Friends! What an exciting time to write to you in the life of our church. It feels like there are a bunch of beautiful things happening, and I know a bunch of the wins will be celebrated in the pages to follow. I also have a 400-word limit, so let me quickly remind us of just a few of the things that happened this year.

We, since our last Impact Report, have commissioned a new church (with two more to be sent in the next couple of months), sent out five people internationally (with several others also near ready to be sent), had more baptisms than ever on Celebration Sundays, and welcomed more covenant members in this period than ever (which is awesome considering the planting above!). We have had more financial health and stability than ever, more elders than ever, new events like 24-hour prayer, and we saw the Lord move in miraculous ways, like on Healing Sunday. We have had our largest non-Easter Sunday ever, the most kids in Children’s Ministry ever, and I could name dozens and dozens of events, classes, Sundays, and discipleship meetings…there’s a clear harvest happening.

All of this is genuinely awesome. Numbers do tell a story, and all of these things matter. But by far, the thing that I’m far more encouraged by, over all of these things, is that it feels like our church has just been growing more and more in the love of Christ. We love Jesus, want Jesus, see Jesus everywhere, and are trying to bring Him wherever we are. We’re trying to grow deep in our devotional life, in our worship, in our serving. We’re trying to do this with Jesus because we love Jesus. And this is it. This is the one thing that matters! The fact that there’s all of this fruit while we’re also really trying to know and love Jesus as a church body is just really encouraging.

So, yes and amen to the fruit. More of it, Lord Jesus. Please do beautiful works in our church. Even more, though, yes and amen to Christ. More of You, Jesus—would we have more of You. Thank you, thank you, thank you for making much of Jesus with us. It is such an honor and a privilege, and I hope the stories you read below remind you of this.

Over the past six months, we have had countless opportunities to pause and remember the faithfulness of God among us. From quiet acts of obedience to moments of visible celebration, the Lord has continued to build His church, draw people to Himself, and extend His love through our church family. What follows is a snapshot of those evidences of grace—reminders that every story, big or small, is ultimately a story of God at work.

09/07
One of the ways we have seen God at work is through a “Serve the City” story from our South Central Community Group. As many of you know, our Community Groups commit to a One Place—a space they faithfully frequent with the hope of seeing the gospel bring transformation over time. South Central partners with an organization called My Families Farm, whose mission is to provide a home on their farm for youth, giving them the space and time to cultivate character and build family connections that can shape generations. By consistently showing up, this group has joined hands with that mission, allowing the light of Christ to be present in a place where generational cycles can be changed through love, stability, and gospel hope. This is a reminder of what it means to be a sending church, existing for the good of the city and the glory of God.

09/28
Another clear picture of God’s kindness came through a Community Group story from Balcones Village. Their group partnered with Safe Families to support a mom who had experienced homelessness and was expecting her fifth baby. She had never had a baby shower before, so the group hosted a full celebration—decorations, gifts, and a special cake—creating a moment that honored her and her children with dignity and joy. Beyond the celebration, they spent time encouraging and praying over her, and she shared that she was trying to “soak it all in” because it felt so special. In the weeks that followed, members of the group continued walking closely with her through the final days of her pregnancy and even supported her during delivery, allowing her to tangibly experience the love of Christ through community.

10/05
We also rejoiced in a Missions Team milestone through Bryan and Esther Davidson, missionaries sent from The Well to Kobe, Japan. This fall, they celebrated the baptism of a new brother in Christ after months of walking with him through the First Steps program. His decision to trust Christ and follow Him for the rest of his life was a testimony to the Spirit’s work and the fruit of faithful discipleship across cultures, reminding us that the call to make disciples extends far beyond our local context.

10/12
God’s work was also evident through our partnership with Alpha, centered on reaching the lost in Austin. Alpha provides a space for people to explore life’s biggest questions through meals, teaching, and conversation. When it launched this fall, thirteen guests attended, including four nonbelievers and two new believers, offering an encouraging glimpse of how the Lord is drawing people to Himself through simple invitations and honest dialogue.

10/19
We saw God’s faithfulness through our Kids Ministry, where more than 144 children are cared for each Sunday through the service of over 120 volunteers. These men and women are shaping hearts, modeling the love of Christ, and helping the next generation see that Jesus is worthy of their whole lives. Every act of service—from check-in to classroom teaching—creates space for children to encounter the gospel and grow in faith.

