Where the Spirit of the Lord is there is Freedom! 
Many missionaries joined us at the SAMS Retreat and the New Wineskins Global Missions Conference during Easter week in Ridgecrest, NC. At the retreat missionaries, board trustees and staff were able to relax in the presence of God and each other. We were among family. Similar to sharing a family holiday dinner and stories that may follow, our feasting on God's Word brought forth stories of how God is moving in the missionaries lives - the highs and the lows, the victories and the setbacks.
 Todd and Patsy McGregor in Madagascar shared not only their struggles with the devastation of Cyclone Haruna and how Bishop Todd contracted typhoid as a result of his relief efforts, but also how the Lord was sustaining them by giving Todd some much needed rest to recuperate and time to be spiritually refreshed at the retreat.
 Guy and Summer Benton in Cambodia were looking forward to serving for the first time as a married couple. They were blessed to meet with their future priest and his family, SAMS new missionaries
 Mary Edna Thompson, a Bridger missionary who serves in disaster relief here in the States shared how the Lord was opening up doors for her to minister in new capacities. Read more...
We all marveled at the Lord's work as we witnessed missionary Juan Marentes who is serving in Belize with his wife Maria, come to the retreat walking in laughing and looking as healthy as ever. We have been praying for Juan because in February he was diagnosed Read more...
As we shared our stories we all saw a common thread, whether we are on the mission field around the world or a sender of missionaries, we are where the Lord wants us. I was reminded of Henry Blackaby's Experiencing God where he exhorts us to "see where God is working and join Him there". Missionaries and senders are doing just that, and as we join in this work, we experience the joy and the freedom that comes from following where the Spirit of God is leading.
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Senders, your missionaries thank you!
Dear Senders,
If only you could really feel as much a part of what God is doing in Paraguay as you truly are. There are days when I have not begun the day as centered in the Lord as I long to. Other days I am really tired. Some days everything is uphill, except when someone knocks me down with their actions or their words. But regardless of how I am feeling, God has never shortchanged anyone who comes this way for help. So often I have watched Him in action in amazement and thought, "Someone is praying." Thank you for your prayers, not only for me but for people who have received the Lord and His forgiveness and are growing in Him, truly experiencing his salvation and His healing.
Sharon McCririe, Paraguay
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Thanksgivings:
 We give thanks for the enthronement of Bishop Todd McGregor in Madagascar on April 21st and the inauguration of the newest diocese of the Anglican Communion, the Diocese of Toliara.
Join with Sharon McCririe in Paraguay in praise to the Lord for three addicts experiencing victory in our Lord and who are seriously contemplating working in facilities to help others know their Lord and get free. She asks that we pray for God's work of sanctification in the workers of the rehab facility and revelation regarding His next steps in the development of the present ministry.
Prayers:
Pray for Shirley Morris who has been diagnosed with acute leukemia through myelofibrosis. Please pray for healing and for the right decision to be made concerning treatment.
Lift up Shaw Mudge and the remainder of his mission to Tanzania and then to Belize (up through May 20), that he would do what God calls him to do, that lives would be transformed by the Holy Spirit, and for safe and timely travel.
 Join John and Ninfa Dixon in prayer for Spain. Unemployment is now at 26.7 % and at 56% for young people. Pray that Spain will return to the Lord. 
Vicki Robertson missionary to Peru asks for prayers for Fr. Daniel and Vique as they administer the orphanage in Arequipa, Peru. |
