Merry Christmas!!!!

Merry Christmas Rope Holders!!!,

Thank you for your prayers. Though life here in Costa Rica is not hard compared to many places that we might have been called to, it is still a different culture, a different language and a different way of living than what we are accustomed to. As imagined, it is more difficult for our oldest two. They (as well as Joy) have lived in 6 different homes and in 4 different cities in the last 4+ years and have had to say good bye 4 different times to 4 separate groups of friends the past year - once in Fort Worth, again in Richmond, then in Vancouver and most recently, here in Costa Rica (with two more good byes to go before September) .

They have discovered (as well as Megan and I) that Costa Rica not only has its minor difficulties because of the reasons mentioned above, but because Language school is a place of good byes. Because language school is set up in three semesters, there are three groups of m’s that pass through the school. This past week we were all reminded on how to say good bye once again. The people who began their third trimester as were were beginning our first in August, graduated this past week and are in their “own” countries now.

Yes, and thank you again, He is hearing your petitions for us because we are beginning to become accustomed to living here and the children have been blessed with the ability to quickly make friends. It is such a blessing for our children to be able to go to school with other mks.

• Please pray that the kids will understand why they are rapidly making so many new friends and just as quickly, “losing” them.
• Pray that they would understand that their friends are part of the great commission and that people are coming to Christ as a result of their obedience.

Christmas is just a few days away and this will be our first one away from “home”.

Please pray that the kids will be able to joy in the birth of their Savior thus being able to properly celebrate it, as opposed to focusing on themselves and how things are so different here and how this is not “home”.

Megan and I would like to ask you to:

• Pray for cohesiveness in our marriage.
• Pray that the stresses here would not act as a wedge in our marriage.
• Pray that we would properly love one another.

My parents:

• My parents will be flying down here to spend a couple of weeks with us here in Costa Rica. Please pray for safe travel.

The Los Yoses Project:

• Please continue to be in prayer for TLYP. Due to various sickness and the like, it has not been able to take off like we had hoped. Please continue to pray for God’s penetrating Word to take the hearts captive of the ones who live there.

San Igancio de Acosta:

• I would also like to ask that you continue to be in prayer for the small town that I visited a couple of months ago. It appears that at least one of two Baptist churches that are in a nearby town are going to grab the reins and plant two Baptist churches there. Praises to God!

May God watch over you all as you take great joy in serving Him through your prayers for us and your support of the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering.

Dios te bendiga!!!!

MMJTJLEE

God is working in Costa Rica!

Watch to see what God is seemingly about to do in Costa Rica.

The Los Yoses Project

Hello all!

Thank you for your prayers. God is certainly answering them.

FAMILY :

Jake is doing MUCH better. He is not only doing better at school but he is now wanting to go out with me when I go out (what a blessing that is to me). However, this past week has been a difficult one for Megan and Tess both. They “hit their walls” and are struggling across the board. Pray especially for Tess right now. Her grades have dropped and her teacher said that she is lethargic in class. This is a 180 from how she normally is in school. Then to top it off, she came home sick and will be staying home today with Megan.

CHURCH PLANTING:
Our family is joined with two other families on a church planting project called "The Los Yoses Project (TYLP)". Los Yoses is a large neighborhood within San Jose. We have been especially blessed because we are being mentored by two veteran missionary couples who each have 20+ yrs on the field. We are excited to know that we will be able to glean the wisdom of these two couples and then eventually take it to our future destinations.

Please be in prayer for TLYP. This area of San Joses will apparently be hard to reach because the homes are behind fences and walls. When the people get home in the evenings they open their gate, drive in, shut the gate and do not come back out until it is time to go to work the next morning.

Please pray that God brings many people in this community to Himself as we share who He is with them. Please pray that we will be able to find ways to “penetrate” the physical walls that surround the homes of these people so that their hearts might be penetrated by the Gospel.

