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| Joshua and Carissa at HAC , Missions Week |
Wednesday 27 November 2013
The Maskeys in Nigeria
November 2013
Dear Fellow Laborers,
“Fine and beyond imaginations!”
That was how one of our men in Nigeria described it when I asked him how our churches did during the month of October. In our absence, the main church in Port Harcourt averaged 667 in attendance, with a high day of 774 on “Outreach Sunday”, Oct. 13th. The bus ministry had a contest that day and had a total of 529 come in on the 15 bus routes. They also reported over 800 souls were saved through all the church ministries that month. That is the best they’ve ever done in all of our furloughs, and it is very encouraging to us. The Eagle Island church, pastored by our graduate, John Abili, also did well, celebrating their 8th anniversary on Oct. 27th with 350 in attendance and 53 saved. The church in Igwuruta, pastored by our graduate, Elvis Ohwojero, had a great month as well, averaging 85 in attendance, a total of 48 saved, and a high day of 104. We really miss our people in Nigeria and are looking forward to getting back there as soon as we can.
On the furlough trail…
So far, we’ve been to 11 of our supporting churches and 12 new churches, with four of them taking us on for support. We are encouraged by that, but still have a ways to go yet before we have what is needed to get back to the field, so your prayers are needed about that. Once again, all of the churches have been a blessing to us and we’ve seen many decisions for Christ in these meetings, for which we are thankful.
Continue to pray for our newlyweds, Jonathon & Jenny, working in their new positions at the church in Maryland. They both seem to be doing well there. For those who would like to send cards or notes, their new address is: 7823 Oakwood Rd., Glen Burnie, MD 21061. Also, remember our college kids in prayer, Carissa and Joshua, for provision and God’s will in their lives. Their address is: Hyles-Anderson College, 8400 Burr St., Crown Point, IN 46307.
“In everything give thanks, for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you” (I Thess. 5:18). There is so much for us to be thankful for this past year. God has been so good! We also thank God for you and your prayers and support that helps make it all possible. We wish you all a Happy Thanksgiving, a Merry Christmas, and a Blessed New Year in advance!
Yours for His Service,
David, Rose, Jonathon, Carissa, Joshua, Cayla & Justin
Thursday 16 May 2013
The Maskeys in Nigeria
May 2013
Dear Fellow Laborers,
News in Nigeria...
In March, the Igwuruta Independent Baptist Church celebrated their first anniversary with 189 in attendance and 20 receiving Christ as their Savior. I was invited to preach for them on this special day and God blessed in the service with a great response during the invitation. Our graduate, Pastor Elvis Ohwojero, has been doing a fine job in this new church, and they have been seeing steady growth since the beginning. Among their most faithful members is a former Muslim man and his family whom Bro. Elvis had led to Christ there in the village of Igwuruta.
We also had the joy of ordaining Pastor Ohwojero and another one of our graduates, Pastor John Abili, in a special service in the main church on April 14th. Bro. Abili is actually our first Bible Institute graduate, and he started the Eagle Island Independent Baptist Church in 2005. They now average about 150 on Sunday mornings and have had high days of over 400. We had a great day for the ordination service with 749 in attendance as Missionary Mark Holmes preached for us, and several other Nigerian Independent Baptist pastors were there as well. Pray that God will use these men in a great way here in Nigeria.
Also in the main church in Port Harcourt, we have continued to see an increase in our attendance, averaging over 660, and we have seen 4,097 souls saved so far in 2013. In April, we conducted our 2nd annual SMITE program with our youth, and they alone saw 330 children and teenagers saved in meetings throughout the city. It was a great week for our youth and we believe it really strengthened them spiritually.
DON’T FORGET to visit our website, maskeysnigeria.blogspot.com, for updates, pictures, and videos of our ministry, and for information about Nigeria.
Furlough News...
We arrived safely in the States on April 25th and have been enjoying our time reuniting with family and friends. It was also a blessing to see our oldest son, Jonathon, graduate from Hyles-Anderson College on May 10th. He and his girlfriend, Jennifer Davis, were recently engaged, so it will be an added blessing to see them get married, Lord willing, in September! Pray for them as they make preparations for their life together in His service. In the mean time, Jonathon will be working as a intern for the summer in our home church in Mansfield, OH. Pray also for Carissa and Joshua as they are looking for summer jobs. Carissa will be a senior this fall in Bible college, and Joshua is still deciding on what he will do. Cayla and Justin will be travelling with us as we visit churches giving reports and trying to raise some much-needed additional support. Pray especially for safety as we travel and that we can quickly raise the support we need to get back to the field.
Finally, we need you to pray for our churches in our absence. In the main church, our Bible Institute students and graduates are sharing the responsibilities, and we are confident they’ll do a great job once again of “holding the fort” until we get back. Thank you so much for praying and for your faithful support of our ministry through the years. You are a big blessing and encouragement to us!
