Hello Calvary family!
We have had a lot of things going on lately and we wanted to keep you in the loop.
Brad and several other pastors on the island have a weekly prayer group that meets early every
Wednesday morning to pray for the work that God is doing on the island and to encourage one another.
Through this we have made contact with the Young Life representative for Puerto Rico. We are excited
about this connection since there has not been much outreach for youth and college age people here.
Brad has also been invited to be a part of ESPN (English Speaking Pastors’ Network) at WBMJ radio
station on the first Wednesday of every month. This group meets for on-air prayer time and roundtable
discussion. Each month a different pastor gets to moderate and bring his own topic for the discussion. In
the near future, Brad will have an opportunity to be interviewed for a half hour segment introducing
Grace Church PR to the island. Through this we will also have access to free on-air announcements
about any events we may host or facilitate.
Through the ESPN meetings, we learned about an exciting opportunity for all of PR. The Festival de
Esperanza, with Franklin Graham, will be coming to San Juan in February! The Billy Graham Association
(or anything like it) has not been here since the early 90s so we are excited to be a part of it. Grace
Church PR has been designated as a contact ministry for any decisions made during the festival. We are
very excited about the impact that this will have on the people here.
Luquillo, in addition to being our favorite place on the island, continues to be a place where God is
moving. While Richard improves his surfing skills, Brad is building friendships with other parents. Jorge,
who works as a security contractor for the Navy, brings his 5 children and has begun to seek Brad out to
talk to him about our church. They do not currently attend a church. He is one of several fathers with
whom Brad is building friendships. This area brings its own challenges, as a home group would require
someone else to open their home (we live about an hour away) so we would appreciate prayers for a
person who would be willing to do so.
The children are adjusting well! Silas is excelling in her art class and has finally begun to try to speak
some Spanish among her peers. Memphis, of course, made friends instantly and is excited to have one
of his buddies over to spend the night this weekend. All of his friends speak in English to him so he will
have to learn Spanish another way. Carson is loving her piano lessons, which also require her to attend
“solfeo”, a theory class she takes with other kids. She is determined to learn Spanish because her
teacher doesn’t speak English. Cody has just begun ballet but has become a favorite of her teacher
already! She was given a lead role in the school’s mini-Nutcracker and it’s a role she has wanted for
years! Her teacher speaks some English, but refuses to use it for Cody. She wants her to learn Spanish
more quickly.
Megan has tried to become as involved as possible with the people around the kids. The ballet teacher
has appointed her the very official title of “costume lady” which will allow her the opportunity to meet
all of the other parents. This is a great opportunity as Cody’s classmates are old enough to be dropped
off, preventing us from meeting their parents. One obstacle she is hitting: Spanish is a big deal. Many of
the kids speak English, but most of the adults we encounter on a daily basis either do not, or are not
confident enough to try. We really need the Spanish to come more quickly.
Fortunately, we may have stumbled on a solution. There is a class offered in Dorado every Friday
afternoon so we have enrolled and are very excited to begin!
We continue to go to Arenales every Sunday afternoon to help facilitate a Bible study in a project area.
The stories we hear break our hearts. God is moving there and we are excited to see more people come
every week and to hear that 3 people from the study have accepted Christ in the last couple of weeks!
We are grateful for our friends John and Jennifer Hoogeveen, with whom we founded the Bible study in
Arenales!
The longer we are here, the more we are falling in love with the people. They are curious about why we
are here and they are quick to embrace us and make us feel welcome. The more people we meet, the
more urgency we feel to spread the love of Christ to everyone around us. We continue to feel blessed
and we thank God for His continued direction. We miss our Calvary family!
Ways to pray for us:
Megan and the kids learn Spanish
Deeper friendships among those we have met so we can begin to speak the Gospel more deeply into
their lives
To identify 5 specific families within which we can begin Bible studies and/or home groups
Direction as we seek service opportunities within our community
Continue to hear and obey God’s voice and direction
For a cold front to hit Lubbock, Dallas, and San Juan next Friday, October 14th, so that our dog Junah can
get on the plane and finally complete our family here in PR