Psalm 93, ‘The LORD reigns; he is robed in majesty; the LORD is robed; he has put on strength as his belt. Yes, the world is established; it shall never be moved. Your throne is established from old; you are from everlasting. The floods have lifted up, O LORD, the floods have lifted up their voice; the floods lift up their roaring. Mightier than the thunders of many waters, mightier than the waves of the sea, the LORD on high is mighty! Your decrees are very trustworthy; holiness befits your house, O LORD, for evermore.’

None of us really knows what the weather ahead looks like in 2023, but what we do know, and what we can be absolutely confident about, is that the LORD reigns! The majestic and mighty LORD, our sovereign protector and ruler, He reigns!! What a wonderful and inspiring truth this is!

Here then is how you can be praying to Him for us in the month ahead…

1. Please pray for Jeffrey Jo, Lead Pastor of CCSGM Manila, Cavite, as he pulls together seven of our key SG Philippines Pastors, for the first half of our SG Pastors Immersion Training, 3-27th March in Manila. This training will help to put some key foundations into Sovereign Grace Churches Philippines and bring these Pastors together as a foundational leadership cohort. We’re very excited about this step, as our two big groups of Churches start to come together in partnership in this way, all under the one banner of SGC Philippines.

2. Please pray for our SG Asia-Pacific Pastors Conference, 28th-30th March, in Manila, Philippines. Folk will be traveling from Australia, Nepal, India, South Korea, Pakistan, and the US to attend this time. Please pray for Dave Taylor, Jeffrey Jo & Mark Prater as they lead this conference, and for every pastor and wife in attendance.

3. Please pray for Dyonah Thomas, Lead Pastor of Gracelife Church in Monrovia, and key leader of our work in Liberia. He has recently been diagnosed with colon cancer and so will be heading to Accra, Ghana, for further tests and treatment early this month. Liberia does not have an oncology department, and so please pray for Dyonah, for his wife Mai, and for everyone involved in this. May the Lord bring His healing hand to our brother.

4. Please pray for our team of SG Pastors who are traveling to Amman, Jordan, March 4-9th, to train ten Pastors from Pakistan. These Pastors have a long relationship with our family of Churches, represent well over 100 Churches, and are keen to explore full partnership with Sovereign Grace. Please pray for much wisdom, faith and understanding for everyone involved in this opportunity.

5. Please pray for our brothers in LATAM, as they have a busy month ahead! Please pray for Carlos Contreras as he leads a Simeon Trust Preaching Workshop in Guadalajara, March 8-9th; for Aberlado Munez as he leads the same Workshop in Juarez, March 13-15th; and for Joselo Mercado as he speaks at the Revive our Hearts Conference, an 8000 strong conference, in Guadalajara, March 31-April 1st.

… With so many different weathers to navigate across the world, may we never forget: The LORD reigns.

An update from Michael Granger, Lead Pastor of Trinity Fellowship Church, Ethiopia ...

By the grace of God, Trinity Fellowship is a growing community. We now have roughly 100 members with around 15-20 waiting for our next membership intake, and approximately 130-160 in regular attendance on Sunday mornings. Trinity Fellowship's membership consists of a ton of young people, with very few over the age of 30. Back in December, Trinity Fellowship celebrated its 2-year anniversary where we heard testimonies and held baptisms. In that month I also had the privilege of marrying two couples in the course of 10 days. We are certainly growing numerically, but also I trust, in maturity.

Before being sent to Ethiopia, my dear friend and pastor CJ Mahaney told me that in his research, the one thing he'd found common amongst fruitful churches was they “knocked it out of the park” every Sunday. Well, we’ve spent the last two years endeavoring to do just that. I preach my heart out and Abenezer, one of our pastoral interns, leads us in singing - to the best of our ability in the grace of God. We wanted to do one thing with excellence before adding any other components. But now, we feel the church is ready, and in need of some new components. So in December we added a Sunday morning corporate prayer meeting at 9am (one hour before the service), and in March we’ll begin community groups. By the grace of God, this year will also see the establishment of a Wednesday evening Amharic service as well as an evangelistic outreach ministry. We feel our desperate need for the Holy Spirit's leading and blessing of all these categories in the life of the church.

Back in September last year, the Lord filled my heart with gladness as our first cohort of Trinity Fellowship Pastors College students graduated. These men took 42 Masters-level classes spread out over 12 months, sweating, bleeding, and reading together. They are Ephesians 4 gifts from Christ, dropped straight into the lap of the church. 

One student, Muhammed, is fact-finding in order to plant a Somali church in the city, while the other 9 students have become full-time interns at Trinity Fellowship where they will serve until October this year. Amongst these students, Brian is considering a church plant in Nairobi, Kenya in 2024, and Amanuel and Abenezer will probably be ordained into Trinity Fellowship as co-pastors by the end of this year or early 2024. Finally, come September, Trinity Fellowship's Pastors College intends to start its second academic calendar year and we're praying for 10-12 students.

The most meaningful thing a person or church can tell me is they're praying for us. I really don't know what I would be apart from the Lord's people before the throne of grace on my behalf, and so as we look ahead to the next chapter for our local church and Pastors College, here's how you can be praying for us in the months ahead...

• Please pray for the unction of the Holy Spirit in my preaching and in our new Sunday morning corporate prayer meetings.

• Please pray for our pastoral interns, in particular Amanuel, Abenezer and Brian as we consider ordaining them. Please also pray for Brian as we consider sending his family back to Nairobi, Kenya to plant a church.

• Please pray for our members to grow in spiritual maturity - for faith to see beyond merely the physical into the spiritual so that their greatest longing becomes an obsessive desire to surrender to Christ and do his will.

• Please pray for God to give us 12 students for our upcoming Pastors College in September.

We're thankful to our family of churches who have made Trinity Fellowship and the Pastors College a reality. We know that it is all God, but God uses lots and lots of means. You're the means!

Thank You!

One of the ways we experienced God’s goodness at our recent 2022 Sovereign Grace Pastors Conference, was through hearing stories from Sovereign Grace pastors during our time together. These stories highlighted the partnership we share among our churches, and the joy we have of fulfilling our gospel mission together.

I wanted you to hear and benefit from three of these stories in this update, and so I share them with you below...

The first is from Jeffrey Jo, Senior Pastor of Cross of Christ Salvation Gospel Ministries in Manila, Philippines, and national leader for our work in the Philippines. It’s such a wonderful story of friendship, partnership and grace.

