“Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up…”
Luke 18:1-10

We’re delighted to get this first prayer update out to you. We greatly value your prayer support. You are receiving this prayer update because at one point you signed up to receive prayer updates from us about the ministry we’re preparing for with Wycliffe Bible Translators. Thank you! We hope to start sending out prayer updates very regularly in order to keep you connected with what God is doing through us.

Always Pray and Never Give Up (Luke 18:1-10)

This week several of our friends who are also currently raising support to start their ministries with Wycliffe reported that they recently received some negative feedback from individuals with whom they have shared. While we’ve been blessed with largely positive responses, we too at times feel discouraged and start down a path of losing hope of ever actually getting to “the mission field,” in our case Cameroon where so many still wait to have God’s word in their own language. But Jesus’ parable in Luke 18:1-10 provides a rock-solid promise to his disciples, a promise based on the fact that God is the one who is at work. And specifically that he is at work to bring about justice in the world or a putting to rights of everything that sin and sinners (like you and me) continue to mess up. Thus, we ought never give up because he is at work. In this way he is our hope.

Sounds nice, doesn’t it? But what does this have to do with praying for our ministry of Bible translation for which we are currently preparing? Well, lately we’ve been impressed with the notion that we are ambassadors for and the voice of Bibleless peoples all over the world, especially Cameroon. And while it is at times tempting to give up and lose hope due to less than desirable responses we must remember that our ministry fits within the grander plan of God to bring about a grand redemption of all things through the proclamation of the good news that he is at work saving sinners and reversing the effects of sin.

Accordingly, we will pray, we will not give up, for God is at work.

Status

We currently have 9 prayer partners and find ourselves at 26% of our monthly budget with current pledges and regular giving.

Prayer Requests

• Pray that God will bring along additional prayer partners who will commit to pray regularly for our ministry. We would love to have twice as many prayer partners as we have now by the time we send out the next prayer update.
• Pray that God will bring along additional financial partners who will commit to give cheerfully as he leads them.
• Pray for us as we speak at Mount Hermon Missionary Baptist Church in Rocky Mount, NC, on Sunday, January 30 at 7:00pm.
• Pray for grace as we continue to get in touch with pastors, family and friends about our ministry. We aim to share our passion for God’s glory through changed lives as a result of Bible translation.
• Pray for Drew as he speaks to the youth of First Baptist Church Durham on Wednesday, February 2 at 6:30pm.
• Pray for traveling mercies for Poppy as we aim to do quite a bit of traveling in the coming months.

Praises

• Praise God that we had such a wonderful trip to England over Christmas to visit family and friends and share about our ministry at Emily’s home church, Epping Forest Community Church.
• Praise God for the anonymous donations that have come in.
• Praise God that this month we jumped from 13% to 26%.
• Praise God for the blessing of sharing at Union Missionary Baptist Church recently. Read more about that here.
• Praise God for the partnership of one floor of a ladies dorm at Northwestern College Iowa, a surprise blessing for sure!
• Praise God for this prayer team with whom to share our hearts, requests, and prayers. Thank you!

Feedback

We love to hear from you whether it’s a question, a concern, or only a short note saying that you’re praying for us. We truly treasure your partnership.

Thanks for praying!

Blessings,
Drew & Emily