and that you had a wonderful Easter Sunday. The fact that He is risen, is the truth of the wonderful gospel that we get to share. In our risen Savior we find forgiveness, love, redemption and new life (here on earth new purpose in life, and in heaven new life eternal)! As a church family here, we met together on Easter Sunday morning earlier than normal, and we celebrated our risen Savior with fellowship prior to the morning service.
March was a busy month. We started with a great surgical team who were able to perform general surgeries such as hernia repairs, gallbladder removals and cyst removals. Each patient was also presented with the good news of salvation. We trust that the seeds will bear fruit. Then we hosted a teen group from First Baptist Church in Nebraska. We enjoyed the opportunity to share with them what the Lord is doing here and challenge them to consider how God would involve them in world missions. Next, each of the patients came back for post-surgery follow-ups and new patients for the next surgical team came in for initial visits. And we are thankful for the opportunity to share the gospel with each patient and their family members. We are also excited for the next surgical team that will come to perform surgeries next week.
As we head into April, our kids are super excited about how close they are to the end of the school year. They have worked hard to be able to finish early this year. Also, over the next couple of weeks, I will be finishing the theology class that I am teaching. Please pray for the Lord to continue to bless this class.
Thank you again for your faithful prayers for us.
PRAYER REQUESTS
- Please pray for God’s blessing on our next surgical team and that the Lord would open the hearts of the patients to the gospel.
- Pray for God to continue to bless the last couple of weeks of the theology class.
- Thank you for continuing to pray for the Lord’s blessing as we grow in our understanding of Type 1 Diabetes and how to best help Blake manage. We are so thankful for the new pump that insurance approved back in December, it has made a world of difference, but we still need the Lord’s wisdom daily.
From Honduras,
Nate and Cori, with Mykenzie, Grant, Blake and Savanna.
McCoy Family Update (March 2024)Praises- Lots of witnessing
- Got moved
- Offer on a piece of land
Prayer Requests- Gospel go forth
- Building projects
- Bahamas trip (Souls saved, safety)
Ephesians 5:28-31So ought men to love their wives as their own bodies. He that loveth his wife loveth himself. For no man ever yet hated his own flesh; but nourisheth and cherisheth it, even as the Lord the church: For we are members of his body, of his flesh, and of his bones. For this cause shall a man leave his father and mother, and shall be joined unto his wife, and they two shall be one flesh.
What a blessing to find another place to rent and get all moved and settled. This area has very little for options in rentals and we know the Lord provided as he always does and more than we deserve for sure. In the middle of our move we celebrated 20 years of ministry and marriage. In our 20 years we have moved 16 times. My wife and kids ought to get a gold medal for this Olympic sport, ha-ha. We went full time into missions in March of 2018 and have moved 12 times in these last six years with three of those international moves. We get it when the term missionary journey comes up. We hope to stay in this area but also will move again if our commanding officer - God Almighty - sends us elsewhere. God has been so good to our family in every way in these years and continues to give us strength and the want-to, and we are willing for as many more as he gives us.
We continue to work at Victory Springs Independent Baptist Church bidding and estimating and setting up vendor accounts for suppliers and sub-contractors. The metal studs were delivered for the exterior framing of the columns and knee wall surrounds that will get brick. We plan to work on these for the next couple of weeks.
We traveled to Crestview, FL to be on site when Vision Baptist Church got delivery of their metal building package. All the pieces were there and it sits until the plans are finalized and the permits can be pulled. While in the area we stopped by Grace Bible Baptist to check on their progress with their remodel. They have done a bit of work themselves and are nearly done with the interior wall framing. They need windows and doors and some demo for the subs to get started next. Missionary builders have volunteered to help and will be there soon as they finish another project close by. We will go back to help, too, in the near future.