The second is from Christian Wegert, Senior Pastor of Arche Church in Hamburg, Germany, and long time partner with Sovereign Grace Churches. Followed by Choby Estupinian, Senior Pastor of Gracia Soberana de Guadalajara, Mexico.

As you listen to these stories I trust they encourage you. How good the Lord has been to us!

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

In the first week of February, 31 leaders from over 8 nations around the world gathered for an incredibly significant Leadership Retreat. Represented at this gathering were multiple generations of Sovereign Grace pastors so that our faithful past can be transferred to ensure we have a faithful future. At the Retreat, the Leadership Team served the various spheres of leaders represented: US Regional Leaders, US Future Leaders, and Global Leaders.

Our time began with a stirring introductory appeal by our Executive Director, Mark Prater. He called us to six key imperatives as we move forward, the first of which was to be “leaders who are lovers of Jesus!” That may sound obvious and basic, but it is crucial! In the next 5-10 years Sovereign Grace is set to expand from some 80 churches to over 200+ (as a modest estimate)…and therefore we must ensure that no matter what, we love Jesus through all of this growth! On top of this he charged us to: have Christ-like character, protect and promote our gospel heritage, courageously stand for our theological convictions, take risks to advance the gospel, and have faith that God will bless us! Amen!

CJ Mahaney spoke on ‘Keeping the Heart’ from Proverbs 4:23, “Keep your heart with all vigilance, for from it flow the springs of life.” He so helpfully outlined how we are to guard our life and doctrine by the spiritual discipline of watchfulness. He shared his two great fears: 1) be less astounded by his salvation, 2) that he’d become a professional pastor. Instead, we must keep up the edge and constantly work on our hearts to love Jesus personally, passionately, and persistently, no matter the trials and heartaches.

Jeff Purswell then delivered a tour de force message on ‘The Pastor’s Doctrine’ from 1 Timothy 4:16. This was a denomination shaping and preserving moment. He explicated our need to guard our doctrinal fidelity in order to maintain our gospel longevity. Without sound theology in all of our doctrine, we will lose the gospel in the end. It’s life or death for us, our churches and our family of churches.

Jared Mellinger and Jon Payne then spoke on the biblical category and role of ‘extra-local’ leadership for our churches, regionally and globally, and the need to raise up and unleash men to serve at this broader influential level. In so doing, these leaders are to reflect the ‘extra-local’ leaders we see in the New Testament with respect to their: ecclesiological focus, watchfulness, love, courage and faith.

Each sphere of leaders also met in groups to discuss issues of particular concern to them. I (Riley) had the privilege of being in the Global Leaders meetings, led so well by Dave Taylor, and got to hear of what the Lord is doing all over the world through our Pastors. We shared our hearts for our nations and our hopes for the future. It was exciting and humbling. Be assured the Lord is on the move. 

We all had a great time hanging out, making new friends, eating together, laughing, singing, praying and sharing stories. It was a privilege and honour to be at this gathering, I was pinching myself the whole time. How is it possible that we’re in such a beautiful, faithful, and solid family of Churches? How is that we get to do this together with such joy, fellowship, and friendship? It’s sheer, bountiful, undeserved (but I am never trading it in), grace!

It would seem that God would have us poised to serve Christ in new and ever expanding ways, with joy, and health, for the next forty years and more. Let us all play our part!

In a recent podcast, Mark Prater & Ben Kreps talk about the four Church Plants that we presently have moving forward in the US, planted by men who will preach in three different languages!

It’s a wonderful update, I hope it encourages you!

An update from Brendan Willis, Pastor at Sovereign Grace Church Wahroonga, Australia…

We’re a family of churches with a big heart to pass the gospel onto the next generation.

My life is living proof of this truth. When Dave Taylor arrived in Sydney in June 2010, I was a student at Moore Theological College in my very first year of training. His commitment to train the next generation of leaders to serve in our then fledgling church plant meant that I was invested into, cared for, and prepared for pastoral ministry in Sovereign Grace Churches.

But my story is nothing new. Since the very first disciples were commissioned by the Lord Jesus, some 65 generations have come and gone, each forming a link in an unbroken chain as the gospel has been passed on faithfully from generation to generation. Just as Paul instructed Timothy to entrust the gospel “…to faithful men, who will be able to teach others also.” (2 Tim 2:2) we stand on the shoulders of so many who have gone before us and diligently obeyed the command of Christ to make disciples of the nations.

Over the past year, we’ve been wrestling as a region with how we might intentionally seek to invest in the next generation of leaders. And out of many discussions was born our Sovereign Grace Churches Australia (SGCA) Young Leaders Internship which began in February this year.

What is the Young Leaders Internship?

The Young Leaders Internship is a program designed to train the next generation of Sovereign Grace leaders to serve Sovereign Grace Churches. Our hope is that each of our leaders will grow in their love for Christ and his local church over the course of the year while being equipped to serve the Lord more effectively for the rest of their lives. 

There are four elements to the program all aimed at growing each intern in their character, convictions, and competency in serving: 

1. Cohort
Each month, on the last Sunday of the month, all of our interns gather for dinner, fellowship and teaching related to one of their 10 units of study. We spend some time reviewing the materials they’ve been reading and applying them, sharing feedback about their various focus services areas and of course enjoying each other’s company. We’ve also started working on our shared project of running a vacation bible school together as a cohort.

2. Study

We’ve designed our internship with young professionals and full-time students in mind so each month the interns also have set study designed to be achievable given those pressures. For example, this month they’re reading ‘What Best Next: How The Gospel Transforms the Way You Get Things Done.’ By Matt Perman. Their assignment is similarly to come up with a plan for how they can grow in Gospel­­–Centred productivity by forming a personal mission statement and a life goal, listing their personal values, and a basic weekly schedule that reflects these principles.

3. Serving

Given our conviction that the local church is ‘the dearest place on Earth’ we really want to help our interns grow in a passion for the Lord and the church by getting them serving. As well as shared projects like the vacation bible school, we’re looking to utilize our interns more during our Sunday gatherings and to provide them with opportunities to serve in areas they are interested in. Furthermore, we have 6 ministry mentoring sessions throughout the course of the year which are smaller groups focused around 6 different character qualities that are vital to faithful leadership.

