The Lord was gracious to us yesterday, bringing to the morning service a faithful group of neighborhood people and giving good opportunity to preach the gospel. All showed initiative either to come alone or (in one case) to call for a ride. This was not our last time to participate, but we do have the sense that we are turning a corner of transition.
The next three Sundays we plan to visit churches in coastal South Carolina, Florida, and Georgia. On January 13 we will present the work in Uruguay to our home church.
Please pray for adequate preparation for our trip to Uruguay in February and for a profitable time there.
Monday, December 28, 2009
Sunday, December 13, 2009
Notes and requests for prayer: 13 December 2009
Returned to Iglesia Bautista Monte Calvario this morning after several weeks away. Good attendance. Preached from Luke's account of Gabriel's annunciation to Mary: God kept His promises to David, to David's house, to Zechariah and Elizabeth, to Mary. He will keep His promise to those who take refuge in His Son, the King (Luke 1; 2 Samuel 7; Isaiah 7; Psalm 2).
Met a Uruguayan man from Maldonado tonight. He and his girlfriend have been attending Morningside (English service) for a couple of months. Apparently unsaved. Please pray.
Jonatán will begin his next round of chemotherapy at the end of the week, after his first semester exams.
Good opportunity this past week for a few words of the gospel with a man with whom I spend a lot of time at work.
Met a Uruguayan man from Maldonado tonight. He and his girlfriend have been attending Morningside (English service) for a couple of months. Apparently unsaved. Please pray.
Jonatán will begin his next round of chemotherapy at the end of the week, after his first semester exams.
Good opportunity this past week for a few words of the gospel with a man with whom I spend a lot of time at work.
Saturday, November 28, 2009
Fall Report 2009
Bless the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits (Ps 103:2).
Dear Friends,
We trust that God continues to cause everything that touches your life to conform you into the image of His Son!
Our pastor has encouraged us to list God’s specific “benefits,” and we have chosen such a format for this report. We acknowledge these to be God’s work. (Ultimately we would not want to report on the work of anyone else.)
In September we made a brief trip to Ohio for our first two meetings. Since then God has continued to bless us with several encouraging services in churches here in the Carolinas. We sense in every case that these churches have given to us their commendation and that the Lord’s people desire to see us serving in Uruguay. This is a direct answer to prayer (Acts 13:1-4; Romans 10:15). We are thankful for this privilege of taking part in local church ministry and of sharing information about the ministry in Uruguay.
In October God graciously spared the life of Felipe, who survived a nearly fatal gunshot wound. He and María appear to be close to receiving the Lord Jesus. This family (with their young daughter, Brandy) regularly attend the Sunday morning Spanish service at Mount Calvary Baptist Church.
The Guatemalan family that we mentioned in our summer report continues periodically to attend.
God gave strength to Jonatán to undergo the first stage of chemotherapy this fall. He answered prayer this past week for successful surgery to remove the tumor and to partially replace the bone and shoulder.
Grandma Saberniak’s homegoing and Jonatán’s surgery provided extra time with our parents as they visited from Carriacou (Harbour Light of the Windwards) and Uruguay (church-planting in Pando).
The Lord has given us opportunity to begin short-term ministry in Uruguay during the month of February 2010. I will be preaching and teaching in the summer family camp and the EMU workers’ conference. We also hope to use this time to make as many preparations as possible for our upcoming permanent move.
We expect a year full of travel and of time spent with churches here in the United States and Canada. We thank the Lord for upcoming meetings scheduled and for those yet to be scheduled.
We continue our jobs in Greenville and are thankful for our employers. We look forward to the upcoming transition to full-time deputation and to ministry in Uruguay.
These blessings imply our need for God’s continued work. We thank Him (and you) in advance for your prayers! Please let us know how we might pray for you.
Assisting Uruguayan churches in evangelism and ministry training,
John Mark, Deborah, and Elizabeth Steel
Tuesday, November 24, 2009
Request for prayer: Jonatán
Jonatán’s surgery to remove the tumor is this morning (Tuesday) at 11 a.m. It is expected to last five hours. Please pray for successful surgery (if necessary, for God could heal him without it!), for complete healing from the surgery, and for no recurrence of the cancer.
