Justin and Jenny Burkholder who had been missionaries to Guatemala City, Guatemala for 12 years. Justin continues to be the International Director for TEAM and travels frequently for this role. Jenny stays home with their 3 daughters and supports the girls in their school studies, activities and daily life.  

Throughout the time that Justin’s role has increased in responsibilities and began to include many international work trips to the states and abroad. It brought them to the difficult decision to move closer to friends and family to begin a new part of their lives back in the US.

In November 2025, they chose to move back to the city of Chicago as they lived there during their college years.  

Prayer requests include: 
-Safety for Justin as he continues to travel internationally and oversee multiple ministries throughout his role.
-Church, friends and school are new so they appreciate the prayers as they continue to adjust to the challenges that come along with that.

What’s New!
As always Bruce and Lisa Burkholder and all the staff of EBI have been very busy in the past months. Bruce and Lisa had visitors, Steven and Karen Ridges from Calvary Baptist Church in Lansdale PA come to visit them at the EBI headquarters in Florida. Steve is the Missions Minister at Calvery Baptist Church who’s congregation have supported EBI for 30 years. Visits like these among missionary leaders are so important to help strengthen personal connections and greater fellowship to all involved.

The EBI staff are working hard to get their materials out to not only ministers and churches but also out to the general public through bookstores, online platforms, and widely used market places. It is in these public areas where students, seekers, as well as pastors can see and purchase their publications. To that end, EBI has partnered with New Hope Baptist Church Library Project to send one of every book published by EBI to the Community Library Project in la Iglesia Bautista Nueva Esperanza in Chillian Viejo. Chile. In the future EBI hopes to partner with more book selling venues like this to further distribute their publications to a wider audience.

And speaking of effective ways to reach wider audiences, EBI will be hosting The Spanish Evangelical Publishers Association (SEPA) on April 22-25th as one of two hosts for this year’s conference to be held in Miami Florida. SEPA is a biannual gathering of Spanish publishers, distributors, and ancillary ministries from all parts of the Spanish speaking world. Bruce, Lisa and their staff will have the opportunity to present the mission and publications of EBI to over 50 distributors that represent hundreds of Spanish language Christian bookstores throughout the world. Presenting and hosting at this summit gives EBI unprecedented access to the individuals who actually make the decisions about what books and resources are carried in local bookstores all around the Spanish speaking world.

Prayer Requests
Bruce and Lisa as well as the staff of EBI ask for prayers that the SEPA summit allows EBI to send more publications to a wider range of the Spanish speaking public.

Plus, prayers for more opportunities to get their publications out into libraries, booksellers and online platforms.

Another more personal prayer request is for Ray Burkholder who is experiencing some difficult health challenges including congestive heart failure and dialysis treatments.

Praises!
Bruce and Lisa want to share their praises for God’s leading in their son Matthew and his wife Vikie lives. They are following God’s call to serve as missionaries to Poland where Mattew and Vickie hope to start a college ministry in the city of Legnica. Please pray for them as they begin to raise support for this important mission to Poland.
 
Thanks to the Summit Church Family!
As always, Bruce, Lisa and the whole staff at EBI thank you for your prayer support and financial support. Recently, Bruce and Lisa sent us a wonderful letter thanking the whole Summit Church family for our church’s generous end of year gift. We are all God’s family and as such I encourage each of you to pray for and support in anyway you can your brothers and sisters in Christ doing such wonderful work through EBI.

On January 19th, Traci traveled back to Nicaragua. In true Traci fashion, she hit the ground running in her various ministries.

Traci was able to help and participate in a medical clinic in February.

Teaching and encouraging women and children is a large part of her ministry. She continues to teach and lead her Impacto teens group.

On March 7th, Traci, along with Nicaraguan pastor Mendez and his wife Marbely, Carmen from ABWE’s Live Global, a team from Judson Baptist Church in Nashville, as well as our Ireland missionaries, Josh and Denise Steward, traveled to Havana, Cuba to help host a pastor’s conference and train national ministry leaders to run a VBS program. They faced some roadblocks and hurdles while there.
 
From Traci: “Our religious visas could not be processed due to a lack of electricity. Most of the 80 church leaders who were supposed to come to the capital for the training were now stranded in their hometowns due to a major fuel shortage. Because we now had to enter on tourist visas (instead of religious), we had to completely bend, stretch, and reshape our plans for the week. That included finding alternate housing at the last minute to comply with the host country’s requirements and totally altering the methods of our conference and training… We became creative to implement various tools to introduce the Cuban leaders to the VBS curriculum, which includes Bible lessons, songs, crafts, and games… we really just had to be flexible and depend upon God to lead and guide us.”

Thank you Summit church family for continuing to pray for Traci and her ministry in Nicaragua and around the world!

This week’s missions minute focuses on Josh and Denise Steward who serve at Tralee Bible Fellowship in Tralee Ireland. Their goal is to lead people to Christ, disciple them, and then send them out to repeat the process again.