PERSON OF PEACE?:
I was able to go to the Los Yoses area yesterday afternoon and met a lady (Gennena) who lives a few houses down from one of our mentoring couples. I told her about plans that the women who are working on this project have regarding Christmas which is to gather the neighborhood ladies together and have a craft type party. She was very excited to hear the news and was excited to meet the IMB family who lives by her. Please pray that she will be the “person of peace” for this community.

EDGAR:
On this trip to Los Yoses I met Edgar, a street vendor (25 yoa or so) who is an agnostic and was able to share the Gospel with him in Spanish. I know that it was not a clear message because I was only able to communicate with the little bit of Spanish that I have learned. However, because I was able to point out that he is a sinner and is in need of a savior, who Christ is and what Christ did, and what he needed to do in response to his sin, I do believe that the H.S. was working on him. Maybe it was because it had been made clear to him previously by another evangelical and my presentation reminded him of it? When I got through his demeanor changed completely. He just sat there and thought. He then handed me one of the wares that he was selling and said “regalo” which means “gift”. It was a cross necklace. He then asked me if I would come back and talk with him more. Please pray that when I go back to LY next Wednesday to talk to Edgar, that God will continue to soften his heart so that he will be able to respond to this Message that brings life. Also please pray that God will continue to provide more divine encounters as I prayer walk this community next week.

May God bless you all for your efforts in making His name known here in Cost Rica. The Lee family

Land of the Tico

All is well in the land of the Tico.

Thank you all for your prayers for Jacob. He is doing much better now. The anxiety he was experiencing in regards to school has subsided quite a bit. Please continue to be in prayer for him. Some great things are occurring as a result of Jake going through this. First, mine and his relationship have improved considerably. That is not to say that it was bad that it is getting much better. God really is a God who answers prayer. The first time that Jake was anxious and overwhelmed he and I prayed that God would show Himself immediately and remove the burden that Jake was experiencing. Within 5 minutes Jake was back to normal. I pointed it out to him the next day to show him how God loves and cares for him. I think that it had a huge impact on him. Then a few days later Jake experienced it again. That is when I Facebooked the prayer request regarding what was going on. He and I were blown away by the number of people who, within a very short period, responded, ‘Im praying’. Your prayers were felt indeed. Jake not only was able to willingly go to school but actually had a relatively good day that day. THANK YOU GOD. THANK YOU ROPE HOLDERS!!!

The rest of the Lee family seems to be doing quite well. Tess and Joy are dong well. Megan is doing wonderfully in Language school and is proving who the smart one of the two is. She sits in class, listens, takes the tests and not only passes but passes with high 90’s. I am doing OK also, but it isn't coming to me as easily. So if you would please pray that I would pick up the language a little quicker.

We had the opportunity to take a 4 hour boat ride up one of the Costa Rican rivers yesterday and spend the night. It was incredible! We were able to behold His glory in ways that I have only dreamed of. We saw three different kinds of monkeys, a tree sloth, a 10 foot american crocodile, 2 cayman crocs, 2 different kinds of toucans and countless other kinds of brilliantly colored birds. The crowning jewel of the trip was getting to watch a sea turtle (350-400 lbs) crawl up on the beach from the ocean, dig a hole and lay her eggs (100-120). I have posted a few pics of the trip on our Flickr account but for some reason it will not take the rest. So if you would like to see them you can click HERE. If you want to see the rest, you will have to come back when Flickr is working properly.

Oh I forgot to mention the town we went to. This town is only accessible via plane or boat (a 3 hr boat ride). There are not any cars and the streets are foot paths. This town is sandwiched between the Caribbean and a massive river and is a strip of land approximately 75-100 yards wide. Pure beauty. Or as the Ticos say, "Pura Vida"...

We have been told that it is "safe" to mail cards and letters so we have posted our address (and our phone number) to the right of this article. Please do not mail packages. It is way too expensive to do so. We recently received two packages that were approximately a cubic foot a piece and each cost around $50 dollars to mail.

Again thank you all for your prayers and may God continue to give you a desire to make His name known where people do not know Him by being the ones who hold the ropes for those who go down.

