2020 March Newsletter

Going Forward With Building:

After 7 years of delay and struggle on church land in Sekondi for Cornerstone Biblical Baptist Church we have started building. We have started with building a 12’ by 24’ building for the Scriptures we have had shipped from BPS Milford, OH in May 2017. This structure is so we can use the container that was full of Scriptures for building supplies during construction of a church building for Cornerstone Biblical Baptist Church. I am excited to see what God will do!!! CBBC is our first Church Plant with two Pastors, Bro Prince and Bro Koasi, that I have been able to Disciple from teenagers and Train up through the Church and Bible School training them as sound Fundamental Bible Believing Adults who have been Ordained, Pastoring and Leading at CBBC in Sekondi. This has not been an easy task, but …“having obtained help of God, I continue unto this day”… Acts 26:22. Many Supporting Churches and Friends of mine have helped with the start of this project 7 years ago and now I am asking you to help me help CBBC to get their building built. I am told we need about $20,000 in addition to what we already have to build with. If only 20 Churches give $1,000 each the goal of $20,000 would be met. Will you Pray and Give to this Project, even if you cannot give $1,000, Little is Much when God is in it??? To build on our Church property we have been told that we have to build a two story building, which we were not planning, but that is what the country’s STMA commission (the people who issue the building permits) said. So we are planning to build a 2 story, 12’ in length by 45’ in width portion on the front of the main sanctuary. Then the sanctuary portion will be a 1 story structure   of 50’ in length by 45’ in width. Once built we look to be able to utilize the auditorium in partitioning off on Sundays some of the auditorium for Sunday School Classes and also for at least 240 kids we have had in certain villages during our VBS weeks during the summers. You have all seen the pictures we have posted in our Newsletter Blogs, and Facebook Posts during our VBS weeks. In an estimated population of 144,000, Many people in the Sekondi area and the surrounding villages, have heard the gospel, are hearing, and have come to the Saving Knowledge of Jesus Christ in the last 16 years of our ministries at CBBC in Sekondi. PLEASE CONSIDER THE WORK!   

Let the work begin!

                                       

Lunch after a days hard work moving Scriptures

Putting up site fencing

This is front view to back of property and you can see the little building and the red container to the right  of that. 

Public School Devotions/Worship Time & ABS:

As a part of our new Work in Anaji, the Anaji Bible Study, we have started also teaching Bible at the Anaji Primary Public School. My wife has been teaching the 1st-2nd grades, Bro Prince has the 3rd-4th grades, and I am teaching the 5th-6th grades. Towards the end of January one Friday Morning after we finished teaching at the school, as normal, we were walking to where our car was parked and I was passing some teachers at a Pre-school with about 100 to 150 kids sitting under a tree and one of the 9 teachers asked me, “Aren’t you going to greet me?” So, I greeted her. Then she said, “Do you have a message for us today?” So, being somewhat shocked, I said, “Yes, I sure do!” Every week since then after we get done teaching the Public Primary School of Anaji on the way to my car I go and teach the 9 teachers and their 150 Pre-Schoolers. It is pretty cool sitting during the week early in the mornings at our Anaji Bible Study location preparing for the week when a student from the Anaji Public Schools says, “Hi, Pastor Matthew” or a Pre-Schooler, who’s Dad or Mom is taking them to school, shouts across the way to me, “Hi, Pastor Matthew” with their parents trying to figure out how their kids know that White Guy, me. At the Anaji Primary Public School one of the teachers in my class told me towards the end of February, “the kids  are listing very intently to the Seed you are sowing.” The next week in that same class I teach a girl named Barbra, who responds and answers to me all the time came to me after my Bible Lesson and asked me if she could get Saved! So I got to lead her to Christ, Praise the Lord for His Goodness! On Thursday I Teach an Evening Bible Class at our ABS and Fred the owner where we rent comes off and on. A few weeks ago one Thursday night Fred made a profession of Faith! Joseph, a man who speaks French from Guinea W. Africa was passing by our ABS one Sunday and came in, then came back on Tuesday morning that week to the ABS as I was preparing for the week. So, I called Bro Koasi up, our secondary pastor at CBBC in Sekondi who is from Togo and speaks French. Bro Koasi got to lead him to the Lord just last week and send him on his way. PRAY AS GOD IS AT WORK IN HIS WAY!!! 

