Category Archives: Praises
August 2016 Prayer Letter
Dear Praying Friends,
The work of the ministry in Colombia is flourishing and God is adding much fruit to your account! We’re pleased to share the latest in this month’s prayer letter…
((Click here to download a printable PDF of this letter))
Ministry Milestones…
It’s hard to believe that it’s been two years since we officially opened our main work in Colombia! We celebrated our church anniversary in July with over 170 attending! I’m humbled that God would allow us to be a part of such a great ministry. The church is packed out each week. Just in the last few months, we’ve seen dozens trust Christ, follow in believer’s baptism and begin discipleship. Several of these new believers have even joined the other men in our Bible Institute to train for the ministry.
Faithful Men…
I am so glad that God allows us to have a part in the spiritual formation and training of these men of God. Many of them are showing great potential. In addition to preaching and teaching in bible studies and children’s ministry, we have one of them give a “mini-sermon” during each service. This is truly the reason we are here! To reach people, yes; to start churches, yes; but we are here primarily to train men who can continue to do the work for generations to come, as seen in 2 Timothy 2:2.
Pray for several of these men who are looking to take the next step in their preparation. Many are giving up their careers and university majors to pursue the calling God has placed on their lives. We are looking into developing a work program for them to be able to focus entirely on their training. This will be an added expense to the ministry. Could I also ask you to pray about whether God would have you increase or begin support of our ministry specifically for this purpose of training faithful men?
God’s Work Among The Nations…
In July, I had the opportunity to travel to Chile to preach a youth conference hosted by ministry friends. One of the men who is training with me was able to make the trip as well. I was encouraged by the local churches and the men in the Bible college there, as well as the missionaries who labor in Chile. God is doing a mighty work all around the world. How will you be a part? Will you go as a missionary? Will you help others as a sender? We all must pray that the Lord of the harvest would raise up more laborers for his harvest! We all must be busy about the Father’s business!!
Praises & Prayer Requests…
We literally could not do what we do without your help in prayer. It is always an encouragement to know there are people holding the ropes for us. Please remember us in the following requests.
- Our church family — especially as we plan to organize our church in September.
- Men preparing for ministry: (Alfredo, David, Ernesto, Félix, Javier, Jhon Fredi, Juan Carlos, Juan Danilo, Julián, Kenneth, Leonardo, Libardo, Mario, Óscar, Santiago…)
- Several men who have drifted off — some into sin and the cares of this world, others who are battling discouragement and sickness.
- Our 2nd mission work in the north part of the city, the leaders who serve there, and wisdom for our next steps.
- Our family — specifically our health and finances.
We love you all. Let us know how we can be praying for you! May the Lord bless you as you glorify Him, and may his peace, hope and love reign in your hearts.
Love In Christ Jesus,
Aaron Vance & Family
PS — Here are some recent photos of the ministry:
February 2016 Prayer Letter
Dear Praying Friends,
Productive Christmas Trip
Christmas with Aubrie’s Family in Ohio
With Pastor Alfonso Gonzales at the Spanish church we started in GA way back in 2006. They’ve grown!
In addition to preaching opportunities in Ohio, Georgia, and at the Our Generation Missions Summit in Tennessee, I was able to record 15 Spanish sermons in our home church’s television studio, Lighthouse Global Studios. These will soon broadcast throughout Latin America. Pray that the Word would have free course and be glorified!
Phenomenal Growth
During our month-long absence from the work in Colombia, several of our men stepped up to preach & to make sure the services ran smoothly. They did an excellent job, and we returned to find that our church had even grown by a few new families!
We had an excellent Christmas program for our outreach ministry kids. God is changing lives!
Training Men
“And the things that thou hast heard of me among many witnesses, the same commit thou to faithful men, who shall be able to teach others also.” 2 Timothy 2:2
From The Mouth Of Babes
The girls with their uncle Brian (aka: “the horse”) and cousins Rhett and Conner.
Praises & Prayer Requests
- Vehicle. Praise God for the funds that have come in for this need! Thanks to those who have given. Lord willing, we will be purchasing something in the weeks to come. Pray that we can find the right vehicle, and that all paperwork will go smoothly.
