Ministry Update
Jimmy and Abby Stevenson
ChurchCare Construction, Lincoln, NE
Fall 2023
Dear partners,
Summer has rapidly turned into fall, time zooming past as life marches on and many changes occurring. To summarize the past few month, we walked through wrap up at Grace Baptist Church in Canton, OH, moved to a 2-week job up in Wayland, MI, then moved again to Lincoln, NE, to Temple Baptist Church. Once we arrived in Lincoln, Abby and the boys came down with colds and had to work through the rounds of sickness. We are now getting settled at the new church jobsite and diving into the much-needed renovations.
It is so neat to see the church that we have left grow in grace and excitement as the finishing touches have been put on the building and they are ready for this next stage in their church family. Now the anticipation builds for the same joy as we have arrived in Lincoln and started the work here with this church family that has been waiting for quite a while to see this construction project start!
In our family, we are coming up on Leroy’s 1st birthday November 16th! Paul is a very energetic 2-year-old prone-to-many-bumps-and-bruises kind of kid. He keeps, keeping us on our toes.
Other exciting news is that our partners, the Howards, have had much rejoicing in their family as their first grandbaby, Marcus Maine, was born on July 14th to their daughter, Ryanne and her husband, Daniel.
One huge way we have seen God’s answer to prayer in recent days is in the provision of a truck to move the trailer. Jim and Sharon Solomon, co-missionaries with BCP, have given us their truck! This has been a prayer request for a long time, and we are beyond thankful! For those who want to know the details: 2004, Chevrolet Silverado, 3500, crew cab, dually wheels. Jimmy is very excited to be back in a truck, and Paul enjoys riding in “dada’s tru”!
Praises
- 90% support level!
- The truck for moving the trailer
- Safety on the roads moving out to NE
- Financial provision for repairs on the trailer this summer
Prayer Requests
- Open hearts as we settle into his church family
- Pastor Jeremy Penrod and family (pastor of this church in NE) on the passing of his mother
- Safety on the jobsite
- The last 10% financial support ($600 monthly)
- Wisdom in parenting
Abby's Corner
Uprooting our family from Grace Baptist has been very hard in so many ways. My heart feels bruised as we say goodbyes to those who have become dear friends and family. As we work thru this transition, I find my natural selfish reaction has been to want to guard my heart from this pain and keep to myself. But by God’s grace, I’m reminded of what Christ has done for me, for others – how He poured out His all and did not withhold. So my choice is to either be selfish with the love and friendships from Grace Baptist, or to give in a Christ-like way and pour into the church family at Temple Baptist as I get to make new friendships and build new relationships. Self or Christ. This is what this and many other decisions boil down to every day.