Fred who got saved 

Koasi (L) led Joseph (R) to the Lord. 

Pre-School Class 

Pre-School 

 Bits Of Bread:

 In many and most cases whether Good or Bad, Right or Wrong, WE REAP IN A DIFFERENT SEASON THAN WHEN WE SOW!!! “And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.” - Galatians 6:9                                                    

Matthew J Siekbert

Happy New Year:

We closed out 2019 with a message and praying in the New Year at our church CBBC. We then shot off some fireworks and headed home at 2 AM. For Christmas, we had a service on Christmas Day at church. We also played white elephant and had some meat pies and coke. Our Christmas morning at home, Jackie made a nice breakfast and Nehemiah read the Christmas story and we opened  presents. We were able to have our Christmas cookies because, Grace Baptist, in PA, sends us a Christmas cookie box, filled with chocolate chips, Hershey kisses, M&M’s, Walnuts, Pepperoni (for our Christmas Pizza) we had on Christmas Eve. We look forward to that box, and we enjoy the spoils. Thank you Grace! The schools here in Ghana go on break a week before Christmas and resume in January. So this New Year we headed back to the   Deaf School this past Sunday. We have been on break or rather they have been on break. Prince has been teaching at Anaji public schools on Fridays. We have joined him this New Year and have 3 different classes. My wife is teaching the 1st-2nd grades, Prince has the 3rd-4th grades, and I am teaching the 5th-6th grades. Our Bible Study in Anaji is just cater-cornered from the school. We are in a good location. God didn’t allow us to have the  other meeting place we looked at getting in August 2019, but gave us a better one in October. We are on the main  double-road, with two schools, one beside us and the other public school catty corner from us. So please be in prayer we have some of these kids joining us on Sunday. Thank you very much for your love and kindness to us through the extra special financial gifts that were given to us from some supporting churches and the anonymous giver during this past Christmas holiday.  

Anaji Bible Study: 

More services have been added to our Anaji Bible Study (ABS). We have added Sunday mornings at 10 and 11 AM. After the Deaf School, which begins at 7:30 AM, we head to the ABS. I am also still having Tuesday Evening Bible Classes at 4 PM on “OT Survey” of the Books and now we have begun Thursday Evening Bible Class at 5:30 PM on “Church History”. Last   Thursday was our first class on Church History and Fred, the guy we rent our room from, came! He was excited and so were we! Pray that he continues to come and gets saved. We also hung some curtains on the back wall of our ABS. We had some stamps made and have stamped some John and Romans and New Testaments to pass out. Also, we had some sticker signs made and posted on the outside of our doors to show the times of the service. Jackie will post pictures on our blog version of the newsletter, siekbertnewsletter.blogspot.com and Jackie has one as well, jackiesiekbert.blogspot.com  

Fred joining us, Prince is taking the Picture

Miscellaneous Happenings: 

Birthdays,Nehemiah turned 13 on  Thanksgiving Day last year, he blew out a candle in a piece of pie, we then celebrated his birthday on Friday with cake and swimming. Our son Joseph celebrated his 18^th birthday on Jan. 3^rd, with homemade pizza and cake and friends. We also had to mail in his Selective Service and he needs to register to vote. He has a missionary friend who also turned 18 before Christmas, they enjoyed being able to get together for their big day.

 Planning Meeting In December, Between Cornerstone and Anaji Bible Study Prince, Koasi, and myself have scheduled: Individual Ministry Enhancements, like Discipleship Classes at Cornerstone and Bible Classes at the Anaji Bible Study; some Combined Outreaches in targeting villages; and some Combined Activities. 

