every nation: 2012/03

It's hard to believe that April is now OVERDUE, when six weeks ago we were rushing her to the emergency room due to unexplained heavy bleeding! Many people prayed and our gracious and merciful God heard those prayers. The doctor still has no idea what caused that bleeding and why it stopped so suddenly. We have an idea as to the sudden stop....

We have been so blessed by God's people over the past several weeks. As you know, April was told by the doctor to take it especially easy and stay off her feet as much as possible. That has been challenging with four home schooled boys who are always hungry. Jeremy took control and played the part of Major Dad, and in no time the boys were taking on extra responsibilities around the house. But if it were not for our faith family, we would've been eating sandwiches and hot dogs most of the time! So many of our Christian brothers and sisters came by with meals or to help us pack (a special thanks to The Sanctuary Milton). Then, during our recent move to Brampton, many of them came and helped us pack up and move -- in a snowstorm! We are overwhelmed with gratitude!

We have been in our new home for about two weeks now, and we are still "nesting" and trying to make it "home" before baby boy #5 arrives. The home is much older than our previous one and many things were in need of repair. We've been helping the landlord paint and clean almost daily, and we're almost there.... Of course, the first thing to receive a makeover was the new room for the baby -- and it's ready and waiting for him whenever he decides to come! We're all exhausted -- especially April. She's ready for this little guy to come already! Please continue to pray for her and the baby -- we will be sure to send out an announcement SOON!!

There is a community in Brampton, Ontario, only a ten-minute drive from our new house that I want to bring to your attention. We have been prayer walking this community now for about 7 months, and we have passed out hundreds of Bibles and Jesus DVD's as well. The epicenter for this community is the intersection of Ebenezer Rd. and The Gore Rd. Within just a half mile in each direction there are no less than 5 Hindu temples and 3 Sikh temples -- and not one Christian church for miles in each direction. This community is one of the fastest growing areas in all of Ontario and most of the new residents are from South Asia (more specifically India). The majority group is Punjabi -- followed by several other Indian ethnicities, with Jamaicans and Iraqis as minorities in the area. I've had many conversations with the Jamaicans (many of them are Christian) and they confirmed that there are no Christian churches in the area. I talked with a couple of young Jamaican ladies today and they told me their old church building (just around the corner) had been converted into a Hindu temple only a few years ago. They are now catching a bus to Mississauga on Sunday mornings to attend a church in that city. The only other church building in the area, The Ebenezer Chapel, is now a historic site and is used as a community center. Most of the time it is being rented by Sikh groups who use it for worship.

It is my desire to bring a full-assault on this particular community -- to take it back for Christ. I want to find at least one thousand people who would be willing to pray daily for this community over the next year. I want to bring in as many mission teams as possible to prayer walk the community, pass out Bibles and Jesus DVD's, and engage people in redemptive conversation. It would be great if we had churches who would officially adopt this community and have their members pray for it every Wednesday evening when they gather for prayer. But even this will not be enough. I'm boldly asking the Lord to call out more full-time missionaries to join us, and I'm also asking that the Lord will cause this information to fall into the hands of a church that will actually feel compelled to start new churches in this very community. We could rent the old Ebenezer Chapel and bring it back to life -- this little country chapel sits right on that intersection -- at the very epicenter of this community. Can you envision it filled with South Asian believers, worshipping the One True God every week -- perhaps every day -- in that place? What would that do to the strongholds of darkness there? There are also several office spaces for rent in that area -- as well as a large convention center, which could also be used for outreach, prayer meetings, and eventually (hopefully soon) churches. Ask God to do something -- and be prepared to do whatever He orders you to do once you begin to intercede for this place.

I have three guys who have joined me in praying and working towards this vision to see a great harvest of souls and new churches that serve as lighthouses in this dark community. Pray that we will multiply from a small band of brothers into a large and growing army willing to engage the enemy in this place. Pray that many of them will come from the harvest -- Hindu and Sikh background believers who will share the Gospel with zeal. Pray for a Punjabi family that recently came to know Jesus as Lord. When their teenage son was healed in the name of Jesus they abandoned their Sikh religion and embraced Christ. Some of our colleagues are meeting with them every week for Bible study and prayer -- pray that that they will be emboldened to share the Gospel and that a church will come of this. Pray also for a group of twenty or so Iraqi young people -- all Christians, and many of them Muslim background believers, who are meeting with us every week for prayer and Bible study. Both of these groups are in that community and both groups desire greatly to see a harvest and new churches. Please pray alongside them! Some of you will be called to labor alongside them as well!

Here are some photos of the area - to give you a small glimpse. Please pray over each photograph. All of these photographs were taken within a half-mile of each other....