God bless,

mmjtjtlee

Lee Family Update: From North Of The Border To South Of The Border

Rope holders,

We made it to Costa Rica a few days ago and did so without our luggage. The bad part of making it without our luggage was that we didnt pack any extra clothes in our carry-ons so we had to wear our "cleanest dirty shirts" for a day. The airline did a fine job in locating our bags and had them to us in less than 24 hours, so we were thankful.

Costa Rica is a beautiful place. As we flew in we could see villages perched on the sides of the mountains. Oh how I wanted to jump out of the plane right then, parachuting down to them! San Jose has not revealed anything unique at this point about its self. So far it seems to be another Latin American city. I know however that the longer we are here, its personality will begin to show itself. One neat statistic that I have learned is that it is a country that has a 20% Evangelical presence. 

The weather here is incredible. I have yet to wish that we had an A/C. Both the windows and doors stay open all day long as the cool Costa Rican breeze blows through our house. If it were not for the neighborhood dogs (they tend to bark a lot) we would sleep with our windows open. 

I have not been able to take many pics due to being advised that it would be in my best interest not carry a camera around our neighborhood, meaning if I want to keep it. The crime rate of San Jose is apparently rather high. This is strange to me since I rarely felt threatened in Vancouver (as far as someone wanting to steal my camera) though the streets seemed to be much tougher (Hastings and Walley). Here, I am advised to feel threatened, but do not. I dont think that violent crimes are the norm here. Maybe that is why? We will see as time progresses.

I was able to take a couple of pics from our balcony last night.  The house is really neat. Megan made a video of it (hopefully I will figure out our new camcorder and post it at a later date). Though it is only about 1000 square feet, it seems much larger. We also have a back yard filled with tropical plants and we have had a few tropical birds visit as well.

Language school will start shortly so please be praying for us as we begin to learn to communicate the life giving message promised to Adam and Eve all the way back in Genesis. Pray that we may understand it in such a way that we might be able to clearly present this message of hope to a dying Latin world. Also pray that we will be sensitive to learning customs. Our desire is to be able to not only communicate clearly through language but to communicate clearly though our actions and gestures. Pray that we learn how to better become not just Latinos and not just Mexicans but more specifically Queretarians through learning how to be more sensitive to local customs here.

Also please pray for Matthew. He is the man who I met on Hastings Street in Vancouver who I wrote about a few posts back. If you will remember he was the Christian man who agreed to help start a Bible study by inviting his Hastings friends but seemed to "disappear" on Sundays when we were to have Bible study though he always showed when he and I met for one on one study. 

I had lost contact with him for a good month and concluded that he didn't want to participate any more so I didn't pursue starting a Bible study with him any more. However while my dad was up visiting I took him on a tour of Hastings and we bumped into Matthew in a coffee shop. I didn't mention the Bible study to Matthew but did encouraged him to stay in the Word and to evangelize and equip those around him so that they too would be able to do the same. Please pray that he will be one to play a part in the reformation of Hastings Street. I have posted a picture of Matthew on this post as well.

Thank you all for your prayers and well wishes. May God continue to bless you as you lovingly partner in grasping the ropes.

mmjtjlee

Hellos, Goodbyes and Transition

HELLOS

The past two weeks have been good. We have had my (Mike) parents come to visit and Megan had her mother come. Our time with both was wonderful and refreshing. We and especially the kids are very thankful that Mimi, Poppi and Nanna were able to come and play. Since we are literally in the midst of packing in order to start our next leg of our journey (to Costa Rica for language school) I will have to be very brief with this update.

GOODBYES

Our hearts are very heavy since we will be leaving behind some dear friends. The church that we have been attending, Primera Iglesia Bautista, has been a great reflection of what the body of Christ is to function like. We were made to feel welcome from the beginning. The Pastor Orlando is a great man of God who has a passion for God. His plan for his church is to start a new congregation about 20 miles south of their current location once their membership reaches 100. Please pray that God blesses this body of believers and that His name is made known among the Spanish speakers who are arriving daily through this congregation. We are very thankful because Primera has agreed to be one of the churches to "adopt us". This means that they have agreed to pray for us and our ministry.

