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Serving with Global Media Outreach
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2953 Tikimber Way
St. Cloud, FL 34772
(321) 766-4602 (home)
(407) 536-9528 (office)
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mike.skinner@gmomail.org
www.thefieldistheworld.com
give.ccci.org/give/0543730
Dear Family and Friends:
Since we haven't written since before Christmas, we're including some holiday and recent group event photos. If you have time this year, why don't you send us some family prayer requests and a few spare photos of yourselves so we can catch up?
So what have the Skinners been up to lately?
Our church, Connection Church of St. Cloud, is preparing an outreach we're calling "Open House 2012." We're asking members to reach others in all their circles. Mike is one of 12 home Bible group leaders, called "Foundation Pastors," who host the small group meetings all over St. Cloud and Kissimmee.
The kids' home-schooling group, TEAM Co-op, just completed a fun production of "Fiddler on the Roof," and Emily (12) had a part in it. About 100 kids from 40 families participate in the co-op, and Cindy helps out by teaching classes and serving on the board of directors.
After going through the Bible annually for the past 10 years or so, I went with our church's 2-year Bible reading plan this year. The slower pace has helped me to catch details I’ve been missing. When we became lay pastors, our Senior Pastor challenged each of us to journal our devotions using the “SOAP” method. Do you have a devotional practice you’ve come to love? I like to share new ideas with my contacts. You can read more about SOAP at my blog, http://thefieldistheworld.blogspot.com.
2011 Ministry Results:
Can you believe it? GMO registered 19,287,789 indicated decisions for Christ in 2011, meaning almost 50 million total since we joined in 2004!
GodLife.com has a prayer board, and reading the responses makes me think how many out there are like my friend R. The job market in his home country forces him to work abroad in Japan. The Japanese are among the most unchurched in the world, probably part of what moved him to seek God online. He was one of the 3,097,355 who indicated decisions for Christ with us in 2008. Here are some of the things he has written over the past 3 years as we have ministered to him:
"Thank you very much for spending much time for me, I want to learn more about Jesus Christ, and I still having so much trials nowadays, please pray for me too"
"Dear Mike, thank very much again,i am so glad about what i read from your letter,but I cried for so much joy in my heart."
Dear Mike, Presently I am working here in Japan, I lost my job and I got wife And 3 kids,2 highschool @ 1 still in the nursery… As of now my [oldest] son is getting worse, i did`nt able to work today, i`m waiting for the call of my wife from my country, my son was sent off to one of the gov`t. agency. I am so broken hearted, I cannot do anything except to pray, I wanna go home in my family but I can`t... my wife keep crying while we`re talking… please pray for me Mike... ”
Imagine how hard it is for our brothers and sisters to find the kind of encouragement and support you and I enjoy on a regular basis. Please pray us to be able to create community among believers who have no church, and that God will swell our ranks of international online missionaries.
One of the leaders of our Spanish language ministry recently shared this story with the rest of us: An online missionary in Spain asked her leader to transfer a visitor from Mexico to a Mexican online missionary because of the time-zone difference. When she did, the new mentor, a pastor, discovered the visitor lived only a block from his own house! They arranged to meet for regular Bible study, and the pastor forwarded 1 Corinthians 3:7-9 to the leader, praising God’s sovereignty and rejoicing in the effectiveness of the team! Do you or your church have ties with overseas churches? Would you let us know so that we can connect more believers to godly fellowships worldwide? Thanks so much for your heart for us and this ministry!
Love, in Christ,
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P.S. Please see our latest photos! |