Note: There is a PDF version of this newsletter located here.
Dear Friends, Family, and Supporters,
Happy Autumn! For many, it is the time of year when the leaves fall off the trees as nature goes into a dormant state, preparing for winter. However, in our area, we only see the fields turn brown, little by little, as we begin to have less rain and cold nights. Most trees stay green, except the fruit trees, such as apple, pear, and plum. The oaks keep their leaves until March, when they turn yellow and brown and fall to the ground. Our raking season is March, but by May, the new leaves are growing again.
This reminds me of the cycles of life. Every day new babies are born, and every day older adults pass into eternity. Our time to make a difference in the lives of these people is right between those two points, and what we do in this life will determine where we spend eternity. Thank God for Jesus!
Bill Brown
You may remember that in our last newsletter we had asked you to pray for Bill, our pastor and mentor in ministry for many years. On Sunday night, September 6, Bill went to be with his Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. He left behind a tremendous legacy of literally thousands of pastors and leaders whom he and Gerda discipled, trained, and commissioned for ministry. In Uganda alone, he was one of the leaders who helped to start a group of churches that multiplied to over 1,000 local congregations all across the nation. After their work in Africa, the Lord moved them to Mexico, where they worked as the directors of one of the most influential Bible colleges in Mexico during the 1970s and 1980s, training hundreds of young people who started churches all over Mexico, extending into other Latin American countries.
When they felt their time at the Bible School was coming to a close, they began visiting their former students and the wonderful churches that many of them were planting, traveling for months at a time from town to town, preaching and teaching every evening. They soon saw the need for advanced ministry training and encouragement for these young pastors, and began the Advanced School of Ministry as a yearly gathering to continue to pour into these men and women of God. What began for former students soon began to blossom into something even bigger, as many of these pastors began to invite their leadership teams and other pastors in their area. Their impact was truly profound. Their teaching on the worship ministry transformed the ministry of music all across Mexico, and the leadership principles they taught have helped hundreds of churches in Mexico build upon solid foundations.
Sara and I met Bill and Gerda in 1994, and almost instantly there was a spiritual connection between us. That same weekend they took us aside and told us that the Lord had placed us in their hearts, and that they wanted to sow into us. They began sending us books, cassette tapes, and training materials. A few months later, they called and asked us to accompany some young American pastors whom they were bringing into the mission field to preach at several local churches, and they wanted me to be their interpreter. Then, just a few months later, we were invited to go with them to the Advanced School of Ministry conference in Cuernavaca. This was the beginning of what would be over 30 years of serving them in their ministry.
Our online Bible School was founded as an extension of their ministry, and it was Bill and Gerda’s vision to reach pastors and leaders who couldn’t leave their home, church, and family to continue their ministry preparation. John Brown, their grandson, helped fuel this vision, and I also felt a burden to make this happen. In 2013, I began the work on what would become “Fundamentos Ministeriales”, an online Bible School for pastors, leaders, and young people who desire to prepare for ministry through an online school.
An Unexpected Trip to Canada
Soon after Bill’s passing, we learned that the family was preparing a memorial service for September 24 in Edmonton, Alberta. I quickly looked into making the trip, and we decided to go as a family to honor Bill and his wonderful family and to participate in the memorial service.
We were able to spend a day at Jasper National Park in the Canadian Rockies, just before the memorial service. What a beautiful place! Although we live in the mountains here in Mexico, we had never experienced mountains like the Canadian Rockies. They are so impressive! Psalm 19:1 says, “The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament sheweth his handywork.”
We also enjoyed spending an evening with John and Stacey Brown (Bill’s grandson and his wife). They lived in Mexico for several years, and they preached in our church several times about 15 years ago. John and his family treated us to an amazing dinner in their home, and we had so much fun getting to know their kids, who are now in college and high school.
Advanced School of Ministry in Tijuana
Soon after getting back from Canada, I found out that I was going to take another unexpected trip, this time to Tijuana, on the northern border, right next to San Diego, California. For many years, our Advanced School of Ministry team has done conferences there for the pastors and leaders of the area. I wasn’t scheduled to go this year for several reasons, but Pastor Marjorie, from Cuernavaca, had an accident and fell, breaking several bones, so she was unable to fly there to teach. I went in her place and taught the classes that she was scheduled to teach. It was a very good trip. We had a small group of about 29 pastors and leaders, but it was a very profitable week of teaching and getting to know some of the leaders who attended.
