People, Projects, and… Parents?

October 6, 2023

It’s Cy’s birthday today (October 7th)! Read on to see how old she is now!

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

Visitors

The School of Biblical Studies graduated on July 1st. Since then we have had several visitors come through our home:

Our friend Sarah visited us on her way home to Germany

Rob’s parents came to visit and we went to beautiful Quebec City

A surprise visit from one of Elias’ best friends from Kona, Hawaii

Another surprise visit from the other best friend from Kona, Hawaii

SHARE BIBLES

An Urgent Project Update

In August Rob received an email from Google about the Share Bibles app:

“You must update your app within 3 weeks or it will be removed from the app store.” – Google

Our plans for vacation time had to be put on hold and Rob had to spend all of his time working on the new update for the Share Bibles app. It was a lot of work, but he pulled it off on time, submitting a new version 2 days before the deadline.

A Testimony of a Map Pin in Paraguay

We went walking door-to-door one day and as we ministered to a group of people, they told us about another man who was in a wheelchair. And we were like, “Yes! Healing!” But then they told us not to go because the man would most likely reject us and they would feel bad about that. But we were determined to head that way anyway.

And so we were searching and searching for the man. We finally found him and asked if we could pray for him. As we prayed, he started to feel electricity going through his legs. Shocked, the man exclaimed, “I swear by my son, I’ve never felt this! Never!” At the same time, his mother arrived and I went and greeted her and told her that we were from YWAM Asuncion. She started to open up and expressed her shock at what was happening.

She told us that just yesterday she had gone to the highway with the intention of throwing herself in front of a car. She had wanted to kill herself. She cried out to God to give her a sign. She said, “God, if you really exist, give me a sign.”

The very next day we showed up at her house. We shared with her about Jesus and prayed for her because she struggled with depression and anxiety and was on a lot of medication. She had been doing witchcraft for over 14 years and it was literally consuming her. And so, we began to pray for her and it was like she was being delivered.

“I don’t know how but I’m feeling so good!” she exclaimed and she gave her life to Jesus.

The next week, we were back in her city. When we found her she told us that she no longer had feelings of anxiety and depression and she had stopped needing her many medications. And even more than that, she had a way better job than the one that she’d had before. She also had been given a devotional and a Bible and she found that every day the words were exactly what she needed that day.

We also prayed for her so she could be filled with the Holy Spirit. “I don’t know what’s going on but I feel fire in my hands– I feel fire everywhere! I don’t know what this is!” We told her that we’d be baptizing the people the next day and asked if she wanted to be baptized, too.

The next day she went with us to the beach. It was so cold. But somehow the water was warm and we didn’t freeze. When I asked her why she wanted to be baptized she kept saying,

“He changed my life. He changed my life!”

A NEW PROJECT?

Following God’s lead, Rob has been developing an online course that leads people through how he personally studies the Bible in his pursuit of knowing God more. Over the past 6 weeks, he has been regularly recording videos and creating the content for this course.

He’s almost done Phase #1 of the project and we’ll make an announcement once that is complete. It’s exciting to think that we can serve so many more people as we take what God has given us and make it available through the internet.

STAY TUNED…

YOU HAVEN’T SEEN YOUR PARENTS IN HOW LONG?

This was the last time we saw Cy’s family => 2016

We haven’t seen Cy’s family (her parents and her sister’s family) since early 2016. It is our desire to make a trip to Chile where they all live this coming January before we embark on another occupied year. It will be 8 years since seeing them last. Cy’s mom just turned 71.

Donate now

FAMILY

We have a teenager!

Elias had his 13th birthday on October 2nd (this past Monday). There are many ways to look at the reality of having a teenage son. One way is to be proud that we’ve been able to keep a human being alive for 13 years. That’s a great feeling that I’m sure many parents can relate to! Another way to look at it is to think that we only have 5 more years left with our son! That’s a scary thought. In any case, we have an amazing son. Elias is such a joy to parent. He’s kind, gentle, inclusive, friendly, and loves people. Apart from all the skills that one can learn in life, these are some of the most important qualities that we all wish that others had. And we’re so proud of who our son is.

Homeschooling

We’re so grateful that we have this school year to give Elias the attention that he needs and deserves as he homeschools. Cy has been leading him well in this new year and the benefits of having mom’s full attention are clear. Elias is also playing hockey again this year and he’s joined a swim team as well.

Elias joining a homeschool co-op session

October 7th, Cy’s Birthday!
She’s turning 42!

Would you reply to this email with a message of at least one thing that has blessed you about Cy’s life? That would mean so much to her!

PRAYER REQUESTS

1. TRIP TO CHILE IN 2024: As mentioned above, it’s time for a trip to Chile. Your prayers for a financial miracle are greatly appreciated. If you would like to contribute, you can click the links in the section above.

2. THE ONLINE COURSE: We believe that God wants to use the online course to feed the spiritually hungry (those who hunger to know God more through his word). Pray that it would reach those who need/want it and that God would use it to meet with people.

3. TEACHING OPPORTUNITIES: We have several teaching invitations to Bible schools in this quarter (South Africa, USA & locally). We always want to make God known according to His word and that the students would encounter God personally through the use of our gifts.

4. PREPARATIONS AND STUDENTS FOR NEXT SBS: Although the next School of Biblical Studies starts in March 2024, we’re already gathering as a team regularly to plan out the next school. Pray that God would lead us and that He would bring the right students and staff to our school.