B. and D. A. | Serving in Nepal

Thank you so much for your prayers and your support. We are very grateful in our hearts.

God continues to give us favor inside the jail each time we go there to visit our believers. Each time we go there, there is a new police chief but each time we get favor to get in and talk with the inmates.

This time we were even allowed to take our mobile phones and you can see the picture inside the jail. We don’t know how this works except by the sheer mercy of our God. No reading materials are allowed but we always take in Bibles and lots of tracks and the jailers don’t stop us.

In the second picture, you can see we are handing over t-shirts to the police to give to the inmates. We had also taken three audio Bibles and when inspected the police chief asked us about them and we said it was audio Bibles. To our surprise, he asked if he could have one for himself to listen to the word. We gladly gave him one. Pray for the police chief to come to Christ.

There are now 25 male believers inside this jail and two women believers. Each time we go there, we are allowed to share the gospel for 45 minutes. We have been recently allowed to go to the women’s side of the jail and preach the gospel there. Women are now starting to come to Christ.

Please pray for this amazing work inside the jail.

Blessings,

B. and D. A.

EFM’s Field Director Dan Cammack was just in Nepal last month, visiting with B. and D. A. and celebrating the passing of the baton of leadership from B. and D. to a local Nepali leader who has been in training for many years. While there, Dan was able to participate in village evangelism and spend the night in one of the villages! Here Dan is sharing about the yoke of Christ with a yoke of oxen right in the background! 

Download this month’s prayer letter here…

The post March 2023 Prayer Letter first appeared on FRIENDSMISSION.COM.

I would like you to share with you about the trips Edwin and I took during the month of March! Thank you for your prayers for our family.

In February, Edwin and I attended the Mexico YM sessions that took place at a retreat place in Guadalajara, Jalisco. That was the first time, after two years, that pastors and leaders of Mexico YM met in person. It surely was a great time of fellowship and edification for everyone. Edwin and I had two opportunities to talk about EFM Luke 10 Exploration Trips and to promote and encourage them to continue to get more involved in the church planting project, Vision Mexico 32. One of the main highlights about this YM was at a worship service around a campfire where Edwin was invited to preach. He preached on Matthew 9:35-39. After the sermon he invited everyone to pray to the Lord of the harvest to send more labors to his harvest. After, what felt like a powerful prayer where we could all sense God’s Spirit, Edwin made an open invitation challenging everyone there to commit to the church planting VM32 project and then he asked if there were anyone sensing the calling from the Lord to be missionaries or church planters. We were so amazed when we saw that eight young people raised their hands declaring and saying, “Here I am Lord, send me.” That was a Kairos moment!! The next day we got together to have a meeting with these eight so they could tell us more about their call and it was very exciting to hear that what they felt at the campfire was a confirmation of the call they had been sensing for a long time. Praise the Lord!! (We are sharing pictures of these eight brave young people below.)

• Please pray that we would be able to follow up and provide opportunities for them to continue exploring their call to missions or to get them ready and send them out to plant new churches in the near future. One of the ideas is to have a future missionary retreat in Mexico.

Edwin and I together with Trent Jacks (leader from EFC-MAYM) are leading the EFM Luke 10 Exploration Trip to Mexico taking place next month, April 19-29, as part of EFM’s goal to send ten new missionary household to launch five new fields by year 2025. We will be exploring the States of Jalisco, Nayarit, and Colima. According to INEGI (Mexico’s census bureau), statistics in 2021 revealed that the population in Mexico is around 130 million out of which only 8.95% in the whole country are Evangelical Christians (free in Christ). The statistic for these three States is less than 5% Evangelical Christians. So, that shows that great need in Mexico to continue reach out to people with the Gospel and love of Jesus Christ. Included in this exploration team is one future missionary from the U.S., four leaders from Mexico, four potential new missionaries from Friends churches in Mexico, Trent Jacks, Edwin and me.

We have also been invited to be part of the EFM Luke 10 Exploration Trip to Ecuador, taking place May 30th- June 16th. This trip is to explore an unreached ethnic group “the Shuar”. Their territory is in the jungle in the limits of Ecuador and Peru.

• Please join us in prayer for these two Luke 10 Exploration trips. We look forward to experience and discern if God is leading EFM to send new missionaries to open new fields in these two areas.
• Please pray that God touches hearts for more people to get involve by praying and giving. We are still in need of funds to cover these two trips. The cost for each person is $1,200-$1,500 each.
• Please pray for our safety, this area in Mexico is considered dangerous because of the presence and battles between drug cartels.

