Celebrating the Season!

Every year at IBV we try to think of new ways in which we can celebrate Christmas and still place Jesus Christ first and foremost. We recently had a Family Christmas Night during which we explained the meaning of many of our Christmas traditions. We made special ornaments, played some fun games, and enjoyed Dominican Christmas food!  What an exciting time teaching about the miraculous birth of our Lord!
We are also planning a Christmas Candle Light Service when we will be reaching out to many of the lost in our community.  There are few times better than the Christmas season to share the wondrous news of salvation. Please pray for this special service that many would come and hear the good news that Jesus Christ, our King who was born in that humble stable, became sin for us and provided us life eternal! Merry CHRIST-mas!!

Requests

Our baby boy due Jan. 29
Christmas outreaches

Faithful Men

  II Timothy 2:2 And the things that thou hast heard of me among many witnesses, the same commit thou to faithful men, who shall be able to teach others also.
This verse serves as a great reminder to all missionaries and pastors of our goal in the ministry — to train faithful men. Recently I had a man in our church approach me about training him for the ministry. That same week another young man explained to me that God was also calling him into the ministry. What a joy it has been to start the Instituto Bíblico Bautista de San Francisco! I have also begun teaching at another Bible institute 30 minutes away for a fellow BIMI missionary. Our young men have also been able to participate in those classes. It has been amazing to see God using this Bible training to excite not only our students, but the people in the church who see God working in the lives of their fellow church members!

Reaping the fruit…
We have recently begun an evangelistic training program on Wednesday nights.  We have had messages on soul winning, reviewed witnessing scenarios, and watched some useful DVD’s that teach methods of sharing the Gospel.  Henry, a gardener by trade, was recently invited to one of our Wednesday night services and learned about the great harvest field of lost souls. Through this biblical teaching, Henry realized he was one of those lost souls.  We had the joy of reaping the spiritual fruit as he bowed his head and accepted Christ as his Savior!
Please pray for: More souls saved, the discipleship of new believers, our new baby boy due January 29th, and our 4 week Oct-Nov furlough.

Sensational Summer!

Summertime back in the US can be a wonderful time filled with ball games, BBQ’s, and ice cold lemonade!  We also have had a wonderful summer serving our Lord here in the DR.  We are happy to report to you many highlights of the summer: our Sunday School ministry has grown numerically and spiritually; six people were baptized demonstrating their faith in Christ;  our VBS attendance doubled this year, and we saw many young people make a profession of faith;  a church group from WV came and helped us prepare for our anniversary service through tract distribution and children’s ministry; and praise the Lord, we even had our first young man surrender to preach!  So much is happening here, and we wanted to share it with you.  We would like to thank you for partnering with us to bring the light of the Gospel here to the Dominican.  Hope you have had a sensational summer too!

2 years of blessings..
It’s hard to believe that Iglesia Bautista La Verdad is already two years old! On August 7th we celebrated our anniversary with our largest adult crowd.  Pastor Pedro da Cunha, a Baptist pastor from the capital, came and gave a stirring Gospel message. We praise the Lord for many first time visitors, and many who showed interest in the church. Please pray for Milagros, a lady visitor who is very interested in the Gospel, but has yet to make a decision for Christ. We believe God has much more in store for IBV and we look forward to many more wonderful years

Please pray for:  souls saved and discipled, our new baby due January 29th, Bible Institute plans, and a short October furlough.

Needy families!
When we moved to a third world country we expected to find poor health care, inadequate education, and poverty.  However, the one prevalent need that clearly stands out no matter the socio-economic position is the need for strong Christ-honoring families.  Therefore, we plan time yearly to uplift and encourage our families.  In May we held our second annual “Family Conference” and invited the Josh Wesson family, fellow BIMI missionaries from the capital, to minister to us in song and preaching.  The Wesson family did an exceptional job connecting with the people through their powerful testimony and Christ-like spirit.  Each night we saw an increase in attendance as well as many first time visitors.  Many of the church members mentioned how special these conferences have been to them, and it has been exciting to see their spiritual growth.

Terrific Testimony
We met Alex as a result of the baseball clinic we hosted here in our city with Yankees relief pitcher Mariano Rivera.  Alex was like most Dominican boys, dreaming of a chance to play in the major leagues and receive a major league contract.  However, after hearing the Gospel, this young man received something much more valuable, a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. Now, Alex has become a faithful member, and has begun inviting his family and friends to our church.  Recently Alex told me that he is so grateful to the Lord that we shared the Good News with him because his life has been changed!  We have been so excited to see his faithfulness and personal growth in the Lord. Thank you, friends and family, for your faithfulness to us!

Prayer Requests:
-Family health and safety
-VBS 2011 (July 4-6)
-2nd anniversary service (8/7

Increased Faith!
“And the apostles said unto the Lord, Increase our faith.”
-Luke 17:5
This March, again, we asked God to increase our faith as we focused as a church on world missions.  Last year our church made their first Faith Promise commitment of $120 per month, a commitment that we were able to keep.  This enabled us to take on our first missionaries, whom we have now supported financially and prayerfully for one year.  After 4 weeks of hearing messages about the heart, methods, and goals of missions, Iglesia Bautista La Verdad increased their faith by 100%. We were overwhelmed by this tremendous demonstration of faith, and we look forward to seeing the impact and fruit of this commitment.  Thank you for YOUR commitment to us, and the opportunity to bear fruit to your account.