- Mission Trip. We are expecting a mission team from one of our supporting churches toward the end of March. Pray that God would work in and through them. If you would like to line up a trip, just get in touch and we can work something out.
- New believers. There are several people who have recently believed on Jesus for salvation. Pray as we help them grow in grace and truth, and for others to be saved.
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Church growth & plans. This year we are focusing on training men and furthering our discipleship development, as well as opening a mission church on the outskirts of town. The enemy is not happy, as we have had some spiritual attacks lately, but the Light is always stronger than darkness!
Pray for these men and others as they train for the Gospel ministry (Juan Danilo, Félix & Jhon Freddy)
- Financial Support. With the ministry growth and family growth, we could use at least another 5 monthly supporters. Would you pray about partnering with us as we continue to lift up Jesus and his Gospel to the Colombian people?
Love In Christ Jesus,
Aaron & Aubrie Vance
(along with Amira, Anabel & Aris!)
Breaking news! Our updated prayer cards are in. Let us know if you want us to send you one, or a bunch of them for your church.
Click here to see a printable PDF of this letter.
December 2015 Prayer Letter Update
Dear Praying Friends,
First of all, I apologize for the delay in getting updates to you. Our September letter did not go out, so I am sending it along with this one. It has honestly been the most blessed period in all of our years of ministry.
Church EXPLOSION!
Don’t worry. We’re talking about the good kind — an explosion in growth! Since being in the new building, our attendance is now nearly 100. This is in addition to the many we see in our outreach ministry in the north part of the city! People are finding joy in the Lord and his Word. We are regularly seeing people saved and baptized. Colombia is experiencing a great movement toward the Gospel, but we need more laborers. There is much to do!
In September, we finished our series on the Gospel of John. To conclude, 7 of our men helped me by each preaching a mini-sermon on the “I Am” statements of Christ in John. It was a sweet night of reflecting on the sufficiency of Christ, and more exciting still to see him work in new preachers of the Gospel. This is why we are here — to train men! Pray for these & others as they develop the calling God has placed on their lives.
Click for a printable PDF of this letter (with pictures).
In December, we will conduct a special Christmas program again in a poor area of town where we have a weekly outreach ministry. We did this last year and it was a huge success! We’ll prepare a special gift and meal for each of the 200 children who attend and then preach to the families and community. For about $5 per child, we will include a toy, toiletry items, a gospel-centered kids book, and a personalized letter. This is the area of our next church plant, Lord willing.
We have also just started a bus route to this area on Sundays to bring families in until we can get a church officially started there. Pray for an increase in our monthly support to provide for this new ministry. Also, pray for funds to purchase a personal vehicle. This has become an urgent need.
Residents At Last!
It was quite a struggle to get our new visas, as the laws changed multiple times this year, extra certifications were requested, documents were lost internationally, and we paid much more than anticipated, but the Lord is faithful in providing each part of this need and allowing us to finalize everything just in time. Thanks especially to Community Baptist in NC and Calvary Baptist in OH for the special offerings. We are now permanent residents of Colombia!
Christmas Trip
Thanks to our sending church & family, we will be back in the States for one month over Christmas. This will be the first time we’ve been back since two years ago when we arrived in Colombia. We thank God for a full schedule including a couple new churches who wish to join our team of financial supporters. This is an answer to prayer!
We will also participate in an amazing missions retreat called the Our Generation Summit in Pigeon Forge, TN from December 31 through January 2. Why don’t you come join us? Time is short. Contact me for information.
Prayer Requests
- More lost souls to be saved, baptized and discipled
- Continued growth in our church — Iglesia Bíblica Bautista El Faro
- Christmas program for needy children in our outreach ministry
- Christmas traveling to Georgia and Ohio
- Our people who will be leading the church in our short absence
- Church Youth/Singles ministry camp in January
- URGENT: Purchase of a vehicle for family and ministry
We wish you a very Merry Christmas! Thanks for standing with us & supporting the Lord’s work in Colombia.
Aaron & Aubrie Vance
(with Amira, Anabel & Aris!)
