November 2013 newsletter

Dear Prayer Partners,

Be warned ... there's a lot of info for you this month! We've got a lot of catching up to do!! : )

My oh my!!! It has been FOREVER hasn't it?! Well, as you know, I am FINALLY back in Niger after being in Senegal for 3 months! Thank y'all so much for praying for me, Isabelle & John Cole as we waited & waited & waited on paperwork. I never want to do that again but the Lord was SOOO good to us even while we were separated as a family. I thought y'all would like to know that the "icing on the cake" was when our return trip home was delayed by SEVEN hours because a fuel truck hit the wing of our plane!! I sat there & thought, "Really?!! This cannot be happening!!" But we made it home safe & sound & it was such a sweet reunion at the airport with Mark & Luke! Thank you again for your prayers while we were in Senegal & for your understanding in our delay in sending newsletters.

And speaking of newsletters, you may notice a change to our format. Over the course of this year, the Songhai team has switched our strategy from reaching "areas" to reaching specific "roads" where the Songhai are located in Niger. In doing this, we realized there are 7 major "Songhai roads" in our country (see image attached). At the beginning of this year, we were only engaging 4 of those roads. As of today, we have engaged six. The only thing stopping us from the 7th & final road is security concerns. Since our focus changed to these roads, we decided the format of our newsletter needed to reflect this as well. Feel free to print off the attached image of the map of these roads to pray for them by name.

As fall comes to a close & the holidays approach, we would be remiss not to say a HUGE "THANK YOU" to all of you who give to the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering. (If you are not Southern Baptist or don't know what this offering is, you can read more about it here. OR if you need some great resources to use in your church this year, click on that link as well.) Basically, this offering is what allows us to be here. Because you give, we have a house to live in, a truck to access & engage those 7 Songhai roads, medical care for our family (& new baby!), funds to distribute the Word to the believers in their language, resources & means to train & send out national partners & the list goes on. Your gifts not only benefit us but also the 5000 other missionaries that work with the IMB. We ask that, this year, you give above & beyond. We are so blessed to be here, doing what we love & fulfilling God's call on our lives but there are at least 1000 others like us waiting to go ... & right now, there are not enough funds to send them all. Please give so that others may go & millions may hear of Christ.

Thank you, thank you, thank you for ALL your prayers for our family & our ministry! If you've been with us long enough, you know 100% that your prayers are vital to our ministry & you know how the Lord has been so faithful to answer them & do AMAZING things among the Songhai!! Thank you.


that ALL may KNOW,

Mark & Parker <><


PS - and because SOOO many of you responded with such kind words about the birth of our son, we thought you might like another picture! : ) We think he is rather cute.