Leadership Lessons
Frequently we are asked, “What is the biggest problem you face?”  The answer that always seems to come to mind is lack of male leadership.  Because of this we planned and hosted our first annual “Faithful Men’s Conference.” We invited 9 other Independent Baptist churches from around the country.  Dr. Pat Creed, our BIMI director, was our keynote speaker.  Two other Dominican pastors also gave stirring messages about leadership, God’s calling, and faithfulness. We were so encouraged to see over 90 in attendance. Please pray for the future leaders of the Dominican that they would allow God to guide them!

Prayer Requests:
-Continued growth of church
(spiritual and numerical)
-Family Conference
(May 11-13)

New Friends!

Proverbs 18:24 -A man that hath friends must shew himself friendly…
Since the inception of our church we have consistently strived to have a friendly church where all types of people feel welcome. For this year’s “Friend Day” we encouraged the people to invite adult friends, neighbors, and relatives who were unbelievers.  The church responded tremendously with over 20 first time visitors, with a majority of those being adults.  After the service we had a time of fellowship which we used to get better acquainted with many of the visitors.  The most exciting part for us was the enthusiasm of the church members as they saw the wonderful fruit of their labor.  Please pray for those visitors that they would return to the preaching of God’s Word and be saved from their sins!

Extraordinary Women

Have you ever considered what it means to be extraordinary?  Holly has been studying the extraordinary women of the Bible with the ladies of IBV during their monthly ladies’ meetings.  The ladies meet in our home for a time of prayer, fellowship, Bible study, refreshments, and sometimes a craft or recipe.  (If they don’t talk too long!) J These informal gatherings encourage the women to share burdens and joys, as they strive to be extraordinary women in the eyes of the Lord.

¡¡¡ Gracias !!!
Thanks for all the cards we received for our birthdays and Christmas.  We are so blessed to have you as our support and prayer team!

Prayer Requests:
-Missions Conf. – March 4-6
-Holly’s ladies’ Bible study
-Growth of discipleship class

Bring them in!

Luke 14:23- “And the lord said unto the servant, Go out into the highways and hedges, and compel them to come in, that my house may be filled.”
For many months now we have been seeking to purchase a van for the church.  Many of those who attend are very poor and paying for a taxi to travel across town is very expensive.   Also, we needed a van for hosting groups from the US during the summers.  A number of months back we received about 2/3 of the needed funds from an extremely generous man from the States.   After 6 months of investigating and saving, the church was able to purchase a 15 passenger 2006 Ford van.  In just one short month it has been amazing to see how God has already blessed the bus route.  We have seen not only a boost in attendance but an increased enthusiasm with the other church members as we seek to reach more for Christ.

Notes from Navidad

The Christmas holidays are always a special time of year for us here in the DR.  This year we had a beautiful banquet, in which over 75 people attended.  Many of these were first time visitors who came and heard Erik give a message entitled “The Greatest Gift for Christmas, Jesus.”  Also, we had a children’s nativity drama which was directed by Holly.  The kids dressed up as Mary, Joseph, shepherds, angels, 2 sheep and a donkey!  They delivered a wonderful performance!  This drama allowed us the opportunity to share the Gospel with unsaved parents who do not regularly attend our church.  Please pray for fruit from these outreaches.

Prayer Requests:
-Growth of the bus route
-Family health and safety
-Discipleship classes

Happy New Year!!!

One of the mens prayer groups meeting on Wednesday night

Growing in Truth

I Peter 2:2 – As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby:

In the first year of our ministry we saw great numerical growth in Truth Baptist Church of San Francisco de Macorís;  however, our goal has always been the spiritual growth of the people. One way that we have sought to develop this growth is through our Wednesday night discipleship classes.  Most of the people who attend our church have either been saved for less than a year or have been saved and have never grown in the Lord. This class is providing them the opportunity to learn many key doctrines such as the deity of Christ, the inerrancy of Scripture, the security of the believer, etc… Through this study we have seen a core group emerge that is truly seeking and hungering after the truth!  Please pray for our church as we continue to grow in the truth!

Heart Exam

When was your last heart exam?  Have you ever even had one??  Even more so than our physical, our spiritual heart requires routine check-ups.   One reason for our recent first annual revival service was to examine the spiritual condition of our heart.  Bro. Steve Sidler, a veteran missionary, preached three stirring messages; and many great decisions were made.  We ask you to pray for the “heart” of Iglesia Bautista La Verdad.

Follow us on the web:
Don’t forget you can follow us on the web via our website www.johnsons2dr.org or via our twitter feeds at etjohnson1

Prayer Requests:
-Souls saved / lives changed
-Upcoming family month
-Discipleship class
-Holly’s ladies’ Bible study

Fun in the Sun

Crystal blue water and white sandy beaches — the tourists’ idea of fun in the sun.  However, the three groups we hosted this summer experienced a different kind of fun!  During the scorching summer heat we passed out over 15,000 tracts and Romans with the help of groups from KY, IN and PA.  What a blessing these folks were to our church and especially to us!!  Also this summer we conducted our first VBS. The most thrilling part of our summer was that a number of young people prayed to accept the Lord as their Savior (José Miguel and Camila are shown here).  After teaching these children for almost a year, Holly was excited to see Isaiah 55:11 coming to fruition in these young lives.  The Word of God will not return void!  Certainly, it was a summer of FUN!