Prayer Requests: Each  Ministry along with our Goals and Plans to go forward with Christ being honored; CBBC’s building Permit on their property; ABS’s successful growth.  

Bits Of Bread:     

“If Satan Can Get You To Believe Wrong, He Can Convince You To Do Wrong” “What You Believe Is Important” - Quotes by Jerry Ross  “Now the serpent was more subtilthan any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden? And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden: But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die. And the serpent saidunto the woman, Ye shall not surely die: For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil. And when the woman sawthat the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she tookof the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat. And the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together, and made themselves aprons.” - Gen 3:1-7.   Don’t Swallow Satan’s Bait!!!, Are You Doing Wrong Or About To???, What Has Satan Gotten You To Believe???            

 Matthew J Siekbert

November 2019 Newsletter

ABS Happenings:                                                                                                                                    

ABS does not stand for Anti-Lock Brake System with the yellow light on the dashboard  of your car, but for our Anaji Bible Study. As we go visiting it doesn’t seem so successful, but I believe God Blesses  “GO” because it is Obedience to His Command of the Great Commission. Also Sowing His Word  is Seed that will make an Eternal Difference in the Ground that Receives It. To “GO” does not only mean to just go down streets knocking on doors, but also GOING and SOWING the GOSPEL SEED in every turn and aspect of life. One day out on visitation with my family Joseph and I were walking down a path across a soccer field where there was a soccer team sitting, waiting on the soccer team that they were to play. While they were sitting there I got to talk with them about the Gospel for about a half hour. On visitation I usually don’t speak to a group of people, I rather speak one on one, because most of the time someone is clowning around and the people are not sober minded, but in this case they all were listening well. The Gospel was Presented/Sown and many of them made a profession of Faith in Christ. The most affective way of Soul winning in these times, I believe, is what we do, teaching others through a process of time that they are not Worthy of Heaven, that no Work of theirs will get them to Heaven, and about Why they Need Salvation to get to Heaven, and the Only Way to Heaven. People in today’s world really do not think they are bad enough, that Judgment is not real or that it is not of God. At the beginning of October Prince and I put our Anaji Bible Study Sign Up. On Tuesdays and Thursdays I spend must of the day at the Bible Study going over and preparing Bible Lessons for the Deaf School and the Old Testament Survey Class that I’ve started, Practicing Signing for our Deaf School. Pray with us that things that we’ve done will spark an interest. We have had 2 men drop-in passing by at different times saying they will come. Their names are Johnny and Benjamin. Last Sunday Evening for Bible Studies we had 2 ladies come. The older lady is named Elizabeth, and the younger lady is named Abigail. Abigail, Jackie invited. She is about 16. Sunday evening she was very intent in listening to the teaching I had taught. Pray for them and us as we “GO,” Seeking The Lost!!! 

School Services and Other Miscellaneous News:                                                             

In September we had Devotions at the Anaji Public School for the Junior High. Hopefully, the school will allow us to resume that in the New Year. We are trying another avenue into the Anaji Public Schools, Prince has been allowed to go to their elementary school on Friday mornings to have devotions with them. We hope to get in the door by the New Year. At the end of September the Deaf School of Sekondi resumed their classes. The Sunday Morning Bible classes that we have with them are going very well, even the devil showed up last week. A Muslim teacher with a twisted definition of Christianity as would be expected, but his understanding is also twisted in part of seeing what the Country of Ghana displays as Christianity. When God is working the Devil is sure to show up! I’m excited, my class seems   to be excited, even some of the teachers are coming and excited. They are helping explain to the students my Bible Lesson, my Review Questions, and my Lessons To Learn from the Story just taught that is written down on the Chalkboard. Pray for Salvations and more in roads there. On October the 6^th my family and I went to a Naming Service where I preached the Morning Service and did the Naming Ceremony. The sister of the Pastor’s wife came and received Christ as her Savior, Praise the Lord! It was nice to visit and see another work from a former Missionary to Ghana that is pastored by a Ghanaian National. 

