May Newsletter

Dear friends,
The month of May marks the two year anniversary since we moved to Latvia as church-planting missionaries. We are thankful as God has been faithful to provide for all our needs according to His riches in glory. And we are trusting Him to continue the good work that He started here in Latvia. We are writing to share great news and to inform you of a great need we will have in May, 2009.

First of all, the great news: We have been studying through the Bible with twelve disciples (Vitaly and Christa, Janis and Marion, Sergey and Jelena, Leonid and Inese, Artis and Ieva, Agnese and Sveta). Currently I am teaching 1 Kings and our plan for 2009 is to finish the Old Testament. Last week, we moved our Sunday morning services to a bigger venue in the center of Riga and the rent is covered by those who are attending. Our evangelism team continues to give out many gospel tracts every week and we have also been invited to minister to orphans in a village where Sergey has been delivering humanitarian aid. So God is doing great things and we believe greater things are yet to come in the months and years ahead!

Now, we have a great need in the month of May... It's time to renew our residence permits for our 3rd year and one of the requirements is that we prove we have the "necessary substinance" (a minimum of $11,500). This is not the cost of the visa, it's the minimum Latvia expects to be in our savings account for our living/ministry expenses. Because of the economic crisis, some of our generous supporters have been out of work, so our savings falls short. The bottom line is, we will need an additional $8000 by the end of May.


If you are interested in helping to meet this need, the best way to help is to send a check any amount made payable to "Calvary Chapel Monterey Bay" and then mail it to 3001 Monterey-Salinas Hwy, CA 93940. Do not write our names on the check but include a separate note designating "for Latvia" and we will receive 100%. But if you want to donate by credit card online, you can conveniently give to our cause and we will receive 95.25% (because of credit card processing fees). If you can send a one time gift this month it will help us to renew our residence permits for the next year of church planting in Latvia.

Thank you all for your partnership in the gospel.
To God be the glory!
Brenten and the Powers family
www.calvarylatvia.com

Credit card authorization form.doc

How to sign up for monthly donations

If you would like to support Calvary Latvia on a monthly basis, follow these instructions:

1. Print out the credit card authorization form (found at http://docs.google.com/Doc?id=dhnfnc49_2pdb3n3 )
   
2. Fill it in completely.
3. Make sure to sign it.
4. Send to Calvary Chapel Monterey Bay, 3001 Monterey-Salinas Hwy, Monterey, CA 93940

If you have any questions about the status of your donation, please contact the accountant at Calvary Chapel Monterey Bay at (831)649-1158. Thank you.

Moral Support

I recieved an encouraging email from a friend who was a missionary in Africa and is now back in Santa Cruz supporting us by prayer and moral support. Her name is Carrie Wheeler and this is her email (she gave me permission to post it)... Thank you Carrie!

Hi- this is Carrie. I hope and pray that you are well in the Lord and His work. We were praying for you and your easter service and I am thankful that you and your family were faithful to deliver the "goods" to the people. The gospel of truth. Simple yet incomprehensible.

I just wanted to share something with you guys that I have been thinking about since I saw your blog and heard about how your easter service went. I am glad that you are able to critique yourself about your message and what you might've done different. I am reminded though, of Jonah and his message, as I was listening to today. The whole city repented at the preaching of Jonah, and he couldn't have cared less for the Ninehvites.His message was heartless and cold. I am also reminded of Jeremiah, an awesome servant of God, who was faithful to all God had for him to do. When he was tired of sharing he said the Word burned in His heart and he couldn't help but share. But in all his time and life, no converts. Not one. No single soul touched unto repentance. What a contrast!! Just wanted to encourage you that it is not about the messenger, though we are obviously called to be a vessel and holy, but it is God who saves and He can do it through Jonah or Jeremiah. He can do it through a donkey. Be encouraged, it is so freeing to know that all you are supposed to do is share the truth. You have done that and well and I am always so blessed to see all that you are doing there and your love for the people and your hearts for the Lord. The videos always bless me and I am so thankful that you are there and the Lord is proud of you. I always had to ask the question- what if I never saw one person come to Christ through my ministry? The Lord doesn't usually do that but it is surely a matter of the heart. Is the Lord enough for me? I have often felt like Jeremiah, with no visible fruit in all my time in Africa, but I have to know that our work in the Lord is not in vain. 1 Cor 15:58

I pray for you always and know that the Lord is greatly working for His Name through your service,

Carrie

How far does a dollar go?

Many missionaries are feeling the pressure of the falling dollar and are asking supporters to pray. We are asking you to pray too. God has been faithful to meet our needs so far and we trust Him to continue providing as He leads us forward. We also understand our responsibility to report our situation to those through whom God is providing.

How far does a dollar go? A year ago we could get .54 lats, now we get only .45 lats according to Yahoo currency exchange. Or to put it another way, if something cost us 1 lat here, it use to take $1.85, now it takes $2.20!

Since we cannot earn an income here, our support comes entirely from the US. Our biggest expense is rent, with the exchange rate it has gone from $800/mo to $950/mo: half of our current support level. So we are seeking to negotiate a lower rent or find another place to live, for example an apartment outside the city. Please pray for us.

Post Script: Another "interesting" factor in the economy here is the inflation of the Latvian economy at the rate of 16.7% a year - the highest in the European union! Meanwhile the cost of food has risen 5.8%.