First Anniversary

On August 8, we celebrated our first anniversary of the Iglesia Bautista La Verdad!  With the help of many people from the church, we prepared for this special day. We were overwhelmed when over 90 people showed up to our little church which can barely hold 70!  We enjoyed a very special service which included a slide show of the first year of the church, special music, and a terrific Gospel message from Missionary Tom Franklin. It has been amazing to look back and see what God has done in our city in just 12 short months of ministry.  Yet, none of this would be possible without your faithful prayers and financial support! Thank you!

Requests

-Souls saved / lives changed
-Health and safety of family
-New discipleship class
-Leaders to be developed

Friend Day 2010

Family Friends

The last few months of ministry here have been absolutely amazing!  Thanks to all who prayed for our “Friend Day” and “Family Conference.”  Both were tremendously fruitful.
Our first annual, “Friend Day” was exciting as we filled up our church for the first time! We had 63 in attendance, with 39 visitors, and 4 professions of faith.  It is thrilling to see God work in the hearts of the people in the church as well as in the surrounding community.  Many of the visitors have returned and are faithful to our services. We were able to lead one couple to the Lord that we had been inviting to our church for almost one year!  They have been coming faithfully to church and desire to be discipled.  Our hearts rejoice that on “Friend Day” they were able to meet their best Friend, Jesus Christ!

A few weeks later we were blessed to have the Chris Phillips family, Hispanic church planters to Charleston, SC, and former DR missionaries, as our “Family Conference” guests.  We saw many families touched by the preaching and teaching of God’s Word, as well as many positive decisions made.  The entire Phillips family played and sang many uplifting, Christ-honoring songs which greatly encouraged the church. Our church would like to thank the Phillips family for having a great impact in the lives of many here at Iglesia Bautista La Verdad, and we would like to thank you for faithfully praying and giving to our ministry!

Prayer Requests

-Souls saved / lives changed
-Health and safety of family
-Upcoming summer events
- 1st VBS – July 12-14
- Hosting 3 missions teams
- 1st Anniversary Service

One “Great” Month
Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: (Matt 28:19)

During the last month we have been emphasizing the “Great Commission” at IBV.  As a result we have seen many great milestones in the church as we seek to fulfill this mandate of our Lord Jesus Christ. During our Missions Month we had a Dominican church planter, Alexis Remigio,  present his ministry.  This was a wonderful time for our church to see missions in action.  Another great milestone was our first baptism, which was held on our carport after the service.  Jorge and Luis were the first two to follow the Lord in Believers’ Baptism.  What an exciting day, though a bit challenging to get 2 men immersed in 30 inches of water! J  Later in the month we had a guest missionary, Steve Brockell, come to teach the people about Faith Promise giving.  We also enjoyed our first annual “International Dinner”-a sign of a true Baptist church.  Finally, our last missions Sunday was called “Commitment Sunday,”  a day devoted to making our Faith Promise commitments. God worked in the hearts of the people and blessed us with a tremendous commitment!  We have had a great beginning to our ministry here in San Francisco, and ask that you continue to pray for more great days to come.
Thank you so much for your prayer and financial support.  You are greatly appreciated

Prayer Requests:
-Continued good health
-Souls saved
-Spiritual growth for church
-Upcoming events:
Friend day
Family conference

Zack Thomas Johnson

A Heart for God
We praise the Lord for a wonderful end of the year at our church!  We saw a number of salvation decisions, re-dedications to the Lord, and over 50 visitors at our special Christmas activities.  During our first service of 2010, which we called Vision Sunday, Erik challenged the church to have  “A Heart for God,” which is this year’s theme.  We have begun to pass out a daily devotional “Steps in the Word” that encourages our people to have personal devotions.  Praise the Lord that Juan Carlos, who has attended our church for the last 6 months, recently accepted Christ as his personal Savior; and since his salvation has shown a great desire to learn more through discipleship and personal devotions.  We are thrilled that God has already begun to work in the hearts of people and we pray that this will continue throughout all of 2010!

Haitian Relief
Since the devastating earthquake in Haiti on January 12th, many have asked us what can be done to help.  Our church here is collecting food, supplies, and money that will be given to missionary friends who have set up a distribution center in Haiti.  If you would like to donate to this project you can contact BIMI and make your donations to Jeff Garrison/Haitian Relief #1210.  Jeff is a fellow BIMI missionary who is helping with the transport of the supplies.

Bundle of Joy
We are excited to announce that our little bundle of joy, Zack Thomas Johnson, entered the world at 6 am on January 16, 2010.  Both baby and mommy are doing great! We thank the Lord for such a healthy pregnancy and birth.

Prayer Requests:
–Spiritual growth for church
-Continued health of the family
-Soul winning ministry

Merry Christmas!

Thankful hearts
We spent Thanksgiving Day in the Dominican with some missionary friends feasting on turkey and all the trimmings!  As usual, we ate too much! While celebrating this holiday we reflected on the tremendous blessings God has heaped upon our plate this year!  We have seen many Dominicans accept Christ as their personal Savior and begin discipleship classes, a solid core of people attending the church faithfully, God’s protection during a car accident and small house fire, and innumerable other blessings. During this season of thanksgiving, we would like to thank all of our family, friends, and church supporters for your faithful prayers and financial support. In the midst of these difficult economic times, we understand that many of you are making great sacrifices.  Please know that God is blessing your investment!