Baby Naming Ceremony 

Resent Revival:                                                                                                                          

CBBC in Sekondi, Pastor Prince’s Church, had me preach their Revival Services Oct 27-30. The two words that were my Theme, Thought, and Focus were: Our “NEED” and Our “FRUITFULNESS”. The messages were: What Soul-Winning Brings; The Documented Command To “GO” & It’s Principles; OurRedemption, Explained; “GO’s” Pursuit; Our Attitude, Is A Game Changer; and Finishing The Formula For Fruitfulness. Because I was the speaker for  the Revival, Sunday night CBBC came over for their Service to the Anaji Bible Study so I would not have to leave the new work. We had 3 visitors from Anaji come: Perbi, Abigail, and Elizabeth. Hearts were challenged and God is still at work.  

Bits Of Bread:                                                                                                                            

Jeremiah said, “Why Will Ye Die,..? ”Pleading to Judah to not listen to Hananiah, the false prophet who came in the name of the Lord, but was LYING to them –Jeremiah 27:13-15. Liars Afflict Those Who DON’T LISTEN to the TRUTH. 

 ~~~HAVE A HAPPY THANKSGIVING, MERRY CHRISTMAS, AND A HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!~~~  

      Matthew J Siekbert

September 2019 Newsletter

Support Level, Permits, ID Cards:

Our support level is now at 94.96%. We are inching.closer! We pray that we’ll be able to reach our 100% support mark. Thank you First Baptist Church of Milford for taking us on for support. Now that we are back in Ghana W Africa, I pray I’m not beating a dead horse, but I believe we still have some opportunities for support out there of churches we have presented in this year. Please be in prayer with us also that we can get 100% of our support raised. To God’s glory we have  received our new yearly resident permits that needed to be renewed, but still working on getting our ID Cards renewed. We also want to say a special thanks to Mrs Holbrook’s SS Class and Bro Varney at CBCIFF for the  gift and the matching gift. Also, we thank FBC in Illinois for your focus on us this month and the gift for a  special night out. My wife will enjoy that, Thanks! A SPECIAL SIDE NOTE: If anyone of our friends and Supporters send any form of money please remember to send it to our church in Ohio, Chippewa Lake Baptist Church, NOT our African Address. I cannot cash any checks over here in Ghana and it is not secure to send any cash.  

Anaji Bible Studies:

In the previous newsletter I mentionedthat we had a place for a Bible study in Anaji, but that a mentally troubled man ruined those plans for us so we in August started an Anaji Bible Study on Sunday evenings at our house. We have been limited and trying to discern on giving out the location to our house for the sake of who we may be inviting, like a thief/robber. A young teenage boy named Perbi has been coming. He is in the 12 grade, he is very bright in many areas of life, like who he befriends, his schooling achievements, and his way of thinking seems to be different from the mystical way of thinking as the average. Right now I have been working on teaching him that the Bible is God’s Word all of the way from Genesis through Revelations. Many people think that the Bible only contains God’s Words. Pray for Perbi’s Salvation in Christ Jesus and to know the certainty of Salvation. Just last week we found a place to direct people to for Bible Study. We are working on getting its electric working. The Place we have rented is a storage unit. The owner’s name is Fred Appiah. Before we went to rent the unit on his property he was planning to put a drinking bar on his property, but  I spoke to him about inviting the devil to his house and influencing his family so he told me that he would not. Fred told me that he would come and we pray that he does. There are other areas in Anaji we want to strategically have Bible Studies in also. The Anaji public school has accepted us to come and teach for the month of  September. As we went to teach our Bible session there at the school we met a man that knew us 5 years ago who used to be a teacher at West Ridge public school that we taught Bible classes in. Pray that we can get into this school further. Your prayers are needed and appreciated. “Withal praying also for us, that God would open unto  us a door of utterance, to speak the mystery of Christ, for which I am also in bonds: That I may make it manifest, as I ought to speak.” – Col 4:3-4.   

Other Happenings:

We had our last VBS at Cornerstone Biblical Baptist Church, Sekondi in August. One received Christ. A few weeks ago Cornerstone Biblical Baptist Church just received their Official Paper Work from the Lands Department documenting their church property. Now that they have that they can move on to STMA Department for a permit to build. Praise the Lord! I hope to tell you more good news   about building in November’s Newsletter. Cornerstone will also be having Revival week October 27^th-30^th. The Sekondi Deaf School that we teach Bible classes in have restarted their school year and we will be starting there this coming Sunday Morning teaching Bible classes there. Pray for the advancement of our signing!!!  For continued correspondence with our College Kids back home: Naomi’s mailing address is still at PCC and Matthew’s mailing address now is at Chippewa Lake Baptist Church. He has decided to go into HVAC so he is schooling and training at the Medina County Career Center in Medina, Ohio and working with a HVAC company in the Medina area by our church. We still need Prayer for our Minivan to sell.                                                

CBBC VBS

Anaji Bible Study

Anaji Public School

For Sale

Bits Of Bread: 

Psalms 12 we learn that “The Demise Of Godly & Faithful Men Seemingly,:”                         

I. Makes More Significant & Urgent The Help Of God v1;                                                                                                 

II. Makes More Striking The Subverting Of Man’s Vanity w/ Flattering Lips and a Double Heart v2-4                                       III.Makes More Precious The Pure Words Of God in It’s Content, Promises & Assurances v5-8                       

“Help, Lord; for the godly man ceaseth; for the faithful fail from among the children of men.” – Ps 12:1             

Declaring the Glory of the Lord, 

Matthew J Siekbert

July 2019 Newsletter

Support Level, Permits, ID Cards:                                                                               
Our support level is at 93.57%. We still need another $450 to reach our 100% support mark. Please pray that we can get 100% of our support..raised. We are working on getting our yearly resident permits renewed, and our yearly ID Cards renewed. 

New Happenings:                                                                                                       
Anaji Bible Studies. We have been looking, visiting and thought we had found a place   to start Bible Studies. The Place - we were preparing for Bible Studies is not far from where we live. It is about a   5 minutes walk from us. An older gentleman who I knew took some Bible Courses about 7 years ago in a former Bible Institute with some former missionaries I taught with. Several years ago he passed on, but he had an Internet café that after he passed the family stopped using. Last week Bro Prince, Bro Koasi, and myself went and talked with the family about being able to use the old Internet café for Bible Studies and Services. They were more than willing in deciding that would be the best use of it. (Most things relating to buildings or lands are a family ordeal) Each family member agreed, the Mother and the oldest Brother were working the details out for us. A few days later the younger son, come to find out, is on drugs. He is a “mad-man”, mentally troubled, ready to run off anyone that would come to the Bible Studies. So pray for us as we look for another location. The Public School – The school in Anaji has accepted us (Prince, Koasi, and Myself) to come in to do their Wednesday morning worship services starting their new school year in September. The People – The community of Anaji has grown quite extensively since we have moved here 15 years ago. I know of many people around and many people here know us also. It is quite interesting to realize those that know us. Be in prayer as we start this new venture.                                                                                                                                    

CBBC Happenings:                                                                                                                      
While visiting in Sekondi with Cornerstone a few weeks ago I was able to  talk with 3 young men who received Christ as their Savior – David, Augusta, and Joseph. In the 1^stof July we had VBS at Essiman where Pastor Prince from Cornerstone lives and at the last of July we had VBS at Ekuasi where the Church Property is. There were 2 boys that received Christ: Lawrence and Benjamin. CBBC’s church property is going forward on finishing with the legal documents of CBBC’s ownership, then, they should be able to get building permits.          

The rain caused the kids feet to be sandy

Lawrence (White) Benjamin (Yellow) 

                                     

Miscellaneous:                                                                                                              