Edwin and I were invited to share about the importance of obeying the Great Commission to a group of students at Barclay College in Haviland, Kansas. This seminar is a requirement for students to take before they graduate. This experience was a first time one for us, so it was a little challenging. But after all, we had a great time with these precious students, that now we have in our hearts to be praying for them as they are the ones in charge of presenting the gospel to their friends and family.

Praise the Lord! Ministry in North Las Vegas is growing. It is becoming a beautiful multicultural bilingual church. We have people from several countries in Latin America, Filipinos, African Americans, and Anglo people. We have been blessed by people that have become strong disciples and leaders that are committed to serve and support us. We are now having our Sunday worship services at a Community Recreation Center just one block away from our home. We must set up and take down everything every Sunday but is so nice to see that we already have a great team, many hands that get involve so that we would have a great time worshiping the Lord and providing classes for toddlers, kids, and teens.

• Please pray that the enthusiasm and encouragement continue in our leaders and that we continue to reach more people who do not know about Christ or do not have an intimate relationship with him.
• Please pray to God to have Edwin and I well caught up in the anointing of his Spirit and have wisdom and grace to carry out all the tasks we have on our plate this year.

We are happy to get to see our daughter more often. Faviola is a great support in ministry; every Sunday Edwin preaches in Spanish and Faviola translates simultaneously through devices for those that only speak English. We are so proud and thankful for Faviola, she is incredible at translation, it is for sure a gift given by the Holy Spirit to her.

• Please pray for her, as she has great opportunities to touch lives with the love Jesus working with kids as behavioral therapist.

Our son, Edwin Isaac, is almost finished with his first year of college, he is attending University Nevada Reno. He is doing great, enjoying every part of it. We are very thankful and praise the Lord, that Edwin Isaac found a great church (English speaking) that embraced him and love him. He is very active in leadership, and he is part of the worship band. This church is a big church of about 500 members. He feels happy and thankful that God allows him to serve him and to give his talents and passion for music for his kingdom. Praise Jesus for his life!

• Please pray that the Spirit of God will always guide him and continue to use him for his glory. May his heart, his mind, his eyes, and ears be always protected by the truth of the Gospel and may there be nothing that diverts him from his purpose.
• Please pray as he will start his first paying job in the summer.
• Please pray that God will continue to provide what is necessary to cover his tuition and housing costs for his sophomore year in college 2022-2023. Miraculously God has provided everything for Edwin Isaac this first year.

Because the funding for my role as Missions Mobilizer for Hispanic Friends has dropped down to 68%, we will be on deputation this year visiting regions, yearly meetings, and individuals. Please pray that God would open more doors for us and that the prayer and financial support level would once again reach 100%.

We are always grateful for each of you, for your love, and support.

Serving him,

Maria Giron
EFM Missions Mobilizer for Hispanic Friends

The post Giron March 2022 Update first appeared on FRIENDSMISSION.COM.

The following story is shared by our Friends in Asia and shows how one relationship was changed from your support.

B* is a preacher. Before she was a preacher, she was married to a Sikh, which is sect of Hinduism. B* and her husband had been separated a while and she was with another man. It was at this time in her life that she heard the gospel and God touched her heart. She accepted Christ and became a Christian. After that, she was convicted and left the other man. She started growing in the Lord rapidly and the Lord called her into ministry.   Other preachers started training her to preach the gospel and evangelize. She started bringing many people to the Lord. During the Maoist rebel attacks, men were not allowed to go to villages to evangelize and hold services. But the Maoists would not stop women. B* used that opportunity in the midst of Maoist battles to go to many villages to encourage the churches and evangelize. The churches continued to grow under her and she discipled many people. She is a fantastic evangelist and disciple-maker. God used her in a mighty way to establish his kingdom in the midst of very difficult time.

If you would like to help make a difference in the lives of people like this young woman, here’s how:

The post A Story of Transformation from Asia first appeared on FRIENDSMISSION.COM.

Dear Prayer Partners,

1 Samuel 2:8 “He puts poor people on their feet again; he rekindles burned-out lives with fresh hope, restoring dignity and respect to their lives.”

As I was reading through the book of Samuel, I came across this verse. It is one of those verses that sinks deep to the core at the exact time that it is needed. That phrase, “he rekindles burned-out lives with fresh hope,” could not have been more spot on for me personally.

Many of you may not have known that I (Dave) took a sabbatical at the end of 2020 through the beginning of 2021 due to many factors. I came to the stark realization of how unhealthy I was; physically, emotionally, and spiritually. I was suffering from extreme burnout, as well as personal and familial emotional issues. It was a painful, difficult, and dark time for me. In conversation with EFM, they were gracious in allowing me the opportunity to take a step back and breathe afresh once again. This enabled me the tools needed to begin the process of refreshing, renewing, and refocusing. The time away was a much needed first step with the understanding that the healing process will be ongoing.

