An update from Andrew Leung, Pastoral Intern at Sovereign Grace Church, Sydney, and Executive Assistant to Dave Taylor…

The Sovereign Grace Emerging Nations team is currently relating to over seventy-five churches in over thirty-eight countries around the world, representing many different nations and cultures. It brings to mind the picture in Rev 6:9 of a “great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb!”  What a day that will be!

I was thrilled with excitement then when Dave asked me a few months ago, to help coordinate the work of translating the recently launched sovereigngrace.com website, along with the Statement of Faith and the Seven Shared Values, into various languages: Italian, Croatian, Korean, Chinese, Tagalog, Cebuano to name but a few!  These languages all relate to places around the world where Sovereign Grace either has a partner church, or where Sovereign Grace is looking to plant or adopt. The website really serves as a window for people unfamiliar with Sovereign Grace churches to peer in and learn about Sovereign Grace, as well as a way for pastors and churches in all the corners of the world to get connected with us.

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Italian was the first language to cross the finishing line and is now in the process of being uploaded onto the website.  We look forward to more and more languages being made available in the weeks ahead!

What an amazing opportunity to share with many nations, in their own tongue, our Sovereign Grace distinctives as outworking of the gospel, and to invite them to join in our family of churches. Through the translation of these rich materials, we get to share something that we treasure and that has brought us much joy. May it serve us well in this Great Commission. 

An update from Patrick Chavez, a Pastor of Sovereign Grace Church, Sydney...

If I were to ask you what you were doing on the weekend of the 19th - 21st of July in 2019, could you remember? 

I can almost bet that if you were a member of Sovereign Grace Church, Sydney and I prompted you with the word Collaroy, your face would light up and smile. I think the memories would come flooding back of fun, fellowship, and exciting and clear times of teaching and experiencing God in refreshing and gospel-centred ways. This was the reality we all experienced on that weekend.  

You see, back in July of 2019, just before our church sent out the team to plant Sovereign Grace Church, Parramatta, we went on a church retreat together. The focus of the retreat was encouraging and pursuing the gifts of the Spirit, an area that we desired to grow in as a church, in our understanding and practice. And so to lead us through that, Mark Prater, along with a team; Bill & Ramona, Dan & Jeannie, Doug, Everett & Laurie, Jocelyn, Rick & Martin; all from Covenant Fellowship Church, kindly made the 30 hour journey from Philadelphia to serve us and minister to us.

As a church, we were so blessed by these brothers and sisters from across the waters. Their love for Jesus and His Word was so infectious. Their patience in listening to us, understanding us, caring for us, praying for us and discipling us on this weekend was amazing. So much so that we eagerly wanted to continue this even after they went home, and so we reached out to Mark Prater to see if these dear folks would assist us in an ongoing growing of our understanding and practice of these gifts through monthly discipleship sessions on zoom.  And to our surprise, they agreed! 

This has been such a blessing to us! These men and women have been willing to disciple 17 of us, on the gifts of the Spirit, between Philadelphia and Sydney. They have woken up at 4:00 AM to jump on a Zoom call to meet with us and go through books, answer questions, share their experiences and pray for us. 

I asked some of our team here what it has been like to receive discipleship from these dear brothers and sisters, and here is a sampling of what they said: 

“It's one thing to be informed about prophecy through a close study of scripture or biblically sound books. But it's quite another to experience the practice of prophecy first-hand through our brothers and sisters at the Philadelphia church. Even though we are separated by the Pacific Ocean, and even through the chaos of the pandemic, every four weeks we would spend time in sweet fellowship over those zoom calls to talk about the practice of prophecy and the truths we were gleaning from the book we were studying. While the first-hand experiences were invaluable, what was often more eye-opening were the honest mistakes and the humbling moments experienced by our mentors which defined their prophetic journey. What a joy to walk together in unity, and to be spurred on towards greater pursuit of prophecy by our dear friends overseas”!

“We have been so blessed by Ramona who has invested her time and energy so selflessly for the sake of building into God’s kingdom on the other side of the world! She shares her own experience readily and is so helpful with our questions - nothing is too small or insignificant for her. She answers with such grace and wisdom and prays for us without ceasing. She has been instrumental in building up our faith and desire to grow in the spiritual gift of prophecy. But more importantly, she constantly points us to God, the giver of this gift, and helps our souls to magnify our great God and delight to use this gift to please and glorify Him and edify His bride, the church. Our hearts are filled with gratitude towards the Philly team. They have showed us a debt of love we will never be able to repay!”

             “I have been in group with Ramona, bless her, she gets up so early for us all. She has been so gentle and very knowledgeable in this area, she is easy to talk to, we can ask questions anytime, she always has an example to share with us of many of the questions we ask, and that makes learning very relatable and gives practical help. She doesn’t rush anything and guides us to keep seeking the Lord in prophecy.”

“The benefit from the Philly prophecy team has been so gracious, in the sense they've guided us and cared for us in an unknown territory for us - prophecy. They have always been gracious and warm and answered all our questions. There is so much I didn't know on the topic of prophecy”.

We are so grateful for our partnership with our family of churches here in Australia. Would many more partnerships be made around the world, all for the glory of God. 

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Matthew 28.18-20, ‘And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptising them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age."

The commission that we have received as Christians is far bigger than anything we could have asked or imagined. For a start, the world is a big place isn’t it!! But how comforting and motivating it is to know that the One who has called us, is always with us, even to the end of the age!

What hope and exhilaration that brings, and so here’s how you can be praying for us in the month ahead...

1. Please pray for the people of India as they endure a very dangerous second wave of the COVID-19 virus. The hospitals are full, the cemeteries have run out of places for burials, and the families of the deceased are having to wait in a queue as the bodies await cremation. Please pray that God would use this tragedy for His glory. And please pray in particularly for Jayaprakash and Sathwika Ravuri, our SG Pastor and his wife. They are expecting their first child (or children, as it’s twins) in just a few weeks. Please be praying for good hospital space for them, good availability of doctors and for safe delivery of these dear twins.

2. Please pray for the many other countries that are also enduring second and third waves of the pandemic, including countries like Brazil, UK, Turkey, Italy, Spain, Germany, Colombia, Mexico, Philippines and Pakistan. Please pray that the Lord would draw close to all those in need, bringing comfort and favour to our dear brothers and sisters there, and strengthening them as they seek to share the good news of the gospel with those around them.