Caribbean Christmas
Here in the DR the Christmas season begins very early.  In fact, this year we put up our Christmas tree two weeks before Thanksgiving.   By mid-November the holiday is in full swing.  Because Dominicans love to celebrate Christmas so much, we have planned a number of evangelistic outreaches in the community. With the help of our church family we hope to reach some people in our community that have never heard the true Reason for the season.  Please pray that the Lord would bless these special activities and that many would be saved.  What a great Christmas gift that would be!

Merry Christmas!!!

Prayer Requests:
-Holly’s pregnancy and delivery
-Family health and safety
-Church ministries
-Christmas outreaches

Ashley and Ginny enjoying our first soul winning outing!

Growing Family

Our thoughts lately have been focused on the upcoming growth of our family in January. (It’s a boy!)  As we have thought about our growing family, we also have seen the need of helping our church families grow spiritually.  The number of families that have been splintered by infidelity and divorce is sadly alarming. This month we have had a preaching series and activities centered on the family.  The response has been tremendous! In fact, one of our best attended activities was a “Family Game Night,” during which we played various board games, enjoyed food, fellowship, and had a message on families.  We are praying that God would bless our church with more families that desire to have a heart for God.  Please pray for our family as well, that we would be a godly example!

Working in the Fields

An exciting milestone for our church was the beginning of our Saturday “soul winning” ministry.  We have always desired to have a church that is focused on the souls of the lost world, as well as the needs of those in the church.  

I have begun to teach a soul winning class that is followed up with street evangelism every Saturday.  We have tried to include the entire family in this new ministry, and the response has been very encouraging. (Above Ashley and her friend Ginny are enjoying our street evangelism.)

Prayer Requests:

-Holly’s pregnancy

-Family health

-Soul winning ministry

-Wisdom in training Ashley

-Iglesia Bautista La Verdad

-Family month

-Spiritual growth

Here is a picture taken after our first service!

To God Be the Glory…

…great things He hath done!

This week we were reminded of this great hymn as we celebrated the first service at Iglesia Bautista La Verdad!  During the last month we had two missions teams visit from the US.  The first was a teen group from Landmark Independent Baptist Church in Louisville, KY.  They were a great help to us as they passed out over 7,000 Gospel tracts and invitations to our first church service.  Two weeks later our home church, Temple Baptist Church, sent a group of adults from both the English and Spanish churches. They helped us prepare for a special “Weekend for the Family” with a Friday Family Fun Night, a Saturday Family Fair, and our first official service on 

Sunday.  We thank the Lord for six other Dominican Baptist churches who helped make the Family Fair a success.  For our first service our home pastor, Dr. David Pittman preached a clear Gospel message in English while Branden Lawrence, our Spanish pastor, translated. In total we had well over 300 people attend our weekend activities and many accepted Christ as their Savior.  We would like to thank all of our supporters who helped make this special weekend possible. Please pray for us as we follow up with those who received Christ as well as those who attended our weekend activities. 

Little Teammate 

Please pray for Holly as we are “expecting” a new little teammate the end of January

First Bible study at Truth Baptist Church

Baby Steps

Several months back when our little Ashley began taking her first steps there was an awful lot of wobbling and falling down.  After much determination and hard work, she finally learned to walk.  It has been similar to our ministry here.    We have begun to take our first “baby” steps; and it is an exciting time!  This past month we have rented a store front which will serve as the first church building for  Iglesia Bautista La Verdad (Truth Baptist Church.)  We have already begun holding Bible studies on Sunday mornings and have had a wonderful response with many visitors.  Also we have continued in our downtown park ministry and neighbor-hood visitation which have yielded many good contacts and saved souls.  Praise the Lord!  Please continue to pray for us as we take those “baby steps”!

Big offering

Usually when we think of a “big offering” we think of thousands of dollars given to a church or some other huge donation.  However, this week I witnessed one of the biggest offerings of sacrifice that I have seen.  David, one of our new converts, is a shoe shiner downtown.   Instead of working on Sunday, a busy day for him, he decided to attend our Bible study.  This young man has little in this world besides a few clothes, his shoes, and a shoe shine box.  While driving him back to work I told him that the Lord would honor his sacrifice.  His response was, “You have to dedicate time for God.”  This simple statement encouraged us that God is already working in the hearts of people here! We also realize that many of you are making big sacrifices so that we can serve the Lord here in the DR.  Thank you!

Ashley doing her part in the unpacking process....being sweet!!!

Getting Settled 

It is hard to believe that we have been in the Dominican for two months now.  Boy, how time flies!  On the mission field, some days seem to “fly” faster than others.  For example, we spent the first 16 days in the capital working on getting our container out of customs.  Though this may sound like a long time to you, in reality we were able to get our container in record time.  We praise the Lord for the help of some fellow BIMI missionaries and a local lawyer.

After our container cleared customs we moved our things into our new home and have been spending our time getting unpacked and adjusting to our new culture.

