Tankersley Update

Tankersley Praise & Prayer Update View this email in your browser April 2016 Dear Prayer Warriors, Our first evangelism team this year had a unique opportunity to share Jesus in La Aurora.  Many years ago, this area was described as the most dangerous district or community in Medellín, plagued by a history of violence at the hands of guerrillas, paramilitary groups, drug cartels and local gangs.  Now, in a post violence era, the city has invested in a metro cable public transportation system as well as a series of six covered escalators rising 400 meters up a very steep residential neighborhood, assisting people all around the city and surrounding areas by decreasing travel time by hours.  The government has also invested in housing for thousands of displaced people now living in Medellin, as the violence has moved into the rural areas forcing people to flee to the city for safety. Pictured above are 860 apartments.    It's in this government housing that we partnered with Isaiah and his wife, Yomira (pictured below).  Yomira has a children's program each Saturday that provides a hot meal while teaching them about Jesus.  As a couple, they have had a desire to disciple adults and begin small house churches within these buildings.  In 2 days, many doors and hearts were opened to us as we shared Jesus with over 200 people.  With each door, you nervously knock and pray because you never know what is going to be behind the door.  This time, a young fellow who had obviously been sleeping, wrapped himself in a towel to answer the door.  My cultural filters went up and I (Cindy) thought we should just let the guy go back to bed.  But, he wanted to hear what I was going to share and ask us to wait a minute.  Thinking he was going to get himself dressed, we waited.  However, when he returned, he was still in the towel.  He invited us in and picked up his pants off the couch for us to sit down.  Again, I was willing to wait for him to put them on, but he obviously didn't feel that was necessary as he threw them on the kitchen table and pulled up a seat.  At this point, I could have "thrown in the towel", but he was so eager to listen.  As I shared, I could see how God was touching his heart.  This was a great reminder that we only come to the door with Christ and not culture.  We are simply called to testify about what God has done and leave the results to HIM.  Isaiah and Yomira have a huge task ahead of them to follow up with the 189 decisions of faith.  However, they have already started by hosting the first group of 10 people in their home earlier this week.  Please pray that those attending will become key leaders and start small group in their homes.  Please pray that God will build up a church there, so that discipleship can continue.  Our Translating Team MFM Evangelism teams have been serving in Colombia since 2012 sending 115 missionaries on 18 teams with close to 5,000 decisions of faith for Jesus.  However, that would not have been possible without this group of servants.  The above photo is a few of our translators that have a vital role as a conduit to share the Gospel message of Jesus Christ.  They are joyful volunteer servants and we praise God for each one of them.  Men For Missions Canada has partnered with us to provide a small investment each month into the lives of our translators.  During these "English Fiestas" we hope to encourage them as we share a meal together and enhance their English skills through conversation, devotions and games as well as build our relationships with one another.  Please remember to pray for them as you pray for each MFM team that comes to serve.  This picture is our normal view from our balcony which brings truth to the city's motto, Medellin: the city of eternal Spring.  However, the past month and a half, our view has been like this: The city declared a red alert less than two weeks ago after a combination of smog produced by the city's transit, drought and sand blowing in over the Atlantic from the Sahara desert.  All of this combined, has spurred contamination levels to exceed the legal pollution cap of 300%.  Please pray for more rain! 1.  Heaven gained one of our mighty prayer warriors.  We rejoice that she is with Jesus, but mourn with those that love her so much. 2.  Pray as we prepare for our next team arriving in three weeks - on April 23.  3.  Pray for our health during this dangerous time of smog and pollution.  4.  Remember our families back home.  They sacrifice more than you may realize.  5.  Pray for us and the decisions we need to make about future housing needs, summer travel, and many ministry opportunities.  We need wisdom. 6.  Please pray for Colombia, as we have seen an increase with some political instability within the last few days.    UPCOMING MFM 2016 Teams to Colombia Apr. 23-30 Evangelism Jul. 9-16 Evangelism Aug. 19-28 Medical (Dynamic Women) Aug. 12-20 Work/Evangelism Sept. 17-24 Evangelism Oct. 8-15 Evangelism Nov. 9-20 Work/Evangelism   Just like our translators on the field, each one of you is vital to our ministries.  We could not be here without your support! THANK YOU!   Please pray for the new Igleico president and staff as they transition into life and ministries in Medellín.    Our USA ph.# in Colombia: 217-784-2092 Permanent Mailing Address 823 E. LeFevre Ave. Gibson City, IL 60936 Blog:  http://tankersleys.blogspot.com   Copyright © 2016 One Mission Society, All rights reserved. You are receiving this email because of your interest in missions. Our mailing address is: One Mission Society Box A Greenwood, IN 46142 Add us to your address book unsubscribe from this list    update subscription preferences

