Monday, July 29, 2013

Cawthon Update

We are all doing well in Bogotá.  The church planting course is in full swing.  We are so excited about how God is using this group of students for His glory.  They are faithfully sharing their testimonies and using other tools to reach the communities they have chosen to work in.  We are teaching them the concept of "abundant sowing."  To date, they have shared their testimonies 228 times and 118 people have accepted Christ.  They are working in 8 neighborhoods around the city.

We are working toward a start date of September 21 to start at least one - and possibly two - new church planting courses.  We are thankful for the people God is putting in our path.  It is exciting to see their enthusiasm and their desire to reach this city for Christ.

We will be welcoming new teammates to Bogotá on September 1.  Mark and Pam Grumbles - veteran missionaries who have served for over 30 years - will be joining us to work with us on the Urban Bogotá Team.  We are so excited about their arrival.

In family news, Preston and Christian are doing well and have started home schooling for this year.  This is a huge change for all of us, but we felt for at least this year this is what God has led us to do.  They are doing well and are advancing in their studies.  Preston is in 6th grade and Christian is in 10th grade.

John Robert will be joining us on September 5.  He will be spending three months with us.  It will be great to have all of the family together again.  He is able to do some online courses for Fall semester and will also be working with us.

Please keep us in your prayers as we serve the Lord here in Bogotá!

Tuesday, July 2, 2013

Church Planting Course

Our first church planting course in Bogotá started on Saturday, June 8.  We are meeting each Saturday morning and are excited to see what God is doing in and through this class that He has put together.  We are studying the book of Acts because this gives a basis and foundation for church planting.  We have trained them in writing and sharing their testimony in 3 to 5 minutes, prayer walking, discipling new Christians and doing small groups.  They are putting all of these disciplines into practice and we are excited to hear what God is doing as many are coming to faith in Christ through the testimony of these students and soon to be church planters.

We are also in the planning stages of beginning another class on September 21 at the Colombian Baptist Convention.  Again, we are praying for God to put together the class that He wants, and for new churches to be started to share the Good News of Jesus Christ with this massive city of almost 9 million.