Dear Family and Friends:
A verse that keeps coming to my mind lately is Colossians 1:18 “And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence.” O that the Lord Jesus may be most important and have first place in everything! O that He might be exalted in church, in our homes, in my words, in my attitudes, in everything! Let us make preeminent the One who has purchased us with His own blood!
Since our last update, Andrew has had several tests with various specialists. We are still waiting for some of the results including one test to check for genetic disorders. Because of the repeated UTI infections and problems with reflux, Andrew is on a medicine for a year to prevent kidney damage. When we wrote last, he was having several spasms/seizures every day. The doctors put him on a medicine for that and it has now been about a month since his last seizure. He is slowly coming off the seizure medicine and is becoming much more alert. Even though Andrew is now five months old, he still has very little muscle control in his neck but is doing some exercises which should help. In the last two weeks, we are seeing little encouragements that show God is answering your prayers!
Please pray for Rachel, a lady in our church. She is the one whose leg was removed last year. This past week, she told us she was struggling spiritually and had returned to smoking. Beverly and Naomi were both able to encourage Rachel and pray with her. They reminded her of the truths of Ephesians 6 and showed her the victory we all can have every day. Since their talk, Rachel has again been coming to church with her sister Beverly.
Please also pray for Ida, a Native lady who has come to church off and on for many years. She called Naomi one night and said she was going to end her life. She has struggled with alcohol and drugs and was drinking that night. Later Ida then texted Naomi and said she was fine. Thankfully she did not commit suicide, but still needs the Lord’s help for victory over sin!
Please pray for Jimmy, Joni, and Alex – the three brothers who have been faithfully coming to church for a few years now. They have become a hindrance to teaching the other children and are openly disrespectful to authority and often mock the Bible lessons. Alex, the oldest of the boys, is being influenced by wrong friends and seems to enjoy stirring up the other children. After repeated warnings, we finally had to keep them away for about a month. We assured them we want them to come to church and want the best for each of these children. Please pray that God will work in their hearts. And pray that God would give us wisdom in teaching these children the honor our righteous and holy God deserves. We are planning a visit and give them some Bible lessons they can do at home.
This last week we had special meetings with Evangelist Glenn Jaspers. We were challenged from the book of First John. It was especially refreshing for us to be taught from God’s Word.
In the preaching and teaching part of our ministry Paul is preaching through Romans on Sunday nights. Sunday mornings he began a study through the Gospel of Mark and has just began a Sunday School series on Baptist Distinctives.
Praises:
• Little improvements in Andrew
• God providing our every need
• For the many who are praying for us
• Rachel and Beverly returning to church
• Denny: a lady who has been coming faithfully and desires to grow
• Visiting preachers: Glenn Jaspers, Troy Carlson (West Branch Camp), and Toru Marshall (NOW Ministries)
Prayer Requests:
• Another couple to join us in the ministry here
• Ladies Bible study
• Wisdom and provision in the modular replacement
• Salvation and spiritual protection for our children
• Andrew’s continued growth and development
• Opportunities to witness to Andrew’s caregivers and other patients
• Spiritual growth: Ida, Beverly, Rachel and many more
All for Jesus,
Paul and Naomi Sondergaard
Ruthanne, Nathan, Hannah, Aletheia, and Andrew
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