10/26
The Lord also moved through the faithful witness of members sharing the gospel in everyday places. After completing the Disciple-Making Cohort and continuing into the Goer Missional Cohort, Lola joined the Ramirezes for a day of evangelism. A conversation with a young couple at their neighborhood Walmart led to the couple joyfully receiving Christ, and they have since been welcomed into community and invited into the life of the church. It was a reminder that reaching the lost often unfolds through ordinary obedience.

11/09
We witnessed meaningful spiritual formation through prayer, fasting, and community. The Balcones Village Community Group fasted together for 24 hours before sharing a meal, turning a simple act of obedience into a moment of joy and dependence on the Lord. During this same season, more than 200 fasting prayer requests were submitted, allowing our church to intercede together and deepen our reliance on God.

11/16
We also celebrated a step forward in reaching the nations as the T family shared their calling to move to the Middle East to serve alongside an international church-planting team. As their sending church, we committed to pray for, care for, and support them, participating in God’s global mission through their obedience.

11/23
Celebration Sunday and Healing Sunday offered powerful reminders of God’s presence among us. During Celebration Sunday, we witnessed 11 baptisms, three child dedications, nearly 50 new covenant members, and new shepherds stepping into leadership. The following week, nearly half of our church received prayer, with testimonies of healing and encouragement reminding us that the Spirit continues to move in both visible and quiet ways.

11/30
We saw a beautiful expression of generosity through the Parker Station Community Group, who packed 21 Operation Christmas Child boxes during a Friendsgiving gathering. Their gifts are now on their way to children around the world who will not only receive practical items but also hear about Jesus, showing how simple acts of generosity can carry the gospel far beyond what we see.

12/07
God’s work through church planting was evident as a new plant in Travis Heights continued building its core team. Through soccer clinics for Afghan refugee children, weekly prayer walks, and a diaper pantry for local families, they have been serving tangible needs while building relationships that point to the hope of Christ—a glimpse of disciples multiplying and the gospel taking root in new neighborhoods.

12/14
Our church family also provided more than 100 Christmas gifts for students at Eastside High School, many of whom might not otherwise have received anything. Each gift matched a student’s request, reflecting care, dignity, and compassion for local families and demonstrating Christ’s heart for the vulnerable.

01/05
In December, we hosted our first 24-hour prayer gathering, with more than 30 people participating throughout the day and night to intercede for our church, our missionaries, and the nations. It was a meaningful reminder that we depend on the Spirit to guide and empower our prayers as we seek God together.

01/18
We celebrated the sending of our fourth national church plant, The Garden, marking the fruit of years of prayer, generosity, and leadership development. This moment reflected our vision in action as disciples are multiplied, leaders are released, and new communities are formed around the gospel.

02/08
As we began our Barnabas series, we took time to pray for Bryan and Esther Davidson and reaffirm our commitment to reaching the nations. Their faithful service in Japan reminds us that the movement of the gospel is often carried forward through steady, unseen obedience, and we rejoice in partnering with them in that work.

02/15
We also saw God’s grace in how He continues to equip our church to grow as disciples. New discipleship curriculum launched for both individuals and groups, a 47-day Lent devotional guided our church in reflection and renewal, and an interactive Acts resource helped us visually trace the movement of the gospel during the Barnabas series. These tools reflect our desire for continual, reproducible discipleship as we pursue all that Jesus commanded together.

As we reflect on these wins, we are reminded that the growth we celebrate is not the result of human effort alone, but the kindness and power of God at work through His people. Each act of service, each step of obedience, and each life transformed points us back to Him. We look ahead with gratitude for what He has done and with expectancy for what He will continue to do as we seek to love, follow, and serve Jesus together.

Over the past several months, we have continued to see the Lord move in powerful yet often quiet ways throughout our church family at The Well. While numbers can help tell part of the story, the deeper evidence of God’s work is found in changed lives, answered prayers, and faithful obedience across every stage of discipleship—from children in classrooms to missionaries among the nations.

