Newsletter October 2024 [ENG]

Now that the summer is over, all the plans that we had been working on these past months, we were able to carry out. That is why these last few weeks have kept us busy.we began by welcoming a missionary family. The Menéndez family is working on a project to establish houses of prayer in Turkey and Macedonia—two places with a rich history in the gospel, but currently with very low numbers of Christians. A few months ago, the Lord placed a project in our hearts. We knew that by coming to Spain, we would be much closer to countries experiencing armed conflict and places where Christians are persecuted. Even while we were in Guatemala, God was moving us to consider becoming a safe haven for missionaries in the Middle East. This has been on our hearts, and we have been meditating on it.

We knew that Spain could become a hinge between the Middle East and Western countries that send missionaries. When Willy and Sofi spoke to us about coming, the Lord immediately reminded us of what He had spoken to us. They flew in from Turkey, and we spent a week hosting them and their daughters, encouraging them, and filling them with strength for their next mission in Macedonia. These were days filled with the word of the Lord and a time of refreshment for their hearts and minds in the midst of the work they are doing in extremely difficult places. They also shared in our local church, and we ministered together through moments of worship and intercession with Scripture. You can visit what they are doing and the projects they are developing HERE.

The following week, we embarked on our first trip to Italy. We left home at dawn to catch our flight from Málaga. We met up with Paul O'Neil, who is part of the Harvesters team in Europe, but had traveled from South Africa. When we arrived in Naples, we discovered that Paul's luggage had been left in Switzerland, and we had to wait several hours for the bags to arrive. The plan was to travel to the island of Ischia (pronounced "is-qui-a"), where we would spend the weekend supporting the church of our contact, Luigi Cretella. Upon arriving at the port, we found that the ferry we were supposed to take had been canceled due to the weather, which meant we had to wait nearly two more hours at the port for the next ferry to the island. Finally, after many hours of travel and waiting, we arrived on the island of Ischia, where we met Pastor Luigi and his family. We spent three days observing Pastor Luigi's work in his community and working alongside him and his wife, meeting his leadership team, and learning about the challenges the church faces in such a specific community as this island.

We encountered strong spiritual opposition to the work we were doing there. In the midst of it all, we saw the Lord move through us in the opportunities we had to share with the church and in the homes of the brothers and sisters in the congregation. On an island of more than 70,000 people, there are only two churches, so being able to encourage and minister to our brothers and sisters in such a challenging location and great mission field was a blessing. We shared with them a small course on one-on-one discipleship within the congregation and were able to minister during the Sunday service.

On Monday, we traveled early in the morning back to Naples, where we met with our contacts in the city and discussed the Harvesters project in Italy. We met Fabio, who helped organize and connect us with some pastors in the city. We had two sessions with the pastors and their church leadership teams, where we discussed the global challenges facing the church in terms of evangelism and discipleship, and we presented the truth of Scripture. We received a very positive response from the pastors, and we have remained connected. We will have a similar session early next year before offering the first pastoral training for new leaders.

We returned from Italy with a very strong flu. The days following the trip were spent fighting off a virus we picked up along the way. Thanks be to God, we are feeling better now and are ready to continue the work ahead of us. In the coming weeks, Rodri will be taking a short trip to Barcelona to share at a pastors' meeting in the city and present the project. Please pray for grace in his encounters with the people he will meet and for the right words to develop the project in the city.

After that, we will travel to Madrid for training with the pastors we are already working with in this city. We will be training them in Phase B of the course, which covers topics such as church organization, leadership, ministerial ethics, and the risks of improperly exercised authority. We know these are delicate topics, so we ask for your prayers so that we can have Spirit-filled training sessions. Immediately after, we will be back in Barcelona to offer the Disciple Makers course with the leadership of the church of our contact in the city. It will be nearly two weeks of intense work, so please support us in prayer.

We have recognized the need for people to be praying for us, especially during times when we are on the field and facing situations where we need prayer support. So, if you would like to be part of this group, please click HERE, and it will take you to a WhatsApp group specifically dedicated to this.

Finally, we find ourselves in need of replacing the car we currently have. While the engine is in good condition, it is a small car, and when hosting people, like we did a few weeks ago, we have encountered many difficulties. Additionally, being a nearly 20-year-old model, it is beginning to have some problems, and we see that it may not be the best option to keep it. If you would like to contribute to this project, you can do so through the usual channels on our website or get in touch with us.

Thank you for being part, month after month, of what the Lord allows us to do for His Kingdom in Europe. We know the work we do will bear fruit, not because of us, but because He who called us is faithful to do it.

Rodri & Katie