FAMILY UPDATE
“We give thanks to God always for all of you, constantly mentioning you in our prayers, remembering before our God and Father your work of faith and labor of love and steadfastness of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ.”
- 1 Thessalonians 1:2-3
Greetings from the McCartys!
We pray all is well with you and your family as Spring quickly turns to Summer! There has been much happening through the first of 2022 - and most of it has been great! Here is a quick rundown to catch you up on the McCarty tribe - then on the back, an update on the work of the ministry in Sub-Saharan and West Africa. And THANK YOU for venturing to the digital version of the McCarty Ministry Minute - with more photos (in color), videos, and bonus material!
Tracy continues to teach and lead at Born2Be Therapeutic Equestrian Center. Their organization just experienced another move from Valley View to Sanger. At this time, Tracy and several Born2Be riders are gearing up to compete at the State Special Olympics Equestrian Games! Tracy has also taken up driving (horse and cart) and has competed in several events. She is loving it, but not as much as she loves keeping Gideon a few times a week!
Gideon’s Dad & Mom (Cody & Dakota) are doing well. They both continue to faithfully serve at church with the youth and at their jobs. Cody is still with Moore Supply and Dakota has moved to PRN (part time) as a Physical Therapist at Medical City Lewisville. Gideon is now walking/running/ sprinting around and enjoying all of life! He is SO CLOSE to talking, and as much noise as he makes, I am not certain he will stop once he begins!
Trinity has completed her Junior year at TWU and still enjoying the field of Dietetics. She continues to work part time at the same hospital where Dakota works and has grown immensely in her ability to balance time management with practical duties. She also sings and plays keyboard with the worship team at church.
Remington is driving (legally) now! This past semester, Remi served as Statistician/Manager for the girls and boys basketball team at DCA, went to State in track, and served as a tech in the drama team’s musical production of Cinderella! She will also be a Senior next year (which seems completely impossible)!
Sierra has really blossomed socially through her involvement in drama club. She played 3 different roles in Cinderella - our favorite was the old granny with a cane - and danced and sang with excellence! Next year, she will enter High School and have her dad as teacher for Missions Geography (which she is NOT looking forward to)!
Maw's has recovered from all her physical ailments and is going strong! She didn’t miss a single performance of Cinderella and has been at almost every one of the girls’ sporting events! In addition to the busyness of our family, she also makes frequent trips to Oklahoma to visit friends and family and help them in moments of need, of which there have been many in the past months. She continues to be a blessing to all who know her.
You can't escape more Gideon and kid/family photos!
The MINISTRY UPDATE continues after these...
Family Photo Gallery
Remington Sings in German
MINISTRY UPDATE
Another Azikiwe Update
Enjoy our latest 3 minute video about the need and supply of training resources for our teams throughout Africa! You'll be inspired! Just this past Friday, I submitted an order for 18,000 Evangelism Tools, 18,000 Discipleship Tools, 4,500 Leader Launch (3 day intensive training) manuals, 3,500 Journey Stage 1 (stage 1 of the ongoing training for discipleship, leadership & church planting) manuals, and 1,000 Journey Stage 2 (stage 2 of the ongoing training for discipleship, leadership & church planting) manuals! This could NOT have happened without your support! These materials will be distributed and used by our teams in strategic cities locations across six different nations of Sub-Saharan Africa! THANK YOU! You are making a difference in the world for Jesus!!!
Another Azikiwe Update
Azikiwe Lutufyo, our National Director of Tanzania, continues to wait patiently for things to come together for knee surgery. In a recent examination, the doctors thought the cancer in his knee (the cause of his knee being fused) had returned, but upon further examination, the concern was alleviated - PRAISE THE LORD! He has another examination on May 28 to try and find the way forward. Please continue to lift him and his family up in prayer!
BACK in AFRICA!
Lesotho:
March 2022 marked 2 full years that I had been physically away from Africa… and around that 2nd anniversary, I journeyed back for the first time — and it only took 9 COVID tests to complete the journey (not an exaggeration)! It was so good to be back with my teams in person. I maintain contact with my senior leaders weekly, but there is nothing like being together in one place! Below are some of the happenings from that work.
West Africa
Sadly, one of the things which brought me to West Africa was memorializing the life of my West Africa Regional Director, Stephen Aputara. I knew Stephen for well over 10 years. He was the first contact I had in West Africa when we first launched Strategic Impact in Ghana. He was a precious friend and brother in the Lord. Stephen passed away unexpectedly in February 2022. It was more than a shock to myself and all of our SI family, let alone his own family.
I began the journey in Ghana (already 3 COVID tests in) by visiting our West Africa team and Stephen’s family - mostly his widow, Mercy, and his oldest son, Ken. Due to cultural practices, I only had a half day to work with the SI team. I have not had the same amount of time developing relationships and training the West Africa team in our principles as I have had with the teams in Sub-Saharan Africa. Some of the questions raised during our brief time together revealed various misunderstandings and some large voids where time and training are definitely needed. The short visit was very beneficial and caused me to modify my annual plan. Instead of attempting to launch SI in the Capitals of Democratic Republic of Congo and the Republic of Congo (two neighboring countries) this year, my priority must be to strengthen and develop the Ghana and Burkina Faso SI Teams so they can bear good fruit in the coming years. There is MUCH commitment and MUCH potential here!
Photos from West Africa Team Meetings and time with the Aputara family in Navrongo, Ghana
Note: Some faces have been blurred for their safety.
Sub-Saharan Africa
I arrived in Dar es Salaam (now 7 Covid Tests in) for a gathering of the Senior leaders who oversee work across 12 nations of Sub-Saharan Africa. It was a joyous time of fellowship, prayer, worship, training, and strategic planning. God has truly been gracious to us. Each year, the Lord has brought forth an amazing amount of quality and quantity of spiritual fruit - but also revealed our weak points which need focused attention. This year, the focal point of training was multiplication instead of addition. We must prayerfully identify potential leaders in each location… then fully equip them as a team so they may be proven leaders who take full ownership for their area… then (and this is the most critical point) for the new leaders to launch the entire system into a new location with our experienced teams coaching, encouraging, and further equipping in the background. We have had great success in multiplying leaders, disciples, and churches. Now we must add the fourth element that leads to true exponential growth — multiplying movements! I believe this is the year for the Sub-Saharan Africa team to experience epic growth by the power of the Holy Spirit! We are excited about what 2022 and 2023 hold!
Worship at Israel Wandamba's Church in Tandika, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
Photos from the 2022 Sub-Saharan Africa Fan-the-Flame Summit in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
Sainet Phiri expresses gratitude for the celebration of his birthday
YOU play an essential role in all of this! Without your prayer, your encouragement, your financial support, and your participation in our Through The Nations events (like our BRAND NEW Pro Wrestling event coming in November - details HERE) none of this would have happened! I have included the 2021 Fruit of the Ministry report so you can see how your support has borne wonderful fruit for Christ!
FRESH Updates from the Field!
Below are some images I JUST RECEIVED from West Africa - training and multiplication continuing as the Gospel marches forward... carried by your prayerful support! THANK YOU!
Leader Launch training in Northern Ghana last week
Leader Launch training held last month in Burkina Faso
Note: Some faces have been blurred for their safety.
We could do NONE of this without YOU!
THANK YOU for YOUR partnership!
- The McCartys
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