“The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end;
They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.”
Lamentations 3:22-23
Nestled in northwest Wyoming is a geyser called Old Faithful, known for its regularly paced eruptions. While surrounding geysers erupt at random, Old Faithful steadily and consistently spews out water within a consistent window of time. The encouragement that we draw from this trusty spring is that it was created by a God whose faithfulness surprasses that of any geyser. We can always trust that He will show Himself faithful and merciful tomorrow, as He is today, and as He did yesterday. As we adjust and try to be flexible with the changes that life brings, we remember these words from Be Still My Soul - “In every change, He faithful will remain.” Praise God for His constant faithfulness to us!
Where we’ve been
This month, we said goodbye to Kevin and Trina as they officially transitioned to the States. The church held a special farewell service for them, and it was encouraging to see so many people using their gifts to plan and carry out this event. We felt that we had little involvement, and seeing the believers work together was a blessing! We purchased Kevin and Trina’s home, and we moved there on January 12th. We were encouraged and thankful for the help we received from our teammates and our church family. Moving always brings its challenges, so we would appreciate your prayers as we continue settling in while keeping up with life and ministry here.
On January 9th, Ecuador’s president declared a civil war in our country. He and the military have been working endlessly to fight against the drug cartels and delinquency in the country. We are thankful for his leadership, and are happy to share that we are safe, and things have been relatively calm in our city. We have much to be thankful for!
What we’re up to
Speaking of life and ministry here, we are thankful for things that God is doing in the church plant of Iglesia Cristiana Gracia y Paz. A new family recently joined our church. They had been living in a different part of Ecuador, and upon relocating to Riobamba, they were searching for a church with sound doctrine. Their desire to study the Bible and serve God’s people has been an encouragement to us and a great example to the other believers. We are thankful for their fellowship.
Jeff is now teaching full-time in the Saturday Bible Institute, along with the regular Tuesday and Thursday Bible studies. He recently finished teaching on Godly Wisdom on Wednesday nights. During our first year here, you may remember praying for Rolando and Hilda. We praise God for their growth, and this week we are beginning a study with them on having a godly marriage and family. Please pray for us as we meet with them.
Lisa continues to homeschool Simon and care for both boys. She is still meeting with 3 teen girls every other week, and she will be spending the next few months finishing the book of Hebrews during the monthly ladies’ meetings. She also continues to meet with several ladies in the church who are in leadership positions or whose husbands are church leaders. Please pray for her and Melissa as they work together to prepare these ladies to “take up the mantle,” especially as we are preparing for furlough. They have been enthusiastic about serving the women of our church. What a blessing!
Speaking of furlough, we are currently working on our schedule for January-April of 2025. You can find our current schedule HERE. It is hard to believe that we will be stateside in just 5 months. We covet your prayers as we continue to schedule and work on details of that time. We are still in need of a vehicle; please pray with us as we seek God’s direction in that respect.
Thank you for your faithful part in the ministry in Ecuador!
In His Service and yours,
The Mayfield Family
The Double Scoop:
The boys have adjusted well to the new house. It is bigger than our previous home, so they are enjoying the extra space. We have “inherited” Grammie and Grampie’s cat, and then someone from our church gave us two rabbits. Our boys are enjoying all the new pets. Simon is showing a lot of responsibility in caring for them, and we’re thankful for that. Please continue to pray that God will work in our boys’ hearts for salvation.