September 2015 Prayer Letter Update
Dear Praying Friends,
What a joy it is to report to you that God’s work in Colombia is bursting in growth!
Ministry Milestones
Our church, Iglesia Bíblica Bautista El Faro celebrated its first anniversary on July 19th. After our first year, we have had an average attendance of about 50 but on the anniversary we had a big day with a record attendance of 140 people! Each week we’ve seen new visitors. Many have repented and believed the Gospel for salvation and we praise God that many others are in the initial and advanced stages of discipleship. We praise God for this growth.
In August, God opened the door for us to move our church to a new location just on the other side of the block from where we were. The timing of this can only be attributed to God! Because of the growth we’ve seen, it was difficult to fit into the first building, then just one week after we left the old location the entire road closed down for a construction project. We thank the Lord for many of our men who have pitched in to paint, knock out walls, put up new walls, and get things ready for services. We now have over double the seating capacity! With the rise of the value of the US dollar lately we were able to do much more than we could have just a couple of months ago. Still, there is much to be done. During the construction one of my key men, Eduardo, fell off a ladder and broke his leg. Pray for a quick recovery!
Click to see a printable PDF version of this letter (with pictures).
Family News
Our two-year religious visas will be expiring in October. Since our youngest daughter was born in Colombia and has dual citizenship we can now apply for residency. This will be a slightly higher up-front expense than reapplying for the temporary visa, but much better in the long run. Pray that everything goes smoothly. [Update: we got them!] Please also pray that we would be able to purchase a family/ministry vehicle soon.
Fruit Bearing Fruit
A dear friend, Rafael Gomez, is a pastor and missionary in Barranquilla Colombia (on the northern coast). He and his church invited me to preach their third anniversary and first missions conference at the end of August. They are excited about getting involved in supporting other missionaries to reach the world while reaching their Jerusalem. Would you pray for them? Will you pray about coming to Colombia to plant solid bible-believing churches?
Prayer Requests
- More lost souls to be saved and discipled
- Men who are heading into full-time ministry
- Eduardo’s recovery
- Resident visa application and trip to Bogota
- Vehicle for family and ministry
Thank you all for your faithful prayers and financial support! Lives are being changed because of your investment!
For King Jesus,
Aaron & Aubrie Vance
(with Amira, Anabel & Aris!)
God Blessed More Than We Expected! — Church’s First Anniversary Report
We have been amazed at what the Lord has done in the past year in and through our first church plant, Iglesia Bíblica Bautista El Faro (Lighthouse Bible Baptist Church) in Bucaramanga, Colombia. People have been saved, believers have grown through discipleship, leaders have emerged and begun to be developed, and the church has grown.
For our anniversary, we expected a good crowd, but we were blown away by how many people came. By our most accurate count, 140 people gathered together to celebrate what God has done in our first year! Many visitors came for the first time, the gospel was preached, professions of faith were made, believers were strengthened, and King Jesus was lifted high!
Following are a few pictures of our special service and a video we showed highlighting our first year.
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- What a group!
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- Happy about what God has done
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- Preaching the Word
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- We are out of space! (In fact, they told me about 30 adults and 22 kids were outside this room)
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- Lifting high the name of Jesus
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- One of our men always stands out front and passes out tracts before and after the service
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- Kids having fun in their service
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- Say cheese!
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- One of our members had a special cake made with photos from all last year.
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- Grill team working hard
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- Ready to pass out a tasty meal
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- Yum!
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Please pray for us in the days ahead. As you can see, we have run out of space, but praise the Lord, we were able to rent another larger building just around the block. Construction work is underway to adapt the building to our needs and get it ready for move in by the end of the month. Our people are very excited and all are pitching in to see Christ’s church expand and his Name lifted high.
The church has given sacrificially toward the many expenses of moving, but there are a few major things we would still like to purchase and we only lack the funds, namely a permanent baptistry and kitchen installations. If you would like to give a one-time gift toward these needs, you can send a check marked for us to our mission agency, Macedonia, or you can give online here. If you plan to give toward a specific need, write us a note to make sure it goes toward the right project.
Thank you so much for your prayers and support. God has blessed, and much fruit has been added to your account. Great days are ahead!
The Vance Family 