In January, you sent us to Singapore. Below is a video we made to share with you of our highlights and challenges from the first 90 days in Singapore.
Don't have time for an 8 minute video?
A. Click through the slidedeck we made for the video in 30 seconds.
or
B. Watch it at 2x speed! (Click the gear in the YouTube player) and it will only take you 4 minutes!
We feel privileged to be sent by you to Singapore to lead the next generation of digital missions. Thank you for your partnership.
Dear friends
This weekend marks the end of a God- blessed camp season. “Siempre fiel” (Always Faithful) was the theme for the season and we have seen that in many ways: God was faithful in the preparation for camp- we had the funds necessary which many of you were a part of.
Plans had been in place for a long time to renovate the entrance to camp and one day it rained quite hard causing the front wall of the property to fall down. But God already had that covered, the funds were there and camp now has a beautiful new entrance.
For many years Lighthouse of Hope Camp has had campers come from the surrounding neighbourhoods, but this was the first year that some of those campers came back as junior councilors. I (Jessie) saw girls who I first got to know as young girls in the youth group take their place as councilors and lead children to Christ. It is a beautiful thing to see how God’s multiplication works. We saw our older youth who we have been working with on their leadership abilities, blossoming at camp. One young man has been doing a weekly Bible study with the boys from his cabin and bringing them to church.
Our church has also been going through a period of strengthening and growth and between camp and the growth at church we have a group of 13 people who want to be baptized at the end of April.
We are thankful for how God has been working and feel privileged to have been involved as He grows His kingdom. Please pray for faithfulness and strength in our church as we disciple and encourage all those who have made steps of faith in the last couple months.
As always, thank you for your prayers and support,
Raul and Jessenia Espinoza
We frequently tell our teams, “Behind every screen is a person. Every person has a story. And every story matters to God.” This was wonderfully illustrated recently when the legendary evangelist Franklin Graham held events in Bangkok, Thailand.
After many years of prayer and planning over 40,000 people attended events. In addition to the live events on the ground, our team was at work online using social media to engage people that couldn’t be at the live event.
Online 162,977 Thai people, engaged with the event. Nearly 1% indicated a decision to begin following Jesus. Our team personally connected with each visitor requesting help through online chat. Our team tirelessly listened to each story, praying with online participants and offering next steps for their spiritual journey. Thailand, a buddhist nation, has very little knowledge of the one true God and your partnership has helped thousands take a next step.
It's our privilege to partner with you in leading the next generation of digital missions.
Family Photos Below:
- A peaceful homeschooling moment
- Heath beats the Singaporean heat
- Celebrating 10 years of marriage!
This past month I've been doing new things and expanding my skills as the Global Missions General Manager. Jan 31st was the application deadline for our mission trips. Processing applications was something that I always thought daunting. How can you tell from a piece of paper if someone would do well on a mission trip? This year I processed almost 50% of the applications and realized that it comes with both blessings and challenges. It is a blessing to read about how a student is growing in their relationship with God, and how they feel called to go on a mission trip. It is also a challenge to read about their weaknesses and struggles and to discern if they will succeed on a mission trip.
76 students got accepted to one of our 5 trips and both staff and students are busy preparing as the trips start in 6 weeks.
Another new thing I'm learning is how to do interviews with the individuals who apply to be international interns for a year. This week I was part of the interviewing team for a young man who wants to intern on our 2019-2020 team in North Africa. This young man has a great heart for God and for journeying with others who don't know Jesus. However, there are concerns about team dynamics and if he's the right fit for the team. These are the tensions we wrestle with regularly as we send students to the world.
Thank you so much for standing with me in this ministry. Your prayers and financial support make all of this possible. What a blessing you are to me.
It's been an intense past five weeks for my family. After an extended season of high stress, my brother Trevor (pictured below) had a mental breakdown. He was hospitalized for 3.5 weeks to get some mental health help, was unsuccessfully discharged and is currently back in the hospital. We were told at the beginning that this journey would be a marathon and not a sprint. We were also told that there would be ups and downs, but I don't think anything could have prepared us for what we've experienced. Please join us in praying,
that Trevor would sleep. He's had multiple stretches of days where he only sleeps a few hours a night.
that Trevor would learn coping strategies to reduce his anxiety and racing thoughts.
for Trevor's wife, Hannah, as she cares for Trevor, their young daughter, Amelia, and herself.
the medical staff to know how best to care for him.
Hello Friends and Family!
God has been teaching me a lot about trust in my life and ministry. We are well acquainted with the passage in Proverbs 3 that says to “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding.” To say this and to live it out are two very different things. As God challenges me to actively surrender and trust Him with my whole heart, I see Him doing the same with students.
I have been praying for Kyle (name changed) for months. He’s faithfully come to drop-in for two years but keeps everyone at arm's length. He can be loud, obnoxious and shuts conversations down with ease. But God is changing Kyle’s heart. It is hard putting these moments into words because the magnitude of what God is doing here is indescribable. Kyle has opened up about his fears, insecurities, family and the daily struggles he has. As he trusts me and as I trust God to give me wisdom, the Lord is stirring a hope in Kyle that he has never experienced before. Join me in praying for students like Kyle, that they would continue to be drawn to the hope and life of Jesus as He restores them right now.
This was my third year coaching the Listowel high school senior girls volleyball team with my supervisor, Kevin. To say the least, we were really good at losing! But the biggest win of the season came as we built relationships and had conversations about religion, identity, life decisions, God, home life and what they do on weekends. Surrendering my expectations and stepping into what God wanted for this team was humbling. I am amazed by the way God orchestrated so many moments for us to speak truth into these students’ lives, even sharing the gospel with a few of them! God is good.
As I speak at local churches and meet people in the community and back home, I take a step back and stand in awe of what God is doing here in Southwestern Ontario. God is so good and so trustworthy. To those of you who support me in prayer and financially, thank you. I am blown away by your generosity and I am humbled to be surrounded by an incredible community of people.
This ministry is not possible without you! Will you become a monthly partner and join my support team? You can do this my filling out the insert provided.
All For His Glory,
Jenn Brubacher
