Thank You, PFM Sponsors!

IGNITE Class 16 interns had the opportunity to share their gratitude as well as some encouraging testimonies of the work God is doing in their lives by writing a letter to PFM sponsors! We wanted to share a few short excerpts with you, and thank you from the bottom of our hearts for being a part of impacting the next generation for Christ!

Dear Sponsors…
“I want to thank you so much for being devoted to loving Jesus. Your love has helped me in ways you don’t even realize. Without your faithfulness, I most likely would have never heard about IGNITE! Your prayers and financial support not only help children, but you quite literally help me see the depths of God’s grace and provision. You are the ones holding up my hands and encouraging me to run full force for the Kingdom.”
-Shannon, Calvary Chapel Lebanon

Shannon praying over two public high school students after an outreach!

“The Lord gave me Psalm 23 coming into IGNITE as a picture of what He would do in my life in this season. He showed me that He would lead me beside still waters, that I would lay down in green pastures and, most of all, that He would restore my soul. IGNITE has been my green pasture, it has been my still waters, and it has restored my soul. It has been the most grounding, healing, restorative, redemptive, and beautiful experience of my life. And that’s because the Lord’s presence is so powerfully tangible here.”
-Christina, Selah Fellowship

Christina sharing her spoken word with the rest of IGNITE Class 16!

“Over the past three months, God has shown me how much He loves me, how much He cares about me, and how blessed I am. Before coming, I had no idea of what true love really meant, and God has been showing me how much He does love me, and how much I needed this year away from everything.”
-Alejandra, Rios de Fe

Alejandra and the three other girls serving in Guatemala for six months!

“I want to thank you from the bottom of my heart for allowing God to use you as a vessel that has helped change my life forever. It took an army of God’s people to get me here, and it takes an army of God’s people to continue to push me through. This has been an opportunity of a lifetime, and my world has flipped upside down as I strive to be more and more like Jesus every day. Please keep me in your prayers as I embark on my journey to Southeast Asia to be a light in the darkest corners of Cambodia. God bless you and thank you again!”
-Erika, Calvary Chapel Fellowship

Erika, sharing during an outreach

“He’s given me time to experience that He is my true Father entirely. I’ve seen Him move in ways in my heart that I’ve never experienced before since walking with Him. I’m excited to be able to love on the children, young adults, and families in Uganda for six months, but more importantly, to give them Jesus through the trials they are going through. I’m expecting the next six months on the field to change my life and my walk with the Lord forever. I’m expecting the Lord to show Himself so clearly in my life, and my teammates’ lives. He’s always been faithful, and I can’t wait to be able to share testimonies of His faithfulness through the nationals that already believe in Jesus and those that will come to Christ. Thank you, sponsors, for all that you’re doing for us. May God bless you in all that you do.”
-Mariah, Calvary Chapel Chattanooga

Mariah at one of the car washes they did for the community!

“In supporting Potter’s Field Ministries, you are helping send me out to Uganda with five other interns so that we can serve for six months. So, I am here to say, thank you! Thank you for supporting us here, thank you for helping our leaders, and thank you for giving to Potter’s Field Ministries.
At the time of this writing, I am approaching the end of my first three months of training in St. Petersburg, Florida, preparing for my time in Uganda. From our daily ‘Inductive Bible Studies’ to outreaches in downtown St. Petersburg, you have helped us grow closer to God each day. So, again, thank you. I know, for myself, I have grown in wisdom, knowing when to speak and when to stay silent, as well as learning how to worship God with my whole being.”
-Abram, Calvary Chapel Plano

Abram serving at Calvary Chapel Fellowship

“These months of training have shown me anew the joy of my salvation (Ps. 51:12), and I know they will be essential not only for the next six months on the field, but also for the rest of my life. The Lord has used this time to show Himself alive and active on my behalf as I’ve never seen Him before, and because of it, my faith has grown deeper than I ever thought it needed to or could.”
-Katie, McClean Bible Church

Katie fellowshipping with other IGNITE Interns!

 

‘Til The Whole World Hears,
IGNITE Class 16

Fruit Over the Years

IGNITE Class 15 intern, Jesse, shares about one of the precious children that has made an incredible impact on him during his time serving in Uganda.

The Lord provided me with an incredible blessing to speak with a great and faithful young boy named Collin, who has a tremendous love for the Lord. I was given the opportunity to meet with this wonderful young man while serving at the school filled with all various young children of God, just after having gone and done school outreach at a small local school. This interaction with all of these children and the building of relationships with them is a strong encouragement for both them and us, IGNITE interns.

For the children, they see us as role models and observe us and hopefully how we conduct ourselves, in the hopes that they would imitate our love for one another. As for us, they are not only an encouragement but also a challenge, the encouragement is from the fruit which God is so gracious to show us even in the challenging times. From this one, the fruit has been revealed to me!