Saturday, November 14, 2009
Requests for prayer: 14 November 2009
Today we drive to Linville, NC, to spend time with Faith Baptist Church; we will return tomorrow evening.
Uruguay's run-off elections are scheduled for the last Sunday of this month (29th).
Jonatán's surgery is tentatively scheduled for Tuesday, 24 November; his grandparents, Don and Pat Garwood, are visiting him from Uruguay. (You can read the latest update on Jonatán here.)
Effective ministry of Harbour Light of the Windwards and of Windward Bible Church.
Love for God with an undivided heart!
Uruguay's run-off elections are scheduled for the last Sunday of this month (29th).
Jonatán's surgery is tentatively scheduled for Tuesday, 24 November; his grandparents, Don and Pat Garwood, are visiting him from Uruguay. (You can read the latest update on Jonatán here.)
Effective ministry of Harbour Light of the Windwards and of Windward Bible Church.
Love for God with an undivided heart!
Saturday, October 24, 2009
Requests for prayer: 24 October 2009
As you pray for your own services tomorrow, please remember several other things:
Evangelistic services at Iglesia Bautista Nuevo Amanecer (Greenville, SC) (with Roberto Nieto), which end tomorrow morning. We will have opportunity to present the work in Uruguay as well.
The morning service at Iglesia Bautista Monte Calvario (Greenville, SC).
Services at Windward Bible Church (Carriacou, Grenada).
Services at Iglesia Bíblica Maranatha (Pando, Canelones, Uruguay).
Elections are held tomorrow (Sunday, 25 October) in Uruguay. The Latin American trend to the left may continue, but all authority in heaven and earth will remain with Jesus Christ (Matt. 28:18). Please pray for the furtherance of His kingdom as a result of Uruguay’s elections.
Our nephew Jonatán is in the hospital this weekend for his next round of chemotherapy.
Sunday, October 11, 2009
Request for prayer: Felipe
Felipe and María are a Guatemalan couple who have often come to Iglesia Bautista Monte Calvario (our church’s Sunday morning Spanish service). Felipe and a companion were shot when two men attempted to rob them this past weekend. We understand that Felipe is stable but has lost an eye. He is fortunate to be alive. Please pray that the Lord would continue to use this to expand the preaching of His Word. We don’t know whether Felipe and María have fully understood the gospel.
A picnic planned for this coming Saturday evening (17 October) will undoubtedly give opportunity for conversation with many.
A picnic planned for this coming Saturday evening (17 October) will undoubtedly give opportunity for conversation with many.
Sunday, September 27, 2009
Ohio and Indiana
I don’t know how large the church in Antioch was, although I suspect it outgrew any home in which it may have met. I do know, though, that the church in North America is quite large and rather spread out—which makes more difficult our part in imitating the Acts 13 model! We are very thankful for the encouraging time spent with the Lord’s people in Ohio and Indiana during the past week or two. We were genuinely blessed and strengthened by our time with them. I trust that, as we attempt to serve among local churches, God will make clear to them His calling and leading in our lives—in a way that echoes His words in Antioch: “Set them apart for the work to which I have called them!”
My grandmother is now with Jesus. She no longer needs her wheelchair, and my dad crushed her pills to powder. In a mere breath we won’t need ours. Nor will we be able to return to seize the precious opportunities that now abound around us. A small plaque that used to hang in Grandpa’s and Grandma’s bedroom quotes David Livingstone and Paul:
“Only one life—
’Twill soon be past,
Only what’s done
For Christ will last.
‘To me to live is Christ.’”
And having been there ten days (“bright shining as the sun”!), Grandma would certainly add, with Paul, that “to die is gain.”
My grandmother is now with Jesus. She no longer needs her wheelchair, and my dad crushed her pills to powder. In a mere breath we won’t need ours. Nor will we be able to return to seize the precious opportunities that now abound around us. A small plaque that used to hang in Grandpa’s and Grandma’s bedroom quotes David Livingstone and Paul:
“Only one life—
’Twill soon be past,
Only what’s done
For Christ will last.
‘To me to live is Christ.’”
And having been there ten days (“bright shining as the sun”!), Grandma would certainly add, with Paul, that “to die is gain.”