One of the most exciting projects going on in Tralee is Project 432. The goal is to raise funds so that a Baptist church can be built in Tralee. There are currently zero Baptist churches in Tralee, so this would be a step that would allow Pastor Josh to gain “credibility” in the eyes of the Irish people. There are many Catholic churches, which is what the people of Ireland are used to. Tralee Bible Fellowship is currently a church that meets on the second floor of a building, as opposed to meeting in a stand-alone church. It is for that reason that Pastor Josh has the goal to raise funds to buy land and build a church in the community. Project 432 is currently at 100% of phase one for the raising of funds! Phase one was meant to focus on acquiring the funds to secure land. They are now in phase two of their fundraising and are at 25% of their goal. Phase one was meant for acquiring the land and phase two is for the building.

Looking forward, Pastor Josh is excited to continue the discipleship program that his church is running. They are having new members join their church and then training/mentoring each other in Christ. Prayers for this mission and what God can do during this stage of growth are appreciated. Pastor Josh is also about to start the churches first Bible study. This is something that they have not done as a church before and he is excited to grow deeper in the Word.

Finally, Pastor Josh wants the church to know how grateful that he is for all the support. Through those hardships, he has noticed that the persistent prayer from everyone concerning his ministry and family has been a tremendous help. Other prayer requests include raising the funds for Project 432, a Cuban missions trip that he is about to go on with our other missionary Tracy, and finally for helpers or leaders to help with their church.

Bev and Tom Hawkins are our missionaries serving in France (about 45 minutes north of Paris in a small town called Agnetz).

After a month-long U.S. trip (Oct 20 - Nov 20 2025) with limited rehearsal time, Soli Deo Gloria trusted God for their Christmas performances and saw Him faithfully provide. They sang in a 12th-century Catholic church for the first time in that town, drawing over 200 attendees and raising about €850 for a nonprofit supporting unaccompanied minor refugees. The concert fostered meaningful conversations and interest in volunteering.

Two weeks later, they performed at a local evangelical church that was filled largely with visitors due to outreach efforts. Through both events, the choir shared the message of Christmas and built community connections. Though the long-term impact isn’t always visible, the group is encouraged by choir members and listeners who are moved by the music and recognize their genuine faith, affirming that their ministry is glorifying God.

Bev’s participating in a solo art exhibit which debuted February 7th and runs through February. She is praying for a successful exhibit, meaningful connections and growing relationships while at the same time offsetting costs through sales of her art.

Tom has recently attended national GEM meetings in the first week of February. He continues to mentor new missionaries recently onboarded by GEM.
 
Prayer Requests

• The past year has brought financial challenges due to supporters reducing or stopping contributions and, most significantly, the weakening dollar, which has reduced income by over 12% since expenses are paid in Euros. They are praying for additional financial supporters or economic improvement.
• Planning is underway for a Summer 2026 trip to the U.S., including a family vacation in Tennessee and organizing travel logistics such as flights, itinerary, and transportation.
• Additionally, upcoming leadership changes in May bring hope for stability after several turbulent years. Tom will remain in leadership, and they pray his experience and insight will positively influence the transition.
• Continued prayer for Abigail – she is currently around 3 kg and needs to weigh around 6kg for her heart surgery. In addition, she has been diagnosed with a rare genetic heart defect that could delay other developmental milestones. Pray for her parents as they try to understand and support Abigail through this.
• For a significant mission-wide meeting in Athens in March where we’ve invited multiple organizations to join us (https://gemission.com/all-initiative/).  I won’t be able to attend because Bev’s outreach choir is singing in a day-long festival and she’d kill me if I wasn’t there.  This meeting is designed to encourage the everyday believer (not just the pastors and missionaries) to be disciple-makers in their own context. 

This week's "Mission Minute" is featuring Kyle and Lindsey Barta from H2O Ministries at the University of Buffalo. H2O is an on-campus church that seeks to introduce students to Jesus Christ by meeting them where they are at. Kyle is the lead pastor there and formerly attended the Summit before going on the mission field with H2O.

Kyle sent out an extensive newsletter on February 4th that is located on the Summit's website. I would like to share with you some of the highlights:

Spring Semester has Started! The University of Buffalo spring semester got a late start but things are now going full steam ahead since the Christmas break. After some snow delays they resumed Sunday services on campus.

Student Leaders! This semester they are continuing to encourage student leadership.To quote Kyle, " We are really aiming for our students to truly grasp that the mission of our church (and more broadly, of the Kingdom) is not a mission for a "special few" that are in ministry, but a mission for all believers everywhere".  To that end Priscilla , one of their student leaders,  came up with the idea of hosting "Testimony Night" where people can come and hear the testimony of other believers. It is just one example of innovative thinking at H2O Buffalo

First Friday! Another way they hope to develop students is by committing to doing evangelism on the First Friday of each month.  They gather together, pray, pair up, and go out to talk to students on campus about Jesus. Other churches in the H2O Network are going to be doing this as well.

Deep Discipleship! This semester, Kyle and his staff team are doing a trial run of utilizing the "5 Foundational Habits for Discipleship" (by Paul Worcester) to develop their skills. These things, if practiced, will lead to a very fruitful follower of Christ. Kyle is already seeing the benefits of this program in his relationships with others.

