March Update

Greetings from Belize,

There is a lot of excitement here in Belize among our churches as we are seeing many wonderful things happening. Several teams have been involved in ministry, evangelism, and construction making a huge impact in the villages. God continues to do amazing things that make the impossible become a reality!

Last month we hosted two medical teams who provided care in a number of remote villages in the southern part of Belize. Between these two teams over 1200 people received treatment for various conditions. In addition to providing medical care, the team distributed Bibles and set up an outdoor "theater" to show the Jesus movie. The theater consisted of a flat screen TV with a built-in DVD player powered by an inverter and the vehicle battery. Although they did not serve hot buttery popcorn, many people heard about the Bread of Life in their native language.

Two teams from different parts of the United States joined together to work in the northern part of Belize in the village of More Tomorrow. These men painted the new church building both inside and out, and it looks fantastic! The interior of the church was further accented by scriptures stenciled on the walls between the windows and a beautiful mural painted on the front wall by artist Ralph Irwin. Not only did this team bless us by painting the church, they decided to paint the government school building as well which thrilled everyone in the village.











The new church developments are really on fire for the Lord and continuing to grow. On February 28th, three men from More Tomorrow who were recently saved were baptized in the river following the morning service. The people were so excited about the baptisms that they organized an impromptu village celebration that Sunday evening.

Speaking of church growth, we had been praying for a sound system for the church in Jalacte'. That prayer was recetnly answered as we received a grant from the Kingdom Mission Fund toward the purchase of a sound system. The equipment has been purchased and is already making a tremendous difference as the Gospel is now being heard throughout the village.

The most recent church plant was started in January in the village of Bella Vista. The people are currently meeting under a tarp on a cement slab that was originally intended to be a home as the owner of the "would be" home said he would rather have a church than a house. Already the village chairman has agreed to set aside up to an acre of land for the church where a new building can be constructed.

In the Gaither household we recently celebrated Micah's first birthday with a trip to the zoo and a lot of chocolate cake...his mother trained him well, ha. Nana and Uncle Craig (Sheila's mom and brother) made it down to Belize for the birthday party, which was a treat for all of us. Brandon enjoyed showing them the sites from the top of some Maya ruins to the deepest part of St. Herman's Cave. Randy and Sheila enjoyed having someone else to chase Micah around the house (and everywhere else). One thing is certain, our house is filled with a lot of joy as we serve the Lord here in Belize!

Blessings,
Randy, Sheila, Brandon, and Micah