3. Please pray for Carlos Contreras, Joselo Mercado and Rich Richardson, as they lead an ‘Emerging Leaders Retreat’ in Guadalajara, Mexico, 24-27th May. Twelve plus guys will be attending this from all over Latin America and so please pray that the time would go well and that God would meet mightily with everyone involved.

4. Please pray for Andrew Leung, my assistant, as he continues to work with our partners all over the world as we translate our SG Website, BCO and Statement of Faith, into other languages. With so many moving parts in this, please pray for wisdom and favour in this strategic endeavour, an endeavour that will greatly help us in gospel mission across the world.

5. Please pray for all those that are presently pursuing ordination around with the world, many of whom who have exams in the next few months. Please pray for favour for everyone involved.

… May the One who has commissioned us, be ever with us. Oh how we need Him! Amen.

An update from Dyonah Thomas, our key leader in Liberia, and lead pastor of GraceLife…

Our April residence was very encouraging once again, with 48 students present from Liberia, Guinea and Sierra Leone. These brothers serve as either lead pastors, associate pastors or are preparing to plant a new church, and each of them is enrolled in the three year Gracelife ‘Pastoral Ministry and Church Planting’ program. 

We gather five times a year, for 14 days at a time and unpack two courses until the program is over, and one of the highlights of each residence is the chapel service in the Gracelife Center, the Local church that is hosting the program . Each residence we have a focus for the chapel services, unpacking a biblical topic and exegeting an area of scripture. This April just gone, our focus was on Worship in the Local church, and we were very honoured to have Bob Kauflin speak to us, for two days in Chapel. 

It was such a a blessing and so encouraging. Bob drew our attention to the fact that Worship is not about out Satisfaction, but instead we sing to glorify the Lord, and so our songs should be scripture based and Christ exalting. This was really really good for the learning environment, because Bob confirmed in an in-depth way some of the practices that Gracelife College and Seminary hold to. And in addition, students were amazed to see so clearly from scripture what they have mostly overlooked in preparing for and leading worship for the Glory of God. 

One student said, “I am so sorry that I have mostly looked for songs that just make me feel good. This has opened my eyes to so much more, and I want to find out more...” So I directed them to Bob's two text books in our School library, and the Worship Matters Website. Another student, who is a lead pastor, said that he did not know prior to this week, that part of his responsibility was ensuring that the local worship was Biblical and Christ Centered.  

Without doubt then, our students have been very thankful for this time. I honestly think that these two days of have stirred a thirst and begun a search for many. Everyone is now looking on Worship Matters and signing up for the blogs and checking out the music. A conversation has started, and we are so thankful for that.

Thanks Bob for Serving us so well. 

An update from Jeffrey Jo, Lead Pastor of CCSGM in Cavite, Philippines…

With more than 100 million people, the Philippines is the 13th most populated nation in the world and one of the twenty most Covid-hit countries. As a result, the Philippines has enforced the longest lockdown anywhere in the world. In more than a year of this pandemic, I have witnessed people losing their jobs, loved ones dying from COVID-19 and then going straight to the crematorium, long lines of people waiting for the government’s amelioration program, and some churches who decided to close the red curtain due to the high rentals of their ministry centers. This has been a difficult season for the Philippines. 

Yet with thought to His sovereign providence, surely, He meant this for His glory and to strengthen His church. So, after a time of prayer and discussion with my fellow elders, we decided to continue fulfilling the works of the ministry. We have a weekly care-group via zoom meeting, five groups simultaneously meet discussing the latest Sunday’s sermon (we just ended our study in the book of James and we are about to start our study in the gospel of John) and the said groups meet once a month via a zoom meeting on what we call church extension fellowship general assembly. 

It is a time where we share stories of God’s faithfulness on differing challenges that each one of us is going through. A joyous time to see each other’s faces, affirm that we are always in one another’s prayers and a time to remind each other to be faithful to the gospel of Christ despite all the difficulties we are going through. Since we are still on lockdown, both the Sunday worship service and the children’s church ministry are being done through a recorded video. Pastoral care is being done through phone call and text messaging.

One thing that is evident in this pandemic in the Philippines, is that there are vast numbers of people who are turning to God. I find myself sharing the gospel of Christ to people whom God already prepared their hearts. Our local churches down south in Mindanao, though they almost went back to normal already, have grown rapidly during this time!

Yet along with this growth, there has also been challenge. Because of the growth in Mindanao, the ‘faith movement organization’ in their area wanted to penetrate them with the ‘prosperity gospel’, which is no gospel at all. That’s why for the past two months, we decided to meet with the local pastors there, via zoom, to remind them to be faithful to their calling and to the scriptures. 

In order for us to do this, most of our pastors and their wives in that region needed to travel for two hours just to get to the house of one of our pastors who lives in the city and who has a better internet connection. Ronnie and his wife are very hospitable enough to accommodate their fellow pastors and their wives in their home. We have to spend thousands of pesos for their transportation, food, study materials and other allowances. Yet Sovereign Grace Churches, through the leadership of Dave Taylor, has never failed to support us on ministry matters like this. In this way we are able to further their theological education, protect them from false teaching, and serve them by equipping them in the works of ministry.

Over this past year, we’ve also been able to plant churches in Gango and in Madrid, both in Surigao del Sur, Mindanao. And at this very moment, we are equipping a church planting team for Imus, Cavite, right here in Manila. Whatever challenges that awaits His church here in the Philippines because of the “new norm”, I am looking forward for the coming years to be faithful in edifying the local church with the faithful teaching of the scriptures, equipping more people to do the works of the ministry and to plant more churches so that His glorious Name may be known, perseveringly done out of His love in our hearts. As John Piper once said, “If death is no longer a fear, we’re really free. Free to take any risk under the sun for Christ and for love.”

Sovereign Grace Churches, thanks for all your support and thanks for being a family to us. Please do continue to pray for us here in the Philippines. Soli deo gloria.

Not all of the pioneering work of Sovereign Grace Churches can be reported openly and easily. For some their work is in countries “closed” to the Gospel and so the reporting of such has to be discreet, as is the case with the following update. And update from our team leader in Thailand, SE Asia…

“How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in Him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching? And how are they to preach unless they are sent?” (Romans 10:14-15a). Paul’s words still ring true in unreached places in the 10-40 window like Thailand. This Buddhist majority country of 69 million where worship of idols and spirits is the norm, has an enormous need for the gospel and laborers.

