James and Linda Belisle Prayer Letter: God Blesses Conferences and Preaching

Thank you so much for your prayers. The year 2022 started out interestingly, with both Linda and I getting COVID the first week of January. We are very thankful we were diagnosed right away. I could tell within a day that the treatment we received was working and I was getting better. Just prior to getting COVID, I was able to preach for both Sunday services at my home church, Marion Avenue Baptist Church. On this particular Sunday, January 2, I also led the congregational singing. Though it is a challenge to my voice, being out of practice in the singing area, I really enjoy leading the singing.

God has given me many soul-winning and preaching opportunities. A young couple had visited the church a few times. The couple had been talked to by both our preacher and our associate pastor. Then one Sunday, I had the opportunity to talk to them. They had already left the service and were about to leave the building when they came back to the auditorium area. As I talked with them, they finally said they felt like they needed to get this “born again” thing settled. What a blessing it was to lead them to the saving knowledge of Jesus Christ while my wife watched their toddler.

Our church started a new Sunday school class specifically for the French-speaking people from the Congo. Though we do not have a preacher who speaks French, God sent us a French-speaking interpreter. I teach the class when I am in town, with another member doing the teaching the other weeks. We are sure it will take some time to see growth, but we are thankful for those who have heard the Gospel through this class. While out visiting for the class, I was able to meet a young lady who has been in the National Guard for five years. After showing her the Gospel, she admitted her church had taught her that baptism and a good life were what she needed to get to Heaven but that what I showed her was different. She wanted to get saved by faith . . . and she did! Amen!

I just returned from Nigeria, where I was able to preach in two conferences. These conferences are not evangelistic in nature but rather are designed to challenge pastors and workers in the areas of soul winning and leadership. After the first conference at Faith Baptist Church in Ogbomosho, I found out that one of the pastors told a pastor friend that the conference had changed his devotions and his soul winning. We flew back to Abuja for the second conference, which was the national conference on soul winning and leadership. A total of 80 churches were represented at these two conferences. I enjoyed going soul winning while there and led two to Christ.

The Wednesday after my return, my preacher asked me to preach. The message (see video below) was used of God in such a way that my preacher asked me to preach it again on Sunday morning. Praise the Lord for those saved that morning. Please pray with me as I consider going to Romania to help a missionary as he deals with refugees from the Ukrainian war.

Your servant,

Missionary Evangelist James Belisle