Greetings and peace and love in the name of our
eternal God, Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
As always, we thank our Lord Jesus Christ for
taking us on this glorious journey, a journey of endless joy, speaking to our
hearts, answering the call that He has given us and accepted the mission that
is ahead of us to do His work according to His ways and will. Praise the Lord, part of this journey has
ended in the States; we can see the
light at the end of the tunnel, but there are still some obstacles to go over
inCosta Rica where the real journey
is yet to begin.
As we keep on
pressing on this glorious journey, the month of December has been very hectic
and stressful preparing for our move to Costa Rica (the moving, selling practically
everything in the house, trying to rent the house , etc. etc.). We had no
meetings at all but we have been attending our home church.
As we press on, whether it be here in the States or in Costa Rica, please pray and
continue to pray for the following prayer request:
PRAYERS
1. For
wisdom and guidance as we are preparing the documents and for the Lord to guide
us to the right people when we go back on
January 8, 2020 to Costa Rica, Lord willing! There is much more paperwork to be
done in Costa Rica; it will take some time as well and we have to stay there,
also, waiting during that time; as we wait, we will be working with a national
pastor.
2.Our
health in order to work in His vineyard.
4. We need a miracle for our support to be at 100% or more; we fervently
pray for this to happen. God is able to make other miracles and we pray that He
will; He is able, with Him nothing is impossible.
5. We are praying for
3 specific prayers when we arrive in Costa Rica in January; In our January
Prayer Letter, we will let you know the response from God!
We pray and humbly plead for your help, for
the Lord’s provision and what He will have you to do according to His will. Regarding the extra funds needed per our
Mid-September Prayer Letter, for our passage, which is $18,280.00, we have
received up to date $5,420.00. We already have made reservations for the
airfare, hotel and car rental; we have paid part of the moving expenses (by
faith). Beloved, time is of the essence and crucial! All donations and
funds should be sent to Macedonia World Baptist Missions (MWBM) under SHIPPING-
TRAVEL ACCOUNT.
Support Levels Our support is still at 85%, it could be
more depending on what God will do in January in Costa Rica per our prayer
request above.Glory to God! We are praying for all the churches that we
presented in the past to pray about partnering with us.
Safety with Travels
Pray that our Lord, God will keep on protecting
us on the road whether it will be here in the States or in Costa Rica.
Schedule of Meetings As of
now, we have no more meetings; it will be a blessing if we can have meetings
via the internet while we are in Costa Rica.
Softness of Attitudes
Pray that our hearts would stay soft, to have a
humble attitude, to stay close to God, and focus on Him not on men neither our
circumstances. Brethren, we are excited
to see on how the Lord will be working when we are in Costa Rica as we focus on
the work that is set before us.
PRAISES 1. Praise the Lord, our background check has been done and
apostilled.
2. Praise the Lord
for His promises, His protection, His
provision, His peace, His patience and for His Faithfulness.
Thank you, as always, for your kindness,
compassion and love, but most of all for your sensibility to the Holy Spirit of
God who dwells in you. We are deeply grateful for your continued prayers,
financial support and being behind our vision to further the Gospel of our Lord
and Savior Jesus Christ. Thank you as well to all who started helping towards
our passage.
Beloved Brethren, may the love of the Almighty
God, the grace of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, and the communion of the
Holy Spirit be with you All. Amen!
Brother Jean-Claude and Sister Matilde Guilbaud
Under His Wings Reaching the World for His Glory
In Christ alone
Greetings and peace and love in the name of our eternal God, Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
As always, we thank our Lord Jesus Christ for taking us on this glorious journey, a journey of endless joy, speaking to our hearts, answering the call that He has given us and accepted the mission that is ahead of us to do His work according to His ways and will. Praise the Lord, this journey is almost at an end; we can see the light at the end of the tunnel but there are still some obstacles to go over.
As we keep on
pressing on this glorious journey, the month of November was not as fruitful. We
were at Victory Baptist Church in Virginia Beach, VA on the 3rd,
Pastor Les Smith Sr.; Southside Baptist Church in Petersburg, VA on the 10,
Pastor Arthur Lands. We were at Calvary Baptist Church in Statesville, NC,
Pastor Dr. Chris Haizlip from the 13 –
17 of November for a Mission Conference and the Annual Conference of Macedonia
World Baptist Missions; this was our last Conference/Meeting before going to
Costa Rica in January. On Sunday the 24, were at our home church. On Wednesdays
we were at our home church when we had
no meetings.
As we press on, whether it be here in the States or in Costa Rica, please pray and
continue to pray for the following prayer request:
PRAYERS
1. For
wisdom and guidance as we are preparing the documents and for the Lord to guide
us to the right people when we go back on
January 8, 2020 to Costa Rica, Lord willing! There is much more paperwork to be
done in Costa Rica; it will take some time as well and we have to stay there,
also, waiting during that time; as we wait, we will be working with a national
pastor.
2. The
next document to be apostilled is our background check which has to be done a
week or two, before we leave for Costa Rica, in Virginia Beach and Richmond; no
more than three months before submitting them to Immigration in Costa Rica.
3.Our
health in order to work in His vineyard.
4. We need a miracle for our support to be at 100% or more by the time
we leave; we fervently pray for this to happen. God is able to make other
miracles and we pray that He will; He is able, with Him nothing is impossible.
5. We are praying for
3 specific prayers when we arrive in Costa Rica in January; In our January
Prayer Letter, we will let you know the response from God!