Family Updates! To quote Kyle "Our family has been doing great! We love being parents and we love watching Beau develop. He's eating normal foods now and not just milk. He loves to eat! He's also so close to being mobile! We appreciate your continued prayers and support for our family".

PRAYER REQUESTS:

• Prayers for the students leaders to fully engage in Deep Discipleship.
• Prayers for First Fridays!
• Prayers for their student leaders to be great missionaries on campus this semester!
• Help in finding additional financial support (they are trying to raise an additional $10,000 in 2026)

The Bartas 2025 Christmas Card!

Update on H2O Kent with the Larson’s:

This spring marks a meaningful season of renewal for Nick and his family. After seven years of faithful campus ministry, Nick has begun a sabbatical encouraged by Reliant and H2O leadership. A sabbatical is a guided season of stepping back from regular ministry responsibilities to intentionally seek God’s presence, reflect deeply, and be re-envisioned for long-term, fruitful service.

This season has already been a gift. Nick has been dedicating extended time to prayer, deeper study of Scripture, and thoughtful reflection on ministry. Through this process, he is gaining practical ideas and renewed vision that he looks forward to bringing back to the mission field with fresh energy.

The sabbatical has also provided meaningful time for family. Bea recently celebrated her first birthday, and they are amazed at how quickly she is growing. Nick and Kelly are especially grateful for this opportunity to invest intentionally in their home, recognizing that the health of their family overflows into the health of ministry.

Even in this new rhythm, campus ministry remains both a joy and a challenge. God continues to work in the lives of students, and the coming months hold significant opportunities for growth, outreach, and spiritual formation within the H2O Kent Church Network.

Nick and his family are deeply grateful for the church’s continued partnership, encouragement, and prayer.

Prayer Requests!
New Believers

• Raygan, Caroline, and Bilal were baptized in December.
• Pray that their newfound faith would grow deep roots and continue to mature in Christ.

Manmaker & Women’s Weekend (February)

• Pray for heart-level change, deepened friendships, and meaningful encounters with the Lord during these gatherings.

Spring Outreach in Northeast Ohio

• Winter weather limits outdoor outreach opportunities.
• Pray for creativity and boldness as the team seeks new ways to build relationships with students during the colder months.

Spring Break Trips (First Week of March)

• A service-focused trip to Puerto Rico.
• A prayer retreat at a local camp.
• Pray that participants would encounter the Lord deeply—whether through hands-on service or extended time in prayer.

Sabbatical Season

• Pray for clarity, renewal, and fresh vision during this sabbatical.
• Pray for continued health and joy in their family.
• Pray that this season would prepare Nick for many more years of faithful ministry.

The Larson’s 
nick.larson@h2okent.com
937-613-6266
www.reliant.org/nick.larson

Dave and Jen provide care and support to missionaries serving across North Africa, Europe, and the Middle East. After moving from Romania to the U.S. last May, they are deeply grateful to God—and to the many people who have come alongside them—as they put down roots in new soil, relationally, emotionally, and financially. They are now preparing for a missions conference in Florida they will be sharing at as well as their next member care trip in March, during which they will be supporting team members in North Africa.

The Coxes shared the following prayer requests: Pray as they prepare to share at a missions conference in Lakeland, Florida; pray for wisdom as they seek to encourage and equip a team emerging from a challenging season; and pray that the Gospel seeds sown during the Christmas season will sprout, grow, and bear much fruit—both here in the U.S. and around the world.

A few words from Steve Lytle!

God continues to bless what is happening at First Baptist Church of Strongsville.

As we continue to build a firm foundation at the Church, God has given such great life in the church and is adding to the Church little by little. He is doing something special here and we as a family are grateful to be a part of that. Situations like a gentleman repenting of sin and self and believing in Jesus for salvation, getting consistent in coming to the Church, and God restoring he and his wife's marriage or one of our young adults bringing her boyfriend who has grown up in the Catholic Church and him beginning to get serious about being in scripture and what a relationship with Christ looks like or a couple that attends bringing a Muslim co-worker that is very interested in Christianity and continues to wants to come or one of our older adults expressing her desire to reach her exercise class for Christ and intentionally having conversations with the ladies in the class to that end is just awesome to see and is in part credited to your account.

Personally, a recent highlight was a missions trip to Liberia that our 15 year old son, Hudson, and I had the privilege to be able to go on. We teamed up with Liberian missionaries with ABWE, Bill and Kathy Britain, and a retired pastor and his wife, Dr. Jim and Jeannie Vogel, to lead a conference in U-Lah, Liberia where over 75 church leaders (Pastors, Deacons, Evangelists, Teachers) received training and over 200 Liberian Christians were edified. Here are some details:

• We left on 11/13/25 in the evening and after about 24 hours of flying (with layovers), we landed in the capital of Liberia, Monrovia
• Liberia is 5 hours ahead of us here
• 11/15 was spent at the ABWE missions home in the 2nd largest city in Liberia, Gbarnga (pronounced Bang-a) in rest and prep for the conference
• 11/16 - I preached at Repentance Baptist Church in Gbarnga
• 11/17 - We headed out early for the conference. It was being held in the remote village of U-Lah which was about a 2 hour drive from Gbarnga. 
  • Day one of a two day Church Leader training began at 8:30am with registration
  • Training sessions began 9:30am. There were three, 1.5-2 hour training classes with and hour or so for lunch in there. Pastor Jim and I split leading the sessions. Pastor Jim began to walk through practical Church organization and responsibilities of Church leaders. I began to walk through answers from scripture to 5 big questions in life that are being asked by people regardless of age, phase of life, career or culture that Church leaders have to be able to speak to.
• 11/18 - Day 2 of the Church Leader Training continued with a similar schedule to the day before and Pastor Jim and I continued what we had begun to walk through. 
  • For these two days Hudson attended the sessions and played with kids from the village in between as well teaching some of the church leaders how to throw an American football that he has brought with him. 
• 11/19 - The General Church Conference began where over 200 Liberian Christians gathering to be edified. The General Conference went through Sunday the 23rd. For each day of the first four days of the conference, there was ladies, mens and youth breakout sessions in the morning, a midday service and and evening service. In the afternoon, Liberian Church leaders would go to homes in the village and surrounding villages and evangelize. Hudson and I led a youth breakout in the mornings. Jim led the mens group and his wife Jeannie led the ladies group. Jim and I split teaching in the midday and evening sessions. When there was opportunity, Hudson would hang out and play with kids from the village. On, Sunday the 23rd there was a morning Church service and then everyone began to head home after that. 
  • Lodging: For the Christians that came to the village, they stayed in the homes of those that lived in the village. Our team stayed in a hotel that was found in another nearby remote village. It was recently built due to a gold and iron ore mine that is in the area and the owner of the mines wanted a nicer place to stay when he came to see his mines. We were so thankful for western style toilets, running water and even air conditioning at night. Following full days of sweating, sun block, and insect repellant, we were even more thankful. 
  • Temperatures: The temperature stays somewhere between the high 70’s and low 80’s all year round with high humidity. 
  • 11/20 and 11/22 Hudson and I went out evangelizing with the Church leaders in the next town over - New Town. It was about a 25 minute walk away on dirt roads. What a joy it was to get to know the Liberian Church leaders and to be a part of seeing 17 Liberians turn from sin and self and turn to Jesus for salvation! Due to the efforts of the Liberian believers throughout the conference, there were 89 people from village the conference was in and surrounding villages that received Christ!
  • 11/23 - A church that was without a Pastor had 7 new believers that needed to be baptized so I was asked to baptize them in a stream that was not far from the village. What a joy it was to see these believers, in faith, take the step of baptism! And to get to be the one to get to do those baptisms was so humbling and exciting! 
  • Following the Church service, we made the drive back to Gbarnga. 
• 11/24-25 - The Brittains took us around to see and tour several partner ministries they work with: Liberty Baptist Elementary and Jr. High School, African Baptist Mission Health Center and The Baptist College of Missionary Physician Assistants. She also got to be part of purchasing a motorbike for a pastor who currently walks hours between villages to do ministry.
• 11/26 - We headed back to Monrovia to catch our flight back to the U.S. on the afternoon of the 26th. 
• 11/27 - We arrived in Cleveland on the evening of the 27th (Thanksgiving day) and it was so good to be back together as a family!

Your support helped to make this trip possible. Thank you! This trip was certainly an incredible opportunity for Hudson and I to get to do together but also it is a huge help in preparing our Church for the missions focus that we are working to build.

Thank you again for your continued support. We can’t truly express just how grateful we are to know that you are standing behind us.

Bruce and Lisa are back in Florida after attending a mission conference in Texas where they got to speak at a Spanish speaking church. They had a great time of fellowship and outreach. Lisa sent me a video that you can access on our website that shows them receiving a new shipment of books as well as Lisa giving us a tour of the loading dock, shipping and receiving area and office space they use at EBI. I encourage everyone to go and take a look at that quick but informative 7 minute video.

One of the new books they received is called "The Kingdom of the Cults". It deals with recognizing and understanding what a cult is and how to combat its influences with Christian doctrine. She also shows the new books I mentioned during my last mission minute that were being printed in Columbia written by a husband and wife team. The two books deal with how to combat addiction to pornography from both the husband's and the wife's perspective through the Christian worldview. Two books Lisa featured in the video are by a female author who lives in Mexico, "Feminine NOT Feminist" and "Blue is for Boys" both dealing with the ideas of the roles of female and male genders. They also have many books for children and classroom teaching as well that are Published and distributed by EBI.

The video shows all of the books published by EBI to be beautiful and well made publications. It was nice to see that they take such pride in producing quality materials. Keep in mind that these types of publications take time, effort and considerable funds to produce. Please continue to pray for their team, and please consider contributing to EBI to help keep this vital outreach to the Hispanic and latino communities growing. I encourage everyone to check out the video and to continue to pray for Lisa and Bruce and the success of their team at EBI. It is amazing what a wide outreach EBI has from such a small and unassuming space! God works wonders in any place we allow Him to move!

