The Big 3-0

We celebrated the number "30" in two different ways this month and invite you to join us!

First, I (Ellen) turned 30 on August 2nd. Joel and I enjoyed a wonderful day, eating steak for lunch and going to our church's young adult game night together in the evening, thanks to Laura Bauer's gift of babysitting. It was a treat for me as I usually don't get to attend.

We also had a celebration with our friends later in the week. I decided on a superhero-themed murder mystery party for my 30th. Hey, I'm in youth ministry - don't tell me to grow up :-)

Below is a picture:

Secondly, we have finally reached 30% of our monthly support raised. Those last two percent stretched over several months but we are beginning to see some movement again. We wrote down another 100 names and inquired addresses. We sent 80 letters already and are beginning to make follow-up calls in hopes to meet or Skype with each of them. We have had a few chances to do so and gained 5 new supporters this month.

We invite you to celebrate God's faithfulness with us and ask you to pray for growing trust in His provision. And if you are not yet a part of our support team, we invite you to join our ministry through prayer or financial support.

We have over $5000 of monthly support left to raise. That is 50 supporters at $100 a month - or three churches supporting us at $500 a month and 70 families giving $50 a month. Any amount helps and will make an eternal difference.

Thank you for considering becoming part of our support team!

Baptisms

“Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins." Acts 2:38

Six believers took this step of obedience last Sunday by being baptized during our church service. Joel had the honor of baptizing all six, and the rest of us were honored to witness this important event in the lives of Abby, Micah, Faith, Doug, Bethany, and Laura.

Their ages ranged from elementary school to Mom of College kids. And interestingly enough, while some had become believers more recently, others have been walking with Christ for a while. Now, you may say that you are not surprised since I imagine many churches find themselves baptizing believers who have been walking with the Lord for a while. But may there be another hurdle for members of our congregation? Look to see where our baptismal tank is located :-)

 
We love you so much, church family! You are awesome and you mean so much to us!

Youth Service

Last Sunday, Joel and our youth group organized our church's first ever youth service. The high school students and our leaders were in charge of everything from announcements to leading worship and communion time. Joel preached. The topic the group chose was "loving God from the inside out." The group did a fantastic job leading our congregation in an enjoyable and worshipful service.

We saw the students we have invested in over the last few years take this opportunity to minister to the church body. We feel privileged to be called by God to equip young people for future service - here and hopefully soon in Eastern Germany.

Thank you for your prayers as we are trusting our Creator and ultimate Provider! We know the timing of our arrival in Eastern Germany is in His hands. He has been so gracious to us over the last few weeks and we can't wait to share details with you at a more appropriate time.

For now, suffice it to say that God is working on us and through us right here, where He has currently planted us!