TRANSITION

As stated above, we will be flying to Seattle then to Atlanta and finally to Costa Rica. Please pray for safe travel. Also pray that our stress level would not be too high. We are excited because we will be joining many friends who we met during our training time earlier this year at FPO.

Thank you for being the holders of the ropes. Thank you for doing your part in making His name known among the people of Vancouver and now for doing your part in making His name known south of the border. May God bless you all.

MMJTJLEE

Mimi and Poppi come to Vancouver

Mimmi and Poppi came and stayed with us this past week. It was quite a blessing to be able to have them spend so much time with us. We sure did miss them. 

They were able to "walk our trails" here  in Vancouver. Hopefully their understanding of who God is and how He works has been broadened. We know that our stay here in Vancouver gave us a better understanding of Him. He is much bigger than he was just 4 months ago. 

We will see you in Costa Rica! We love you!!

mmjtjlee

Video of Vancouver

This video was made by a fellow worker while here in Vancouver. I thought that you might enjoy some of the clips and pics as well as some of the information. The picture of the man and his dog  is of a guy who I met and asked for prayer for sometime back. His name is  Bill (the dog is Chopper for you dog lovers). He is a simple homeless man who is not addicted to alcohol or drugs.

Lee Family Update-July 29th, 2009

Well, Urban Life International is now officially over even though we will continue to be working with the contacts we have made. It has been a wonderful 4+ months. We thank God that we were able to be the first group to go through the training offered here. We have learned an immeasurable amount of information and how to apply that information while here; information that would have taken years to figure out on our own. Our team leadership was exceptional. Even though we sometimes thought otherwise due to various circumstances we came to find out that these certain circumstances were planned to be stressful (sometimes VERY stressful). If we could do it all over again we would in a heartbeat.

The weather here has been incredible up to the last few days. We broke an all time high record yesterday! The temp got up to 93 here at our house (a pastor friend how lives about 10 miles away recorded a temp of 100). I now know that 93 degrees doesnt sound hot to our Texas friends but it is hotter in Vancouver than it is in Texas simply because in Vancouver they do not have air conditioners.  

-Tonight we will have Emerson and Lilliana who we have been training to train others to train, over for dinner. Please pray that our time of fellowship goes well and that they will continue to have a heart for the lost, desiring to train their new believers to train their converts.

-This family (Emerson and Lilliana) and ours were invited to have dinner with the lady (Maria) I met on the bus recently who I asked for your prayers. If you will recall, she is not a believer but seems to be very close. Please pray that we will be able to accurately make the Gospel known to her and that God would give her new life.

-Also pray that Lilliana and Maria would become close to one another so that after we leave both ladies will continue to meet in order that Lilliana would be able to continue pointing her to Christ and then discipling her.

-Last, please pray for our transition into Costa Rica. Pray that we would be able to do a mental gear shift from the mindset we have now to one that is focused on learning Spanish.

We praise God for His goodness and the kindness that He has shown us. We praise Him for the many prayers that have gone before Him, prayers that you have prayed that have lifted us up and prayers for those we have come into contact with.

May our Father in heaven bless you all!

The Lee Family Update- July 5th, 2009

Its been several weeks since we have posted our last update. Since then things have been going well for us as a family. We are still loving Vancouver and its people. We are continually meeting people and are able to share God's Word with them. Please pray with us that the seed that has been planted will produce a harvest for others.

-Please continue to pray for Daniel. Though he has made a profession of faith, he has shown no repentance. Other than a phone call to let us know that he would not be able to have dinner with us we have yet to hear from him. Several phone calls and emails have been left but for some reason he is not wanting to respond. Pray that his profession was genuine and that he would begin to display fruit.

-Pray for Mike as he and another worker, Will, train believers at a local church on how to witness and disciple.

-Pray for Megan and Erin as they continue to meet with Lilliana and Bianca totrain them to evangelize and disciple others..

-Mike met a lady from Guadalajara who lives two blocks away. She will be coming over to have dinner with us this Monday night. Pray that we will be able to build a relationship with her so that she will be able to come to know the Lord.