Years ago, our churches saw this need, heard the call and over the last 5 years partnered and sent a few families to serve the unreached in a remote province of Thailand. This team spent their initial years learning the language, culture, and how to minister in a cross-culture context in a city center where notions of God and sin are vastly different from a western context. The team has also faced a number of challenges while in Thailand including severe illness, visa hiccups, changes in plans, spiritual warfare, and at times isolation, but in all of these things, He has been teaching us to “rely not on ourselves but on God who raises the dead” (2 Cor 1:10). He has been faithful!

So fast forward to the past year, what has been going on in Thailand with the Covid-19 pandemic which has rocked the world?  One might expect with lockdowns and other restrictions that everything may have come to a screeching halt. But we know His plans cannot be thwarted (Job 42:2).  

Through past trips to the unreached province, the team built relationships within the community and received an invitation to serve in this destination location. Then during the summer of 2020, after years of preparation, two families finally moved to the province. These significant doors opened for ministry because you helped us by prayer (2 Cor 1:11). Thank you.

Since being in the province, God connected one brother from the team with a seeking unbeliever who was dissatisfied with his own efforts for finding fulfillment and joy. After months of weekly one-on-one discipleship, we rejoice that this Thai man has put his faith in Christ and was recently baptized in the Mekong River in a joint baptism service of regional churches.

Please pray for continued gospel opportunities, health and protection of all team members, and God’s sustaining grace and endurance during challenges.

As relationships develop around the world, a key part of being formally adopted into Sovereign Grace Churches is our ordination process, and at this present time, we have around 16 men around the world in that process.

This process is valuable not only for the evaluation it provides, but also for the edification and equipping the candidate experiences, and so please be praying for these men. I trust this update blesses and encourages you as you think about the future of our global family of churches. All for the glory of One, please be praying for them...

David Del Castillo - Bolivia

David Del Castillo

Bolivia

David is one of the Pastor’s of Gracia Soberana Santa Cruz, a Church he planted in 2019, along with his father, Jorge. God willing, David will be looking to take his final ordination exams in the next couple of months.

Emerson Soares - Brazil

Emerson Soares

Brazil

Emerson Soares is pastor of Nova Vida Church in the city of Rio Grande in the state of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. Nova Vida Church is in the process of adoption to partner with Sovereign Grace Churches. Emerson is on track to finish his reading for ordination and complete the exams and papers this year.

Fabiano Medeiros - Brazil

Fabiano Medeiros

Brazil

Fabiano Medeiros has planted a Graça Soberana Church in São Paulo, Brazil. Fabiano has only to take the Oral Exam to complete his ordination.

Jacobis Aldana - Colombia

Jacobis Aldana

Colombia

Husband to Keyla and father to Jacobo and Santiago. He planted Iglesia Biblica Soberana Gracia in Santa Marta, Colombia 10 years ago. He is a gifter social media manager and web designer, and has work for years in the promotion of sound doctrine in South America. His biggest ministry emphasis is the application of the Gospel in all of life. We are so pleased to have Jacobis pursue ordination.

Rodrigo Fornier - Costa Rica

Rodrigo Fornier

Costa Rica

Rodrigo is the Lead Pastor of La Vina Escazu in San Jose, Costa Rica. He first became aware of Sovereign Grace by listening to CJ Mahaney’s sermons and on February 25, 2021, asked to be formally adopted into Sovereign Grace. To that end, we’re so pleased to have begun the ordination process with Rodrigo.

Allan Monge - Costa Rica

Allan Monge

Costa Rica

Allan planted Gracia Soberana de Cartago, in a suburb of San José Costa Rica 4 years ago. He will be taking his written exams the last week of May during a leaders retreat in Guadalajara, Mexico. He has already submitted half of his essays, he plans on finishing his process by the end of summer and hopes to be ordained then.

Eduardo (Chespi) Sandoval - Costa Rica

Eduardo (Chespi) Sandoval

Costa Rica

Husband to Mile and father to Emmanuel. Planted Casa Vida Playa Azul closed to the area of Jaco in Costa Rica. This is a very impoverished area that CVPA is reaching with the gospel and also helping to develop in social and economic ways. He is very passionate with the application of the Gospel in the family and is looking forward to ordination.

Jayaprakash Ravuri - India

Jayaprakash Ravuri

India

JP lives in Gundugolanu, Andhra Pradesh, India, and is the Pastor of Calvary Gospel Church. He has completed all of the required and supplementary reading.  He has also written the 6 position papers and passed the Bible Knowledge exam.  He just has the Theology and Oral exams remaining which should be completed by June.

Dyonah Thomas - Liberia

Dyonah Thomas

Liberia

Dyonah lives in Monrovia, Liberia, and is the Lead Pastor of GraceLife Church and Dean of the GraceLife College and Seminary. He has completed much of his reading and is now working through the papers and exams. God willing, he will be looking to finish his ordination in the Fall.

Kristian Tucker - Mexico

Kristian Tucker

Mexico

Kristian Tucker re-planted Gracia Soberana de Durango, in the state capitol of Durango, México in 2016. He is currently enrolled online at SBTS working towards an MDiv. He is planning on taking the written exams this summer prior to the Fieles conference in Juarez. He hopes to be ordained by the end of the year.

Marco García - Mexico

Marco García

Mexico

Marco García has been serving as an associate pastor for the past 10 years alongside Manolo Quintal at our recently adopted church Iglesia Gracia Sublime in Silao, Guanajuato, Mexico. He also plans on doing his written exams in the summer during the Fieles 2021 Pastors Conference in Juarez

Andrés Contreras - Mexico

Andrés Contreras

Mexico

Andrés Contreras is a 2019 graduate of the Sovereign Grace Pastors College and SBTS. He is currently a Pastor-in-training at Gracia Soberana Guadalajara alongside Roberto Estupinian and Luis Bermea. He plans on taking his written exams in May and July of this year.

Enrique Villegas - Mexico

Enrique Villegas

Mexico

Enrique Villegas planted Gracia Soberana de Orizaba, in the state of Veracruz, Mexico 4 years ago. He is taking his written exams in May at our leaders retreat in Guadalajara. He hopes to be ordained by the end of the year.

Karl Sauter - Mexico

Karl Sauter

Mexico

Karl Sauter is a 2019 graduate of the Sovereign Grace Pastors College and SBTS. He is starting his ordination process as he is preparing to move (hopefully by late August 2021) from Gracia Soberana de Cd. Juárez to be part of the leadership team of Iglesia Sublime Gracia in Silao, Guanajuato, México.

