"The Work is Great..."

"And I said to the nobles, and to the rulers, and to the rest of the people, The work is great and large, and we are separated upon the wall, one far from another. In what place therefore ye hear the sound of the trumpet, resort ye thither unto us: our God shall fight for us." Nehemiah 4:19-20

In preparation for the upcoming school year beginning August 17, the Fountain of Life teachers and staff began meeting last Monday for Bible study, prayer, training, and meetings. As a mission school, we want to not only give the Gospel to the children and teens enrolled, but also to make disciples that love the Lord with all of their heart, soul, mind, and strength (Mark 12:30). Realizing that we are in a spiritual battle, Argenis, the high school principal, led us in a study of Nehemiah. During the week, we focused on a few different aspects of the work and Nehemiah's preparation for the work:
1. Nehemiah's love for his people
2. The time spent in prayer BEFORE ever beginning the work (4 months!)
3. The opposition to the work
4. The enormity of the work
5. OUR GOD SHALL FIGHT FOR US

As teachers and staff, we will be physically separated from each other, and have all the more need for prayer as we give the Gospel to the students and integrate Scripture and Biblical principles into every aspect of education. We need love for each student, wisdom for every situation, and endurance for the task ahead. But we know this: God will fight for us. We don't have to depend on our own resources, but can draw strength from Him.

Pictured below: we divided into groups for discussion.

Part of the day from last Tuesday through the upcoming Tuesday is spent in training in the use and care of computers and related technology. God has blessed the ministry with a network system, computers, and a volunteer who gives his time to repair and update the computers and networks. Pictured below is the computer training class, as we walked the line of wireless communication from the computer lab back to the server.

On a side note, the meetings are all in Spanish with the exception of the computer class, which is translated for the other teachers. I have so far been able to follow the discussion (until they get excited and speak fast!), and am encouraged with how far my "ears" have progressed over the past 2 weeks! On Thursday, I was excited to find that I could carry on a conversation in Spanish with a lady who did not know that I don't really speak the language without help yet! Praise God for the progress in this area!