Monday, September 14, 2009
Assisting Uruguayan Churches in Evangelism and Ministry Training
Thank you for your interest in the work of the Kingdom in Uruguay! There is a wide door of opportunity open for us there, and we are excited about the privilege of serving Jesus Christ in this part of His harvest field.
Our goal is to assist and strengthen the Uruguayan churches in some of the following ways:
Ministry training: This will take place first within EMU’s F.V. DABOLD BIBLE INSTITUTE. We then expect to partner with Uruguayan pastors and leaders in the long-term development of a BIBLE COLLEGE PROGRAM, for those desiring training beyond the institute level. We view this as the major focal point of our ministry.
Gabriel Gómez, director of the Bible institute, has written the following to me: “My concern is that after a student finishes the Bible institute . . . he then has no other possibility of continuing to study and to deepen his knowledge. . . . This is my own personal burden; I myself desire to be able to continue studying, and I believe that all of us here would benefit greatly.”
Evangelism and discipleship: We desire to strengthen churches and church planting efforts, with the goal of equipping believers and promoting mature, trained national leadership. Two immediate needs include Iglesia Bautista Fundamental Siloé (Siloam Fundamental Baptist Church), an EMU church currently without a pastor, and Iglesia Bíblica Maranatha (Maranatha Bible Church) in Pando, a church being planted by Deborah's father, Don Garwood (of Maranatha Bible Missions). Opportunities include preaching, Sunday school teaching, neighborhood visitation, and youth ministry. Finally, we look forward to involvement in Camp Emmanuel during Uruguay's summer (January and February).
By serving in the local churches and camp ministry, we hope to strengthen these works by equipping and encouraging believers to take their place in the ministry. This will also provide opportunity to evangelize and will give us valuable experience in the ministry.
We are prepared to begin work immediately upon arrival in Uruguay: the Lord has given us knowledge of Uruguayan culture and experience with the Spanish language. Please pray that the Lord would use us to further His purposes both here in the United States and Canada, and in the future in South America!
Our goal is to assist and strengthen the Uruguayan churches in some of the following ways:
Ministry training: This will take place first within EMU’s F.V. DABOLD BIBLE INSTITUTE. We then expect to partner with Uruguayan pastors and leaders in the long-term development of a BIBLE COLLEGE PROGRAM, for those desiring training beyond the institute level. We view this as the major focal point of our ministry.
Gabriel Gómez, director of the Bible institute, has written the following to me: “My concern is that after a student finishes the Bible institute . . . he then has no other possibility of continuing to study and to deepen his knowledge. . . . This is my own personal burden; I myself desire to be able to continue studying, and I believe that all of us here would benefit greatly.”
Evangelism and discipleship: We desire to strengthen churches and church planting efforts, with the goal of equipping believers and promoting mature, trained national leadership. Two immediate needs include Iglesia Bautista Fundamental Siloé (Siloam Fundamental Baptist Church), an EMU church currently without a pastor, and Iglesia Bíblica Maranatha (Maranatha Bible Church) in Pando, a church being planted by Deborah's father, Don Garwood (of Maranatha Bible Missions). Opportunities include preaching, Sunday school teaching, neighborhood visitation, and youth ministry. Finally, we look forward to involvement in Camp Emmanuel during Uruguay's summer (January and February).
By serving in the local churches and camp ministry, we hope to strengthen these works by equipping and encouraging believers to take their place in the ministry. This will also provide opportunity to evangelize and will give us valuable experience in the ministry.
We are prepared to begin work immediately upon arrival in Uruguay: the Lord has given us knowledge of Uruguayan culture and experience with the Spanish language. Please pray that the Lord would use us to further His purposes both here in the United States and Canada, and in the future in South America!
Tuesday, September 8, 2009
East Tennessee
We have begun a more active travel schedule as we prepare for work in Uruguay. Sunday’s visit to Boones Creek Bible Church in Johnson City, Tennessee, was an encouragement to us. We were shown kind hospitality and were given opportunity in the evening service to say a few words about our plans. We anticipate a lengthier meeting with them in April of next year.