4. Experiences 

And lastly, it wouldn’t be a true Young Leaders Internship without some shared experiences! Our hope is that our interns not only grow in a love for the Lord Jesus, for one another and our local churches here in Sydney, but that they fall in love with our family of churches as well. To that end, we’re topping the year off by flying all 11 of our interns over to Glen Mills to join the Relay conference in January 2024!!

How has the Internship program been going so far?

We may be only just into our second month of the program but the Lord has been so kind! We’ve seen new friendships already begin to form among the cohort, deep and honest sharing in our ministry mentoring nights and a real sense of excitement and joy for the year ahead. Already several interns have asked for prayer specifically that God might grow them in a love for God’s people and it has been so deeply encouraging to see many putting up their hands to love and serve others.

Praise God for his faithfulness in prompting these 11 young men and women to join our program and please join with us in praying that God would bring radical transformation to the hearts of students and teachers alike beyond anything we could have dreamed!

RELAY Registration is open.

The RELAY Conference exists to inspire young adults, from all over the world, to live for the glory of Christ. Our desire is to inspire this generation to personalize and carry forward our shared doctrine, values, and mission that we cherish as Sovereign Grace churches. As we gather together from many churches to hear God’s word, sing God’s praises, build relationships across churches, and invest in future leaders, we are asking God to use this conference for his glory and the strengthening of our churches for decades to come.  

While the conference is aimed at college students and young adults (18-25 years old), as well as their leaders, we welcome high school students ages 16-17 and those in their late 20s or 30s. We don’t have strict age limits. And while the conference aims at serving Sovereign Grace churches, we welcome and encourage those in other churches to attend.

We are also offering Pre-Conference Pastoral Interest sessions, along with a dinner, for young men who may feel called to pastoral ministry.

The dates for this conference are Thursday—Saturday, January  4-6, 2024.

Some conference details include:

• This year’s theme is Living for Christ Alone

• The conference will take place at Covenant Fellowship Church in Glen Mills, PA. 

• Lunch and Dinner will be provided on Friday

• Speakers include CJ Mahaney, Jared Mellinger, Jon Payne, Jeff Purswell, and Dave Taylor

• Singing will be led by Bob Kauflin

You can register for the conference here.

Hebrews 12.1-2, ‘Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great cloud a witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.'

We are all in a race, the great race, indeed the greatest race of our lives! And so looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, the One we all need so much, here’s how you can be praying for us in the month ahead…

1. Please pray for the Sovereign Grace Leadership Team as we lead a retreat, February 6-8, 2023, that will include our U.S. Regional Leaders, Global Leaders, and a group of future leaders asking God to envision, strengthen, and equip our leaders to serve our churches throughout the world. It’s the first time we’ve come together in this way and so please pray that it’s a great time!!

2. Please pray for Billy Raies, Erik Schmaltz, Philip Estrada and Allen Dicharry as they head to Nepal, Feb 21 - Mar 1, to serve our dear friend Barnabas, our Key Leader in Nepal. Please pray for a growing partnership of faith as they serve Barnabas and his Pastoral Team, and for much wisdom as we continue to map out the best way of partnership in this dear country.

3. Please pray for the 11 young people who just this month started their Young Leaders Internships in SG Australia... Abella Lick (SG Parramatta), Georgia Lick (SG Parramatta), Luke Counsell (SG Wahroonga), Esther Monck (SG Wahroonga), Hollie Roberts (SG Wahroonga), Froilan Samonte (SG Wahroonga), Josh Taylor (SG Wahroonga), Amy Taylor (SG Wahroonga), Marcos Cabral (SG Wahroonga), Hannah Payne (SG Wahroonga), and Sebastian Fasano (SG Wahroonga). That God would really meet with them and bless them throughout the year ahead.

4. Please pray for Rich Richardson, and the team of 8 SG Pastors, who are coming together in Phoenix, Feb 21-22, to talk about SG Church Development in Latin America (outside of Mexico). Please pray for quick camaraderie in the group, for creative ideas, and one heart.

5. Please also pray for the growing number of Sovereign Grace church members that are seriously considering cross-cultural mission. Please pray for me (Dave Taylor), the Emerging Nations Team, Mark Prater (Executive Director of Sovereign Grace Churches), and those asking the question. May we together discern the will of God in each of these situations and may His guidance be clear, as we seek to reach the ends of the earth for Jesus.

   … Looking then to Him, the founder and perfecter of our faith. May His grace abound to us all!

The team coordinating gospel-centred translation work in Chinese: Andrew Leung, Perry Wang, Fengyu Ji and their wives.

An update from Andrew Leung, Pastoral Candidate at Sovereign Grace Church, Sydney, Australia...

It’s a joy to know that God is propelling his gospel forward among all nations. It’s an even greater joy to know that Sovereign Grace churches get to play a small part in this Great Commission. I have been privileged to be coordinating much of the translation work that is undergoing in various parts of the world, and I would love to share some of the highlights over the past year and what’s coming down the line for your encouragement, but also to enlist your prayers for all things developing for Sovereign Grace Churches in these nations.

Over the past year, we have seen Pastor Fengyu and his wife lead a team of pastors to translate the Sovereign Grace website and the Statement of Faith into Chinese. They are also in the process of finishing translating CJ Mahaney’s Humility and Living the Cross Centred Life and are looking to have these published by a Chinese publisher in the coming months. For the first time, Christians in China (and beyond) will be able to access these gospel centred materials! These materials will also be of great benefit to two potential Chinese-speaking church plants in the US this year.   

With the explosion of the number of churches in the Philippines wanting to partner with Sovereign Grace, translation work is in full swing on the Statement of Faith, Seven Shared Values, Book of Church Order, website and even ordination materials to have them translated into Tagalog and Cebuano. These materials will assist greatly in the further training, equipping of pastors, and the development of Sovereign Grace Churches, Philippines.    

Translation work in Thailand has also been progressing full steam ahead, led by our key leader in Thailand. CJ Mahaney’s Living the Cross Centered Life has already been translated, and is expected to be published in print and available on the internet in the coming months. This will help fill the gap in gospel centered resources in Thai, which prayerfully will help strengthen His people in Christ, and reach out to those who are yet to follow Him. The Statement of Faith and Seven Shared Values are also being translated for a Thai website, which will house these translated materials, along with select Sovereign Grace songs that are also being translated into Thai.

