P.I.T. Crew

So here we are; all sixteen of us plus two little ones. We are the troops that God is sending out from San Jose, Costa Rica to fight for His name against the dark principalities of this world. We have shared many laughs, tears, and stories/testimonies. These are the many faces of which we both argue and pray with. Our needs are constantly being shared within the crew but at this time we would like to share on our behalf as well as theirs. All are experiencing financial difficulties regarding this outreach trip to Southeast Asia. Some have a fraction of the cost, some none, and others don't even have anyone they could ask. We have to raise $48,000 by the beginning of April. That's $3,000 per person. There are frantic sells of personal items, frozen flavor ice, fresh squeezed OJ, bake sells, and on and on. It's amazing to see how hard people are working and how pleased God must be. This is a small amount of revenue in comparison to what it will cost to travel to Asia. However, this is a good time because we are learning the principle that we do the possible and God does the impossible. Please pray for the "impossible" to happen!

On a side note there are a few things to tell you. Our team has been called the "PIT Crew" because we will be traveling to the Philippines, Indonesia, and Thailand. The Philippines has an unemployment rate of just 8% yet over 40% of the population is below the level of poverty. The culture is primarily made up of Roman Catholics, but the catholicism there has been transformed into one of idolotry which takes the focus away from Jesus. In the Philippines we will be carrying out mercy ministries such as building homes and other physical ways of helping the people and community in order to open hearts to share the gospel. On the other hand Thailand is predominately Buddhist. This religion makes up approximately 93% of the total population. The well-established YWAM bases here have given a list of over 170 different ministry opportunities. We will be able to minister in the prisons, and the sick in hospitals or any other way God leads us to build relationships and spread His word and love. Finally, of the three countries, Indonesia has been the most affected by natural disasters, possibly more than any other in the world. As many may know, they were greatly affected by the tsunami in December 2004, which left thousands homeless. Indonesia is still in need of much aid to recover from this dissaster. Besides natural dissasters, this country is made up of over 90% Muslims and is the home of the most extremist group of its type in the world. The Christians that have gone to help transform this country have been persecuted greatly. Many christians have become martyrs for their faith here due to a currupt and militant Muslim government. Here we will be joining YWAM teams to disciple and teach the local people about God and His love and truth. We also pray we can bring hope to the christians who live in fear of persecution.