On the way down the mountain, a stop at a 24-hour restaurant for a cup of coffee and a bite to eat lasted almost two hours. The kid who cleaned the tables appeared to prefer doing it a little bit at a time. A middle-aged waitress apparently had been there for many, many hours. Another girl left work crying, her father dying in the hospital. A young waitress (Elizabeth in 15 to 20 years) worked while a she-could-have-done-better-than-that guy smoked a cigarette outside, waiting for her to finish. The customers in the seats and booths with their haircuts and body piercing filled in the poignant picture of humanity. I am hopeful that the Lord will give us opportunity both to challenge churches to reach their cities, and to have a part in doing so ourselves as we travel. In Asheville we had an hour left to drive, and the gas station attendant had another seven to work—time enough to read a gospel tract.
Pity the nations, O our God, constrain the earth to come;
Send thy victorious word abroad, and bring the strangers home.
(Isaac Watts)
Jesus, when he came out, saw much people, and was moved with compassion toward them, because they were as sheep not having a shepherd . . .
(Mark 6:34)
On the way down the mountain, a stop at a 24-hour restaurant for a cup of coffee and a bite to eat lasted almost two hours. The kid who cleaned the tables appeared to prefer doing it a little bit at a time. A middle-aged waitress apparently had been there for many, many hours. Another girl left work crying, her father dying in the hospital. A young waitress (Elizabeth in 15 to 20 years) worked while a she-could-have-done-better-than-that guy smoked a cigarette outside, waiting for her to finish. The customers in the seats and booths with their haircuts and body piercing filled in the poignant picture of humanity. I am hopeful that the Lord will give us opportunity both to challenge churches to reach their cities, and to have a part in doing so ourselves as we travel. In Asheville we had an hour left to drive, and the gas station attendant had another seven to work—time enough to read a gospel tract.
Pity the nations, O our God, constrain the earth to come;
Send thy victorious word abroad, and bring the strangers home.
(Isaac Watts)
Jesus, when he came out, saw much people, and was moved with compassion toward them, because they were as sheep not having a shepherd . . .
(Mark 6:34)
Monday, August 31, 2009
Summer Report 2009
Dear Friends,
Thank you for your prayers for us during this past summer! We are conscious of our need for God’s work to continue both in our own hearts and in the hearts of those with whom we have contact. We are aware of our inadequacy and of God’s unlimited power to answer our prayers and to meet each need. Please pray that we would seek the Lord alone, with a heart that is completely devoted to Him (2 Chron. 14-16). And if you have never sought God—trusting His Son alone for forgiveness and discarding all other idols in favor of Him—please come to Him now!
We are thankful for a good Neighborhood Bible School this past summer and for much seed that was sown during that week. We know of one sixth-grade girl (in Deborah’s class) who professed faith in Christ. Please pray for God’s continued working in these young lives.
Another recent encouragement has come from a young Guatemalan family that we have known for many years. This summer they began coming to Mount Calvary Baptist Church’s Sunday morning Spanish service. Please pray for continued interest and for the salvation of this family.
We continue to make contact with churches and will be visiting a number of them this fall, especially during September and October. Our desire as we visit is that the Lord would confirm our calling in the hearts of His people (Acts 13:2-4; Rom. 10:15) and that many would labor with us in prayer. We will need the Lord’s help in ministry and protection in travel during this time of preparation for work in Uruguay. Two other prayer requests include profitable devotional time and opportunities for witness, specifically in our current places of work.
In June our good friends Matías and Kristine Espinel were accepted by EMU International to serve alongside us and the churches in Uruguay. Their focus, like ours, will be the training of Uruguayan workers. Our desire is to see the development of a college-level program to serve the faithful churches and pastors in Uruguay. The Espinels have begun sharing this burden in churches and have a busy schedule of meetings planned. Please pray for them as you pray for us!
Some of you are aware of our nephew Jonatán Torres’ battle with aggressive osteosarcoma cancer. We are praying for his complete healing and for God’s glory. Jonatán lives in Greenville, SC, and his father pastors Iglesia Bautista Calvario (in Greer). But as a grandson of a long-time Uruguayan pastor (on his father’s side) and of a long-time church-planting missionary (on his mother’s side), Jonatán’s situation affects many of the people with whom we look forward to serving in Uruguay. Please contact us if you would like specific information on how to pray for Jonatán.
Thank you for your prayer and support. May we be faithful with the short time that remains to us!
