"Be Thou my Vision, O Lord of my Heart"

I have the awesome privilege of being a part of our praise and worship team at our church, IBA Porto.  I have been greatly affected this week by the words of a classic hymn we have been rehearsing, "Be Thou My Vision."  One of the verses of the hymn says it this way:

"Riches I heed not, nor man's empty praise,

Thou mine inheritance, now and always:

Thou and Thou only, first in my heart,

High King of Heaven, my Treasure Thou art."

May that be our daily prayer, that He alone is our treasure and inheritance!

A Christmas Concert
During the Christmas holidays we were blessed with the opportunity to invite unsaved friends and family to come hear about the true reason for Christmas.  We sang about the miracle of the virgin birth of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, and how He came and died for us, and rose again!  Many were confronted by the Gospel, and we are in constant prayer that the Holy Spirit would work in their hearts to bring them to Him!
We were also able to present the same concert in the prison that I have shared about in the past.  Many men came and heard the Gospel.  The Lord is doing great things!  Please be in prayer for all of these people who have heard the Gospel!

The Big Move
We are officially residents of the city of Alfena, Portugal!  The move has not been without its difficulties and frustrations, but we are getting settled and excited for what the Lord has in store.  As we have shared in the past, our vision is to get completely immersed in the community in which we live, being in prayer that the Lord will bring natural opportunities for us to share the Gospel to those around us.  This will also include starting a Casa Farol (Lighthouse) in our home as soon as we can.  Please be in fervent prayer that we will be wise in our decisions, and that the enemy would not find foothold as we look to shine the light of Christ in this lost community in which we live.

30 Weeks!
We covet your prayers as we move closer to the birth of our fifth child.  Caryne and baby are doing well. There will be more doctor's visits now as we are approaching the last 10 weeks of pregnancy.  Pray that we will get to the hospital in a timely fashion this time around!  Thank you so much for your partnership with us here in Portugal!

"He alone is my rock and my salvation"

All Glory to Him
We recently had a very blessed and emotional day that included celebrating the wedding of a young couple in our church, followed by a baptism service.  One of the men baptized was a recent convert that accepted the Lord through our prison ministry!  He was granted time to leave the prison, and in this short time he came and was baptized at our church!

On the Move
We are moving!  Because of some complicated issues regarding our current place of residence, we have come to the difficult conclusion that it is necessary for us to move.  We will still be living in Greater Porto, about 10 minutes from where we are now.  We covet your prayers, as the move will mean a new school for the girls, and a new community to immerse ourselves in.  Please be in prayer as we get to know the town we are moving to, that the Lord would open up opportunities to share the Gospel, and that we would be ready and willing to take those opportunities!  We are excited for what the Lord has in store!

News!
As some of you have probably already heard, we recently found out that we are having a boy! The due date is April 6, 2016.  Please be in prayer for mom and baby.

Thank You!
It is truly awesome to have all of you as partners in the ministry here in Portugal!  If you have any questions, or if we could be in prayer for you in a specific matter, please don't hesitate to email us at jdarlingportugal@gmail.com.

"Born again to a living hope"

Back to School!
Anadia and Cora headed back to school on September 21st.  Please be in prayer for them, as each day they are walking into a true mission field.  We as a family have a tremendous burden to reach the lost here in our community in our town called Milheirós.  Our local school is of course a part of our community, and it is a daily challenge for Anadia and Cora to be salt and light to those around them so that Christ shines through their lives.  We thank the Lord for His guidance and protection!

New Convert!
Praise the Lord another young lady dear to our church family has come to know Christ!  Her name is Bea. Please be in prayer for her as her journey in Christ has just begun!

Ministry
Please be in prayer that we would always be ready and willing to be used of the Holy Spirit in all opportunities the Lord gives us in both sharing the Gospel, and in discipleship.  First and foremost, our constant prayer is that the Lord would use us to reach the community in which we live.  We are also blessed to be able to disciple young men and women, I have had great opportunities through teaching English, and we are blessed to be a part of our local church ministry.  What a privilege it is to serve the Lord!

Thank You!
We have been praying for additional monthly support, and that prayer has been answered!  Thank you all for your faithful partnership!  

"Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever."

Thank You!
We are back in Portugal, excited for what the Lord has in store for His church here in Porto.  We wanted to thank you all once again for receiving us so warmly during our time in the States, and for blessing us so richly, beyond what we could truly ever express.  It is an awesome privilege to be a part of the body of Christ!

Another Little Blessing on the Way!
For those of you who don't already know, Caryne is pregnant with our fifth child!  We covet your prayers for both Caryne and the baby, as well as for us as a family as we prepare for the new addition!

Things to be in Prayer For
 - Please be in prayer for our pastor, as he will be travelling to Mozambique in a week to continue the work that our church is involved in there.

 - We appreciate your continual prayer for our church, IBA Porto, as we seek to be a body used of God to reach the lost of our city.

 - We are praying for additional monthly support.  We are currently at 72% of our monthly goal of $2500.

To Him be the Glory!

Blessings Each Day

Thank the Lord for the blessings He gives each day!  We have had such a precious time so far here in the States visiting family and ministry partners!  We have been in Pennsylvania, Ohio, Virginia, and New York, and it has been a joy to share about Portugal everywhere we go.  Thank you for your continued prayer as we will be heading to Connecticut, then Alaska, back to Connecticut, and then back to Portugal August 27. 

Thank you so much for your faithful partnership!

We are on our way!

Trip to the USA

We leave for the U.S. tomorrow!  We are truly looking forward to seeing many of you, and are excited about the opportunity to spend some time with our families!  If you are interested in knowing our itinerary for the 10 weeks we will be there, please message us through our Facebook page!

Cause for Celebration

This month we've had the joy of celebrating our 12th wedding anniversary on the 7th and then our sweet Soraia's second birthday on the 8th.  We praise the Lord for what He has done, and will continue to do, in our lives!

Thank you all for your partnership!

"Praise Him for His mighty deeds!"

Happy Birthday Isabel!

Praises!

Praise the Lord two prisoners in our church's prison ministry have accepted Christ as their Lord and Savior!

Praise the Lord He has provided all of the funds needed for our trip to the States this summer!

Praise the Lord for the inauguration of our church's new multiuse building!

Praise the Lord for the successful surgery and recovery for our sweet Isabel (please go to Caryne's Facebook page to read about what happened)!

Praise the Lord because He is in control!

 

Working on the garden next to the new building

Men of our church working together on the new addition

 Thank you for your partnership!