The building project we had in Freeport, Bahamas did not happen in the timing we were hoping for, but God did it His way and in His time. Gifts from churches in North Carolina came in to hire locals to do the work verses trying to get men from the US to go. God is the best project manager for sure. On that note, our Bahamas evangelistic tour with Emissions-Air -AJ James is scheduled from Mar 15-23 and will take us to 10 different islands. We will get to go canvassing door to door, soul winning, and invite folks to two preaching times a day at various locations on several islands. While there we will take some supplies to islands that asked for a few things and survey a couple of new islands, too. The door is wide open right now in the islands and we want to be working while we still can.
One of our Costa Rican partners was in the US on a short furlough and stopped by our house for a couple of days. We enjoyed a little time together and began to plan our next visit to work alongside them in their projects and training center work. Hopefully we can go and help toward the end of summer again this year. We continue to thank God for each of you and your prayer support and partnerships. To God be the glory for what he is doing!!!
In Christ,
Kevin, Sonya, Bethany, and Jon McCoy
Training Center International
Email: Mccoysincostarica@yahoo.com
Kevin 850 777-0097
Sonya 850 698-1694
The Mortensons' Recent Prayer Letter (March 2024)Dear Family and Friends,
Thank you for your prayers for us over the past month. God continues to demonstrate His goodness to us in many ways. It feels like February flew by because of how busy our month was, but it was busy in wonderful ways. First of all, it was such a blessing to be able to have Cori’s parents visit at the beginning of the month and then my parents visit last week. While all the technology in our modern world makes it so that we can stay connected with family back in the States, it is not the same as actually spending time together and so we are thankful that they got to come.
Also, thank you for praying for our Come Away Conference for American missionaries the first week-end in February. The conference this year was, as always, such an encouragement. Pastor Tate Throndson brought very encouraging messages and the fellowship with friends we get to see (many only yearly) was fun.
Among other things that kept us busy this month, I started teaching another module of the theology class that we offer to church members. For this module there are 10 students and we will run through to the first week of April, meeting on Sunday evenings. Please join with us in praying that this foundational doctrinal teaching will help each person’s faith to be strengthened.
It is crazy to think of how fast the time has gone since we arrived in Honduras in 2018. In February of 2019 we were able to obtain a 5 year residency visa. Well, February 2024 completed those 5 years (crazy how fast that came), so in January we started working with our lawyer to renew our legal residency status. This time we hope to receive a permanent residency visa, and everything was submitted to apply for it. While we wait for this application process to be completed we will be going monthly to the immigration office to receive an extension and new stamps for our passports. Our lawyer told us that he is anticipating it will take almost a year for our application to be approved. So that means we will be needing extensions monthly until it is approved. Please join us in praying that there will not be complications and that it would be completed even before the 12 month period. Thank you again for your prayers for us.
PRAYER REQUESTS- Please pray that we will be able to receive our new residency visas quickly, and for patience as we wait.
- Pray for the Saturday morning Bible Clubs, that there would be receptive hearts in these children.
- Please pray also for me as I teach another section of the theology class we offer at church. That the study would strengthen the faith of the believers.
- Thank you for your continued prayers for wisdom as we grow in our understanding of Type 1 diabetes, and how to best help Blake.
From Honduras,
Nate and Cori, with Mykenzie, Grant, Blake and Savanna
McCoy Family's Prayer Letter (February 2024)Praises- Many Gospel opportunities
- New rental house
- Projects moving forward
- Prayer Requests
- Gospel go forth
- Get moved and settled
- Upcoming trips to work out
- My Dad – salvation
Nehemiah 2:18Then I told them of the hand of my God which was good upon me; as also the king’s words that he had spoken unto me. And they said, let us rise up and build. So they strengthened their hands for his good work.
Nehemiah heard of the despair that Jerusalem was in through a family member. The walls were in ruins and the city was without protection. He was moved to do something about it and got to work right away praying first and then speaking to his boss. At the end of the day his boss gave him leave with pay and men and materials to go do the work that needed doing. Once there Nehemiah shared with the people how God had worked and provided to rebuild the walls. The people got on board and committed themselves to do their part. We have that same great God today and he is able and wanting to do what seems impossible in us and through us for his name’s sake and glory and for our good. Every ministry and local church has difficulties and projects that seem impossible to get started and then see to completion. We can be the hands and the feet like the people with Nehemiah and get it done.
