Prayer Letter – October 2006

Posted on October 29, 2006 by Troy

…for we do not know how to pray as we should, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words; and He who searches the heart knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He intercedes for the saints according to the will of God. And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.
Romans 8:26-28

DEAR FAMILY AND FRIENDS,
The verse above has held very deep meaning for us these last few months. As we have sought to trust the Lord in our circumstances, we have gained a deeper appreciation for the Comforter and Interceder the Lord has given us.

BASEMENT PROJECT
As we shared in our last prayer letter, we are hoping to finish a part of our basement to make room for the newest little Johnstone. You responded with great generosity. We are happy to tell you that we’ve had enough funds come in to enable us to complete the first phase (enclosing the basement for an office/guest room) of this project. Thank you so much for enabling us in this area. We are hoping to have it completed by the end of November, when a work team from Olds, AB plans to come to assist us.

NAOMI’S PREGNANCY
We also shared with you some serious complications Naomi had encountered in her pregnancy. Considering the risks associated with the pregnancy, we are amazed and excited to tell you that it’s progressing well. Our moms have been such a help, taking turns staying with us to help out with Ellie and around the house. Naomi is now 7 months along, due December 25. When Naomi first had the placental abruption, the haematoma covered an area of 15 cm. This was a huge abruption according to our doctor and the odds of the pregnancy continuing to where it is now were not good. According to the latest ultrasound, the area of the haematoma has shrunk to 2 cm! What a huge answer to prayer! In fact, Naomi was told at her most recent appointment that she can feel free to resume normal levels of activity as she’s able. We are very thankful to the Lord for this and grateful to you who have prayed so faithfully with us.
The next Johnstone

TEACHING FAITHFUL MEN & WOMEN TO TEACH OTHERS ALSO
The Lord has also certainly answered our prayers regarding a good class for this year. We currently have 46 students and they seem eager to learn, grow and minister.

Troy had the opportunity once again to help teach a week of classes to prepare them to clearly share their faith. He and John Cross taught through By This Name, a book GoodSeed is developing to communicate the Gospel in our post-modern era.

[for a full report on this event, please click here]

Troy helping with the teaching.

The group just completed their week of Open Air Evangelism in Toronto and Hamilton. They returned with many stories of what they learned and how the Lord enabled them to speak with so many about their faith. More than 35 adults and children expressed a desire to trust Christ as their Savior, for which we thank the Lord.

Last weekend, our students attended our annual Youth Missions Extravaganza, a day dedicated to challenging young people to consider what their role may be in reaching others for Christ. Seventeen of our students expressed a desire to be involved in missions in some capacity. We look forward to seeing what the Lord will do in their lives over the coming year!

Naomi & Ellie out for a walk.
Ellie’s Corner: Ellie continues to grow and learn new things daily. We talk to her often about the coming baby and how she’ll be a big sister, however she’s a bit young to understand. Ellie is still a very laid-back, cheerful girl. She loves to find a cloth and “clean” around the house. Mommy hopes this trend continues. She has loved having her grandmas around. She also enjoys being around the students, though she is a bit shy. They seem to enjoy her too—we’ve had many offers to babysit.

Thank you for your prayers and support.

Troy,Naomi, Ellie & ??? Johnstone

[Click here to download PDF version]

Incoming Artillery

Posted on October 28, 2006 by Troy

This weekend there were a number of large explosions in the woods not far from our house caused by high-grade military explosives. If it hadn’t been so cold, you might have thought it was lightning that occasionally caused our windows to rattle.. but it was actually just artillery and mortar fire raining down on the country side.

We are about 11 km (7 miles) from the Meaford Tank Range, and sometimes the weekend warriors are out cruising in their tanks or firing off some artillery shells. Transport aircraft will sometimes fly overhead and drop flares at night over the training area. Not the kind of place you would want to trespass… you never know what you might step on..

Two years ago we had a student who was in the reserves and every few weeks he would have to travel to the base to keep up on his explosive skills. While the guys in the dorm were playing video games about this kind of stuff, he was going and firing the real deal.

So if you are ever visiting us here at Word of Life and you hear a deep rumble, the floor shakes and the windows rattle a bit, don’t worry. Either its just me hungry for pizza, or its large explosions nearby.

Campus Days #17

Posted on October 28, 2006 by Troy

On Thursday and Friday we had our 17th Campus Days at the Word of Life Bible Institute. We had 8 young people come to check out the classes and other activities. On Thursday night we have an introductory meeting, pizza (of course we have pizza, I organize the event!), and some games with our students. I got to pick out the prizes too. Here is Marty holding up his classy prize.. a self-inflating Whoopie Cushion.

Our students were great. They had a lot of fun (and finished the pizza too) and were very welcoming to our guests.

Crystal and Missy showing off their prizes. Crystal was the winner of one game, and Missy was voted the worst at another game, so we gave her a prize too.

After another meeting and getting to sit in our classes and a chapel, four of our visitors filled out applications to come to the BI!

Kara finally gets on the Johnstone Blog

We have three more Campus Days this year. These are great events for young people to get challenged to study God’s Word and catch the heartbeat of our Bible Institute.