Dear Brethren, January 2009
May the grace of God be with you, and may He constantly watch over you and provide
peace during these difficult economic times. Jeremiah the prophet preached for 50 years
to Israel to repent and turn to God, or judgment for their shameful and persistent sins
would destroy their nation. How often he was accused, tried and persecuted for the
words he spoke. He was rejected by his own people, just like Christ. The news we
receive in Africa is that the world is in economic turmoil and solutions for strengthening
the world economies do not look very promising. When the rise and fall of nations
become evident you can be sure there is judgment being meted out due to sin and
rebellion against God.
In Africa, this is the rainy season. We often see unexpected storms that wash away roads
and homes in a single day. The weather is hot and humid and difficult to feel
comfortable. Homes do not have air conditioning units. Insects and rodents are
everywhere (flies in the daytime and mosquitoes at night). January has been a slow
month for visitations and local people are unable to pay the high cost of transportation to
get to me. We currently pay $8.50 U.S. for a gallon of diesel. We continue to hold
services and Bible studies at our home in Blantyre, but attendance has dropped due to
weather and cost of transportation.
We have a need in Africa related to our housing. My wife and I had two residences prior
to our getting married, and we need to consolidate. We have located a new place that
will meet the needs of our family and will assist us in the work with services and bible
conferences. The new location is also very close to a bus stop, which will allow more
visitors to our services. To secure the new house, we will need $1,500 ($500 for 3
months) up-front for rent and we will have $600 in moving expenses. The $1,500 was
negotiated down from the originally-requested rent of $5400 ($900 per month for 6
months). While we are prepared to pay the ongoing rent using current support, we need
assistance with these up-front costs. By consolidating our homes, as you can well
imagine, we will save on utilities and transportation - which will leave more money for the
Lord’s work.
Please pray for our brethren here in Africa. They have planted their corn and must wait
for the results. Please pray that the Lord will bless them with a good return and harvest
so that they can feed their families. The corn crop is their main food supply for the rest of
the year. Right now, the men are sleeping in their fields at night so that robbers will not
come in and take their crops.
Please pray about our rent and moving expenses and may the Lord bless any who can
assist with this immediate need.
In His service,
Bro Joe and Sis Gaby Padilla
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