Russ & Meredith Martin - Singapore

Praying for Martins @ Congress

Your prayers are needed and will make a massive difference in the next 21 days. The Fourth Lausanne Congress is about to happen and we're serving at the core of the leadership team.

Our theme: Let the Church declare and display Christ together.

In 12 days we will:
Welcome 5,000 participants from 200+ countries to Korea and 1,000+ participants to a virtual experience.
Lead a team of 200+ volunteers.
Guide and facilitate all the creative, digital, marketing, commuications and IT touchpoints participants will experience.

It's a massive effort and needs a massive amount of prayer.

Please pray:
That our kids would be safe and thrive in their school routine at home with a family friend for 15 days while we are gone.
 For our physical strength and energy. We are working long days leading and collaborating with teams around the globe.
For logistical arrangements as a significant number of participants have not reported their flight details, are still waiting for a visa or fundraising their fees.
For the Congress Virtual Experience (VX) as Russ' team tries something new and there are hurdles to overcome.
That indeed the global Church would declare and display Christ as we seek to partner in God's global mission.

In 21 days, everything will be wrapped up and participants launched into a fresh season of ministy.

We couldn't be in this without your faithful prayer and financial support.

A few snapshots from the last month:
1. Start of a new school year.
2. Learning how to tie a tie. Wyatt must wear a tie at his new school.
3. Mid-autumn festival at Gardens by the Bay.

Raul & Jessenia Espinoza - Guayaquil, Ecuador

Espinozas in Ecuador

Dear Wallenstein family,

Greetings from the equator!

We have a calendar in our kitchen which has a monthly focus on a different aspect of God's faithfulness. May was “God is faithful in my family” and June was “God is faithful in my sickness”. We have appreciated these reminders in these last months that have introduced new changes into our family routine and where we went through many weeks where someone in our family was sick.

May is the beginning of the school year in Guayaquil and Hope of Bastion students entered their school in crisp new uniforms and discovered some of the warmest classrooms now had air-conditioning! Everyone is thrilled. We hope to get all the classrooms furnished with air-conditioners as funds come in. 

We made the decision to put Tiago in a pre-school and Danilo in a day-care in the mornings. God led us to schools that have been a good fit for them and fill their social cups. Unfortunately, it took a couple of months for all of our immune systems to adjust and we went through a season where someone in our family was always sick. Though it was never anything very serious, it was draining. Thankfully, we seem to be out of that period for now and feel we are finding our feet.

This new routine has allowed Jessenia to become more involved in the sponsorship office again at the school and she has enjoyed personal contact with people there again. The school year has been going very well. The school recently had a “Sexual Purity Week”, and various couples from the church, including ourselves,  ran workshops with different grades. We pray the students would remember what they learned and that this generation of students would decide to make decisions that go against popular culture.

Youth group also started a new season of weekly meetings (during the “summer” break our meetings were more irregular) and we are pleased to see many students from the school. One of our youth leaders is now the Christian education teacher for junior high and he has made it his goal to encourage the students to come out on Saturdays, and it appears to be working! It is a comfort to know that these youth are getting spiritual instruction during the week at school and not just during their 2 hours at youth group. We pray many of them would take advantage of this and it would make a lasting impact on their life decisions.

Currently we are gearing up to travel to Canada for a month and a half visit. We are looking forward to spending time with Jessenia’s elderly grandmother and reconnecting with our family, friends and church back home. Thank you for your continued prayers for us as a family and the ministry here.

The Espinozas (Raul, Jessenia, Tiago and Danilo)

Prayer requests:

• For organization as we get ready to travel to Canada.

• That our boys would stay in good health and continue to enjoy their schools.

• For our Salvadorian missionary friends as they move back to El Salvador after completing their time in Ecuador with us.

• That the spiritual seeds planted in the youth and with the students at Hope of Bastion would take root and yield fruit in their lives.

• One of our youth leaders lost her grandmother recently and her family is showing spiritual interest. Please pray that the loss of this dearly loved lady would be the catalyst needed for the family to turn to Christ.

Phil & Andrea Bauman - SIM

"2024 is a big year!"

We have heard numerous variations of this recently. Feb was Phil's commissioning, June was Cara's graduation and then August has been especially big!

We are grandparents!

