Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
“Whom we preach, warning every man, and teaching every man in all wisdom; that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus: Whereunto I also labour, striving according to his working, which worketh in me mightily..” -Colossians 1:28-29-
Many Blessings: The past month has been an exciting one at Keene Baptist Church! We are discipling a young couple (more about this below), we are seeing people grow in the Lord, outreach is consistent, and the attendance has been growing. Also, we have been praying about the need for a pianist since we arrived. God has provided for that need because we now have a pianist! Also, someone in the church here took it upon themselves to buy the church a brand-new keyboard. Plus, we have a decent number of children who attend (around ten), so we are looking to start a children’s ministry soon. God is good!
Discipleship: We have been discipling a young couple for a few months. He was saved as a teenager, and she got saved in December (a pastor friend in Massachusetts led her to the Lord). Each Sunday afternoon, they come over to our home, eat lunch with us, and then we go over the discipleship material. Each session is supposed to last about an hour but consistently lasts about four hours! The reason for the length of time is due to their hunger to know more and grow in the Lord. It has been an absolute joy watching God work in their hearts. Occasionally we hear from them throughout the week as they tell about the people they are sharing the Lord with. My prayer is that we would all have the fire like they do to learn, grow, and be a light for Christ.
Outreach: Another blessing is to see the church practice consistent outreach in the community around us. Many of the people in the church are a light to the world around them and are excited to give testimony to their outreach efforts throughout the week. Also, we have seen a good group come out to help in our weekly church visitation. To God be the glory.
Asking, Seeking, Knocking: Keene Baptist Church has a special unspoken prayer request that our church is fervently praying for. I made mention of this in the last prayer request and we are still seeking the Lord. We ask that you consider praying with us for this prayer request.
Prayer Requests:
- Pray for the special unspoken prayer request of Keene Baptist Church mentioned just above.
- Pray that God will continue to bless our outreach efforts.
- Pray for the many visitors that we are interacting with.
In Christ and for His glory, The Shives Family
