Home Again

Thank you all for your prayers and your support of the Partnership Tasmania trip! We had a wonderful, safe journey, filled with spiritual battle, hard work, beautiful scenery and some new lifelong friends. God is doing some amazing things in Beauty Point and the surrounding communities.

Please continue to pray for the small group of Christians in an area of around 4,000 people. There is much hopelessness, despair, addiction, and apathy amidst the green hills and rolling river, but God can use the tiny pockets of light He has placed there. His work goes on!

While we were there, we are grateful that we were able to share in the harvest. 5 people gave their hearts to Christ and many others made recommitments and other decisions. God had planted the seeds in these hearts long before we arrived and we were thankful to have a part in God's transforming of their lives.

Continue to pray for the many hearts we were able to share with through testimony, song, speaking, and relationship-building, while we were there. Only God knows what will happen next, but we pray many will seek to find out more about the Jesus we spoke about. Also, be in prayer that the books and evangelism bracelets will continue to be used for God's glory.

Lastly, pray that God will not only show Himself mighty in the area, but people will be dawn to the excitement, love, and grace found in giving their lives to Christ. May the spark that was lit and the passion and intensity continue! Because they are across the river from a beautiful working lighthouse, The Point Christian Fellowship decided to adopt Lake Fork Baptist's motto about being a lighthouse, and they now refer to themselves as the Lighthouse on the Tamar. Pray that Jesus, the one true light of the world, would draw men and women to Himself in the days and weeks to come.

We are thankful for your prayers and know that the partnership will continue! God is not finished with His work in the hearts at Point Christian Fellowship and surrounding churches. He is not finished with the work He is doing within us, either:)

Another Update

We are so blessed to be here in Beauty Point! It is a chilly, beautiful area, but has seen much spiritual drought. We are praying that the Lord has begun a new thing here in this area and that the enthusiasm will be contagious.
We have had more highlight moments such as each member of the group giving our testimonies,sweet times of worship, and a fantastic encounter with a woman on her deathbed. There have been opportunities to share and connect at Elderly Care centers, in homes, in community services, and at Elderly Care Centers. We have performed then Everyman skit many times.
Please pray for a few seekers in our midst, as they learn more about the one true God. Pray for strength and endurance. Pray for a fruitful farewell sevice with our partnering church. May God continue what He has begun.
We will leave Saturday morning, Tasmania time, and should return Saturday morning Texas time. Travelling should be another adventure:)

Good News!

The Tasmania partnership continues as we are hard at work this Tuesday. God has allowed us to share His good news with many and to encourage several in the body of believers. We have spent time worshipping together, praying together, and building relationships. Several have accepted Jesus' free gift of salvation and many have asked the Lord to help them remain faithful to Him. God is doing amazing things here as we are permitted to plant seeds in this land.
Thank you for praying for each event and opportunity and event as we work here. As you prayed for our encounters at the school, a young girl made a connection with us as we presented songs at an assembly and shared about American culture in the classrooms. On Sunday, she asked that someone to bring her to the church, because she had heard there would be Americans there. That evening, she gave her heart to Jesus.
There are many special moments we would love to share with you when we return: Sandy's book club meeting, Margie leading worship, Bob sharing the gospel and leading the Lord's supper, Shelby's testimony at the family concert, Chris sharing with several men, and each member of our team making connections that only God could set up. We appreciate your prayers and look forward to seeing you again soon!
Please pray for us specifically this week as we share at Elderly Care Centers, at a ladies dessert gathering geared at young mothers, and our time at the youth club. Also, lift up each other event that is scheduled.
We thank you for remembering us and carrying us to the feet of Jesus. Pray we will have strength and remain upbeat and positive. Pray for wisdom to make the most of each opportunity.

We Have Arrived

We have arrived! We thank you for your prayers for our safe travel. We arrived, after three flights, and many hours on the plane. We were a bit tired, but everyone travelled well. (Even our first time flyers)!
Our first day was spent at the local primary school. We presented 2 assemblies full of singing and fun and were able to make connections and share about our culture in the classes. We are praying that the connections with the school and the students will produce fruit for Him in the future.
We met many people from the community as well as church members last evening at a welcome dinner. The mayor presented us with an Australian flag, which was a great honor. A time of worship was sweet as we lifted "Great South Land" and "How Great Is our God" before the Father. He truly is great and has such plans for the Beauty Point area.
Today was full of building connections at the local playgroup, a fantastic book club meeting, and a men's leadership dinner, which is currently in progress.We ask that you continue to remember connections we have made early in ther week, that God might continue to work in the lives of those we have encountered.
*** Prayer points for the coming week:
* Be in prayers for the Family Concert tomorrow evening. Pray for those who will attend and that the gospel will be heard and understood.
* Pray for our services in various churches Sunday. May people be drawn to these venues and be receptive to the message of Jesus.
* Pray for specifically for an openness to the gospel within the men in Beauty Point. May God rasie up leaders with transformed lives.
* Pray for the faithful Christians in the area, that they would not grow weary in doing good. They are serving the Lord with their whole hearts. May they begin to see the harvest!
* Pray for unity, wisdom, and strength.
More soon!-- The Partnership Tasmania Team

