October 2017 Prayer Letter

Dear Friends and Family,

It is hard to believe that we are now approaching the end of our first term here in Nicaragua. I am convinced we will stay busy until the end. Last month was a big month for us. Our church began building their own church building. Beyond all of the normal ministries of the church, Pastor Berner has also been leading home bible studies in different parts of the city each week. Through this outreach, several have received Christ. We pray that God continues working in the life of each person. We have invested much time this last month getting all of the legal documentation for our baby Elijah. Having dual citizenship, we now have his Nicaraguan passport and we are awaiting all of his legal documents from the USA Embassy. After obtaining lots of other government documents, we presented all of it before the Nicaraguan Immigration department only to be told that we could not change residency status until next year. This is contrary to what we were told the last three times. We have all been praying for God to give us favor and accomplish his perfect will on this matter. After asking the advice of the immigration agent, we were then advised that there was another process by which we could take our planned furlough without losing all of the work we have been building upon up to this point. This was a huge blessing. We can now move forward planning our furlough with greater confidence. Next month, Jeremy intends to spend some time visiting in the city of Dolores, which we are prayerfully considering for the location of our next church plant.

As for our family, Michelle has had a great recovery. Baby Elijah has now grown to 12 lbs! Our church was very excited to see him. The Nicaraguan Immigration Department is normally all business, but even the ladies there couldn’t help but to gush over him when they took his passport picture! Although we accomplished much last month in terms of government processes and documentation, there is still much to do. We are not only transitioning out of a church ministry, but also out of a home, a school, and a country… not to mention making plans for furlough. We have now made contact with nearly all of our supporting churches. We are looking forward to being able to see our families again, as well as the country from which we came.

We are so thankful for all of your prayers and support. This month, please pray:

1. That God will continue to bless our evangelistic efforts, save souls, and give spiritual growth.

2. That God will raise up servants in the church to take our place as we transition out.

3. That God will open doors in the city of Dolores, where we will begin visiting.

In Christ,

Jeremy, Michelle, Lila, and Ellowyn Blanz

September 2017 Prayer Letter

Dear Friends and Family,

Last month was a very special month for us. As the month progressed, we had more and more visits to the capital city of Managua for Michelle’s prenatal doctor appointments. We also had to get prepared for a newborn baby. On Saturday, August 26^th, our first baby boy, Elijah Nathaniel Blanz, was born. Thankfully, he and Michelle are both now healthy and doing great. Lila and Ellowyn are also very excited to have a little brother. Since then, we have been busy with other appointments. Since he will have dual citizenship, we are working to get both his passports and legal documentation from both the Nicaragua and United States governments. In early September, we are awaiting a visit from Michelle’s parents. It will be a very special trip for them to meet their first grandson. We are all looking forward to the trip.

Since the 2 year anniversary of the church plant, we have continue to see the church grow and strengthen. Pastor Berner and his wife Alma are doing a great job. Later this month, they will take a short trip to another city to help evangelize and area where a young Bible Institute graduate will begin planting a church. During this time, Jeremy will do a little more around the church. Other than that, Jeremy has been trying to work himself out of a job. We will be leaving for furlough in December and we want the church to be ready to keep pushing forward. Pastor Berner recently began a home outreach to hold in-home evangelistic services in different parts of the city. He has a great vision and will do a great job even after we leave. He also organized a “Soup and Sale” event at the church to raise funds for the building project. The other day on visitation, Jeremy spoke with a woman named Elsa who said she knew she would go to Hell. Jeremy explained to her that her only hope is found in the Lord Jesus Christ. She did not yet receive Christ that day, but the seed was planted. Please pray for her. Jeremy has continued making plans for furlough. We now have a few more meetings on the schedule. We have made our furlough schedule available to our supporting churches at “blanz2Nicaragua.blogspot.com” and under the tab “our schedule.”

This month, we intend to get our legal residency extended to 5 years. This is very important as it affects our furlough from March until October. After this, we will book more meetings. This month, please pray:

1. That God convict and save Elsa and others who have heard the Gospel preached clearly.

2. That God will help our residency extension to get approved without delay or problems.

3. That Michelle will have a great recovery from giving birth last month.

In Christ,

Jeremy, Michelle, Lila, and Ellowyn Blanz