We pray and humbly plead for your help, for
the Lord’s provision and what He will have you to do according to His will. Regarding the extra funds needed per our
Mid-September Prayer Letter, for our passage, which is $18,280.00, we have
received up to date $2,920.00. We already have made reservations for the
airfare, hotel and car rental; we have to pay by December 12, 2019 the moving
expenses. Beloved, time is of the essence and crucial! All donations and
funds should be sent to Macedonia World Baptist Missions (MWBM) under SHIPPING-
TRAVEL ACCOUNT.
Support Levels Our support is now at 85% with one more church
partnering with us, Calvary Baptist
Church in Statesville, NC, Pastor Dr. Chris Haizlip. It could be more depending
on what God will do in January in Costa Rica per our prayer request above.Glory to God! We are
praying for all the churches that we presented in the past to pray about
partnering with us. PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE… we
need your help! Safety with Travels Pray that
our Lord, God will keep on protecting us on the road whether it will be here in
the States or in Costa Rica.
Schedule of Meetings Our
schedule is not full, we have no new meetings in December except
for a supporting church that wants me to go back and preach before we leave for
Costa Rica in January.
Softness of Attitudes
Pray that our hearts would stay soft, to have a
humble attitude, to stay close to God, and focus on Him not on men neither our
circumstances. Brethren, we are excited
to see on how the Lord will be working when we are in Costa Rica as we focus on
the work that is set before us.
PRAISES 1. Praise the Lord for all the churches that are partnering
with us and even those who are not.
2. Praise the Lord
for His promises.
3. Praise the Lord
for His protection.
4. Praise the Lord
for His provision.
5. Praise the Lord
for His peace.
6. Praise the Lord
for His Faithfulness.
Thank you, as always, for your kindness,
compassion and love, but most of all for your sensibility to the Holy Spirit of
God who dwells in you. We are deeply grateful for your continued prayers,
financial support and being behind our vision to further the Gospel of our Lord
and Savior Jesus Christ. Thank you as well to all who started helping towards
our passage.
Beloved Brethren, may the love of the Almighty
God, the grace of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, and the communion of the
Holy Spirit be with you All. Amen!
Brother Jean-Claude and Sister Matilde Guilbaud
Under His Wings Reaching the World for His Glory
In Christ alone
Greetings and peace and love in the name of our
eternal God, Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
As always, we thank our Lord Jesus Christ for
taking us on this glorious journey, a journey of endless joy, speaking to our
hearts, answering the call that He has given us and accepted the mission that
is ahead of us to do His work according to His ways and will. Praise the Lord,
this journey is almost at an end; we can see the light at the end of the tunnel
but there are still some obstacles to go over.
As we keep on
pressing on this glorious journey, the month of October was fruitful. We were
at IBBN/GNBC in Chesapeake, VA on the 6, Pastor Marvin Tobin/ Pastor Mike
Ascher; we were at People’s Baptist Church in Greenville, NC, Pastor Tim Butler
from the 9 – 13 of October for a Mission Conference; on the 20th we
were supposed to be in Winston-Salem, NC but the meeting was cancelled so we
went to our home church; from the 27 – 30 of October we were at Faith Bible Baptist
Church in Century FL, Pastor Robert Barrow for a Mission Conference. On Wednesdays we were at our home church when we had no
meetings.
As we press on, please pray and continue to pray
for the following prayer request:
PRAYERS 1. For wisdom and guidance as we are preparing the
documents and for the Lord to guide us to the right people when we go back on January 8, 2020 to Costa Rica, Lord
willing! There is much more paperwork to be done in Costa Rica; it will take
some time as well and we have to stay there, also, waiting during that time.;
as we wait, we will be working with a national pastor.
2. The
next document to be apostilled is our background check which has to be done a
week or two, before we leave for Costa Rica, in Virginia Beach and Richmond; no
more than three months before submitting them to Immigration in Costa Rica.
3.Our
health in order to work in His vineyard. My wife’s full recuperation with the
cataract/astigmatism surgery, it’s
taking longer than expected but it’s getting better.
4. We need a miracle for our support to be at 100% or more by the time
we leave; we fervently pray for this to happen. God is able to make other
miracles and we pray that He will; He is able, with Him nothing is impossible.
We pray and humbly plead for your help, for the
Lord’s provision and what He will have you to do according to His will. Regarding the extra funds needed per our
Mid-September Prayer Letter, for our passage, which is $18,280.00, we have
received up to date $2,500.00. We already made reservations for the airfare,
hotel and car rental; we have to pay by December 12, 2019 the moving expenses.
All donations and funds should be sent to Macedonia World Baptist
Missions (MWBM) under SHIPPING- TRAVEL ACCOUNT.
Support Levels Our support is now at 84% with two more churches
partnering with us, People’s Baptist
Church in Greenville, NC, Pastor Tim Butler and Faith Bible Baptist Church in
Century, FL, Pastor Robert Barrow. Glory to God! We are praying for all the
churches that we presented in the past to pray about partnering with us. TIME
is of the essence. PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE… we need your help! Safety
with Travels
Pray that our Lord, God will keep on protecting
us on the road.
Schedule of Meetings Our
schedule is not full, we have no meetings
in December; for now the Lord has blessed us with one Mission Conference in Statesville, NC in November.
Softness of Attitudes
Pray that our hearts would stay soft, to have a
humble attitude, to stay close to God, and focus on Him not on men neither our
circumstances. Brethren, we are excited to see on how the Lord will be working the
rest of this year; we are also encouraged and at the same time comforted by His
provision, protection and peace.
PRAISES 1. Praise the Lord for all the churches that are partnering
with us.
2. Praise the Lord! My flash
drive was found, someone put it in our daughter’s mail box in Georgia. I have
been praying about this.