Bev and Tom Hawkins are our missionaries serving in France (about 45 minutes north of Paris in a small town called Agnetz).

Bev and Tom have spent about a month (Oct. 20-Nov. 20) visiting family in the US. They welcomed their 7th grandchild, a little girl named Finley Esme on October 21st.

In Bev’s September craft workshop, a non-believer attended and shared about a rough time with her husband’s health. The crafting group (all believers) were able to come alongside her and offer practical resources and organizations she was not aware of. Bev has messaged her and continues to pray for her, as do others. In October Bev participated in an art exhibition with her art group (all non-believers). During the logistics of the show, she was able to interact with more of them on a personal level and further build trust leading to deeper conversations.

The International Personnel committee Tom participates in welcomed 4 couples from Europe as GEM missionaries. On Dec. 10-12 Tom will be participating in GEM field leadership meetings.

France held an October 5th worship celebration with 89 services held around the country. Locally, 800 people from over a dozen churches gathered for worship time. Two weeks prior to this event, a negative documentary aired on French television with questionable journalism practices that cast evangelicals in a suspicious light. The national Council of Evangelicals has submitted complaints to authorities. This is a reminder that we must be vigilant about our character and testimony with all the suspicion around religion.

Praises:
· The safe arrival of our sweet Finley Esme.
· Some good connections and spiritual conversations at a recent art exhibit in which I participated.
· Several European couples were recently appointed with GEM which is great! Prayer appreciated for the logistics of moving forward through fund-raising and any other administrative issues.

Prayer Requests:
· The dollar has been weaker relative to the Euro. Thus, because they receive their salary in US dollars but all of their fixed expenses are in Euros, their income has decreased by 13%. Due to this and the loss of some key supporters, they are $1,000 behind to date.
· The outreach choir is preparing for Christmas concerts (we have 4 scheduled) but with the fall vacation period and our trip to the US, we are missing 5 weeks of practice.  Pray that God will help us be ready to share his love at Christmas.
· Healthy and mutually beneficial negotiations between GEM and the French Evangelical Alliance as to how we as a mission can best serve the French evangelical church in the coming years.
· They are hoping to host a Thanksgiving dinner this year but arriving back in France on Nov 21 and are trying to decide the guest list.  Thanksgiving offers them a great trampoline for spiritual conversation.
· In the coming weeks Bev will be working to prepare for a solo art exhibit in February.  Pray that she will find effective ways to use art to talk about her faith.
· She is planning a weekend spiritual retreat for GEM missionaries in January – using creativity to more deeply engage with God’s word – but interest is low. Pray that God will help them to discern if we are to move forward with fewer than expected or if this is not the right time for the event.

This week’s missions minute focuses on Josh and Denise Steward who serve at Tralee Bible Fellowship in Tralee Ireland. Their goal is to lead people to Christ, disciple them, and then send them out to repeat the process again.

One of the most exciting projects going on in Tralee is Project 432. The goal is to raise funds so that a Baptist church can be built in Tralee. There are currently zero Baptist churches in Tralee, so this would be a step that would allow Pastor Josh to gain “credibility” in the eyes of the Irish people. There are many Catholic churches, which is what the people of Ireland are used to. Tralee Bible Fellowship is currently a church that meets on the second floor of a building, as opposed to meeting in a stand-alone church. It is for that reason that Pastor Josh has the goal to raise funds to buy land and build a church in the community. Project 432 is currently at 100% of phase one for the raising of funds! Phase one was meant to focus on acquiring the funds to secure land. They are now about to enter phase two which will focus on raising money for the building.

Looking forward, Pastor Josh is excited to continue the discipleship program that his church is running. They are having new members join their church and then training/mentoring each other in Christ. Prayers for this mission and what God can do during this stage of growth are appreciated. It is almost the holiday season, and the church is also preparing for what is to come with the holidays.

Finally, Pastor Josh wants the church to know how grateful that he is for all the support. They have been in Tralee for five and a half years and they have established a growing ministry even though there have been challenges. Through those hardships, he has noticed that the persistent prayer from everyone concerning his ministry and family has been a tremendous help. Other prayer requests include raising the funds for Project 432 and the continuation of leading people to Christ, taking them through the discipleship process, and sending them out.

This week's "Mission Minute" is featuring Kyle and Lindsey Barta from H2O Ministries at the University of Buffalo. H2O is an on-campus church that seeks to introduce students to Jesus Christ by meeting them where they are at. Kyle is the lead pastor there and formerly attended the Summit before going on the mission field with H2O.

Hopefully you read all our missionary newsletters that are accessible via links in the Summit's weekly newsletter. If not, I encourage you to do so as they tell firsthand what is happening on the mission field. Kyle sent a great update on September 13th detailing the tremendous growth at H2O Buffalo with the new school year.

Today I want to share with you Kyle's responses to some followup questions I posed to him last week:

Life Groups- Kyle mentioned in his newsletter that these are their Bible Studies that meet weekly, but they're also small families in the church.They want the people involved in Life Group to regularly be growing in their love for God together through community, study, and mission. This year they are letting students lead the group and split their one Life Group into two due to the growth. I asked him how they were progressing.