Unfortunately, the global pandemic had another plan on our prescribed upon timetable. Lock downs, COVID-19 restrictions, sickness, unsettledness, and all of the other issues that all of us faced made 2021 a difficult year. As many of you know, planning and implementing new ideas and new ministry was very complicated. Yet now it feels like the tides are shifting.

I believe that is why this verse resonates so deeply with me right now. Another translation uses the phrase “lifts the beggar from the ash heap”. All around are dear ones that are dirty and stained with the charred remains they are living in. The country carries the scarred remains of a difficult time. Even our personal life and ministry carries the markings left behind. Yet, there is hope, fresh hope.

As we boldly walk into this new chapter in the life of the Howells in Ireland, we need your prayers more today than ever before. Firstly, please pray for our family. The last couple of years has taken a significant toll on all of us. To have a year filled with safety, strength, peace, and hope would be greatly appreciated. Secondly, please pray for our new ministry emphasis. When I took my sabbatical, I stepped back from some of my formal ministries. We are trying to be deliberate in the areas that we move forward in. We don’t want to just jump back into the ways we ministered in the past, but carefully discern what the new emphasis will be. One specific area that you will hear more about in the future will be new ways to be involved in the artistic community. For now, please pray for discernment and direction in these new ministry points. Lastly, pray for a rekindling of burned-out lives. The more I have thought about it, the more I have come to the realization that this will be my theme verse for 2022. Please pray for our friends to have a fresh stirring of God’s love and power in their lives. Our prayer is that 2022 will be one of significant impact in the life of EFM Ireland.

Words cannot express how much we love and appreciate every one of you. Thank you for caring for us and always being there for us. Thank you for loving the people of Ireland. Grace and peace to you.

The post Howell Family March 2022 Prayer Update first appeared on FRIENDSMISSION.COM.

We hope and pray that you are doing well these days and that you are living in the joy and peace of the Lord!

This has been a busy time for us and we are sorry for how long it has been since we gave an update about life and ministry. Our family is well. We are enjoying watching our three wonderful kids growing in knowledge and stature. Each day Sarai, Gideon, and Ian show us the joy and wonder of life.

From March 5th through the 13th, Brad will be in Burundi with Pastor Augustin and Pastor Tertullien. We will be meeting with pastors from the Evangelical Friends Churches in Burundi and Congo. This will be the first time that our D for D team has been able to visit in person since the COVID-19 pandemic began. We have stayed connected to them through WhatsApp and have been excited to see what God is doing in and through these pastors and their families towards whole transformation in Christ. It will be a joy to be with them again for learning and fellowship together.

Please pray for the trip, that God will bless each day, the conversations, the study, praying, and planning. The leaders have been preparing teams in their local churches for the purpose of beginning whole-life discipleship in their communities. Please pray for the Holy Spirit’s help in teaching, understanding, and making clear and effective plans that will be a part of God transforming communities to become increasingly more as God desires.

Please pray for Chelsea and the kids as they stay in Musanze and continue with the home rhythms of school, work, and play.

Thank you for continuing to partner with us!

Brad

The post Carpenter Ministry Update first appeared on FRIENDSMISSION.COM.

Thank you so much for praying and giving towards the ministry in Nepal. We truly appreciate it.

Below in the picture, is the recording of our three pastors. They have already been pastoring their churches for ten years. We are just recognizing them. We feel they are ready now. They are very faithful people and serve the Lord in very difficult areas.

One of the pastors on the left, Kumar (with the blue jacket), was beaten up badly by the radical Hindu mob. He and his wife are back in the same area planting churches. Everyone present in the meeting were very happy and excited to see them being recorded.

We want to thank brothers Mitch Cook and Kevin Harvey for being present in the ceremony and praying for them. They were a tremendous blessing to us.

Testimony of Amrita Devi in Kabilasha village:

Amrita was a crazy woman. She used to dismantle her hair, throw off her blouse, and run crazy in the village. She was taken to Sisautiya village on the motorbike with two people holding her in the middle. She wanted to throw herself from the bike. When she reached the church, one of our anointed singers, Hanuman, sang his worship song and during the song the Holy Spirit instantly touched her and made her completely whole. Then she sat hearing our preachers share the Word. When she went back to her village, the villagers were shocked to see her normal. This exploded the gospel in the village and many have come to Christ. Amrita Devi accepted Christ and her husband also. Now she holds a government job and her face shines with the brightness of Christ. We thank the Lord for this great miracle.