One of the clearest reminders this season has come through our college ministry. Through the ordinary rhythms of life and intentional discipleship on campus at University of Texas at Austin, leaders have been investing deeply in students. During Welcome Week, a gospel conversation with a freshman led to a life-changing moment. After hearing that he could never be “good enough” on his own, he surrendered his life to Jesus. Later, he asked to be baptized and publicly declared his new faith. Moments like this remind us that the Lord continues to draw people to Himself as the gospel is faithfully shared.

We have also witnessed God’s faithfulness in the lives of families within our church. In one of our children’s ministry classrooms, a volunteer asked students how they had seen God at work in their lives. An eight-year-old girl shared how she had battled brain cancer as a baby and how God had sustained her. What the class didn’t know was that earlier that same morning her mother had asked an elder to pray with her, as that day marked the seventh anniversary of her daughter’s diagnosis. She had been praying for wisdom about how to process and share their story. When her daughter courageously shared in class just minutes later, the family saw it as a clear answer to prayer. Through moments like this, the Lord reminds us that His faithfulness is not abstract—it is personal and present in the lives of His people.

God has also been shaping hearts in the everyday work of discipleship. In our Kids Ministry, one volunteer described a moment that began with frustration as a child struggled to listen during an activity. Later, that same child returned, apologized, and asked for forgiveness. It was a simple interaction, but it reflected something deeper: God forming humility and repentance even in the youngest among us. These small moments are reminders that discipleship often happens quietly, through patience, love, and consistent gospel presence.

At the same time, the Lord continues to lead members of our church beyond Austin and toward the nations. One family recently shared their journey of being called overseas to serve in North Africa. Their calling did not come through a single dramatic moment, but through steady conviction as God repeatedly met their fears with peace. Since arriving, they have experienced His provision in daily needs and His presence through the challenges of cross-cultural life. Their story reflects the heart of our church’s mission—to see the gospel carried to every people and place, trusting God to guide and sustain those He sends.

Taken together, these stories reveal a consistent pattern of what God has been doing among us. The Lord is saving people through the proclamation of the gospel. He is strengthening families through answered prayer and sustained faith. He is shaping disciples through everyday moments of repentance and growth. And He is sending members of our church to participate in His global mission.

As we look back on this season, we are reminded that God’s work often unfolds through ordinary faithfulness—conversations on campus, prayers offered in quiet rooms, children learning repentance, and families stepping into obedience, as we learned in our Barnabas series. Through it all, the same thread runs consistently: the Lord is building His church, and we are grateful to witness His harvest in and through this community.

Over the past season, we made several intentional changes to strengthen our student ministry, and we’re already seeing the fruit.

We moved our meeting space to the upstairs lobby, creating a more open, relational environment where students connect more naturally. We also established a consistent, interactive meeting flow—games, a simplified Bible study, small group discussion, prayer, and time to linger together—which has made our gatherings more engaging and something students genuinely look forward to. Instead of following Sunday’s sermon, we began walking through shorter, student-friendly passages using the Discovery Bible Study method, equipping students to understand Scripture and confidently share it with others. By prioritizing small group breakout times and monthly Family Sundays, we’ve seen deeper community form among students and a stronger connection between students, their families, and the broader church. We have also onboarded six new student ministry volunteers in the last few months who are eager to serve and care for our students.

I’m really excited about the changes we’ve made, and I believe they’ve already made a beautiful impact on our students. But don’t take my word for it. Here’s a quote from two of our student ministry regulars:

“The thing I like most about kids’ ministry is how we dive deeper into the Bible. I also really like the small groups because we get to share and talk about things that matter to us personally.”

—Austyn M., 6th grade student

“I like everything about it. I really like how it is right now. I also like the game in the morning and the discussion.”

—Michaiah M., 6th grade student

In The Well’s College Ministry, we’ve seen the Lord move powerfully as we’ve stayed focused on our mission of equipping college students to be faithful disciples who value the local church and multiply their faith by reaching the nations on UT’s campus. Like the parable of the sower reminds us, our role is to scatter gospel seeds, and God has been faithful to bring growth.

This season has been especially marked by discipleship. Weekly rhythms like the Commands of Christ DBS, the UT Athletics Bible study, and other student-led studies have created consistent spaces for growth in the Word. We’ve seen students discipling and sharing the gospel with their friends while also seeking upward discipleship through one-on-one relationships with men and women in their Well Community Groups. More than 70 students pursued connections through our College Worship Night and Ice Cream Social, which served as front doors for many toward next steps. Wednesday Morning Prayer remains a steady anchor, with over 25 students gathering weekly to pray and be corporately discipled by staff across our church.

