This last weekend Nancy were on mission trip to the Columbia Basin. We stopped in at Moses Lake, near where I grew up, to visit Eric and Mary Sakuma. Eric was with our Gabe when he was killed in Iraq in 2006. Since then Eric has come to Christ and has a vibrant testimony. This is partially a result of Gabe’s testimony to him. Eric is now a sergeant himself and an Army recruiter for the Columbia Basin. We toured Eric’s recruiting office and the new police/fire dispatch center where Mary is a dispatcher. I am reminded of how God continues to work through us even after we are gone.
Next, we visited Nancy’s blind brother, Mark, in Soap Lake and went to First Baptist with him. Pastor Andrew Schopf has done a great work there in leading a building expansion recently and is a great preacher also.
Last, we visited Quincy where Juan Carlos Magallanes, whom DBC supports, leads Multicultural Baptist Church. It was a snowy evening but there was a good 65 out for the 5 PM service in the building they rent from First Baptist. The service was in Spanish so I had my first privilege of preaching with a Spanish interpreter.
Quincy has grown over 45% in the last 15 years and is now about 80% Hispanic. The population currently is about 7,000+. Juan also works directly with immigration officials as he teaches English as a Second Language (ESL) and Citizenship Classes. Hispanics come to Christ through these classes. Pray for health issues he faces with possible blindness and an unknown heart issue. They are working on plans for a VBS this summer and would like to have DBC help. More on that later. Finally, Juan and his wife praise the Lord for news that the they will soon have their first grandchild.
Foundations of Faith is the new adult Sunday School series that I will be teaching starting this Sunday in the auditorium. Dr. Al Mohler says “theology is always important.” We will cover the key areas of Biblical truth that are our foundations of faith. Join us at 9:15 for a pastry and coffee fellowship time each morning for the first fifteen minutes. Then we'll get into this foundational study that is critical to the Christian life.
-Pastor Mark