Proverbs 3:5 – Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding.
It’s been a great month to see God at work in unexpected ways! As I (Lisa) have been evaluating our international intern applicants and hearing their stories, it was obvious that God was calling some of them to Puerto Rico. While that wasn’t the location we were expecting (or honestly even excited about), we sensed the Lord was orchestrating this. Then an AIA Spring Break trip went to San Juan, PR to try to start a sports ministry at the campus there. Here’s a bit of the report we received….
Our goal for this missions trip: help start a sports ministry at UPR Rio Piedras, the biggest and best university in the Caribbean. It’s been tried for years with little to show for it. But it’s the most influential and strategic place for a ministry movement. And so, along with the local Puerto Rican ministry staff, we trusted God to use us somehow and someway during our brief time on the island. And God answered our prayers! Our first day, we arrive on campus and we pray. Then we decide to break up into smaller groups and seek to engage with student-athletes and coaches in the sports complex area, asking them about PR life, culture, and the spiritual climate on campus. The very first person we talk to is Adiel, the Athletic Director (AD)! I can’t believe it…and yet, it gets better. Adiel is a Christian who would love to see a sports ministry on campus…incredible! It’s hard to describe the significance of this conversation. If there’s one person I could get 5 minutes with on a college campus, it’d be the AD. The AD is the gatekeeper, s/he holds all the keys. And then to have the AD actually be for the ministry is the ultimate carte blanche, the all-access pass. Now, the PR ministry staff can go to any coach, tell him or her that Adiel knows about our group and supports it, and then the coach will let them have time with their players. Stuff like this kept happening all week!
It’s so exciting to see God already at work in Puerto Rico. And now we get to send a team to continue the work at Rio Piedras! We’ll be sending an intern team consisting of a married couple and 2 single gals. They will work with the Puerto Rican AIA and Cru staff as well as an American International Staff working in San Juan.
Please pray:
- Our new interns as they begin their support raising journey this next month. The deadline is August 1st and quite a few new interns are still completing their college year.
- Lisa attends AIA’s conference this coming week. Pray for encouragement and vision for the future with AIA.
- Lisa flies to Dallas April 24-26 for the interns’ Orientation Weekend.
- Lisa flies to Austin May 4th – 8th for her team retreat.
- Michael’s juggling many different coaching groups and speaking opportunities all while learning about 100 new songs for a new band he’s been asked to join! Lots of hours of practicing going on right now!
Thank you so much for being a vital part of our ministry. God bless you!
Our mailing address is:
Michael & Lisa Anderson
269 N. King St
Xenia, OH 45385
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