We’ve also seen a deepening love for the local church. Over 30 students attended Vision for Well College in the fall. Many have completed or are currently in the covenant membership process, and more are stepping into Community Groups and serving teams. Retreats played a significant role this semester—17 college women and nine college men attended The Well’s Women’s and Men’s Retreats, and the College Winter Retreat filled all 50 spots in just an hour and a half, reflecting a real hunger for connection and spiritual growth. We also celebrated multiple student baptisms, a visible reminder of God’s saving work.

At the same time, God is stirring hearts for the nations. Through tabling, prayer walks, and regular outreach, hundreds of gospel seeds have been planted across campus. Several students came to faith this fall and winter, while others began exploring Jesus through Bible studies. Interest in missions continues to grow, with 10 students preparing for our second annual Summer Discipleship Program, which will include local ministry and a short-term trip to visit long-term missionaries from The Well.

Looking ahead to the spring, we’re praying for deeper discipleship, more students stepping into membership and serving, and continued boldness in sharing the gospel. Above all, we’re grateful. God is clearly at work, and it’s a joy to partner with Him.

The Lord has been moving in incredible ways through our Prayer Ministry at The Well. We have seen Ephesians 3:20 come to life, which says, “Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us.” Our team has been a blessing to our church through intercession, prophetic ministry, and deeper healing prayer on Sundays and throughout the week. We have grown to 63 members this year who are committed to loving, serving, and building up the church through their spiritual gifts.

This past season, we have had trainings to better equip our team in safety and protocol. We have implemented First Monday Prayer each month, where our team gathers to pray for our church, and we also had our first-ever 24-hour prayer gathering in December, where 72 people came to pray and enter into the presence of God. We have seen the Lord move through miraculous healing, deliverance, and His sheep hearing His voice. We believe the Lord’s heart for His church is centered on prayer and communion with Him, and we are honored to serve the Bride in this way.

We came into this new fiscal year hyper-focused on supporting CGs toward the hard, yet necessary, work of multiplication. While I do believe that multiplication is still very much in progress, the Lord knew that first some pruning was needed within our CGs to ensure the harvest remains healthy, abundant, and fruitful.

John 15:2 says, “Every branch in me that does not bear fruit he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit.” This has become our daily prayer. I realized for the first time that in this passage, Jesus says the branches that do and do not bear fruit—both will be tended to by the Vinedresser. Wow.

Here is how we have seen this in our CGs: since September, we have had the joy of sending off some of our CG Shepherds to be instrumental in The Garden Church Plant core team. Experienced and beloved leaders felt the Lord leading them to help establish a new Christ-centered community in South Austin. Even more, Slaughter CG became The Garden’s core team. Alongside Zach and Rachel Silver, those women and men were commissioned as a new church in January. Praise God—this is pruning.

At the same time, we made the difficult but necessary decision to close a few CGs, trusting that God would bring greater spiritual health and flourishing for our family even in the “taking away.”

I am confident that the Holy Spirit is doing a mighty work in and through our people, and there is so much more fruit to celebrate. In just two short months of 2026, here’s what God is doing:

• 70% of our CGs have a CG One Place
• 1 CG multiplication
• 4–5 CGs planning multiplication
• CGs fasting and prayer walking

In the midst of all of this, we are developing easy-to-use content for our church family. During the Barnabas sermon series, we introduced “Looking to Jesus” and “Becoming Like Jesus” as foundational resources to kick-start a culture of reproducible discipleship. And there’s more to come. Once completed, the full journey will take individuals step by step from learning what discipleship is, to growing in character and maturity, and through to developing future leaders. This inspires a lot of expectation and hope for what’s to come.

Please be praying along with us for the Lord to continue to prune and bear much fruit in our hearts and CGs, in Jesus’ name and for His glory!

Through your generosity, we were able to bless every faculty member at Eastside High School with a financial gift. We did this through an afternoon of fun games and an enjoyable lunch, with many from The Well staff in attendance. In addition, through the Giving Tree, we were able to gift over 100 students from Eastside High School with Christmas presents. We were also able to establish four Serve Austin organizations as new partners in the city. These partners represent places where people from The Well already serve. They are More Than Welcome, serving refugees; Safe Families, serving local families in need; Community First Village, serving the chronically homeless; and FAM, serving foster families.

