Thank you for praying!! We’ve had clouds roll in, refrigerators fixed, unexpected time with friends, power turn on at just the right time, fear turn into smiles, and YOU have been a part of all of it! We have two more days left at both the kid’s camp and adult’s language intensive, and we want to finish strong. God is at work, and we are so thankful for all that He is doing.

There is nothing sweeter than to see our children unified and worshipping together! Our team is blessed with children who are sincerely seeking their own personal journeys with Christ. We covet your prayers for them, that they would seek Him with all their hearts and find Him!

Over the past year, we have been able to disciple this girl in the picture as she has become a part of our team.  She comes from a believing family, but God has given each person on our team an opportunity to speak into her life, to encourage her, and help her in her faith with Jesus.  She has grown more and more in love with God and desires to serve Him.  At each outreach event, she always brings new students and she is an active leader of our Communities of Faith.  She is currently preparing to serve for one year in another country. Please pray for her as she listens to God’s voice and seeks His direction for her life. Pray for protection over her, for family relationships, and for peace.

Please be praying for two English programs that our team is hosting next week. One is something old, and one is something new! A team from CO is coming to help us host a one-week English intensive course AND our first ever English camp for kids!! We are so excited to be doing this in conjunction with both local friends (two of our students are helping!!) and stateside partners–what a joy! Please pray for sweet times of connection, lots of learning and fun, and for seeds to be planted in the hearts of our students!

For those of you who have ever canned or made juice, you may be in the habit of letting the jar cool down in some certain way.  When our nanny was helping us make cherry juice, she kept telling us to “let it stand” for several weeks – meaning, let it be – don’t touch.  The cherries had to have time to infuse the water and make the juice as delicious as possible.

This may be a crass illustration, but I found myself thinking about how we need to just soak in His Word and Voice to us.  A lot of times, I wouldn’t say that I just “let it stand” – I’m usually on a schedule, or in a time crunch to get through reading and praying.  I love the idea of letting His Words seep into our lives, deeply infusing our life.  Would you pray for our team and those around you– that all of us would have times of this during the summer months?

In the middle of the month or the beginning of the month, retired people receive their pension. Often these men and women are desperate to receive that pay and swarm certain ATMs to get their money. Please pray for the older people of this country that they would meet the One who knows all of their needs, and that they would find their security in Christ alone.

Have you ever thought about the way that soup is made? It is the result of a bunch of ingredients (some of which are less than appealing on their own) being added to one big pot of broth. Over time, the flavors combine to create an entirely new taste!

Unity of the body of Christ works in much the same way. We each bring a different flavor to the mix, but with time and patience, we can become something better together. Let’s cry out  for unity in purpose and spirit as we serve the King of Kings and Lord of Lords!

“From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.” Ephesians 4:16

Unity drives fear into the heart of our Enemy, and that is why we must pursue it both in prayer and in action. We are always stronger together. Pray that in all settings we will function as the body of Christ for a common purpose—to make His name known!

Prayer Points:

—Pray for team unity as we live and work closely together. That “peace and grace” would always be the desire of our hearts.

—Pray for unity among national and international believers and churches in this place, that they will work together to share the good news of Christ!

—Pray for unity between orthodox churches and non-orthodox churches—that trust can be built and that fruitful dialogue can occur.