October through December.
Our entire family are legal, permanent residents of Uruguay! Thank you for
praying over these past 3 ½ years. The Immigration Department recorded the
final decision on October 28. We are thankful.
In November, FEBU
and Bible institute students (including one graduating Bible institute student)
finished their semester of study. A couple FEBU students returned home for the
months of December through February. Two were married in December, thus forming
two more Christian families. Please pray for these students who represent an
important part of the future of the church in this region, the “Southern Cone”
of Uruguay, Argentina, and Chile.
Between October 19
and December 9 we visited our parents in FL and SC; and JM finished the course “Expository
Preaching in Ministry Context.” The class increased his appreciation for the
need for prayer and for the Holy Spirit’s intervention during preaching; honed his
understanding of such things as the proper use of cross-references in preaching
and what it means to preach Christ from all of Scripture; provided ideas for a
weekly sermon preparation plan; helped him develop a three-year preaching plan
for Iglesia Bíblica Maranatha; and
exposed him to Puritan practices of preaching and catechizing. Please pray for
wisdom in choosing a research topic that would benefit Uruguayan churches and
the FEBU and Bible institute programs.
During November and
December, E and DJ attended school in English, thanks to the kindness of teachers
and staff at Bob Jones Academy, who assimilated them for a month. Upon our
return to Uruguay, DJ graduated from kindergarten in a program that included his
speaking publicly—a big day for our family, given his struggles during these
years of required K4 and K5. Elizabeth finished fifth grade and—to our
surprise—was honored to be among those chosen to escort the Uruguayan flag for next
year’s school programs. Our Shepherd—though He would not have had to do so—has
demonstrated His trustworthiness in life changes that were in many ways out of
our control.
January through March. Please pray
for this year’s summer camps, represented in the brief calendar below.
Especially pray for several teens and young adults that might attend from Iglesia Bíblica Maranatha, our church in
Pando. Many of them have significant needs; the weeks of camp are often
encouraging times for them.
Facultad de Estudios
Bíblicos del Uruguay
(FEBU) (College of Biblical Studies of Uruguay).
By the time we report again in early April, FEBU will have started its fourth
year. Please pray for ongoing teacher training, the right students to return,
and adequate facilities to receive and train every single student God wants to
train in FEBU.
January 11-14—Staff training, Camp Emmanuel (JM
teaches several sessions)
January 16-21—Children’s camp, Camp Emmanuel
January 23-28—Older teen and young adult camp, Camp
Emmanuel (JM counsels)
January 30-February
4—Younger teen camp, Camp Emmanuel
(JM teaches morning sessions)
February 13—FEBU teacher training; election of new FEBU president (required
periodically by Uruguayan law)
February 20-23—EMU workers’ camp, Camp Emmanuel (D and
JM teach workers’ children)
March 2—E and DJ begin school
March
6—Beginning of FEBU school year (D
and JM teach Research and Argumentation; JM teaches Church Music)Thank you for praying!
