FROM THE FIELD

East Timor is an independent country on the Island of Timor in Southeast Asia.   Pastor Wes Smith's brother-in-law and sister, Warren and Janet Neal, work in East Timor as missionaries for the Church of the Nazarene.  Their reports help us to appreciate the rewards, and the challenges, of spreading the Gospel in that part of the world.

This Week in East Timor - Sunday July 20, 2008

Dear Friends & Family,

Monday and Wednesday, Ems, our volunteer from the Philippines conducted two workshops on communications. Several people where in attendance and we are hopeful that out of these workshops we will see increased activity in several areas of communication. We currently have a radio program on Saturday and Sunday afternoon. A local Christian radio station gives us free time. We are also anticipating using that time more affectively following these workshops.

Tuesday, Wednesday and Saturday we had meetings with people who had expressed a desire to join the church. We spent time reviewing the Mission of the church, the Core Values, the Articles of Faith and the Covenant of Christian Conduct. Then each person was interviewed and asked to share their testimony. It was a special time of blessing to hear the stories of how God has been working in their lives bringing them to this point. I felt honored to be able to participate in this step of the church's development.

Saturday afternoon we had a baptism with two people sharing their testimonies and giving a public witness to their commitment to follow Christ.

Sunday, 18 people joined the Church of the Nazarene here in Dili! This was the first time that members have been taken into the church in Timor Leste. One person, Pastor Acy, was received by transfer from Indonesia, and the other 17 were by profession of faith. I wish I had the words and the time to tell you about each individual person and how God has been working in their lives. What an exciting time it is for the church. We are thankful for all of your prayers over the years. The devil tried to stop this ceremony in several different ways but, praise God, he didn't!

Have a wonderful week,

Warren Neal