There have been many things going on both in the ministry and our lives for which we would like to update you. We appreciate your continued prayer.

—Kim was asked to write an article for Frontline Magazine and it was published in the November/December 2023 issue. The title of the article is “Perseverance in Prayer.”

—Please pray for strength for Kim and her family as they help with her dad. He is under hospice care now.

—Mr. A, the young man saved and baptized earlier this year, has moved to Vietnam which is where his wife is from. Please pray for his continued spiritual growth and that he will be able to find a body of believers to fellowship with. Please pray with him for the salvation of his wife and 3-year-old daughter as soon as she can understand the Gospel.

—We have had several in our church with medical needs (surgeries, etc.), so would appreciate your prayers for them, especially for the wife of our volunteer coworker.  Her biopsy results came back positive for cancer. She started chemotherapy on January 4. The doctor seems optimistic.  The plan is to do chemotherapy for 4-6 months then surgery. We are praying for the best results and would appreciate your prayers as well. They have three young children. Pray for them as they watch their mom go through this trial.

—Tim’s dad just celebrated his 88th birthday and almost 60 years of ministry in Japan as a missionary. He is doing well and goes out several times a week to distribute tracts.  On 12/31 he was going out on the deck to cut some vines. He fell through some rotten boards.  Tim’s mom called the ambulance and got him to the hospital where his brother was able to meet them.  Tim’s dad fractured his left knee and left wrist. They put a cast on his knee and wrist and said he would have to stay in the hospital for at least 3 weeks. It has been three weeks and his wrist is not healing properly so he had surgery on Tuesday. The surgery lasted longer than expected, but he is doing well.

—We are scheduled to start furlough in April, but there is much to do before then.

—We had membership Sunday on January 22nd and four people gave their testimony and joined the church.

We have much going on with Tim in Japan and Kim in the states. One of Kim’s favorite hymns is Day by Day. The words are encouraging during times like this. We have to take life one day at a time and God provides strength and grace.

Every day, the Lord Himself is near me
With a special mercy for each hour;
All my cares He fain would bear, and cheer me,
He Whose Name is Counselor and Pow’r.
The protection of His child and treasure
Is a charge that on Himself He laid;
“As thy days, thy strength shall be in measure,”
This the pledge to me He made.

~Karolina W. Sandell-Berg

PC: photo taken at the park near our home