Our yard is coming together little by little after a serious trimming and cutting   down of grass and other foliage and the inside of the house is now manageable with most water leaks from water lines being repaired. My missing luggage is still missing, but Delta has reimbursed me, although that does not supply the items that would be of some help. We are still in need of getting our Mini-Van, 2012 Dodge Grand Caravan in the States Sold. It has Stow-n-Go compartments with a Luggage rack on top and 115,000 + miles. Most of the miles are Highway miles. I bought it at 83,000 + miles. I have  kept receipts of all the work, faithful oil changes, and other maintenance that has been done on it since   I bought it. If interested please contact our church, Chippewa Lake Baptist Church in Medina Ohio:    330-769-2790 or my son Matthew Jr: 330-461-5795.                                                 

Bits Of Bread:                                                                                                                              
Are you Altering the things of God to get what you want???                                                                            
It is a sad day when the One who is to rule rightly, ALTERS his or her life as those who rebel against the Principles and the Values taught from God’s Word that are to help guide One’s life!!!King Ahaz of the Southern Kingdom of Israel Fashioned, Patterned, and Altered the House of God after his own Self-Ambition. “Twenty years old was Ahaz when he began to reign, and reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem, and did not that which was right in the sight of the Lord his God, like David his father.” – II Kings 16:2 (Read the whole Passage v1-20, especially v7-18)                                 

Matthew J. Siekbert

May 2019 Newsletter

Meetings, Support, & Flight Updates: 

We are still here on the planet! My apologies,……I’m late in getting out my newsletter for May, but here it is! Sunday, May 19th we had our last 2 scheduled meetings of churches that took us on for support earlier on in this furlough; On June 2nd I preached at our sending church in the evening service; and On June 3rd by 2:30 pm we were at the airport leaving for Ghana W Africa. Our flight went well and we arrived in Accra Ghana, the Capital, on the 4th. Out of 15 footlockers 1 is still missing and it is one of mine. It has all of my daily wear in it.That is kind of important – ha, ha, ha! That is not so funny, but it could be worse, like the kid’s school books, some of my books and papers, or my wife’s new plastic dish set with flowers on it! I had 2 other sets of daily wear, one on me and one in my carry on bag just in case. Pray that the airports find it. It would be nice to have my normal everyday clothes. On another note, we thank the Lord for 2 more new supporting churches that took us on in April and May!!! That brings our support level to 93.57%.Thank you Riverside and Hilltop! We need another $450 to reach our 100% support mark. Please pray that we can get 100% of our support raised. We still have some churches out there that we went to that, I believe, are looking to take us on for support.

Goodbyes, Packing & Unpacking: 

Some people we said goodbye to in the States: our sending church which has several newer folks; older faithful friends; our parents, & our Kids, Naomi and Matthew. Please also be in prayer for Naomi and Matthew as they are at the stage of pursuing college and some of life’s biggest decisions, which I pray is always for God’s Glory. As time and years go on saying goodbyes seem harder, but someday “hellos” will be sweeter, lasting and eternal. In May my wife, my 4 kids, and I went to the Smoky Mountains stayed at the Desert Haven of Rest and had some fun there in Tennessee. Thank you Bro Creel! Packing to leave the US and returning to Ghana seemed somewhat routine, but has never been convenient or easy. The process we are in now as I am writing is: Opening up the house; and Getting in the garage to get the car out, running, insured, and inspected for licensing. This portion of work to get the House and Car in functional order has been since Friday, it is now Wednesday. Friday - Monday We, my boys, some of the men from the church, and myself have

been working on getting the water pump for the well hooked up, repairing pipes and mishaps that have happened while being away on furlough. After getting a new battery and new battery terminals the car passed inspections here yesterday, Tuesday, but would not pass the junkyard in the States. Tomorrow, Thursday we plan to tackle yard work with some of the church folks if it is not raining, this is the rainy season. The yard is all grown over and the bushes as well. It will take some time to get everything back in shape. We are still in need of getting our Mini-Van, 2012 Dodge Grand Caravan in the States Sold. Please pray for that. It has Stow-n-Go with a Luggage rack on top and 115,000 + miles. Most of the miles are Highway miles. I bought it at 83,000 + miles. I have kept receipts of all the work, faithful oil changes, and other maintenance that has been done on it since I bought it. If interested please contact our church, Chippewa Lake Baptist Church in Medina Ohio: 330-769-2790

