“Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over” (Psalm 23:5).
While it is true that throughout the Psalms, David used the language of a shepherd, he never lost sight of the fact that the sheep were men. In the previous verses, we note the sheep in transit as the Lord leads the way and goes before the sheep. As we approach the last verses, there is no doubt the shepherd knew all the time that the way they were traveling led to the father’s house.
Before we reach our final destination described in verse 6, verse 5 reveals some temporary provisions pending our arrival. These are all things pertaining to life and godliness for all time and into eternity. The Lord’s people feast at His table upon the provision of His love.
From Our Missionaries
Misión Creciendo en Cristo (Growing in Christ), North Little Rock: Juan Carlos Posadas writes, “This week was tough for me. I received an infusion for my neuropathy on Thursday and Friday. Saturday was terrible due to a severe headache, and I could barely sleep. Early Sunday, I took painkillers and prepared for Sunday services, namely discipleship and church services.
“This Sunday was special because we baptized Carolina and Cindy, who are being discipled by Sayra and Fernanda, respectively. Third and fourth generations, what a blessing! After the meeting, several families celebrated the baptisms with a picnic in the Arkansas Museum of Fine Arts courtyard. We enjoyed tacos, soft drinks, ice cream, cake and watermelon. Of course, some stopped by to see the museum exhibits. Thank God for our fellowship with our brothers and sisters in Christ.
“Remember that on Saturday, April 19, everyone is cordially invited to our church’s organizational meeting. We will begin at 6 p.m. and look forward to seeing you there.”
Ebenezer, West Little Rock: Ruben Isturiz writes, “On Palm Sunday, we enjoyed a very inspiring service. We gave each Ebenezer member a devotional to study throughout this week, which consisted of a series of meditations on the words Jesus spoke on the cross.
“Sunday afternoon, Kory and I shared with the Rico family and another Ebenezer family to celebrate Joselyn Rico’s birthday. We returned home at 10:30 p.m. after a very long day.
“We have our Discovery Bible Study (DBS) at home on Monday. The Lord allowed me to talk with Miliciades Mendez, a Panamanian brother who cannot attend services on Sundays because of his job at Delta Airlines. Therefore, he participates in our DBS on Mondays.
“We plan to move our DBS to the Rico family home starting in May. This DBS is held on Mondays because it is the only day Victor and Veronica Ahmed have during the week. Kory and I plan to start a new DBS in our home, inviting new people who do not attend Ebenezer.
“We ask for your prayers and support for these changes. To God be the glory!”
Faith Chapel, Flippin: Johnny Shew writes, “What a great week we had at Faith Chapel! While several were traveling, we still had a good number and a wonderful time of worship with one first-time visitor. On Friday, I went to get a haircut from a member. When I arrived, she was speaking to a man in the lobby who was holding a Bible. As she cut my hair, she shared that she saw him reading his Bible, talked to him and learned he was a new believer.
She had invited him to church. So when she finished with me, we went out, and she introduced me to him. I also invited him to church and assured him that he was welcome with us. Well, he was that first-time visitor. Upon his arrival, I greeted him with a smile, and he apologized for not wearing better clothes. I assured him that it did not matter, he was fine and welcome. Praise God, he approached me after the service and told me he really enjoyed our services. I don’t know if he will return, and I am not sure what he took away from it. I don’t even know if he is saved, but I do know that one of our members invited him, many of our members welcomed him and he heard the gospel. That is our role in building God’s kingdom. Praise God for His plan! We thank you for your prayers and support! You are all a part of this mission!
Faith Journey, Benton: Bryan Clay writes, “This week at Faith Journey has been a wonderful example of God moving in the lives of our church family. We’ve seen exciting growth across several ministry groups, and it’s truly a blessing to witness God’s work in action.
“Our men’s group continues to thrive. One of our young men involved in our men’s group has begun inviting several families to Faith Journey. As a result, we welcomed many new faces at our morning and evening services over the last few weeks. It has been a powerful time of worship and praise, as well as a reminder that our mission is impacting our community.
“We also held our monthly Mountain Movers meeting, which was a tremendous success. Over 50 students gathered to hear the gospel and learn about the cross and the resurrection, with the promise of Easter coming this weekend. We’re thankful for everyone who helps to make these meetings happen.
“Looking ahead, we’re eagerly anticipating our Easter service. If the weather is beautiful, we plan to celebrate outdoors with an Easter egg hunt, a time of fellowship and worship under the open sky. If the weather doesn’t cooperate, we’ll move the festivities indoors. Either way, it will be a special day. We hope to see everyone there as we celebrate the risen Savior together.
“To top off our Sunday, we celebrated a birthday for one of our faithful members. It was a joyful occasion filled with laughter and fun. The men of Faith Journey even shared some ‘bits of wisdom’ to encourage him in his spiritual walk and growth in Christ. God is moving at our mission, and we’re so grateful to be part of it. Let’s continue to pray, serve and invite others to join us on this journey of faith.”
Misión Gracia Soberana (Sovereign Grace), NWA:Roberto Marcelletti writes, “Angela led the study. We have already seen the first fruits of our discipleship since it is the first time that Patty, my wife, has not been the one who teaches.
It’s been a month since our English community project began. We have 21 people enrolled, with the vast majority being non-believers. We’re praying and plan to invite them to our resurrection service. We are praying to have a great attendance at this service, which will include breakfast followed by the worship service. Sisters Nani and Angeles will be in the kitchen, and the Garcia and Jimenez families will prepare a rich breakfast for our guests and members.
“We began praying for another mission community outreach project and have decided on a bazaar, which we will do in May. We have already begun asking for clothing and household items for donations. I am also reaching out to the Springdale community.
“I ask for your prayers as I began my last course at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. I will graduate in the fall with a Masters of Divinity.”
Epic Life, Pea Ridge: Jake McCandless writes, “What an incredible week! I’m sure each report here mentions the upcoming Advisory Board meeting. It has been encouraging for me as I have prepared for the meeting. I pulled all our data since last August. It was incredible to see. Even though we pivoted to focusing on building up our existing coaches in the fall rather than making large public invites and outreach, we grew!
The most impressive thing to me is that we have not had anyone leave a Connection Group if they came back for a second time unless they moved, and all who have moved still keep in touch. Incredibly, we have a 39% retention rate! This is double the national average for church plants.
On top of that good news, I had three incredible one-on-one meetings with coaches and participants this week. To top it off, Sunday night, we had our third youth gathering — with nine teenagers, two of which were first-time visitors. The most incredible part about the night is that, not only is it an opportunity for the teens in our Connection Groups to invite friends to hang out and read the Bible together, but our students have been setting up, planning, preparing the snacks and cleaning up each time. This time, however, they did all that and led the Bible Study while adults sat in and offered an invitation at the end. Our students did amazing!
