Showers of Blessings in the Emerald Isle
“And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.” (Matthew 16:18) By the time you get this prayer letter, it will likely be December. The blessings that God has bestowed upon my family and me have been overwhelming and consuming. Even now I reflect on all that God has done. On the first Wednesday of September, an Irishman in his late twenties arrived at our Bible study. He came a bit early, and upon talking to him, I found he had grown up Pentecostal in a town called Shannon (20 minutes from Limerick). He had recently come home from Australia, where he had been introduced to independent Baptists in Brisbane and Sydney. I asked him who the pastors were, and when he told me one was Bro. Mark Tossell, I said, “I know who he is; we went to the same Bible college.” He was almost beside himself. This man is sold on the KJB and has begun soul winning with me on Saturdays. He had been looking for a similar church in Ireland since he arrived home in July and had nearly given up. Another man, who is in his early thirties and married, has begun attending. I met him while doing my soul-winning “Religion Survey” last year in November. I have met with him for coffee several times, and he has finally begun coming on Sunday mornings. He moved around churches growing up and has a testimony of salvation but seems to have backslid. Yet another man in his early thirties began coming at the end of October. He was formerly Catholic and was saved in a more Charismatic church but wanted to grow more. He has been hopping around churches and Bible groups, looking for a place that teaches the Bible, and he really prefers reading the King James. From day one, he has had an incredible burden to tell others the Gospel and has been giving tracts and talking to people everywhere he goes. All three of these men really have a hunger to know the Bible, and two of them have begun doing a discipleship course with me during the Sunday school hour. I am so thankful that during these last two months, God has brought 9 new visitors to our meetings. As we have lifted Christ in the pulpit and door to door, God has been drawing men and building His church. Also, God answered our prayer and provided 21 used, padded chairs for €90.
A new and important issue of prayer has come up concerning homeschooling in Ireland. It has been legal for parents to homeschool in the country for years, but due to laws and regulations from the EU concerning the “Rights of the Child.” a backlash against the practice is in the beginning stages and progressing rapidly. In the last year, the assessment of homeschoolers has been taken from the Education Department and put into the hands of social workers (red flag). Now they have been inviting home educators to attend “workshops” with their children, which has been found to be nefarious. It seems this will likely be a battle soon, and I would appreciate the prayers concerning this situation.
So far as our family is concerned, the last two months brought many exciting events, including our youngest boys fourth birthday. Kelly made it a “Hungry Little Caterpillar” theme. She made all the food described in the book, and we watched a short movie of it. The boys absolutely loved the party. We also got to see the Blood Moon. Our oldest was excited, set an alarm, and woke us all up at 3:30 a.m. I must say it was pretty amazing. We sat in awe of God’s creation as we watched this magnificent phenomenon. Soon after these events, Kelly’s mom and grandmother came for a visit. Please pray for her, as she has cancer and was given a few months to live, which was the purpose of the trip. She is also agnostic. We all had a splendid time. I was able to preach a relevant message concerning the many proofs for the Bible that she had never heard before and gave an invitation for salvation. She did not respond, but her behavior toward the things of God seemed to change. As I write this letter in November, I now have many more things to tell but will have to keep the news within the two-month time frame and wait until the next letter. I am so excited to see what God is going to do.
Please continue praying for these needs:
1. Our support level has maintained at 90% of what we need; please pray it might increase.
2. Kelly’s grandmother
3. Homeschooling situation
4. Furlough plane tickets
I thank all of you who sent gifts and cards for Kendrick’s birthday. I also thank Freedom Baptist Church for their $2,000 love offering toward our furlough and those who lift us up in prayer and who support us financially. We aappreciate your sacrifices.
In the campaign for Irish souls,
Keith Hamilton