-Mike will be meeting with the group of believers that God is working through to rapidly spread His Word through this city. Please pray for wisdom as he studies what they are doing.

-For our family please pray for us as we begin our transition from Vancouver to Costa Rica and that we will finish well here.

-We also have a praise! Megan's half sister's (Breanne) surgery to remove the melanoma from her shoulder, appears to have been a success. The doctor thinks that he got all of it. We praise God for His goodness and mercy.

Various Pics

The God of Hastings Street

Matthew 9:9-17  

The Calling of Matthew

 As Jesus went on from there, he saw a man named Matthew sitting at the tax collector's booth. "Follow me," he told him, and Matthew got up and followed him.

 While Jesus was having dinner at Matthew's house, many tax collectors and "sinners" came and ate with him and his disciples. When the Pharisees saw this, they asked his disciples, "Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and 'sinners'?"

 On hearing this, Jesus said, "It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. But go and learn what this means: 'I desire mercy, not sacrifice. For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners."

Through Matthew, who I wrote about last week, I was able to meet a group of people who minister on Hastings Street. It is quite awesome to see the various backgrounds of those who either directly or indirectly belong to this ministry. Last night I was able to join them and worship in one of their community gatherings (every Tuesday night). One of the men who is a resident missionary is a former alcoholic and crack addict. I asked him to share his testimony with me and he did. I had to wipe tears away at one point as he told of his life and how God had delivered him from his bondage. When he finished telling, he made sure that I understood that the story that he told was not his testimony but God's. I asked him later if he would mind if I video taped his testimony so that I could share it with other believers and he said that he would be happy to. I hope to be able to share it with you soon.

After we talked some more, I discovered that this ministry had not only helped pull between 20 and 25 people off the street but is doing so by the means of a saving relationship with the Lord. One of the young men, Bobby (not his real name) who was visiting this group last night was a new believer who had also been enslaved to the drug culture of Hastings Street. He had gone into a drug treatment facility and ran into another man who was there recovering. This other man was one of the 20-25 and he is the one who introduced Bobby to our Father.

My joy in God has increased all the more. To see His love for the unlovable being reflected through obedient saints and then seeing the fruit of genuine conversion humbles me to my core. In reference to the passage in Matthew above, John MacArthur described Matthew as the " major sinner...  (and) unequivocally the vilest, most wretched sinner in Capernaum" before he was called by God. Then we see the Pharisees, the legalistic, religious leaders of the Jews who were supposedly godly who were not able to see their need for Jesus. They only needed their rules and regulations that made them dependent on their own good works.   

It is amazing how I identify with the Pharisees, in that it is so difficult to want to associate with the Matthews of the world. It is easier for me to sit at home or staying in my own sterile environment. As I walk the streets of Hastings I repeatedly see "the vilest and most wretched sinners". These are people who I have to continually remind myself that I am no different from and that we are invited to sit at the same table. I also have to remind myself that their sins are no greater than the ones that I commit. 

I too was imprisoned into a world of hatred; a world of hatred not only to mankind but ultimately and most dreadfully, hatred towards God. I was consumed with self interest and idols that captured my desires, desires that were intended to be directed towards God. Though my idols were not needles nor were they crack pipes, they nevertheless were just as powerful in that they were capturers of my worship. They were objects of my lust, objects such as money, prestige and winning to name a few. Praise God for brining me low. How great is the love the Father has lavished on me, that I should be called His child.

 

Please pray that God would continue to show His greatness by healing the death that so permeates this vile, wretched place. May we all act justly, love mercy and walk humbly with our God. 

To Him be the glory ALONE.  

Lee Family Update - Saturday June 13th

It has been two weeks since our last update and a lot has happened between then and now. Before I begin I want to praise the Lord for the work that He has done in our friend Daniel's life. Daniel now professes to be a believer! This past Sunday (the 6th) he accepted Christ after church services! I have yet to have an opportunity to visit with Daniel regarding his profession. Please pray that he would quickly display fruit in his life. is life.

