September 2023 - Ministry Updates

Greetings,
Thank you for your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now! It pleases us that you support us financially and pray for us fervently as we minister to the Haitians in the Dominican Republic (DR). As always, it is a privilege to highlight some of the key things God has done through us recently.

Last month, I visited some churches in the United States to raise funds for our monthly support. Before I left the DR, our support level was at 84%. Now, it is at 88%. We praise God for the increase and are grateful for the new ministry partners. We pray and hope that God will raise more donors soon to support His work.

Our church plant is going well. Several people recently joined us, so we have over 110 people in attendance weekly. Likewise, our Bible school is going strong. Most of our students are enthusiastic. Their eagerness to learn the Word of God encourages me to teach them diligently, knowing that my labor “is not in vain in the Lord” (1 Cor. 15:58).

By God’s grace and with the support of our sending church, we started a children’s school this month. We have 30 students, two teachers, one assistant teacher, and one secretary. We thank God for the opportunity to offer a quality education to these kids. We want to train them academically to ensure they become competent leaders to help transform our corrupt society. More importantly, however, we desire that they know God and the excellency of Christ Jesus, who died to give us eternal life.

Please pray for peace between Haiti and the DR. Relations between these neighboring nations have long been unfriendly due to their substantial ethnic and cultural differences. The situation has worsened lately since the Haitians resumed a construction project on their soil that targets a river running through both countries. As a result, Dominican immigration officials have intensified their efforts to deport illegal Haitian immigrants. Sadly, to be vigilant, many of our church members do not sleep in their homes since they are undocumented. Thus, we hope God will bring reconciliation and healing to these people groups, allowing them to live securely and peacefully. In the meantime, we will continue to serve Him faithfully and without fear.

Ismael and the Dora family