"They've been good!  There are definitely some growing pains because our students are still struggling with being separated from people in the other life group. But, overall, it's been really fruitful. I think each group has a clearer idea of the people they're responsible for shepherding and discipling."

Prayer After Life Group

The Well - In the newsletter Kyle spoke of an upcoming program called "The Well". It is a discipleship program they conduct with students to show what it looks like to be a follower of Christ. Part of the class is being paired up with a mentor that meets with the participant weekly to help them grow in their walk with Christ!. They just completed this 5 week program. I asked Kyle "How did it go?"
 
"Students loved The Well and I think it was a great success. I think it was a beneficial discipleship "onramp" for those that participated!"

Closing Ceremony at The Well

Fall Retreat -  Kyle was planning their Fall Getaway Retreat for the end of September in his last newsletter. At this event they preach from the Bible, help people get more connected into their community, worship the Lord, and give people time away to connect with Him. I asked Kyle how it went and if there were any new baptisms as a result.

"Fall Retreat was great! We had 31 people attend, and I think strong relationships were formed there. Two people were baptized: Jack and Bethany."

The Spiritually Curious -  Kyle's last newsletter mentioned they had a TON of people coming to the church who were "spiritually curious". In early September they had their largest attendance ever with over 80 people. I asked Kyle if they were seeing additional growth and if there was any impact from the tragic event on September 10th.

"We definitely have seen an influx of searching/exploring people and I think that is, at least in part, because of the Charlie Kirk incident. It's been neat having so many new people on Sunday, we're trying hard to make sure we're sharing the gospel every Sunday as a result. And also trying to encourage/challenge our leaders to make connections with every new person, every Sunday. There are new people coming each week!."

H2O Buffalo's Largest Attendance of Over 80

H2O-Kent Ministry Fall Updates
God has been moving in exciting ways this fall through H2O-Kent! The ministry has witnessed powerful moments of transformation, service, and spiritual growth among students on campus and in the community.

Celebrating New Life in Christ
This semester, fifteen students publicly declared their faith in Jesus through baptism at H2O’s Fall Retreat. It was a beautiful time of worship and testimony, as students celebrated the life-changing work of Christ in their hearts.

Serving the Community
H2O students recently volunteered at a local community garden that provides fresh produce to families in need. Their willingness to serve was an inspiring reflection of Jesus’ love in action, blessing both those they helped and those who served alongside them.

Preparing Graduates for What’s Next
In two weeks, H2O will host its annual Senior Retreat—an intentional time to equip graduating students for life and faith after college. Please join in praying that this retreat would encourage seniors to remain steadfast in their walk with Christ as they step into the next chapter of their lives.

Sharing God’s Love at Christmas
As the year comes to an end, H2O students are raising funds to provide Christmas gifts for children in need throughout the local community. Pray that God would stir generous hearts and use this outreach to demonstrate His love in meaningful ways this holiday season.

Growing in God’s Word
Throughout the school year, H2O Life Groups have been studying the Book of John. The ministry’s prayer is that as students continue to engage with Scripture, the person of Jesus would become increasingly real and central in their daily lives.
H2O is deeply thankful for the prayers and support of The Summit Church family. God is doing incredible things in the lives of students, and your partnership helps make that possible!

If you feel led to further support this work, please consider supporting the Larsons of H2O-Kent. Your gifts and prayers help make these ministry moments possible and allow students to experience Christ’s love in life-changing ways. 

The Larsons
nick.larson@h2o-kent.com
937-613-6266
www.reliant.org/nick.larson

After leaving Bucharest four months ago, Dave and Jen Cox are praising God for a home and the chance to finally feel settled in Beverly, Massachusetts. They have recently joined a new church there and are looking forward to getting connected to their new church family.

Dave's voice is improving, and their ministry work continues. Their new home base puts them in close proximity to one of the teams they serve in Montreal. They made the six hour drive to spend time with three families on the team this past month.

The Coxes are gearing up for three weeks of travel in November as they will be connecting with team members in Minneapolis, Budapest, Prague, and Turkey. Please pray as they finalize some logistical details related to housing and flights.They will be spending time with 24 missionaries during this time. Please pray for sensitivity to the Holy Spirit in every interaction as they desire to be a channel of God's love and blessing as they encourage, exhort, and equip their co-workers. They have also asked for ingoing prayer for God's provision and new partners in giving and prayer.

Thank you for supporting The Coxes! If you would like to reach out to Dave and Jen and let them know you are praying for them, you can send them a card at the following address:
Dave and Jen Cox
35 Abbott Street
Beverly, MA 01915

Traci has had a very busy two months of ministry to the people of Nicaragua. She hosted another missions team in early August. They participated in a ministry conference, painted churches, made and poured concrete, and taught Bible lessons to the children. The group was also able to go to neighboring homes to pray with people and share the Gospel. On the final night of the ministry conference there were close to 300 adults and children in attendance! Praise God! On August 18th, Traci participated in UMBIN which is a conference for the wives of their pastors.

