20 Oct Orphanage in Belize

Significant progress is occurring on the buildings and other preparations for opening the orphanage for Here’s Hope Ministries in Belize. Much work is being done through Bob Eberly, from Greencastle, Pa., and other supporters.

13 Sep Karen Crumbley’s Upcoming Surgery

Lamar and Karen Crumbley served with the UB mission in Honduras over a period of about 15 years, and recently served a short-term stint in Macau. Lamar sent a note about a surgery Karen will undergo on Thursday, September 16.

“After a long struggle with her lung tumor, Karen is at present very weak, but she is finally getting the operation she needs. On September 16 she will enter Northside Hospital in Atlanta and at 1:00 P.M. they will begin a three-and-one-half -hour surgery to remove one-third of her lung plus, part of her bronchial tube. Afterwards, she will spend a couple days in ICU with a total of about seven days in the hospital. Then home where it will about 4-6 weeks before she will be able to get around much, and a total of three to four months for complete healing. It’s going to be a long hard road for her, so please keep us both in your prayers.”

14 Jun Updates from Macau

Our director in Macau sent this update on June 12.

• Jen Blandin and I had a wonderful trip to Taiwan. I did lots of sleeping, reading, eating, and swimming. I also did a couple of jigsaw puzzles, one of my favorite pastimes. It was a very relaxing and refreshing time. I even found a corn dog stand…a nice American treat!
• This week three new women came to our Women’s Bible Study. Praise the Lord for students who are encouraging others to attend. Pray that these women will connect well with the other women to become a tight part of the group.
• Michael, who used to be our secretary and then left to receive cell group leadership training, has decided to return to work with us fulltime starting this August. We are so thankful that we’ll finally have a local coworker here on Taipa. Pray for Michael and for our Taipa planning team as they work out the details for his new position.
• Last week a woman who attends Bible Study regularly had to unexpectedly have surgery to remove her gall bladder. We had many opportunities to visit with her, her husband, and her daughter while she was in the hospital. Pray that their family will move a step closer to faith in God through all they experienced of God’s family last week.
• During the week of June 14, Ruth Ann Price, an experienced missionary with Wycliffe, will be coming to do team development with our team. Pray that this will be a good time for Jen, David, Melissa, and me to grow closer together and find new ways we can cooperate as we serve together here.

29 Jan 40 Days of Purpose

Saddleback Community Church offers the “40 Days of Purpose” program for $750. However, you can get it for $500 by ordering through the United Brethren denomination. However, registration at this rate ends January 19.

The PurposeDriven website has much information about 40 Days of Purpose. Here is an excerpt: “Over 8,000 churches from all 50 states and 19 countries have now participated in 40 Days of Purpose. Many of these churches have reported that it was the most transforming event in their congregation’s history. Hundreds of pastors have written or called saying, “Our church will never be the same” and ‘This is the greatest thing that has ever happened in our church.’ One pastor wrote, ‘I’ve seen more growth in our members and our church in 40 days than in the previous 13 years.’

“Through 40 Days of Purpose, thousands of people have come to Christ, been baptized, welcomed into membership, connected to a small group or Sunday School class for fellowship, taught the meaning of real worship, equipped for personal ministry, and commissioned to fulfill their mission in the world.”
January 13, 2004