Monday, March 28, 2016

Easter Weekend















Last weekend the Muslim community of Budrio called all faith leaders together to speak about the condemnation of the Brussels attacks last week. It was a good oppurtunity for our church family to be represented and to speak about the problem of sin in the world and how we need a Savior in Jesus. Please pray for our city and for our muslim, catholic and athiest neighbours. Our pray is that they see the love of Christ in us and the way we live. Also, that we may speak the truth in our public circles as many times as we get.

Love you all and Happy Easter.

Sunday, March 20, 2016

Great Palm Sunday














Today is Palm Sunday. We had a great time of worship and prayer for our community and for God's global church. For the last few days we have been working with a team from Little Rock Arkansas who have shared not just the game of baseball with the students of Budrio but the Gospel as well.

Please pray for many of our folks who were out sick today. The last few days the weather here seems to be bringing Spring, however sickness is going around as well. Also, there are a couple of people who are having issues and problems spiritually with family members. Please lift up Matteo and Maria specifically in these days. We are praying that the Lord can give them peace in sharing their love for Christ with their family and not be discouraged when their families don't respond in a positive way. We are praying for their families to be open to the good news of the Gospel and that Jesus is the only person who can meet all of their needs.

Justin and Carli

Friday, March 18, 2016

Baseball and the Gospel

























This morning we had a great time sharing the Gospel as well as teaching baseball to around 300 students in the middle school of Budrio. So thankful to have this team from Arkansas and their expertise in sharing their testimony with students from Budrio. Please pray for the these kids which come from all faith backgrounds. Pray that our church, Impatto Budrio can continue to proclaim the Gospel and have an influence in both private and public life here. Our desire as always is to be obedient and faithful in the task of church planting and making disciples of Christ in Budrio.

Love you all!

Justin and Carli

Sunday, March 13, 2016

Great Sunday


















































Some pictures from our Sunday gathering today. We had a great time celebrating Stefano's 40th birthday! Carli and I are so happy to be apart of Impatto Budrio. Please continue to pray for our people and their families.

Saturday, March 12, 2016

Myspace/Freedom in Christ




















Had a great event with the kids from Budrio last Friday. Got to speak about freedom and liberty in the world and what it means to have real freedom in Christ. Please pray for the 10-20 teenagers that we meet on a weekly basis. We are praying that we can develop friendships with them and be there for them when they have questions about the Gospel. Many of them may not have good influences in their homes so it is a real privilege to be light to them and to share the Gospel every week.  

                   

Thursday, March 10, 2016

First Sunday back...












Hey Guys,

We were so blessed to be back with Impatto Budrio last Sunday. The Lord is blessing our family here with so many new contacts and families who want to know more about the Gospel and who Jesus really is. Carli and I are praying that through this time of transition we can still take rest in the work that Christ is doing amongst His people here in Budrio.

Please continue to pray for these relationships and for deeper conversations in the coming weeks.

Justin and Carli

Good evening with Family...















Tonight Carli and I had the chance to share with our church family the last 6 months of our lives in the US. It was refreshing to give them an idea of how much they are loved by our partners and that Budrio, even though it is small on the map of Italy, it is big on the hearts of Christian brothers and sister back in America. Carli and I are so thankful that we get to play a small part in the role of God bringing His people to Himself.

We love you all very much!

Justin and Carli

Saturday, March 5, 2016

Resting in the midst of impatience...















Hello Everyone,

This past week as been full of joy and also frustration. As far as our return to Budrio, we couldn't have asked for a better welcoming from our church and loved ones. At the same time, we are having to jump through a lot of hoops in order to get our visa's in order as well as Carli's maternity leave.

We are currently staying in a temporary apartment for the next month as we are looking for a long term place where we can settle in. We have an appointment set for Monday afternoon with a real estate agency here to look at three apartments. Please pray that the Lord gives us peace with the upcoming decisions that we need to make as well a smooth transition with the baby's arrival 5 weeks out. We know the Lord's plan is the best plan so we want to make sure that we don't rush into anything in these next few weeks.

On a positive note, We both went to Sant Orsala Hospital in Bologna for Carli's checkup and everything is going great with the baby. We have to go back next week for another screening and then  a week after that. Once those appointments are completed we are on standby for going into labor.
The midwives and doctor were very nice and explained how the process works here in Italy. We both felt at home with them and are thankful that when our baby is born our environment should be just fine.

We love you all and ask that you continue praying for us.

Justin and Carli

Wednesday, March 2, 2016

Praise!

Hello Everyone,

Just wanted to share a something that we are grateful for this past week. For those of you who don’t know, we have been using Carli’s first car while we were living in Houston these past 6 months. During that time, the car has brought us everywhere that we needed to go. About a 2 weeks ago, we started to hear a sound in the suspension of the car but didn’t know why it was making that noise. I thought that we would take a look at the car and make sure all was ok once we got back to Georgia. Last week my dad and I took the car around the block to see if it was still making that noise. To my frustration, no sound could be heard from the under the car. When we got back to my dad’s house we thought about driving it around the yard to see if  the soft ground changed anything. At first nothing happened that wasn’t usual until we were coming back from behind the house and we heard something drop from under the car and the left wheel and tire of the car shifted to the left, permanetly motionless. I couldn’t believe the grace of God to let this happen in our yard and not the last 6 months that we drove the car on interstates through 5 states! Our friend Terry towed the car for us and fixed the car’s problems free of charge.


So thankful to the Lord for watching over us and our unborn son as we drove the car all of these miles. It is amazing for us to see His mercy in situations like these.