Dear Church,
We recently received a lot of encouragement via cards, texts, and e-mails from many of you and we were touched and strengthened to know you are engaged in prayer and financial support. Thank you for taking part in our burden of planting a solid Bible-believing church in Oregon. We finally saw some progress on our building situation as well as other answers to prayer which make this letter a joy to write.
After several months of hearing nothing, I began pestering the real-estate agent more agressively about our lease and the Conditional Use Permit paperwork which we needed signed. The agent apologized profusely and shared that he was the holdup on getting the paperwork signed. He told me the owner is still very much for our agreement and is happy to lease the space to us. After receiving the signed paperwork, we submitted it to the city with the $500.00 fee and we are waiting for the results. As Stacy dropped off payment at the city office, she said “I sure hope everything works alright!” The lady receiving the payment said, “O, I think everything looks fine and I don’t foresee any problems.” While this is not approval, it felt good to hear that reaction. Please continue to pray. We have many visitors passing the location as the summer heats up and it is sad that we can’t have a sign displayed. Regardless, the Lord knows the timing and we trust he is taking care of this meeting place.
A bit over one month ago, I had a very serious situation that caused me to begin reaching out to our supporting pastors individually by phone. I never made it completely through the entire list, but many of you will remember our conversation on the phone. I am so relieved and thrilled to report that God completely took care of the entire situation and there is no further action required on my part. Obviously this is not something to share in a prayer letter and therefore I just want to say to those who answered my calls that God is my buckler and shield. He gave total victory over the situation!
Our greatest need at the moment for the church is approval for the permit as well as the lease. As a family, we ask you to pray for our children to walk with the Lord. They have been a real blessing over the past several months. Pray for Caleb as he finishes his welding degree and prepares for a semester of Bible college. We are thankful to serve in Astoria!