-I met a man (Matthew) while visiting Hastings Street Monday before last. I was sitting in a coffee shop, reading my Bible when he came up to me and asked if he could sit down. He then proceeded to pull out his Bible and we read in silence together. Now if this were to happen at the Trail Lake Starbucks in Fort Worth this scenario might not seem so strange. However this happened in a little coffee shop on Hastings Street . He and I began discussing the Bible and what we believed to be true. I discovered that he was fairly well grounded and was familiar with the Word of God. Discovering that he wasnt going to church we discussed meeting the following Sunday for Bible study. He seemed to be excited about our plan so I encouraged him to invite as many friends as possible. For reasons of his own Matthew was not able to come nor were those who he invited. Please pray for this Sunday as we are trying to meet again. Please pray that not only would Matthew would be able to come but that those he invites would be able to come and that a seed would be planted on Hastings Street.  Please pray for wisdom, and for protection for Matthew as this is a difficult place to witness in.

-Our team has been blessed to be able to spend the next 6 weeks being tutored by the man who developed a technique to further the Gospel. This technique is being used in many regions of the world and is getting wonderful results. We are very excited to get started learning this method. Whether it is something we will be able to use in Queretaro or not, it will offer tremendous principles that we can glean no matter where we go or who we minister to. Megan will have the opportunity to put this discipleship training into practice with a group of ladies beginning Tuesdays.  Please pray that the ladies will come and be able to grow with the discipleship training. Providentially, Mike was also invited to join a team member in teaching this training to a group of believers at a local Baptist church in a nearby province.  God’s timing is amazing in giving us groups to disciple with this training during the weeks in which the developer of it is here to help us.  The foundation of this training is prayer and so we ask you to join us in praying for these groups.

 This is truly a city where God is bringing His people so that they can not only hear who He is but be able to easily go back to their home lands and proclaim it there! I wish you all could come here and experience it. I want to encourage the churches back home who are receiving this letter to seriously consider sending a group up here to Vancouver so that you can help the bodies of believers spread the Gospel.

The Lee Family Update- May 1, 2009

We had another great week in Vancouver. 

-The lady Megan met on the Sky Train ended up being a bruja (Mexican witch). Megan and a co-worker were able to share the Gospel with her and give her a Bible. Im not sure much, if any, ground was made during this meeting. Please pray that the H.S. would convict her and that she would turn from her evil ways to the One true God.

- PRAISE! Daniel, who I have been asking you to pray for, came over for dinner Thursday night. We feel like God is working on him. He had many questions  about God, the Bible and church. Please pray for his salvation and that we would have other opportunities to visit with him.

- Ricardo, whom you have also been praying for, was supposed to have come over for dinner earlier in the week. He never came and I have not heard from him.  Please pray that nothing has severed our relationship and that we would be able to continue to be lights to him.

- I am seeking to understand more about the homeless population here in Vancouver.  Please pray that God would give me a new understanding of these people, how they are perceived by those on the outside and how they perceive those on the outside. 

- Last week I was able to meet a homeless man (Kevin) who is 21. It was like staring death in the face (both spiritually and physically). He was addicted to meth and lived in some bushes in a nearby park. He allowed me to sit with him and talk. He was very open to hearing the Gospel and listened intently. I asked If he would want to talk to me when I came back to this area of the city and tell him more about Jesus. He said that he would like that. Please pray that God would save this young man.

As a family we are doing well.  We have had fun here in Vancouver and have enjoyed the city Jake and Tess are working hard in School and are looking forward to an unexpected break in August. Joy is very willing to know Spanish and often will greet our Spanish speaking friends in Spanish. Megan an I are hoping to spend the night away soon to celebrate our 15th wedding anniversary. We would covet your prayers as we approach the halfway mark of our time in Vancouver as we are missing home, family, friends and pets.  Please pray we would stay focused on what God has for us here as a family. We love you all and thank you for your prayer support.

The Lee Family

Lee Family Update May 17th, 2009

Wow what a week this has been. We were in class 4 of the 5 days this past week. All were classes on how to acquire a new language. We gained a lot of insight on how to learn Spanish on our own.