Further translation work is also being done in Korea in the coming year. Pastor Songhwan, lead pastor of Lord’s Grace Church in Seoul, South Korea, is coordinating the translation of the Book of Church Order, as well as the recent journal articles on Seven Shaping Virtues and Seven Shared Values into Korean. These materials will assist greatly in the training of three interns and the development of Sovereign Grace Churches, Korea.

Work translating the Seven Shared Values, as well as the Statement of Faith and parts of the BCO into Russian are also in full swing. This is being led by Kyle Huber and being done off the back of several potential Belarussian churches being interested in partnership with Sovereign Grace. 

All in all, there is lots to give thanks for. God is on the move, and what a sheer joy it is to be able to go along for the ride! Come on board, join us and pray into all this work around the world, and let’s together see what God continues to do in the nations through Sovereign Grace. For his glory and our joy!

Working towards Sovereign Grace Churches of Korea through Korean translation work.

An update from our key leader in Thailand (identity concealed for safety reasons)...

If you would’ve told me a few months ago that over 1200 people in our remote location in Thailand would hear the good news shared through the Christmas story in December, I might have believed you, but wouldn’t have had a clue how God would make such a thing happen. Well, He did it, and He brought it about in ways that make us just stand back in awe of our Lord for His spectacular ingenuity, wisdom, majestic power, and mercy!  

So, a quick back drop: Our team has been in Thailand for many years. After a while of training, He led us to a remote location that has very few believers. In this community He’s granted amazing favor and opportunity to serve and build relationships as we share the love and truth of Christ. Through these special relationships, God opened unimaginable doors this Christmas season. Five different outreaches were held over eight days where the team gave the reason for our hope in Jesus. The team was able to share the good news through a Christmas play telling the true reason for Christmas at schools as well as a Christmas party. Christ’s love was also shared with the poorest in our community through a mercy ministry. In conversations that followed from these events, friends conveyed their interest in the story of Jesus and deep gratitude. Many seeds were planted and we ask for your continued prayer that they would grow in good soil.

In all of this, we want to thank the churches and individuals who have faithfully partnered with us through the years. It’s through your visionary faith, sacrificial generosity, encouragement, and prayers that the team has been sustained and God has opened doors. The team couldn’t do this without you, nor would we want to. Oh, the joy and privilege it is to partner with our family of churches! We also want to specifically thank our partner Arche Church Hamburg who enabled the team to bless children with Christmas gifts in the outreaches. It’s through our partnership with you that God has moved in the community, and we thank you friends.

Even with this wonderful news, there’s still an enormous need among the unreached of Thailand. We’ve been praying for years that God would raise up more workers for our team and other places in Thailand. The harvest is truly plentiful, but the laborers are fewer than few. Perhaps the Lord would have you consider coming to joyfully lay down your life for the sake of Christ in this land. If you are interested in learning more, go to the SGC Global site where you can inquire about opportunities to serve in Thailand.

An update from Matthew Williams, Lead Pastor of KingsWay Community Church, Midlothian, Virginia, USA…

“You can’t make this stuff up.”

I have thought as much on multiple occasions as my long-time friends, Josh and Lieze Kruger, step off the plane tomorrow to begin a 12-month church-planting residency at KingsWay. Lord willing, they will return to Windhoek, Namibia in early 2024 to plant the first Sovereign Grace Church in their country. The 17-year journey to this moment is a remarkable story of God’s providence.

Josh was born in South Africa under apartheid. He moved to Richmond, Virginia as a teenager when his dad, Josh Sr., accepted a forensic scientist position with the state government. Think NCIS with less office drama. The entire family arrived at KingsWay Community Church in 2005 hungry for expository, Christ-centered preaching that called believers to walk in a manner worthy of the gospel. That’s miracle number one.

At the time, Josh was like many young men in our church. He had a strong passion to serve the Lord and a lot to learn about the basics of Christian spiritual leadership. He was a sponge in the best possible sense, participating in book studies, volunteering on the facilities team, and doing anything he could to spend time with our pastors. He asked countless questions. A gift of leadership quickly became evident. People naturally followed him.

In 2009, we sent Josh to Fredericksburg, Virginia to support Ken Delage in planting Mercy Hill Church. A year later, he moved back to South Africa to get married and began working fulltime for Operation Mobilization, a global, Christian missions organization. We began providing financial support for the Krugers in 2015 around the time Josh assumed a new field leadership position with OM in Namibia. He was only allowed to immigrate to the country because his wife, Lieze, was born there. That’s miracle number two.

We had some pivotal conversations after I attended a conference in Zambia with him in 2017. We talked about the importance of expository preaching. We talked about how biblical missions proceeds out of local churches and results in new local churches. Around the same time, the Lord provided opportunities for him to preach at their local church in Windhoek. Josh loved it. He also developed a growing awareness that much of what he was hearing from the pulpit didn’t come from God’s Word. That’s miracle number three.

Two years ago, Josh and Lieze decided to leave their church after months of futile conversation with their pastor about the false teaching coming from the pulpit. The congregation deteriorated afterward, and many former members began asking Josh to start a new church. They were hungry for biblical preaching and said things like, “Josh, when you preach, you help us understand the Bible.”

To his credit, Josh refused. As his biblical understanding of the pastorate grew, so did his fear of entering ministry unqualified and unprepared. I encouraged Josh to rest and wait, trusting the Lord to confirm a clear call to ministry in his good time and provide the right opportunities to be equipped. I encouraged him to start taking online classes at Southern Seminary a few months later.

When Josh and Lieze began attending a new, evangelical gathering of believers in Windhoek, the Lord again provided opportunities for him to preach. A visit to Namibia in April 2022 confirmed Josh was fast becoming their functional lead pastor. During that trip, Josh expressed his growing confidence that God wanted him to leave OM and become a pastor, an aspiration Lieze readily affirmed.

That’s miracle number four for multiple reasons, chief among them the lack of biblical models of ministry in their context. Josh isn’t compelled to become a pastor by what he has seen in African churches. He grieves what he has seen. He’s compelled by what he reads in Scripture and by what he has tasted and seen of God’s Word lived out in KingsWay and Mercy Hill.

Before I left, I encouraged Josh and Lieze to pray about coming to KingsWay for a 1-year pastoral residency with the goal of returning to Windhoek to plant a church with Sovereign Grace in 2024. We brainstormed ways we could work with the Pastors College to provide a combination of practical and theological training for ministry. They asked insightful questions about Sovereign Grace polity and history. And I gave them a parting homework assignment! Work through our Statement of Faith and 7 Shared Values. I told Josh we had no interest in expanding our brand. But if we share the same convictions, it would be an absolute joy to labor together.

