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GAINING TERRITORY FOR GOD’S KINGDOM (MURRAY FEBRUARY’06)

Dear Prayer Soldiers;

We are keeping up the good fight down here in Cuenca, Ecuador, as we seek to lead others to Jesus Christ and plant a church for His glory. Sometimes the work progresses quickly, and other times it seems slow. Nevertheless, as we do what God has called us here to do, it is invigorating to see God’s hand at work amongst our people.



These are people who have been brought up in a society based on a works oriented, hopeless religion, mixed with spiritism (Shamanism). This permeates everything here-even Christians- unfortunately. It is a spiritual battle (Ephesians 6).



But as God reaches our people with the truth of His Word, people change! Veils are lifted, and people see things differently, and act differently. What a joy when a new believer responds to his old doubts with the Word of God! How changed he has become!



We are thankful for the opportunity to be used of Him in this wonderful work of Evangelism and church planting.



Here are some of the exciting things which God is doing:



•Luzmina Accepts Jesus Christ as her Savior!

•Checho and Lorena and family become faithful attenders!

•La Gracia (Grace Baptist) buys a piece of property!

•Now is the ideal time and place to buy land for our church plant.

•Further services and classes started to reach out to the unsaved.



?Luzmina Accepts Jesus Christ as her Savior!

Luzmina is an abandoned wife who has 4 children. How she gets by on her extremely humble salary is unfathomable, but she works extra by making tamales and the like. Her main means of earning money is through her service as a domestic employee. She has various houses where she works, and she helps out where we live a few days a week too.



Sonia has been a faithful witness to her, and has shared the Gospel and Christian principles with her over the months. (For example, “There is no excuse for falling in the quagmires of bitterness even when one is cruelly abandoned by their husband.” (I Corinthians 10:13) , Or “One should find joy and hope in the Lord throughout the adverse circumstances, trusting Him for the future rather than taking one’s own life and their childrens’ lives.” (As Luzmina has considered. )



Luzmina has struggled with her conservatively religious roots, and ridicule or rebuke from others who do not understand man’s need for a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. (They look at it as Luzmina abandoning her religion).



Satan has given her a terrible time, as even her youngest child was poisoned, possibly intentionally , by her land lord. (Her land lord even asked her to sell the child to her! Can you imagine?! What a sinful world we live in!)



We praise God that He has shined His love and hope upon Luzmina. She asked Christ into her heart just 3 days ago with Sonia and me. We know it was a sincere and heart-felt petition that God would forgive her for all of her sins and that Jesus Christ would enter her life and her heart as her only Lord and Savior. (Romans 6:23, Titus 3:5, John 3:3-5,15,16) Praise God!



May He help us lead more and more Ecuadorians to His saving grace!



?Checho and Lorena and family become faithful attenders!

What a joy it is to see God work in the lives of friends I make here in Ecuador! My hunting buddy, Checho, his wife Lorena, his son Mateo, and his mother in law have all become faithful attenders of our services here. They are especially interested, and are doing their best to grow in the Lord. They openly share their prayer requests with us, and they always bring their printed material I give them for their classes.



I believe they (All except for the baby of course) became born again just a few Sunday services ago. When they asked Christ into their hearts, it was no surprise to me! God has been working on them!





Wednesday night Lorena asked for God’s help in their marriage. It seems every time they are in fellowship with the Lord, she feels Satan attacks them in their marriage directly afterwards. Lorena said that sometimes this discourages her and she thinks “I have more peace when I do not seek out God. Satan leaves me alone.” And she admitted that sometimes she reconsiders whether she should carry on the walk of Faith with us (It is that idea of abandoning her old religion I think too.??) Checho interjected that these conflicts after attending church will not discourage him, because he wants to continue his walk with God and live by His guidance, side by side in sweet fellowship! Praise God!



Please pray for them. They are brand new Christians, struggling to start a new life with God.



La Gracia (Grace Baptist) Buys land To Build their Church Building!

As a ministry team we have been partnering together with our church (La Gracia) for quite some time. I was privileged to be a part of it’s 1st year of existence, back in 1990 as an ARRIBA Student. As a mission we recently sold our building in Santa Isabel, and we donated a good sum of money to them for their building project. Missionary Carlene Piper has sacrificially obtained a loan in her name to add to our gift. These two gestures have empowered them to be able to buy a piece of property in an area which suggests allot of future growth. It is already populated with thousands of souls! Praise God for his monumental opportunity they are able to take advantage of. Soon they will be truly self- supporting.





?DO YOU want to make an INTERNAL IMPACT for God in Cuenca?

