This month has gone very well in terms of our growing ministry. I mentioned in our last blog that our teens were preparing a skit for Easter. Well, Easter came, and THEY DID AMAZING! We are so proud of our teen group who are growing stronger in God’s word, and in their willingness and boldness to serve the Lord. Easter was very successful, and we had a record number of people attend our morning service: 64 people! Several of them were visitors who heard a clear presentation of the gospel.
We have learned through the years that our church events are what bring the most people to visit our church. Easter was very successful, and the rest of April we worked to prepare for our next event in May, The Mother’s Day Tea. We never let the mothers get involved in the preparations; their only role is to show up and enjoy the event. So, Joneia and I planned the majority of the event. We used the Parable of the Sower as our theme to help demonstrate the preparation of our hearts to hear and receive the Word of God. Toward the end of April, Joneia and I caught yet another bug…so we fell slightly behind and had to race to finish preparations before the event on the first weekend of May. But by God’s grace, we finished everything and had a wonderful event! I will write more about it in May’s blog.
This month, we also began discipleship with another couple! Jean and Jacqueline have taken on the challenge of discipleship, and we are all excited to begin this process with them. They arrived at our church in August of 2024 and have already been an enormous blessing to our people. They are wonderful servants of God with a beautiful testimony of the Lord’s work in their lives. They have been wanting to do discipleship with us since we announced it two years ago, and it is now their turn. Be praying for them. The oppositions and challenges have already begun in many ways, but even just a couple of weeks in, they are already showing spiritual growth. We’re thrilled to see what the Lord will do with them in the months ahead.
In April, we also received some difficult news: Joneia’s mom Neila received a diagnosis of second stage breast cancer. We are grateful that it was discovered very early, and somehow, she managed to have all of her exams finished within two weeks! We praise the Lord for the quick response. She already had her surgery on Friday May 8th (I know this is April’s blog, but a lot has already happened as I’m writing this in the middle of May). We will have more results from some other tests, but so far, all of the cancer has been removed successfully, and Neila is recovering well.
Keep praying for us! With new responsibilities, more opportunities, and the winter coming in fast, we have been running around a lot these last few weeks. We are still navigating a few health complications, so please be praying with us that God would give us wisdom, lead us to the right doctors, and help us through this season. Pray for us as we prepare for the winter months ahead. Also pray for our church to continue growing strong. We are in a season of strengthening our people, and we are heading in the right trajectory. God is doing good work here, and we are happy to be a part of it.