Dear brothers and sisters in Christ,
“He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all,
how will he not also with him graciously give us all things?”
Romans 8:31
This verse is one of my favorites—one I’ve spent lots of time meditating on the last few years. I love it for its simple reminder that God gave up his Son, Jesus, “for us” —that is, on our behalf. The last few days the words in this verse that have captured my attention are the words “with him.” Paul says, “how will he not also with him graciously give us all things?” Did you catch that? He’s not just saying that God will “give us all things.” “All things” is great, but it’s not the greatest gift. Notice the word “also.” “Also” implies that God will “give us all things” in addition to something else. The something else is identified in the words “with him”—that is, with his Son. So God not only gave up Jesus for me but he also gave Jesus “to me”! He is mine—God’s gift to me! “Hallelujah, all I have is Christ! Hallelujah, Jesus is my life!”
We’ve been pretty busy since our last prayer update a couple of months ago. At the To Every Tribe headquarters here in south Texas we’ve been working on a number of projects related to our work as Mexico Field Director. Ruth has been busy taking care of our home and homeschooling the children. Jonathan and Christian just finished their soccer season and are excited as summer vacation nears. Katelyn is growing, cutting teeth, and trying to walk (which keeps us on our toes!).
At the end of March I was privileged to travel down to the south-central Mexican cities of Queretaro and Guadalajara to visit with To Every Tribe missionaries Jim Blomstrand and Ruben and Debbie Ibañez. Jim and the Ibañez family will be part of our church planting team heading to southern Mexico later this year. We had a great time of fellowship as we discussed the team’s plans and strategies for their work in Oaxaca.
The first week of April I was privileged to preach for a special spiritual emphasis week at Macedonian Christian Academy in Alamo, Texas. In the daily chapel services with Macedonian’s middle and high school students we focused on Colossians 2. It was an incredible joy to proclaim to these young people the surpassing beauty, sufficiency and supremacy of Jesus Christ! Then, on Thursday and Friday evenings I was privileged to bring two messages to the school’s parents on “The Supremacy of Jesus in the Home.”
Later in April I attended the John Bunyan Conference, an annual pastor’s theology conference held in Lewisburg, PA. The conference was a great time of fellowship, study and learning. It was a special treat to attend the conference with To Every Tribe missionaries Chris Johnson, Scott Ronyak, and Alex Sisson as well as with TET staff members, Rod and Linda Conner.
As many of you know, I had planned to accompany David Sitton on a trip to Papua New Guinea this month. Due to some illness I’ve had the last few weeks, we decided to postpone that trip. This was a big disappointment, but we’re grateful that my plane tickets were able to be extended for up to a year. Please pray for my continuing health needs.
Thank you all for your faithful prayer and support for our family and our ministry. We’re excited about the next few months and would like to invite you to pray with us in the following areas:
- Travel in Mexico: We are planning several visits to Mexico this summer both for me by myself as well as for our entire family.
- Safety: Violence resulting from Mexico’s drug war has made work and travel there increasingly difficult and dangerous.
- Church planting: Much of our time and ministry this summer will be focused on To Every Tribe’s church planting work in north-eastern Mexico.
- Wisdom: Much wisdom is needed as I provide leadership and direction for our church planting team headed to Oaxaca later this year.
- Legal recognition in Mexico: We’re currently working on getting To Every Tribe legally recognized in Mexico. This will greatly facilitate our work there and enable us to secure visas for our missionaries much more easily.
For the gospel and the kingdom,
AJ & Ruth Gibson
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