Bits Of Bread: 

THE BIG IDEA: Return To; Stay Yielded To; Stay Committed To the Lord; Get Back on the Altar of Sacrifice “Binding” yourself with Cords That Will Help You Stay on the Altar; TITLE: Binding

The Sacrifice With Cords To The Altar; TEXT VERSE: “God is the Lord, which hath shewed us light: bind the sacrifice with cords, even unto the horns of the altar.”- Psalms 118:27; 

The Cords of Suggestion:

1) The Cord Of Who You Belong To - I Cor 6:15-19; 2)
The Cord Of Submission/Yielding - Rom 6:13-16; 3)
The Cord Of Constrain - II Cor 5:14-15; 4)
The Cord Of Focus - Acts 20:24; Jn 17:1; Heb 12:1

For His Glory,

Matthew Siekbert

March Newsletter 2019

Travels & Support Updates: 

As for many, January was a rough start with the cold and slippery weather. We had to cancel and re-schedule, but it has worked out! During February and March we have been in OH, IL, WV, & PA. We have had an increase in support by some of our supporting churches raising their support level in this 1st quarter. We are now at 91.42% of the support level we need. Thank you Faith, in Michigan, Chippewa, and Lighthouse, in Ohio. Please be in continued prayer that we will be able to raise and secure 100% of our support level needed before we leave. We have been in 3 new churches since January and we have 2 more new churches scheduled to go to yet. $600 more a month would get us to our needed goal.

Preparing To Go: 

Jackie and I have mailed in our Passports to get them Renewed. We should be getting them back in April. When we get them back then we will mail them all out again to get our traveling Visas. We have our plane tickets for June 3rd. We are having doctor appointments and dentist appointments. There are many things to be done between leaving the US and getting settled back into Ghana. One of the things we need to do is to sell our vehicle as close to our departure as we can and get a good price for it. The selling of our minivan here in the States will help towards purchasing another vehicle there in Ghana. Please be in prayer as we are gearing up to go!

Ghana Updates: 

We have talked with Prince more in the last month then we have talked to him all year.

He is busy with the plans for a building and working on the land details for a building permit. He is looking forward to our return. Prince and Koasi have been looking for a new school to do devotions on Wednesday mornings. They have requested two schools near our church property. Once school resumes the school administration will consider them and decide to allow them to come. Pray that the Lord works out all the details. Matthew Prince will turn 1 year old on March 30th. They don’t celebrate birthday’s in Ghana, like we do. It’s only when Jackie makes a cake and we celebrate with them.

                            

Sign Language:

January through March we have been taking a sign language class. Our final class is this

Friday. In the class we learn the signs, then watch a video with people using those signs. It has helped in reading the signs. Some of the videos are easy, others are “what did they say?” because it seems the signing is so fast. We are not even close to being experts; little by little we will pick it up. Being around the deaf in Ghana will help quite a bit. Using the signs we know often and continuing to learn the language is the key.

Bits of Bread: 

God Is Glorified In Our Dying, Spiritually not necessarily our physical death, but in our

dying to self desires/ambitions, bearing HIS reproach and Following Him. God Is Glorified In Our Fuller Displaying of His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord. “These words spake Jesus, and lifted up his eyes to heaven, and said, Father, the hour is come; glorify thy Son, that thy Son also may glorify thee: - John 17:1 “This spake he, signifying by what death he should glorify God. And when he had spoken this, he saith unto him, Follow me.” – John 21:19

Prayer Request: 

New Supporting Churches to reach the 100% support level needed, Travels as we

continue with meeting here in the States, Passports/Visas, Sign Language, Departure of June 3rd, Selling of Vehicle, Church Land/Building Architect and Permits, School in Ghana for Wednesday devotions, Dr./Dentist appointments to go well. 

In His Service, 

Matthew J. Siekbert