John Mark, Deborah, and Elizabeth Steel
Thank you for your prayers for us during this past summer! We are conscious of our need for God’s work to continue both in our own hearts and in the hearts of those with whom we have contact. We are aware of our inadequacy and of God’s unlimited power to answer our prayers and to meet each need. Please pray that we would seek the Lord alone, with a heart that is completely devoted to Him (2 Chron. 14-16). And if you have never sought God—trusting His Son alone for forgiveness and discarding all other idols in favor of Him—please come to Him now!
We are thankful for a good Neighborhood Bible School this past summer and for much seed that was sown during that week. We know of one sixth-grade girl (in Deborah’s class) who professed faith in Christ. Please pray for God’s continued working in these young lives.
Another recent encouragement has come from a young Guatemalan family that we have known for many years. This summer they began coming to Mount Calvary Baptist Church’s Sunday morning Spanish service. Please pray for continued interest and for the salvation of this family.
We continue to make contact with churches and will be visiting a number of them this fall, especially during September and October. Our desire as we visit is that the Lord would confirm our calling in the hearts of His people (Acts 13:2-4; Rom. 10:15) and that many would labor with us in prayer. We will need the Lord’s help in ministry and protection in travel during this time of preparation for work in Uruguay. Two other prayer requests include profitable devotional time and opportunities for witness, specifically in our current places of work.
In June our good friends Matías and Kristine Espinel were accepted by EMU International to serve alongside us and the churches in Uruguay. Their focus, like ours, will be the training of Uruguayan workers. Our desire is to see the development of a college-level program to serve the faithful churches and pastors in Uruguay. The Espinels have begun sharing this burden in churches and have a busy schedule of meetings planned. Please pray for them as you pray for us!
Some of you are aware of our nephew Jonatán Torres’ battle with aggressive osteosarcoma cancer. We are praying for his complete healing and for God’s glory. Jonatán lives in Greenville, SC, and his father pastors Iglesia Bautista Calvario (in Greer). But as a grandson of a long-time Uruguayan pastor (on his father’s side) and of a long-time church-planting missionary (on his mother’s side), Jonatán’s situation affects many of the people with whom we look forward to serving in Uruguay. Please contact us if you would like specific information on how to pray for Jonatán.
Thank you for your prayer and support. May we be faithful with the short time that remains to us!
John Mark, Deborah, and Elizabeth Steel
Monday, June 1, 2009
Spring Report 2009
Dear Friends,
Thank you for your prayers! We are thankful to the Lord for His goodness to us. Since the beginning of the year we have continued working our jobs in Greenville – at the Reynolds Company and The Kidder Group – while beginning to schedule meetings in churches to share the work we anticipate in Uruguay. The Lord has given opportunity for periodic preaching in the Greenville Rescue Mission and for song leading and occasional preaching in Iglesia Bautista Monte Calvario, our church’s neighborhood Spanish outreach. For fourteen weeks I also had the privilege of teaching a church music course in the small Bible college at Iglesia Bautista de la Fe, a Spanish church here in Greenville.
We expect this summer’s activities to include neighborhood evangelism, preparation for meetings this fall (including preparing information to share), and continuing to establish relationships with churches. To date we have meetings scheduled in Ohio, South Carolina, North Carolina, Tennessee, and Georgia.
During these last months Deborah has tutored several students in Spanish, a job which led to her helping set up a trip to Uruguay for one of her students. Her student Matthew is currently in Uruguay visiting several missionaries and churches there, taking advantage of opportunities to improve his Spanish and to serve. He will be in Pando with Deborah’s parents for part of this time.
We would appreciate your prayers for the following requests this summer:
- The Lord’s working in and through Matthew during his visit to Uruguay through the end of June.
- Effective ministry in Mount Calvary Baptist Church’s annual Neighborhood Bible School here in Greenville, SC, the week of July 13 through 17; we will both be teaching. Please pray especially for the salvation of lost children who come.
- Genuine understanding, conversion, and growth in the lives of many who attend the weekly neighborhood Spanish service.
- The Lord’s guidance in the establishing of relationships with churches during this period of deputation.
May the Lord bless your service to Him!
John Mark, Deborah, and Elizabeth Steel
Saturday, May 23, 2009
Winter Report 2009
This was sent earlier (March 15, 2009) via e-mail; a new update should be posted soon.