Recovery is now in its third year. This year, we have witnessed life change from lifelong addictions, families brought back together, trauma being addressed for the first time, and people finding tools to deal with sin—both sin they have committed and sin committed against them. The impact of everyone who has come to Recovery begins with the first step of admitting there is a problem. In that admission, we saw a young man commit to sobriety from drugs and alcohol. He committed to the process and has been sober since we began last September.

We say that Recovery is a safe place where people experience healing and hope in Christ through confession, repentance, and celebration—all in the context of weekly meetings. Our leaders have walked the road of recovery themselves, and it’s an honor for us to walk with our congregants as they begin their journey.

We believe real healing and lasting hope comes through Christ. Our process centers on confession, repentance, and celebration—practiced in the safety of weekly community.

Our rhythms for recovery remain the same: every meeting begins with a personal story of transformation, followed by teaching through one of the twelve steps of recovery, which guide our rhythm of growth and accountability. After large group time, participants break into gender-specific small groups where they can share honestly, reflect on the week’s step, and commit to one action for the days ahead. These groups offer space for openness and encouragement, reminding us we were never meant to walk this road alone.

t’s a community that recognizes that it’s okay not to be okay. If you’re hurting, stuck, or simply weary, you don’t have to stay there. Recovery is a place to begin again, surrounded by people who understand the struggle and believe in the hope Christ offers. We’re thankful you’re here, and we pray this becomes a steady source of encouragement as you take your next step forward.

Learn more about our Recovery Ministry at thewellaustin.com/recovery

This past quarter, our Barnabas series focused on discipleship helped our church reflect on what it means to strengthen one another in the Lord. In the book of Acts, Barnabas played a quiet but significant role in shaping the early church. Through encouragement, discipleship, and faithful presence, he helped others grow in their confidence and obedience to Christ.

That same vision continues to guide our church today. The strength of the church is not built on a few visible leaders but through a community of believers who encourage one another, walk together in obedience, and invest in each other’s growth in Christ.

Throughout the Barnabas series, several discipleship resources were shared to help individuals and families continue cultivating that kind of life together.

The Discipleship Reflection Tool encourages believers to examine not only what they are doing for Jesus but how and why they are doing it. By slowing down to reflect on our motivations and patterns, we are able to pursue a life that increasingly reflects the character of Christ.

Looking to Jesus: A Discipleship Journey reminds us that discipleship is not a program to complete but a shared way of life. As we love, follow, and serve Christ together, we grow into the kind of people who reflect His life and teaching in everyday life.

Becoming Like Jesus was created to support one-on-one discipleship relationships. By walking through the Gospels together, two people can learn directly from the life and words of Jesus and allow His teaching to shape their lives.

Mapping the Movement offers an interactive journey through the book of Acts. By tracing the people and places God used to carry the gospel forward, it helps believers see how the early church grew through ordinary disciples who faithfully proclaimed Christ.

The 47-Day Journey: Applying Lent guided individuals and families through daily Scripture, prayer, and practice from Ash Wednesday through Easter. This rhythm of reflection helped anchor our church in the story of Christ’s death and resurrection while forming habits that continue beyond the season.

As we reflect on this past quarter, our prayer is that these resources continue to serve our church well. When believers strengthen one another in the Lord, the church grows in maturity, unity, and faithfulness. Through ordinary discipleship and faithful encouragement, God continues to build His church.

In the coming months, we plan to continue expanding the range of discipleship resources available to our church. In addition to standalone articles and videos, we are developing deeper article and video series that walk through topics more thoroughly over time. We will continue releasing seasonal devotionals that guide daily time with God, expanding our podcast to address more biblical topics, and building new interactive resources that help people visualize and understand the story of Scripture. We are also developing simple Scripture-based games designed to help people memorize, learn, and meditate on the Word of God. Our hope is that these resources make it easier for individuals, families, and groups to keep growing in Christ and strengthening one another in the Lord.

We are celebrating the Lord’s call on our church to be senders. As we pursue our vision to see 100 churches planted internationally in the first 50 years of our church’s existence, it’s a real joy to see our congregation take faithful steps in pursuing this vision.