In September, Traci traveled to Cuba with a medical missions group. While they were there, electricity and water was scarce at times. The team hosted a medical conference for 40 Cuban doctors, nurses, psychologists, and dentists where Traci was the main speaker. She was able to teach on depression and mental health from a medical and biblical perspective. The attendees were then given a bag full of medical supplies. The medical team also hosted a medical clinic for several days.  Most of Cuba is populated by elderly parents/grandparents as most of the 20-50 year olds have left the country to find jobs. They are not able to receive medications for chronic conditions like diabetes or hypertension in Cuba so they were very appreciative of the clinic. The team was able to pray with these people and provide medications, eye exams, glasses, and bags of food as they left. Three people made decisions to follow Christ and the local pastor there, who is 91 years old, will follow up with them!

Traci was blessed to have her Nicaraguan friends celebrate her 49th birthday! They really love and appreciate her and her ministry.

On September 28th, churches across Nicaragua celebrated the 456th anniversary of Dia de la Biblia (Day of the Bible), when God’s word was translated into Spanish.
 
Please continue to pray for the precious people of Nicaragua and Traci as she faithfully ministers to them!

Latest update from Steve Lytle and FBC Strongsville:
Neighborhood ministry is very active in the lives of the Lytle's. They have a family mission statement: "to enjoy God and make the name of Jesus famous for all the right reasons". Recently they had their annual neighborhood ice cream party. They had 24 neighbors come to the event and got to pass out fliers to attend FBC Strongsville while their son Hudson got any prayer requests from their neighbors so they could pray for them as a family. They've had some new families recently move into their neighborhood and will bake cookies and introduce themselves to these new families. Then pray for them that God will open doors for them to share the gospel and invite them to their church.

FBC Strongsville highlights: 
They had many unsaved kids, young adults and adults participate in the different sports opportunities they offered over the summer and early fall such as kickball, softball, flag football. Everyone who participated in these sports heard the gospel proclaimed! They had a church goer Bruce in August surrender his life to Christ and was baptized. In August they held a neighborhood prayer walk. They had a lot of adults and kids in their church take a leap of faith to help in this walk and come out of their comfort zone to help serve. The Multi-Church young adult gathering that Steve helped start in the spring has continued even better than anticipated. They've had between 21 and 24 young adults come out to each gathering. With the school year starting, their FBCS Kids Wednesday Night Word of Life and Sunday Youth Group started back and they've been excited to see the amount that have been attending! FBC Strongsville has added a men's breakfast every third Saturday of the month and ladies luncheon every third Sunday after church service. FBC is having their Fall Harvest Festival on the evening of October 11th. Hoping to have a good turnout as in the past. On Saturday October 25th they are hosting FasCar - a kids hot wheels racing event. In addition to the fun, the Gospel will be proclaimed to the group that attends. They are very excited to see what God does with this event at their church!

Prayer requests: 
Steve and Hudson are going to Liberia November 13th-26th. Steve will be training Liberian pastors and then teaching in a Liberian believer church conference. His son Hudson will be working with kids. Please pray for them to help keep raising funds for this trip. They are getting closer and closer to reaching that goal but still short of that goal. Pray for Bruce and Phil as they grow in Christ as they've recently made the decision to follow Christ and for Tanya as she disciples her-coworker. Pray for all the events mentioned in this letter for God to move in the lives of all who attend. Lastly FBC is getting quotes for needed renovations in their church building - flooring in different spaces throughout the building, new A/C unit, parking lot, dead tree removal, kitchen cabinet replacement, new sign, and electrical work. Pray for God to help provide for these much needed building repairs.

Lastly from Steve Lytle: 
Thank you Summit Church for your support. Because of you, me and my family have the chance to do what God has called us to in Strongsville! Grace and peace to you all!

And lastly from the author Mark Miller:
If you know the Lytle's please come out and visit them some Sunday. They would love to see people from the Summit come out and visit them and be an encouragement to them!

I get to connect with Justin and Jenny Burkholder, who are currently missionaries to Guatemala City, Guatemala. They have been bringing up leaders to help continue the ministry at this location. Justin also continues to be the International Director for TEAM (TEAM’s purpose is to send the called, plant seeds of the Gospel, and invest resources effectively) and travels frequently for this role. Jenny stays home with their 3 daughters and supports the girls in their school studies, activities and daily life.

Prayers Requests this month include:

• Safety for Justin as he continues to travel internationally and oversees multiple ministries throughout his role
• Throughout the time that Justin’s role has increased in responsibilities and begun to include many international work trips to the states and abroad, it has been growing difficult to maintain a life separate from his family. It has brought them to the difficult decision to make plans to move back to the states and begin a new part of their lives back in the US. The time frame is moving forward and should be happening before the end of the year. Their home church has been informed and they are processing and praying through the next steps.

Barb has been Stateside for a few months and will remain until January. She has been enjoying seeing family and friends and building connections with people she hasn’t seen in person in a while.

Back in Japan, the team is doing well.  They are meeting the needs of the community and continuing outreach programs. Please pray for the language exchange gatherings at the office in Japan every Tuesday evening. This is a great outreach opportunity for all involved. There is also a Friday night language exchange every other Friday night. This is also a great outreach opportunity for the Japanese people.

