“Go and tell John the things you have seen and heard: that the blind see, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, the poor have the gospel preached to them. And blessed is he who is not offended because of Me.” Jesus in the Gospel of Luke
Where do I begin? My mind is racing, my soul is full and my heart is overflowing. Let me just say that in our 20+ years of missionary life, this week’s church planting/pastor’s meeting was one of my all-time highlights when we took a special time for an old fashioned testimony service.
One leader testified of God’s provision for his family during difficult times, sending the finances at just the right time. Another about how God had healed him from his paralytic state, literally raised him off his sick bed and how He is now using him to plant a new work. Another shared of an entire river region that was closed to the Gospel and has recently opened its doors and are ready to receive the message of salvation. Another pastor shared of the spiritual growth that is taking place using our oral Bible teaching method and how his newest church plant is about to install deacons that will serve the congregation. And yet another brother told of a recent trip where he laid hands and prayed for the healing of a former prominent witch doctor who was swelled up with infection to the point of not being able to walk, the next morning he was well! Completely healed! The testimonies went on and on, it was a joy to listen to what they had “seen and heard”.
You see, our goal is simple, we want to keep pushing further and further into the unreached areas in the jungles of Ecuador. Driving the long hard miles in 4x4’s, riding in canoes and hiking through the deep mud to make sure that every man, woman and child in our harvest field has heard the Good News of the Gospel of Christ. Over the next 10 years that will mean planting at least 100 new churches throughout the jungle. To do this we will need to train more pastors and mobilize church planters, we will need to purchase printed materials and more.
All this to say that sincerely we cannot do it without people and churches like you. To mobilize a church planter for one month is only $150. To train a new leader only costs $700 for books and studies. And to plant a church in a village that has never heard only costs $3500!
So many of you have been faithful to pray for us and financially back our efforts, if you could have seen what I saw and heard what I heard in that meeting room last Tuesday, I truly believe you would have said only one thing, “It was worth it all”.
Yet I am sure that one day in heaven, when you see the untold numbers of sinners saved by grace because of your generosity those will be the only words to come out of your mouth.
Thank you for believing with us for the harvest!
Your missionaries,
Joil and Leah Marbut
Drew, Will, Emelia and Aidan