Update Letter - November 2013

Written by Ben: 

It's quite amazing how quickly life has gone the past month and a half! We spent the last week and a half up in Indiana serving the church in Zionsville. During this time in Indiana we were studying Philippians 2 which gives us four different models of men who lived life with the focus on serving others. This has been very convicting to me with having a new baby at home! Often times I find myself after working all day or spending time preparing to teach that I get tired and want some "me time." The problem with this idea is that baby Wyatt, being 2 months old, doesn't see this need! The Lord has been changing my heart about what it means to serve. 

This morning I was reading Matthew 14 which is the story of Jesus feeding the 5,000. The interesting part of this story is what happens right before it. The story begins in verse 13 with Jesus just receiving the news that His friend John the Baptist had just been killed. It then says, that after hearing this news, Jesus departed to be by Himself. However, the multitudes around Him weren't concerned about His "me time" and they followed Him. It was here that verse 14 says that Jesus saw the multitudes and was moved with compassion for them. 

This has been a convicting model for me! Even in the midst of His own personal heartache and exhaustion, Jesus was still focused on others. I want this to be my outlook on life, so please pray for me as I seek to grow in this area!

The last month and a half have been very busy with travel to Chicago, Indiana, and Tennessee. During this time God has allowed me the opportunity to preach 5 straight Sunday's in 3 different churches! This has definitely been a learning experience for me as I have never prepared sermons on back to back weeks. It has been a joy for me to grow in this area. 

During our time back in Robbinsville, Colin's brother Bill and I are continuing our work to restore the old tobacco barn on the ETM property. This barn will allow us to store building supplies for upcoming projects on the property. Please pray for our continued safety as we continue working to restore this barn. 

God has been faithfully continuing to build a team that is able to support our ministry financially. Without that team behind us, our ministry here would not be possible! We do ask for your continued prayers as our current monthly support is below our monthly level of need. Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions about this. Please pray with us as we wait to see how God will continue to meet this need!

We love you all!!

The Thackers