FAMILY NEWS

We will never understand how nine months can fly by so quickly, but here we are, almost at the end of our first furlough.  We are already shopping for plane tickets for our return to Ukraine.  So much has happened on this furlough and we have appreciated all of your prayers. 

Shawn’s mother, who was diagnosed with cancer this past fall, is in great spirits and is responding well to chemotherapy…..so far the tumors are not growing or spreading, and they even appear to be shrinking!  Praise God!  She is still undergoing chemotherapy and the doctors are discussing possible changes to her treatment.  We would appreciate your continued prayers.

Please pray, also, for Shawn’s grandfather; he is having some difficulties after a fall, which led to an operation that removed a portion of his colon.  He has also been diagnosed with liver cancer and is currently undergoing chemotherapy. 

Shawn has almost fully recovered from his two surgeries and has begun working-out daily to regain his strength.  Thank you so much for your prayers on his behalf.

MINISTRY NEWS

Thank you for your prayers for Shawn, Mike Starling (from Mission Quest International) and Rudy Weber as they traveled to Ukraine last week.  They were able to work out some details for our first short-term mission trip this August.  If you, or anyone you know, are interested in going on this trip, contact Mike Starling at mxgatorguy@netscape.net or 817-287-9054, as soon as possible.  Space is limited.

At the end of this month, Shawn and Cody will accompany Mike and a group of youth pastors from America, to the Tarahumara Indians in ther combined efforts for His own glory.  We love an mountains of Mexico.  Pray for their safety in the rugged terrain and for spiritual fruit among these people. 

We have been blessed to visit with the majority of our supporters this furlough.  We have been so encouraged by our time of fellowship with everyone.  God’s people are surrendered and willing to sacrifice to get the job done all around the world and that is so encouraging.  Thank you so much for your hospitality, love and support for us as we have been here in the States. 

We still have about 30 meetings remaining and a lot of miles in between.  Pray that God would protect us on the road and provide for personal and ministry needs of the near future.  We are more encouraged and excited now about our prospects for ministry in Ukraine than ever before.  New opportunities and even new invitations to come and plant churches have recently surfaced and we are anxious to return. 

Please pray specifically and persistently for God’s blessing and leadership with these open doors.  And pray for greater influence and resources than ever before.  Specifically, our family needs to build our own home on the field for long term stability.  The rental situation has been brutal for us.  We never know when or where we will have to move next.  We also need a ministry vehicle and trailer for outreach and transportation in the future.  Puppet ministry and English clubs are valuable resources for us - pray that God will provide materials for these aspects of ministry.  Pray for God’s speed in these areas; we return to Ukraine in just three short months.

We want to thank all of you for your faithfulness in supporting our ministry in Ukraine.  God is blessing our combined efforts for His own glory.  We love and appreciate you all!