Prayer Mail from Belize

Dear Friends, 

I hope you are having a blessed Lent

This is my prayer mail for Tuesday 3 March 2015. Have a great day celebration of John and Charles Wesley, Anglicans. Local elections throughout the country of Belize are Tuesday; prayers for the candidates and for the results would be welcome.

By the time some people read this, I may have arrived safe and sound in the United States. However, there is an air controllers strike at the International Airport in Belize City, the first ever, so I would appreciate your prayers that my flights go smoothly with a minimum of disruption. Hence, the sending of this prayer mail a few days early (for prayer).

It has been an eventful trip. An update of the translation work is the subject of this month's newsletter, attached; it is moving along nicely, one step at a time. Next deadline, probably mid-April.

Happy birthday to our daughter Ruth, last week. The Internet was down when the day arrived.

I have enjoyed texting "I love you" to Julie while I have been away. It really makes texting uplifting.

Highlights of this week: 

1) This week, Bishop Philip of Belize appointed me to the long-range task of increasing the number of full-time  clergy in the Diocese of Belize, working in conjunction with the Commission on Ministry in Belize. It is one of the 10 goals for the way forward for diocesan wide ministry in Belize. If you are interested in serving full time over the long-haul in Belize, please let me know.

2) I gave a talk on reconciliation-at-the-diocesan-level at the Lenten Clergy retreat

3) Looked into the possibility of closer relations between the Diocese of Belize and the Diocese of Honduras, concerning English speaking congregations in Honduras. The possibilities are remoter than in the past.

4) Gave a presentation on reconciliation at the Diocese of Belize lay leader retreat. 

5) Looked into the state of translation work of the diocesan and provincial canons in Spanish.

6) Looked into the state of translation work of the Old Testament and the CPWI Prayer book in Garifuna.

7) Enjoyed visiting with Bishop Larry of the Yukon and former Archdeacon John Park at the clergy retreat.

8) Attended the start-up of a men's group at All Saints' in Belize City; attended Holy Eucharist with the diocesan staff on Friday at the chapel in the Bishop's house; attended Lenten Bible study at the Cathedral on Thursday evening; ongoing planning discussions with the Bishop; served as a liaison between SAMS and the Diocesan office here to enable better communication for future short-term mission trips to Belize, and to coordinate diocesan plans with SAMS, occasional conversations, and more!

9) The Belizean Cursillo community has asked me to serve a spiritual director at the upcoming Cursillo weekend in Belize, near Belmopan, October 22-25.

Scheduled as we speak, that emerged on Thursday evening: travel with the Bishop to the ACC Staff retreat Friday afternoon (Anglican Cathedral high school staff), and traveling with the Bishop to Orange Walk to the north in Belize for services on Sunday.

Prayers:

1) Please keep our mission work in prayer, continuing as a fruitful endeavor of the Holy Spirit. It has been a good trip. 

2) Please keep the next trip in your prayers (as I write this, probably sometime between Easter and Pentecost, during vocation month). It has been tentatively scheduled for beginning mid-May with a trip to the south of Belize.

3) Please keep the Diocese of Connecticut mission conference this coming Saturday in your prayers, at Trinity, Tariffville; that it would be fruitful.

4) Please keep our translation work in prayer.

5) If you receive this before on or before Monday morning, please pray for safe and timely travel of my return voyage.

6) Please keep Julie in your prayers. She has a tooth matter to take care of this week.

7) Please keep various family members in prayer for decisions to make, for education, for fruitful labor, and for health matters as they arise.