We could really use your emergency help right now. We have had a building fund for a few years now. We have just $6,000. Sonia and I personally contribute sacrificially every month. Various others have made generous one time gifts. Ecuadorians contribute faithfully, although their salaries are so small that this can hardly make a dent.



We have found that NOW we are at a crossroads in our church planting strategy.



We have been checking in on different areas and sites. And prices are ready to triple in the near future. At the rate we are going, our savings will decrease in value, as the price of land skyrockets here.



Proven Church Planting Strategy: A church planter should buy property in a developing area to plant his church. (Going to the older part of town, or an already developed area is not as productive.) As the area broadens, and the church planter makes friends and starts discipling his neighbors, his church will hopefully fill up with new people, the land will appreciate in value, and the church will be established. Then the church planter will be ready to plant another church elsewhere eventually.



We could do this if we had the funds.



We have researched, and we have found the area most likely to develop into Cuenca’s main extension. Plans in place for this area include a huge new soccer stadium. (The current stadium’s area is the key area of the city at this point . It is one of the best places in Cuenca for church-planting and living. The value of land there has risen at a spiked rate. But it is moving, and it will surely have the same effect in it’s new area-which is where we want to go. ) There are plans for massive urban development. There is a golf and tennis club in the area which is growing fast. There is also the huge Rose exportation industry there.



Right now prices are still fathomable for church planters ($35 per square meter). But in a year they will probably triple, foiling all of our good plans and efforts.



We can save, and save money, but land prices will just rise and rise and rise….our efforts will be futile. We will probably never obtain the necessary land for God’s glory if we cannot act now.



We have found the area for the first Bible Believing, Evangelistic Church to be planted in the entire area. We would be right where we should be in church-planting if we could act on this.



This is where you can possibly help. Please prayerfully consider taking advantage of this textbook opportunity for reaching people with the Gospel by making a donation of any size.



This grand opportunity will fade away forever if we do not grab it.



I think you will agree that it would be tragic to be left high and dry in two years when land for church planting becomes so high that it will be impossible to buy.



Souls are in the balance.



Cuenca will never have this opportunity again.



If you are able to come alongside this vital ministry with a donation of any size, please know that we will use every penny you donate to buy a strategic piece of land for this church plant. Please send your help to BMM and mark it Murray’s Building Fund.



God will do great and mighty things through you!



Sonia and I will continue to donate sacrificially to this cause. But we will never make it without you. We need your help to make an impact for Christ here in Cuenca.



?Further services and classes started to reach out to the unsaved.

I am having the wonderful opportunity to start a Saturday Morning Prayer meeting with those who have University classes on Wednesday nights and those who work Wednesday nights. Furthermore, I am starting a Bible Based (Of course!) family seminar, which will surely be a tremendous help to struggling families. We will be having an evangelistic camp on March 18th . Please be in prayer for this, as we wish to reach many unsaved with the Gospel.



?Weekend of Carnality to begin

This weekend is the Mardi Gras of Latin America, called Carnaval. Characterized by throwing buckets or balloons of water at unsuspecting passerbys, it is actually based on rather sinister dogma. This time of mischief-which includes all of the sins of the flesh like drunkenness, gluttony, and the like-is designed for the religious person to indulge just before the religious observance of “cuaresma”, which is 40 days of religious piety.



Sound hypocritical to you?! Please pray for this weekend of debauchery-that God may protect His own from drunken-drivers, and all of the dangers related to festivals characterized by “caution to the wind”.



•MORE PRAYER REQUESTS

?Paul, my brother in law, spiritual walk. Praise for Promotion at work!

?Health:Me? Where do I begin?! The rest of the family is doing well PTL!

?Andres-decided to stay in Ecuador and study. Spiritual walk.

?QuiQue and Sylvia-struggling with their religious upbringing. Growing in Christ.

?Cristian Moscoso-he is really growing spiritually. Please pray that God will use him in the ministry.

?Maria Augusta-spiritual growth-priorities.

?Fernando Coronel and neices-Salvation-Really struggling with his religious upbringing.

?Vladimiro and Mireya and daughters-salvation.

?Automobile: Our Trooper is still running!

?Website: Being overhauled this month. (www.ecuamurray.org)

?Camp-inviting many unsaved-March 18th

?Indian (Quichua) ministry-for volunteers to reach this wonderful people group.

?I am set to teach Pastors and lay leaders the following: Nouthetic Counseling, Separation, Theology I



We thank you in advance for your wonderful support and prayers. We cannot be here reaching souls for Jesus Christ without you! Thanks!



Your Missionaries;



The Murrays (David, Sonia, Dave, Andrea, Joshua)