Thank you, as always, for your kindness,
compassion and love, but most of all for your sensibility to the Holy Spirit of
God who dwells in you. We are deeply grateful for your continued prayers,
financial support and being behind our vision to further the Gospel of our Lord
and Savior Jesus Christ. Thank you as well to all who started helping towards
our passage.
Brethren, may the love of the Almighty God, the
grace of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, and the communion of the Holy Spirit
be with you All. Amen!
Brother Jean-Claude and Sister Matilde Guilbaud
Under His Wings Reaching the World for His Glory
In Christ alone
Greetings and peace and love in the name of our
eternal God, Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
As always, we thank our Lord Jesus Christ for
taking us on this glorious journey, a journey of endless joy, speaking to our
hearts, answering the call that He has given us and accepted the mission that
is ahead of us to do His work according to His ways and will.
Praise the Lord, this journey is almost at an end; we can see the light
at the end of the tunnel but there are still some obstacles to go over. As we keep on pressing on this glorious
journey, the month of September wasn’t fruitful regarding meetings and
conferences. Basically, we visited
churches that are supporting us to give them an update of where we are and
where we are heading for the next three months before we leave for Costa Rica
early January 2020. On Sunday the 1st , we were at Central Baptist
Church in Yorktown, VA, Pastor John Charles; on the 8th, we were at Liberty
Baptist Church in Evington, VA, Pastor Jeff Chapman where I had the privilege
to preach as well;
on the 15th, we were at First Emmanuel Baptist Church, Pastor Romell
Calillung for the morning service and in the evening at Tabernacle Baptist
Church, our home church for a revival meeting until the 18th; on the
22nd, we were at Faith Baptist Church in Waverly, VA, Pastor Lewis
Lawson and I had the privilege to preach; on the 29th, we were going
to go to Iglesia Bautista Buenas Nuevas in Chesapeake, VA, Pastor Marvin Tobin
but we couldn’t go.On Wednesdays we were at our home church.
As we press on, please pray and continue to pray
for the following prayer request:
PRAYERS 1. For wisdom and guidance as we are preparing the documents and for the Lord to guide us to the right people when we go back in early January 2020, per a meeting with our pastor regarding our departure, Lord willing! There is much more paperwork to be done in Costa Rica; it will take some time as well and we have to stay there, also, waiting during that time.
2. The
next document to be apostilled is our background check which has to be done a
week or two, before we leave for Costa Rica, in Virginia Beach and Richmond; no
more than three months before submitting them to Immigration in Costa Rica.
3.Our
health in order to work in His vineyard. My wife’s full recuperation with the
cataract/astigmatism surgery, it’s
taking longer then expected.
4. We need a miracle for our support to be at 100% or more by the time
we leave; we fervently pray for this to happen. God is able to make other
miracles and we pray that He will; He is able, with Him nothing is impossible.
We pray and humbly plead for your help, for the
Lord’s provision and what He will have you to do according to His will. All
donations and funds should be sent to Macedonia World Baptist Missions (MWBM)
under SHIPPING- TRAVEL ACCOUNT.
* Support Levels Our support is still at 80% but another
church took us on for support, Faith Baptist Church in Ringgold, GA, Pastor Jim
Thomasson. Glory to God! We are still waiting on one other Church.PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE… we
need your help! *
Safety with Travels
Pray that our Lord, God will keep on protecting
us on the road.
* Schedule of Meetings Our
schedule is not full, we have no meetings
in September, for now the Lord has blessed with one Mission Conference in Greensboro, NC and a meeting in
Winston-Salem, NC in October, and another Mission Conference in November in
Statesville, NC. * Softness of Attitudes
Pray that our hearts would stay soft, to have a
humble attitude, to stay close to God, and focus on Him not on men neither our
circumstances. Brethren, we are excited to see on how the Lord will be working the
rest of this year; we are also encouraged and at the same time comforted by His
provision, protection and peace.
PRAISES 1. Praise the Lord! We got our marriage certificate apostilled
in NYC; as we mentioned previously, all our documents have to be apostilled and
translated to Spanish in order to get a permanent visa and be a legal resident.
2. Another national pastor in Limón, CR, Pastor Rodolfo Walters of First Baptist Church of Jerusalem; whom we know and have been keeping contact with ever since, I had the privilege to preach there when we were in Costa Rica for the first time, would like to see us start an Independent Baptist Church in Santa Ana, San Jose as well; there are no Independent Baptist Church there, with a population of about 18,000 thousand people. Beloved Brethren, we can see how God is opening doors for us as we focus our minds and hearts on Him and to work in His vineyard. We are always expecting the unexpected from God as we give Him the glory in all things!
Thank you, as always, for your kindness,
compassion and love, but most of all for your sensibility to the Holy Spirit of
God who dwells in you. We are deeply grateful for your continued prayers,
financial support and being behind our vision to further the Gospel of our Lord
and Savior Jesus Christ. Thank you as well to all who started helping towards
our passage.
Brethren, may the love of the Almighty God, the
grace of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, and the communion of the Holy Spirit
be with you All. Amen!
Brother Jean-Claude and Sister Matilde Guilbaud Under His Wings Reaching the World for His Glory In Christ alone
Greetings and peace and
love in the name of our eternal God, Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
Beforehand,
we want to thank you all for being sensitive to the Holy Spirit of God whom
dwells in you for your spiritual, financial support and being behind our vision
to further the Gospel of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ to the country of
Costa Rica.
It
is expedient that we write this prayer letter, at this time, before our normal
time to express our deep and urgent concerns. First of all, we were planning to
leave sometime after Thanksgiving this year; after meeting with our pastor
regarding our departure, he suggested that we leave in early January, 2020.
