September 2022 Newsletter

Routine Much of August revolved around getting ourselves back into a school routine.  We just finished our fifth week of school and so far we are off to a great start.  Thank you for praying for our homeschool year!  You can pray specifically that I would have the patience, wisdom, balance, energy, and creativity that I need to do it well. David traveled for nearly two weeks during August. He was attending a training for the mission board. I appreciate your praying for our family during that time. We felt your prayers!  We welcomed him home with big smiles, tight hugs, and his favorite strawberry cake.

Welcome home, David! Coming Up- We have been busy making plans and preparations for our upcoming fall teams.  Our next team arrives on Saturday, September 17.  It is a group from First Baptist Church, Summit, MS.  One of the team members is a former youth ministry student of ours.  How exciting that he is coming to serve with us!  Pray for a safe and productive week of being on mission together. Also this month I will be starting back my weekly mom's fellowship group.  We will meet in my home on Wednesday afternoons.  Pray for an encouraging time as we gather each week. We have been blown away by the positive response from individuals and churches in regards to us being featured in this year's Lifeway VBS missions material.  It has opened doors of communication with churches that we would have otherwise never come in contact with.  Many have sent precious cards that the kids made and it was such an encouragement to our family to receive them!   Many churches gave their missions offering to our ministry here.  We cannot thank you enough for your generosity.  The IMB has set up an account to continue to receive funds that will support ongoing ministry in Guatemala. It is called Guatemala VBS: Designed for God.  Here is a link to learn more and give: https://www.imb.org/give/project/guatemala-vbs Service Opportunities: Is God calling you or someone you know to join our team full time in Guatemala?  Here are a few long term opportunities that are currently available. For more information on them you can contact Alfredo Valencia at avalencia@imb.org.     There are also several opportunities for college age students to serve. There are about 25 requests for the Hands On Spring semester and 30 requests for next summer's Summer Sojourner program (one of those is here in Guatemala with us).  Pass this information along to any students you know who might be interested in these requests.  The deadline to apply for Hands On is October 15, 2022 and the deadline to apply for Summer Sojourner is March 15, 2023.  For more information you can contact Janna Smith at JDSmith@imb.org. Join us in praying that God would call out the perfect matches for all of these available positions.   Here is a sample of some of the available student positions within the Americas: Thank you for praying for our family and being a source of encouragement to us. We are honored to represent Southern Baptists here on the mission field and without your gifts and support that would not be possible.  Thank you for praying!  Thank you for giving!  Because you give, we can go! www.imb.org Together, we seek to take the gospel to every nation, all tribes and peoples and languages. We give ourselves to this mission every day. You can help transform lives today. Will you join us?   Give today