2022 January Newsletter

CORNERSTONE’S BUILDING UPDATE: On Cornerstone’s new church building we have all the windows, screens, and the doors hung. The storage doors upstairs were the hardest. I made them and fit them. To save money and be a good steward of what we already had, I made the storage door frames out of some 2x2 hard wood and covered the frames with sheets of ¼ inch plywood that we had remaining from the building construction. Thank you Matt for the circle saw! I have put it to use! (For those who do not know, a Christian servant at CLBC, our church in Ohio). Along with making the Storage doors from December 21 – January 1^st we were able to get the whole building painted. The painting started in the storage area upstairs so some of us could get the boxes of Bibles, N.T. and the John and Romans moved into the storage area. The moving frees up room in the back building for other classes in time to come. During the moving, arranging of the boxes of Bibles, and the door construction I think I sweated off 20 pounds a day judging from the drenching sweat saturating my clothes. If you would like to give towards the projects that still need to be done that would be great! They still need banisters for the staircase, lighting, construction of bathrooms in the back of the property, and finally preparing of the grounds. It would be nice to be completed with all the building wants by the Building Dedication time which will be at Easter time or in May. 

NEW YEAR PLANNING FOR ABS & CORNERSTONE: On December 16^th Bro Prince, Bro Koasi, and myself had our yearly planning meeting. Comparing to when we started their offering records, the  2021 records look better than they ever have. Our plan is we help them and they help us! One of our plans this  year is for Cornerstone to come up from Sekondi to help our visitation efforts in Anaji at our Anaji Bible Study once a month and then we at the Anaji Bible Study go to Cornerstone in Sekondi for their visitation efforts at the end of the month. We have stamped and prepared our John and Romans for those events. We will be listening and watching some special topics taught by Dr Ron Williams once a month on the last Sunday evening of the month with Cornerstone at Cornerstone. Pray that this will help with our visitation/soulwinning efforts and Bible teaching efforts, giving a good challenge, spiritual understanding, and growth to the church folks. From Bro  Prince and Bro Koasi, they both have testified to the fact of how blessed the are in the teachings they have had in the last 17 1/2 years. That is not even remotely common.

                                                                                                                                                                                                              

WE HAVE FINISHED UP & ARE STARTING UP: On December 16^thwe finished our Life Of Christ Bible class and on the 10^thof January we started the Corinthians Bible class at the Anaji Bible Study; On December 5^thour Bible Teachings at the Deaf School stopped for Christmas Break and resume January 23^rd; Our Bible teachings at the Anaji School will resume this Friday the 21^st along with teaching K-Kids after we finish  teaching at the main school. November meeting with the head-mistress All of the teachers and head-mistress that were there were excited for us to come back after the Devil’s season of COVID shut downs and disruptions.   

 I/WE WANT TO GIVE A SPECIAL THANKS TO ALL OF YOU FOR THE ABUNDANT CHRISTMAS GIFTS THAT YOU ALL GAVE TO US THIS YEAR (2021).IT WAS A BLESSING!!!  They not only were a blessing to us but we were able to help Cornerstone with the painting of their new building. Also, I was able to revise my car with a lot of needed body work that hopefully, will last another year.                                                                          

                                       

BITS OF BREAD:  “More About Jesus Would I Know” – Author Eliza Edmunds Hewitt                               

Verse 1:More about Jesus would I know, more of His grace to others show, more of His saving fullness see, more of His love who died for me.                                                                                                                                                                                                                       

Verse 2:More about Jesus let me learn, more of His holy will discern; Spirit of God my teacher be, showing the things of Christ to me.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             

Verse 3:More about Jesus—in His Word holding communion with my Lord, hearing His voice in ev’ry line, making each faithful saying mine.                                                                                                                                                                                                                          

 Verse 4:More about Jesus on His throne, riches in glory all His own, more of His kingdom’s sure increase, more of His coming—Prince of Peace.                                                       

Refrain/Chorus
More, more about Jesus, more, more about Jesus; more of His saving fullness see, more of His love who died for me.                                                                                                                                                                               

