There is nothing quite like being back in your home church for a mission conference! We were so happy to see our pastor, Pastor Clarence Sexton, once again! As usual, we loved walking through the extraordinary mission village, spending time with friends we had not seen for several weeks and simply being a part of our church for a few services. It was also great to see so many missionaries at the conference, many of whom were either sent out of Temple Baptist Church or had trained at Crown College. It is simply amazing what the Lord has done through this church and we could not be happier to have a part in this ministry.
The conference was refreshing to our souls. James Zenker preached the later part of the conference and gave us all updates about the work that is going on in England. We are so thankful for the Lord's hand in his life and ministry in England. It is always amazing to hear of the blessings God has bestowed upon his servants and of the many open doors to preach the Gospel and reach other for Christ found around the world.
This week, we also went to Memphis TN to meet with government officials about Julie's green card. Please keep praying that there would not be any complications. The interview went very well and we praise the Lord for giving us safety on the road.

What a privilege to be apart of the Lighthouse Baptist Church Mission Conference! Pastor John Godfrey was the main speaker for the conference. The Lord greatly used Pastor Godfrey's messages to touch our hearts and help us all learn more about God's heart and missions. 
This church is Julie's home church, the church that helped her become the young woman she is today. It was a blessing to be able to spend much time with the children during this conference, teaching them bible stories and a bit of French! By the end of the conference, some of the children were greeting the adults with short sentences such as "Bonjour! Comment ca-va?" 
We were also blessed to spend time with Pastor Tartaglino and his family and with Pastor John Lafreniere and his wife Abby- two men who had a great deal of influence in Julie's life growing up. We are also thankful for the good time of fellowship we spent catching up with friends.

It was a privilege to attend the Mission Conference at Open Bible Baptist Church in Williamstown, NJ.The Lord placed a vision on Pastor Riddell's heart to begin Faith Promise missions giving this year. As a result, this was their first mission conference in over 40 years! The people were introduced to Faith Promise missions by Bro. Smith. Each evening was a special blessing as different missionaries presented their work and burden and Bro. Smith preached. The Lord greatly blessed the conference and we enjoyed meeting many of the members, dining in their homes, and having many of our needs met. We are thankful to the Lord that this church is now one of our supporting churches!

We were given the opportunity to present our ministry at the Second Community Baptist Church of Newport News, VA. We were pleasantly welcomed by church members who knew Stephen when he was but a young child on deputation with his parents and were greatly encouraged by the many who said they had been praying for us as we would come to the church to present our work in Burkina Faso and for Stephen's family for years as they served the Lord in France. The church had just finished a revival meeting before we came and we could easily tell that the Lord had been working in the hearts of the people. We also enjoyed great fellowship before and after church with many people in our military. Praise the Lord for those who have given their life to serve our country!

We had the great privilege to attend the 38th annual Missions Conference at Good News Baptist Church this week! Pastor and Mrs. Coles are such dear and sweet people and it was a Joy to get to know them better as the week passed. Dr. Guy Altizer was the main conference speaker. Please pray for him and his wife, Cookie, as they travel to present the "Windows of Heaven" ministry to other churches across America. 

It was great to see so many familiar faces as the church has been supporting Stephen's family for over 20 years. As we walked by the decorative bushes near the entrance, Stephen was reminded of the fun times he spent as a child catching little frogs with his brothers near the decorative landscaping. We had the opportunity to teach the children, the teenagers and present our ministry to the adults during the services. We were also blessed to spend time with many other missionaries during the daytime hours and are grateful for the new forged friendships. We are thankful to all those who encouraged us and prayed for us while we attended the conference. 

Thank you for your continuing prayers!

Here are a few pictures from the week....