Second
of all, we need to be in Costa Rica to finish our paperwork that is necessary
for the office of Immigration in order to obtain a permanent visa and be legal
in the country. By the time we leave, we will have all the documents needed
from the United States, then continue the process in Costa Rica before
submitting them to the office of Immigration. We have a maximum of three months
from the date of getting our background check from the United States of America
(USA), which will be the first week of January 2020, to submit all the
documents necessary. Once we arrived in Costa Rica, it will take approximately
two months plus or minus from our arrival in January to gather all information
and documents necessary before presenting and submitting them to the office of
Immigration.
By
the grace of God, over these few years with much sacrifice, we have been able
to save about $18,820.00 toward our total needs for passage funds to Costa
Rica, but it is not nearly sufficient. As you can see in an attached Pdf file, our total need is $36,022.94. These funds are further
broken down into three categories:
Immigration – $4,728.00; Moving & Import Fees – $13,014.94; and Airfare
plus Transportation – $18,280.00. So,God has provided half of our need. It is extremely urgent to have in terms
of priority number (1) and (2) in our attached Pdf file by January, 2020 and the rest by the end of January 2020
or before.
Our
main concern is the crucial timing in all of this. Once we start our Statewide Background Check,
we have 90 days to complete all our Immigration application process which
requires us to physically be in Costa Rica.
If we do not complete and submit the application in 90 days, we lose all
application fees, have to return to the States, and begin the process all over
again. Also, the process normally takes about two months; the statewide
background check begins the 90 day process.
Therefore,
the background check followed by a quick flight departure, a quick finding of a
house under which to use as a residence for application, and temporary car and
hotel accommodations all have to be made in advance. These costs are all
included in the total figure above. Would you please pray for God’s help and
leading in all of this. HE IS ABLE!
Thank
you, as always, for your kindness, compassion and love, but most of all for
your sensibility to the Holy Spirit of God who dwells in you. We are deeply
grateful for your continued prayers, financial support and being behind our
vision to further the Gospel of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Thank you, as
well, to those who started helping towards this cause.
Brethren,
may the love of the Almighty God, the grace of our Lord and Savior Jesus
Christ, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you All. Amen!
Greetings and peace and love in the name of our eternal God,
Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
As always, we thank our Lord Jesus Christ for taking us on
this glorious journey, a journey of endless joy, speaking to our hearts,
answering the call that He has given us and accepted the mission that is ahead
of us to do His work according to His ways and will. Praise the Lord, this
journey is almost at an end; we can see the light at the end of the tunnel but
there are still some obstacles to go over. As we keep on pressing on this glorious journey, the month of July has
been fruitful. We had meetings in Ringgold,
Georgia at Faith Baptist Church, Pastor Jim Thomasson and in Cowpens, South
Carolina at Westside Baptist Church, Pastor Travis Blackwell. We also visited
Fellowship Baptist Church in Cumming, GA, Pastor John Gherardini; Pastor
Gherardini was kind enough in allowing us to share our ministry. We were also in Alpharetta, Buford,
Stockbridge, Jonesboro, GA and Greenville, SC giving updates of our trip to
Costa Rica.
As we press on, please pray and continue to pray for the
following prayer request: PRAYERS 1. Special prayer
request: I lost my Flash drive, in GA, which contains all the documents
pertaining to the ministry; pray that I will find it or if someone finds it
that they will send it to me. If not, I have to start all over again gathering
information. Everything is on there since we started this journey.
2. For wisdom and guidance as we are preparing the documents and for the
Lord to guide us to the right people when we go back in November to submit
them, Lord willing! We have to go to NYC
in August to get our marriage license apostilled, which means authenticated, (it
is a long process); all our documents have to be apostilled and translated in
order to get a permanent visa.
3. Our health in order to work in His vineyard. My wife’s recuperation
with the cataract/astigmatism surgery.
4. We need a miracle for our
support to be at 100% or more by the time we leave this year; we fervently pray
for this to happen. God is able to make other miracles and we pray that He
will; He is able, with Him nothing is impossible.
We pray and humbly plead for your help, for the Lord’s provision
and what He will have you to do according to His will. All donations and funds
should be sent to Macedonia World Baptist Missions (MWBM) under SHIPPING-
TRAVEL ACCOUNT * Support Levels Our support has
gone back up to 80% during these three months due new supports and some churches
raising them. Westside Baptist Church in Cowpens, SC, Pastor Travis Blackwell;
Calvary Baptist Church in Norfolk, VA, Pastor Richard Smith; Meadowview Baptist
Church in Winston-Salem, NC, Pastor Robert Hutchens. We are waiting on two
other Churches.PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE… we need your help! * Safety with Travels
Pray that our Lord, God will keep on protecting us on the
road. We were in auto accident in
GA, someone ran into us and fled the scene. Thank God, we were not injured.* Schedule of
Meetings Our schedule is not
full, for now the Lord has blessed us with one meeting in August in Norfolk, VA; one mission conference and a meeting in October
in Winston-Salem, NC and another mission conference in November in Statesville,
NC. * Softness of
Attitudes
Pray that our hearts would stay soft, to have a humble
attitude, to stay close to God, and focus on Him not on men neither our
circumstances. Brethren, we are excited to see on how the Lord will be working
this year, we are also encouraged and at the same time comforted by His
provision, protection and peace.
PRAISES 1. Praise the Lord that we were not injured in the accident in GA. 2. Praise the Lord for His guidance to First Baptist Church of Liberia, Pastor Eliecer Robles Jimenez; he will be helping us by writing all the necessary letters and submit the documents to immigration which pertains to him; that is truly a blessing! Thank you, as always, for your kindness, compassion and love, but most of all for your sensibility to the Holy Spirit of God who dwells in you. We are deeply grateful for your continued prayers, financial support and being behind our vision to further the Gospel of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Thank you as well to all who started helping towards our passage.