“MORE ABOUT JESUS WOULD I KNOW”should be every Christians longing, stirring, desire, and ambition!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Matthew J Siekbert~~~~~~~~~~

November Newsletter 2021

CORNERSTONE’S BUILDING:                                                                                                 

Cornerstone is in the process of hanging all the doors, all of the windows and the screens. All cement work on the building is done, Praise the Lord! They still need to paint everything, stain the doors, put up the banisters for the staircase, and putting up lights. We are planning on Dedicating Cornerstone’s new church building about May 2022 that might change.  

“WHERE IN THE WORLD ARE YOU?!”:                                                                                                                              

This was a question from one of our faithful churches and I’m sure a question for many others looking to be able to send birthday cards and Christmas cards. We are in Ghana!!! Our address on the field is: Matthew Siekbert PO Box MC 2325, Takoradi, Ghana West Africa. Our Interlude (an intervening period of time: a pause between the acts of a play)in the Stateswas not our usual  plan of attack, but this is the stage of life we are in with our family. In April we came home to the U.S. for our   son Joseph’s graduation and so he could get a job to finance college at Bill Rice Bible Institute; We renewed our son Nehemiah’s Passport and Visa to travel to Ghana which took from July to October 12th. Under President Biden and COVID as the excuse for everything. We were told that it would take 18 weeks to get the passport done and ONLY 12 weeks to EXPEDITE the passport processes which would have taken us up to November or January. Then our daughter Naomi got married at the end of September. After receiving the passport and visa on October the 12th we flew out on October 19th to Ghana. Our last meetings were in Ohio and Kentucky at: Old Paths, Faith Baptist, Bible Baptist, and Lighthouse. Thank you for your Love Offerings. They were very much needed. October was a very expensive month! Thanks for keeping up with us and our interlude! Thanks To All Our Supporters in prayer and finances. We are grateful for your faithfulness.

Redeeming The Time:                                                                                                                                                              We have resumed at our Bible Studies in Anaji with Koasi continuing them. We as a family (Jackie, Nehemiah, and myself) have resumed with teaching three individual classes at the Deaf School  in Sekondi. Some of the students in my class received Christ at the end of class with them, Amen!; and also, I  have resumed with teaching evening Bible Class in our Anaji Bible Study on the “Life Of Christ”. The class is  two times a week to make up for our late start. We will finish by Christmas. Please pray for us as we have been involved with a lot of paperwork with our Quota for Ghana that it gets finished by the Ghana government so we can get our yearly non-resident permit stamp to stay in the country of Ghana which is due by December 20^th. Please be in prayer for my friend Pastor Dan Dornbirer along with his family. He has stage 3 cancer and is in the midst of chemo. We thank the Lord for those that prayed for my wife’s Dad and his open heart surgery. He made it through!        

  

                                                                                                                   

BITS OF BREAD:Knowing With Understanding!!!                                                                                                   “Wherefore he saith, Awake thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light. See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise, Redeeming the time, because the days are evil. Wherefore be ye not unwise,  but understanding what the will of the Lord is.” – Eph 5:14-17

1.    There is no Understanding to the dead – v14; Eph 2:1

2.    There is no Understanding to those in a fleshy walk – v15; Eph 2:2

3.    There is no Understanding when you are not wearing God’s watch (not fit-bit or apple, who is your Master) – v16

4.    There is no Understanding to those not knowing God’s Will - not merely knowing as a matter   of fact, but knowing with understanding. – v17; Lk 12:17, “And that servant, which knew his lord's will, and prepared not himself, neither did according to his will, shall be beaten with many stripes.”