Yours for His Service,
David, Rose, Jonathon, Carissa, Joshua, Cayla & Justin
Monday 25 March 2013
The Maskeys in Nigeria
March 2013
Dear Fellow Laborers,
Making a Difference…
“And of some have compassion, making a difference: and others save with fear, pulling them out of the fire…” (Jude 22-23). This is what we have been trying to do here in Nigeria for the last 18+ years. We want to make a difference and save as many souls from the fire as we can while the door is still open. To God be the glory, over 125,000 professions of faith have been made through all of our ministries, and close to 4,000 have been baptized in the three churches we have helped to start. We have seen many of those whose lives have been changed and are now serving God and reaching others for Christ. Through your support and help, you’ve had a part in all of that and you are helping to make a difference in Nigeria!
So far in 2013…
We had a wonderful meeting in January with Bro. Eric Bohman, the African Director of BIMI, for our missions conference. Although he has been to many African countries, it was his first time to Nigeria and he was a great blessing to us and our people. The churches from Eagle Island and Igwuruta also participated, and there was a total of 42 saved in the services, plus many other decisions for Christ. We’ve also seen an increase in our faith promise missions giving since then, so we are thanking God for this good meeting with Bro. Bohman. On January 27th we had 1,050 in attendance for our 18th Anniversary Sunday, along with 128 saved and 20 baptized. We also had the highest attendance for the month of February, averaging 636 in the main church. In Omoku, we were able to clear the land and start building the block fence around the property, so we are now one step closer to starting that new church, and we are rejoicing in all these good results so far in 2013.
Visit our new website, maskeysnigeria.blogspot.com, for updates, pictures and videos of our ministry, and for information about Nigeria. We hope this will be a help and a blessing.
Special Prayer Requests…
1. Our Furlough. Lord willing, we’ll arrive in the States on April 25th, and our main task will be to raise some much needed additional support, so your prayers and help with that will be much appreciated. We’re also looking forward to seeing some of you when we visit some of our supporting churches as well.
2. Our College Kids. Jonathon will be graduating from Hyles-Anderson College on May 10th and is considering working as an intern in a church this summer or longer. Carissa is finishing her junior year and will need a summer job. Joshua will also be looking for a summer job as he is thinking about starting Bible college in the Fall as well. They all need your prayers for provision, wisdom and direction.
God bless you all and thank you so much for standing with us in prayer and faithful support!
Yours for His Service,
David, Rose, Jonathon, Carissa, Joshua, Cayla & Justin
Friday 8 February 2013
Wednesday 30 January 2013
Tuesday 29 January 2013
Friday 18 January 2013
The Maskey Pray Letter
January 2013
Dear Fellow Laborers,
A Year of Blessings…
OK, so the world didn’t come to an end, but 2012 was still an exciting year for us here in Nigeria, and full of blessings! We were able to start the new church in Igwuruta last March, and it is doing well and continuing to grow. We had our best year of soul winning with a total of 15,493 souls professing faith in Christ through all of our ministries, and the highest number of baptisms: 313. What a blessing it is to be in a place where so many are open and receptive to the Gospel! We also saw the average attendance in our main church climb to over 650, and more and more of our people getting involved in God’s work. On December 2nd, we had a record attendance of 44 deaf in our service. That ministry has really seen a lot of growth over the past year. In our Bible Institute, we had the highest number graduating last year with six, making a total now of 20 graduates since it started in 1996. In spite of the difficulties and disappointments, 2012 was in many ways our best year yet, and we are thanking and praising God for that!
What’s happening now…
We recently had Missionary Evangelist Jim Belisle come to Nigeria to be with us for a few days in Port Harcourt, and he was really a blessing to our church as he preached for our Revival Sunday. We had a wonderful time together, and God really blessed with 22 saved in the services and many other decisions for Christ that day. Right now, we are celebrating the 18th Anniversary of the main church each Sunday in January with a visitors contest and other special activities. We are praying for many souls to be saved, baptized, and added to the church throughout the month. We are also excited about having our mission board’s African director, Bro. Eric Bohman, visiting with us this month for the first time, and we are looking forward to having a great meeting with him. Pray that God would bless in all these special services.
Looking ahead…
We’re ready now to do the groundwork on starting a new church in the town of Omoku in the days ahead and are hoping to get a building or tent ready soon on the property we purchased there last year. Keep praying much about that. 2013 is also the year of our scheduled furlough, and we are planning to arrive in the States the first of May, just in time to see our oldest son, Jonathon, graduate from Bible college (hard to believe, but true!), then spend the rest of the year trying to raise some much-needed additional support. If possible, we’ll get to visit some of you as well and give a report.
Thank you again for faithfully supporting us for another year and for helping us in times of need. We will continue to need you prayers and help in the year ahead, and we thank you in advance for that. May God bless you and once again give you a prosperous and fruitful New Year.
Yours for His Service,
David, Rose, Jonathon, Carissa, Joshua, Cayla & Justin
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