When I got home, I called Dave Taylor, Sovereign Grace’s Director of Global Missions and said, “Help! We’ve never trained an international church planter before.” His counsel was a gift. Three months later, Josh and Lieze told us they were all in. They love our combination of reformed and continuationist theology, the way we build relationally, the accountability we provide for our pastors, and our commitment to church-based missions.

A flurry of conversations with our local eldership, missions committee, and Regional Assembly of Elders followed, plus a grant application to the Africa Development Fund, discussion with the Pastors College staff, and several months of work with Tommy Hill and an immigration attorney to bring Josh and his family to the US. Here’s miracle number five. A visa petition that normally takes 6 months to get approved took 6 days.

The relational favor and financial support the Krugers have received on every front in Sovereign Grace is overwhelming. Gifts from our local church enabled their entire family to come to the US last fall for the Pastors Conference. One of our deacons invited Josh, Lieze, and their two boys to live in their second home for a year. Another member gave them a car. Families from CrossWay Community Church in Charlotte started collecting toys and household supplies. Mercy Hill made a generous financial pledge, as did our region, and the Africa Fund. Sovereign Grace central staff are lining up Pastor’s College housing, employment documents, and health insurance. The list goes on. There’s no way we could do this alone.

Josh and I will be together in Louisville next week for the first of seven classes he’s taking at the Pastors College over the next year to supplement his Southern coursework. Between classes, he will spend time serving with our local eldership, developing his preaching gift, discussing books about pastoral ministry, growing in his personal character, preparing for ordination, developing a church-planting prospectus, and getting a better sense for what biblical community looks like in action. They are eager to learn how our theological distinctives play out in church life and leadership.

Pray for grace to adjust to a new culture, wisdom to learn and retain all the Lord will teach Josh this year, favor in the ordination process, and faith that God will provide all they need to plant a church in Windhoek in early 2024. Josh and Lieze are known and loved in their city. The ethnic diversity in their relationships is remarkable given Namibia is only 30 years out from apartheid. We couldn’t be more excited to see all the Lord will do through them and in turn, throughout southern Africa.

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

Last year we embarked on establishing a year-long ‘Pastors and Planters Academy’ with the aim of helping guys discern and pursue a calling into Pastoral ministry. In December, we had the joy of graduating our five Academy students who all excelled this year in their studies, character and serving in their local churches. 

The Graduation Dinner was a special night as we spent time reflecting on where God has been most at work in their lives personally and as a family unit and how we’ve seen God use them at Church. We had a beautiful moment where each wife was given the opportunity to publicly honour their husband and identify evidences of God’s grace in their lives and thank them. Austin Loke was the top of the class and special mention goes to Andrew Leung who completed every page of the reading list for the year! 

Four out of the five guys will go onto to serve in their church either as an Intern (Austin Loke SGC Wahroonga, Joel Seric – SGC Parramatta) or to pursue ordination (Andrew Leung – SGC Wahroonga, Richard Song – SGC Parramatta). Our final student, Jack Packham (SGC Wahroonga) will continue serving faithfully as a church member. 

Brendan Willis, Pastor at SGC Wahroonga, did an incredible job as the dean of the Academy for the year. He compiled a fantastic curriculum, reading list, and assessment tasks to both educate and form the guys as well as stretch them. Dave and Emma Taylor, served the Academy by hosting monthly ‘Cohort’ nights which brought the husbands and wives together to look at Marriage, Family, and Ministry Life. They studied great material and received fantastic real world wisdom from this experienced, wise, and loving Husband/Wife team!

We’d also like to thank the various Pastors who jumped on for our monthly Leadership Link Ups (Jon Payne, Jeff Purswell, Mark Prater, Mickey Connolly, Josh Blount, Bob Kauflin, Jared Mellinger, Brian Chesemore, Eric Turbedsky, and CJ Mahaney). These two-hour long interviews were very helpful for both their content and the chance for our guys to make a connection and friendship with some of the best Pastors in our family of Churches.

It was truly a fantastic year and we hope that we can continue to have the chance to invest in more and more future Pastors and Planters. Please pray that God would bring in many more workers for the harvest! 

An update from Marty Machowski, Executive Pastor at Covenant Fellowship Church, Glen Mills, Pennsylvania, USA…

It was with great joy that I visited Lord’s Grace Church in South Korea at their new location in Suwon City. Suwon is approximately 30 kilometers south of Seoul, where they met previously. The church was forced to move in September of 2021 due to the high cost of rent in Seoul and lost eight families in the process. Now more than a year later, the Lord has added ten additional families, most attending for the first time in the last six months, as word spread of their vibrant church.

We packed a lot into my short five-day trip. I met with families who use the family devotionals I authored that have been translated into Korean. It was wonderful to hear stories of parents leading their families in gospel-centered devotions daily with a consistency that demonstrated Songhwan’s leadership in their lives. I was humbled as children lined up to have their books signed. Many expressed their thanks and shared how God used these materials to introduce them to Christ.

On Saturday, I spoke on the gospel-centered family with a session on marriage and another on parenting. The question-and-answer sessions revealed a hunger for applying the gospel and a desire to grow. One woman shared how when she came to Lord’s Grace church, she planned to divorce her husband, but after being touched by the gospel, God restored her marriage, and both she and her husband are now actively serving in the church.

The Sunday gathering lasted from 10 am until 3 pm with two messages, a potluck meal, another round of Q&A, and a group photo. On Monday, I spent time with the pastoral interns for lunch. They joined Songhwan, his wife Miran, and I for a trip to the Seoul Tower, with its breathtaking views of the sprawling city of 9.9 million people.

Person after person shared their love for the church and gratitude toward Covenant Fellowship and Sovereign Grace for sending me on this visit. Perhaps most significant was the time I spent with Songhwan and Miran, who are still grieving the loss of their dear friend Larry Malament. Larry’s care and wise counsel over many years served them well. It became clear that the Lord used my visit to reinforce our partnership in the gospel, provide a caring pastoral touch, and a continuation of our friendship which began in my two earlier visits prior to the pandemic.

Songhwan expressed a strong desire for their church to send out a church plant. Lord’s Grace Church has begun saving money for a future church plant and is praying God would raise up a church planter. Join me in praying that God would answer their prayer and raise up a pastor from among their number with a vision to church plant in Korea.