We had a couple of big disappointments right out of the gate in 2024. The relief trip to Israel got canceled mostly due to the escalation of fighting in the surrounding areas we were to visit. Ultimately we work for the Lord and he can direct us as he sees fit. Not always fun or something we understand but onward and forward and on to the next thing we go. The property we have been praying about in the Bahamas has come to a standstill and its uncertain now if that will happen. Again, it’s all in the Lords hands and if it’s His will and plan it will work out in His timing. We are in the planning stage of an evangelistic tour through several of the other islands and also waiting for the health minister’s approval for a medical/dental clinic on two of the islands. On our housing situation we did get the keys to the new rental house and can begin moving in the next few days. We will have the whole month to get it done so plan to do a little at the time. There is no shed or parking cover or anyplace for storage so we hope to get a container and some temporary awnings to make it all work for now.
We continue to help local churches with miscellaneous training and their building needs. Right now we have two new construction projects and two remodel projects that we have committed to and are helping with. We help with permitting and associated legal paperwork and with finding sub-contractors and volunteers and as we can go and help physically a few days here and there. Victory Springs Independent Baptist has the windows and doors all in and footers poured for the metal framing and brickwork at the drive through entrance. The church has used a CPA to put a package together to seek a construction loan to speed up the process and hopefully finish the building this year. Grace Bible Baptist is moving forward and has prices for windows and doors and is working on finishing the interior framing and doing the grunt work for the sub-contractors and volunteers to begin the plumbing and electrical rough-ins. Missionary builders are on schedule to come and help as soon as they finish another project. Vision Baptist has purchased their metal building package and is waiting for final drawings to apply for the permit. First Baptist Ocoee met with an architect and is in the design phase. A lot going on and we are loving all the parts we can assist these churches with.
We did get to spend a few days in Alabama with dear friends relaxing and recharging and a little hunting, too. It was a good time had by all and much needed time to get encouraged and a little more wind in our sails to keep going. In ourselves we are nothing and nobody, but in Jesus we are children of the Most High God and King, and have all those rights and privileges and are so thankful he would use us in his kingdom’s work. Thank you all for your prayers and gifts and the encouragement we receive on a regular basis. Teamwork is the key.
In Christ,
Kevin, Sonya, Bethany, and Jon McCoy
Training Center International
Email: Mccoysincostarica@yahoo.com
Kevin (850) 777-0097
Sonya (850) 698-1694
The Mortensons' News (February 2024)Dear Family and Friends,
We hope that you all are well and enjoying the presence of the Lord in your lives. Thank you so much for your prayers for us, we are thankful for what God is doing. January has been a full month, but full in normal ways. We have been able to start back to our Saturday morning Bible clubs in the neighborhoods near the church. At both locations the kids were very excited that we are starting up again. Our hope is that these children will grasp the truth of the gospel and be used of God in the years to come.
February is always a busy month for us as we get ready for outreach opportunities specifically with Medical Missions Outreach. This year we have 5 surgical teams planned to come. The first one will arrive the first week of March and we already have potential patients coming in to get patient files created and initial physical screenings done. Please pray that as we minister through medicine, we will clearly show the love of Christ, and that the patients we minster to will be open as we share the good news of salvation in Jesus.
Also in February, we help host an enrichment conference at our church for other English-speaking missionaries located here in Central America. The conference is designed to be a time of rest and fellowship around the Word of God. Our guest speaker this year is Pastor Tate Throndson from Colorado. The conference starts tonight and concludes on Saturday morning. So please pray for those that will be traveling locally and that the preaching will encourage all of us.
We are also thankful for Cori’s parents who are visiting with us for the conference again this year. They will be with us for 2 weeks and we are thankful for their extended flexibility now that Cori’s Dad has retired. At the end of the month my parents will also get the chance to visit again. It has been 2 years since seeing my parents and so we are thankful for that time as well.