Thank you all for your prayers. Thank you for participating in our mission here. Please continue to lift us up before the Father so that His Name might be known among the people in this city.

-While out on the streets this week I was able to meet many new people and was able to clearly present the Gospel to one young man in particular by the name of Steve. Steve is from the Cree nation in Saskatchewan. He is living with his girlfriend and they have 2 children. They are dirt poor and have recently come to Vancouver in order to get out of the reservation life (his wife is also Native American and is from another people in northern B.C.). 

Steve had been told in the past by fellow believers that he needed to ask Jesus into his heart and he would be saved.  This allowed me to explore his worldview a little more in depth, and then present the whole Gospel. He was certainly moved and was more than happy to be given a Bible so that he could start reading it. He promised me that he would read a chapter a day. The encouraging news is that I only asked him to read the book of John, one chapter a day. He responded that he wanted to read all of it. Pray that God would regenerate this young man so that he might have the hope that we have. 

-Pray for a lady that Megan met on the Sky Train. She is from Mexico City and is into a lot of spiritual disciplines. She was already on the train when Megan got on and asked Megan what it was about her that was different from everybody else. Megan told her it was Christ in her that she was seeing. The lady had many questions for Megan and wanted to get with her at a later time so that she might be able to visit with her. Please pray that God would give Megan wisdom and boldness and the He would remove the scales from this woman's eyes so that her heart might be right before Him and that she would repent of her wickedness. 

-I am still investigating the church planting movement that I mentioned to you last week. I went to a prayer meeting and was blown away by the genuine desire that the people had to make Christ known. Praying for the lost was stressed over and over. Getting out and proclaiming the Gospel was also proclaimed repeatedly. These people were SERIOUS about reaching not only Vancouver but the world (because the world is here in Vancouver). As I mentioned in my last letter, there were people from many different countries represented in the group that I was part of. One of the statements that the group leader said that moved me was that he wanted to see each one of the people who were not from Canada to take the Gospel back to their people. Even better, the group members were all agreeing.

Oh yes. This movement is apparently happening among young people. I was by far the oldest one in my group and among the entire leaders meeting (about 60-80 people) I was probably the second oldest. Nearly everybody else appeared to be around 26-27 and younger!

-I have not heard back from Daniel. Please continue to pray for him.

-I also have not heard back from Ricardo. Please be in prayer for him also.

-If you have not witnessed the Horror of Hasting Street (the post below) please take the time to do so. Please do not allow this clip to paint your view of all of Vancouver because all of Vancouver doesn't look like this. This city is actually a very picturesque place. The beauty here is breath taking. And as I have said in other posts the people here are, at least on the surface, as nice if not nicer than the people in the southern U.S. However the theme of the Horror on Hastings is entrenched within the culture here. I haven't quite been able to put my finger on it yet but it has much to do with the liberal mindset of the people--in more than just the obvious ways.

-THANK YOU ALL for praying for Jake. He is doing MUCH better now. He seems to be beginning to like Vancouver. Best of all mine and his relationship is growing and strengthening. Thank you, thank you, thank you.

The Lee Family

The Horror of Hastings Street

I caught a glimpse of Hell today. I went to Hastings Street which is the only place in North America where it is legal to do drugs in the open. For blocks and blocks I saw people shooting up, people smoking crack, people selling themselves. I had a pimp tell me that I needed to leave before I got killed. Words can not describe the decay and the depravity of this modern day Sodom and Gomorrah.  

God's revelation of who He is, is clearly displayed to the people on these streets. The beauty and the grandeur of  this city, the beauty of the mountains touching the seas and the beauty of the flora everywhere leaves them without excuse that there is a God. Their hearts have been darkened and they glory in their needles and their trades. They are worshipping and serving created things rather than the Creator. Pray that God doesn't give them over to their shameful lusts. Pray that God does not give them over to depraved minds to do what ought not to be done. Pray that they might believe. Pray that they might hear. Pray that one might preach to them. Pray that God sends beautiful feet who might proclaim Good News!

