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Updates from Giles & Deb

August 2009 

Hey Prayer Warriors!

What a summer it has been so far and there is still so much to go!  We wanted to update you all on the incredible things that have been happening here and ask for your prayers for what´s to come.

Praises: 

• Our kids finished out school well and we have all finally formed some deep and meaning friendships that have kept going all through the summer.
• Giles´ mom has recovered incredibly well from a stroke that she suffered two weeks ago which immobilized the right side of her body and rendered her incoherent.  Talking to her now, though, you would never know that anything had happened!  We praise God for how he has protected her mind and body.
• We were blessed to have Bethany Jacobsen and Kendra Dahlbacka with us for several weeks.  The first time the Youth Team received SEND Summer Missionaries proved to be a tremendous blessing, and WOW were they helpful in the events that transpired.  Not to mention the fact that we (and our kids) kinda bonded with these wonderful ladies!
• God moved powerfully in a week of outreach evangelism to youth in the park next to our church.  We got to build and deepen relationships with many different teens from that park and at the end of the week, 10 of the many youth we had met in the park attended our regular youth group meeting and heard a clear presentation of the gospel!
• God provided for us perfectly in helping us find a townhouse in our neighborhood for the same rent as the apartment we had been in.  We now have an attic, a front and back porch, a garage and a whole lot more space for the kids to spread out and not be so on top of each other.  We moved in May and just in time because the first week of the Youth Leader Formation saw 10 other people sleeping in our house with us!  And we all fit!
• The youth in the youth group have really begun taking ownership of many different ministries – even recording the sermons and putting them up our own web page that they have set up!  Our youth group is called Xtrem, and if you want to practice your Spanish by reading or listening to a sermon in Spanish, go to http://www.xtremjovenes.es/ 
• We have just finished our very first Youth Leader Training and are amazed to see how God moved to bring just the right people to make it a rich time of seeking God and learning together about how to run a youth group. 

Requests:

• Pray for our good friends/neigbors, Loli and José, and their two boys, Samuel and David, who are dear friends of our kids.  We are seeing God move powerfully in their lives and are continually praying that soon God will move them to surrender to Him completely.  José has made paella (a Spanish rice dish) for our youth group twice now, and on both occasions has stuck around for worship and teaching.  Loli has been reading through a new testament that Deb and Bekah gave her, and asking questions along the way.  And all along they are caring for us and helping us to become “more Spanish”.  It´s good to have friends that are willing to tease you.  Even better that the Lord is actually calling them to Himself.  Pray that our daily lives alongside them (double dates, meals, evening walks and shopping adventures) will be tools for the Holy Spirit in their lives.
• Pray for the kids that participated in the outreach evangelism in the park next to our church – both the kids we met and the kids from our youth group.  Pray that God will continue to burden the hearts of the Christian youth for these youth from the park who are definitely a little rough around the edges.  And pray that through the course of this next school year God grants us the joy of bringing some of them to Him.
• Pray for the youth leaders as they head back to their 8 churches to work with their youth groups.  Pray that they will have the humility and grace to implement the things they have learned – and perhaps make some needed changes – without offending others in the body.  Pray for us as we seek God´s next step for US.  We know these relationships are God ordained.  May we not miss any opportunities to disciple.
• Pray for Deb and Giles as we prepare our talks for Summer Camp in the Canary Islands - August 18 to 26.  We have been asked to be the speakers for youth from 5 different islands. Giles will speak at the sessions, and Deb will do morning devotions and a couple of workshops.  Pray that we will say just what God wants us to say and that we don´t get distracted by asking ourselves, “What will make them like us?”  Believe it or not, that’s a temptation that´s really easy to get caught up in.