Jeffrey Jo - Philippines

Jeffrey Jo

Philippines

Jeff is a doctor of theology and leads CCSGM (Cross Of Christ Salvation Gospel Ministries), a wonderful Church in Kawit, Manila, Philippines. God willing, he’ll be looking to take his oral exams in the next couple of months.

Cornelio Ebo - Philippines

Cornelio Ebo

Philippines

Nilo has been a part of Sovereign Grace for many years. He is a graduate of the Sovereign Grace Pastors College and leads His Dwelling Place Church, in Cebu, Philippines. He is well on with his ordination process and will be looking to take his oral exam in the next couple of months.

As a Sovereign Grace Leadership Team, we’ve been working on the ‘Global Partnership Plan’ for about six months now. We presently have around 75 Churches outside of the US, pursuing adoption into Sovereign Grace Churches, and so capturing that and planning for global expansion has been a signification focus of our time.

Mark Prater, our Executive Director, explains the recent developments well over on his blog.

Here’s the scoop for you… So encouraging!

As we celebrate the Easter weekend with our churches, there are so many glorious realities to be shared. Not least, the reality that Jesus was forsaken and alone, so that we would never have to be. It’s one of the most overwhelmingly glorious realities of the cross. You and I, in Christ, will never be forsaken. We will never be truly alone.

It’s such an amazing reality. He’s always listening, always with us, and always eager to hear us, and so here’s how you can be praying for us in the month ahead...

1. Please pray for all of our Churches over this Easter weekend, that the Gospel would be preached all over the world and that many may come to know Jesus as Lord and Saviour as a result.

2. Please pray for our brothers in Pakistan as they continue to outreach to those working in the brick factories, a seven day a week, early to late job. Just in the last few weeks, six men and women have given their lives to Christ and responded with baptism. Please pray that God would help these new converts to stay strong in the faith, and that there’d be many more baptisms to come.

3. Please pray for our Pastors College work in Africa. To date we have three colleges keen to represent Sovereign Grace Churches in Africa… Copperbelt Pastors College in Zambia, Grace Life College in Liberia, and in addition, Michael Granger & Josh Pannell are eager to launch an SGC Ethiopia Pastors College in the back end of 2021 as well, making up the third. Understanding that not everyone can get on a plane and come overseas for a year, please pray that God gives everyone involved wisdom in this great endeavour, and that many pastors may be trained, equipped and deployed in Africa as a result.

4. Please pray for Dyonah Thomas, our Liberian Leader, as he struggles with some health challenges, in particularly with his heart. Though the symptoms are mild, please pray that the Lord gives the doctors wisdom as to next steps, as he heads over to Ghana for some medical tests, and that healing may be brought to Dyonah’s body. Please also pray for Mai, Dyonah’s wife, as they work this through together as a family.

5. Please pray for our missionaries that have crossed so many boundaries to be out in the field and who are there desiring to proclaim Christ and see Churches planted, often in hard ground places.. To date we have families in Turkey, South East Asia, Croatia and Ethiopia. Please pray that the Lord would bless them, keep them, and establish the work of their hands.

… He always listens, and so thanks for praying!

An update from Riley Spring, Lead Pastor of Sovereign Grace Church, Parramatta, Australia…

It is a such joy to report on some of the key developments that are happening here as we seek to move forward in Sovereign Grace Churches Australia. The Lord continues to be so good us, and so here are some headlines for you:

Pastoral Internships

We currently have three men in the process of pursuing whether God is calling them to Pastoral Ministry! At Sovereign Grace Church, Sydney,  there is Andrew Leung who already assists Dave Taylor on the Emerging Nations team and is now taking an extra day off work to give himself toward further study and training, and Simon Walker who has taken 6 months off work to undertake a full-time internship involving a mixture of study, character formation, and practical ministry experience. At Sovereign Grace Church Parramatta, Richard Song is now working for the church one day a week to explore his calling to ministry through study, fellowship with me, and practical ministry experiences. We are so grateful to God for these men, their wives and families, and their joy to sacrifice for the sake of our churches! 

Andrew Leung

Simon Walker

Richard Song

Leadership Bootcamp

Dave Taylor is conducting a year long ‘Leadership Bootcamp’ for 18 men and women between our two churches, as well as a number of attendees from outside Sovereign Grace. This course is designed to help attendees see that biblical leadership is leadership which is fuelled and formed by the realities of the gospel, not by pragmatics of secular business texts, and to help them grow in their leadership in whatever sphere God has for them. 

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Outside Interest

Within a short-time of us praying and asking for openings the Lord has brought about three new opportunities to connect with people who are interested in exploring a partnership with Sovereign Grace in some form: a desire for a church plant in their city, an adoption of an existing church, and a church planter! Only the Lord knows what will come of this, but nonetheless it’s a joy to introduce these new friends to SG and to share with them our love for our family of churches, our appreciation for our doctrine, values, and practices, and to see their enthusiasm!

Future Plans

With a desire to build upon the good work and the health of our two current churches, our hope is to see planters trained, pastors cared for, and enduring churches built all across Australasia, and to do it as friends! To help make more of that happen, I now give some of my time each week to making new connections and relationships in the Seminary and Church Planting world, as well as establishing pathways, and creating resources to connect us with future planters, pastors and churches. To that end, we are aiming to start a ‘Leadership Podcast’ in the coming weeks, where we plan to steal all the good stuff we’ve learned over the years from Sovereign Grace Churches and share it with Australian Pastors. We’re also aiming to make videos to help newcomers understand how they can actually take next steps with SG here in Australia. 

Please keep praying for us in all of this. We so need the Lord. May all the glory be His!

An update from Carlos Contreras, Senior Pastor of Gracia Soberana de Ciudad Juarez and Regional Leader for Mexico…

Last year, a week before the world shut down because of COVID 19, we were able to host 2 Preaching workshops as we have done for the past 7 years. This year we weren’t sure that we would be able to continue this very significant ministry to pastors in Mexico. However, we were encouraged by many pastors that were asking us to do so by saying that Expository Preaching had become a priority in their ministry. So, we are so grateful that we were able to host our two Workshops, one in Sovereign Grace Church in Guadalajara and the other one in our church in Juarez.

