Ministry Update September 2021

Dear Praying Friends,

The last month and a half of ministry has been busy and at times discouraging. In July and August we had two missions teams with us. One was from Pennsylvania. The other was the See the Harvest Team that was organized by our mission board. Both of these groups were a huge blessing and help to our church and we are seeing fruit as a result. 

Although these teams brought much encouragement, and we were able to share the gospel with more people than we would have on our own, in the following weeks, our attendance and the number of visitors we have been seeing on a regular basis has dipped. Initially, this was very discouraging. However, the strength of our church is the core of believers that God has blessed us with. I wasn’t the only one who noticed weeks of low attendance. Our people noticed too. We have already seen the Lord use this potential discouragement to energize our people to do the work of the ministry like we have not seen in the past. Our people want to reach people with the gospel! 

I recognize that if Community Baptist Church is going to accomplish what God has called us to do, the people of Community have to get involved in the work of the ministry and it is my job as pastor to equip them for that work. Our people are energized and have a desire to learn how to effectively reach their lost family members, co-workers, and neighbors with the gospel. 

This desire in our people has led us to start an equipping time for our people on Sunday evenings in our home. It was such a blessing to see the desire of our people to learn to effectively share the gospel. They asked specific questions of how to communicate the gospel to loved ones, and we prayed together as a church for the people the Lord had burdened us to reach. 

We have already seen God answering prayers and we are starting to see opportunities to witness and more visitors in our services and it’s not just Lindsey and I seeing these things. Our church people are invested in prayers and their own efforts to reach the lost for Christ. The Lord is building HIs church! 

The Lord has also given our church the opportunity to open a food pantry ministry. In the three weeks since we started, we have been able to make contact with over 30 families. Each family received a tract and an invitation to our church. We are planning follow-up visits with each of these families. Would you please pray for opportunities to share the gospel with the contacts we make through this ministry, for wisdom with the logistics of having a food pantry ministry and for opportunities to meet people’s greater, spiritual needs as we meet their physical need for food.  

Please pray for our church as we work to train them to effectively share the gospel. Please pray for the lost people for which they are burdened to reach. Please pray for us to have wisdom as we seek to reach the lost together as a church and please pray for fruit as a result of the efforts of our church to consistently and effectively preach the gospel. 

Also, please continue to pray for Lindsey as we are approaching Violet’s due date. We will update with pictures and details when she arrives.