The Lord said, “Go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the Lord, for the Lord is about to pass by.” Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake came a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper.
1 Kings 19:11-12
Mission Teams Season
I hope everyone is enjoying some summer weather as the school year wraps up and your neighborhood pool is open for business again. This month was again full of lots of planning and coordinating logistics for all the teams we will be hosting in the next couple of months. I’ve really enjoyed this new role this year, as I love planning and organizing everything!
Here’s a list so you can pray specifically for these teams:
- Rock City Church (Columbus, Ohio): June 9-17
- CedarCreek Church (Toledo, Ohio): June 16-24
- Dental team (Annapolis and DC area): July 7-13
- Bay Area Community Church (Annapolis, Maryland): July 21-29
- Rock City Church (Columbus, Ohio): July 28-August 5
- Bethel Presbyterian (Columbus, Ohio): August 5-12
- Dayspring Fellowship (Keizer, Oregon): August 12-18
As you can see, June-August will be busy around here, so I’m going to take a break from sending out monthly updates and will instead send a summer update at the end of August. But, as always feel free to reach out in between updates if you’d like!
T W E N T Y – F O U R !
A few days ago on June 2nd, I celebrated my 24th birthday! I was definitely spoiled all day long by my Salvadoran family. It was a great chance to thank God for his protection and provision over the last year. Thanks to all of you that reached out to wish me well, it made me feel super special!
Even though for many, the summer months are more relaxed and schedules are more flexibles, summer is actually the busiest time of year for our staff. With that in mind, Pastor Victor’s message from this past Sunday was a great reality check for me. He shared the first message from a new series, “Escuchando a Dios” or “Listening to God”, and spoke about the importance of reducing the noise in our lives so we will be able to hear God’s whispers (1 Kings 19:4-18).
We need to know the difference between “hearing”—perceiving sound—and “listening”—understanding the message we hear. The noise around us interferes in our communication with God, so we must focus on our desire to truly listen to God first and to reduce all other voices that surround us. As I look ahead to the busy weeks hosting teams, I hope to take the time each day to reduce all the noise around me and focus on His will and direction for each day. If you’re someone with a crazy busy life, you could do the same!
No matter how near or far you are from me, you guys are essential to my ministry work here in El Salvador. Thank you for your continued support and encouragement!
Bendiciones,
Ali
Prayer Requests
- For each missions team coming to serve with us at our Children’s Development Centers and medical and dental clinics. Pray for their protection, health and that all the details would be fully controlled by God’s will.
- For our local staff and volunteers. Please pray that we wouldn’t get too caught up in the logistics without seeing God’s hand over all of it, and that we would learn more about God’s heart and goodness through these teams.
- For all the people that we will be evangelizing to during the coming weeks, that God would touch their hearts with the gospel and they would respond to the desire we all have to know our Creator personally.
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