We are FAMILY!
It was absolutely amazing having Makayla WITH us this year for Christmas time…
in fact she was able to be with us for FOUR weeks and it was gold.
WARNING !
This is a LONGER (SORRY!!!) email with some important info.
We will first share our coming up needs, prayer campaign, and our planned stateside time.
For those that would like to read more of the bullet points and see photos…
keep scrolling!
Prayer and Partnership
We started our overseas journey over a decade ago. From the very beginning the Lord laid it on our hearts to focus on raising a large and healthy prayer team… and we feel that invitation once again. We sense that the Lord asking to invite people into a time of prayer with us, for us, for the people in the Porto area, and the international reach He has chosen to give us.
Saturday January 22 – March 4 our family will be doing a time of fasting and praying . We would love to have you sign up for a slot (or few!) and join us in this time.
Prayer and Partnership Sign Up!
With the close of 2023 comes the reality that we are in need of closing our monthly gaps. Over the years we have been so fortunate that the Lord has only led us a few times to raise funds for projects or big transitions. We have had a few financial partners wrap up their time with us , plus inflation, and ministry changes…
One question we are asking ourselves and the Lord is:
“What are we doing on OUR end to make up the gap?”
1) Using our Third Space Leadership company to help off set extra costs
2) Put ourselves on a Financial Diet
(We even brought the kids into the process to discover where we can save- Ezekiel created an AWESOME excel sheet- even learned some new skills – to help us as a family have better oversight).
However, this has still left us underfunded by just over $1,000 a months as we move forward with:
- TeamWorks – International Ministry Team development (flights and travels)
- B12G – liaisons
- Local Connections (discipleships, gathering meals, free workshops we offer within the local community) and now…
- The House Church
USA, here we come!
Early March- end of April we will arrive in the States for a few purposes.
We will at least be visiting
- SoCal
- Northern California
- Portland, Oregon
- Arlington, Texas
In this time we are hoping to set up times to connect with you and to be able to say thank you for being apart of the journey.
While we are in the states we would be wondering if:
A) Anyone in California has or knows of someone selling a reliable used vehicle that we could purchase. This would allow us to use a car while in the States but then be a starter car for Ezekiel for when he relocates to California.
B) Has a vehicle to use in each of the above locations.
NOW… an important update ! ! !
What is God doing?!?!?
This has been a really common question asked by us and friends here in Portugal. As mentioned before, in Nov 2023 we wrapped up our time with Surf Church Porto but we didn’t have a ‘NEXT’ when it came to gathering for the learning and spuring of one another on in a weekly context; but that didn’t mean that God didn’t have the ‘NEXT’.
Our small group for the study group committed to keep meeting and worked out the basic logistics and continued to study Gospel Fluency as a small group. Our cheeky God though kept adding to the numbers week by week.
We switch between the homes either on a Sunday or Saturday.
On two Sundays of the month we meet and have a meal going through Gospel Fluency.
On two Saturdays (opposite of the Sundays we meet at our friends) Greg has open house for Guys connection time (a way for Guys that would never set foot in a traditional church event can learn home brewing and have natural conversations in everyday issues). Afterwards we open up the house for meal time to connect and get to know each other better. And that we have our Bible discussion time and prayer.
We jokingly call it Beer and Bible at this time.
It has been a beautiful time of connection, creating space to wrestle openly with how to apply the gospel in our marriages, parenting, disappointments, teenage lives, work, and so forth. We are learning so much from one another and all of us are excited to see what the Lord is up to for 2024.
We ask for prayers as the Lord begins to shape this tiny church into His likeness and purposes… we know the enemy will not lay quiet.
Thank you for being apart of the journey !!!
Greg and Jen Weaver