First, I want to thank you for taking the time to read our letter. We hope and pray that it will be a blessing to you and will motivate many of you to pray for our ministry and for the souls of the people in Ireland.
July
We had scheduled for an evangelist to come preach for us, but since he could not fly to Ireland, nor could we meet even if he did, the only option was to have an online conference. Being very new to me, I needed to make my way quickly through the learning curve for this new endeavour. Over the past several months, I’ve been trying to figure out the ins and outs of streaming, uploading, cameras, microphones, lighting, the difficulties of slow internet, and all the rest that is involved. I figured things out for the conference, and we were still able to hold it live from July 5-7. As far as looking for a new building to meet in, we thought we had found a place, but I realised I was using pre-lockdown financial figures. When I looked back at our giving for the last six months, I realised we were greatly lacking. The Lord reminded me of a large building we have on our property, which is three times the size of where we were in the city, but it needed cleaning and repairs. At the end of the month, we received 36 new replacement chairs and a pulpit from the contractor. Then many of our people gathered to work on repairing the building so we could begin having meetings once again.
August
On the first Sunday of this month, we were able to hold services again. Even though the building is down a narrow road and adds another 10-15 minutes to their commute, our church people were happy to begin having services. We all looked at our status over the last six months and made the decision to stay in this building next to our house and see how things go. In the meantime, I am doing more upgrades on the building as time permits, and the contractor is going to do work for us for free, while we supply materials. The Lord has been good to us by providing a free place for us to meet. Pease pray that the distance will not be a hindrance for visitors. Our middle child had his 12th birthday this month, and he was thrilled to reach this landmark in his life. At the end of August, we had a lovely fellowship dinner with our church people at a local Asian restaurant. It was a great time getting together since the lockdown. Many have told me they are praying for Kelly’s health. Her condition fluctuates but seems to stay the same on average, so please continue to pray for her as we deal with this new difficulty.
Soul Winning
We were finally able to get Gospel tracts out once again and talk to people in the community directly, rather than online. We have been using a Gospel tract from Striving Together Publications; it uses the pandemic to lead into the Gospel. Please pray that the Lord blesses the tracts and gives us opportunities to tell about the gift of salvation.
Please pray for these needs:
1. New building
2. Co-laborers in Limerick
3. Protection over the ministry
4. Wisdom in dealing with the church situation
5. Kelly’s health
Last, I thank everyone who sent encouraging cards and for your faithful prayers and support. May the Lord bless all of you for your sacrifices to hold the ropes. I want to give special thanks to FBC in Hammond, FBC in Berne, Ms. Ruby Hall, and Ms. Sarah Finley for giving to help with the recent losses at our church. It was a needed blessing.
In the campaign for Irish souls,
Keith Hamilton
