May – July 2008 Prayer Letter

Dear Friends and Family,

Romans 1:10

“Making request, if by any means now at length I might have a prosperous journey by the will of God to come unto you.”

As we are traveling across America reporting to our churches and friends, as well as raising much needed new support, God is giving us a safe and prosperous journey. We very much desire to come unto you and report the wonderful things that God is doing in our ministry at Efata.

These last three months have been very busy and exciting. As always there is much to share. Don’t forget to sign up for our Blog at www.efata.org. There we keep people up to date with more regularity and it allows us to give more details about what is going on with us than you would otherwise get in our prayer letter.

Ministry News

These first six months in 2008 we have seen more deaf and hearing people saved and baptized than in any other previous six month period. God has been working wondrously! Our hearing ministry has been experiencing steady growth. Recently, several parents of deaf children were saved and baptized and they are presently being discipled as well as learning sign language to communicate with their children.

God has given us a wonderful team of national pastors and leaders. They are doing a great job of serving God and maintaining the ministry in our absence. Congratulations to Assistant Pastor Jonathan and Yolanda Ramirez on the birth of their new son Nathan!

We have started a child sponsorship program for those in the children’s home and deaf school. Our goal is to have at least 400 people sponsor a child for $20 a month. We have about 125 promised already.

Another blessing: God has burdened a dear friend to come and work with us in Peru. Rebecca Houghton, who has worked as a missionary and a lay person in Mexico and in Spanish Ministry here in the United States for many years, has surrendered to come and be a part of our mission team. She is fluent in Spanish and knows basic sign language. She is also a music teacher and teaches piano and desires to work and help in our ministry with our ladies and children in ministry and music. Please pray for her as she raises her support with a goal to be in Peru within the year. She is sent out of Maranatha Baptist Church in Tallahassee, FL.

Family News

As most of you know, we have been on furlough since May 14th. We have been adjusting to being in the states and living out of a 15 passenger van again. With 11 in the family, that is a monumental task.

The children have been doing a great job singing and signing as we visit churches. They are wonderful and very flexible. Joseph graduated High School with Honors and a 4.020 GPA. Pray for him as he prepares for college. We are excited for him but we will greatly miss him. He will be studying special education which will be a great asset to the future of our ministry with special needs children. He plans to return to Peru and work with us when he graduates.

It is a blessing to see many of our friends and family again as we travel, report and raise needed new support for Efata. Unfortunately, we may not be able to visit all of you. If you specifically would like to have us visit, please contact me and we will try to schedule it. We are also visiting new churches to share our ministry and ask them to partner with us to reach the Deaf and hearing of Peru and beyond.

Thank you once again for your prayers and financial support. They are greatly needed and appreciated.

God bless,

Joe & Lisa,
Joseph, Julianne, James, Jared, Judson, Joy, John, Jenny, Joel, Jessica