September 2016 Prayer Letter
We had a very busy and blessed summer. It was wonderful to spend about a month in America visiting friends and family. It had been three years since we saw our families, so it was so nice to catch up with them, especially as our children seem to be growing up fast.
Grant is now eleven years old; Darci is nine; and Cali is seven. Grant just started secondary school and is really enjoying it. The girls start school tomorrow at a new school located half a mile from our house and very near the church.
On August 16-20, myself and several of the young men from Downham Baptist travelled up to Sunderland to be part of a week of evangelism hosted by Bethesda Free Church. It was a privilege to teach alongside several pastor friends here in the UK: Alan Campbell, Martin Wickens, and Matt Green. Each day, we had training sessions in evangelism, discipleship, and missions. Then in the afternoons, we went out on the streets to share the gospel. Young people came from all over the UK to participate in the week.
The last full week in August, we had youth camp in Wales. This was a joint-effort with Saron Chapel Baptist Church and Brimpton Baptist Church. There were 45 workers and campers, and we had a great time in a beautiful part of the country. The theme of the camp was “Having Done All to Stand” and each day there was teaching on that topic. It was encouraging to have several young people from our church make decisions for God and professions of faith in Christ.
Also, for two weeks in August, it was a blessing to have a young man named Nico with us from Germany. I met him last year while in Germany at a conference, and he came to help us for a couple of weeks with Reach and the youth camp.
Thank you all so much for praying and giving toward our special projects. Last month, $4500 was given toward the building fund for Northwest Baptist Church, bringing the total that has been given to $38,384!
Regarding the purchase of a building for Northwest Baptist Church, we have made inquiries about two buildings this month. One was too expensive; the other may not be able to be converted to a church, but we are checking on this. Thank you for continuing to pray for Pastor James as he leads the building search there.
Thank you for continuing to pray for the work here. Lots of our church ministries start back up this month including our youth meeting. The church is continuing to grow steadily, for which we praise God and give him the glory. It is beautiful to see people from dozens of different ethnic backgrounds worshipping God, loving each other, and working to share the gospel.
– Travis & Teri Snode
Praises
- A safe and blessed trip to visit family in America last month
- Youth camp with several young people making professions of faith
- $4500 given toward the building fund for Northwest Baptist
- Continued growth of Downham Baptist Church in London
Prayer Requests
- Souls to be saved, disciples to grow, and men to train for ministry.
- God’s blessing as we plan to officially organize Downham Baptist with membership soon.
- The remaining $36,614 to come in for Northwest Baptist Church’s building fund.
- The right building to purchase for Northwest Baptist Church in Northern Ireland.
- The remaining $1500 that we need to purchase new chairs for Downham Baptist Church.
- Chris Waye family as they return to the UK to do church-planting/revitalization