Brethren, may the love of the Almighty God, the grace of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you All. Amen!
Brother Jean-Claude and Sister Matilde Guilbaud Under His Wings Reaching the World for His Glory In Christ alone
Greetings
and peace and love in the name of our eternal God, Lord and Savior Jesus
Christ.
As always, we thank our Lord Jesus Christ for taking us on
this glorious journey, a journey of endless joy, speaking to our hearts,
answering the call that He has given us and accepted the mission that is ahead
of us to do His work according to His ways and will. Praise the Lord, this
journey is almost at an end; we can see the light at the end of the tunnel but
there are still some obstacles to go over.
As we keep on pressing
on this glorious journey, the month of June has been slow and with my wife’s
cataracts/astigmatism surgery; we were pretty much at a standstill until June
20th. We have been attending
our home church and I had the opportunity to preach June 9th, it was
truly a blessing! I also had the
privilege to preach at a community chapel without a pastor in Sandbridge, Virginia
Beach on Sunday the 16, 23, and the 30th of June. It was a blessing
as well!
As we press on, please pray and continue to pray for the
following prayer request:
PRAYERS
For wisdom and guidance as we are
preparing the documents and for the Lord to guide us to the right people when
we go back in November to submit them, Lord
willing! As I said in our previous prayer letter, At first it was a bit
overwhelming, but now as we start gathering those documents , it does not seem
that complicated but will take time.
Our health in order to work in His
vineyard. My wife’s recuperation
with the cataract/astigmatism surgery; by June 20th she will be back
on tract according to the doctor.
We need a miracle for our support to
be at 100% or more by the time we leave this year; we fervently pray for this
to happen.God is able to make other
miracles and we pray that He will; He is able, with Him nothing is impossible.
We pray and humbly plead for your help,
for the Lord’s provision and what He will have you to do according to His will.
All donations and funds should be sent to Macedonia World Baptist Missions
(MWBM) under SHIPPING- TRAVEL ACCOUNT
Support Levels
Unfortunately, our support went down from 85% to 74% due to
inflation and fees that the government has imposed in Costa Rica. That has created a big strain on our
support. Our previous budget was right on target. PLEASE,
PLEASE, PLEASE… we need your help!
Safety with Travels
Pray that our Lord, God will keep on protecting us on the
road.
Schedule of Meetings
Our schedule is not full,
for now the Lord has blessed us with two meetings in July in Ringgold, GA and
Pickens, SC (pray for the meeting ln SC); one
meeting in August in Norfolk, VA; one mission conference and a meeting in
October in Winston-Salem, NC and another mission conference in November in
Statesville, NC.
Softness of Attitudes
Pray that our hearts would stay soft,
to have a humble attitude, to stay close to God, and focus on Him not on men
neither our circumstances. Brethren, we are excited to see on how the Lord will
be working this year, we are also encouraged and at the same time comforted by
His provision, protection and peace.
PRAISES
Praise the Lord that my wife’s surgery
went well, but slowly recuperating.
Praise the Lord for His guidance to
First Baptist Church of Liberia, Pastor Eliecer Robles Jimenez; he will be
helping us by writing all the necessary letters and submit the documents to immigration
which pertains to him; that is truly a
blessing!
Thank you, as always, for your kindness, compassion and love,
but most of all for your sensibility to the Holy Spirit of God who dwells in
you. We are deeply grateful for your continued prayers, financial support and
being behind our vision to further the Gospel of our Lord and Savior Jesus
Christ. Thank you as well to all who started helping towards our passage.
Brethren, may the love of the Almighty God, the grace of our
Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you
All. Amen!
Greetings
and peace and love in the name of our eternal God, Lord and Savior Jesus
Christ.
As always, we thank our Lord Jesus Christ for taking us on
this glorious journey, a journey of endless joy, speaking to our hearts,
answering the call that He has given us and accepted the mission that is ahead
of us to do His work according to His ways and will. Praise the Lord, this
journey is almost at an end; we can see the light at the end of the tunnel but
there are still some obstacles to go over.
As we keep on pressing
on this glorious journey, the month of May has been slow and with my wife’s
cataracts/astigmatism surgery; we were pretty much at a standstill. We were
attending our home church and we had the opportunity to attend their mission
conference from May 16 – 19; it was a blessing!
Regarding the property
for the ministry and the land in Guanacaste, Costa Rica, the owner was trying
to push us to make a decision, at that point we knewthat it was not the will of God; perhaps
the Lord will open the doors somewhere else in Costa Rica later on.
As we press on, please pray and continue to pray for the
following prayer request:
PRAYERS
For wisdom and guidance as we are
preparing the documents and for the Lord to guide us to the right people when
we go back in November to submit them.
At first it was a bit overwhelming, but now as we start gathering those
documents , it does not seem that complicated but will take time.
Our health in order to work in His
vineyard. My wife’s recuperation with
the cataract/astigmatism surgery; by June 20th she will be back on
tract according to the doctor.
We need a miracle for our support to
be at 100% or more by the time we leave this year; we fervently pray for this
to happen.God is able to make other
miracles and we pray that He will; He is able, with Him nothing is impossible.
We pray and humbly plead for your help,
for the Lord’s provision and what He will have you to do according to His will.
All donations and funds should be sent to Macedonia World Baptist Missions
(MWBM) under SHIPPING- TRAVEL ACCOUNT
Support Levels
Unfortunately, our
support went down from 85% to 74% due to inflation and fees that the government
has imposed in Costa Rica. PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE… we need your help!
