The last couple of months have been quite eventful, and we thank God for His continued faithfulness. On one hand we celebrated a wedding during a church service, and on the other hand there have been struggles with our health. Through everything, we continue to be very excited about ministering in El Salvador, and believe that our best days of ministering are ahead.
It is very common in El Salvador for a couple to live together out of wedlock. Brother Rodolfo and Xiomara obeyed the Lord and were married at church last month. We thank God for this victory because there are others in our church who need to take that step as well. It is our hope that Rodolfo and Xiomara´s obedience would motivate others to do the right thing. Please pray for the spiritual growth of this couple, and for their son Kevin. Rodolfo has been faithful to the church services, and is active in soul-winning. Now that he has improved his testimony, he will get the opportunity to become more active in church.
By God´s grace we are close to achieving our goal of knocking on the doors of about 10% of the city (pop. 400,000) twice in the year. If God permits, we want to increase our goal for next year. Please pray that we would be able to knock on the doors of 25% of the city during 2010. Bro. Gustavo Bonilla (65 years old) has been very active in this ministry. God has allowed him to win many souls this year while door-knocking, and he goes out with Steve (for either soul-winning or visitation) about five days per week. Also pray that God would give us the workers so that the goal could be increased every year. Right now, our ultimate goal is to be able to knock on every door of the city four times per year by 2015. This has been an effective ministry, and some have been incorporated (saved and baptized) into the church because of door-knocking. As we look to God in improving the way we do things, we are excited to think about the results that He will produce.
About a month ago, Christine broke her foot. She was in a cast that reached her knee for a month. As you can imagine, it was a trying time for us. She had to stop much of the ministry that she does, and she could not care for her home as she wanted. Steve took on the role of “Mr. Mom” along with all of his other responsibilities. But we are happy to tell you that through this trial, we believe that God brought our family closer together. Steve now knows, in detail, what it takes to keep a home running smoothly on the mission field, and appreciates Christine even more. Christine is so grateful for a husband that is willing to make sure his family is well cared for, even when it is not easy. And the kids enjoyed having Mommy sit around and read them books all day long! The cast was removed five days ago, and yesterday she began walking without crutches. Please pray for Christine’s continued healing.
Rosa has struggled with asthma over the past month also. We are in the middle of a transition with the weather. Rainy season has ended and the dry season is now here. Because of this, her asthma was aggravated. It looks like she is healing nicely now, but we do ask you to continue to keep her in your prayers as we battle asthma problems every once in a while. Please pray for her as she begins Kindergarten homeschooling early next year. We plan on keeping with the Salvadoran school calendar, which begins in February and ends in November.
Caleb is doing well and enjoys going to Sunday School. He is old enough now to interact with the children at the church and greatly enjoys “singing” in Sunday School. The children are always delighted to see him act out the action songs that we sing.
In closing, we would like to wish you a Merry Christmas. We pray you enjoy this time of year celebrating our Savior, the whole reason we are here in El Salvador. We thank you again for your faithful support. It is always an encouragement when we hear that you are praying for our family and the ministry in El Salvador.
Your Servants For Christ,
The Cerna Family