Writing a Book
Bill and Gerda often encouraged me to write, and I have written many Bible teachings and other material and manuals. However, I had never done a complete book. In our September team meeting, several of the team members talked about creating a book containing the teachings that Bill and Gerda did over the years at the Advanced School of Ministry conference. I decided to take on that responsibility and have been working on it since late September. Bill and Gerda left us with almost 100 teaching sessions that they did over the years at the conferences. I have over 35 years of their teaching notes and many audio recordings of them as well, and I began digging through them, putting everything together in book form. The content is not mine; it is Bill and Gerda’s teachings and stories, but I am writing the book as a ghostwriter and editor, bringing back the teachings and stories they told in the late 1980s right through Bill’s last participation at the event last January.
The book is coming along well. I have finished about 22 chapters, 100,000 words, and 320 pages so far. We hope to have it published in January for the conference. It brings back so many memories and such solid Bible teaching. In many ways, it will serve as a legacy of their ministry. Future generations will be able to read it and glean from the over 50 years that they sowed their lives into the churches and leaders of Mexico.
Bible School and Church
Our fall semester is going well, with about a month and a half left in the semester. Most of the students are progressing well, learning a lot, and actively participating in their courses. It has also been exciting to see our first full-time and part-time students progress toward their goals.
Anna and I continue to develop new courses and course materials. We work toward our goals every week. Anna developed a complete course on worship and will be recording it in a few weeks, and we ask for your prayers as she teaches. She has written some great material!
Our church family has been focusing on forming community over the last couple of months. We have been doing things a bit differently. Each Sunday during the month has had a specific purpose. On the first Sunday, we work specifically on community, such as praying for one another, encouraging one another, etc., and eating together in groups around tables, along with a short time of worship and Bible teaching. The second Sunday is focused on teaching. In September, I taught on the Apostles’ Creed, and in October, the first question and answer of the Heidelberg Catechism. We’re calling this our “Sunday School” meeting. On the third Sunday, we’ve been focusing on worship and prayer. And on the fourth Sunday, we have been doing practical workshops: teaching about a subject and then practicing it in small groups. October’s emphasis was on prayer, and we practiced praying for those at our tables. This has brought a new dynamic to Sunday mornings and has gone over well. Our plan is for 3 months of these different types of meetings, September through November. It’s neat to see the entire congregation participating in ministry one with another, and not just the pastor and leaders doing everything. We are the body of Christ and members one of another.
Family
On September 14, at one minute before midnight, our second grandchild was born. Little baby Joel was born healthy and well to Daniel and Elisa Lont, who live in Vancouver, Washington. What an exciting time for their family! Little Ella, who is almost two years old, welcomed her little brother with such excitement and joy! Of course, she soon learned that a baby brother needs a lot of the attention and love that used to be only for her, so she is having to adjust.
We are thankful for a healthy grandson! We are also thankful for Daniel and Elisa. They are excellent parents, training their children in the ways of the Lord.
David is currently in the process of moving to New Mexico, where he will be starting his first full-time job, now that he has finished his doctoral degree at Texas A&M. We are excited for him and thankful for all he has accomplished.
Prayer Requests and Thanksgiving
Before we request prayer, we’d like to thank the Lord and let you know about His care in our lives.
- We are thankful for your faithful support throughout this year. The Lord has shown His faithfulness to us again! Thank you so very much for sowing into our lives.
- We are thankful for His protection and care as we have traveled.
- We are thankful for Bill and Gerda, and all they planted in our lives over the past 30+ years. Gerda, who went home to heaven in 2018, was such an inspiration in the teaching ministry. And Bill, who is now with Jesus, was a true spiritual father to us.
- We are thankful for our teams: the Advanced School of Ministry team, our Bible School facilitators and leaders, and our local church. They are an encouragement and a blessing.
We request prayer for the following:
- Please pray for Barbara, Bill’s widow. After Gerda died in 2018, Bill married a wonderful Christian widow, just a few years younger than himself. They were happily married for just over 6 years, until his passing. Barbara needs your prayers!
- Please pray for Bill’s family, as they process the fact that Bill is now in heaven. They all greatly miss him. So do we!
- Please pray for wisdom as we take the next steps in our lives and ministry. There are ministry decisions that we are in the process of making right now, especially with the Advanced School of Ministry. Please pray that the Holy Spirit will guide us.
Thanks!
We appreciate all you do for us. Thanks to all of you who pray for us and give to allow us to minister here. It is a huge privilege to serve the King! And it is an honor to consider you our partners in the preaching of the Gospel.
Blessings,
David and Sara Lont
with Anna