An update from our key leader in Pakistan (identity concealed for safety reasons)...

Greetings in the name of our Saviour! 

Happy New Year! I hope that you are doing well and enjoying the blessings of God. We are so thankful to our Sovereign Grace brothers and sisters who made this Christmas outreach possible and successful. Without your support we wouldn’t have done it. God always uses His people to make a difference in the lives of people who are struggling and are not able to live a good life. And for us, you guys are that blessing. We are very thankful to God for our long term relationship with you. Our God has many special plans through our relationship. In the past years you have always been our support and a strong pillar, through COVID, harsh summers and cold winters, you have always been with us like one body of Christ. And as a return we always remember you in our prayers and always think about our extended family. May God bless you exceedingly and abundantly.

Regarding the Christmas outreach 2022, it was a very blessed time. We were able to reach families in the remote villages and brick factories because of your generosity. During the distributions we had the opportunity to talk to families and to know about how they feel. Everyone who received the Christmas gifts were so thankful to God and to you guys who generously put in effort to make the Christmas season a blessed one for all these unprivileged people. It was a very difficult time because the winter season caused the brick factories to shut down. Everyone received the Christmas gift with tears of joy in their eyes. They said that they had nothing to eat and could not share a meal with their families on Christmas Day, or even before that, but God listened to their prayers and gave them more than enough for the whole month. One of the widows said that our God is a good God and he knows our needs and He always fulfils His promise of providing. After receiving the warm blankets the orphaned children said that they had been praying for these types of blankets that they can now sleep under. 

Because of your generosity we were able to reach out to 230 families with food items, goats, blankets, and winter jackets. When we were distributing the jackets among the children they were so excited for new warm winter jackets, after receiving them they were not allowing anyone to touch their new gift and were not even sitting on the floor. Their joy and the way they were thanking God and praising Him gave us so much joy. Regarding goats, we chose the most neediest families so that they could have a small business to run and we also preferred families who could easily provide nutrition to the goats without spending much on them. We gave 21 goats to various families so that they could receive milk and they promised that they would share the babies with other brothers and sisters. 

So once again we are very thankful for all your support and generosity that you showed this Christmas. We still have a plan to go to the flood victims and show them that we have not forgotten about them. We plan to give them food items and medicines because they are struggling a lot. Because of the bad weather and dangerous fog we are not able to travel because the roads have been blocked. We are praying for them and I request you pray for them as well. In this kind of cold weather they do not have winter jackets or warm blankets and that is causing a lot of illnesses especially among children and women. 

God bless you.

Your brother in Christ.

I recently asked Andrew Leung, a Pastoral Candidate here in Sydney, to write a paper on our plans and goals for our prayer ministry in 2023, and under the banner of ‘Our convictions about prayer’, he wonderfully wrote the following...

         “God delights in His people coming to Him in prayer. Through Jesus, we have unfettered access to God, and the confidence that He hears our prayers and desires to answer them in accordance with His good and glorious will. Therefore, we are to continually grow in our humble dependence upon Him in prayer.”

What a wonderful reality and reminder this statement is, and so here are some ways we can be using that ‘unfettered access’ in the month ahead...

1. Please pray for Sergei, our key leader in Belarus, as he spends the next two months in the US, for immersion training into Sovereign Grace Churches. Visas and national realities have not made this trip possible until now, and so we’re so pleased that we can make this happen. Sergei will be attending the Pastors College course on Pneumatology, the Global Leaders Fellowship retreat, and will visit with a number of Sovereign Grace Churches. Please pray for Sergei, his wife, and for Kyle Huber and Greentree Church as they continue to care for, equip and come alongside Sergei for further work into Belarus, Poland & Russia.

2. Please pray for Josh Kruger Jr and his family, as they relocate to the US later this month, for a one year Pastoral Residency in Kingsway Community Church in Richmond, with a view to planting our first Sovereign Grace Church in Namibia, in early 2024. Over the year Josh will be attending seven classes at the US Pastor’s College, serve alongside Kingsway elders in a variety of contexts to learn how biblical convictions shape pastoral ministry, and develop a prospectus for church planting in Windhoek, Namibia. Unlike Josh, his wife Lieze and his two sons, Joshua and Matthew, have never lived in the US and so please be praying for them as they adjust to their new house, new school, new city and new church.

3. Please pray for Marty Machowski (Pastor in Covenant Fellowship Church, Glenn Mills, US) as he heads to Seoul, South Korea, January 11th-17th to serve Songhwan Kang and Lord’s Grace Church. He will be teaching on the Deaconate, giving a parenting message, a marriage message, preaching twice on the Sunday, and spending time with the Pastors and Interns of Lord’s Grace Church to encourage and care for them. It will be a full trip for Marty as he seeks to serve our dear brothers and sisters well, so please be praying for him.

4. Please pray for Greg Dirnberger, as he leads the US National Church Planting Assessment, January 20-21 in Irvine, CA. Please pray for the assessment team (Greg and Laurie Dirnberger, John and Nancy Loftness, and Christopher and Stephanie Warren) as they consider each of the candidate’s references, resumes, and then observe them preach, cast vision, evangelize, and communicate to them God’s developmental process in their lives. The purpose of this National Assessment is to serve local elderships, and regional church planting committees by offering potential candidates discernment in their process of determining God’s call on them for planting Sovereign Grace churches. There are four brothers being assessed and so please be praying for everyone involved.

5. Please pray for the nine young people in Sovereign Grace Churches, Australia that have signed up for our Young Leaders Internship Program for 2023, starting at the end of January. Please pray that God quickly builds them together as a cohort and that they catch a vision for serving Jesus in the Local Church, the Dearest Place on Earth.

   … Thank you for praying for our family of churches. May His grace abound to us all!

Rather than give you several different updates this month, I wanted to share with you this one 14 minute video to watch, our 2022 Global Update.

What a wonderful year this has been!

As you watch this video, I hope it encourages you, excites you and reminds you just how glorious He really is. For this is all the Lord’s doing, and so may it always be marvelous in our eyes!

