Dear Friends in Christ, December 2023
“And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name JESUS. He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David: And he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end” (Luke 1:31-33).
What a special time of year this can be for everyone, but especially for Christians as we celebrate the birth of our Savior. It is a joy to sing and hear songs declaring this unmatched event in human history. Much to our surprise, songs of Christ’s birth are played throughout stores and shops here in South Africa. This time of year also allows for more opportunities to gather with those we love and to share the Gospel with family and friends who may not know the Lord. The “world” tries so hard to corrupt this wondrous occasion by promoting a lie and denying the truth. Please don’t let the worldly Xmas replace your CHRISTmas this year.
The past few months have been quite interesting for Calvary Bible Baptist Church (CBBC). As mentioned in previous prayer letters, there was a great need for the church to have its own building. For the past 20 years, CBBC has met at a community hall and although there had been challenges, they were nothing compared to recent events. The management of the hall decided that any churches vying to rent the facility must rotate the Sunday morning time slot. Sadly, in October we only had the hall one Sunday out of five, which gave definite incentive to look more diligently for a building to purchase. At that time, there was only one available within the allocated price range and in the preferred location. As the Lord would have it, that particular building had just been drastically reduced in price. The offer was given, negotiated on, and then accepted. Because of the sacrificial donations of churches and individuals, along with money the church saved, the building was paid for in cash. Praise the Lord CBBC now has its own building!! The current tenants still occupy the building because they have a contract through March 2024, however, they are paying rent to the church during those months. As you may have guessed, the church cannot move in until March, but the monthly rent will greatly help with any needed renovations, as well as with other necessities such as: chairs, tables, sound system, etc. Please pray that the members will take up the challenge to sacrifice and give towards these items. Thank you for your faithful prayers for this tremendous need, a need that God has answered.
After reading the above paragraph, you may be wondering where the church folks are assembling now. Like previous Sundays when the hall was unavailable, the adults and teens meet at Eric and Katie Graham’s house for services, while the children come to our house. This arrangement helps free up limited space available at the Grahams, as well as helps alleviate distracting noise by the smaller children. While we miss the fellowship with the church folks, it has been a blessing to be able to minister to the children. I am preaching through the Christmas story all month, and we are praying the Lord will work in the hearts of the few children who are not yet saved.
The Bible institute classes recently completed the course Old Testament Messages. The timing was very good since the Christmas season is busy for everyone. As of now, it is unsure when the next course will start since, we will begin furlough in the Spring and the church will be settling into a new building.
The Technical School, on the other hand, is a different issue. We have mentioned in previous prayer letters that the students who attend the technical school lack self-motivation and struggle with studying and retention. I have tried motivating them in various ways by offering rewards, words of encouragement, and even verbal rebukes. I recently warned them that if they didn’t study more faithfully or try harder on the quizzes, I would be forced to end the class. Sadly, that came to fruition at the beginning of December. Last year, I faced similar problems in the carpentry class, but carpentry and electrical are different. If someone doesn’t follow safety protocol with carpentry, he may cut off a finger or a hand, but with electronics and electrical, it only takes a second for someone to die because he didn’t adhere to proper safety precautions. From the beginning, the students were unable to grasp the basic safety precautions and other important information even though we went over it many times. Thankfully, we were able to complete the electronics part of the course, which involved mostly low voltage DC. There had been some minor soldering iron burns because of lack of alertness and neglect of safety precautions. However, we hadn’t yet begun the section on high voltage AC, so it ended up being the best time to stop before someone got seriously hurt. Even though the classes have ceased, Sizwe still regularly mentors and ministers to these men from the Technical School, so please pray for him. Please also, pray with us for wisdom concerning the future direction of the school. In the meantime, I am continuing to teach this same course to two missionary teens, who are progressing very well.
Since we will return to the States for furlough in February, our next prayer letter will be sent from Wisconsin. Again, if you do not have a scheduled meeting with us and would like to take care of that, please let me know immediately. We have several Wednesdays open from May to November 2024, but only a few Sundays in the month of November. In preparation for furlough, I have purchased a phone stateside. Please feel free to call the number and one of our children will let me know. My number is (262) 599-9095.
As 2023 comes to an end, we want to thank you once again for your prayers and support over the years. Words are inadequate to express how you have encouraged and lifted us up. May the Lord find us all faithful until His return. Have a very blessed Christmas and a wonderful New Year. Take care and God bless.
Prayers
- Upcoming furlough
- Wisdom for the technical school
- Christmas opportunities
- Rebekah in Ukraine
Praises
- CBBC’s own building
- Bible Institute course completion
- Gifts & sacrifices for building
- God’s blessings in 2023