This video is VERY shocking. It shows almost exactly what I experienced yesterday. Remember, my trip was done in the day time as was this video. I was told by several people in the area that I needed to leave at dusk. Just imagine how bad it gets when night falls.

Vancouver Prayer Update 5.9.9

Praises to our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ!

Thank you all for your prayers. Thank you for lifting up the lost here in Vancouver and thank you for lifting up our family.

I write this with a heart full of joy, a heart that is overwhelmed with God’s goodness. We want to share with you what has happened since our last update. It is long but it is worth it.

               ADDICT WITHOUT HOPE

1) I was on a bus riding through the city and a homeless lady who had to have been no more than 23 or 24 years old got on board and was fried out of her mind. I have never seen anyone look more pathetic than this poor girl. I have never seen anyone more miserable, who was hurting worse (internally), and never have I seen anyone look more hopeless. 

Worse, I didn't to anything about it. It wasn't that I didn't want to, because I did. However, I allowed two excuses to rise up to prevent me from ministering to her. First, I struggled with whether it was appropriate or not since she was a female and Megan wasn't with me and second I realized I was on the wrong bus headed away from my destination and so I got off.

Please pray that this would never happen again. Pray that when God clearly places people in my path, I faithfully share who He is by revealing His character through my life and His Truth through what I say. Most of all pray that God will provide another to faithfully proclaim who the God of Hope is to her.

              

HASTINGS STREET MINISTRY

2) The next morning I met a man on the Sky Train who God had delivered from being a crackhead and meth attic several years ago. He now has a ministry in the worst part of the city. This is no exaggeration, the area is so bad that the homeless, the strung out, the dealers, the pimps and hookers all do business on the steps of the police station. He invited me to go and help him this next Saturday night. Pray that God would grow me through my ministry while there.

The video below gives an accurate portrait of Hastings Street. It shows the hate and depravity of those without hope. You might consider using discretion and turning the volume down for possible language.

                                                         RICARDO

I met a young man while with Will (another M here in Vancouver) night before last. His name is Ricardo. He is about 26 and is from Chihuahua city and is here to study English. It seems that God has already been working on him based on our conversations. We met with him again last night and was able to clearly share the Gospel with him. We left much for him to think about and to consider. He asked for a Bible and providentially I had a Gideon Bible in my pocket and was able to give it to him. He said that he would start reading it. Pray that God would bring Ricardo to him.

POSSIBLE POLICE MINISTRY

Another incredible praise. I met two police officers, one a follower of Christ and the other a Catholic. We talked for more than an hour. Later I contacted the one who knows Christ and asked him if he would be interested in me possibly providing a Christian ministry of some type and he responded positively. I went to the internet to find some teaching resources aimed at police officers (no pun intended). While searching I ran across a guy who I knew in college 20+ years ago. He is now a director of a Christian police officers fellowship in the D/FW area. He has now got me in contact with some of the national leaders and they are excited about getting something started here. Pray that the officer who I met would desire to start something here.

                                                             DANIEL

5) I have not heard further from Daniel. He was to come to Bible study Tuesday night but never showed. Please continue to pray that God would grow our friendship and that He would draw Daniel to Himself.

                                   A CHURCH PLANTING MOVEMENT IN B.C.

Since the time that I wrote the above update I went out into the city once again. I met a young man who was reading his Bible at a bus stop. After a few minutes I was amazed to find out that God is very active in this city. Though there are few churches there apparently is a tremendous house church movement taking place. He told me that there have been 68 house churches started in the last 3 years. Now you need to realize just how amazing this is. This city is a godless city. There are so many foreign gods due to the incredible influx of refugees here that it would make your head spin. Even worse most of the native (not indigenous) Canadians are either atheists or agnostics. 

God is moving among the people here. Two men whom I spoke with today were former  Muslims and another was Catholic. I also met a former atheist. All four of these men were sold out for Christ. I will be meeting with these men (all 4 are house church leaders) who will be meeting with other house church leaders so that I can ask questions and listen to their conversations in order to get a better picture of what is taking place here.

May God’s Name be known,

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