Dear Faithful Partner,

It is my joy to share what God is doing in and through the family of FCF worldwide. Here are three testimonies that came into the office this month. I am continually awed by the diversity of the grace and gifts that God has endowed our family with: the supernatural gifts in our missionaries are touching lives and changing the eternal destiny of those they labor among; our national ministers whose faith and passion for Christ are changing their nations; and our credentialed ministers whose partnership and commitment to the “Great Commitment” are abounding in a rich and abundant harvest in nations like Ethiopia.  I know you will be as blessed and encouraged by these testimonies as I was.

KENYA

FCF Missionary Carla Porter, founder of Living Faith International Ministries, shares about the outreaches and the impact the ministry is having in the lives of the precious orphans and vulnerable children God has brought to this ministry.

Because they are part of Living Faith International Ministries, the children at this orphanage are well-fed, born again, confident, loved, well-mannered, and excellent students.

She writes, “When we look at the Godly impact on these children, it is certainly worth the investment. I was actively involved in the process of transferring 'Our Home' in Nairobi to our ministry. I saw the condition of the orphanage when it was managed by the former group. The children wore rags. They were malnourished, disease-ridden, and joyless. The fear and hopelessness in their eyes and the smell of sickness in their bodies and the filth in the rooms in which they were sleeping were terrible. The caretaker in the compound drank and brought in women in front of these little ones. What devastation to their lives! Now, almost a year later, these same children are born again, full of confidence, have a sense of being loved, are well-mannered, and doing very well in school. They are happy. I could say so much more about their spiritual, physical, and emotional progress. To anyone who has known what it is like to be rejected and without basic needs such as food, what it is like to be an orphaned little girl raped by several men, what it is like to be a sick child with no one to see to provide much-needed medical attention—this  is heartbreaking. But then to be led to people who love and care for you, it feels like heaven on earth!”

Greetings Beloved Partners,

What joy to report on the activity of the Gospel among members of our global family! The reports for this month show the rich harvest that is taking place through the giving of partners like you and the labor of faithful servants. I rejoice in knowing that our family is so far reaching and that we share in the rewards. I am reminded of the scripture in Proverbs 11:25, “The generous soul will be made rich, and he who waters will also be watered himself.” Good news is refreshing. It waters our souls and encourages our hearts.

Albania

FCF Missionary Julie Shelley is doing a tremendous work in Albania with the Roma Gypsy community and with a local church in the city of Elbasan.

She writes, “We have just completed an Alpha discipleship course with some youth from the community. We used it as evangelism to teach basic Christian principles to youth who are interested in church, but who are not yet Christian. It went very well. In the Roma School, things are going great. I have spent a lot of time teaching the girls math, and they are doing FABULOUS! I have also begun to learn small poems with them. As they learn a verse in the poem, they each read it out loud. Albanian is a phonetic language, and once you know the alphabet you can read very easily. But I struggled in teaching the girls to read because story times seemed to bore them. However, I have seen their attitudes change with the introduction of learning small poems. I am now hopeful that as the work continues with them in the future, they will not only memorize and know how to read their poems, but I hope that they will be inspired to also write poetry, among other things. These things seem small, but God is transforming lives through evangelism and practical work. I am amazed every day at what He has done here in Albania.”

Dear FCF Family,

This month we have had so many good reports came in that it was hard to decide what to share. Our God is doing marvelous things through our FCF family around the world. How exciting it is when we receive these reports in our office, the evidence that the anointing on and DNA of FCF is reaching far places in the world! What began in Tulsa so many years ago continues to spread globally. Here is a small glimpse of "helping you fulfill the vision and call God has given" in the words of our global family.

Romania

FCF Minister Ovidiu Starlici writes, "In the beginning of 2012 we started to see the answers to our prayers. We had prayed for the village of Satu Nou, that is about 3 km from Halchiu. People started coming from this village to our church, and we can say that now we have 12 people coming to all our church services. This is a village where there is no evangelical church!

"Last year we invested as much as we could in the younger generation. We did our Saturday program in the village park to reach other kids. We went with the youth for picnics and visited other churches. We started a soccer team with the village youth who were not attending our church and put them in a Christian league. We also started a prayer meeting with pastors from different churches. This is something new and unbelievable for our country. The number is growing every week with more than 500 people in the same room praying and singing. It is splendid. Even the mayor of Brasov has come to the meeting."

January 2013 Partner Report

As we begin this New Year, I am filled with joy because I have some exciting news to share. Second Corinthians 8:11 says, “But now finish doing it also, so that just as there was the readiness to desire it, so there may be also the completion of it by your ability.”

My exciting news is this: Together we completed our 2012 Missions’ Projects, completing a much-needed church building in Chennai, India, and purchasing a four-wheel drive vehicle for our representative in Peru. Praise God! He gets all the glory for their completion and for all the wonderful things that will be accomplished as a result.

There is a certain amount of joy that comes when you complete a job or task on your to-do list. There is much more joy, Holy Ghost joy, when we see the completion of a faith project because we trusted in God, worked together, and shared our means. We all long to hear the Lord say, “Well done, my good and faithful servant.” I can hear Him speaking those words over this awesome accomplishment.