Dear Friends,
Greetings from Valencia, which is celebrating the 773 anniversary since the triumphal entry into the city by King Jaime I. The occasion was in 1238 when Christianity was taken back into the city and Jaime I defeated the Muslim King Zayyan ibn Mardanish. Then, the victory signalled a time of peace between the different religions. Promises were made to respect individuals’ beliefs, a larger population of Muslim, twice as many as the Christians, did not hinder the re-establishment of the Christian faith and the Valencian people are very keen not to forget this part of their history. Our church was established merely 30 years ago, but we believe we have so much to contribute to bringing the gospel to every Valencian citizen. Pray with us as we seek to be faithful in this commission.
On Sunday 25th September we had a blessed time as 21 people were baptized including 9 adolescents. It was a time of testimony and hearing what the Lord has done and is still doing in their lives. Pray for their growth in the Lord and especially for their protection. The group of adolescents in the church has been consolidated; some 25 boys and girls ranging from the ages of 12 to 16 meet in the premises of the bookshop each Sunday. Give thanks to the Lord for them. Remember the young adults who look after them; Andres Jr. leads that work with the help of three others. The young adults themselves are being ministered via the ministry of Sillas & Mesas (Chairs & Tables). This has become an effective arm for evangelism which also cares for the spiritual wellbeing of the young adults group. Andrés Jr. is also responsible for this work. Personal discipleship is at the core of this work. Pray for protection and growth.
Next week (14th October) the Bible network will commence. Pray for a special time as we will teach the principles of the gospel. We are looking forward to seeing the church enter into the vision the Lord has entrusted to us. Every Friday, the whole church will be connected also to the task we have at hand. Pray for the Word to instruct us and direct us as a whole fellowship. Pray also for God’s anointing on the Lord’s Day, we are doing a series on Genesis 3, dealing with the four ruptures: God/Man; Man with Himself; Man and Others; and Man and the Cosmos. We are conscious of the effect of a praying church; our 24 hour week of prayer was really encouraging. It is such a blessing to see the church focused in a life of prayer, our prayer meetings on Thursday have become the engine room. Rejoice with us in the work of the Lord.
Our social work continues. At the beginning of November we shall receive, DV, further lots of food parcels from the Red Cross. In the light of the critical financial situation, we remain a source of blessing to those in need. We need wisdom to identify and directly help those in dire situations. Pray for the families of the church who have no one in employment. This is a growing problem and the government can only offer them a small subsidy. On November 20th, we shall have general elections in Spain. The present government is exhausted and mistrusted, and the opposition seemingly has a golden opportunity to make a difference, but it is all so unconvincing. Please, pray for the right government with the right policies. More than 4 million people are unemployed (more than 20% of the active population).
The bookshop is now open to serve the needs of the church, so I am no longer there every morning. If people need literature or Bibles, I can easily access distributors to meet those requests. Pray for a generation of Christian that would spend more time reading their Bibles and good literature rather than sitting in front of their PCs & Macs & TVs.
The boys are back into school with their usual activities. Joel faces 2 important years for future studies; pray that the Lord will guide him. Elis has another 3 years of Secondary Education before getting to Joel’s present state. Helen continues with her work at the Hospital LA FE. Give thanks to the Lord for his faithfulness. I had a good result in my MRI test. Praise the Lord for his keeping.
Recently Johanna and her daughter Hannah visited us. We had a wonderful time together.
Thank you for being there.
Eddy
