As we stated in our March newsletter, we decided to e-mail out weekly prayer updates to those on our prayer team instead of occasionally updating this prayer blog.
If you would like to join our prayer team, please e-mail us. In your e-mail, please give us your name, e-mail address, and whether you are committing to pray for us on a monthly, weekly, or daily basis.
Thanks,
Greg and Heather Harris
As Team Expansion’s MK ministry coordinator, Heather is in charge of planning, organizing, and coordinating two upcoming “summer camp” style programs for our missionary kids (MKs). One is in May and the other is in November. God has given her a big vision for these programs, and she is excited about the opportunity to provide programs that, Lord willing, will spiritually and emotionally encourage MKs. Yet, the task can appear overwhelming when she looks at the enormity of it all. She is so thankful for her associate, Penny Lucas, who works part-time in MK ministry. Penny brings great insight, encouragement, and help to Heather and the MK ministry. Heather also realizes how important prayer is to these programs’ success. Please partner with her by praying for these two events.
Please pray for:
Please also pray for Greg as he strives to assist missionaries with their technology needs and also keep the server and all the computers in our home office running efficiently.
Thank you for partnering with us in prayer! We know that we cannot do anything on our own strength, but it is through Christ that we can do all things!
Please pray for a national believer in Asia who was arrested by local authorities for his Christian witness last week. (Due to security reasons, we cannot give his name or country). He is a very faithful Christian who has been instrumental in helping many others hear about Christ in his country and also in neighboring countries. Typically when a national believer is arrested in this country no one ever hears from him or her again. Please pray for this dear brother in Christ and also for his wife and son.
Please join us in praying not only for him and his family, but for our MANY Christian brothers and sisters around the world who are persecuted for their faith. Please pray that God would help them to be faithful to Him despite their suffering, for the Holy Spirit to give them hope, peace, and love even during these trials, and for God to provide for their spiritual, emotional, and physical needs.
Thank your for joining us in prayer as all of us serving in Team Expansion’s home office have spent this last week seeking God’s wisdom and direction on how we can best bring Him glory through this next year. God heard our prayers and answered them in a mighty way!
Our meeting lasted from 9:00 am to 3:00 pm, with a morning and lunch break included. As always, we began our meeting with prayer. The time didn’t drag, but instead flew by! As each person shared their vision for their ministry area and their specific ministry goals, it became apparent that God had truly guided us as each member’s unique ministry goals fit together so well in helping us improve in partnering with churches to send and sustain teams of missionaries to least reached peoples! There was a great sense of humbleness, unity, and love as we saw how each of our own gifts can fit together to help us better train and serve our overseas missionaries.
Before our meeting ended, we spent a long block of time in a chorus of prayer. Whoever wanted to in-turn prayed out-loud. As we prayed, the blessings of our time together culminated into a feeling of deep fellowship, peace, and further unity. We left feeling refreshed and excited to see what God is going to accomplish for His kingdom this next year.
Thank you once again for partnering with us in prayer! We are very grateful for the important part you played!
Yesterday, we were blessed to attend the Team Expansion’s International Services’ whole office meeting that was focused on helping us all evaluate our progress on our 2006 ministry goals. We began our meeting with group prayer, then each person highlighted two ministry goals that he/she with Christ’s help was able to achieve, one goal they did not complete, and what personal gift they hope to bless his/her team with this coming year. It was amazing to hear what goals the Lord enabled everyone to complete and also see everyone’s humbleness and transparency in sharing what goal they were not able to accomplish.
After looking back at our goals, Doug Lucas, Team Expansion’s president, gave a great presentation that reviewed Team Expansion’s history and inspired us all to continue passionately striving to improve the recruiting, training, and support we give our missionaries and their families as they live among and lovingly serve least reached people groups in an effort to share the Gospel and plant churches. It was a true blessing to attend this meeting, as it inspired us to be prayerful and purposeful in setting our ministry goals for 2007.
Please pray for all of us who serve at Team Expansion’s home office this week and next week, as we will each be setting goals for this next year and writing our field ministry plans and personal ministry plans for 2007. Please pray the God would guide us all as we work on these and give us wisdom, discernment, and insight.
We will turn our 2007 field ministry plans and personal ministry plans on Wednesday afternoon. Then on Thursday, another whole office meeting is scheduled where we will each share our goals for this next year. Please pray that God will greatly bless this coming meeting as He did the one we had yesterday.
Thank you for your prayers!
Hello again. Please pray as we head to Springfield, MO for a quick trip. The wife of one of our Representative Elder’s went to see the Lord this week. We are headed back this morning. Please pray for a safe trip and that we might be able to visit with a church or two while we are there.
Thanks,
Greg Harris
I don’t remember how many of you knew that the house that we used to live in, owned by Heather’s sister, was to close yet again last Monday. We thank God at this time that the closing went through. This was big for Heather and I, since they had blessed us so much with being able to live there at such great rent. Now they are not making payments on an empty house! Let us praise God together for His provision in this matter.
Greg
Heather is traveling on Monday and won’t get back until Thursday. She will be headed to a conference with a couple of ladies from the office and I will be left here. So I am asking that you will pray for the group’s safety and that they will bond well together. This will be the core group of leaders for the MK ministry that Heather is in charge of developing. (Wow, what a wonderful lady I am married to!) Also, please pray that I will get enough to eat, be able to pick out matching clothes and not wander aimlessly while she is gone.
Thanks,
Greg Harris
Wow, what a ride! And we’re barely down the first hill! Life with God is definitely an adventure. As we briskly walked around the neighborhood tonight, Heather commented about that great adventure. Her comment reminded me of one of our first car rides together. We had just started dating and were at fall retreat, a college campus ministry retreat held every fall at Maranatha Bible Camp. We hopped into the “Z”, my now defunct 1987 Nissan 300ZX, took out the t-tops and drove down a country road with Steven Curtis Chapman’s “Great Adventure” blasting to the surrounding cattle.
Out of nostalgia, I started listening to the song tonight and Heather asked me, “Did you know what kind of adventure you were getting into?” “No,” I quickly replied. Of course I didn’t have any idea what God had in store for me when I started dating this amazing girl! Thankfully, looking back over my short life, it seems that this may be one of God’s greatest gifts to us. He leads us step by step, further away from our “comfort zone”, but always closer to His comforting arms. We may not have a clue as to what lies ahead, but by trusting Him and listening to His direction, we experience the most wonderful things possible in life. Thank you so much for your prayer as we take this next step out of our comfort zone to follow His leading.
In Him,
Greg Harris
(If you haven’t heard Steven Curtis Chapman’s “The Great Adventure”, call up your local radio station and see if they can play it, or maybe go buy the album. It’s some great stuff! For lyrics you can Google for “great adventure lyrics”.)
Thankfully we were able to get our prayer support letters in the mail today. Yesterday as we were once again going through our list of people to mail it to, I was realized how blessed we are to have known such encouraging, Godly people thoughout our lives. We would not be where we are today, if it wasn’t for the love, encouragement, discipleship, teaching, etc… of all of you! Thank you for your willingness to partner with us in prayer as we embark on this journey. Your prayers are invaluable to us!
The prayer support letter included a prayer reminder card, which has some of our general prayer requests listed on the back of the card. The prayer requests on the card are meant to be guide and cover some of the vital areas we would like prayer support in. We would also greatly appreciate prayer for some of the specific tasks that we will be working on in the next few weeks. I have listed some current requests below.
Specific Prayer Requests:
Thank you for your prayers and your partnership with us!
Love in Christ,
Greg and Heather Harris