Collins Family in Mesick, MI

I've set some pretty big goals for the coming year. With God's help and with some encouragement and accountability I think I can reach these goals and so improve spiritually, physically, relationally, and mentally. Here are the goals organized by categories along with the habits I plan to practice to help me reach the goals. Spiritual Goals Bible Reading Goal : Read/listen through Bible 5 times (ESV, NTV/NBLA, NLT audio 3x) Habits : Follow 5 day/week Bible reading schedule reading each passage in 2 translations; listen to audio 3 days’ worth per day; take 2 days a week to meditate on and apply readings. Prayer Goal : Have a regular personal prayer time (besides “praying without ceasing”) Habits : 10-15 minutes of daily scheduled prayer time (praying through lists and/or Scripture). Memorization Goal : Memorize 1 verse/month in English (ESV), Spanish (NBLA) and original language. Habits : Print and hang verses in the kitchen and review daily in the morning. Mem...

  Puebla Bible Seminary Fall semester ended at Puebla Bible Seminary this last Friday, December 4. This semester I taught Greek 1 and 3. For many of the students, it was their most challenging class, but I was thankful to see their effort to learn. I also enjoyed getting to know many of the students on a more personal level and counseling and encouraging them in their personal lives and ministries. At the end of the semester, we had a special celebration and Sarah made some delicious treats for my students. For the spring semester next year, I am scheduled to teach Greek 2 and Introduction to Hebrew. I would appreciate your prayers as I prepare these courses and that God would help me as I teach and the students as they learn. Children’s Homes We have had several opportunities to serve in the children’s homes over the past few months. Many Saturdays we play soccer with the boys at the seminary, and I’ve been able to share from God’s Word with them too. At the girls’ hom...

  Puebla Bible Seminary Classes at Puebla Bible Seminary began this last Monday, August 17. We are starting by teaching the classes online, with the hope that in a month or so we may be allowed to have classes in person.   Greek 1 & 3 Classes This semester I am teaching 2 classes, Greek 1 and 3. I was supposed to teach another class too, but it was canceled because there were not enough new students. As you may imagine, Greek is a difficult subject for most of the students, so please pray for the students to have a good understanding of the material and that they would put forth the necessary effort to learn. Mentoring at PBS Another opportunity I have at the seminary is in the mentoring program, which is like being a ministry supervisor to students. I am mentoring three students: Alfredo, Caleb, and Erik. It is encouraging to us to see the growth in the students’ lives and ministries. Children’s Homes The children have been coming to the seminary on Saturday...

ANSWER TO PRAYER: LIZ BECAME A BELIEVER! If you’ve seen our recent newsletters, you may remember that we have been discipling a younger couple who live at the seminary and go to our church. Alfredo grew up in Niños de México (the organization we work with at the children’s homes). He has a hunger for God’s Word and is really enjoying his studies at the seminary. His wife Liz , however, was not a believer, but she agreed to move with him to Puebla so he could study at the seminary. Soon after they arrived, we invited them to come to church with us, and we began discipling them. We knew from the beginning that Liz was not a believer, and so we have been praying for her and consistently presenting the truths of the gospel to her. The Bible study we are doing with them about marriage is extremely gospel-focused, and Liz has been receptive to the teaching now for a few months. And so we knew she was close to trusting Christ. And then on Tuesday, April 28, Alfredo shared with us...

Mexico appears to be about 10 days behind the US in the transmission of the coronavirus. The number of confirmed cases just surpassed 100 yesterday, and I heard that the first person died from it yesterday as well. My guess is, though, that the numbers are even more skewed than they are in the US, and the actual number of those infected is probably 50 to 100 times more than those reported. I believe that’s due in part to the extreme poverty of many people here, the lack of testing, and the overall poor quality of healthcare in Mexico (we do have a private hospital near us that has great healthcare!). The Secretary of Public Education has cancelled all pre-college classes for a month, and many universities (including the seminary here) have also moved classes online. But most people do not seem to be taking this seriously. Semana Santa (Holy Week) vacations are coming up in two weeks, and many people are still planning to travel and go to beaches. Unfortunately, the pres...

Children’s Homes Each week we visit the children’s homes and share devotionals with the kids, Sarah teaches the girls how to make desserts and other fun foods, and we enjoy spending time with them and having fun together. Sarah is also personally discipling one of the girls named Laura.  Another way we support the children is by going to their soccer games. Many of the children are involved in a private Christian soccer league, and they invite us to their games. We enjoy going and cheering them on, and it’s an enjoyable way to show our love and support for them.  Please pray with us for these two homes, for each of the children, and for the house parents: Maycol and Rosario (boys’ home) and Marco and Nayeli (girls’ home). Ágape Baptist Bible Church Preaching and Teaching We are continuing our Sunday sermon series in the Gospel of John. I had the privilege to preach chapter 9 (Jesus heals a man born blind) over the course of two weeks. In our Sunday s...