Up, Up, and Away

Everyone in the Partnership Tasmania mission team would like to thank you for your prayers and gifts! God has used you in a mighty way to send us to Beauty Point , Tasmania to share Jesus and to encourage a body of believers at a church that has been planted who are already working tirelessly to bring others to Christ. Because of each of you, God has allowed us to answer His call. Words cannot express out appreciation.
Now, to the work at hand! We will fly out of Dallas tonight, switch flights in LA, and head out on a long flight to mainland Australia. After a shorter flight to the island of Tasmania, we will finally get to see with our eyes, the area our hearts have been praying for. Thank you for praying for travelling mercies as we go.
Our first days will be busy with visits to the local elementary school, sharing songs and tidbits about American culture. Please pray that we will also bring an attention to other events we will be hosting in the community. These will be times that we are free to share about the love of Jesus and the freedom that comes through Christ. We will also get to meet city officials and people from the community at a welcome dinner. Keep praying for opportunities to build relationships and freedom to share and serve.
We are hoping to update our blog to keep you updated, but until then, check the two previous blog posts for prayer points for our trip.

It's Almost Here! _ July 27th...Here We Come!

I am in awe as God continues to allow this Tasmania Mission Partnership to become a reality. A year ago, I was wondering how God could really do this, it seemed so huge. Now, He has provided all the funding, He has opened doors that seemed barricaded, and we have plane tickets and passports in hand. All that is left is the praying, the packing,the gathering of a few additional supplies, and of course, the going. Again, our Mighty God has proven what I should have already known: "with God all things are possible"(Matt. 19:26).

As the days have approached, I have felt the need to ask everyone I meet to join with us in prayer for the work that God is doing in Beauty Point, Tasmania and beyond. The fervent prayers of God's people are crucial and we continue to depend on them.

We believe that God has been preparing the field and we look forward to being arm in arm with Christians at Point Christian Fellowship, serving and sharing. As you pray, you will be there with us, as well. You will be battling the enemy, praying for restoration, and sharing the truth of Jesus. Thank you for being part of this journey through prayer and through the gifts you have given.
Please pray with even more urgency as our departure for Tasmania approaches. I have listed specific prayer points in the previous blog post, to give you more information about God's work that He has begun. Know that you are loved and appreciated.

Hopefully we will have the opportunity to blog at least a couple of times to update you while we are on mission. Keep praying and serving! We pray for you, as well!

Prayer Points for Tasmania Trip

Greetings! Thank you so much for agreeing to join with us in prayer for our Partnership Tasmania Team. Here are some prayer points to remember as you are praying with us in the weeks leading up to the Tasmania Mission Trip.



*Pray for health, strength, and safety, for our team as well as members of Point Christian fellowship in Beauty Point, Tasmania.
*Pray for divine appointments as we meet people of all ages on our journey. Pray that we are ready to share the truth of Jesus with those whose hearts have been prepared.
*Pray for the churches where we will be sharing—4 in all.
*Pray for the women and mothers we will be meeting with.
*Pray for our ladies book club.
*Pray for interactions with youth and children through a concert,at a movie night, and at a youth club playing basketball.
*Pray for our Cultural Exchange with the local schools.
*Pray for the elderly we will share with at three Elderly Care facilities.
*Pray for the playgroup we will present with a set of handbells. Pray that the mothers would be open to hearing the gospel.
*Pray for the men’s dinner and other interactions with men in the community.
*Pray for the church planting seminar and that we will encourage the body of believers to not grow weary.
*Pray that hearts will be open as God speaks mightily through books, skits, music, and any way He sees fit.
*Pray that God would be glorified and we would point to Him continually.
*Pray for opportunities to share our faith on the trip up Cradle Mountain.

Your prayers are an integral part of our trip. Thank you for partnering with us. God has provided in a mighty way through His people. May we work tirelessly to spread His news wherever we go!

"Our God is Mighty To Save!"

Tonight was truly amazing! Lake Fork Baptist had a commissioning/ prayer service for our missionaries that will be heading out to 6 different countries between now and October. It was a wonderful time of worship and I got chills just listening as each team shared about diverse oppotunities.
After church, our Partnership Tasmania team met together to pray and plan our trip. We absolutely cannot wait to serve with the brothers and sisters at Point Christian Fellowship in Beauty Point, Tasmania. God is truly doing amazing things in their midst and we cannot wait to join them there.
We would ask that you join with us in prayer.
*Pray that God would be in control of any of the details that we may have forgotten, and would bring these details to our attention.
*Pray for our families and businesses as we are away.
*Pray for cultural exchange opportunities in the schools.
* Pray for divine opportunities to share with playgroups, womens' groups, men's groups, and teens.
*Pray that God would be pouring into our group a unbreakable bond and that he would knit our hearts with those we will be co-laboring with in Tasmania.
* Pray that the Lord would continue to add to the spiritual growth of new believers in Beauty Point and would continue to show Himself to those in the area who do not believe He is the Way.
*Pray for God's wisdom as we all prepare for our trip-- July 27th.
It amazes me that as Paul wrote letters to churches to encourage and be encouraged, our churches are exchanging emails currently to spur one another on and to work together around the world! Paul mentions in Philippians 1:3-6, this truly is a partnership in the gospel! Praises to His name!

