Dear Friends and Family,
Here in Nicaragua, we are now in the middle of rainy season. We have learned to live differently because anything that does not remain in constant use will begin to grow mold due to extremely high humidity. It is a constant reminder for us to “lay up treasures in Heaven, where neither moth nor dust doth corrupt.” On that note, we are excited that November will be our first month that our church will support church planting missions. On the home front, we have also seen increased involvement in our visitation evangelism. Just in the last week, Jeremy was able to lead 3 individuals to Christ. We also use our visits to encourage many believers in the Lord. On one Sunday night, we took a special trip to Managua for a fellowship with another church. We were glad to see a great turnout from our folks as about 55-60 persons came from our church. We have seen great progress on many fronts, but we still have a desperate need for a new meeting location. Currently, we have until the end of the year to find a new location. We have been praying about purchasing a corner lot near our current location. Upon discussing the situation with the owner, the Lord moved her to lower the price from $40,000 to $20,000. This includes two small houses that need new roofs. The church has been saving for nearly one year. With all of our combined funds, we have over half of the funds needed. We are trusting the Lord to provide the funds needed in His timing and to guide us over the next couple months as we make some serious decisions.
October was a special month for us because we celebrated Ellowyn's third birthday. Not only is she now “graduated” into the next Sunday School class, but she also had an appointment in the nearby Christian school to make sure she was ready for preschool. Although her Spanish is still quite limited, they said she was perfectly ready to start in the upcoming school year. Her only disappointment is that she could not begin right away! We have been quite impressed at her ability to learn the Scriptures. One family event we are looking forward to this year is Thanksgiving. We look forward to inviting several of our Nicaraguan friends to enjoy an American tradition of thanking God for all He has done for us. We also enjoy letting them try some of our traditional American foods.
In the next few days, we will host the pastor Rodney Kelley from our home church. He will be visiting us to encourage us. We will also be visiting some other nearby cities that have a great need for a Gospel preaching church. This month, will you please pray for the following:
1. That God will guide and provide as we pray concerning our new meeting location.
2. That those who received Christ will grow in faith and take the next step of believer's baptism.
3. That God will lead us as we pray about our next few steps in our ministry.
In Christ,
Jeremy, Michelle, Lila, and Ellowyn Blanz