Throughout this year, we have had the privilege of seeing many of you faithfully evaluate how the Lord is calling you to this, little by little.

In the fall, we had a 10-week Mission of God class. We heard from speakers on the theology and history of how God is redeeming the world for Himself. We also heard from missionaries serving around the world about how God has used this call on their lives to bring redemption on the mission field and deepen intimacy with Him. While this class was not created with nonbelievers in mind, we even saw someone profess faith in Jesus one week after the class.

The Lord is continuing to raise up a harvest of laborers to go to the nations in our church. We commissioned the Tinlins in January to Central Asia and recommissioned Elizabeth to Brazil to work in mobilizing the Brazilian church to the Middle East. We also blessed Taylor Slaven in her sending to Japan. We are looking forward to blessing Rebecca Williams and commissioning the Eldridges to Southeast Asia this summer. On top of that, the Davidsons, who are in Japan, welcomed a new brother into the Kingdom through their ministry.

As we send, we are also celebrating the Lord’s call on our church to be sowers.

Our fifth nine-month International Core Team Training also kicked off in the fall. We have 10 people in this group assessing whether going to the nations is the Lord’s call on their lives right now. As we intentionally live on mission here in Austin, our group has witnessed many people say yes to Jesus, including family members, kids, friends, and neighbors.

This same group is leading our 10-week Disciple-Making Cohorts that just started on February 22. We have three cohorts going out among the city of Austin, carrying the light of the gospel to workplaces, one places, grocery stores, and parks as they learn how to make disciples everywhere they go. It is clear the Lord is at work in the lives of our congregation and those we engage with. We are so thankful to be part of a church whose people are willing to invest in a vision as bold as ours.

Shared with permission.

1 Month In!! What a month!!

By God’s grace, in the past four weeks we have:

• Lived with our dear and gracious team leaders and their kiddos for three weeks
• Had our first team meetings and worship gatherings
• Celebrated ****’s birthday 🥳
• Found an apartment, moved in, and set up utilities (hot water was an uphill battle, but we finally got there 😬😂)
• Spent time with ****’s parents, who helped us a ton
• Met neighbors, shopkeepers, and taxi drivers whom we hope to build meaningful relationships with
• Began learning many new words in both local languages
• Walked 100+ miles (which will probably increase over time!!)
• Had a refreshing first video call with our care team from our home fellowship
• Visited a nearby city to see a friend from our home fellowship
• Went birding here for the first time (and saw 28 new species of birds!)
• Applied for and RECEIVED ****’s visa for one year—thank you, Jesus!!!

Learning to Slow Down:
Hi everyone!! It is hard to believe that a month has already gone by. We miss you all dearly, even as we begin to experience the joy of settling down here and diving into our new community. Living here has forced us to learn to slow down—in part because we’re new, don’t know where things are or how things are done, and have limited language, but perhaps equally because things are just done more slowly here. Case in point—I had a plan to head to a coffee shop and work on this newsletter this morning, but I only got about 10 feet out the door of our apartment before a barber who works on the bottom floor invited me in for tea. Thirty minutes and two cups of tea later, I was on my way again to start writing. The goal-oriented, time-conscious part of me could easily be frustrated with this small detour and completely miss the blessing of meeting several neighbors and experiencing their hospitality.

We are praying that God would allow us to surrender our schedules and goals to Him and see the people He puts in front of us the way He does. While there’s undeniably a lot of work ahead, God has been reminding us that we’re not here to build a little kingdom for ourselves consisting of a perfect apartment, a tidy schedule, and a list of accomplishments to prove how competent we are. We’re here to abide in Christ and to share with our neighbors the joy and peace that He alone brings—especially in the moments when things go wrong, when schedules get delayed, and when we don’t get what we want. Our heart’s desire is not to show others that we’re competent enough to “make it,” but that we’re broken and needy people who have been given hope and new life by Jesus—and that He offers the same to them.

Update on Local Believer Family & Upcoming Training
We also wanted to update you on how our team’s local partners and their adult children are doing. You may remember that this refugee family has been faithfully sharing the Good News with many refugees in our city for the last few years and has felt the Holy Spirit guiding them to move back to their home country at some point to continue sharing the gospel there.

