Si wanted to show you all his new hat.

The Sun is Shinning Once Again!

Spring has arrived! We have made it through the cold and dreary winter and now we actually get to enjoy some sunshine here in our city. The nicer weather makes it easier for us to get out into the community to meet new people. This past month has been promising. The Father has given us opportunities to reach out to some new people. I made a new friend named Balwan. Balwan is from South Asia, but he has been living here in Europe for the past couple of years. Balwan walked into our Wednesday night m*nistry unexpectantly. He sat down in one of the pews and he began to pr@y. After I sat down next to him, I could see that something was bothering him. I asked him what was troubling him. He opened up to me and told me about his life and his family problems. I asked him what made him come into our ch*rch for pr@yer. He said that when he was living in South Asia a friend invited him to her ch*rch. While attending ch*rch with his friend, Balwan felt peace and relief from life's troubles. Ever since this experience, Balwan goes to ch*rch and pr@ys whenever he is struggling with difficulties in his life. I asked him if I could pr@y for him. I put my arm around him and we laid all of his burdens upon our Father. After we finished, I looked over at him and there were tears streaming down his face. I told him there is no need to fear because we have a great Shepard who watches over us and lovingly takes care of us. He knows all of our most personal thoughts and concerns. He even knows the number of hairs on our heads. I told him if you are one of our Father's children then there is no need to worry about anything because the Shepard watches over his sheep and blesses them. I told him that you can have a personal relationship with this Shepard through receiving J*sus. Since then, I have met with Balwan on three other occasions. My hope is he will continue to be open to a friendship with me and to the message I shared with him. The father also blessed us this past month with two house visits with a local M*slim family. The first meeting was at their house. They fixed us a meal and we met several members of their extended family. The second meeting was at our house. Lena fixed a Filipino meal for them and I showed them pictures of our family back in the States. Both meetings were a real blessing to us and an answer to pr@yer. Since moving here, it has been difficult getting into people's homes and getting people into our home. The South Asian community here is very guarded. I think that this protectiveness is due to them being a minority here in Europe. By being guarded, they are trying to preserve their beliefs and customs. However, our Father is powerful and is able to break down barriers and remove all obstacles. We are slowly building up a trust relationship with this M*slim family. They know we are followers of J*sus. We have been having some introductory sp*ritual conversations with them. Our pr@yer is we will gain their trust and that this would open up the flood gates for sp*ritual truth. The Father also reminded me this past month that He can change the heart and mind of a person from any background. I met two men who were visiting Europe from a South Asian country. Their ability to speak English was very limited. I shared with them in Hindi how the Father forgives s*n through J*sus. They shared with my friend that they are from a M*slim background. They said they have seen the truth of J*sus and they want to be b*ptised. Apparently, the Father has been working in their lives for quite sometime. They first heard the message of J*sus 15 years ago. Now they are convinced that J*sus is the true way. Their account reminded me of two very important truths. First, we cannot give up on individuals or entire people groups just because they are not receptive to the g*spel at first. We must sow the g*spel seed patiently and boldly and then trust the Father with the results. Secondly, the g*spel can penetrate into the hearts of our M*slim brothers just like it can in anyone else's heart.

Pr@yer Requests:

1. That Balwan would come to J*sus.

2. That the M*slim family mentioned above would come to J*sus.

3. That Farooq (another M*slim that I have been working with) would come to J*sus.

4. That the two men mentioned above from South Asia who have decided to follow J*sus would be bold witnesses in their home country.

5. That the Father would help me to connect with new South Asian partners who have a desire to make an impact in their communities and who are willing to receive training.