In our last blog entry, we told the story of a U-haul packed with furniture a very generous couple had donated to our ministry. We wanted to let you know about some fruit that became of that labor. We met Freddy, his family, and friends at his apartment that day. He had just moved into the area, his belongings were few, and his needs were great. They gladly accepted all of the furniture pieces we had left in the truck, and we gave them our invitations with our contact information on the back. Fast forward to Saturday, Freddy called Elias, and asked if he could use "his" truck to transport some more donations he was able to find. After explaining how the U-Haul was rented, Elias drove to Freddy's house, helped him rent a pick-up truck, and helped load and unload a couple couches and other household items. After they were finished returning the truck, Freddy wanted to thank Elias by feeding him a delicious Guatamalen soup complete with vegetables and chicken feet...yum...flavorful. During their dinner, Elias had an very inquisitive Bible study between Freddy and his wife. They had lots of questions, and they were pleasantly surprised that their questions could be answered using the Bible. They enjoyed it so much that they invited Elias back for another Bible study last Thursday. The study lasted 2 hours and they invited him to return again this Thursday. What a great contact we were able to find because of the generosity of one couple. Another big piece of news we wanted to share with you is that this past Sunday, we had our first Bilingual service in our Spanish room at West End. One Sunday a month, Elias is inviting four or so families from the English speaking congregation to come worship with us. Elias translates the prayers, we sing the same song but in two languages at one time, and the sermon is translated on paper for the English speakers. We then had a friends and family potluck meal following services. The love and joy that we all felt during and after worship services Sunday was so great. We were able to connect some families, and introduce some new friends to our members. We had a visiting couple from Lemay Ferry Church of Christ come as well. The husband is from Honduras and she grew up in Illinois. They have an adorable little son, and they traveled from around the Granite City area to be with us. The wife had been translating the sermons for her husband, and she speaks fluent Spanish. They had been told about our congregation, and said they finally decided it was time for the husband to worship in a language he understands. It was very nice getting to know them more over lunch, along with several of our English speaking brethren. We want to personally thank all of our supporters, in particular this week those that make it possible for us to have an evangelism fund. Without your contribution, we would have never been able to rent that U-Haul, to load up the donations, to meet Freddy and his wife, and to begin teaching them the truth. Thank you so much for your generosity. May God Bless The Roque Family
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It has been an unusual, cold, long winter so far for St. Louis, and it's not even Spring just yet. The weather forecast is calling for more snow this week. We had to delay services this past Sunday until 2 pm due to Ice, and it is predicted to snow again this Sunday. We admit that this weather has caused a drop in our usual Sunday attendance. Hermana Lilly did make the trek out to worship, and it was so good to see her. On a "warmer" note, we wanted to tell you about our exciting Saturday. A friend of a friend donated several furniture pieces to us this past weekend. She and her husband are moving to Denver, and they wanted to downsize tremendously. Instead of selling it, she wanted to give the pieces to a good cause. So we rented a small UHaul, packed it up tight, and headed to the Overland area to see what evangelism we could do. God blessed us with a chilly but SUNNY day. At this point we will take the cold with the sunshine. It has been cloudy so much these days. First we went to our members' houses, and they were able to add some important pieces to their homes. They were so thankful, but there were several items left to give away. Nancy was able to give us a lead on a few Hispanic families down the street that could use our help. We were happy to see that 5 people came to meet us outside these apartments. We invited them to services, gave them invitations, and let them know that the furniture was completely free. They were a little shocked to hear that they could just grab any piece they wanted, and that there was no "catch." Several of these men in the picture above had recently moved into the area and had nothing but a table in their apartment. They were so excited to use these shelves for their shoes, clothing, and bathroom items. They all were wanting the ONE mattress that was donated, but they were civil about it, and let the first person who claimed it have it without complaint. We then were about to invite 10 more people, most of them HONDURAN, at this delicious Honduran restaurant we discovered down the street. The boys were so excited to eat their huge Baliadas filled with eggs, beans, cheese, and cream. Elias was happy to have some Honduran Soda with Tajaditas (fried green banana chips). YUM! The waitresses and customers were so nice, and each accepted our invitation with a smile. Elias was also excited to meet fellow Hondurans to discuss the delicious food and the bone chilling weather. Thank you so much for all your prayers and encouragement. It's been a slow winter due to the weather, but we are anxiously waiting for Spring to come so that we can knock on doors again, walk around the neighborhoods, and just get the kids out in general. For now, Elias and his nightly Bible studies with visitors are going well, and he looks forward to them with anticipation each week. We love you all.
The Roque Family |
AuthorElias and Kristi Roque have been married for 9 years and during this time have planted/grown 4 congregations. They have 4 boys 7 and under working alongside them. Archives
April 2024
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