Winter 2009
Dear Friends,
We trust that the Lord is continuing His work in each of you, as He has promised to those who know Him by faith in Jesus Christ!
We are sending a letter of update to some who we hope will be part of a group that will labor with us in prayer as we continue to seek the Lord’s guidance and provision toward future work in Uruguay, South America.
In May of 2008 the Lord gave grace for me to finish seminary classes toward the Master of Divinity & Master of Church Music degrees from Bob Jones University Seminary. Following graduation Deborah, Elizabeth, and I traveled to Uruguay, where we were able to gather more information to help in planning for future ministry there. The Lord appears to have prepared us in specific ways for a door of opportunity that during this past year has opened wide for us in that country.
In late December we were accepted with EMU International as missionaries to Uruguay, where we anticipate serving the Lord by assisting the Uruguayan church in evangelism and ministry training. Since then we have begun to contact and visit Bible-believing churches that we think might be interested in joining us in this ministry. We hope that you will consider working with us by means of your prayers!
Please feel free to read our testimonies of salvation and of the Lord’s leading, posted here, where we expect to post periodic notes for those who may want to maintain contact with us in this way.
Please do pray for us. We have no hope of bearing fruit or of accomplishing anything for Christ’s kingdom without His provision of strength and help. Thank you!
In Christ,
John Mark and Deborah (and Elizabeth) Steel
Winter 2009
Dear Friends,
We trust that the Lord is continuing His work in each of you, as He has promised to those who know Him by faith in Jesus Christ!
We are sending a letter of update to some who we hope will be part of a group that will labor with us in prayer as we continue to seek the Lord’s guidance and provision toward future work in Uruguay, South America.
In May of 2008 the Lord gave grace for me to finish seminary classes toward the Master of Divinity & Master of Church Music degrees from Bob Jones University Seminary. Following graduation Deborah, Elizabeth, and I traveled to Uruguay, where we were able to gather more information to help in planning for future ministry there. The Lord appears to have prepared us in specific ways for a door of opportunity that during this past year has opened wide for us in that country.
In late December we were accepted with EMU International as missionaries to Uruguay, where we anticipate serving the Lord by assisting the Uruguayan church in evangelism and ministry training. Since then we have begun to contact and visit Bible-believing churches that we think might be interested in joining us in this ministry. We hope that you will consider working with us by means of your prayers!
Please feel free to read our testimonies of salvation and of the Lord’s leading, posted here, where we expect to post periodic notes for those who may want to maintain contact with us in this way.
Please do pray for us. We have no hope of bearing fruit or of accomplishing anything for Christ’s kingdom without His provision of strength and help. Thank you!
In Christ,
John Mark and Deborah (and Elizabeth) Steel
Wednesday, May 20, 2009
Ministry Reports
If you would be interested in receiving periodic reports and specific requests for prayer via e-mail, please comment here with an e-mail address. Your comments will not be posted, and your address will remain private. We plan to include reports here as well. Thank you for your prayers!
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
God's Grace to our Family
John Mark:
I thank God for the undeserved grace of being born into a Christian home. At an early age I professed faith in Jesus Christ, and before finishing elementary school I was baptized. Just before I started eighth grade, my family left Indiana for the West Indies where my parents began serving as radio missionaries on the island of Antigua. Those three years and 108 square miles were some of the most influential in my life. I began taking basic Spanish classes, compliments of the Venezuelan government and preparatory for service in Uruguay (though I had no knowledge of this at the time). Far more importantly, the Lord continued His undeserved working in my heart. After a period of resisting the idea of complete surrender to His will, I acknowledged His right to control my life. To use Isaac Watts’ words—words that played a part in my decision—I knew that “love so amazing . . . demands my soul, my life, my all.” In retrospect, that day may have been the day of my salvation; or the Lord may have saved me shortly after, when I sought to be sure that I had truly repented. A few years later I was re-baptized in Provo, Utah, where my family had moved to work with another missionary radio station.