Fresh Fruit

Our area in the Dominican has many orchards and fruit trees of all kinds.  There are few things sweeter in this world than fresh fruit right off the tree.  Likewise, in our Christian life there is nothing “sweeter” than leading someone to the Lord.  Recently I was passing out tracts in our city square when a young man approached me and asked me to explain the tract to him.  I was able to present the Gospel to him and another man, and praise the Lord, both men received Christ as their Savior!  These two men, Manuel and Teodoro, are our first two Dominican converts.  They are fresh “. . .fruit that may abound to your account”!!!  (Phil. 4:17)

Prayer Requests

-Souls to be saved

-Spanish improvement

-Building to rent for church

-Continued good health 

-Personal walk w/ the Lord

Never too late!

We have many memories from our year at language school, but the most special one occurred during our final week in Costa Rica.  Holly was able to lead a lady to the Lord that we had been praying for the entire year!   Holly had spoken to “Luz” about the Lord often, but “Luz” had never received Him as her Savior.  After much prayer, Holly witnessed to her one final time.  She and Holly both shed tears of joy as she prayed to become a child of the King.

Ready, Set, Go! 

After 18 months of deputation, and 12 months of language school, we finally arrived in the Dominican Republic on February 14 — yes, Valentine’s Day! Much of our last month was spent packing as we prepared to load our container.  We want to thank our family, as well as the members of White Plains Baptist Church, and the men of Macedonia World Baptist Missions for their help in packing our container (seen above).  After our container was shipped, we traveled to our home church for Erik’s ordination and our send off service.  Pastor Pittman preached a challenging message that exhorted us to serve the Lord with all of our heart.  Now, more than ever, we covet your prayers as our ministry in the DR is just beginning.  We greatly appreciate your vital role in our ministry through your prayers and financial support!  Thanks!

‘Tis the Season

With the help of our fellow language school students, we organized and threw a Christmas party for 87 local orphans.  We had carnival style games, piñatas, face painting, gifts, and most importantly we were able to share the wonderful story of our Savior’s birth with them.  Our prayer for these young orphans is that they would understand that there is a Heavenly Father that loved them so much that He sent His only Son to be the Greatest Gift of all!

The Greatest Gift

As the Christmas season approaches we often think about beautifully wrapped gifts placed under the Christmas tree; but it is the Greatest Gift, the good news of Christ, that we should be giving.   Recently I finally felt comfortable enough with my Spanish to go soul winning by myself; so I began witnessing to our neighborhood guard, Antonio.  After speaking to him on three separate occasions about salvation it was apparent that he had already accepted Christ as his personal Savior; however, his assurance of salvation was very weak.  I asked if he would allow me to begin a Bible study with him, and he readily agreed.  In the last month we have had more than 12 lessons covering topics such as assurance of salvation, the Bible, and prayer.  Please pray for him to continue desiring to grow in his daily walk with the Lord! 

Thank you so much for your prayers and support! 

We want to wish you all a very               

Merry CHRIST-mas!! 

The Johnsons

Life at Language School

Between studying full-time and being completely immersed in a Spanish environment, we have kept very busy this year.   We have had the opportunity to visit many good local independent Baptist churches. Helping with neighborhood outreaches, going soulwinning, and participating in special cultural days has helped us gain many good ideas for our future ministry.  (The men in the picture above are dressed up for Independence Day.)  Living in another country has taught us many valuable lessons, most of which deal with our need to know the language well before we can have an effective ministry in the Dominican. We have just a few months remaining in our studies before we return to GA to pack our container, but we are so glad for the time we have had here to learn both language and culture.  We want to personally thank all of those who have given and prayed so that we can serve our Lord.  Please continue!

What a blessing it was to recently be able to visit the city the Lord has called us to, San Francisco de Macorís, during a break from language school. This trip really encouraged us as we make our final push at language study in Costa Rica.  We had the chance to visit and become better acquainted with the city where we will soon be serving.  While there, we were able to pass out many Gospel tracts, find several good options for housing, and we even found some affordable places to start our first church.   We also met a young man named Argelis while in the Dominican.   After talking to him for a few minutes he admitted that he was not saved and did not go to church.  Please pray for him!  We are so burdened to see people like Argelis come to know the Lord, but we know that we cannot do it alone.  We thank you for your prayerful and financial support; however, the battle is about to begin and we need your prayers more than ever.  With the Lord’s help this city will be won! 

Preaching in Español

On our trip to the Dominican Republic I was able to preach my first message in Spanish at the Fountain of Life Baptist Church in Santo Domingo.  The message title was “El Evangelio” (The Gospel).  Though the message was not a long one, it was thrilling to be able to share God’s plan of salvation in another language

Memorial Day started out as a normal day for us.  We both had our usual classes and planned to celebrate our national holiday with a “Johnson family fiesta.”  Erik went to the store to pick up a few things, and that is when it happened.

At least three armed men broke through our locked gate and into our home; they found Holly in the kitchen and made her go to the back patio where they tied her up.  They proceeded to take many valuables from our house:  our laptop computer, digital camera, TV, etc.   Thankfully, Holly was not physically hurt, and neither was Ashley who was upstairs on our bed .  Erik arrived home just in time to see the robbers.  As they fled, he called the police.  We praise the Lord that no one in our family was hurt!  God has taught us through this trial the great need for His care and protection.  Though we were robbed, we know that His hand of protection was upon us.  We thank you for your many prayers, and ask that you would continue to regularly pray for us!  We realize that things of earth are temporal, but the things above are eternal.  Pray that the Lord will use this trial to help us reach our unsaved landlord and his family who were also robbed.  “For we know that all things work together for good.”

