August 1, 2006

Dear Prayer Warriors,

Thank you for your prayers. My heart is full of joy for His blessings in the weekend retreat. The best one is the salvation decisions made by four children in the children's class. Praise the Lord! Pedro, Violeta, and Leonardo are son, daughter, and brother of deaf believers at Efata Baptist Church. Nestor, the fourth one, is a new deaf student at Efata who attended the church for the first time the Sunday before the retreat. Others raised their hands but had already asked Jesus to be their Savior before. Please pray for spiritual growth among our students. Only two of my kindergarten students were at the retreat and neither has trusted Christ. Keep praying for us in that class to show them Jesus Christ and to know best how to teach and train them to become more disciplined. Many times they show their unregenerate sinful natures. I guess I need more practice in patience.

The Lord kept us safe and gave us a good time together. Not many adults were able to go, but those that went were enthusiastic. Missionary Carlos Gallardo was the special speaker, and there were a number who went forward in the last service to indicate decisions, mostly for a closer walk with the Lord. Nestor's older hearing sister, Manuela, also went forward, but when I talked with her to learn what her decision was, she said only that she wanted more time to think about receiving Christ as Savior. We have invited her to attend Efata with her brother. Manuela is 14. The two older deaf fellows at the retreat, Carlos and Diomedes, are both baptized members under discipline, and both went forward in the invitation. Pray for them, that they will truly get their lives right with God and be the spiritual leaders they should be. Diomedes is Pedro's dad, and it was great to see the whole family up front, surrendering to the Lord. Pedro's older sister, Diana, trusted Christ as Savior some years ago. She turned 13 on Sunday. In the early morning devotional time we all sang "Happy Birthday" to her, and later on someone cracked a raw egg on her head. That is one of the customs here. Colinas de Sion (Hills of Zion) campgrounds is a beautiful spot, a place to pause, enjoy God's creation, and to listen to His still small voice in our spirit. Praise the Lord for this opportunity!

Thank you again for your prayers. May the Lord bless you all for your part in this ministry!

Your sister in Christ,

Lynn Porter