Safety with Travels
Pray that our Lord, God will
keep on protecting us on the road.
Schedule of Meetings
Our schedule is not full, for now the Lord has blessed us
with two more meetings in July, one mission conference and a meeting in October
and another mission conference in November.
Softness of Attitudes
Pray that our hearts would stay soft,
to have a humble attitude, to stay close to God, and focus on Him not on men
neither our circumstances. Brethren, we are excited to see on how the Lord will
be working this year, we are also encouraged and at the same time comforted by
His provision, protection and peace.
PRAISES
Praise
the Lord that my wife’s surgery went well.
Praise
the Lord for His guidance to First Baptist Church of Liberia, Pastor Eliecer
Robles Jimenez; he will be helping us by writing all the necessary letters and
submit the documents to immigration which pertains to him.
Praise
the Lord that Freedom Baptist Church of Fayetteville, NC, Pastor Paul Worley
took us on for support.
Thank you, as always, for your kindness, compassion and love,
but most of all for your sensibility to the Holy Spirit of God who dwells in
you. We are deeply grateful for your continued prayers, financial support and
being behind our vision to further the Gospel of our Lord and Savior Jesus
Christ. Thank you as well to all who started helping towards our passage.
Brethren, may the love of the Almighty God, the grace of our
Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you
All. Amen!
Greetings
and peace and love in the name of our eternal God, Lord and Savior Jesus
Christ.
As always,
we thank our Lord Jesus Christ for taking us on this glorious journey, a
journey of endless joy, speaking to our hearts, answering the call that He has
given us and accepted the mission that is ahead of us to do His work according
to His ways and will. Praise the Lord,
this journey is almost at an end; we can see the light at the end of the tunnel
but there are still some obstacles to go over.
As we keep on pressing on this glorious journey, the month of April has been very productive and with many blessings and some obstacles. April 7th we attended a Mission Conference at Tabernacle Baptist Church in Salisbury, NC; unfortunately we could not stay for the whole conference because we had to leave for Costa Rica on the 9th of April. We were in Guanacaste, Costa Rica from the 9th through the 30th. The purpose of this trip was to start our paperwork for the visa, a place where we are going to live and the location for the ministry. Upon our arrival, the next day, we went to the immigration and Migration office in Liberia, Guanacaste to get the process started; we came across a stumbling block, all the Immigration laws have been changed about three to four years ago and made it very difficult to enter the country with a religious visa. With that being said, they gave us all the requirements to obtain the visa; after I read what they needed, my heart just dropped. First we have to filled out a form, for each one of us, with all kinds of questions with an application fee of 300.00 dollars in cash which has to be deposited in the Bank of Costa Rica in a special account, each additional page will also be charged for a fee of .25 cents per copy; a certified letter stating the reason why we are seeking a permanent residency; then we have to have a physical place to live in Guanacaste, Liberia, Costa Rica with a certified letter from the person or organization that own the residence; then other forms which required us to have a criminal background check for each one of us from the United States for the past three years; Finger prints that have to be taken at the Ministerio de Seguridad Pública in Costa Rica; then a certified letter from the corresponding consulate in Costa Rica; then a certified copy of each page of our passport with two pictures; then a certified copy of our birth certificate; then a national pastor who has to write a certified letter to the Immigration office stating that we belong to the congregation, the reason why we will be in the country and what we will be doing; also a certified copy of the religious association, not more than three months old; also a certificate copy of the religious association registered with the Ministry of Exterior Relations and Churches. All those documents have to be signed, certified in front of a registered lawyer in Costa Rica and also all documents have to be translated into Spanish and certified. After submitting all those documents, there is a waiting period of nine months to a year and a half before getting back to us; but we can stay in the country working with the other pastor by planting churches and teaching in the institute according to the lawyer. The lawyer’s and translator’s fee could be about $500.00 to a $1,000.00 Dollars.
Now, on a better note, I had the privilege to preach three times at the church where we will be involved at, First Baptist Church of Liberia, Pastor Eliecer Robles Jimenez. Also, we did find a place to rent and the owner’s will allow us to take possession of the property in November of this year. When we move, it is more economical to buy a car in Costa Rica then bringing one from the US, it will not be cost effective because of the import taxes and it could be as high as the cost of the car itself. Buying a new car can be between $25K to 40K; it is expensive in Costa Rica about 1/3 higher than the US. Most Contractors import materials from the US vs. buying in CR. Our health, dental and vision can be as high as $900.00 dollars per month for both of us.
Regarding the place for the ministry (Church and Bible College & Seminary) there are two options (1) rent (2) buy. We have looked practically everywhere in the city of Liberia, Guanacaste for a place to rent, the majority of those places were not in good areas except for one which was in a good area of town, new 5,000 square foot building with two floors, but the rent was astronomical at $6,000.00 dollars per month (it will be throwing money in the garbage); but the owner/builder offered us an option to buy and he will work with us even with financing, but financing will be sky high with the interest as high as 12.5% +/-, that is the going bank rate; so buying made more sense. The price to buy is about 100 to 110 dollars per square foot. I have checked the construction and it is to the US standards.
We pray that our supporting churches will get on board with us and make this to become a reality. The more churches we have involved, the lesser the burden. I will be doing my part toward the building construction of the interior spaces which includes AC. I have spoken to a few national pastors and they are excited about the Bible College and Seminary. I have already put together a curriculum for the Bible College and Seminary. See figures below and on the Pdf file.
