Author: ronwintermissions

Dear Friends in Christ,

“Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.” Hebrews 4:16

Health Update: As many know, Connie has had tests done on her spleen and liver. On April 1st, she had laparoscopic biopsies done on her liver and lymph nodes, and she had her spleen removed. The spleen was very large (8”x12”); about the size of a football (normally it should be the size of your fist). The pictures have been shared between many in the medical profession in the Midwest. Connie is healing from the surgery and feels well.
The biopsies were sent to Mayo Clinic and the results show “Peripheral T-Cell Lymphoma”.
It is very rare so they really don’t know a lot about it. There are a couple of other tests that should show how much it has spread.
We are praying about what our next step should be. We’re trusting God to give us direction and of course, we continue to pray for healing! Thank you for your prayers!
Also, thank you so much to all who have sent cards, called, and to those who have sent special love offerings! Words cannot express our gratitude! What a blessing!

Furlough: We’ve had meetings the past couple of months, reporting back to churches and a few new churches in Texas, Louisiana, Arkansas, Missouri, Oklahoma and Kansas. God has granted us safety in our travels and shown His grace as He has provided through His people.
The ministry opportunities have been great and seven people have been saved during the invitation, after church, and on special visits. Amen!
It was a blessing to be in a couple of mission conferences, for the fellowship with the churches as well as with the other missionaries, and it is always great to be challenged by the preaching.
Due to Connie’s health needs, we had to cancel some of our recent meetings. Lord willing, we can reschedule those again.

Plans: Our plan is to return to Mexico as soon as possible. June was the original target date but that may have to be postponed for health reasons. We will let you know.

Prayer Requests: Connie’s health; Continued protection and provision; To be an encouragement to churches and for people to be saved during our furlough; Housing and move to Guasave, Sinaloa

Praise: Souls saved; More opportunities to share the gospel; Provision and protection

In His Service,

Dear Friends in Christ,

“That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ:” 1 Peter 1:7

Anáhuac: The Iglesia Bautista “Semilla Preciosa” has been somewhat discouraged and not unlike other churches in these end days, quite apathetic. Many of our men are working 12-14 hours a day and put in a half a day on Saturday, due to the strained economy. Most of the teens are in school until 8 o’clock as well, so our midweek services and visitation have really taken a hit.
The spirit in the Sunday services has been improving, we are having some visitors, the attendance is picking up, and we have had people saved. AMEN!
We have restructured our Sunday School and are training some new people for teachers. They seem to be excited at the challenge.
We are just finishing a study of the book of Revelation and it is exciting to see that surely it will not be long before the Lord comes for us, but sobering to see the souls that still need to be won!

Construction: The construction has been slow due to the men working so many hours. We have the windows in, and are getting the building closed up. The church has been saving up to hire some of the work done so we should see better progress soon. The peso lost about 25% of its buying power this last month, so that will hurt us as well.

Survey Trip: We have been praying for the pastor that the Lord has for the church. Although we can’t leave until the church here has a pastor, we feel that we need to “get out of the boat”, and trust the Lord to provide, as well as show us where He would have us start another church.
In November, we are going to a few places in México where we have heard of a need for Bible preaching churches. Please pray for our safety as we travel, and for the Lord’s direction.
After planning the survey trip, we heard of a young couple that has been in the ministry for several years, who are now between ministries. We contacted them and they will be coming to fill the pulpit in our absence. Please pray for Gonzalo and his wife Adela, to know the Lord’s will for their lives and for the church in our absence.

FM-2’s: Our work visas have to be started over from scratch, but it appears that our ten years living in México will count in our favor. Please pray we get them soon.

Prayer: Unity of the church; Pastor for the church; Construction – provision; Our survey trip; FM-2 visas

Praise: Privilege to serve the Lord; Gonzalo and his family coming to fill the pulpit

In His Service,

Dear Friends in Christ,

“And we have seen and do testify that the Father sent the Son to be the Saviour of the world.” 1John 4:14

Holidays: We would like to take this opportunity to wish every one of you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!! A special thank you to those who gave special Christmas offerings!
We were blessed to be with some dear friends for Thanksgiving!
To be with friends and family on holidays and special occasions, are the things that a missionary cherishes most, as that is often not possible.
We are planning to be in Missouri with Connie’s family and Lord willing with all of our kids for Christmas. We are looking forward to making memories.

