Proclaim Gathering in Spain

Last stop on Jim's marathon Fall trip 2 -- Spain -- where we met for Proclaim's Gathering of our fellow missionaries from 6 countries! He had been traveling for almost 6 weeks on this trip so we were looking forward to that event more than ever!

But it's always a highlight as our community has wonderful times of worship, sharing, fellowship and relaxation. A special treat was having Tim and Allison Lusk from Jacksonville join us, and Tim spoke in our morning sessions for the week.

It was a busy and full week as both Jim and I are on International Council which met several of the afternoons and Jim took his turns with other Proclaim musicians (we have a few!) leading worship mornings and evenings.

We are so blessed to be a part of Proclaim with all the gifted and quality people who are dedicated servants and just great friends.

Going to the Wall

The 2 week tour in China was extremely fruitful, both in opportunities to speak to people individually about spiritual things and increased interest on the part of concert sponsors who want to have Proclaim members back for various types of ministry, not just performing.

Playing and teaching in international and national schools, music and arts schools, a university, a palace garden, and an international church were all settings for making opportunities for individual interaction. 

People there are very open and welcoming.

Yes, the team did have the opportunity to explore and visit some of the wonders of this ancient culture.  

The music and team dynamic were great and health was good overall. Big city pollution caused some respiratory and allergy problems, but thanks to a giant bottle of allergy tablets everyone was able to keep going with ministry.

There are many opportunities ahead. No doors are closed to God. We look forward to many more ways that Proclaim can help reach countless people here who are hungry for the truth.

  

  

Proclaiming in East Asia

Headed to a country that's new to both Jim & Bubba

Jim is with the 15-member team in East Asia where US members met up on Monday with team mates coming from Europe. After 2 days of good rehearsals they had their first concert Thursday evening at a university theater. The place was packed -- over 1000 with standing room only! And the response was enthusiastic with good personal interaction after. A second concert is scheduled Friday evening after a day of teaching music classes at the university.

This is a closed country, but people there are open and welcoming. And God is opening doors through relationships that have been forged on two advance trips this past year. 

This is Jim's second trip to Europe this fall, and the longer of the two - nearly 7 weeks. After this 2-week tour he will be back in Germany, France, Croatia and then Spain for our community Gathering and International Council. 

We appreciate prayers for good opportunities for evangelism and for encouragement of our ministry partners that he will be with in Europe.

Still needed:  $6000 to cover expenses of the 2 Europe trips and Asia Tour
Donations may be made through Paypal on the side panel of this site.   

Jacksonville Concert

Photos by Jeff Westcott

Need Another One of These!

Sometimes, like now, while on an international trip, we need a second passport to accompany a visa application for the next tour. Jim applied for a 2nd passport 3 weeks ago so that his visa for the October tour could be in process before his return from this trip.

But this week he was notified that his passport photos are unacceptable because his eye color is not clearly visible. So new photos have been taken in Sweden and are on their way to the State Dept. We're praying for God's perfect timing for the needed documents.

FOLLOW UP: GOT IT IN TIME!

Ministry Cooperation

We had a very interesting meeting with pastors from 3 different churches in Amal, Sweden, about the possibilities of working together to bring a team to tie into a well known Blues festival next summer. Their spirit of cooperation for the gospel was most encouraging!

FOLLOW UP!
This tour is now ON with a Blues/
Jazz-Blues Fusion band in July 2014 Emergency need for a keyboard player!

God Supplies!

We are encouraged! Stepping out in faith always seems precarious, but God is always faithful. Special gifts for the fall ministry trips have been coming in, totaling $1220 yesterday. Then we learned of an anonymous donation that more than doubled that total! So over $2700 -- at least 1/3 of funds needed for this current trip and the next one. Grateful for you pray-ers who are lifting up the need and for you sharers in either the ongoing support or in the special needs.

. . . and through us your generosity will result in thanksgiving to God. 2 Cor. 9:11b

First Days in Sweden-Tuesday, 8/20

Having a good time spending two days at Carey’s family cabin.  It was built by his uncle in 1970, a tiny pre-fab house out in the woods -- nice and cozy.  A young couple was staying there when we first arrived (friends of a friend) from Washington state. It was nice to hear their story and to encourage them in their search for a good church home when they get back from this trip.

Today is just a day for relaxing before we head out for the road again for nine days of meeting with people.  Our goal is for Carey to introduce Proclaim to his contacts here and explore possibilities to work together with them in the future.  As of now, we are healthy and well-rested.

Please pray that we will hear God’s voice and be led by his Spirit as we travel and meet people.  Also, I confess that in the flesh I am still quite concerned about the lack of funds needed for this trip and the trip that follows a month later. But God in his great teaching has reminded me in many ways that HE is the great provider of all we need.  It is interesting that in my devotional readings both Spurgeon and Oswald Chambers both are hitting on the subject of God’s great provision!  Pray that I will not let the large financial cost (between $6,000-$8,000) overwhelm me, but rather that I will choose to turn it over to the Lord each time the feeling arises. Praise the Lord that a trickle had come in before I left. Pray that the flood gates will be opened wide. I am here because I know I was supposed to come in obedience to God’s prompting and I will continue to trust in that fact.

Your fellow slave,

Jim

Thank you for your prayers during our recent ministry in K'stan

We really felt the power. With all the logistical issues concerning visas and flights it was truly a miracle our 10 member team even arrived in the country. This was one of the finest bands in both musicianship and character I've had the opportunity to work with. In spite of challenges and sometimes rugged conditions team unity was high.

This country is truly interesting and challenging.  It is three times larger than Texas but with a population of only about 16 million.  The people are either Kazak (Asian) or Russian heritage and each group has their own language.  We spoke to people either in English or through translators.  We found them to be warm and open people eager to talk with us.



Most of our time was spent in or around the city of Chimkent with our last couple of days in Almaty.  We made connections with people primarily through daytime concerts at various colleges such as a music college, a business school, a language school and even fashion and art and cooking schools.


Our venues looked more like back alleys between buildings rather than traditional concert halls but in each place we had good conversations with students.


The first couple days when rain was a problem for the big stage set up, Kim, Todd and I pulled out the music we have been doing in our outreach in Jacksonville, added percussion, and were able to carry on in spite of the rain and keep people engaged. 

Because of government regulations, we were extremely limited as to what we could share from the stage, but because drug and alcohol addiction are such a deep concern throughout the country we had freedom to address that issue. That gave an opportunity for one of our members to tell the story of his journey out of addiction and the part that his faith played in his recovery.  Our final concert was in a faith-based facility that helps recovering addicts learn tools to re-enter society. 

Please continue to pray for your brothers and sisters in this country who are valiantly standing up for the gospel.


Thanks for the photos Terri Smalley  

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