                              HAPPY THANKSGIVING AND MERRY CHRISTMAS!!! 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Matthew J Siekbert~~~

                          

 

September 2021 Newsletter

CORNERSTONE’S BUILDING:

As we would say in Ghana W. Africa, Cornerstone’s church building is coming together ‘Nkakraa kakraa’ meaning ‘little-by-little’!!!While we are back here in the States Cornerstone Biblical Baptist Church has completed plastering the inside of the auditorium walls with cement which completes the whole building being plastered with cement. Next, they have completed putting on the ceiling tiles in the auditorium which also completes all the ceilings inside and eves outside of the whole building. With that being said this week they have been constructing permanent outside steps which lead to each entry way into the building. Friday and Saturday they are to lay on the auditorium floor conduit and run wiring through them for the lower wall sockets; then starting on Monday covering the conduit and wiring with pouring the final auditorium floor in sections throughout the week. This endeavor has depleted their building funds. If you would like to help them more financially, I’m sure they would be glad for the help. There is always more to do, but God is faithful! They still need to paint everything, stain the ceilings, and put up and stain the doors, (there are 4 – 60” W x 8’ L entry way narrow double doors; 2 – 36” office/auditorium doors; 2 – 5’W x 4’L Auditorium/Storage Room  Doors; 1 – 2 ½’ W x 3 ½’ L Office/Storage Room Door; then the banisters for the office staircase; and 33 windows and 33 screens. Cornerstone has all the doors besides the storage doors and they have all of the windows besides the screens. They only need to pay to get the doors and the glass louvers for each window cut down to fit and then installed. With a very rough estimate, I would say $60 per opening for only the installment. That is 42 openings: 9 doorways and 33 windows which is about $2,520.

UPDATES IN THE STATES:

The later part of July and the first part of Augustin between our travels  and meetings we have helped out at our church, Chippewa Lake Baptist Church with their Camp Chippewa Week. Visiting, preparing the grounds, and cleaning up the buildings. It is like VBS in that it had for the kids a Message time, Games, and Crafts, but multiple times with food, water slides, and different other activities all day from 9  am to 4 pm every day for a week. There were about 140 plus registered and about 40 of them made professionsof faith during the week. We took Joseph to school at the Bill Rice Ranch Bible Institute at the end of August. We  got to eat lunch with him before we said our goodbyes. We have heard from him and he is doing well. If you would like to have his address it is as follows: Joseph Siekbert, 627 Bill Rice Ranch Road, Murfreesboro TN 37128. When sending make sure that it is noted for Joseph Siekbert. This address is the main address for all other mail also. Nehemiah has finished his first 9 weeks of school. We also have had to get a new Passport for  Nehemiah and when we went to start the process they said that it will take 18 weeks. I asked to get the passport expedited and they said that it will take 12 weeks. The government agency received it July 30th. With the timeline that I was given we should receive Nehemiah’s new passport by the end of October then we need to get a visa put in it. Please pray for Naomi, our daughter as she will marry her fiancé at the end of September and start a new journey. Matthew Jr and Sarah will be celebrating their one-year anniversary September 26^th. We had meetings in Pennsylvania and Ohio. We have more meetings in Ohio and in Kentucky. The meeting in Kentucky will be a   new church for us to be at.                                                                

Joseph's Dorm/Cabin

Getting Joseph settled

                                                                       

BITS OF BREAD:

With God’s Leading comes the Devil’s Tempting! “Then was Jesus led up of the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil.” – Matthew 4:1To Be the Christian the Lord would have you to be has its difficult times!!! The Devil Tempts You:1.In Your Weakness, your want 4:2, “he was afterward an hungered”; 2.In Your Position or with your position 4:3, “If thou be the Son of God”; 3.In Your Ability, your capability 4:3, 6, “Command”, “Cast”, “Charge”;4.In Your Priorities, always look to the Higher Authority/ Principle 4:10, “For it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve.” Are You Giving Into Your Flesh?; Are You Rightfully Using Your Position?; What Command or Charges Are You Giving That Lead To The Wrong Outcome? What Does The Bible Say About What You Are Tempted or Attempting To Do???  