We have been on partnership with The Charles Simeon Trust now for 8 years hosting and teaching Christ Centered Expository Biblical Preaching to our pastors as well as other hundreds of pastors in Latin America . We believe that this is one of the best ways we can serve the body of Christ and share with others what we have enjoyed in Sovereign Grace as one of our shared values. That is being faithful to the biblical text and Preaching Christ from all of Scripture.

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Our theme this year was “Preaching the Wisdom Books” by studying the Book of Job. And, even though the registration was limited to about 30 pastors per site, we were glad to see that the majority of attendants were returning pastors from previous years. Most of the SG pastors in Mexico and Costa Rica have been to multiple workshops now and thus serve as instructors or Small Group Leaders, so we, as a family of churches, are able to personally serve and encourage many pastors as well as develop lasting relationships with them.

We pray that as the pandemic ceases in the coming months, we can continue with our plans to expand our reach and open other sites in Mexico and Central America so that we can continue this important ministry to the extended Body of Christ in Latin America.

An update from Ed O’Mara, Lead Pastor of CrossPointe Church in Arnold, MD, USA…

I had the privilege of accompanying Joselo Mercado to Costa Rica from 19-22 February. We served at the Por Su Gracia pastors conference and visited two churches exploring adoption in Sovereign Grace. Chespi Sandoval, Lead Pastor of Casa Vida Playa Azul, and Rodrigo Fournier, Lead Pastor of La Vina Escazu, organised the conference which was hosted at La Vina Escazu’s building in San Jose. These two men are godly and gifted brothers who share our values and long to serve the body of Christ in Costa Rica by equipping pastors to lead their local churches well.

Joselo did an outstanding job preaching in two plenary sessions while we both also participated on panels discussing biblical missiology and pastoral care amid cultural currents. The eagerness and gratitude of the pastors gathered was palpable and it was clear that we are seeking to build God-glorifying churches with the same core values. At the conclusion of the conference we met with a group of leaders interested in joining Sovereign Grace, including Rodrigo and Chespi. It was a time of refreshing fellowship, care, encouragement, and prayer that highlighted the unity of the body of Christ. This budding partnership is already providing great comfort to our new friends who can at times feel alone in the work of ministry!

On Sunday we visited Casa Vida Playa Azul. Playa Azul was once a tourist beach town but it has fallen into poverty. Chespi is a humble and faith-filled man who relocated his family from San Jose to establish a church that would reach the young people of Playa Azul. Their church is building a campus with amenities like a swimming pool, soccer field, and dormitories in addition to their meeting facility so as to provide a place for the community to gather. Through these relationships, they are reaching the lost of Playa Azul. I preached the morning message and Joselo, myself, and Bob Wright (a member of Covenant Fellowship who has a home in Costa Rica) spent the remainder of the day with Chespi, his wife (Milena), and his son (Emanuel). Again, this time was focused on encouraging and strengthening Chespi’s family in their gospel work and caring for their souls.

It was humbling to be reminded that these times of fellowship that are part of our normal experience in Sovereign Grace are not the normal experience of so many pastors in our world. Extending the gospel mission is not merely a church expansion plan, but it has real impact on people, communities, and pastors who desire partnership. What a great grace it is to share the riches and values God has blessed us with, in Sovereign Grace, with like-minded brothers and sisters around the globe. What a privilege to be interconnected in our common gospel mission!

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In Sovereign Grace Churches, we are passionate about planting and strengthening churches all around the world, for the glory of God. That’s our passion, that’s our desire, and so Jesus is our only hope!

Without him we can do nothing. Without him we labour in vain. We so need Jesus, and so here’s how you can be praying for us in the month ahead...

1. Please pray for Richard Song of Sovereign Grace Church, Parramatta, Australia, Andrew Leung of Sovereign Grace Church, Sydney, Australia, and Simon Walker of Sovereign Grace Church, Sydney, Australia, as they begin (and continue in Simon’s case) Pastoral Internships in their Church’s. That the months ahead would be fruitful, clarifying and faith building for these men.

2. Please pray for La Vina Escazu in Costa Rica, Igreja Nova Vida in Brazil, Casa Vida Playa Azul Church in Costa Rica, and Sublime Gracia Church in Colombia, as they pursue formal adoption into Sovereign Grace Churches. These are exciting moments, and so may God gift wisdom and grace to everyone involved.

3. Please pray for Jeffrey Jo in Manila, Philippines; Cornelio Ebo in Cebu City, Philippines; Dyonah Thomas in Liberia, JP Ravuri in India & Mario Vucenovic in Croatia, as they continue to work through the Sovereign Grace Churches ordination process and begin to take their final exams in the next few months.

4. Please pray for Nathan Smith (Lead Pastor) and Grace Church Bristol, UK, as they continue to ‘do life’ in lockdown due to the Covid-19 pandemic. They have spent nearly 8 of the last 12 months in lockdown of some form in the UK, and though the Lord has been faithful and even added Church growth during this time, it’s certainly been difficult for them all. Please pray that this difficult season would soon come to an end and that they would know the nearness of God to them in this.

5. Please pray for the SGC Leadership Team as we continue to pray, discuss, and plan for global expansion in Sovereign Grace Churches. We so need His wisdom. Please also pray for Todd Peterson (Pastor of Cross of Grace Church, El Paso, Texas) Pat Tedeschi (Pastor of Green Tree Church, New Jersey), Allen Dicharry (Pastor of Sovereign Grace Church, Midland, TX), Pete Schefferstein (Pastor of Lakeview Christian Church, New Orleans) and Leo Parris (Pastor of Covenant Fellowship Church, PA) as they continue to work on the International Partnership Program together. In addition, please pray for our Emerging Nations Representatives Team, as they continue to work with our Global Partners around the world, in a whole range of different ways, to see Churches planted and strengthened for the glory of God. 

… Thank you so much. We appreciate your prayers very much!

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An update from Dyonah Thomas, Lead Pastor of Grace Life Church, and Founder of Grace Life Churches, and Roland Blackie, Grace Life Director of Church Planting…

We remain extremely grateful for your continued care, encouragement and support in the advancement of the Gospel work here in Liberia and the region. It is amazing to see how the Lord has encouraged us and brought us closer and closer to him through our friendship and partnership with Sovereign Grace.

As we write we want to reflect on the following areas that we are seeing gospel fruit being born...

1. Church Planting

Through monthly mentoring with Dave Taylor, financial support from Sovereign Grace and both of those things spilling over into our Church Planting Teams, we have been able to prepare for a new Church Plant in Kingsville. 

