“‘Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom He is pleased!’” Luke 2:14

Equip Updates

Every December, the Equip students take part in a Christmas Cookie Contest. The prize includes dinner & a movie for the whole group, with the winner choosing the food and movie. This year, instead of having 4 individual houses, the students teamed up to join forces in groups of two: Aidan & Isaac vs. Caleb & Sam. Ultimately, Aidan & Isaac’s Walmart house won over Caleb & Sam’s shotgun. The staff looks forward to this week each year, especially the staff children, who love to participate in destroying the structure after judging. The students left for holiday break mid-December, and will return the first full week of January. The campus is always quiet without them around, so we look forward to their return.

The new year will move quickly, and their trip to Mayreau will soon be upon them. Typically, we do 2 domestic mission trips, but because of the destruction in Mayreau, we felt moved to have the group spend a week doing disaster relief there. Please pray for this trip, and for the upcoming Mexico trip in April. If you are interested in donating towards one of these trips or helping the group raise funds to build a Homes of Hope house, there is a link on the website for online donations. Checks can be sent to the ministry with a note attached specifying if it is for a student or staff expenses for the trip, or for Homes of Hope. Thank you for praying for these trips, the students, and for Nolan & Jenny Lapp as they lead the groups!

At the Ministry in Bernville, PA

Warehouse Distribution Center

Over the past couple of months, we had the opportunity to help Ben & Jes Tangert, at YWAM St. Vincent & the Grenadines, fill 4 sea containers. After the hurricane, they set a goal to ship at least 6 containers to the island, and we have been able to provide items for each container. We had hoped that the mission team that spent a week in Mayreau would be able to assist in unloading the most recently shipped sea container, but unfortunately, it was stuck at the port while they were there.

Justin Darnell, Lisa Miller, Johnny Debkowski, Aidan, and our many amazing volunteers have been working hard to get the Warehouse Distribution Center organized this year. Having the Millers come on staff has been a blessing, as they are a driving force for building it up, and getting everything in order inside and out. We have seen God move in amazing ways in the Warehouse, including the new heating system, keeping a steady flow of continuous supplies all year for the ministries we serve, and answering a persistent prayer for a reliable box truck. We are confident that God will do even more in the coming year, and that He will be glorified for all of it!

Automotive Shops

Doug Sylva & Isaac worked on a few more vehicle body repairs for cars to be sold and ministry vehicles. Isaac will spend the next few weeks with Nick VanWert & Caleb in the Automotive Shop. This year, we made the Auto Shop available for pastors, missionaries, and ministry leaders to have their vehicles worked on at a lower cost. It’s been wonderful to be able to serve people who are dedicated to serving Christ, and we look forward to doing it all over again in the next year.

Maintenance, Hospitality, & More

The Boy’s Brigade work group, who spend a weekend at the ministry every year, visited during the week of the Mayreau trip. This provided Caleb the opportunity to lead them, assisted by Mike. The group spent the day serving at One Luv. Last year, they spent time cleaning the church where One Luv hosts their outreach, and this time, they helped hand out Christmas gifts, toys, etc. to the people of Reading. Ray Pete, who had just returned from a week spent in North Carolina packing shoeboxes for Operation Christmas Child, joined them and was encouraged to see so many children receive a gospel message and a gift that put a smile on their face.

Please keep praying for the apartments above the shop. Leam Nicholaides has spent the last year working towards getting this project done well and efficiently, but things tend to move slowly with townships. Pray that God would move things along for this so that we can expand the ministry and bring more people to serve with us.

Where in the World is Joel Smith?

Going to Haiti was not a planned trip, but it also wasn’t an impulsive one. We work with an orphanage ministry in Les Cayes, Haiti. They are located far south, but cut off from the international port in Port Au Prince. Daniel, the director, asked Joel to come down and see what they are doing and the needs they have. After much prayer, Joel went. We did not announce this trip or tell anyone, except in person, where Joel was going. It’s not that we were afraid of something happening to Joel, but we wanted to remain wise and vigilant. We didn’t promote and broadcast where he was going to keep things more quiet. He was completely safe and he did not go alone. A board member of the Haiti ministry, who travels to Haiti often, went with him.

What an experience it was meeting the beautiful, amazing people of Haiti! While the news depicts a dark, hard place (it certainly can be), I had a different experience while there. Part of what we do is travel to the places we serve to get to know the people and to better understand their needs and how they live.

From the moment we arrived at the orphanage, we were welcomed by the 60 children singing a welcome song. How beautiful! I do not know Haitian Creole, but what I do know is how to show the love of Christ. I was able to teach them thumb wrestling (many hours were spent, with both hands), and we turned a bucket lid into a frisbee. I wish you could have seen the delight on the children’s faces!! These children had lost everything: their parents, homes, possessions. But they didn’t lose hope! One of my favorite parts of visiting the nations around the world is being asked to share at Chapel/Church. God laid it on my heart to share Ephesians 1, and tell the children that God wants to adopt them into His family and that they will no longer be orphans but children of God! Being able to share the hope of a Savior and the Gospel message to these kids was a special moment in my life that I thank God for providing.

Prayer Requests

This month, please be praying for:

• The apartments above the Auto Shop
• The Merricks as they serve and build up CMTS Belize
• Favor with the township in getting permits for the different building projects
• Funds for the ministry
• Equip students & E2 interns
• Financial support for the staff members
• The leadership & board members
• Equip mission trips to Mayreau & Mexico
• The fundraiser in March

Fun Facts & Stats