McKinstry E-News … Winter 2020 … Growing through Reflecting

By McKinstrysInSpain | January 22, 2020

“Keep your eyes open for God, watch for his works; be alert for signs of his presence. Remember the world of wonders he has made, his miracles, and the verdicts he’s rendered.” (Psalms 105:3-5, MSG)

Recalling … Reflecting … Rejoicing

WOW! God has been so very faithful!

It’s hard to believe that the year 2020 is already underway and that we have served here in Spain for over two years. We have so much to be thankful for in 2019:
  1. The many moments where God so faithfully worked in our hearts and lives.
  2. Ashley, our oldest daughter, started Medical College.
  3. Allie, our youngest daughter, graduated from University and then was married to our new son-in-law, Joey, in November.
  4. Your faithful prayers and sacrificial giving for us to love and serve people here in Spain.
  5. The work that God is doing with the Malaga International Church plant drawing team members from around the world and people from within the city to be a part (and we are not even living there yet!)
  6. For the many people in Barcelona God has allowed us to invest in. He has and is powerfully transforming lives. Weekly, we invest in adults, young adults, youth and children through evangelism, preaching, teaching, leading discipleship groups, mentoring, and counseling. There is so much life change happening here!
God truly has been very good to us and He has used each of your prayers, messages of encouragement, and sacrificial financial gifts to bolster our faith and keep us living here so that Christ might touch many lives. We RECALL … REFLECT … and REJOICE in HIS WORK!

TAKING TIME to REMEMBER is crucial for life transformation. Our lives often advance at a break-neck pace. We can easily fall into the trap of living life moving from one thing to another without taking to time to remember and grow. The DISCIPLINE of REFLECTING on Christ’s PAST WORK is critical for PERSONAL GROWTH. We invite you to listen in on a message Mark shared at the International Church of Barcelona on the last Sunday of 2019 entitled,

This message reveals more about REMEMBERING and the importance of our hearts, God’s work to soften it, and Christ’s invitation to surrender to His transformative work.
What are you thankful for in 2019?
What are you believing God for in 2020?
We’d love to CELEBRATE the PAST with you and
PRAY for each of your HOPES in 2020.
Simply email us at mark@mckinstrysinspain.org

Fall Ministry Highlights

        

Church Alive, North Carolina … October

Thank you Pastor Scooter and the fantastic team from Church Alive, Fuquay-Varina, North Carolina. This team helped prepare for our Fall Family Festival, prayed through our city (they prayed a professor would be saved from the University of Barcelona, and guess what??? The very next week a professor of 27 years from U of B started attending our church – pray that Pep would give his life to Christ and become an influence on the campus), served at ICB on Sunday, and worked on construction projects at our retreat center called El Mas. Fantastic job … we love you guys dearly!

              

Oak Creek, Wisconsin Women’s Team … November 
Thank you Pastor Stephanie and team from Oak Creek Assembly of God, Oak Creek, WI. You all were amazing…from ministering throughout the church on Sunday, to feeding and loving on the many homeless at Grace 2 Go, to serving at the incredible Women’s Conference that attracted hundreds of ladies. You served with love, humility, and joy! We love you all so very much!!!
Heather and ICB Kids celebrating Three Kings Day

Heather leads the preschool ministries at ICB along with creating curriculum and training teachers for all of our children’s ministry programs at ICB. These ministries are helping children to deeply connect with God at a young age. It’s just amazing!

      
Pictured left is Ivan with Mark. As he walked through the doors of ICB for the last time, it was the first time Ivan greeted Mark in English (he speaks English fluently). From our very first Sunday in the city, Ivan always spoke to us in Spanish and would even come to our home and make us empanadas. This day was his last day in Barcelona as he has moved to the Canary Islands to work as a commercial fisherman. We’ll miss you dear friend!
Pictured right is the first flat tire Mark changed in Spain. He was helping Audrey, a team member pictured in the back. Everything is smaller here – the cars, the tires, the jacks, and in this case, the space to change the tire at the entrance to a parking ramp for a hotel. Haha!
We are super proud of our girls and now we have a son…welcome to the family Joey Mendez!
We are amazed at God’s work in the lives of our children. On November 30, 2019, Allie and Joey became husband and wife. Joey is literally God’s answer to 21 years of prayer for our daughter Allie. He is a wonderful gift to her, to our family, and to all who know and love him. We couldn’t be more proud of all of our kids and their love for God and for people.
Posted in Mark's Posts