Collin is a very ‘chill’ and peaceful boy, who attends Calvary Chapel Entebbe’s Christian school, the Church, and Potter’s Field Kids Club. Amazingly, he said that he has been attending the Kids Club for two years, but then Collin went on to say that he had learned in the baby class, so he has actually been attending for close to seven years. How great the Lord is to raise up this boy into a man! The fruit is being produced in his life.

Something that I would love to witness from him is his admittedly favorite hobby; praying with his friends to the Lord our beloved God. Having heard this, it gave me encouragement in our labors of helping, teaching, and interacting with these children. That is a sign to me of unity, a people of one mind and one accord letting their requests be made known to God. That is truly spectacular to me.

A few of Collin’s own preferences are, soccer, or fútbol, as they call it, and the color white and this is likened unto the purity which we can receive from God, purity of mind and soul. Sometime after speaking with Collin and learning these great things about him, I was delighted to play a little bit of fútbol with him and his friends. We didn’t actually use a soccer ball, but a baseball. They were, none-the-less thrilled to play with that ball.

He has a cheerful and straightforward personality, peaceable to speak with, and even quite funny. He seems to have good relationships with his friends, and I can see him being a peacemaker among the people, so that is my prayer for him. “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the children of God.” Matthew 5:9.

By His Grace

Baye Parrish is 18 years old, originally from Cookeville, TN where she attends Washington Avenue Baptist Church. She is currently a part of Potter’s Field Ministries IGNITE Mission Training Program in IGNITE Class 15 in her fifth month of field time serving in Cambodia! She wants to express her immense gratitude and thankfulness to the sponsors of PFM for their generosity and prayers that are impacting the lives of so many in Cambodia!

 

Dear Sponsors,

I am currently a part of Potter’s Field Ministries IGNITE Mission Training Program. Potter’s Field Ministries has seven different Potter’s Field Kids locations all over the world. My IGNITE Class began in July 2018, and now my class and I are serving in the field time portion. I have been serving in the Cambodia location for the last five months, with one more month left! In April, my class will be returning from different field locations and coming to Montana for re-entry.

IGNITE Class 15

The revival that is taking place here in Cambodia consistently leaves me speechless. PFM partners with a local church here in Cambodia called New Life Fellowship. My team and I teach at the school associated with the church on Monday and Tuesday, and I have been blessed to teach 1st-3rd and 5th-6th grade. Not only has it been a privilege to teach but also humbling. I just graduated high school last spring, so going from a student perspective to a teacher’s has been a growing experience for me. The Lord has had to teach me what it means to be a teacher.
Then, usually, the rest of the week is spent traveling to different PFK locations throughout the country. I love teaching Kids Clubs! So far, my favorite skit and lesson has been the parable of the lost sheep from Luke 15. The parable of the lost sheep expresses God’s love for us in a simple way that all the children can understand; if they call out to Him, He hears them and cares for them. We have also been able to see just how much they want to learn. Not only English or math but about Jesus. Especially with the older kids. One of the prayer children here named Pros Reach is an older kid in the program. I saw in him a genuine passion for the Lord as he consistently took care of other children and desired to grow in his relationship with God. It has been a blessing to witness desire in the hearts of children ignite like a match and continue to grow brighter.

A verse that consistently reminds me of what this season has been is 1 Corinthians 2:9, “But, as it is written, ‘What no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man imagined, what God has prepared for those who love him.” He has exceedingly and abundantly done more in this season than I could have ever imagined. A specific moment that reminds me of this verse happened in Oloch, a PFK location, where a little girl lives who is maybe six years old. Usually, when you meet kids, they are a bit shy at first, but not her. She was attached to my side. She wanted to be held, wanted all the hugs and kisses I could give, and simply wanted to be loved. She loved to play, and she was still by my side until the sunset. She looked up as the sun was going down and started telling me all the colors of the sunset and how pretty it was. My eyes welled up with tears because I realized: here I was in Cambodia with a little girl on my hip whom love is abounding from to all people. I saw Jesus in her. She loved me so much, and I had done nothing to deserve it. She showered me with affection when I didn’t even know her name yet. Jesus showed me, even in the smallest glimpse, just how infinite and affectionate His love is for me.

Since training in Montana, from July to September of 2018, until now writing this in February, on the field, I am able to see how faithful God is and the grace He has given me abundantly. I got saved in the summer of 2017, but I still held on to so much shame and attempted to prove that I had it all together not only to people but to God. During training, the Lord set me free from the bondage of shame and of feeling like it was my works that created a better relationship with Him. What reminded me of this was a few weeks ago, I read Romans 11:6, “But if it is by grace, it is no longer on the basis of works: otherwise grace would not be grace.” By His grace, He brought me to IGNITE and then to Cambodia. What the Lord has done in my life here in Cambodia has changed me forever.
I wish saying thank you did justice to how grateful I am for you, sponsors. By the grace of God, you said “yes” to sponsoring this ministry that has allowed me to know more of who He is and know these children you are praying for. They are able to have a fresh meal, education, and most importantly they are learning about the One True God. To the best of my ability, I want to say a sincere thank you. Truly, your help does not go unnoticed.
’Til the Whole World Hears!

With love,
Baye Parrish