Israel Alvarez Prayer Letter:  Fourth-Anniversary CelebrationDear Pastor and Church Family:

Happy New Year! I am always so excited to celebrate the New Year. January is a time of new beginnings, a time to give thanks for the past year, and a time to motivate ourselves to reach higher and work harder. Here in Belize we celebrated just as we would have in the States. We had a watch-night service that included fellowship, food, and, of course, preaching. We showed a DVD of church memories from the 2013. The DVD was a great reminder of the many blessings we received from our gracious Lord. It is our desire to strive hard to reach our goals for 2014.

These past few months have been very busy for us. In November we celebrated our fourth anniversary as a church. We had several first-time visitors, many of whom accepted Christ as their Saviour. The last night of the conference, we had an attendance of 153 people. Our teens sang a few specials, and the children’s choir sang as well. Due to the abnormal amount of rain, we had to hold services at our home. We are oftentimes unable to drive down the street to our church property because of the poor road quality. Please pray that we might be able to pave the road this year.

In December we hosted our Second Annual Fundamentalist Conference. We had Dr. Joaquin Hurtado from South Gate, California, and Pastor Hernan Castillo from Cancun, Mexico, as our guest speakers. Our church members worked hard at preparing food, inviting visitors, and cleaning up our church grounds. Their efforts were not in vain, as 7 young people made the decision to serve God with their lives. Those moments make all the hard work and unexpected problems worth it.

We are rejoicing for the great things God has done for us in 2013. Our fervent prayer is to be used in a greater manner throughout this New Year. We are truly grateful for your financial support. Pray for us as we set goals for this year. One of our goals is to start a Bible institute. This is not a light undertaking, and we need prayers for wisdom. May God richly bless you ministry.

In Christ,

The Alvarez Family