Fig. 1 – Photo from Street
Fig. 2 – Photo from exterior at 1st Flr. with 6 private parking spaces
Fig. 3 – Photo at second floor
Fig. 4 – Photo at second floor – Kitchen & Dining Rm on left, in the background
Fig. 5 – Photo at 2nd Flr. looking at elevator & stairs
Fig. 6 – Photo Looking at stair and elevator at first floor
Looking at the space, on the first floor, we can fit about 50 to 100 people in the sanctuary with two classrooms; there are two existing restrooms, one utility room and one office. On the second floor (Bible Institute) we can have six classrooms, one large conference room; there are also two existing restrooms, one utility room, one kitchenette with dining area. There is a lot of potential in this place, the surrounding neighborhood is good and safe. This property will keep on increasing down the road. Costa Rica has become very expensive place to live due to the tourism. If we are debt free on the building, the only thing that we have to pay are the taxes about $350.00/mth and utilities about $300.00/mth +/-.
Also, we looked at land for future project down the road approximately 84 Hectares (207.564 Acres) of which 30 Hectares (74.13 Acres) could be donated to us for the ministry( I have been praying for this) but the rest we have to buy and is negotiable and could be financed; of those 84 Hectares, 24 of them has 4 residences on them which can be rented or sold down the road for a good profit, the price is about $10.00 per square meters/m2 ($10.00 per 10.764 square feet/ft2). We have all the information, pictures, survey and topographical plans for this property. We would be happy to come and share all this findings with all our supporting churches. This property is about five minutes from the Liberia airport and about 10 minutes from the center of Liberia. I have already designed the master plan and each building for this project which can be found on our website under Vision, except it will be in Liberia instead of Santa Cruz. Perhaps many are thinking that this is not possible, Beloved we have to have a vision for God; if God is in this, He will make it happen.
As we press on, please pray and continue to pray for the
following prayer request:
PRAYERS
For
wisdom and guidance as we are preparing the documents and for the Lord to guide
us to the right people when we go back in November to submit them.
For
the Lord to intervene regarding the property offer for the Church and the Bible
College & Seminary and for churches to get involve.
For
our vision down the road regarding the land.
Our health in order to work in His
vineyard. My wife had a stomach virus in
Costa Rica and lost a lot of weight. My wife’s cataracts surgery will be in May
20th.
As
we keep stressing, it is our goal, Lord willing, to be on the field by the end
of this year; we are trusting in God to make it happen. The Lord has blessed us with other
meetings in July and Mission Conferences in October and November. We need a miracle for our support to be at 100%
or more by the time we leave this year; we fervently pray for this to happen. God
is able to make other miracles and we pray that He will; He is able, with Him
nothing is impossible. He is good, so good!!
Beloved
Brethren, Pastors and Churches, a lot of money is involved, but it takes money
nowadays to make things happen, the more people that are involved, the lesser
the burden will be. We
pray and humbly plead for your help, for the Lord’s provision and what He will
have you to do according to His will. We
pray that the Holy Spirit of our Lord God will move your hearts regarding the
property as well. All donations and funds should be sent to Macedonia World
Baptist Missions (MWBM) under SHIPPING-
TRAVEL ACCOUNTand BUILDING
ACCOUNT.
Support
Levels
We are still at 85%. We
have not heard, yet, from the churches that we presented to last month. We pray
that they will take us on for support, we earnestly need them.
Safety
with Travels
Pray that our Lord, God will
keep on protecting us on the road.
Schedule
of Meetings
Our schedule is not full, for now the Lord has blessed us with three more meetings, two in July and one in October; one mission conference and a meeting in October and another mission conference in November.
Softness
of Attitudes
Pray that our hearts would stay soft,
to have a humble attitude, to stay close to God, and focus on Him not on men
neither our circumstances; also for the churches that we have been in contact
with and presented. Brethren, we are excited to see on how the Lord will be
working this year, we are also encouraged and at the same time comforted by His
provision, protection and peace.
PRAISES
Praise the Lord that He gave us a safe trip and His protection was upon us in Costa Rica. God is not finished with us yet, He has big plans for us in Costa Rica. Phil. 1:6 always comes to mind: (1) Continue with Confidence (2) Continue with the Calling (3) Continue until Completion.
Praise
the Lord for His guidance to the right people and right place while we in Costa
Rica.
The Lord is so good in giving us our
health, providing and protecting us while we are on the road, despite of
setbacks while serving Him.
Praise the Lord for everything! To God be the Glory, great things He has done, that He is doing and what He will do as we focus our eyes and hearts upon Him.
Thank you, as always, for your kindness, compassion and love,
but most of all for your sensibility to the Holy Spirit of God who dwells in
you. We are deeply grateful for your continued prayers, financial support and
being behind our vision to further the Gospel of our Lord and Savior Jesus
Christ. Thank you as well to all who
started helping towards our passage.
Brethren, may the love of the Almighty God, the grace of our
Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you
All. Amen!
Greetings
and peace and love in the name of our eternal God, Lord and Savior Jesus
Christ.
As
always, we thank our Lord Jesus Christ for taking us on this glorious journey,
a journey of endless joy, speaking to our hearts, answering the call that He
has given us and accepted the mission that is ahead of us to do His work
according to His ways and will.