Through Ashley’s Eyes 

Though some people may “pity” missionary kids, I am definitely enjoying being one!!  My first three and a half months have been full of fun adventures:  getting my passport, flying in an airplane, riding in numerous taxis, sleeping with a mosquito net, visiting a rain forest,  experiencing a temblor (small earthquake), and ” talking” to my grandparents on the computer.  I wish everyone could have as much fun as I do!!! 

Hello World!

Our precious baby, Ashley Hope, made her grand entrance into this world on February 20, 2008.  As Mom was crying for joy and Dad was grinning from ear to ear, we both gained a greater awareness of the miracle of life.  God had laid on our hearts the idea of reading a portion of Scripture to Ashley at her arrival.  We chose Psalm 78:4,7.

   We will not hide them from their children, shewing to the generation to come the praises of the LORD, and his strength, and his wonderful works that he hath done. That they might set   their hope in God, and not forget the works of God, but keep his commandments: 

Please pray that as new parents we would properly train Ashley to set her hope in God and keep His commandments throughout her life.  (To view pictures of Ashley, visit www.johnsons2dr.org.)

Home Grown Missions Conference

Before returning to language school we had one final meeting, the missions conference at our home church, Temple Baptist in Herndon, VA.  This year was unique as all of the missionaries in the conference were sent out of our church.  We could never put into words the range of emotions that filled us each night as we watched the video presentations of our friends that have been called into missions.  In the last 5 years there have been 6 families sent out, and another family is about to begin deputation.  What a blessing it has been to see our church give of their finances and people to world missions!  It is impossible to thank the Lord enough for the faithful people at Temple as well as all of our supporters who have given abundantly so that we can reach the world for Christ.  We are truly overwhelmed by your generosity!

Prayer Requests                                                                                                                                                                                                            

-Safety and health in Costa Rica           

-Spanish studies                                                                       

-Salvation of loved ones                                               

Depending on Him,

                        Erik, Holly, and Ashley Johnson

Cultural Adaptation 101 (cont.):  The Taxi Ride

In the first few months of language school we have had many new experiences.  One of the more “interesting” experiences occurred during a cab ride to church.  I gave the taxi driver directions in my best Spanish.  It seemed that he understood; however, after a while we began to wonder.  We started seeing parts of the city that we had never seen.  As we began ascending a very steep hill we quickly noticed that we were no longer in the city.  Once we arrived at the crest of this large hill the taxi came to a halt, and the driver declared that we had arrived in San Ramón.  Needless to say, this was not where we wanted to go!  After paying a few thousand colones extra (about $8), we did make it to our destination.  This miscommunication made me realize how important language school is.  We will be giving directions to Heaven through Christ Jesus, and we must do so accurately.  Please continue to pray for us as we learn!

Bilingual Bible Study

In January we began a Bible study in our home with two other families.  The main focus was to encourage each other in the Scriptures while learning Spanish.  The group consisted of one missionary family on their way to El Salvador and a Costa Rican family who helped lead the study in Spanish.   We had a wonderful time, and to our great joy we have also had a young unsaved lady visit during our first two studies.  She is Costa Rican, but also understands English.  Please pray that Melissa will understand God’s love for her and receive His free gift of salvation. 

Prayer Needs                
* We are both back in GA now awaiting the arrival of our little girl.  Please pray for a safe delivery and healthy baby!                                     
* Also pray that the necessary documents and her passport will arrive quickly after she does so that we can return to language school. 

MISSION: Language School

On November 7th, we arrived in San Jose, Costa Rica to begin our year long language training at the Spanish Language Institute.  Our flight, house setup, language studies, and total transition could not have gone more smoothly!  Thank you for praying for our safe arrival and for giving so that we can be here.  Being your ambassadors for Christ is a wonderful privilege, and we count it a great honor to serve Him on the mission field.

Cultural Adaptation 101

During the last four weeks we have experienced a few interesting differences in this new culture.  The other day after checking out at the supermarket we had a bag boy offer to take our groceries home for us.  Because home is an 8 block walk we readily agreed.  We wondered how much he would charge as we trailed behind the cart.  After unloading the groceries in front of our door he began to leave.  I asked him how much he charged, and he replied that he wanted to do it because he saw that Holly was pregnant.  This was very touching; so we gave him 500 colones (which is about $1.00 US).  That was our best deal of the day!

Sharing the Christmas Spirit

Matthew 1:21b  …and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins.  As we observe preparations for Christmas for the first time in a foreign country, this verse has greater significance to us than it has before.  Christmas is not about ornaments, presents, or egg nog;  but it is about the birth of a promised Savior who came to earth to save mankind from sin.  This year do not forget to share the true spirit of Christmas — Jesus Christ, the little baby in the manger, the fulfillment of God’s promise!

Prayer Needs

Safe delivery

Spanish studies

Souls saved

November 7, 2007, at about 2:45 p.m. we touched down in San Jose, Costa Rica!  It has been a whirlwind few days as we have spent our time getting to know the area where we are living.  We have arrived in the final stages of the country’s rainy season so we have learned to be mindful of slippery sidewalks, or as the other students call it, “green ice.”  Another roadway hazard is the corner sewer drains that have been removed.  “Be careful of the gringo traps,” one student warned me.  So, we’ve learned to be watchful of where we step!

