We would like to thank you for reading our letters and praying for us. A special thank you to our supporting churches for giving faithfully and for sharing our vision. We don’t take lightly your sacrificial giving. We have had several new churches partner with us this year, our first coming on January 1.
We had a special encounter with Pastor Mitchell in Norwalk, California. When I scheduled the meeting, I had no idea who he was or how special the meeting was going to be. We went on visitation on Saturday and shared our testimonies. We realized that Pastor Mitchell started the church that reached my wife and her family for Christ and changed her life forever. Thousands of miles and over two decades later, this was an awesome meeting and gift for both our families.
Back in June, I preached at a church in West Virginia. During the invitation, an 11-year-old boy named Matthew surrendered to be a missionary to Kenya—what a blessing! God crossed our paths just a couple weeks ago at another church meeting. Once again, Matthew made confirmation of God’s call for his life after I preached. I am continually humbled that God would use me. Please pray for Matthew as he grows in the Lord and prepares for the mission field.
I have had some very interesting times soul winning the last few months. It is always sad to see a soul reject Christ! One man in particular after Christmas did not want to receive the free gift of salvation. He made the statement that He didn’t want to stand in the return line in Heaven returning the gift of eternal life. Huh?! How sad to be so blind.
I am always excited to get to share the Gospel with those who want to hear. We were blessed to be a part of a church’s Missions-Emphasis Month near Phoenix, Arizona, in January. The whole family went out soul winning. Because we are such a crowd, we split up. My wife took a couple kids, and I took one. We had some positive responses by a few people, and then we got to the door of a young mother. She was very receptive and interested in the church. I worked through a couple of distractions and gave her the Gospel, and she called on Christ. As I left that house, I met a young man on the street, just leaving his house. He was also sweetly saved! We pray that the church will follow up with them.
God was so good to us as we drove back east from California. We had a missions conference that finished on Sunday and one that started on Wednesday in West Virginia. We drove through the night Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday. God provided a hotel on Monday that allowed day check-in so I could sleep while the rest of the family played. Tuesday, we were blessed to stop in Kansas and rest at a friend’s house. Finally, on Wednesday, we arrived in West Virginia, where I was able to get some sleep before the conference started. (It took about a week to make up all the sleep we lost.) Praise God for safe travel and provision!
Please join us in praying for these needs: the health of our family, our vehicle, travel safety, churches to partner with us, souls to be saved, and for God to use us.
Fellow servants for Christ,
The McDonald Family
