Smith Stepping Stones
Psalm 37:23-"The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord and He delights in his way."
“IMPACT THROUGH INTERCESSION.”
January 15, 2011
Dear Friends,
Happy New Year. Are most of you having as much trouble as we are remembering to write 2011? As this new year unfolds, our prayer is that we will take advantage of every opportunity God gives us to share the Gospel with the unsaved and encourage believers to love God and serve Him more faithfully. God was faithful to us in 2010 and we give Him thanks.
December was a "stay at home" month for us and we were blessed by the time we spent with family and friends. We loved getting Christmas cards, letters and pictures from many of you. It is so good to hear how things have gone for you this year and be able to share in your joys and in your sorrows. Vince's mother, Chris, came for a three week visit in December and Susan and Cara came the week before Christmas. Aimee & Bill and Eric, Sarah and Gemma came Christmas day. It started snowing Christmas day and we had a White Christmas! It was perfect and beautiful. Our favorite activity was ”Holding Gemma” and we did a lot of laughing, eating, playing games, catching up on each other’s lives and just being thankful for our family and that we love one another and are close to one another. We had all planned to attend church together but were disappointed when that got cancelled because of the weather.
Jerry spent December 29 to January 2 in Myrtle Beach playing golf with six friends from Pennsylvania. Amy's sister, Stephanie and Kurt and four of their children came and spent a few days over New Years with Amy. Jerry flew to Albany, NY on January 6th and represented BMW at the Word of Life Bible Institute's annual Missions Conference.
He made some good contacts with students and saw many friends from our years of being on staff at Word of Life. In the meantime we had a major snow and ice storm in Atlanta and it took Jerry a couple of days to get a flight back home and then the hard part was getting him from the airport to our house. He took the MARTA train out to our area and Vince and Rob King managed to drive there and get him home. Thank you Lord! The storm started Sunday night and Atlanta was mostly shut down all week. The temperatures are so cold that the ice isn't melting very fast. We read somewhere that Atlanta has almost five million people and ten snow plows, ha! Anyway we are thankful to have a warm house, plenty of food and family next door!
We are in Fayetteville, NC, this weekend, where Jerry is teaching a workshop at The Church at Fayetteville. Our friends, Rodney and Chris Phillips, are ministering at this church and are tentmaking missionaries with BMW. Pray that we will be an encouragement to Rodney and Chris and to the church. We stopped in Martinez, GA on the way to Fayetteville and had lunch with another of our BMW tentmaking missionary couples, Bob and Marcia Corbin. It is a joy to be able to spend time with these special missionaries.
Thank you to those who have joined our Prayer Force. We now have about 350 members who are a vital part of our ministry. We would love to have even more people praying for us so let us know if you would like to encourage us in this way.
Our Love in Christ,
Jerry and Amy Smith
PRAISE
1) For another year to travel and serve the Lord with Biblical Ministries Worldwide.
2) For a good missions conference at Word of Life Bible Institute.
3) For a beautiful White Christmas!
4) For family who were able to come to Georgia for Christmas.
5) For a wonderful support team in prayer and financial giving. We have 350 in our Prayer Force..
6) For Cara successfully completing her work for a Masters Degree, and for a job teaching at the University of California, Irvine.
7) For a job for Todd starting February 1.
8) For God's protection when we have had to travel in hazardous conditions.
9) For Eric's wife, Sarah, who is gaining strength after emergency surgery in December.
10) For God's provision of a good meeting place for the church plant in Summerville, SC.
PRAYER
1) That we will be committed to spending personal time with God each day in His Word and in prayer.
2) For God to put a hedge of protection around our grandchildren.
3) That the needs of our church planters in the Southeast will be met and that their churches will grow.
4) For more opportunities to teach the Change Workshops in 2011.
5) For our sister-in-law, Pat Wilson, who needs diagnosis and treatment for a health problem.
6) For a precious little 8 year old, Kristina, who is undergoing cancer treatments in Houston.
7) For a full-time job for grandson, Eric.
8) For the plans we are working on to help struggling churches.
9) For God's blessing and traveling mercies as we are involved in the ministries and activities listed below.
SCHEDULE
January
1-3 ---- Golf in Myrtle Beach, Jerry
6 ---- Fly to New York
7-10 ---- Mission Conference, Word of Life, Schroon Lake, NY
11 ---- Fly Home
14-15 ---- Workshop, Church at Fayetteville, Fayetteville, NC
16 ---- Church at Fayetteville, NC
17-20 ---- Candidate Orientation, BMW Office.
21 ---- Meeting with IJ Fontenot and Rick Oglesby in Birmingham, AL
21-22 ---- Drive to Louisiana
23 ---- AM- Henderson Bible Church, Henderson, LA
23 ---- PM- Reeves Bible Church, Reeves, LA
26 ---- Dry Creek Bible Church, Dry Creek, LA
30 ---- AM- Lake Charles Bible Church. Lake Charles, LA
30 ---- PM- Faith Bible Church, Lake Charles, LA
February
2 ---- Reeves Bible Church
6 ---- AM- Kinder Bible Church, Kinder, LA
7-9 ---- Pastors Retreat, Baton Rouge, LA
10 ---- Drive Home
15 ---- Tactical Team Meeting, BMW Office
16 ---- Drive to Dallas, TX
17 ---- Leadership meeting at Dallas Seminary
20 ---- Prairie Creek Baptist Church, Dallas, TX
21 ---- Drive home
Biblical Ministries Worldwide
"A leader is a godly servant who knows where he is going and inspires and equips others to follow"
