This is a typical street scene from a flooded area near the airport in Salem. Turner and Scio residents had much worse flooding as both towns have "streams" running through them...literally!
Driving through the areas that were flooded just last week and seeing all the sand bags still stacked in place where the water was running previously, I am reminded of Ezekiel 22:30, "I looked for a man among them who would build up the wall and stand before me in the gap on behalf of the land so I would not have to destroy it, but I found none."
In the ministry of OLE Church Planters among our Spanish-speaking residents, God is providing men and women to build walls and stand in the gap. I have written on this aspect of our ministry before, but it needs repeating. It has been a tremendous blessing to see training programs start up in our various Hispanic congregations. Most of our churches are now involved in some form of "advanced discipleship" or leadership preparation.
Some of our students are branching out from their home congregations and the training programs there to now minister in other congregations as well as in their home churches. This is proving to be another opportunity for mentoring to these faithful disciples as they seek to prepare themselves for serving the Lord in a full-time ministry. The churches themselves thus become the training field for future pastors, worship leaders or Sunday school teachers. What a novel idea! These "Timothys" are receiving practicum on a local church level in the areas of ministry that God has called them to. Please continue to pray for these faithful servants and their teachers/mentors as they juggle their schedules of full-time secular jobs, their families, their biblical studies and their ministries.
Referred to sometimes as "the farm system" of raising up church leaders, we believe it to be a valid method of preparing servants for the harvest both here locally as well as "overseas" in other fields.
The program that most of our churches are using now is in coordination with Colegio Biblico in Eagle Pass, Texas. In this way, as our students progress through our local programs here, those that desire to further their preparation for ministry in a more formal manner, can get credit toward a Bible college degree.
Even as those sandbags are piled up to curb the raging waters of the storm this winter, so too, God is preparing men to build walls and to stand in the gap in the spiritual storm that is the battle front of extending God's Kingdom. Please uphold them in prayer.
Thanks you for your interest, your prayers and financial support of this ministry.
Que Dios les bendiga ricamente!
