By David Prairie
I will do my best to recap some of what we have been involved in over the past several weeks, and some of the ways we have seen God at work.
The new year began with a trip to Louisville, KY for the Cross Conference, at which over 7,000 people, almost all of them in their late teens and early twenties, considered the theme of missions throughout the whole Bible. I took four students, all of whom are praying about their future involvement in God’s work around the world. During the conference, we learned from some very gifted speakers about God’s priority for his glory among all nations. We also enjoyed the panel discussions and breakout sessions, which helped us to think very practically about how our lives can be used to make disciples locally and globally. Pray for those four students (and the thousands of others as well) as they continue to discern how they might be most obedient to this calling.
In mid-January, I was able to travel to Nashville to meet with a missions pastor and share our plans and goals for the future. He and I were mutually encouraged by each other’s ministries, and we are hoping that his church will be able to take us on for monthly financial support as well. Please pray that God will allow that partnership to be established. I have also continued to have discussions with individuals regarding support as well. We are making slow progress, so pray that we will be sustained through it, and that the Lord will allow us to reach our goals so that we can complete our fundraising and training this year.
There were more preaching opportunities than normal this past month. Our youth ministry began a study in the book of Acts, focusing on the reality that we are called to be “witnesses” for Christ “to the ends of the earth” (Acts 1:8). I continue to teach Sunday school as well, leading discussions on Salvation for the next couple of months. It has also been a great joy to see young men help me teach Sunday school electives. I also preached two sermons (here and here) at Grace Baptist, focusing on the encounters with Jesus found in Matthew 8:1-17. There was also an opportunity to lead a Lord’s Supper service at GBC. I am grateful for continued opportunities to preach and teach. Please pray for our church as we seek the Lord’s guidance on new pastoral leadership.
Brandi continues to stay busy with pre-field classes. She is making great progress in her OT Survey class, and I get to see her reading and studying the Scriptures regularly. She even makes time to get a head start on Romanian, working on lessons through the Duolingo app and labeling household items in Romanian. She is also working at home and has taken on a part-time job outside the home as well. Pray for her continued progress in all of those things.
Our children are busy as well. Judah is playing basketball for the school team. Asher just turned 9 on the 28th, and he is doing well in school. Eva is learning so much at K-4, and is very eager to begin reading. Tori has mostly mastered potty training! Pray that the Lord will pursue our children, and that they will pursue him. They have mixed emotions about what a future in another culture might be like, so pray that they will adapt well.
We stand at 37% monthly supported, and 75% of our O&P fund has come in. We are about $1,100 of monthly support away from 50%, which is where we need to be in order to qualify for our next round of training this summer. Please pray for that amount to be committed soon, so that we can finalize plans for this summer. We are hoping for the opportunity to visit churches soon as well, in order to share our vision and passion for Moldova. If we had 85 more people who could commit $60/month we would be at 100%. Please pray for God to provide and to connect us with those he already has lined up to supply for our ministry. Pray about how you might be an answer to these prayers.
Thank you for your prayers and for your care for our family. We are glad to serve the Lord alongside you.
Prairie Quests 