In 1997 I graduated from Bob Jones University with an undergraduate degree in church music and a piano proficiency. By this point in my life I had told the Lord that I thought He might want me in some kind of “full-time Christian ministry.” I had also taken part in a three-week trip to Uruguay, an experience that had exposed me not only to the work of EMU International but also to the ministries of other faithful servants of the Lord in that country. One of these veteran missionary couples, the Garwoods, had a daughter who had helped to lead the mission team that I had been part of. My friendship with Deborah grew, and the following Christmas we helped to put together another student team that ministered for several weeks in Uruguay. We were married in 1999. We have lived in Greenville for the past ten years, during which time the Lord has continued to train me. This training has taken diverse forms: seminary and music classes, the preaching and teaching of our pastor, working a secular job in the community, participation in our church’s internship program, and involvement in the neighborhood outreach of Mt. Calvary Baptist Church. In May of 2008 I completed the Master of Divinity / Master of Church Music combination from BJU.
I desire generally to be involved in the process of making disciples of Jesus—that process of evangelism, teaching, and planting healthy national churches. Specifically, I want to help equip Uruguayan believers for the work of service and to have a part in training national leadership to carry on the work of the Church within Uruguay and beyond. We expect this to take place in the context of the EMU Bible institute in Montevideo and within the local churches around Uruguay. We look forward to encouraging the ministry of Deborah’s father as well. There is no question but that we will desperately need the Lord’s provision of grace, strength, and wisdom; and I ask you to pray for us. We want to do only what God Himself would choose to do through us. We want to bear the fruit that comes from abiding in Him. We must see His glory and are dependent upon His “establishing the work of our hands” (Psalm 90).
Deborah:
By God’s grace, I was privileged to grow up in a missionary home in Uruguay. My earliest memories include attending church and hearing the Gospel. When I was four, I professed faith in Christ on a family trip, visiting missionaries in Buenos Aires, Argentina. However, on a Sunday when I was ten, I realized that I remembered little of that trip and nothing about that profession, except what had later been recounted to me of what I had then said. Through my parents’ counsel and careful explanation from Scripture, I prayed that afternoon, asking God to forgive my sins and save my soul and telling Him that I desired to serve Him with my life. Various periods of doubt since then have helped me to refocus on Christ and on the fact that “believe” is not merely a punctual verb but essentially a stative verb. My mother often encouraged me with the truth that assurance of salvation depends neither on how I feel currently nor on anything I might have done (like pray the “right words”) but on Christ’s completed work on Calvary. I am trusting in His faithfulness and in His words:
“If you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved…”
In 1982 I was baptized in the Santa Lucía River in the department of Lavalleja. The Lord used the biblical teaching and godly examples of the staff at EMU’s camp in Uruguay to impact me as a teenager and encourage me at a pivotal point to grow in grace and in the knowledge of Christ. It was at Camp Emanuel when I was sixteen that I answered the challenge of missions after hearing the testimony of David Livingstone, pioneer missionary to Africa:
“Lord, send me anywhere; only go with me…
My Jesus, my King, my Christ, my All!
I again consecrate my life to Thee.”
In 1995 I graduated from Bob Jones University with a BA in French and Spanish. A year later, while on staff at BJU, the Lord allowed me to travel with a university mission team to Uruguay and meet the man who is now my best friend for life! The Lord kept the burden of missions before us, providing for us to travel to Mexico, Spain, and back to Uruguay, and giving us opportunity to be involved in several local Hispanic ministries as well. As John Mark persevered with his training, God continued to put Uruguay on our hearts and open doors of opportunity there. We rejoice in His leading!
In January 2006, the Lord granted us the desire of our hearts by sending Anna-Ruth Elizabeth, a wonderful answer to prayer and great joy to us, and we are continually thanking God for her. Elizabeth loves interacting with people, known and unknown, and has been a great addition to our ministries. We look forward to what the Lord will do in and through our family as we seek to glorify and serve Him on deputation and in Uruguay.
I thank God for the undeserved grace of being born into a Christian home. At an early age I professed faith in Jesus Christ, and before finishing elementary school I was baptized. Just before I started eighth grade, my family left Indiana for the West Indies where my parents began serving as radio missionaries on the island of Antigua. Those three years and 108 square miles were some of the most influential in my life. I began taking basic Spanish classes, compliments of the Venezuelan government and preparatory for service in Uruguay (though I had no knowledge of this at the time). Far more importantly, the Lord continued His undeserved working in my heart. After a period of resisting the idea of complete surrender to His will, I acknowledged His right to control my life. To use Isaac Watts’ words—words that played a part in my decision—I knew that “love so amazing . . . demands my soul, my life, my all.” In retrospect, that day may have been the day of my salvation; or the Lord may have saved me shortly after, when I sought to be sure that I had truly repented. A few years later I was re-baptized in Provo, Utah, where my family had moved to work with another missionary radio station.