As I close I wanted to give one other quick update on Pastor Daniel Pineda and the new church plant on the other side of town. They have had good attendance as they have held services now for about 3 months already. Last Sunday they had a vision and charter service, with many forming official membership in the new church. Please continue to pray for the Lord’s blessing, and that they would continue to grow, numerically and spiritually.
Thank you again for your prayers for us.
Prayer & Praise:- Pray for the missionary enrichment conference that we have here at our church. Pray that all in attendance will be encouraged by the Word of God.
- Pray for the Saturday morning Bible Clubs, that there would be receptive hearts in these children.
- Please pray also for me as I teach another section of the theology class we offer at church. That the study would strengthen the faith of the believers.
- Thank you for your continued prayers for wisdom as we grow in our understanding of Type 1 diabetes, and how to best help Blake.
From Honduras,
Nate and Cori, with Mykenzie, Grant, Blake and Savanna
The Valbuenas’ Latest Update (January 2024)Dear Friends,
I trust you are well. Since our last newsletter the devil has tried to test our faith. We have had some challenges with some of the older children and staff, however, God’s providence rises above our expectations! Without delving deeper into the situation, we have had to part ways with three of our homegrown missionaries, and one staff of Subic Bay Children’s Home because of biblical indifferences which led to disciplinary action. We covet your prayers for us as we navigate through these obstacles that the devil has brought to our ministry. Also, please continue to pray for the children and staff in our home as it has also affected them. We need your prayers for us as we have had to deal with the emotional pain brought about by this great disappointment.
On a more uplifting note, God is truly in the business of blessing! Our new Solar generated electricity has been installed and working. It has helped with our monthly expenses tremendously, and we no longer have to deal with blackouts. Oh, what a joy and blessing! We are overwhelmed with appreciation for those who sacrificed to make this possible for us. Another praise report is God’s provision of two new social workers and a new teacher for the children’s home.
We now have three new mission church buildings up and running. We can hardly believe it! We have prayed for this for years, and the Lord has answered our prayers by providing the funds, for not only one, but three buildings, and three more! This is just the beginning and the Lord is raising up many more young men as pastors and missionaries!
Our son Timothy, the director of our AMAGOH ministry, is currently in Houston, Texas. The AMAGOH ministry started out as our bible basketball ministry. AMAGOH is an acronym for “A Man After God’s Own Heart.” Timothy is taking that ministry to another level to include more sports to reach more young people with the gospel. Please keep him and his young family in your prayers. This is his first time to be away from his wife, Bianca, and their two daughters and the AMAGOH ministry which is very dear to his heart. He is working at a company in Deer Park, TX during the week and on Sundays he is available to visit churches and present the AMAGOH ministry. Timothy’s return to the Philippines is on March 20th.
The Valbuenas
Your missionaries to Subic Bay Philippines
The McCoys Start 2024 (January 2024)
Praises:- Salvations
- Christmas box outreach
- Found another rental
- Kids/grandkids together for Christmas
Prayer Requests- Gospel/witness opportunities
- Pack/move/settle
- Church buildings move fwd
- Buy our own land
Acts 20:35I have shewed you all things, how that so laboring ye ought to support the weak, and to remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he said, It is more blessed to give than to receive.
Words of the apostle Paul and definitely a practitioner of what he preached. After his conversion to Christianity he went all in all the time in giving of himself for the work of the gospel and serving his fellow man.
December started out with the delivery of 1000 plus shoe-box sized Christmas presents sent to us by AJ @ Emission-Air Inc. AJ sent the boxes out to several local churches to be filled with all sorts of goodies, but most importantly gospel tracts, John and Romans scripture portions, and bibles. Once filled, they were collected and trucked from North Carolina to us in Florida. We then, through the help of dozens in our church and from the Pastor on down, set up several dates and places to hand out the presents. It was no doubt more blessed to give than to receive – at a jeep/car show, and a community park, and a food distribution center, and a local Winn Dixie grocery store. Four locations over a two week span and over 1000 people being given the gospel by either preaching or tracts or personal witness. Several called on the Lord for salvation and others were counseled while not making a decision at that time. Some have visited our church already. What an outreach in our area.