Kingsville  is a community of over 5000 residents. Most of last year we started training the team and planting gospel seeds by serving the community in several opportunities that the Lord gave us:

• Medical outreach in the community. We ran three different medical outreaches to this community. The area is served by just one small clinic, without drugs mostly, and the only functioning hospital is 15 miles away. Five Nurses and one doctor from two of our Grace Life Churches joined the Kingsville team to share the gospel and serve in this way. Over 200 people were screened, treated and given medication. 

• School planting ahead of the church plant. This community has several hundred children that do not attend school because there is only one public school and many live several miles away from it. A Kingsville team therefore started the Awana Program and secured a temporary and unfinished building, with a dirt floor, on a year and half lease, to launch the only Christian primary school in the area. We got certification for this in the first week of December, and now have 85 students enrolled  K-6 grade. We are already working on a more permanent space for the school, for once our lease runs out.  

2. Agriculture

Sustainability is a big issue in Liberia and the region, and so we’ve developed a system where our Church planters start farms. This will supply food for the Pastor and our Pastors College, as well as supply food to the local markets to generate income for our Church Planting pool fund . 

Our farm in Guinea has already started bearing food - primarily vegetables, and our Liberian land is presently being cleared for animal husbandry. God has gracious saved and is aiding very good leaders, who are also farmers and business leaders as well. 

3. Pastors College

One of the highlights of our last year is the Pastors College building. With over 100 students, from four Nations, in three programs, students gather four to five times a year for learning, and in the evenings they sleep on mats on the floor in our building. A building that has been rapidly wearing out. 

Yet with your help and support, from generous brothers and sisters in Sovereign Grace, we have been able to partner together to move forward with our new and permanent Pastors College building.  We have now been able to complete the laying of blocks and casting concrete on the first floor. This is huge for our students and the ongoing training of faithful shepherds of the Lord. We are waiting for the next week to remove the wooden frame, as we trust the Lord to continue working. Blessedly, all that was needed to complete the first floor, the Lord has provided.

Just last week, it was a great joy for us to have Jeff Purswell teach the Biblical Theology course via Video, and for him, Ben Kreps and Josh Blount, to participate in a live zoom panel for our students. Students thought it was excellent, and such a deep learning curve that many said, “Wow! I now see the Bible is actually a unifying text unfolding God’s single redemption story.”  

We remain extremely grateful that the Lord is giving us more and more opportunities for us to share the gospel and train faithful pastors to lead, and we’re grateful that we get to do this with Sovereign Grace. Thank you so much. 

An update from Joel Bain, Senior Pastor of Grace Family Church, Caymanas Estate, St Catherine, Jamaica…

On Sunday, January 3, Grace Family Church celebrated our second anniversary. The fog of daily life that has been a feature of living through the COVID pandemic here in Jamaica meant that we’ve arrived at that milestone without much anticipation. For most of 2020, we were glad to make it from Sunday to Sunday, grateful to be able to gather to encourage each other with the unchanging truth of the gospel as we all walked through uncertain times. But the landmark of two years as a local church was a surprising and delightful shock that opened my eyes to the tremendous grace of God to us in the midst of his bitter providence. 

In God’s kindness, we’ve been able to have in-person worship services between June 2020 and now. When we were resuming after an enforced break, we expected our numbers to be lower and for people to be tentative about gathering. But much to our astonishment, our numbers have grown and people have been enthusiastically attending, with many inviting friends and neighbours to come with them. 

In December, we received our second cohort of members. We’re now 30 adults and 15 children, and our Sunday attendance is averaging close to 80. The strangeness of this time is captured well in the fact that since we resumed services we have met, gotten to know, and received people as members and yet we have never once hugged them! But our friendships are genuine and our fellowship is joyful and we’re learning to pray for one another and to meet each other’s needs. Our relationships are deepening and God has been graciously leading us to face struggles and sin and suffering. As pastors, we have become aware of our insufficiency and helplessness, but more aware of and thankful for the sufficiency of the gospel and the help of the Spirit.

The reality that God has stripped away so much from our lives serves to highlight the gifts he has continued to generously provide. Gathering has become more precious to us, we have become more precious to one another, and His word has become more precious to our hearts. Recently, as we’ve been preaching through the gospel of Mark, one of our new members shared with me how he was being impacted by the consistent, faithful, expository preaching and our connecting the dots in the text as we go, and how much his appreciation for that particular gospel has grown. Together, we really are seeing how God is slowly and steadily shaping in us the image of Christ as we grow in understanding Jesus.

Recently, our elders had a one-day retreat. Sean, Sheldon, and I were able to take stock of our journey so far, and to pray and plan for the coming months. We’ve recognized that even though it is still a difficult season, we need to be deliberate in our efforts to lead our people towards maturity in their faith and faithfulness in their witness. Please pray for us in this. We are once again heading into a new lockdown, for most of this month of March (at the very least). Please pray that the Lord’s will be done here in Jamaica. 

An update from Josh Pannell, Pastors College graduate, and Missionary to Ethiopia, Africa…

Greetings from Africa!

Just four weeks ago my family moved from the US to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia to work alongside the Grangers at Trinity Fellowship. In all the ups and down of this transition, we’re glad to say that we’re more aware of grace than anything else: God’s grace in calling us to Ethiopia, God’s grace in providing the funds we need, God’s grace in settling us into our new home and new rhythm of life, and God’s grace in sustaining us through it all. “Hasn’t God been kind” is the chorus of our home.

For over a decade, my wife and I have desired to help with church planting, and it’s been a dream of mine to help train and equip pastors. While we’ve never been sure where the Lord would place us, we’ve always hoped it would be Africa. God used our time at Sovereign Grace Church of Louisville both to affirm these desires through our pastors and to introduce us to Michael and Kenean Granger, dear friends who have now become ministry partners. God has given us strong desires to come alongside the Grangers, and he’s given Michael and me the same vision for church planting and theological education in Africa.

After two years of prayer and counsel, we’ve committed to two years in Addis Ababa. We trust that God will use this time to confirm in our hearts a long-term call to labor for his kingdom in Ethiopia. We’re following the path the Lord has laid before us, knowing that he will continue to provide the grace and wisdom with every step.

