Beginning of Summer Update

“I have learned to kiss the wave that slams me into the Rock of Ages.”
-Charles Spurgeon-

The past 10+ months have been some of the hardest, most challenging and most stretching months of our lives. They have also been some of the most joyous, exciting and growing months. As I sit and reflect on all that has happened since Brandon and I started life together as a married couple, I praise God for every high and every low that he has brought us through. I marvel at the fact that He has never left our side and is continually guiding us through every step of our journey. I am amazed by the grace and love that He has shown us daily, even when we don’t deserve it. All of these things have helped us to grow closer together in our marriage, and closer to God as he pushes and pulls us. We are thankful for the many people who have joined us in our journey and for the prayers and encouragement we have received daily!

Before leaving for Costa Rica in August of last year, we asked a few people to pray for guidance in our ministry in Tirrases. We didn’t know why, but we felt excited and anxious about some sort of change we sensed God was bringing to our ministry in the church. We didn’t know if that meant making it our full-time ministry and phasing out of GAP, phasing out of the church (as it was currently thriving on its own) and moving our efforts elsewhere, or something entirely different… but we knew a change was coming. We never would have imagined that a few weeks later, we would get the call that the pastor of the church was separating from his wife and stepping down from his position. Nope, didn’t see that one coming! Within two weeks, Brandon and Jafet were standing in front of the church, accepting the shared role as pastor/leader. It has definitely been a bumpy road, but they and other leaders stepped right up to keep things rolling. Over time, we began to realize that the extent of everything we were trying to maintain with the church was too much. We cut out some “OK” programs in order to focus more time and energy into making a few things great. We began to think about the structure of our church and what could be done better. We asked God, “What is our purpose here?” We were doing a good job at maintaining the programs that were handed to us but knew we had to make a change. As we prayed and dug into The Word, God was revealing his plan to us in a very direct way. We kept coming back to the question, “What are we called to do?” 

Matt. 28:18-20 says,

“And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

The command is to make disciples; baptize them and teach them. We love having kids’ club, youth group, services and everything else for the people of Tirrases, however, when we looked closely at what we were doing, we realized that we were missing a major part of ministry. After facilitating these programs for 4+ years, we have noticed a lack of true discipleship. We realize now, after a number of different wake up calls, the importance of true discipleship with people who want to learn and grow. Through much prayer and seeking advice from others, God has revealed to us the changes we need to make in order to better our ministry. We have decided to focus on individual discipleship. We want to help individuals grow in their faith and become leaders so that, in the future, they may be able to disciple others as well. We have several young people that we are focusing on, and we are excited to be investing in their lives.

            Although the process has been hard, we are excited for these changes and looking forward to what God has in store for our ministry here. Please be in prayer as we go through these adjustments and carry out what we have learned.

On April 29 we had our GAP graduation. We ended with 21 amazing students who made the most out of their nine months of Bible, Spanish and ministry training. We had an awesome year getting to know and pouring into these students. We love seeing God working throughout the year as they grow stronger in their faith and in their knowledge of Him. We were sad to see them go but are excited to watch them as they return to their homes and use the knowledge they have gained throughout this year! We are excited to begin another GAP year in August and are still praying for more students to sign up. There are still spots available if you or anyone you know would be interested in this amazing experience. Click here to find out more. Please be praying for us, the rest of the staff and the four interns who will be joining us next year.

We will be in Lancaster from May 31 until June 23. We are excited to be able to spend time with family and friends, as well as share more about everything that is happening in our ministry. If you have questions or would like to get a hold of us, feel free to email us!

                        bhoover18@gmail.com          

                        samanthahoover96@gmail.com

            To learn more about us and our ministry, visit the score website. You can click here if you are interested in joining our team of supporters.

In Christ,

Brandon and Samantha Hoover