In a recent prayer email to our Pastors, Mark Prater wrote the following…

One of the ways Jesus taught us to pray is to ask that God’s "will be done" (Matthew 6:10). Praying that short phrase, “your will be done” has wonderful theological and practical implications for our lives. In his book, “Prayer and the Knowledge of God” Graeme Goldsworthy writes, "God graciously allows us to be involved in the carrying out of his will. He gives us the privilege of identifying with his will by asking him to do what he has already determined to do.” It’s stunning that God allows us to be involved in the carrying out of His will, and that begins with us asking Him to do what He has already determined to do.

Stunning it is! In God’s kindness, we get to participate in the carrying out of His will for our family of churches, and so with that in mind, here’s how you can be praying for us in the month ahead…

1. Please pray that God would draw unbelievers to Sovereign Grace churches, and save them, as we hold our Christmas related events and services this month.

2. Pray that God would use the Sovereign Grace Music “Prepare Him Room” concerts in various cities in December to celebrate the birth of Christ and to declare the good news of the gospel.

3. Please pray that God would give the members of Sovereign Grace churches opportunities to share the gospel, a powerful reality, with unbelieving family members, friends, neighbors, and coworkers over this holiday season.

4. Pray for the Arche Church in Dnipro, Ukraine that Sovereign Grace is relating to, asking God to protect them, and to use them to offer gospel hope as the war continues.

5. Pray for the men on the SGC Australia Planters & Pastors Academy - Andrew Leung, Austin Loke, Jack Packham, Joel Seric & Richard Song, as they graduate this month. Four of them will be moving forward into paid staff positions in Sovereign Grace in 2023, and the other, increasingly feeling the burden of overseas missions. Please pray this is a sweet time of celebration for these men, along with preparation for what lies ahead.

6. Pray for the men who are participating in our Church Planting Cohort: Ramon Flores (Yuma, AZ), Gabriel Magill (Warren, PA), Perry Wang (Charleston, SC), Jeremy Hetrick (Harrisburg, PA), asking God to use the Cohort to equip them to plant a Sovereign Grace church in the next year or two.

7.  Pray that God would continue to provide financially for Sovereign Grace Churches so that we can fund the gospel opportunities He is giving us throughout the world.

… Thank you for praying for our family of churches. May His grace abound to us all!

An update from Dave York, Senior Pastor at Covenant Life Fellowship, Roseburg, Oregon, and Emerging Nations Representative to the Philippines…

One of the great joys of serving Sovereign Grace in the Philippines is seeing first-hand that the Lord of the Church is indeed building His Church. When Jesus said in Matthew 16:18 that He would build His Church and “the gates of hell shall not prevail against it,” He meant it, and what God is doing in the Philippines is a fresh reminder that He’s doing just that.

Our latest trip to the Philippines (October 7th-16th) was a historic trip for SGC, and it was a joy to work alongside faithful brothers on this trip.

Jeffrey Jo (Cross of Christ Salvation Gospel Ministries in Cavite) being installed as an SGC elder.

Cornelio Ebo (His Dwelling Place Church in Cebu City) being installed as an SGC elder.

The historical part of this trip for SGC was the joy of installing Jeffrey Jo (Cross of Christ Salvation Gospel Ministries in Cavite) and Cornelio Ebo (His Dwelling Place Church in Cebu City) as SGC elders. Jeff’s church was celebrating its 30th anniversary on the day of his installation, so that was a unique gift to attend. Seeing these brothers installed as SGC elders means establishing SGC Philippines can officially begin. It was remarkable to be present for this moment in our denomination’s history.

As part of establishing SGC Philippines, our major task on this trip was to do oral examinations for 15 ordination candidates. Over the past year, these brothers have studied, written papers, taken exams, and prepared themselves for the oral exams. We “crammed” these exams into 4 days which made for long, joy-filled days. The joy of talking with these men about their lives, their love for Jesus, and His church was an amazing experience. We built friendships through the exam process, and we faithfully went through the oral exams. I am happy to report that 10 of them passed. When we informed the men who passed, it was a unique privilege watching them celebrate with each other. Even the brothers who didn’t pass celebrated with the men who did. It was sweet and revealed remarkable grace in their lives. 

One of the interesting parts of this trip for me, personally, was the men who went with us from all parts of the globe. Lynn Baird (Gilbert, Arizona) first went to the Philippines on behalf of SGC in 1987. Since the late 1990s, Lynn has gone every year. The Filipinos call him “Daddy Lynn”, which reveals their love and respect for him. Lynn is the main player in SGC’s early development of relationships in the Philippines. Tony Walsh (Denver, Colorado) started going to the Philippines with Lynn in the mid-to-late 2000s. I was jealous to have these brothers go on this trip because I wanted them to see Jeff and Nilo installed as SGC elders. It is important for SGC not to forget our history and the brothers who helped build that history. This trip to the Philippines was Daddy Lynn’s last one (at least by his recent comments), and Tony said the same. So to have their last trip be the one when they witnessed the establishment of SGC Philippines was a remarkable gift from the Lord.

We also had international brothers join us. Dave Taylor and Riley Spring from Australia provided great leadership and encouragement. Dave serves us faithfully as our Global Missions Director (a big title for a huge candy lover). Dave has been a huge source of encouragement and insight in developing relationships in the Philippians.

Riley serves SGC Church in Parramatta, and he was our comic relief and a true “giant” among us. Riley was key in encouraging the ordination candidates and gave keen insights on areas where each brother could grow. Having these brothers along on this trip reminded me of the unity that only the gospel can provide. Here we were, in Manila and Cebu City, with Filipinos, Americans, an Australian, and a Brit, joyfully serving Jesus together and worshipping His great name. Human minds cannot conceive this type of unity and joy-filled work. 

Over the next few years, we are excited about what the Lord seems to be doing in the Philippines. There are another 15+ elder candidates that Jeff is preparing to go through the ordination standards. We are working on major translation work in Tagalog and Cebuano for the SGC Statement of Faith, 7 Shared Values, 7 Shaping Virtues, and website information. In March 2023, SGC Philippines will host a Pastors and Wives Conference in Manila for SGC pastors and wives from Asia Pacific. As you can see, the Lord is building His Church…and it is marvellous in our eyes. God is doing great work in the Philippines. 

An update from Todd Peterson, Pastor at Cross of Grace Church, El Paso, Texas, and Emerging Nations Representative to India…

Even though Erik Rangel (Lead Pastor in Yuma, Arizona) and I have been working separately in India for about 20 years combined, we only started working together for Sovereign Grace in the last 3 years. Because of Covid this was our first opportunity to travel to India together to see ministries that we had been working with separately and to meet new pastors that we have gotten to know since we started working together.