Leaving behind our friends, family, church, and culture has been difficult. We’ve shed many tears and said too many goodbyes. But in all this God has shown us more clearly what it means that he is our dwelling place (Psalm 90:1), and we have experienced more keenly the unshakable joy that is ours in Christ (Psalm 16:11). Perhaps the greatest blessing in all this has been the gift of a wife and daughter who are wholeheartedly enthusiastic about this move. I don’t drag a family kicking and screaming behind me; I lead a family who is running with me and cheering me on. Even in the difficulties, they are unshaken, and their faith serves as a model for me to imitate. What a kind gift from God.

My and Michael’s dream for Trinity Fellowship Church is simple and the same: we want it to be a gospel-centered church that plants gospel-centered churches, and we want to equip Ethiopians to pastor these church. Michael’s giftings are in church planting and pastoral ministry. My giftings are in teaching and theological education. Our prayer is that God would use these complementary giftings to build a network of strongly gospel-centered churches in Ethiopia. To our joy, God is answering these prayers quicker than we dreamed, and Michael and I have already begun laying the foundation for a future pastors college here in Addis.

As I reflect on all God is doing in my family and in Trinity Fellowship, I’m so grateful for our partnership with Sovereign Grace Churches that has made this possible. You’ve trained us, counseled us, and directed us. We’ve felt your support, your enthusiasm, and your encouragement every step of the way.

God is on the move here in Addis, and he is using your gifts and your prays to accomplish great things for his kingdom. Thank you so much for partnering with us in the gospel.

With gratefulness, Josh Pannell

In the last month we’ve had four Global Churches formally asked to be adopted by Sovereign Grace. We are thrilled to announce that all of the following have now become Candidate Churches, and so will formally begin the ordination and adoption process. With great joy, here’s a bit about them…

La Vina Escazu - Costa Rica

From Mark Prater, Executive Director of Sovereign Grace Churches…

I met Rodrigo Fournier, Lead Pastor of La Vina Escazu in San Jose, Costa Rica when I spoke at a conference alongside of my friend Joselo Mercado in February 2020 in San Jose. Rodrigo was not only my capable translator when I preached during the conference, he had also invited me to preach at his church the Sunday after the conference. On that Sunday, Jill and I found La Vina Escazu, a church of 600 people, to be very similar to a Sovereign Grace church. There was a palpable passion for Christ in their singing, a warmth in their relationships, and a gospel-centrality that marked their Sunday service.

Since that Sunday in February 2020, Rodrigo and I have talked about every 6 weeks. In those conversations Rodrigo became a friend as we got updates on each other’s lives, and he told me that he first became aware of Sovereign Grace by listening to CJ Mahaney’s sermons.As Rodrigo and his elders interest in Sovereign Grace grew, we had conversations about our polity, our Seven Shared Values and our new Statement of Faith, all of which seem to confirm that Sovereign Grace could be a denominational home for La Vina Escazu. On February 25, 2021, a year after I met Rodrigo, the elders of La Vina Escazu sent me a signed Letter of Intent formalizing their desire to be adopted into Sovereign Grace. I’m so excited about the possibility of our family of churches having another church in the nation of Costa Rica.

Igreja Nova Vida - Brazil

From Bert Turner, SGC Representative to Brazil…

“Faithful” is a more biblical (and important) descriptor than “heroic,” but they both apply to our dear friends at Igreja Nova Vida (INV) down in the southernmost state of Brazil – Rio Grande do Sul. These precious saints have faithfully persevered through being abandoned by a former denomination, the tragic death of their senior pastor and the difficulties of living the doctrines of grace in an area where they are little understood or celebrated. Yet, they are joyfully serving Jesus, and, to our joy, eagerly pursuing adoption by Sovereign Grace Churches. The INV leadership team officially signed a letter of intent to become a SGC candidate church last month.

I first met their pastor, Emerson Soares, when I was in São Paulo, Brazil in 2018. He flew 800 miles just to meet over the possibility of the adoption of INV by SGC. Since then, we have developed a warm and deep relationship. Emerson has attended the Pastor’s Conference twice (once with is wife, Tati). I have been twice to visit them in Rio Grande. Emerson is progressing quickly through the ordination process. As a sign of his favor, the Lord was kind to recently give INV a new, larger and better meeting place. Even during COVID restrictions they are seeing new visitors.

Casa Vida Playa Azul Church (CVPA) - Costa Rica

From Joselo Mercado, SGC Representative to Latin America…

I still remember this man full of enthusiasm coming up to greet me after preaching at a conference in Santo Domingo. Between laughs and tears he told me that he wanted to be able to communicate the gospel with the passion that I had done and that he wanted to talk about his family in a similar way. From that conversation was born a friendship that we have cultivated for several years. After several visits to Costa Rica, serving together in conferences, having dinner and laughing, Chespi Sandoval and Casa Vida Playa Azul Church (CVPA) asked to be adopted by SGC.

It is evident that both CVPA and SGC are compatible in the gospel-centered values that define our mission. We hope that in time God will give us direction to confirm this relationship and to continue the work of proclaiming the gospel in Costa Rica.

Sublime Gracia Church - Santa Marta, Colombia

From Joselo Mercado, SGC Representative to Latin America…

Jacobis Aldana is a young pastor with many gifts. In addition to being the pastor of the Sublime Gracia church in Santa Marta, Colombia, Jacobis works in public relations and web development of several recognized ministries in Latin America. Because of God's gifts, many ministries want Jacobis to become part of them. So why does he want to be part of SGC? Centrality and application of the Gospel, this is what summarizes the relationship we have with Jacobis and his precious congregation.

Our relationship describes the mutual desire to encourage each other in the truths of the Gospel, our desire to fellowship for our benefit and that of our families, and enjoy the values we hold dear. Jacobis has built a church where the Gospel is not just academic knowledge; it is a truth that applies on a day-to-day basis. So he wants to be associated with a church group that values the same.

November 10th 2020 will be remembered as a historic day for our family of churches because, on that day, the Sovereign Grace Churches Council of Elders unanimously voted to approve our new Statement of Faith.

From one angle, this action was unremarkable, as our churches have from the start defined themselves theologically. By God’s grace, we have avoided many a theological pitfall, and our gospel-centrality - SGC was “gospel-centered” long before that phrase was fashionable - has remained steadfast. 

Even still, as the culmination of a careful, seven-year process of theological formulation, discussion, revision, and review, the Sovereign Grace Churches Council of Elders ratified a new Statement of Faith that will function confessionally for every ordained pastor in our denomination. Every ordained pastor right around the world... And that’s a big deal!!

