Once again, the Lord blessed us with two amazing months. The first week of July, we were happy to host a group from Mesa, Arizona. This group of young people were a blessing, as we held evangelistic services in three villages. During these campaigns, many people accepted Christ. In one particular village, Trial Farm, over 100 people attended the evening service. Praise the Lord! This group was also a blessing in helping us set up a newer media system in our church. Adding a new projector and computer has helped our services be more up-to-date and professional. Thank you, Valley Baptist Church, for your generosity and love for our ministry.

July was a busy month. At our Fires of Evangelism Conference, two of our young men made decisions to serve the Lord. Every night, we averaged around 180 people. One of the days of the conference, we went out soul winning. It was a blessing to have around 60 people going out to the streets spreading the good news, and we had many people saved.

In August, we had a visit from Pastor Ryan Marsh from Berne, Indiana. Pastor Marsh and his wife Marcy were a huge blessing to our family. We received some great counsel, which has encouraged our hearts. What a blessing it is to have good friends who not only care about your ministry but care about your family as well. While Pastor Marsh was here, we were able to hold the first official service of our new church plant in the village of San Estevan. Twenty people came to that first service, with two accepting Christ. Since then, we have held two more Sunday services there. We have also been able to bring the people to our Sunday evening services here in Orange Walk. Please pray for this new church and the people of San Estevan. Finding a location to rent has been challenging, but we are trusting the Lord to guide in this project.

Our Teen Camp in August was a success. Joining together with churches of like faith has been a blessing to our teens. Pastor Marsh was able to preach, along with Mr. Ben Stanley from his church. One of our young girls, Amy, made the decision to accept Christ during one of the camp services. Three weeks later, she was baptized with two others. Pray for Amy and her newfound faith. In August, we were also able to host a group of seniors from Hammond Baptist High School in Hammond, Indiana. They came specifically to help us with Vacation Bible School. The young men were great at teaching, helping with sports, and generally being a good influence on our young people here. Thank you, First Baptist Church, for sending a great group of young men to be a blessing here in our ministry.

We are asking for prayer for an upcoming event. A group is coming to do a free medical clinic in different parts of Belize. These are doctors who give of their time and money to help the people here. Our church family is grateful for the time and dedication of these volunteers. We pray that these clinics will bring many people to Christ.

Our family is doing well. Tonya’s pregnancy seems to be progressing just fine. We are busy preparing for this new little boy, who will join our family in November. Thank you to all who have prayed for our family. It is hard to believe that we have been in Belize for 16 years. So many lessons have been learned along the way. We thank the Lord that our children have grown up here. Please pray for their hearts to always follow the Lord.

In Christ,

Israel and Tonya Alvarez