As we keep on pressing
on this glorious journey, the month of March has been very productive and with
many blessings. March 2nd we were at Iglesia Bautista Berea, Pastor
Nelson Palacios, in Jacksonville, FL where we presented our ministry and I had
the privilege to preach in Spanish as well. On March 6th through the
10th, we were at Central Baptist Church, Pastor Andy Bloom, in
Ocala, FL for a Mission Conference with Dr. Scott Caudill our Mission Board
Director. On March the 13th, we had a meeting in St. Pete, FL which
was cancelled and we drove back to Georgia before heading to Fayetteville, NC
for a Mission Conference at Freedom Baptist Church, Pastor Paul Worley, with
our Mission Board Director again, from the 15th to the 18th
of March. On March 20th, we were in Winston-Salem at Freeman Street
Baptist Church, Pastor Brian Harrison, but unfortunately I could not speak
because I had lost my voice, Pastor Harrison invited us back to present our
ministry, the date is not set yet. On March 24th, we were at Zion
Hill Baptist Church in Marion, NC, Pastor Tom Walker, where we presented our
ministry and I had the privilege of preaching as well. From the 27th
to the 30th, we were at Calvary Baptist Church in Norfolk, VA,
Pastor Richard Smith for a Mission Conference. On Sunday the 31st of
March, we were in Covington, GA for a meeting at Newton Baptist Church, Pastor
Tony Howeth where we presented our ministry and I had the privilege to preach
as well.
As we press on, please pray and continue to pray for the
following prayer request:
PRAYERS
For wisdom and guidance as we are
preparing to leave for Costa Rica, for the Lord to guide us to the right people
and the right place.
We are in the process of speaking to
the Migration and Immigration of Costa Rica; there is a lot of leg work to do
and many papers to fill out.
Our
health in order to work in His vineyard. My wife’s cataracts surgery will be in
May.
We
are need for a car, preferably a van, to keep going to finish deputation after
we get back from Costa Rica; as mentioned in our previous prayer letters, my
wife’s car was in a wreck and is totaled (that is what the insurance says but
it is not) We are working with a body shop to get it fixed.
As
we keep stressing, it is our goal, Lord willing, to be on the field sometime
this year; we are trusting in Him to make it happen. the Lord has blessed us
with other meetings in July and Mission Conferences in October and November.As
mentioned earlier in the previous paragraph, we are planning to go in April to
start our paperwork for the visa, check out the place where we are going to
live, as well as the location for the ministry. We need a miracle for our
support to be at 100% or more by the time we leave this year; we fervently pray
for this to happen. God is able to make other miracles and we pray that He
will; He is able, with Him nothing is impossible. He is good, so good!!
We would like to bring to the table
of your hearts, again, the following needs. We know that we are repeating ourselves but it is very crucial. We
have started to check on our passage expenses (flight, moving, governmental fees,
rental for housing and ministry, etc. etc.); we don’t have a final number yet
but from what we have gathered so far, it could cost up to Twenty Five Thousand
Seven Hundred and Thirty Six Dollars, ($25,736.00) perhaps
more, hopefully not. So far, (1) for the
flight, places to stay and the car rental (only from the 9th of
April to the 30th) in order to mobilize when we are there will be
about Four Thousand Three Hundred and Thirty Six Dollars for 21 Days ($4,336.00), that does not include food (Flight – $1,691.00 + Hotel – $1,323.00 + Car rental – $1,322.00.00/
Full coverage) these are
the exact prices; we have paid for these
already. (2) for the moving, door to door, it could be about Fourteen
Thousand Dollars ($14,000.00), for a 40’ container, which includes
one car but without the car it will be about 9K to 10K; (3) for governmental fees,
taxes, etc. (Importation fees, Visa fees, it could be about Two Thousand
Dollars ($2,000.00); (4) personal and ministry (rental of
home and church building) about Five Thousand Four Hundred Dollars ($5,400.00) which includes one month security deposit and one month
rent.
Beloved Brethren, Pastors and
Churches, this is a lot of money; we pray and humbly plead for your help, for
the Lord’s provision and what He will have you to do according to His will. We
pray that the Holy Spirit of our Lord God will move your hearts; all donations
and funds should be sent to Macedonia World Baptist Missions (MWBM) under Shipping-
Travel account.
Support
Levels
Now we are at 85%,
thanks the Lord for four more churches that took us on for support, Temple Baptist
Church, Pastor Josh Boles in Lewisville, NC; Iglesia Bautista Berea, Pastor Nelson
Palacios in Jacksonville, FL; Central Baptist Church, Pastor Andy Bloom, in Ocala,
FL; Zion Hill Baptist Church, Pastor Tom Walker, in Marion, NC. We have presented to three other churches as
well (two conferences and one meeting), we pray that they will take us on for
support, we need them.
Safety
with Travels
Pray that our Lord, God
will keep on protecting us on the road. The first Sunday of April, we will be in
North Carolina for a Conference before we leave for Costa Rica on the 9th.
Schedule
of Meetings
Our schedule is not full,
for now the Lord has blessed us with two more meetings in July, one conference
in October and the other in November.
Softness
of Attitudes
Pray that our hearts would stay soft,
to have a humble attitude, to stay close to God, and focus on Him not on men
neither our circumstances; also for the churches that we have been in contact
with and presented. Brethren, we are excited to see on how the Lord will be
working this year, we are also encouraged and at the same time comforted by His
provision, protection and peace.
PRAISES
Praise the Lord that my wife is
alive. God is not finished with us yet,
He has big plans for us in Costa Rica.
The Lord is so good in giving us our
health, providing and protecting us while we are on the road, despite of
setbacks while serving Him.
Praise the Lord for everything! To God be the
Glory, great things He has done, that He is doing and what He will do as we
focus our eyes and hearts upon Him.
Thank you, as always, for your kindness, compassion and love,
but most of all for your sensibility to the Holy Spirit of God who dwells in
you. We are deeply grateful for your continued prayers, financial support and
being behind our vision to further the Gospel of our Lord and Savior Jesus
Christ.
Brethren, may the love of the Almighty God, the grace of our
Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you
All. Amen!