Our language study began as we got off the plane and had to navigate through the airport and city to get to our home.  Having some background in Spanish has helped greatly, but at the same time we have both realized how much we have yet to learn.  This year will be so beneficial as we learn the language, learn more about Hispanic culture, and learn how to minister in another country.

Finally, you can continue to pray for Holly and her pregnancy.  Everything is going great, and we are looking forward to the arrival of our first born child.  

(Pictured below: 1. Our street    2. Our front door    3. Our tiny kitchen)

We are here!

Lord willing, we will be leaving for language school in early November.  Deputation has gone extremely well, and we are now praying for the remaining promised support to come in.  Our language studies will be at the Spanish Language Institute, located in San Jose, Costa Rica.  While in Costa Rica we will be taking Spanish classes and studying with private tutors, as well as practicing our language skills through immersion in the culture.  Romans 10:17 says, “So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.”  In order to effectively reach the Dominicans, we will need to know their language well.  Please pray for us as we take this next step in our ministry.  

Pink Surprise!

As mentioned in our last prayer letter, Holly is expecting; and many have been asking if we know the sex of the child yet.  About two weeks ago we sat in the doctor’s office awaiting the news.  Our little baby did not want to cooperate right away, but after thirty minutes of Holly’s shifting around on the table, our doctor announced that we are going to be the proud parents of a little girl!  The only concern Holly has right now is that Erik will spoil his little girl too much.  We are very excited about her arrival and ask that you continue to pray for Holly and the baby.

Stay Connected

In this age of technology we have many great tools at our disposal. . . one being a missionary website.  As we head off to the field you can stay informed on our ministry and family news, as well as our latest prayer needs.  Please take time to visit our site, www.johnsons2dr.org  and drop us a line.  We want to stay connected to you because you are a vital part of our ministry!

Prayer Needs 

Holly’s pregnancy

Preparations for the field

Promised support to come in

It’s going to be a Girl! 

Tuesday, September 25, we found out that we are going to have a little girl!  As you can imagine, we are very excited.    The sonogram revealed not only the sex of our baby, but most importantly the good health of our baby.  She has a very strong heartbeat, as well as all other signs of a healthy baby.  She is due to arrive on Feburary 15, 2008.  Please continue to pray for Holly and the remaining 4 months of the pregnancy.  Thanks to all those who have already prayed!

Ready or not here we come!  Our preparations for departure to language school are in their final stages.  We will be leaving for Costa Rica to begin our language study November 7, 2007.  Deputation has been a wonderful experience in which God has taught us many useful lessons; however, we are eager to get to the mission field to which God has called us.  Please pray for the following:

1. Our remaining support to come in- lacking approximately 12%
2. Holly’s pregnancy- health and wisdom
3. Language study- understanding and retention

A Passion for a Dying City“

And ye know that he was manifested to take away our sins; and in him is no sin.” —  I John 3:5

This month we had the tremendous opportunity to go on a short survey trip to the Dominican.  The purpose of this trip was to become better acquainted with the city in which we plan to serve, San Francisco de Macoris.  One morning as I  read I John and overlooked the city square, the above verse gripped me.  John had taught these people the Word of God, and they had an understanding of the person of Jesus Christ.  The Holy Spirit impressed upon my heart the great need in San Francisco for a group of believers like we read about in I John.   As far as we know there is almost no evangelistic outreach being attempted in that city.  Our hearts have been stirred by our visit, and we have never been more enthusiastic about reaching the Dominican people.

 A Prospective Missionary in the Making

We are thrilled to announce that we have a new missionary that will be joining our team!  Baby Johnson is scheduled to make his or her appearance in mid-February.  We thank the Lord for His provision and protection already during this pregnancy.  Thank you to those of you who have been praying for the Lord’s will concerning our family.  Please continue to pray for Mom and Baby. . . . and you might as well pray for Dad too!   J

 Prayer Requests

• Finances for container and vehicle 
• Final 15% of support to come in 
• Family health 
• Future ministries

“The Lord give mercy unto the house of Onesiphorus; for he oft refreshed me…and in how many things he ministered unto me at Ephesus, thou knowest very well.”   —  II Timothy 1:16,18 

Recently God allowed these two verses to impact me in my personal devotions.  They caused me to think back over the last year to all the people who have ministered to our needs along our deputation journey.  The apostle Paul took time in his letters to thank those who had been a part of his ministry, and we would like to do the same.  Though we could never list all who have been a blessing , we want to thank all of you who have given to us, housed us, and fed us along the way.  You have ministered to our needs, bringing us great refreshment ; and we pray that the Lord would bless you.  We would not be where we are without you!

What a Great Year!

We have experienced a few firsts in our ministry during the last few weeks.  We had our first flat tire, which reminded us to praise God for over 30,000 miles safely driven.  We had to cancel our first meeting this year due to illness, which caused us to praise God for the wonderful health we have been given along the way.  God has abundantly blessed us with 78% of our needed support coming in, and even more promised.  We praise God for all that He has done in our ministry during the last 12 months.  From saved souls to surrendered lives, we have seen God move in many extraordinary ways; and now we look forward to what He will do in the future!

Prayer Requests

·  “How many volcanoes do they have in the Dominican?”