                                                                                            

                                                                          

Matthew J Siekbert 

July Newsletter 2021

HAPPENINGS IN GHANA: 

Although the building at Cornerstone in Sekondi is not completed those at Cornerstone are having VBSs during this summer. It is a blessing to see Freedom an adult convert from 2017 now about 37 teaching along with a young man named Nicolas. Nicolas got saved and grew up at Cornerstone. He is about 17 now. Growing up coming to Cornerstone he had no family support at home to go to church, especially, the right kind of church. Nathanial, another young man who was involved with the VBSs this year was influenced by his older brother, Joseph, who was led to the Lord by Bro Koasi back in 2007. A student from the Deaf School in Sekondi where we have had services for many years came to the VBSs. As we all have had to do some canceling summer activities and have disrupted school years from March 2020 till January 2021 with limitations when opened, we hope and pray that things will be back to normal by this September. Please keep Bro Koasi, Bro Ben, and Bro Emmanuel in your prayers as they are faithfully working the Anaji Bible Study.

Pastor Prince

Freedom teaching

View from upper level Bible Time and lower level Crafts

Game Time in auditorium

CONCERNING CORNERSTONE’S BUILDING PROGRESS: 

They have been on hold since we have been back in the States. One of the reasons was that are funds were down to $500 but as we have been back here in the States the funds have gone up. The main thing that needs worked on now is the auditorium. Its wiring, it’s inside walls need plastering and the ceiling hung, it’s final flooring needs poured, then all the windows and doors need to be installed and the whole building needs to be painted along with installing some banisters for the stair case. We want to thank Calvary Bible and Hilltop for giving towards 

Cornerstone’s building!

HAPPENINGS IN THE STATES: 

We made it to Florida in May for our son, Joseph’s Graduation.

He Made It!!! We got to stay in Gatlinburg, Tennessee for about 5 days on our way back from Florida. Where we were staying, we had some close encounters with 5 to 6 bears during the week. The place we stayed at was called “Bears Trail” and it truly was! We had them looking in our van windows and even coming up on the porch where our main door was to the cabin! It was an exciting and a fun time with all 3 of our boys and our daughter-in-law. Back at our home church here at Chippewa Lake Baptist Church in Medina, Ohio we have been getting acquainted with many new folks here. Some that have joined, others that have recently been saved and have joined, and some that have just been saved and are going to join. It has been quite nice to see the Lord working! AMEN!!! My son Nehemiah and I put up a wall for our church secretary, I went to Bro. and Mrs. Brian Starr’s house, a missionary couple that have the “Heart Ministry”

helping smaller churches in pulpit filling and visiting in those church’s areas and communities. I went to speak in his weekly men’s prayer meeting and go with them visiting.

Master Chef

BEARS!!

OUR TRAVELS: 

In July and in August we will be having meetings in Illinois, Oklahoma, and Ohio. Please be in prayer for our safety in our travels. We will be taking Joseph our son to the Bill Rice Ranch

Bible Institute at the end of August.

BITS OF BREAD:

 “If thou, Lord, shouldest mark iniquities, O Lord, who shall stand? But there is

forgiveness with thee, that thou mayest be feared.” – Psalms 130:3-4 c/w Mal 3:2-4.

Jamieson, Fausett & Brown commentary on verse 4 is as noted: 

1) “Pardon produces filial fear and love.”

2) “Judgment without the hope of pardon creates fear and dislike.” 

3) “The sense of forgiveness, so far

      from producing licentiousness, produces holiness” (Jer 33:9; Eze 16:62, 63; I Ptr 2:16).

4) "There is forgiveness with thee, not that thou mayest be presumed upon, but feared."

- What I Take From These Verses are: 

1) Although God is a God of Judgement and Justice, He is also a God of Mercy and Pardon. 

2) With True Repentance, there Can Be True Pardon.