Tankersley Update

Tankersley Praise & Prayer Update View this email in your browser Dear Prayer Warriors, Thank you so much for praying for our January assembly meetings and the IGLEICO presidential election. Even though it was filled with great change, we are trusting God with the results and have peace that surpasses our own understanding.  We are rejoicing that God never changes.  He is the same yesterday, today and tomorrow.  His love never changes.  His mission never changes.  Those in the Igleico office that we had been serving with for over 8 months and had become our close friends, have all been replaced.  Pictured above is our beloved IGLEICO team during our final retreat together.  We are so thankful for every opportunity that we had to serve together.  February and March have been filled with prayer, seeking God's direction and LOTS of meetings.  Please pray as we move forth in the call that God has placed on our lives to serve Him here in Colombia.  Thank you so much for your crucial role in our ministry team.  Antonio may be a familiar face to some of you.  He was the district superintendent that Doug worked so closely with in Ecuador.  He was also our pastor in Quito.  He is now the church association president in Ecuador and had meetings in Medellín, which allowed us to spend some time together before and after his meetings.  So thankful for how the Lord provided his visit at the perfect time when we needed it.  Please remember to pray for Ecuador. IGLEICO is divided into 14 districts, with 543 churches throughout Colombia.  Doug was asked to speak on the Great Commission to a group of pastors from the largest district of Urabá.  Urabá has 119 churches.  As you can see and much to our surprise, there were over 680 in attendance.  This is yet another confirmation that God has great plans to utilize Colombians to evangelize the world.  Please pray for more opportunities to encourage and come alongside our Colombian brothers and sisters with the call that God has put on their hearts. This is a small representation of the translators that serve on the evangelism teams.  They are a very fun and loving group of volunteers.  This month we are beginning a monthly English workshop for them to enhance their skills, as well as a time to just hang out and have fun in English.  Please pray for us as we continually seek ways to invest in these servants.   1.  Praising the Lord for His faithfulness in our marriage as we celebrate 29 years on March 21.  2.  Our first team for this year arrives on Friday.  Please pray for this team from Kentucky, as we will be doing some work at the seminary and completing two days of evangelism. 3. Please pray for those that have been displaced from their roles at the Igleico office, as they search for employment as well as those that are new in the office.    UPCOMING MFM 2016 Teams to Colombia Mar. 11-19 Work/Evangelism Apr. 23-30 Evangelism Jul. 9-16 Evangelism Aug. 19-28 Medical (Dynamic Women) Aug. 12-20 Work/Evangelism Sept. 17-24 Evangelism Oct. 8-15 Evangelism Nov. 9-20 Work/Evangelism   THANK YOU!!! We are so grateful for your support to us.    Please pray for the new president and his staff as they transition into life and ministries in Medellin.    Our USA # in Colombia: 217-784-2092 Permanent Mailing Address 823 E. LeFevre Ave. Gibson City, IL 60936 Blog:  http://tankersleys.blogspot.com/ Copyright © 2016 One Mission Society, All rights reserved. You are receiving this email because of your interest in missions. Our mailing address is: One Mission Society Box A Greenwood, IN 46142 Add us to your address book unsubscribe from this list    update subscription preferences

Tankersley Update

Tankersley Praise & Prayer Update View this email in your browser HOPE:  To desire something with confident expectation of its fulfillment. Romans 15:4 For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through endurance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope.  I (Cindy) have really missed my bible this past year. In 2015, I replaced my bible for a bilingual bible to help me learn to read scriptures in Spanish.  It was like moving into a new house, the content was very familiar but I couldn't find anything. Beginning 2016 in my "old" bible has brought me a sense of being home.  The underlines, the side notes, the references to events, and the highlights all represent how God used those scriptures to permanently mark my heart.  It was in the margin of Romans 15 that I wrote this definition of HOPE:  To desire something with confident expectation of its fulfillment.  However, when people use the word hope, it always seems to be clouded with some degree of doubt. When our hope is in Jesus Christ alone, there is no doubt.  Hope in anything but Jesus' blood and righteousness will always have the cloud of doubt.   Within 1 Peter, it tells us that we should always be prepared to give a reason for the hope that we have.  Since our arrival in May, we have witnessed over 1000 people who have responded to the Gospel of Jesus Christ by receiving Jesus as their Savior.  Many more have heard the Gospel and we know that it will not return void.   Thank you for your prayers and your giving that enables us to share Jesus: the reason for our Hope. New Year Blessings to You! Doug and Cindy  Thank you for your prayers as Doug shared at the youth conference.  It's our HOPE that these young folks continue strong in their walk with the Lord.  Thank you for your prayers for the MFM team in November.  They worked hard painting at the seminary and sharing about the hope that they have as they shared their testimony and the Gospel of Jesus.  Praise the Lord for the 144 decisions made during these 2 days of evangelism.  It's our HOPE that these believers will be discipled by the local church.  Our 1st Unofficial MFM Colombia Work Team Many came to help repair walls, spread 15 gallons of paint, organize and clean the IGLEICO office.  Others served by preparing lunch for everyone.  It was a great week of service and team building.   Our favorite Christmas gift was to spend time with our kids and moms. They are all doing very well.  David and Erin have started new jobs.  Thank you for praying for them during this time of transition to Peoria.  Jonathan continues working for Kroger.  It is our HOPE that they will grow closer to the Lord every day.    January 21-23 IGLEICO Assembly Please pray that every decision made during these meetings will be God honored. Pray especially for the elections on January 22.  Pray for a spirit of unity and harmony.   UPCOMING MFM 2016 Teams to Colombia Mar. 11-19 Work/Evangelism Apr. 23-30 Evangelism Jul. 9-16 Evangelism Aug. 19-28 Medical (Dynamic Women) Aug. 12-20 Work/Evangelism Sept. 17-24 Evangelism Oct. 8-15 Evangelism Mid-Nov. Work/Evangelism   While trying to explain Faith Based Ministry, we said it is real easy to understand... "The two of us represent more than 300 praying and giving people"  Thank You!   We had the privilege of joining IGLEICO and representing OMS at Julio Falco's graduation from seminary. OMS provides scholarships and Julio is an exemplary example of this investment.  Please pray for him as he serves the Lord.      Our USA # in Colombia: 217-784-2092 Permanent Mailing Address 823 E. LeFevre Ave. Gibson City, IL 60936 Blog:  http://tankersleys.blogspot.com/ Copyright © 2016 One Mission Society, All rights reserved. You are receiving this email because of your interest in missions. Our mailing address is: One Mission Society Box A Greenwood, IN 46142 Add us to your address book unsubscribe from this list    update subscription preferences