 ·  “Do they have X-box there?”

 · “How many people died there last year?” 

 These are some of the unique questions that we have been asked on deputation. Sometimes we know the answers; but sometimes we just have to say, “I don’t know.”  One thing we do know is that we are very eager to get to the Dominican and begin the work to which God has called us.  With our deputation speeding by, we are very busy with plans for language school and our departure.  Currently we have about 65% of our support promised, and we have changed our original departure goal from  December to November.  Praise the Lord! 

How’s your vision?

One very cool aspect about deputation is the world-wide friends we are able to make.  From Estonia to El Salvador, and Samoa to Senegal our new missionary friends are encircling the world for Christ.  Our world vision has increased as we have been in conference after conference.  Seeing  the needy faces from all over the world in various media presentations has definitely impacted our lives.   The Bible says, “. . .mine eye affecteth mine heart…”   (Lam 3:51)   How is your world vision?  Have you impacted the world lately?  We want to thank all of you who have impacted our lives through your faithful prayer and support!

 Prayer Requests

•  Lost souls to be saved
• Last 35% of support
• Language school preparations               

Half Way There 

Worlds Greatest Hotdog? 

Valentine’s Day brought this theme to mind, but recently we have been overwhelmed with the display of God’s love to us.   We can’t comprehend what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height of God’s love.   God has demonstrated His love by providing almost 60% of our needed support, and we are so thankful.  Your financial support and prayers are making a difference!!  Thank you!

North vs. South

There are many ways pastors try to motivate their church to give to missions.  This month we participated in a fun and unique way at a church in Yorktown, Virginia.  All week the congregation “battled it out” contributing their spare change to the gray or blue buckets.  You might wonder who the winner was. . . . . . it was the missionaries who received the generous offering!

Politics as Usual

Recently Holly was teaching a third grade class about our ministry to the Dominican Republic.  This lesson made an impact on one concerned young man, so much so that he began praying for the Johnson family at home.  However, he was a little confused about the people we were going to reach.  His parents couldn’t help but laugh when he prayed for the “Johnsons, missionaries to the Democrats and Republicans.” 

Prayer Requests

· Lost souls to be saved

· Last 40% of support                                    

· Language school preparations         

                                                                                                                  Reveling in our Savior’s love,

                                                                                                                            Erik and Holly Johnson 

 One of the most enjoyable parts of deputation are the missionaries that you meet along the way.   We have been privileged to meet so many wonderful servants of God.  Many of them have become very close friends and advisers.  Pictured here are two such men.  Joey Weaver, (center) missionary with BIMI to EL Salvador, and Andrew Bunnell, (right) missionary with BIMI to Estonia.  It is always exciting to have friends who share the same life burden for the lost that you do.  The only disappointing thing about meeting such great guys is when you have to say goodbye at the end of the conference. 

 God has blessed us so much recently, and we have so much to be thankful for!  Deputation is going great.  We’re even getting to see some friends along the way.  This week we’re staying with some long-time friends from Erik’s teenage years. 

As we head into this year’s Christmas season Holly and I have so much to be thankful for.  God has truly blessed our marriage, our ministry, and especially our lives.  After 6 months of deputation, we have over 40% of our support promised.  Please pray for our upcoming meetings that the Lord would continue to bless so that we may reach the field quickly. 

Fruit

In the last 2 months we have been able to lead 5 people to the Lord!  In California Erik was able to lead a young man named Cory to the Lord, and in Arizona Holly led a lady  to the Lord in Spanish.  We also had the opportunity to lead 3 children to the Lord in Children’s Church.  God has used these times to motivate us even more to get to the field quickly so that we may reach the Dominican people.

The Tabernacle

We have  been in many different types of churches; but when we visited Victory Baptist in Vail, Arizona, we were in for something new.  They were meeting in a tent, or as the pastor’s son called it, “The Tabernacle.”  Though it got cool in the evening, the pastor was on fire for the Lord.  His zeal transferred to the people, who had a strong desire to be a part of worldwide missions.   

Prayer Requests

· Witnessing opportunities

· Protection on the road                        

· New supporters                                                 

Erik and Holly Johnson 

We had the chance to present our ministry to the Safe Harbor Baptist Church of Mckeesport, PA in August.  The church is less than a year old, and has purchased an old Methodist church.  Pastor Paul Lint told us that in the early part of the twentieth century Billy Sunday preached tremendous revivals in that church.   Nearly a century has passed, but praise the Lord because revival may not be far away.  We felt honored to preach not only in the same church as the famous evangelist, but most importantly in a church that is holding  forth the Word of Truth in an area of the country that is in great need for Baptist churches. 

The Value of One

In the last few months of deputation both Holly and I have been able to see souls saved through our ministry.  One such person was a young man named Travis.  He was a very tough kid from a bad neighborhood.  We had invited him to Vacation Bible School, and after the first day we were not certain if we wanted him to come back.  He would not willingly participate in the activities or treat the other counselors  with respect, but he needed the Lord as much as the other children.  With only five minutes left in the VBS program, Travis accepted Jesus Christ.  We knew our week had been a spiritual success! 

Update…

We have currently been on full time deputation for about 4 months, and the Lord has blessed us with 30% of our goal.  Please continue to pray for:  souls, safety, and support!!                                                               

 Erik and Holly Johnson