3) Perhaps, by the Psalmist own testimony his reasoning for “Waiting on the Lord” is because of    

    the Lord’s Forgiveness, Mercy, and Plenteous Redemption c/w Psalms 130: 6,7,8.; Psalms  

     27:13,14

In His Service, 

Matthew J Siekbert 

May Newsletter 2021

 CBBCBuilding Progress:                                                                                                                                       In the 2 story section of CBBC's building all the wiring has been run, the inner and outer walls have all been plastered, the final flooring and the steps have been poured/laid, the ceiling tiles are now up on the 2^nd floor and the storage area. For the Outside of the whole building the plasterwork is finished all but the columns on the veranda and the auditorium sections. For inside the auditorium wire needs ran, all the plastering for the walls and columns need to be done yet, ceiling tiles, and the final flooring needs poured/laid. Then the doors and windows can be put on the building. I would like to give thanks to Bible Baptist, Emmanuel Baptist, Old Paths Baptist, and Chippewa Lake Baptist for giving towards Cornerstone's building since our March Newsletter.

DOINGS:                                                                                                                                                       March 21-24 CBBC had their Mission Conference. I spoke the evenings of March the 22nd and the 23^rd. Chippewa Lake Baptist Church had a Missions month in April where missions is emphasized every Sunday of the month. On Sunday April 25^th I showed some picture clips about: our Church Plant in Sekondi, our Bible Study in Anaji, our extra ministering there in Anaji schools, and of the building progress from start till now, taught, and preached that day. Between the two mission conferences/emphasis I spoke on "What It Takes To Get Involved in Missions and in a Bigger Way"; "Fulfilling Christ Command Can Only Be Accomplished Through Being Spirit Filled"; "Doing For Others"; and "The Ways, The Whys, and The Whats In Getting Involved In Missions". On May 2^nd we went to First Baptist Church of Milford to be with them on their new Press Dedication for Bearing Precious Seed Bible Printing. Also while back in our intermediate time in the States we had doctor appointments, eye and dentist appointments along with updating and repairing our ministry computers. I would like to give thanks to my niece in giving me her computer. It is expensive being here and we have got to get back to Africa!

TRAVELS:                                                                                                                                                     We came back to the States in April to bring our son Joseph home to start his life here. We needed to get him started with jobs making money to pay for his college. He is done with Homeschooling and will be Graduating at ABeka in Pensacola, Florida on May 22^nd. We are having a graduation party for him May 15^th at our church, Chippewa Lake Baptist. At the end of August he will be going to the Bill Rice Ranch Bible Institute for 2 years, maybe, 4 years. As most of you churches, friends, and families have been in support of our family please be in prayer for him, his safety, his housing, his travels, God's Will for him, and as he will be faced with many decisions, temptations, and trials. Please pray for us also (My wife Jackie, my son Nehemiah, and myself)   as we will leave another one of our children here in the US. We are here until June 8^ththen we will be going back to Ghana W. Africa.

He did it!

From 6 of us down to the 3 of us.

Bits of Bread:"Be ye therefore followers of God, as dear children; And walk in love, as Christ also hath   loved us, and hath given himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweetsmelling savour."                                  – Ephesians 5:1-2

 "Followers of God, as dear children"speaks to me of an innocent, un-defiant trust in yielding and obeying as a young child to his father even when one does not understand.                                                                                        "And Walk in Love, as Christ"speaks to me of the Devout love Jesus has for His Father to be an offering for us (the human race that is not worthy of Jesus) and a sacrifice to God: that was for the sake of His Father's Will that no one perish, that Christ was and is Holy, Acceptable, All-Sufficient, and that Christ sacrifice was All-Pleasing. As individual Christians, I think, Only Walking In Love As Christcan help us accomplish being the Offering for others to be bettered for God's Glory and the Sacrifice that is pleasing to God's Glory! The amount of One's Love of God and Love of His Word is shown in One's level of Character, of Trust, and of Willing Obedience.                                                                        

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>Matthew J Siekbert                    

 

Cornerstone recognized Joseph's last Sunday in Ghana before returning to the U.S. They gave him a Ghanaian smock and a scarf. Joseph was in Ghana for 17 years. 

Prince, Linda and Matthew with Joseph

Prince, Joseph and Koasi

Our Family with Joseph

Our Family on a Sunday