Confess and Believe - September 2021

...if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart

that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.

For with the heart one believes and is justified, and

with the mouth one confesses and is saved.”

~ Romans 10:9-10 ~

Jeff and Kevin shared these verses in the Tuesday night Bible study. We are so thankful for how God is working within this group. Six people attend this study, two believers, and four unbelievers. It has been a profitable study for the believers, but we have been thrilled with the unbelievers’ hunger and desire to learn. They are making connections and God is opening their eyes to see their need for Him as their Savior. This past week was the first time that they had ever heard of the new birth that is mentioned in John 3. The Gospel was presented so clearly, but they have not yet placed their faith in Christ. Please continue to pray for Rolando, Hilda, Geraldo, and Ariel - that they will confess with their mouths and believe in their hearts. Please pray for Jeff as he leads the next two studies alone, as Kevin and Trina are visiting other BMW fields in Latin America.

Last month we asked for prayer regarding a special service on September 5th. Thank you so much for praying! The service went well, and several families came to church on that day. Since then, a total of five families have returned to our local body. Our prayer is that they will continue to faithfully join together with God’s people.

We have some exciting news to share! We are expecting a new addition to our family in March of 2022. God is kind to bless us with another life to love and lead towards Him. We covet your prayers for the health and safety of Lisa and the baby. Lisa has faced some complications that resulted in a few weeks of bedrest, but everyone is doing fine now. God has provided good medical care, even in a third-world country.

This month we continued with our orientation program, trying to meet people, Bible Institute, and the Tuesday Bible study. These things keep us busy and make the days go quickly. The ladies of the church met together for a time of fellowship. This is the first meeting since COVID began in 2020. Lisa was able to share Psalm 121 and talk about God as our Helper. A total of 12 ladies attended the meeting, even though 5-6 were expected. Praise God! The ladies plan to meet on a monthly basis. Our orientation program requires Lisa to speak several times, so the ladies’ meetings will provide opportunities for her to practice teaching in Spanish.

In addition to the monthly ladies’ meetings, the church will soon start Sunday School again for the children. The teachers will consist of a rotation of ladies from the church, so Lisa will have opportunities to teach the children. We are thankful that things are opening up and providing more ministry opportunities.

This coming Monday, Jeff will begin a new discipleship study with Fernando, a man from the church here. While this man has been a believer for many years, God has shown him areas of weakness in his life. Therefore, he has agreed to meet with Jeff on a weekly basis. Please pray for Jeff as he develops a curriculum and seeks to help this man grow more into the image of Christ! Please pray that Fernando will be faithful to attend and willing to grow.

Another orientation requirement we have, is the task to travel to another city via bus, and then spend a few days exploring that city. We are planning to take this trip mid-October, and we plan to visit the city of Cuenca. This city is an important part of Ecuadorian history, and it is known for its beautiful architecture. Cuenca is about 5 hours south of us, so it will be a good experience to travel that far on a bus. There are many people in Ecuador who do not have vehicles, so traveling to other cities on a bus is a common experience for them. It will be good for us to experience what the nationals experience, often on a daily basis.

Thank you so much for remembering to pray for the ministry in Ecuador. We could not do what we are doing without you.

In His service and yours,

Jeff, Lisa, & Simon

Mayfield

Simon Says:

I turned 3 years old this month, and we were able to get pancakes at iHop for my birthday. I love pancakes, and I even got a book about making them. I really enjoy listening to Patch the Pirate’s “The Sneaky Sheik” because they sing “Joshua Fought the Battle of Jericho.” I hope that we can go to the zoo when we visit Cuenca!