Newsletter

Even though we cannot fly, time still does. We usually write these newsletters after trips abroad, but without trips to remind us to write a letter, we have let too much time pass since the last one.

We are in a season of slow recovery in our ministry. At the beginning of this year, we wrote to the people who were expecting us to work with them in 2020 to see if we could reschedule. At that time, things were still too uncertain to schedule anything, but Antonio Jordan in Bolivia asked us to come in 2022. Most of the others told us they didn’t know what to expect.

Slowly the world has started to ease up on restrictions, and we begin to hope that our travel will resume. IPM’s church planters in Liberia, Matthew Troy and Edwin Gbor, have asked us to come in November of this year. We are talking with other church planters in other countries to see if there might be a possibility of a trip in September or early October as well.  

The rocky coast of Maine.

In the meantime, we asked God to give us more opportunities here in the U.S. As a result, I have been preaching more and both of us have been teaching. In early May we took a trip to Maine for a niece’s wedding where I was able to preach four times during the 11 days we were there. At our home church in Georgia, we teach discipleship classes, children’s church, and fill in as needed in other ministries and in doing pulpit supply in other churches.

Recently we received a very encouraging note from a parent. “Thank you for speaking truth into the lives of my boys and letting the Holy Spirit guide your words. Through your teaching, the Holy Spirit convicted my son of a sin in his life. We were able to resolve the issue through tears and prayer. Thank you for being used of God to encourage deeper spiritual growth in my boys.” We are so grateful to see the Holy Spirit move in these young lives.

This summer we plan to spend a week in Wisconsin helping with a VBS. That was an answer to a particular prayer. You see, Joan wanted to attend a writer’s conference in St. Paul, MN and I wanted to attend a class at Central Seminary, but the two events had a week between them. When we prayed about it, we received an invitation to teach at a VBS in Wisconsin during the week between the two events. I will attend my class. We’ll go to Wisconsin for a week and return to the Twin Cities for Joan’s conference. Only God could have lined that up so beautifully.

I am in a season of slow recovery from the stroke that happened 18 months ago. I see progress here and there, but recently Joan became convinced that she should start asking God for complete healing, so that’s what we are doing. Please join us in praying for that.

We are also in a season of slow recovery in our nation. The Coronavirus will probably be part of our lives for the foreseeable future. The economy will wax and wane or maybe even falter, but the need to train national leaders will last until the Lord comes.

Your partners with missionaries around the world,

Charles and Joan Farley