Serving

How do I put into words the things of today? God already did Matthew 20:28 - "Just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve." This is our heart and this is why we came. Today was absolutely indescribable. Our plans changed today due to unforeseen events, but our resolve was quick. We were able to go to a community center and play with children and perform some construction. It is so sweet to serve. The afternoon was full, both spiritually and time wise. We attended one of the most eloquent services we've all ever experienced. We laid hands on two brothers in Christ, named Ariel and Wika, who are leaving for the mission field on Friday. These men have received training from Tim, Cavin and Derek through a Church Planting program that they created. Last Tuesday Ariel decided to quit his job and go into the mission field. He will be leaving his family on Friday to go with Wika to Bocas Del Toro and then into a remote jungle for two months. The church they attend have 10-15 members. They are sending two of their own. Fantastic percentages!!

God is good and again isn't it GOOD TO SERVE! - Steven H

Ariel and Wika, 2 new missionaries

Tuesday in Santa Fe

We had a full day in the hot Panama sun! A few weeks ago God opened the doors for us to work in an area here called Santa Fe. It is a family community with a large community center and several parks in the area. This morning, we prayer walked the area and were able to have some great conversations with some of the local families. The people were so friendly and we can see so much potential for house churches in this area. This afternoon we handed out fliers for an upcoming movie night we will host in the community in a few weeks. It was a very productive day.
The Thomasville team has 3 young men who have joined their parents to minister to the people of Panama this week. Caleb, Ben and Brady have been such assets to the team. The have been such troopers and worked so hard!

We asked each of them to share their favorite part about the day. Here are their thoughts. :)

"I really liked how people were so friendly when we talked to them. No one was ever rude to us. They always wanted to hear what we had to say. I also liked getting pulled over by the police." (that is a whole other story!) Brady-8th grade

"We got to talk to 4 girls who were my age in the park. They had lots of fun having their pictures taken and trying to say English words." Ben-7th grade

"I liked prayer walking the town and the school. We prayed that when the school is finished being built, the missionaries here would be able to go there and talk about Jesus with the kids." Caleb-5th grade

The Living Water

Hola!! Today was our first day on the mission field in Panama. We started the day at the Louderback house for a meeting with the Urban Team (Tim, Tina, Cavin, Charlotte, Audrey and Derek). We learned a lot of interesting information about Panama City. Out of the 1.2 million people who live in the city, only about 2% are Evangelicals. With this in mind, we all went to Ancon Hill to pray over the city of Panama. We are really praying for God to use us to do some amazing things this week. After praying over the city, we went to Omar Park to give out water to people. On the bottles we had labels that explained how Jesus is the Living Water. We had great conversations with lots of Panamanians. Hopefully lots of seeds were planted today. Tomorrow is another great day full of many mission opportunities. Please pray for our team. We love all of you and have already felt your prayers. ~ Leigh

FBC Thomasville Georgia Visits Panama!!!

We are getting ready to head to the airport to pick up a group of friendly faces! Our home church, FBC Thomasville, Georgia, is sending a mission team to work with us for the week. We are BEYOND EXCITED! We are not only excited about seeing our friends and getting to serve with them this week in beautiful Panama, but about what God is going to do through our work. We are going to update the blog throughout the week, so be sure and check back in. Please pray for the Urban Panama (UP) Team this week along with our Georgia friends:

Leigh
Ben
Steve
Amy
Caleb
Brady
Lori
Stephen
and Debbie