Fishers of Men

Welcome! Going forward, we will use this blog to share our ministry and prayer updates. If you want to read our previous updates, you can click the link at the bottom of this post. To print this update, right-click on the post, then click Print. You can also press Ctrl + P on your keyboard. 

Dear Partners, 

In the last four weeks, our travels have taken us to West Virginia, Ohio (x2), and Indiana. With gratitude, we thank our Heavenly Father for the safety He granted, the new relationships that have been established, and the privilege to share what the Lord is already doing to build His Church in Chile.

At the end of June, we joined a Vacation Bibel School at a local church for one day. The theme was Fisher’s of Men: Following Jesus by Sharing the Good News. I was able to share a Bible lesson from 1 Peter 3:15 about our responsibility to be fishers of men who are well-prepared.

"But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, and always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear."

Like a fisherman who prepares his tackle, nets, and boat before heading out to catch fish, followers of Jesus should also be prepared to share their faith. Peter tells us this begins with a reverence toward God within us. This reverence toward the Lord should compel us to be ready to defend our belief in Christ and proclaim God's plan of redemption made possible by the work Christ whenever asked about this hope within that unbelievers observe by our words and deeds.

Will you pray that we will be fishers of men who are ready to share the hope of Christ wherever the Lord presents opportunities? 

When we are not traveling, we have enjoyed time at home, attending Wednesday night prayer meeting at our church, being outside, and seeing family. I continue to teach often on Wednesday evenings and occasionally on Saturday morning at our Men's Bible Study. I have been challenged by a recent study I taught on the subject of prayer to give more of my time to prayer (Acts 6:4). 

"Prayer can never be in excess." - Charles Spurgeon

Praise & Prayer

• Young Adult Fellowship - Praise! Kalee and I have been blessed to host some of our young adults in our home this summer. We've enjoyed this time with them opening God's Word.

• Art Fair - Praise! The Ann Arbor Art Fair typically draws 400,000+ attendees. Once again, our home church had a booth there. The smoke from the Canadian wildfires affected the turnout, but we were still able to have good conversations with folks on a variety of topics related to Christianity, the Bible, Bible translation, theology. Pray that the Gospel seeds scattered will bear much fruit. 
  
  

• Chris - I met him at hotel in Athens, Ohio, when he was forced to seek shelter from the rain on his motorcycle. He is a Catholic, and I was able to share some truth from Scripture with him.

• Tim & Tu - They are our neighbors behind our house. He and his wife are Catholic, and I had a good discussion with Tim about his Catholic beliefs and why we are moving to South America last week. 

• Vacation Bible School - Our home church's VBS is next week (July 27th-31st). Kalee and I are excited to serve as group leaders. Pray for me as I teach the Bible Lessons on Monday & Tuesday. We have 36 children registered to attend. 
  

Timeline Update: We shared as a prayer request in our last update that we will likely need to wait until January 2027, to begin language school in Texas to raise our remaining support. That is the decision we have made, and the Lord has given us peace about this. We are 27% away from being fully supported. 

Love in Christ, 

Jansen, Kalee, Adarae, Clara, and Gabby

"You also helping together in prayer for us, that thanks may be given by many persons on our behalf for the gift granted to us through many."

2 Corinthians 1:11

More ministry and family highlights from this summer. 

Vacation Bible School at Vandercook Baptist Church. Adarae and Clara enjoyed the coloring, songs, and puppet skit.  

Right: Knot Bob was teaching the kids how to tie different kinds of knots that fisherman may use.

Left: The Howell Balloon Festival. Fellowship Bible Church of Howell hosts an annual picnic at their building which is close to the launch sight of the balloons. It was a beautiful evening. 

Right: Cross Lanes Bible Church in Cross Lanes, West Virginia. One of Jansen's professors at Detroit Baptist Theological Seminary now pastors this church. They graciously hosted us in their missionary apartment on the church property. It was a joy to see the Edwards family and meet the church family. 

Left: Talking to people about Jesus at the Ann Arbor Art Fair with a good friend from church. 

Lorch's Past Updates