It is with great joy that I write to you to share the wonderful things God is doing here in El Salvador. We have had a very busy few weeks, and it has all been of great blessing.
In January our youth group, led by our youth pastor, voted to have a committee in charge of raising funds for youth camp. I have never seen the teens join together and work as a team like they have this year. It has been such a blessing to watch them work and strive to be able to fund their own trip to camp. Almost all of them have been able to raise the necessary funds to go to camp, and we have at least 30 young people ready to go next week. Please pray that the Lord will work in their hearts and lives during this activity.
Last week we attended a one-day youth conference held by one of our graduates and church members, Jonathan Castro. Three of our young men surrendered their lives to preach the Gospel. I was thrilled, not only to see them make this decision, but also to see the obvious joy on their parents’ faces as they announced their calling. Two of these three young men have grown up in our church.
On October 5, we celebrated “Dia del Niño” (Day of the Child), a national holiday where each child is recognized for being . . . a child! We take advantage of the opportunity and invite hundreds of children to participate in a celebration during Sunday school and Junior Church. It is, historically, one of the biggest attendance days in our church on a yearly basis. This year we had 335 in attendance and many saved and baptized. Several families have continued coming to church since this event.
November was, once again, a month full of blessing upon blessings. Our assistant pastor married one of the young ladies in our church. Both have grown up in our church and are graduates of the Bible institute. Their wedding was a tribute to God’s grace. I look forward to seeing how God uses them for His glory.
On November 30, we celebrated our third graduation from the Bible institute. Four graduates received
their diplomas, three men and one lady. They are all from our church and plan, as of right now, to stay on here as a part of our team of laborers reaching Santa Ana for Christ.
Please be in prayer as we strive to continue seeing people brought to Christ and seeing them become fruitful laborers in His work. Thank you for praying for us as a family. We look forward to the Christmas holidays, as we are excited to see our son Daniel and some other family members. Daniel is in his third semester at Hyles-Anderson College and is doing great! Thank you to those who have prayed for him and helped him along the way.
Have a wonderful Christmas and New Year!
The Henry Gonzalez Family