How Great Is Our God

Well, that was definitely the theme of the evening at our Partnership Tasmania Benefit Concert Sunday night. Our team began with prayer before anyone arrived and sang "How Great Is Our God", straight to our loving Father. His presence was definitely felt throughout the concert as we lifted our songs to Him and shared testimonies about what God is already doing in Beauty Point, Tasmania. It was a sweet time of worship as we corporately sand "How Great is our God!" and meant it with all our hearts.
I must admit, so many times in the past months I have said, "it would take a miracle to raise even enough for the plane tickets to Tasmania." God proved Himself faithful and true once again and provided that miracle! Tears ran down my face as I learned yesterday just how amazing the gifts of God's people were. Every quarter, every dollar, every hundred dollars is a testimony of God's work. We are so thankful for the financial gifts, and most importantly for those who have committed to pray for us as we make preparations and as we go. Each prayer warrior and cheerful giver will be standing with us as we minister God's love and share God's truth.
Thank you to Lake Fork Baptist Church, to our friends, and to our family who are so giving, prayerful and encouraging. Thank you to Virdie Horton for the phenomenal quilt she donated. The time and effort and her giving heart led others to give as well. Heartfelt thanks go out to all of the people behind the scenes who have donated your time and talents to make this Mission of God's love reality.
YEAH!!!! How Great is our God!

Excitement!!!!

I must say that I am so excited about the trip to Tasmania! What an awesome opportunity to be part of God's work there. We are praying daily for the church at Beauty Point and the work God is already doing. (Would you join us in prayer?)
On the detail end, we are pursuing passports at the moment, talking with travel agents, and getting plans together for our concert in March at Lake Fork Baptist in Alba, Tx. It is busy, busy, busy, but all with the end goal of serving with Christians in Tasmania and sharing the good news of Jesus Christ.
At times I feel a nervousness that we will be unable to raise the money or that some detail will be left undone. I am always reminded that my help comes from the maker of heaven and earth.(Psalm 121:2) This is such a comfort to me. The God of all creation is intimately involved in the details of our lives, and the details of this mission trip. He is the Provider and the Giver of every good thing! How can I not be encouraged and excited?
Thank you to everyone who has shared our excitement and the vision for this trip. Thanks to the supporters through diligent prayer and those who have been led to give. God is doing amazing work through each of you! You are partnership Tasmania!
Love to you all!-- Heather Horton (for the Tasmania Mission Team)

Fabulous Night at Church on the Hill

WOW! That is just about all I can say...Wow!!

The Partnership Tasmania team had a fantastic time worshipping and sharing at Church on the Hill last Saturday. We enjoyed getting to visit with so many wonderful friends and meeting new prayer partners as well. As Bob said, God was certainly in attendance. A huge thanks to everyone who came to the concert. Your energy was contagious and your prayers were sensed. Thank you for your generous hearts, warm smiles, and commitment to pray for our team and the people of Beauty Point, Tasmania. Most of all, we thank God for allowing us all to be part of His work, through praying, giving, and going.

Hi! Welcome to the Partnership Tasmania page. I am bursting with excitement and ready to jump into our journey, but there is still much prayer and preparation that comes first. We would like to share with you a bit about the trip. Here are a few thoughts. Stay tuned for prayer requests and ways to pray and give in the near future. - Heather H

Partnership Tasmania

July 27- August 8, 2009

A team of everyday people with varied ages, abilities, interests, experiences, and talents, called to go to the ends of the Earth to serve Jesus Christ and partner with fellow Christians around the world.

We will be working with The Point Christian Fellowship in Beauty Point, Tasmania. Started by a retired pastor and his family, it is the only Baptist affiliated church in the area. Less than 2% of the population are committed Christians. Our goal is to reach the people of Beauty Point and share with them the good news of Jesus Christ through creative means. The people in this area are very complacent and do not have an interest concerning Jesus. We will assist the church in drawing non Christians and go into the community to share with people about Jesus Christ, the only way to heaven.

Point Christian Fellowship has already begun preparing for our partnership. While we are there, we will be ministering in ways such as:

Working at the Bible Society Booth at the center of town

Holding a community church service

Leading worship and preaching in church services

Sharing the gospel while striking up conversations with people about American culture throughout the community

Ministering through music and concerts in the area

Ministering at hospitals and nursing homes

Speaking at ladies’ coffee hour

Men’s breakfast and dinner

Participating in bush walks to build relationships with the men and youth of the community

Going into the schools

Recruiting/training youth and children to perform a "Christmas in August" concert for their families at the church

Conducting a basketball seminar

Encouraging the existing body of believers

Potential opportunity to provide leadership and training for church members

Meeting with area ministers