Friday, February 29, 2008

Petersons’ Prayer Guide - March 2008

What makes God smile? When we love Him supremely, trust Him completely, obey Him wholeheartedly, praise and thank Him continually, and when we use our abilities. (A quote from somewhere; I found it in my journal.)

At the beginning of February, Gary received a motorcycle as a gift from a friend in Washington State. It has already been a source of fun, and a financial help when he can ride it to work. It’s a lot more economical than a car! Praise the Lord with us for this gift, and please pray for safety as he rides it.

The Truth Project is off to a good start. We’ve averaged around 24 people attending so far and are excited at the impact it is already making.

We look forward to having Esther home from college for her Spring break (March 1-10th ). From the 5th– 9th she will be going with the drama troop from the college to do performances in north Florida. Pray for a good rest and for God’s blessing on the outreach. She’s keeping a busy schedule with school, work and ministry, not to mention relationships! We’d appreciate continued prayer for her summer plans.

We’ll be hosting a number of visitors this month. Pray that God will refresh these friends as we spend time with them, and that our home will be a haven of peace and blessing to those who come.

My mother in Australia is having some new health challenges and is undergoing tests to try and find the cause. Please pray with us for wisdom for her doctors, and that a clear diagnosis will be made and effective treatment will be available.

Gary’s March Schedule

1st two A-Z kids Adventures – Living Word Church (50 kids/10 adults); 1st Baptist Central Florida (25 kids/adults)
2nd speak at Maranatha Bible Church Missions Conference, Lantana, FL
3rd Special tour for Grace Evangelical College. Speak to visiting college group on Wycliffe (118 students) in the evening.
4th ME (Mission Encounter) for Melody Christian Academy (25 7th graders/4 adults)
6th A-Z & ME - Crusaders Christian Homeschool group & Rockledge Christian School. (3 preschool, 33 grade 2-6 & 10 grade 7-9 + 15 adults)
7th A-Z – First Academy of Orlando. 75 5th graders/? adults)
8th special tour for Lake Alfred Baptist Church (20-25 senior citizens)
14th-16th going to the car races at Sebring, FL with some Wycliffe Associates (a dream since junior high)
18th Special tour for the President’s office (I’m asked from time to time to give tours to special guests. I have had a wide variety of people – business people, church leaders, special donors, Christian leaders, etc.) Pray that I know what to say and what not to say. Often these are short notice, but this one was in advance.

Spring Break – Florida is a HUGE Spring break destination from the “frozen” northern states. Very few schools have their breaks at the same time, so we have purposely kept the last half of March lightly booked. Last year we had many university groups with several hundred students come by unannounced during this time, so I need to be ready to go at a moments notice. I’m also hoping to be able to do a quick road trip with Josiah during this time to visit a couple of Christian Colleges he is considering in the future. Pray we can work this into the schedule.

We are also preparing for a major event on Saturday, April 5th. 350 elementary kids and 100 adults are coming for an all day event called Children’s Missions Jamboree for the Central Florida Nazarene Churches. We have already been working on this for two months, but we’ve been trying to do that around an already full schedule. We hope to have more time this month to get ready for the big day.

As for February, we are still alive to tell the tale, but it was BUSY! Thanks for holding us up in your prayers and asking God to bear His eternal fruit through our lives and ministries.

Thursday, February 21, 2008

Overton post Siberia Update

Dear friends and partners in ministry,

Thank you for praying for me during my recent trip to Siberia. I was witness to the Lord’s provision and blessing especially during the day when the temperature dropped to -30 F.

More than just physical protection, the Lord answered your prayers for wisdom and guidance. Praise the Lord, Pioneers’ teams in Siberia are growing and are seeing people coming to faith in the Lord!

Please continue to pray for unreached Siberian peoples. They are living in one of the world’s harshest climates and have the lowest income levels in all of Russia, but all of that is insignificant compared to their isolation from the message of God’s love and forgiveness.

Please continue to pray for our family as well. This week Ruth is away at a leadership conference and I am home with the kids alone. For me, being a full-time “mommy” is much more demanding than my trip to Siberia. So please continue to keep us all in your prayers.

Here are our prayers requests:
Safe travels for Ruth to and from her conference
Good health for everyone (it is flu season)
Progress toward establishing a new visa and registration in July of 2008
Safety for Jim and the kids as they making a trip next week to renew visa registrations

Thank you for your prayers and partnership with us as we are seeking and serving the Lord and His kingdom.

Warmly,

Jim, Ruth, Ben, Greg and Leeza Overton