Father's Day Special

It is easy to be a son, but hard to be a father. Who are you teaching?

Team Valladolid - Baker News - June

Our team is complete! Justin, Amy and Evy have finally arrived on Spanish soil and have physically joined with the family! It’s been a long wait but it has been worth it. Even though we have team skyped every week for the past two years it does not compare to being in the same room. Justin and Amy bring a new excitement and energy to the team dynamic.

Every team will go through four stages of development. Forming, storming, norming and performing. We are still in the forming stage. Each stage brings us a little closer to a high performance team of church planters! As the team leaders, we are getting more and more excited about each member as we see them grow in their walk and work here in Spain. While we learn to trust each other we are also developing a high trust in what the Holy Spirit is doing through us to reach Spaniards.

As a team we have already been very active in sharing the gospel, building relationships, discovering social networks, language learning and just living life, but now the reality has hit. Everyone is anxious to see fruit and the process of discipleship begin. Most of us on the team have developed relationships with Spaniards. We love the fact that we are not looking for contacts, but rather real lasting friendships. And God has put us in the right places at the right time to see these relationships flourish.

Continue to pray with us for Alberto, Miguel, Ana, Anabel, Valle, Isabel, Carlos and John. These are all real people with their souls hanging in the balance. Our days are flooded with prayers and brokenness to see God work in their lives.

We would ask that you pray for us as we seek God’s wisdom to lead this team and continue to learn Spanish. Language learning is by far the most challenging thing we have ever attempted.

Thank you for your faithfulness.
“Not because I desire a gift: but I desire fruit that may abound to your account.” Php 4:17

The future is bright for the Kingdom of God in Spain!

Steve & Ally

No way back

It is impossible to rebuild when you keep returning to old sin. The feast of tents reminded Israel of this.

The Water Gate

We have seen how the water that springs up at the fountain gate entered the city up by the water gate, and it is a true picture of how the Holy Spirit wells up in our lives when we let Christ enter in.

Nehemiah 3:26-27

26. Moreover the Nethinims dwelt in Ophel, unto the place over against the water gate toward the east, and the tower that lieth out.
27. After them the Tekoites repaired another piece, over against the great tower that lieth out, even unto the wall of Ophel.

Water and the Word of God are interlinked throughout scripture. for example, Jesus declared us already clean by the washing of the Word.

John 15:3

3. Now ye are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you.

Two other pointers are seen in Nehemiah.
Firstly this gate did not need repairing. The Nethinims, that is the temple workers, repaired the walls around that area, but the gates needed no work. The Word of God never needs repair. It is pure and endures forever.
Secondly, this is where Nehemiah got together with Ezra to teach the people the Words of God in Nehemiah 8, sparking a revival.

The revival at the water gate is where we need to be, but sadly our experience is more akin to that of the churches addressed in Hebrews.

Hebrews 5:10-13

10. Called of God an high priest after the order of Melchisedec.
11. Of whom we have many things to say, and hard to be uttered, seeing ye are dull of hearing.
12. For when for the time ye ought to be teachers, ye have need that one teach you again which be the first principles of the oracles of God; and are become such as have need of milk, and not of strong meat.
13. For every one that useth milk is unskilful in the word of righteousness: for he is a babe.

God wants us to be those eating strong meat, not milk!
When God commissioned Joshua to lead the people of Israel into the promised land he gave him the formula for a successful life. We can follow the same formula by going through the Water Gate daily.

Joshua 1:8

8. This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success.

Justin & Amy join team Valldolid

We are in Valladolid Spain!!! We arrived June 2nd with a warm welcome from our team. It is great to finally have our feet on Spanish soil, even though there is a reason to celebrate we have to focus on what we are here to do. Even after walking around the city for 2 days you can see the desperate need for the gospel to be preached here. We have now begun the war, the war for people's souls. Keep praying for us.

In His Labor,

Justin, Amy, Evy and soon to be Silas

Rebuilding the Temple

The foundations of our lives should be to share shape and send, while focused on Worship.

The Fountain Gate

As the first of the east facing gates the Fountain Gate displays a key turning point in our lives, and in any rebuilding work. This was where Nehemiah got stuck on his expedition to check the damage to the walls. Before the trials of the dung gate and the valley gate are faced we cannot go beyond this point.

Nehemiah 2:14

14. Then I went on to the gate of the fountain, and to the king's pool: but there was no place for the beast that was under me to pass.

Coming down the west side there was a focus on dealing with the problems in our lives, now with our faces towards the house of God the gates have more of a focus on what God is doing. This mirrors how our lives are either in a downward spiral focused on our own problems, or in an upward flight looking to Christ, the author and finisher of our faith.

Philippians 3:13-14

13. Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before,
14. I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.

The king’s pool mentioned in Nehemiah is also known as the pool of Siloam where Jesus healed a blind man.

John 9:6-7

6. When he had thus spoken, he spat on the ground, and made clay of the spittle, and he anointed the eyes of the blind man with the clay,
7. And said unto him, Go, wash in the pool of Siloam, (which is by interpretation, Sent.) He went his way therefore, and washed, and came seeing.

The pool of Siloam is of great significance to our lives. It is fed by the fountain of the fountain gate, and is where God would have us wash. How many times do we have spiritual mud in our eyes? How many times do we have need of washing that away in or to see the amazing things God has done for us?

Moving on to the fountain itself we see that this fountain also is representative of the Holy Spirit. Jesus used this analogy himself:

John 7:37-39

37. In the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink.
38. He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water.
39. But this spake he of the Spirit, which they that believe on him should receive: for the Holy Ghost was not yet given; because that Jesus was not yet glorified.)

For us today we don’t have to wait for the Spirit to be sent to us. He will be sent the moment we come to salvation. We have no need therefore to be refilled, or anointed anew by the Holy Spirit as he is already in us and will never leave us. However if we grieve the Spirit, which we do by sinning then we block his ability to control our lives.

Ephesians 5:18-19

18. And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit;
19. Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord;

The Fountain Gate of Jerusalem was sourced by water flowing in to the city via the Water Gate, which we shall come to next. If the water stopped flowing from the Water Gate then the Fountain Gate would also dry up. For us also, if we stop going to the source of the water of life, that is Jesus, the Word of God, then that fountain of living water in us will dry up. It will still be there, but we will have turned off the tap! This is truly quenching the spirit.

Galatians 5:16

16. This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh.

This should be our prayer for ourselves, and each other. Come to the Fountain Gate and leave the tap running.