Happy New Year, everyone! We pray that you all have had a blessed 2019 and are looking forward to what the Lord is going to continue to do in the New Year of 2020. We praise the Lord for all the different ways He allowed us to be used for Him over this past year, and we want to praise Him for all He has done during the month of December as well.
We began December by filling in for a small church in our home town of Jackson, Michigan, that needed someone to fill the pulpit while their pastor was out of town. It was a blessing to see everyone we had not seen from the church since we began our deputation journey. God really blessed our time and fellowship together in His Word.
The very next weekend, we were at Harvest Baptist Church of Grass Lake, Michigan. Pastor Daniel’s family and my family first met while at Iglesia Bautista of Lewisville, Texas, to present our ministry. The same night we were there, they were announcing that they were moving to Harvest Baptist Church of Grass Lake. We both were surprised and excited to learn that night that we were to become neighbors, since our home church is only 20 minutes from their church. Pastor Daniel invited us to come to Harvest Baptist, and we had a wonderful time. On Sunday morning, we were able to help with the Bus Ministry. We had over 32 people on the bus, so Jeffrey and Hannah had the privilege of throwing a pie in the two bus captains’ faces. The kids were pretty excited! We also had a great time with the Junior Church, teaching them about Kenya and about being a light unto others. Thank you, Pastor Kelly Daniel and your precious family at HBC, for your love and support.
For the rest of December, we did not have any scheduled meetings. Our next scheduled meeting was during the first week in January in California, so we decided to head to the Southwest, where it would be warmer living out of the camper, and do some drop-ins at churches along the way. God blessed far more than anything we could have imagined. We called Rio Grande Baptist Church in Albuquerque, New Mexico, and they allowed us to stay with them for three weeks. We had Christmas and New Year’s in Albuquerque, and we were blessed. While at RGBC, we were able to be a part of their Reformers Unanimous program and a few of their services. Pastor Black gave us the opportunity to share East Africa with everyone during both the morning and evening services. We also went out soul winning with Mrs. Kristen in a large parking lot in town, since most of the homes in the area have fences, making it very difficult to go from door to door. We had a great time leaving the Gospel at people’s cars and talking to those going to their vehicles. While doing so, God opened the door for me to share the Gospel with Arthur. Arthur grew up Catholic and was looking for something new. After going through the true Gospel with him and showing him the truths from the Word of God, Arthur came to place his complete trust in Jesus Christ alone!
While in Albuquerque, we dropped in at New Heights Baptist Church, where Pastor Reyes and the nice folks there allowed our children to be a part of their Christmas program. Our kids really enjoyed being in the program and watching the program. The church also surprised us by putting us up in a nice hotel for Christmas. We had a wonderful time, as we were able to relax and celebrate Christmas together. Thank you so much, NHBC and Pastor Reyes, for your love and hospitality to our family.
God also opened the doors for us to present at Glory Bound Baptist Church with Pastor Summers and to present and preach up in Dulce, New Mexico, at Good News Baptist Church. We thank the Lord for the opportunities He gave us and for the ways He seemed to be working in all the services we were a part of. We will never forget the time we had with all of these precious churches in New Mexico, and we are very grateful for the new friendships we have made this month. God is so good.
Lastly, while driving around town and getting some things done on New Year’s Eve, we decided to stop and get some Frosties from Wendy’s. While there, a homeless woman asked us to buy her something to eat. We went inside to buy our Frosties and her some food, and when we came out, we asked Heather to come to our truck so we could give her one more thing. When she came over, we simply asked her if she was sure she would go to Heaven when she died. She replied that she sure hoped so but was not 100% sure. We are so thankful for the chance we had to show Heather how she could know for sure, and we are thankful that she placed her trust in Jesus Christ as her own personal Saviour.
God has been so good to us over this past year of 2019, and we are excited to see what He will do throughout the year to come. Thank you to all of you for your prayers and support. May God be with you in the coming year.
Your co-labourers for lost souls across East Africa,
Brandon, Ali, Jeffrey, Hannah, & Esther Heselschwerdt
Romans 10:14