Thank you so much for giving towards the bike for our pastors. This is pastor Lok Bahadur. He is a very hard worker and a faithful pastor. He has planted four churches and it had been very hard for him to travel to those churches on a bicycle. Now he can travel to them easily and even be free to go to new areas to church plant. Thank you so much for helping our pastors get motorbikes for their travel.

Thank you so much for praying.

Blessings,
B. and D. A.

The post B. and D. A. Ministry Update- Recording of Pastors first appeared on FRIENDSMISSION.COM.

Join me in praying through my trips in this month of March!

Requests for the Kansas Trip:

• Pray for good connections with students, faculty, and friends at Barclay College in Haviland, Kansas.
• Pray for some “aha” moments as we see how Jesus’ life, death and resurrection touches all of life!
• Pray we (Edwin and Maria Giron, Matt Macy, and Roy Bogan) could be an encouragement for friends in Haviland.

Purpose of Thailand Trip:
Dan Cammack and David Thomas are meeting with Ben Kibbe and The Way Foundation Leaders to listen and offer coaching for their leadership transition plan moving away from Ben’s direct leadership of TWF to Lahu leadership. We also might explore locally sustainable models of ministry. This is Dan Cammack’s (EFM’s Field Director) first visit to The Way Foundation so he will also be learning and building friendships. David and Scott Purser will also coach the TWF D4D leaders, catching up on two years of COVID-19 slowdown, and reengaging with the Mobilization Phase of the team’s working in the Ja Taw and Ja Sa Pa villages.

Prayer Requests for the Thailand Trip:

• Pray for God’s blessing and grace to cover the transition in leadership from Ben Kibbe to our Lahu brothers.
• Pray for sensitivity to the Holy Spirit for Dan and myself and excellence in any coaching or mentoring we can bring from our experience of leadership transitions and moving out of dependency in Peru and Rwanda respectively. I am already praising God in advance for all the wonderful things he has been doing among our Lahu brothers and sisters and for all the good reports we will be hearing!

Thank you very much for partnering with us in prayer! Your prayers make a difference!

David Thomas

Evangelical Friends Mission
PO Box 771139, Wichita, KS 67277 | www.friendsmission.com
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The post David Thomas March Prayer Update first appeared on FRIENDSMISSION.COM.

Abe and Diane Bible, longtime members and friends of EFC-ER, have served in Ukraine since 1990 with Ministry Developers Network. Their work has focused especially on training and developing men in evangelism and prayer. When the attack began last week, Abe was engaged in ministry in Kyiv but has since returned safely to their home in northwest Ukraine. Though they are not yet hearing planes or bombs in that part of the country, warning sirens force them to huddle in a safe room several times a day. As of now, Abe and Diane have no plans to leave Ukraine. They hope to remain in their community, alongside their neighbors, co-workers, and fellow believers. Their singular request has been for the prayers of God’s people. One of Diane’s recent emails ended with these words: “Please continue in earnest prayer for Ukraine, for the refugees who are flooding the borders, for the church, and for us. We have peace of heart that we are right now where God wants us to be. What the future holds–only the Lord Almighty knows. And we are willing to rest in that.”

When we want more for others than we possibly can give, it reminds us to pray. At this moment, that is the most intentional contribution we can make to help Ukraine’s population. In the future, if concrete needs arise, we will inform you all. Again, in the meantime, ask the Lord for mercy.

Because of Christ,

Stan Leach
Executive Director

The post How You Can Be Praying for Ukraine first appeared on FRIENDSMISSION.COM.

A. and S. M. | Serving in India

Dear Prayer Partners,

Greetings to you in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. Thank you for your great support to our ministry all these years which enabled us to establish the kingdom of God where it is hard. In 1995, both of us left our jobs to start this ministry among temple prostitutes. In this community prostitution is a traditional religion carried on for generations. God called us to rescue children and women.

We opened a children’s home for rescued children and gave them an education and got several of them married during 26 years of our service. Many of them are good Christian wives, and some in full-time ministry. Our home is always open for them to visit us for fun, fellowship, and mentorship.  As S. takes the role of a mother and spiritual mentor they look up to her for guidance and support.

The COVID-19 pandemic brought many restrictions for church and evangelistic ministry. Temporarily we shut down churches in all villages. But through phone and internet we held church services and prayer to encourage believers. During the lock-down we had ten young girls staying with us and our pantry was empty. As an organization, we approached the district commissioner for permission to buy in bulk food, grains, and vegetables and provided to those shut in. Also, another wonderful thing to praise God is that we arranged for five of our girls to marry during this time.

