The First Week - It Was Amazing!!!

Well, we have finished our first week of itineration and WOW, what an amazing week.  If the next 51 weeks are anything like this past one, it is going to be an amazing time of blessing in our itineration.

We started the week last Sunday with two amazing services at Greeneway Church in Orlando.  Pastor Mumm is the senior pastor and is also a missionary kid from Thailand.  On top of that, he has his PhD in media.  What an awesome blessing!  We were able to have lunch with him and his family, including his mother.  His mom and dad were media missionaries to Thailand in the 70's and 80's and continue to produce programming for other countries in the Asia Pacific region.  Greeneway blessed us with a generous offering and a commitment for monthly support.  Praise the Lord!!!

For Sunday evening, we were able to visit one of the churches that currently supports our ministry – Bushnell Assembly of God.  This little town on I-75 has one of the most powerful and anointed Pentecostal churches you will find anywhere.  It was a personal and spiritual blessing to be able to return to Bushnell and update them on our past work and on what’s to come in Thailand.

The week continued with the 2009 Peninsular Florida District Council meetings on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday.  We shared the missions table with the Wade family on Monday. They are dear friends and fellow missionaries, heading to a very difficult country that is in the news almost daily.  I consider it an honor to share time and space with this amazing family.  Dr. George Wood, General Superintendent of the Assemblies of God, gave Monday night’s Council message.  Prior to his service, we were blessed to attend the Speed the Light banquet where Rebecca and her wheelchair accessible van were part of the headline promotion for the event.

Tuesday was a day of honoring others at the District Council.  It started with the memorial service in the morning to honor those AG pastors who passed away since the previous District Council.  Then there was a missions luncheon in the afternoon and the missions service on Tuesday night.  All the missionaries at the District Council paraded before the assembly and were announced by our District Superintendent.  That was followed by a very moving missions service and offering for our 2009/2010 missions focus on Cuba.  Brother Hector Hunter was the guest speaker along with Pastor Dan Betzer from Fort Meyers.  The night was capped off with a retirement reception for Pastor Betzer who is stepping down as the district missions director.

Wednesday was the final day of District Council.  The morning was filled with a Wisdom Conference where my friend Pastor Russ Jones made a presentation on using media and technology in ministry.  He was followed by several other speakers, including a great presentation by Pastor Max Yeary.  Wednesday night was the annual ordination service and our dear friend Jaimee Silva was among those receiving her ordination.  We enjoyed a celebration dinner with her, her parents, and her grandparents.  These are three generations of Assemblies of God missionaries serving in the Asia Pacific region.  Amazing!!!

We finished our week off with a special surprise birthday for a very dear friend of our family – Dawn Dick.  It was a full week with lots of ministry, lots of reconnecting with friends we have not seen in four years or more, and lots of driving.  Things will get back down to normal on Monday when Wayne will return to calling churches and scheduling services.  Please be in prayer for his scheduling work.  He has 50 services scheduled, but we need 150 in order to raise all the money needed to go to Thailand.  Pray that the scheduling work will be successful.

Our next presentation is in chapel at OneHope on Wednesday, followed by a service on Sunday morning, May 17, at Way of Life church in Plantation.  We will also be visiting New Destiny in Loughman and River of Life in Oviedo this month.