The News in Brief
Where are we?
- We’re in Missouri at the Missionary Training center.
What are we doing?
- We’re training to be missionaries (about 45 hours per week of classes and homework)
- We’re involved in a church in Camdenton
- Stephen is teaching at a Juvenile Detention Center
- Rachel is ministering to the ladies at a domestic violence shelter
What do we need?
- Prayer (Please look over our Prayer Requests)
- Finances to get through the training
Scroll down or click the links for details and pictures!
The Rest of the Story…
Our Life at the MTC
Why are we doing this? Read a little more about the ministry we plan to join on our blog.
Our life here in training has turned out to be even busier than Bible school. On top of classes and homework, we are responsible for 7.5 hours per week of work detail, and 8 hours of off-campus “ministry.” Throw in a 1- and 2-year-old, and things start feeling overwhelming. We have been grateful for the rest God has given us in the midst of this busy time. However, from time to time we, like Peter walking on the water, stop looking to Him and start looking at the waves around us, and that’s when we start to sink.
One result of our stress has been that Asa started to become more strong-willed, and wasn’t responding to any method of discipline we tried to use. After much counsel, and taking some time to de-stress ourselves, Rachel and I have been able to connect with him on a much deeper level, and he has been acting out less, and responding better to discipline. He’s even been sleeping better! Please pray for us, though as we continue to train him up in the way he should go. Naomi is also getting to the age where she needs correction, and as her daddy, I’m not very good at dealing with her tears, so we could use prayer as we train her as well.
Stephen’s Work at “The Jail”
Everyone in the training program is required to be on a “Ministry Team.” These teams have a specific place or context in which they minister, and they are usually made up entirely of students. That means we get together to decide what we should teach, how we should interact, when we should go, etc.
My ministry team goes to the Juvenile Detention Center (which Asa refers to as “The Jail”). It has been an incredible learning experience as me and three other students decide on the best ways to reach these kids. On one occasion, a boy (I’ll call him Jay) asked to talk after the lesson was over. He’s at a point in his life where God has brought him to his knees. He knows his life is going nowhere, and that God is the answer. Please pray for Jay as I try to get him connected with a church near his home when he gets out. And pray that I would give him the words he needs as he embarks on this journey to become a man of God (he is so excited about God’s Word right now!).
Our Financial Needs
As some of you know, Rachel and I spent the first 4 years of our marriage saving a third of our income in order to get us through Bible School and this training center. During Bible School I was able to work part time on several different jobs (some of which are continuing today, though with very limited hours), and last summer God provided a full-time job through a friend in Michigan. God has also provided through a few supporters who have been a tremendous blessing. But as we near the finish line, we have seen that our savings won’t quite carry us through, and that our time here is too tight for me to add any significant hours in the form of employment.
As a result of our financial situation, we’ve decided to begin raising support for our final semester here at the training center. According to our rough numbers, we’ll need to spend a total of $15,000 in the next 7 months (after which we can move back to Colorado and I have time for a job again, at least for a few months). This includes school, travel, and a bare bones budget. Subtract the $5,000 that we still have in savings, and that means we’ll need to raise $10,000. We’re trusting God to provide that money, but believe it’s our responsibility to make our needs known to the body of Christ. So please be praying for us as we prepare to ask churches and individuals to consider supporting us financially, in addition to the prayer support we’re already receiving.
Prayer Requests
- Patience and Wisdom in disciplining our children
- Good health for everyone so we can attend classes
- That Jay will keep his zeal for God’s Word and get involved in a local body of believers who will build him up in the faith
- Finances to finish our final semester of training
- Wisdom and faith for us as we ask people to support us financially