Jeff Purswell, the Dean of our Pastors College, says this about our Statement of Faith,

“The new Statement of Faith is precious to us. It is an affirming, clarifying, and mission-strengthening gift. Its very existence declares that the pastors and churches we serve stand united in, and devoted to, God’s revelation in Holy Scripture. Its affirmations of great biblical doctrines root us in historic Christian orthodoxy and the faith once for all delivered to the saints. Its careful distinctions draw vital boundaries to guard against heresies ancient and contemporary. Its distinctive elements express specific convictions our churches hold dear. Its doxological tone captures the goal of all biblical truth—to lead us into a deeper knowledge of the Triune God, that we might more genuinely worship him, all to the praise of his glory.”

How true this is! And such qualities only clarify and bolster the mission of Sovereign Grace Churches around the world. In headline, this Statement of Faith gives our global work the necessary guidance and guarding we need in this great mission, helping us to ensure faithful ministry, by God’s grace, for many generations to come.

To mark this historic moment in Sovereign Grace, we have established a dedicated website for our Statement of Faith: webelieve.sovereigngrace.com, which you can find here. This website is your "one-stop-shop" for the Sovereign Grace Churches Statement of Faith. Please take a good look at it.

May this Statement of Faith protect our family of churches, strengthen our theological unity, charge our global mission, and deepen our worship of God, all around the world.

In Isaiah 66.1-2a we read the following,

'Thus says the LORD: “Heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool; what is the house that you would build for me, and what is the place of my rest? All these things my hand has made, and so all these things came to be, declares the LORD.”’

This is the sheer magnificence of God. He is the author and creator and sustainer of all creation. For from Him and to Him and through Him are all things… And what confidence that powerful reality should give us as we pray to Him. All of creation, His wonderful hand has made, and so here’s how we can be praying to Him in the month ahead…

1. Please pray for Jeffrey Jo in Manila, Philippines; Cornelio Ebo in Cebu City, Philippines; Dyonah Thomas in Liberia, JP Ravuri in India & Mario Vucenovic in Croatia, as they continue to work through the Sovereign Grace Churches ordination process and begin then to take their exams in the next few months.

2. Please pray for Ben Kreps, Josh Blount & Jeff Purswell as they teach at the Grace Life Pastors College in Monrovia, Liberia, 8th-19th February. Although the teaching will be online, may it be a rich time of teaching and training for our brothers in Liberia, and would many hearts be refreshed, and many relationships be formed and blessed as a result.

3. Please pray for Jorge and David Del Castillo who at the end of a fruitful season (report below), now find their recent church plant, Iglesia Gracia Soberana in Santa Cruz, Bolivia, having to once again meet online due to the second wave of the covid pandemic. Please pray that God would continue to provide for this new church in resources, grace and wisdom.

4. Please pray for Zicky Chanda, her four sons, and the members of Christ Community Church in Ndola, Zambia, as they mourn the death of our dear Wilbroad. Our friend and fellow Sovereign Grace Pastor, indeed the first to ever be officially ordained in Africa, will be dearly missed. Please pray also for Doug Hayes, our Sovereign Grace Representative to Zambia, as he seeks to care for the family and Church by taking a trip to be with them, 3th-10th February.

5. And finally, please pray for the 38 countries that we have Sovereign Grace work going on in, outside of the United States... Australia, Bahamas, Belarus, Benin Republic, Bolivia, Brazil, Canada, China, Colombia, Costa Rica, Croatia, Cuba, Ethiopia, Germany, Ghana, Guinea, Hong Kong, Hungary, India, Italy, Ivory Coast, Jamaica, Liberia, Mexico, Nepal, Pakistan, Philippines, Puerto Rico, Sierra Leonne, Somalia, South Korea, Spain, Thailand, Turkey, Uganda, United Kingdom, Venezuela & Zambia So many Nations, yet all held in His Hands. … May we trust Him, may we keep looking up, and may His grace abound to us all.

The following is an update from Michael Granger, Lead Pastor of Trinity Fellowship in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Over the course of our Covid-19 quarantine Trinity Fellowship wrote, recorded, and produced a music album about sin and the gospel… Wow! I’ve attached the Christmas song they produced entitled “Kidus” at the end of the this report. Please don’t miss it. Enjoy…

Our plan for planting a church in Ethiopia was always broken up into two phases, firstly a Soft Launch with our planting team; followed by the second, a Hard Launch (or Official Launch) in which we begin publicly ministering to our community. I am so pleased to report that on Sunday October 4th of 2020, Trinity Fellowship in Addis Ababa had its soft launch in our home. We began with a call to worship from Isaiah 40:9-11 “Behold your God”. That was followed by Abenezer beginning the singing portion of our worship service with Bob Kauflin and Jon Althoff’s song He is Our God.

Our singing was followed by a pastoral prayer and then I preached from Hebrews 11:39-12:2 Looking Unto Jesus. It was the first sermon of a 3-part series entitled Why We’re Gospel Centered. Finally we ended our service by taking communion together. It was a sweet time with one another and with our dear Savior. The last words of the service were, “As my dear pastor and friend CJ Mahaney always says, “I wish tomorrow were Sunday!”

Then, in mid-November we moved from our house to a 200 seat theater in the Bisrate Gebriel neighborhood of Addis Ababa. That was a massive answer to prayer because it is right smack dab in the middle of where we had been praying for a location to meet. Finally on the very last Sunday of the year, December 27th, we celebrated the official launch of Trinity Fellowship in Addis Ababa. We called it a Very Merry Church Plant and with much merriment of heart I’m so pleased to report that by the grace of God we made in as a 2020 church plant! Our text for that Sunday came from Luke 2:25-35 on Simeon’s response to the Messiah. The sermon was entitled God in our Hands. And we had the chance to sing one of our very own Christmas songs. Abenezer Dejene, our Director of Music wrote and recorded Kidus (attached below) which we sang as a church.

In my opinion, it felt like a very fruitful Sunday, and we're stunned by the grace of God. My brother-in-law, who was serving as usher tells me there were around 150 people in attendance. That might be an exaggeration of 1 or 2 dozen, but he’s confident with his figure. And, after the service there was a buzz of excitement in the air. As for me, my heart is full of joy, a very very deep joy that I get to be a part of what God is doing in East Africa. I just can’t believe it! My heart is also flooded with thanksgiving at the generosity of the Lord in giving us such wonderful friends and such a marvelous Ethiopian planting team. And now, by the grace of God, we find ourselves two sermons into our series on Paul’s epistle to the Philippians. Praise God!