In 1997 I graduated from Bob Jones University with an undergraduate degree in church music and a piano proficiency. By this point in my life I had told the Lord that I thought He might want me in some kind of “full-time Christian ministry.” I had also taken part in a three-week trip to Uruguay, an experience that had exposed me not only to the work of EMU International but also to the ministries of other faithful servants of the Lord in that country. One of these veteran missionary couples, the Garwoods, had a daughter who had helped to lead the mission team that I had been part of. My friendship with Deborah grew, and the following Christmas we helped to put together another student team that ministered for several weeks in Uruguay. We were married in 1999. We have lived in Greenville for the past ten years, during which time the Lord has continued to train me. This training has taken diverse forms: seminary and music classes, the preaching and teaching of our pastor, working a secular job in the community, participation in our church’s internship program, and involvement in the neighborhood outreach of Mt. Calvary Baptist Church. In May of 2008 I completed the Master of Divinity / Master of Church Music combination from BJU.
I desire generally to be involved in the process of making disciples of Jesus—that process of evangelism, teaching, and planting healthy national churches. Specifically, I want to help equip Uruguayan believers for the work of service and to have a part in training national leadership to carry on the work of the Church within Uruguay and beyond. We expect this to take place in the context of the EMU Bible institute in Montevideo and within the local churches around Uruguay. We look forward to encouraging the ministry of Deborah’s father as well. There is no question but that we will desperately need the Lord’s provision of grace, strength, and wisdom; and I ask you to pray for us. We want to do only what God Himself would choose to do through us. We want to bear the fruit that comes from abiding in Him. We must see His glory and are dependent upon His “establishing the work of our hands” (Psalm 90).
Deborah:
By God’s grace, I was privileged to grow up in a missionary home in Uruguay. My earliest memories include attending church and hearing the Gospel. When I was four, I professed faith in Christ on a family trip, visiting missionaries in Buenos Aires, Argentina. However, on a Sunday when I was ten, I realized that I remembered little of that trip and nothing about that profession, except what had later been recounted to me of what I had then said. Through my parents’ counsel and careful explanation from Scripture, I prayed that afternoon, asking God to forgive my sins and save my soul and telling Him that I desired to serve Him with my life. Various periods of doubt since then have helped me to refocus on Christ and on the fact that “believe” is not merely a punctual verb but essentially a stative verb. My mother often encouraged me with the truth that assurance of salvation depends neither on how I feel currently nor on anything I might have done (like pray the “right words”) but on Christ’s completed work on Calvary. I am trusting in His faithfulness and in His words:
“If you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved…”
In 1982 I was baptized in the Santa Lucía River in the department of Lavalleja. The Lord used the biblical teaching and godly examples of the staff at EMU’s camp in Uruguay to impact me as a teenager and encourage me at a pivotal point to grow in grace and in the knowledge of Christ. It was at Camp Emanuel when I was sixteen that I answered the challenge of missions after hearing the testimony of David Livingstone, pioneer missionary to Africa:
“Lord, send me anywhere; only go with me…
My Jesus, my King, my Christ, my All!
I again consecrate my life to Thee.”
In 1995 I graduated from Bob Jones University with a BA in French and Spanish. A year later, while on staff at BJU, the Lord allowed me to travel with a university mission team to Uruguay and meet the man who is now my best friend for life! The Lord kept the burden of missions before us, providing for us to travel to Mexico, Spain, and back to Uruguay, and giving us opportunity to be involved in several local Hispanic ministries as well. As John Mark persevered with his training, God continued to put Uruguay on our hearts and open doors of opportunity there. We rejoice in His leading!
In January 2006, the Lord granted us the desire of our hearts by sending Anna-Ruth Elizabeth, a wonderful answer to prayer and great joy to us, and we are continually thanking God for her. Elizabeth loves interacting with people, known and unknown, and has been a great addition to our ministries. We look forward to what the Lord will do in and through our family as we seek to glorify and serve Him on deputation and in Uruguay.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