Furlough: The Lord has been so good to us in our travels. He has provided for our expenses, and has provided special places to “hang our hat” between meetings. He’s kept us safe from harm, blessed us with good health and has proven himself faithful in every situation.
We weren’t able to schedule meetings for some services, but we still had opportunity to present the work in México, and preach on those days.
We have been able to renew old acquaintances, some of which we hadn’t seen for many years, as well as meeting new people that God used to minister to us.
We are especially thankful for the opportunities we’ve had to testify for the Lord as we have traveled. We pray that the tracts and gospel witness will bring forth fruit.
Furlough phone – U.S. cell 915-497-0084

México: The Precious Seed Baptist Church in Anáhuac seems to be doing well since we turned it over to a Mexican pastor. They have invited us to come and preach their mission conference in January. We are sure looking forward to seeing the church, and being able to challenge them to greater involvement in home and world missions.
Please pray with us that our house in México will sell. Also pray for our housing and move to the west side of México.

Prayer Requests: Continued protection and provision; To be an encouragement to churches; Mission Conference in Anáhuac; House to sell; Housing and move

Praise: Great Thanksgiving; Provision and protection; People God used to minister to us; Opportunities to share the gospel; Good report from the church in Anáhuac

In His Service,

Dear Friends in Christ,

“…The harvest truly is great, but the labourers are few: pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he would send forth labourers into his harvest.” Luke 10:2

Furlough: Our furlough is under way, and we have seen repeated blessings of the Lord in our travels with safety and provision. We have also seen God’s presence in the meetings we have been in. It has been a blessing to report to churches that support us, as well as to be in some new churches.

We had the opportunity to preach and present our ministry in Spanish in a couple of churches that have ministries to Hispanics. What a blessing!

In another church I preached to the Jr. Church, and at the invitation, I asked for the children to raise their hand if they wanted to be saved. A dad, who had come in with his little girl, raised his hand. One of the workers asked if his daughter wanted to be saved, to which he responded, “No, I need to be saved!” Praise the Lord!

We left a gospel tract for our waitress in a restaurant, who upon finding it, ran out of the restaurant, into the store in front, to thank us for being concerned for her.

I was witnessing to a man from India, in a motel, and he was so concerned for America because they have so much, but appreciate it so little. He did not get saved but he listened.

Mission Conference: It was a blessing to attend the Mission Conference at our sending church. The emphasis was on Asia, and the tremendous need for new missionaries to surrender and go to countries that have very little gospel witness. Please pray for laborers!

Direction: We have been praying about the exact location where we should go to begin another work. We believe that God is leading us to the state of Sinaloa, Mexico.  Please pray for the Lord’s direction in our lives and ministry.

Prayer: Furlough and traveling safety; Lord’s direction in our lives

Praise: Souls saved; God’s provision

In His Service,

Dear Friends in Christ,

“Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the LORD thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest.”
Joshua 1:9

FM-2 Visas: After a year and a half since we started the renewal of our Mexican work visas, we finally have them in hand!! Thank you for your prayers concerning this matter.   We had come up to the United States for our son Joshua’s wedding, and to begin our furlough when we received word (a couple of weeks later) from Mexico City that they had finally been approved. After returning to Mexico, we turned the documents in to the Immigration office in Chihuahua City, and they got the visas prepared for us in just 3 days! Praise the Lord!

Anáhuac: When we went back to Mexico for our visas, we attended a service at the Precious Seed Baptist Church. Bro. Gonzalo seems to be doing well and the church is stable.
They took several teens to camp and many of them made life-changing decisions. The church had just completed Vacation Bible School, with a high of 136 and around 20 kids have continued coming to services, at least Sunday mornings. Amen!
It was a blessing to see things doing well!

Furlough: We’re getting a new video presentation made and are setting up meetings with our supporting churches. We also need to raise some additional support, to cover the additional expenses of moving and starting a new work. Please pray for us to know the Lord’s direction in relocating to another area of Mexico.

Family: Joshua and Kristin had a beautiful wedding on June 27! We have been able to spend a day here and there with each of our kids (and grandbabies) since we have been in the states. What a blessing!

Prayer: Our furlough, that we’d be a blessing to the churches, to win souls, to raise the additional funds needed to relocate, also for safety as we travel; The Lord’s direction as to where we should move and begin another church; The church in Anáhuac to grow and go forward; For us all to be found faithful until the Lord comes for us!

Praise: FM-2 Visas!!! Bro. Gonzalo & the church; God’s protection and provision in our travels

In His Service,