Last month, their youngest son was suddenly sent back to their home country by the government here. Needless to say, this was pretty unexpected and traumatic for their family. Praise God that our local partner and his older son were able to travel to their home country to help the younger son adjust during his first few weeks there, and the older son decided to move there with his brother. The rest of the family discerned that through this event, the Lord was inviting them to move back as a family unit sooner than they had planned. At first, it looked like they might move before we even landed here, but they have decided to wait until the summer in order to leave the local community of young believers here in a healthy place.

We are so thankful to overlap with them for a season—to learn from them, pray with them, and send them off well. Having just gone through a season of leaving what’s familiar and being sent somewhere new, we’ve gotten a taste of what they are preparing to do. Yet the poverty, danger, and spiritual isolation they are willingly stepping back into in their home country is on a whole different level than it is for us. Please pray for this dear, faithful family, that they would feel Jesus near as they prepare for this transition.

This local partner couple is hoping to pass on their vision for a gospel movement among their people group to the community of believers they have helped lead to Christ. With this in mind, this family and our team have planned several days of training geared toward empowering and equipping these new believers to share the Good News with those around them. Please lift up this training with us—that many of the believers would prioritize attending and soak in all that God has for them to learn, and most of all, that they would come away excited and equipped to effectively share the good news about Jesus with their communities.

Praises 🙌🏼

We are praising God for all the amazing things He has done in the past four weeks (see the list at the beginning of the email!). We’re especially thankful for an apartment that’s starting to feel like home, amazing teammates and family here, and ****’s visa being approved extremely quickly. Thank you to everyone who has already been praying over us throughout the past month. We know God has heard your prayers and is providing for us.

Prayer Requests 🙏🏼

• For the Lord’s peace, courage, and encouragement for our local partners and their children as they navigate upcoming changes
• Wisdom for decisions about our local partner’s business in the midst of his move and the economic changes going on
• For many of the new believers to attend the gospel-sharing training and that it would be an impactful time
• Opportunities for us to have spiritual conversations—language skills and boldness in the moment
• As we start the search for language helpers soon, pray that God would guide us to the right people
• Resilience when homesickness hits (we miss you all!) and continued integration and bonding with our new team

We are so thankful for your friendship and support. We miss you and pray that the Lord reveals Himself to you in new and delightful ways each day.

With much love and gratitude,

**** & ****

The Lord is continuing to move in our church which has been highlighted in our finances as well.

We went into this year with confidence that God would provide financially. It started a little slower than expected in the fall but WOW did he answer that prayer through each of you throughout the winter and start of this year. We saw 2 all time high giving months over this last quarter and even with our increased giving towards church planting, mission and benevolence we have still been in a great place to plant in our city, send to the nations and serve our people! Because of your faithful giving over the last 6 months, we were able to send out another church plant (The Garden), welcome many new families to our church, host a teacher appreciation event at Eastside, continue our weekly recovery ministry, launch Alpha, develop many leaders, launch new CGs, send out more missionaries and so much more!

Thank you for supporting your church family and allowing for there to be too many weekly wins to count. Just to give you a comparison in my last update our quarterly giving was around 700,000 this time it is over 1 million. Because of this increased giving, we were able to add $50,000 to our Church Planting and Mission Funds. God is good! 

Behind these numbers are also real stories of God shaping hearts through generosity. Daniel, one of our elders, shared how difficult financial seasons—including job loss—became the very means God used to reshape his understanding of giving. What began as a practical question of “how much should I give?” became something deeper. Over time, he came to see generosity not simply as a financial decision but as an act of trust in God. Through those seasons, and through the encouragement of his wife Angie, Daniel learned that generosity is less about the amount and more about reflecting Christ and relying on the Lord’s provision.

Kenneth and his wife experienced a similar shift. For years their giving was consistent but largely routine—an act of faithfulness shaped by habit. Over time, they began to ask whether their generosity reflected true love for God or simply obligation. Even through seasons when their finances fluctuated, they remained committed to giving with intention. As Kenneth shared, they wanted their generosity to be rooted in desire rather than duty, trusting that money would never become something they valued more than the Lord.

Stories like these remind us that generosity in the church is never only about budgets or totals. It is about God forming hearts that trust Him, providing for the work of the gospel, and allowing our church to continue planting, sending, serving, and discipling. As we have seen again this quarter, God is faithful to provide for His church!