Thea Deborah was born Aug 5th weighing in at 8lbs and 3oz. Everyone is doing well and Kieran and Mackenzie are doing a great job figuring out parenting! Thea arrived the day between her parents' birthdays - Mackenzie's is August 4th and Kieran's August 6th!

We gained a daughter!

August 24th was Liam and Meridith's wedding day. It was a beautiful sunny day for an outdoor ceremony held on Meridith's parents' farm. 

It was great to have 2.5 week old Thea there for some pictures too!

Family for a visit!

Along with celebrating big milestones we also enjoyed having Andrea's family come to visit. Andrea's brother and his family were with us for 2 weeks around the wedding and Andrea's dad and stepmum were with us for one week. It has been 7 years since we were together with all of Andrea's family. It was great to get a 4 generations photo with Thea!

South Africa team visit

Last time we mentioned that we would be spending time with the team in South Africa. We had a great time with them and learned lots about our team and that amazing country. Phil spoke several times to the team on 'being a people of peace'. Following the team conference, we had opportunities to visit a number of our workers who are based in the Durban and Johannesburg areas.

Later in July we enjoyed some vacation to recharge and to prepare for the August celebrations!

Looking Ahead 

Cara moves to Toronto this week to start her Masters of Physiotherapy. We are glad she has a place to stay. Pray that her studies go well.
Meridith has finished her Masters in Public Health and is looking for a job.

For Andrea and Phil, the next several months are very busy with Board of Governors meetings in Ghana the second week of September. It will be great to be back in Ghana, although unfortunately we will not be able to stay long enough to get back to the north.
Phil then participates in a missions conference in Ethiopia before heading to the Lausanne Congress in Seoul, Korea.
In October we will also be visiting our team in Charlotte, USA and North East India.
In November, Phil will be with the the International Leadership Team and we will both spend some time in Asia before heading to a centenary celebration in Niger in early December.
As you can see, the next few months are very busy. Pray for wisdom in all our interactions and speaking engagements. 
Andrea continues to serve as part of the International Personnel team and seeks to juggle that in the midst of travel. 

For Prayer

Praise God

• For the great time with the South Africa team.

• That we had a great week of vacation in July.

• For the provision of good housing in Toronto for Cara

• For Thea's safe arrival and that she is growing well. 

• For Meridith and Liam's wedding.

• That Andrea's family could visit and be with us for the wedding.

Pray

• That Thea will be healthy & strong and for Kieran and Mackenzie to have wisdom in parenting.

• For Liam and Meridith to have a strong Christian marriage.

• That Meridith will find a job in the field of public health.

• That Cara will be able to settle in quickly to life in Toronto.

• For Phil as he participates in his first Board meetings as International Director.

• For wisdom for Andrea and Phil as we plan our schedules and speaking engagements.

• That Andrea will have wisdom as she serves SIM's personnel coordinators.

• For safe, uneventful travel.

Thank you for your prayers and interest.

Trevor & Hannah Martin - Power to Change

Important Weeks For Important Decisions

Some people say that college and university students make the most important decisions during the first month of the school year.  They figure out their classes, decide who their friends and influences are going to be, and they set a routine (good or not so much).  Students decide how much (or little) they want God to be a part of their life and decision making. They decide what they are going to do on a Saturday night and then if it's worth waking up to go to church on a Sunday morning. 
For both of us (Trevor and Hannah) and many others, university was an important time for us to decide that Jesus was going to be Lord of our lives.  Please pray for this generation of students getting ready to make important decisions these next few weeks. 

Above is a prayer calendar that can help direct your prayers each day if you need it. If it is easier, here is the pdf version for you to download and print. 

FAMILY FUN

Robert & Susan Martin - September 2024

MARTIN, ROBERT & SUSAN (Kingston, ON; Kingston Prison Ministry; MSC)  PRAISE: Another institution has requested the Alpha course to be scheduled for a September start up. L is beginning to read his Bible regularly and each week we see him reflecting the joy of what he is learning with a hunger for more.  PRAY: Al is continuing to seek the Lord and bring his questions but we’re not sure how much of the gospel he is grasping? This morning a man 2 cells down from him passed away and this extremely upset him.  Pray that he will find rest for his soul in fully trusting Jesus Christ.