Talking with a couple of the Pastors in Costa Rica the training center is doing well and picking up speed. Some of the students have been laying floor tile and pouring concrete at a local church using their knowledge and backs to help the church finish construction of their new auditorium. One instructor reports he has enrolled six new students for the next semester. We are very proud of these men and their commitment to train the next generation to be laborers physically and spiritually.
The new church building at Victory Springs Independent Baptist Church is on hold for now as we wait on the Lord to provide the funds for the next phase. It will happen in his way and time. Grace Bible Baptist Church has continued to work on walls and misc. and will be doing a lot of their own grunt work in preparation of the electrician and plumber beginning their rough work. Building missionaries will arrive soon and supply labor as needed, too. We met with Vision Baptist Church in Crestview, Florida after talking for a few years about a new auditorium. They have been working hard on getting land clearing it and all the things they could do themselves, now we can help with permitting and coordination of the other moving parts. They are a recent new church plant going and growing in a spiritual desert.
After getting word our rental lease would expire with no renewal we went to work looking for another suitable place in the same town. As is his way God provided us with more than we were asking for and long before we needed it. We will get the keys in a couple of weeks and start to move a little at the time over the next month or so and continue juggling our other things. We had all four of our kids and all three grandkids at our house for a few days after Christmas. What a blessing for us all to be together even just for a few days.
We want to thank you all for your love and generosity toward us. Your prayers and partnerships are making a difference in lives and other cultures spiritually and physically and for that we are grateful and count it our privilege and reasonable service to represent you and our Lord Jesus Christ as we go. Happy New Year!!!
In Christ,
Kevin, Sonya, Bethany, and Jon McCoy
Training Center International
Email: Mccoysincostarica@yahoo.com
Kevin 850 777-0097
Sonya 850 698-1694
The Mortensons' New Year Letter (January 2024)Dear Family and Friends,
Happy New Year! It is crazy to think that we are already in 2024. The new year reminds us that we have new opportunities to serve the King of kings and the Lord of lords. What a privilege to serve our wonderful Savior. Also with the new year we are reminded to recommit ourselves to the Lord. One of the dangers of being a living sacrifice is that we can climb back off of the alter, if you know what I mean. I am thankful that every new year I naturally have a reminder to, anew and afresh, commit my life to Him. That is certainly our desire and we hope that it is yours as well.
We had a wonderful Christmas season which included several special Christmas activities as a church and some Christmas activities as Team Honduras (the American missionaries serving together here). We also enjoyed the visit of some dear friends from our sending church in Florida. It was fun for us to be able to share some of the exciting parts of living in Honduras with our friends.
Getting into the new year, we are restarting our Saturday morning Bible clubs in the neighborhoods surrounding the church. We always take a break in November and December because it is the rainy season here and the soccer fields that we use are typically very muddy during the rainy season. But we are looking forward to getting back into a good rhythm and are thankful for the opportunity to minister to the kids in both of these neighborhoods.
Cori and the kids are jumping back into homeschooling. We are targeting to finish the school year a little earlier this year because of several events that will be in the first part of the summer. The kids have been working diligently to meet this goal and so are excited to be ahead of their friends, in terms of lessons completed. It is kind of silly but they are enjoying that aspect of the school schedule this year.
Thank you for your partnership with us both in prayer and financially. May the Lord continue to bless you all in this new year.
Prayer & Praise:- Pray for God’s grace and presence to be evident in all that we do.
- Pray for the Saturday morning Bible Clubs, that there would be receptive hearts in these children.
- Thank you for your continued prayers for wisdom as we grow in our understanding of Type 1 diabetes, and how to best help Blake.
- Praise the Lord for a wonderful Christmas and the opportunities in this new year.
Until He comes,
Nate and Cori, with Mykenzie, Grant, Blake and Savanna
