9/12/08

A special word from the Zickefooses:

Dear NAF Prayer Partners,

Thank you for your prayers for our family and for Venezuela. We praise God for the opportunity to serve the Lord in South America for the last 24 years. He has been faithful as we journeyed in Peru, Ecuador, Haiti, and for the last 19 years, in Venezuela. We spent 15 years in Work & Witness and 9 in theological education and leadership development.  During the W&W years, the Lord helped us build 46 churches, 3 district centers, 4 missionary homes, and 12 buildings at the campground.  Between the two of us, we taught 107 classes in theological education as well as scores of workshops and sermons. The campground, a dream of Bill and Juanita Porter, is now complete and under the administration of a Foundation. The Lord helped us to establish the National Board in 1999, which received legal standing in 2008. God is good!

We began our mission career as volunteers.  We had the privilege of living in the home Larry and Addie Garmen in Peru as well as Louie and Ellen Bustle in Ecuador. We joined them in ministry, and in time, other joined us.  Over the years, more than 35 long-term volunteers came to live with us, as well as nearly 150 W&W teams.  Some of these volunteers became our partners in ministry: Jon and Shirley Fischer (15 years), Oscar Acosta (for 13 years), Jose David Acosta (7 years), and Kimberly Haddon (7 years).  We praise God for their fruitful ministries:  Fischers are serving in W&W in Ecuador, Oscar is serving as administrative assistant to the Area Director, Jose David as a Nazarene Missionary in Peru, and Kimberly Haddon as Student Life director of the NILI program in Ecuador. In addition, we are thankful for our close association with several Nazarene Universities.  Chief among them is NNU, who sent ministry teams yearly since 1995, as well as many professors who came to teach our ministers and leaders. They have had a great impact on the Wesleyan-Holiness heritage that Venezuela enjoys.

We came to South America not knowing anyone, and are leaving with hundreds of friends and family.  Now God is leading us down a new path.  We feel compelled “to get out of the boat and walk on water,” trusting God to lead us.  We resonate with Abram who believed God when He asked him to follow Him to “a land that I will show you.”  Pray that we will be sensitive to the place of ministry that God is preparing for us.  While we are waiting, we will enjoy sharing in the churches and spending time with our family.  Thank you again for the many, many prayers. -- Gail and Craig Zickefoose

Prayer Requests

·      This weekend, the Church of the Nazarene in Ecuador is holding its Congress of Holiness and will be celebrating “100 years of Shining in the World.”  Pray for God’s blessings and traveling mercies over the entire weekend’s events.

Continued Prayer Requests

·      The Howard family on Home Assignment until the end of December.

·      That Felix Vargas would receive a U.S. presidential pardon and be able to return to the U.S. one day.

·      That Vladimir Alulema will walk again and that his entire family will come back to the Lord.

·    NILI: recruiting students and building relationships with partnering universities.

·       The school year for our Seminary and our extension programs in all three countries.

·       The leadership throughout Ecuador, Colombia and Venezuela as they seek to do God’s will.