FAMILY UPDATE
“I thank my God in all my remembrance of you, always in every prayer of mine for you all making my prayer with joy, because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now. And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.” - 1 Philippians 1:3-6
Greetings from the McCartys!
We hope all is well with you and yours. The Summer is drawing to a close and Fall is already upon us! Much has happened both in our family and in Africa since my last MMM Update in May. So it’s time to get you in the loop! And THANK YOU for subscribing to the digital version of the McCarty Ministry Minute - with more photos (in color), videos, and bonus material!
Tracy is absolutely loving the “Grandma life!” Gideon spends a few days each week at our home while Dakota works, and he is a serious, yet funny little kid! She has also led the way for Born2Be to relocate to a more permanent location in Sanger (just north of Bolivar Corner - seen below). The new property is nearly perfect for their needs and provides opportunity for sub-leasing, which reduces the financial pressure on the non-profit. We are praying it will be a long-term solution for them as they continue to serve people with disabilities!
Gideon’s Dad & Mom (Cody & Dakota) continue to do well! Gideon is running around now and saying lots of words - we even understand a few of them! They also faithfully serve at Denton Community Church leading our youth on Sundays. (more Gideon photos at the end of this update)
Trinity is a Senior at TWU and is working on her Honors Capstone Project (which is a huge undertaking). She has begun to be involved with InterVarsity, an on-campus ministry, and continues to work part-time at Medical City Lewisville. The next year should bring a lot of new opportunities and experiences her way!
Remington is a High School Senior at Denton Calvary Academy. As Captain of the volleyball team, breaking a finger was not in the plans. We are hopeful that she will be able to return before the end of the season. She has strong leanings toward attending Oklahoma State next year, but is still checking out other university possibilities.
Sierra is now a Freshman in High School! She has continued to love participating in drama club, but has now branched out into the DCA Pep Band, where she plays cymbals. Her love of the outdoors, bright smile, and quick humor are a delight to the family.
Maw's continues to plug away with her Mockingbird Corner online ebay store, plus has an exciting opportunity to share a space monthly at a local weekend market. Her health has improved after a bout with COVID this Summer. She enjoys time with her little Gideon and we keep her extra busy with all the kids’ school events.
Family & Gideon Photo Gallery
Gideon Takes Up the Piano
MINISTRY UPDATE
In July, I traveled to Ghana, Burkina Faso, South Africa, and Lesotho in order to join with our National Directors and local teams. The purpose was to further serve and equip them, and to come alongside them as they trained others. It was a long journey, but God graciously smoothed out the paths the whole way - including keeping our team safe in bus, car, and air (and on foot), and resolving a potentially problematic Visa issue in West Africa!
West Africa
This work started in the northern village of Navrongo, Ghana, where I had a brief visit with Mercy (Stephen’s widow), who is doing well as she continues to walk through her grief. I then joined Edward Alemya, our Ghana National Director, for a 3-day intensive training for 19 of our senior leaders and a few developing leaders from across northern Ghana. It was a great time of encouragement and planning together. As we finished the last day, Edward and I made our way to the border and crossed over to Burkina Faso, where our hired driver was waiting to start our 3-hour drive to Ouagadougou.
After a short night, Edward caught a ride with some of our other Pastors while I flew to Bobo-Dioulasso in west Burkina Faso. “Bobo” is the second largest city in the nation and was at one time the capital of Burkina Faso. While being a heavily Muslim town, it also has a great amount of folk religion intermingled (including the worship of catfish). Bobo is home of the Grand Mosque, which was first constructed from 1812-1832 and still stands today [photo in group below]. We hosted a 1-day intensive training for 15 Pastors and Leaders familiar with Strategic Impact followed by a 3-day Leader Launch training for 82 who were new to SI. During the experiential evangelism and discipleship training, we saw the Lord bring over 100 people to faith in Christ! This included 4 young men in their early 20s sitting under a tree drinking beer and smoking from a hookah. They were definitely “cool” in their own minds — but were open to hear about a God who loved them so much that He would give His only Son so that they could be reconciled with Him. All four came to faith, and started in discipleship the following day! Additionally, I have received many reports that the Pastors who were trained both in Ghana and Burkina Faso have launched our ongoing Journey training toward multiplying disciples, churches, and leaders in their own churches! You can see Pastor Joseph with his church’s senior leaders in the photo group below. They started 2 Journey teams just a few days after we left Ghana!
Sub-Saharan Africa
A few days later and many miles to the South and East, I landed in Maseru, Lesotho, and was met by Henry Khoabane, our National Director. We hopped in the car, picked up the other 2 team members and immediately drove to Botshabelo, South Africa. The next morning, we kicked off another 3-day Leader Launch training for 41 Pastors and Leaders. Once there, we discovered that one Pastor who commanded much respect (and who did not smile the entire 3 days together) had been a strong opponent to our coming. He had the impression that we were just conducting some seminar or conference just to get people excited or address a light issue. After the first day, he publicly stated “You are dealing with foundational issues of the church! We need all the Pastors in our area to hear this and begin to act on it!” God was surely with us, once again! After South Africa, we returned to Lesotho for an additional day of team training with the Lesotho National SI Team, and then I started toward home.
THANK YOU
Thank you for partnering with us to continue this important work! What we do is not “merely” evangelism and discipleship - though we carry out that important work. It is not “merely” theological training - though the Bible is the foundation for all of our training. It is not “merely” leadership training - though we equip leaders well in solid skills and godly character. It is ALL of those paired with the strength of a Biblical plan of multiplication transferred through loving relationship. We are truly seeing the beginnings of several multiplication movements! Local leaders catch the vision to saturate their area with the Gospel, then multiply disciples, leaders, and churches which results in a movement which has the potential to bring the Gospel to all of Africa and beyond! Jesus’ words in Matthew 24:14 are true, “… and this gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.” Come soon, Lord Jesus!
Thank you again! Without your prayers, your encouragement, your financial support, and your participation in our Through The Nations events, none of this would be possible! We DO have a BRAND NEW fundraising event coming November 5 - PRO WRESTLING!!! You can get your discount advanced tickets HERE!
We could do NONE of this without YOU!
THANK YOU for YOUR partnership!
- The McCartys
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