Our first stop in this trip was Prayagraj, which is in northern India in the state of Utter Pradesh. Churches in the northern states have much more opposition from the government, so I’m not going to use any names for their benefit and safety. Erik has been working with one particular pastor separate from Sovereign Grace for the last 12 years as a partner in their Bible College. The Lord has used this Bible College to plant nearly 100 churches in the region around Prayagraj over the last 10 years.

Over the last year, this pastor has expressed an interest in getting to know Sovereign Grace more formally. Our doctrine is very closely aligned and he is in agreement with our 7 Shared Values. There are several very exciting possibilities about how we might be able to partner with and serve this group of churches that I’m not at liberty to enunciate here. Our goal on this trip was to make a “formal” introduction to someone from Sovereign Grace, and to start building the relationship from that standpoint. Since Erik has known him for years, it made sense for me to go and begin to understand the dynamics there and help start the conversation about what the Lord may have us do together.

We happened to arrive on the last night of a conference that gathers the pastors (former students) from the various church plants together. It was such a joy to see their love for Erik and their excitement and appreciation for us making the long trip to see them. I was able to get a sense for the area, the church and denominational dynamics as well as getting to know the pastor and his family personally in their home, which is a huge value in India. We are very excited about the possibilities that God may have for the new phase of this relationship. Stay tuned!

We have been relating over the last year via email and zoom to two brothers, Caleb and Sidhanta Suna that have a church in Bhubaneswar, Odisha. During this time we were able to assess our doctrinal compatibility as well as understand how we can partner with them. The time had come where we needed to visit them to move the relationship forward so we spent part of three days with them. During this time we were able to see their city and the surrounding region (neither Erik or I had been to this part of India), see their church, meet their families and spend many hours trying to understand the challenges that they face.

Caleb and Sidhanta have a church of about 200 in the heart of one of the biggest slums in India. They already align almost exactly with us doctrinally, but feel extremely isolated as they haven’t been able to find any like-minded churches to relate to in the 15 year life of the church. Sidhanta said that when he finally found the Sovereign Grace website and read the Statement Of Faith, that he cried because he had finally found all of the doctrines of the Bible that they believed but had never seen written down in one place. Even though they are surrounded by hundreds of “Christian” churches, they had never met another church that held these doctrines, much less a large group of churches.

Besides desiring to be part of a group of doctrinally aligned churches, they also have a desire to train many of the village pastors in the area that are hungry for better theological training. The logistics of accomplishing this is quite daunting given the many obstacles that face churches in India.

We left there with a deeper relationship with them personally, a much clearer understanding of their environment, their challenges, and their need for partnership. We look forward to continuing to move this relationship forward!

Our last stop was the southern village of Gundugolanu, Andhra Pradesh, the home village of pastor Jaya Prakash (JP) Ravuri. This was Erik’s first visit to “southern” India. We have been working with JP since 2018 and this year he became a fully ordained pastor in SGC. One of the purposes of this stop was to be there on Sunday at his church to formally ordain JP as a Sovereign Grace elder. The ordination service was a tremendous blessing! 

It was such an exciting time for the church and for us to be able to do the ordination service in person. The church was packed, with people who couldn’t fit inside sitting outside looking in the doors. Even the children who were sitting on the floor in front of the stage didn’t want to leave when dismissed for Sunday School, but instead stayed to be a part of the service.

JP said that re-affirming his vows as a Sovereign Grace pastor gave him a fresh passion from the Holy Spirit for the work ahead. About a year ago, the Lord put it on JP and I’s hearts at separate times to start a Pastors College near his village. We have been putting together a plan for the last year, but this was the first time we’ve been able to sit down in person and plan. We had an extremely productive time working through the details and I believe the Lord really helped us to understand some of the significant challenges that we will face that led us to revamp much of the plan. We were also able to meet with two other possible instructors for the college which lent more insight into the process.

Please be praying for this work. There are many more obstacles than I can talk about here, but we know that if God wants this to happen that He will make a way.

Those were the major stops. We also made two other stops for an initial meeting with a new pastor as well as to another ministry that I’ve been helping for years, but that JP is now also assisting with.

Keep praying for us and for all of these pastors, that the Lord would show us the way forward in each of these complex situations, to know how he wants us to partner together in the days ahead.

An update from Nick Kidwell, Senior Pastor of Valley Creek Church, Malvern, Pennsylvania, USA…

What a joy it is to share with you all what God has been doing in and through Valley Creek Church thus far. Thank you for all the many and varied ways that you have provided support for us along the way. We are so grateful that we do not walk this path alone!

We launched from Covenant Fellowship Church on October 2nd in strength with 52 adults and 40+ kids (most under the age of 10!). This is a group of people committed to the Gospel and eager to serve.

It was confirmed for us immediately that this area needs a reformed, missional, Gospel preaching, bible believing church. In our first two months we have already had over 60 first time guests. When we started, we had 52 members/regular attenders. That number has now grown to 74! We will hold our first members class in January and many are eager for it.

We have had numerous people express how they have been praying for a church like ours in the area and how for the first time in a long time they feel like they've found a home. What a joy! If there is one thing I have come to see, it is that God has paved the way for this plant using the prayers of many faithful saints.

An area of surprise for us has been with the youth. We initially thought that we would not have any youth (7th-12th grade) but suddenly the Lord brought several our way, and even had the regional director of Fellowship of Christian Athletes begin attending our church with a desire to use our church as the location he funnels new believing students to! Because of this, we already launched a youth program and will have our second event this December. We are eager to see what God does through this ministry!

Finally, we have been exceedingly blessed by God to be meeting at the First Baptist Church of Malvern building. This church was established in 1833 and the building was built in 1875 with updates in the 1960’s. We have nearly 24/7 access to the building with its large fellowship hall, sanctuary, and 15 classrooms. This building is older than the town itself and has been a huge witnessing opportunity for us already as people in the area know it and likely have some previous tie to it.

We were excited to celebrate two baptisms last month and were able to get the baptismal in the building working for the first time in 20+ years! The members at First Baptist were thrilled about this. They have expressed that we are an answer to their prayers and they are excited to see the Gospel mission continuing at this location.

All that to say, we are excited about what God is doing in Malvern. It is evident to us He has prepared a work for us to do, and we are seeking to be faithful and steward that well. We are again exceedingly thankful for your ongoing prayers and support.