Progress has been slow. That was the summary of a ministry update that I gave at a sister church in northern Madrid. That wasn’t the most exciting way of sharing what God was doing through our ministry, but it was the truth. And I shared the truth because I wanted the new church plant that I was addressing that Sunday evening to know that progress in the ministry is slow, the work is hard, but God is a great God and He promises to bless the faithful proclamation of His Word. Not in the way we expect, but in His time, His way, and for His glory.
And we have seen God work in these past eight years. Just recently a young man from South Korea, named Woo Il Byun, has been attending our church services in Colmenar. His story is a powerful testimony of how progress is often slow in the work of God, but the fruit precious. Woo Il came to Spain as a teen with his mother and brothers to follow his passion, which was football (also known as soccer). But he had an even greater passion: to know God and to make Him known. So as a teen in his High School in Parla, Madrid he started sharing the gospel with his friends. Two of those friends were Flavius Tabardau and Bin Yu Cai. After several years praying for them and loving them, he went back to Korea to fulfil his three-year mandatory military service. What he didn’t know was that the gospel seed that he had planted would soon blossom in the hearts of Flavius and Bin. It wasn’t long after Woo Il went back to Korea that Flavius started attending services regularly at the Parla Baptist Church, was converted, and was baptized. Then Bin started attending, and with the help of his friend Flavius came to understand the gospel fully and believe it by faith. Well, Woo Il returned to Spain, and you can imagine the joy he felt when he saw his two friends loving and faithfully serving the Lord! Please pray for my Korean brother. He is currently studying in a university close to Colmenar Viejo. He is eager to learn and grow, and to be used of God to reach university students with the gospel.
Which leads me to an important announcement. We will be going on furlough January 13, 2019. We don’t have a return date yet, but we will be stateside anywhere between nine months and a year. Our goal with this furlough is to give a report in as many supporting churches as possible and to raise some much needed support. If you would like for us to visit your church during our furlough, please write to me at: david@operationspain.com or call me at: 678-701-8373. We ask that you pray for two specific needs: 1. That the work would continue smoothly in our absence. 2. That we would be able to raise the 15% support we still lack. Yes, progress has been slow, but by God’s grace two churches have been planted, four men are preparing to be pastors, and over a hundred believers gather every week between both churches. Praise the Lord!