Caring Hands is presently helping more children through foster care in their own locations. Shobha and I visited them last month and had fruitful ministry among them. We help and support HIV+ people who live in utter poverty and hopelessness. They receive monthly rations, counseling, and medical guidance. Our staff minister to them and many have turned to Jesus. A HIV+ family accepted Christ and faced persecution from villagers and relatives. We relocated them and now they are happy and growing spiritually.  We have provided a water buffalo to sell the milk for extra financial help.

Where there were no churches 27 years ago in this community, today, we have established seven churches. The pastors visit houses for prayer and help when they are in any kind of need or difficult situation.

Persecution has increased in our state. Many churches were ransacked, services disturbed, and pastors arrested. Our personal ministry is taking a change. S. and I are counselling and guiding staff to work independently. We cannot go to certain areas as the police authorities have warned us. They say we evangelize and disturb traditional practices.

Camps for children, youth, ladies, and families are conducted regularly. Ladies’ retreats are a great success. The ladies under spiritual bondage and burden come, and S. and her team minister to them. They go back free, uplifted and rejoicing.

Our daughter is studying in Barclay, Kansas. She wants to be a counsellor. We are anxious for her to finish her study and find a Godly life partner. S. & I will be in U.S. from April to September this year. Kindly pray for all our needs and our time there. We three as a family would like to be together for this summer. We appreciate your calls, visits, and invitations. Thank you for your support, love, and provision.

Yours in his grace,

A. and S. M.

Click here to download the full prayer letter…

The post March 2022 Prayer Letter first appeared on FRIENDSMISSION.COM.

I can’t remember a time when I was so happy for a year-end, but I am especially grateful now, for lessons learned and battles won in 2020, and for the strong assurance that GOD IS in charge. In the last three months we experienced periods of lock down in different parts of Romania, a scary number of COVID-19 cases, and the reality of it being not only “out there,” but in and around our home. I (Ana) contracted the virus and struggled awhile, but praise God I didn’t need hospitalization, and Voicu remained healthy the whole time. We’ve learned to treasure each moment and each person, as several people in our community and church family lost this battle in the ICU.

We surely appreciated a real family Christmas, with Christina visiting from the US and John visiting from half an hour away. We weren’t sure it would work out to be together due to various travel restrictions, but it did!  Our spiritual daughters, Aurelia, Petruta and Loredana, were with us as well. They wanted to talk and play board games non-stop, and it was nice being together after lockdown.

The last three months we continued teaching primarily online. God helped us strengthen relationships during this difficult time. Shop classes had to stop but English continued, proving quite valuable not only for our junior high and high school students, but also for the four ladies who use it at work. I was able to help them meet school requirements, and not only that, but also encourage them during some critical moments. We had opportunities to read scripture together and discussed many timely topics.

With schools being online since October, there are major challenges, especially for kids from poor families who lack adequate equipment or necessary parental support.

It was a real joy to surprise twin sisters Ana and Sonia with a new laptop computer for Christmas. We’ve known them since they were born, and they come from a rather large family. Their older sister Maria was also our pupil, and now she has her own family and has remained a dear friend. Ana and Sonia are hard-working 9th grade students, and quite active in our youth group.

We had a few moments of the Lord’s confirmation this past year… but this one instance speaks for itself. Dr. Marilena Vasile, whom we’ve supported since she came to our city back in 2006, is a dear friend and sister in Christ. After graduation from medical school she specialized in family practice, and instead of pursuing a prosperous career in Sibiu chose to return to her native city of Calarasi, to care for the most destitute in the southern region. We’ve watched her serve as an example of integrity and professional excellence among colleagues, doing her best to visit patients and save lives without the latest technology or medicine, not even owning a vehicle.

A couple of dear saints from Alliance and Columbus donated funds for a car, which ended up a very memorable Christmas gift. We rejoiced with her, marveling at God’s perfect ways and timing. Her “Thank you” was best expressed in tears of gratitude!

Recently we visited the home of a single mom with three daughters. Their deep appreciation was visible, and perhaps not so much for the gifts but for taking the time to really listen to their life story, for loving them in a way they could relate to.

THANK YOU for being present in our lives and in the lives of many others around the world, with your prayers and with loving, generous hearts. Christ’s Kingdom work far exceeds our limits and imaginations.

I will leave you with what has been a very uplifting verse in 2020, which may be the most wonderful COMMAND for the coming 2021: Joshua 1:9, “This is my command – be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid or discouraged. For the Lord, your God is with you wherever you go.”

Love,

Voicu and Ana

Christina and John

The post March 2021 Marian Update first appeared on FRIENDSMISSION.COM.