If you would like to learn more about Barb, you can read her monthly newsletter. It is available as a link on the church’s webpage under Missions-Barb. If you want to sign up for her monthly newsletter email, it will be delivered to your inbox if that is an easier option. You can also find her monthly newsletter within the church's weekly email newsletter. 

I spoke with Bruce and Lisa Burkholder this past week. They are doing well and keeping busy with their work for EBI, STEP, BMM as well as family and friends.

Bruce shared that God's Word is being spread throughout the Latin community through the continued efforts of the EBI team. They received the last seven publications back from their printer in South America. EBI is moving forward with publishing many new books. Including a publication on helping parents disciple their children. They are also working on an additional two volume publication for husband's and wives dealing with pornographic addiciotion. EBI is on track this year to produce and distribute over thirty percent more publications than last year's output.

Bruce shared that the July meeting of STEP held at CBT went very well. Members gathered from all over the world at The Canton Baptist Temple in Canton Ohio for their first meeting on strategic planning. After three days of discussions and  planning they left with a clear agenda of how to achieve their next objectives. Bruce also attended the BMM annual Family Conference in Elyria, Ohio. STEP hosted workshops by Dr. Kevin Bauder on topics such as "What is theological Scholarship?" and "What does theological scholarship look like in a missionary contect?".  Both conferences went very well.

They ask for our continued prayers for the EBI and the spread of publications to the Latin communities throughout the world. Prayers for the work being done through the efforts of both STEP and BMM are also appreciated.

On a more personal level, they shared that since we last spoke they were able to host their children and grandchildren for a time of family vacation. They also recently celebrated 41 years of marriage. Bruce and Lisa also continue to reach out in faith to their neighbors in Florida. Lisa shared that she was able to minister to one of her elderly neighbors who was dying of cancer. Three weeks before her death Lisa was able to lead her neighbor to faith in Jesus Christ. They ask for prayers for her neighbor's widowed husband to be comforted and also find faith in Jesus. They also ask for prayers for continued health and wellbeing for themselves, their family and the missions they are involved in helping.

In so many ways, both on a personal level with their family and neighbors, as well as their involvement and efforts in EBI, STEP and BMM their devotion to sharing their faith continues to reach many for the Kingdom.

Every family, group, or organization has two choices when faced with challenges – pull together in unity or push apart in fear. In the face of serious challenges, 2025 has been an amazing year of unity in the leadership of Akron Youth Mentorship, building up AYM for the sake of His kingdom and our students. Our small organization operated without an Executive Director for the first half of the year. But God is good. Our board of directors stepped up to fill in the gaps and find an excellent new Executive Director for AYM. Rev. Leshaunte Edwards took over as Executive Director in June, and we are excited to see how his experience, passion, and focus on the mission will take AYM to new levels. Reverend Leshaunte Edwards has over a decade of experience in counseling, education, and ministry, including pastoral roles, and was an all-American track athlete at the University of Akron.

Amidst all the changes, our mission remains the same, which is to mentor youth with biblical teaching to make life's eternal, emotional, educational, and occupational decisions. We do that through large & small group mentoring, which can grow into one-on-one relationships that are deeply transformative. We also provide educational and occupational support to enable students to follow through on the goals they set.

There are lots of ways you can support Akron Youth Mentorship. First and foremost, you can pray. Pray that God enables us to finish filling the financial gap we have in 2025, pray for new mentors and other volunteers, pray that our new fall programming, which starts in September, will be effective, and pray that the board and staff are sensitive to God’s direction. Second, you can support us financially. Third, you can provide a meal for one or more of our programming nights, where, if you choose, you can meet our mentors and mentees. Finally, if you are interested in being a mentor, you can observe one night to see for yourself what we do.
 
If the Lord is moving you to partner with AYM in any way, please reach out to their team to connect, by visiting their website at https://www.akronyouthmentorship.org.

Bev and Tom Hawkins are our missionaries serving in France (about 45 minutes north of Paris in a small town called Agnetz).

Spring Highlights:
The Chorale Soli Deo Gloria’s enjoyed a vibrant spring with concerts from Easter through June—singing in joint services, local festivals, a Salvation Army nursing home, and a packed closing concert in a nearby town. They were warmly invited back next year with promises of a town-hosted reception! Along the way, they shared gospel music’s history and faith roots, trusting seeds of faith were planted.

Summer Highlights:
June and July were a blur of joyful chaos with their daughter’s family visiting—two little ones keeping them on their toes from dawn to dusk! Life on three continents means they grab family time when they can, and they made the most of it. Now, they’re savoring the peace and catching their breath.

On the Horizon:
Fall brings two art exhibits, a new outreach choir season, and a U.S. trip to visit family—welcoming a new grandchild in Kentucky, checking in on parents (Bev’s mom has had recent heart problems), and catching up with their other kids and grandchildren in Georgia. In early 2026, Bev will head to Greece for a “Creative Devotions” retreat and finally launch her first solo art exhibit.

Tom’s Ministry:
Tom is keeping things running and supporting two Ukrainian couples preparing for ministry in Poland and Latvia. It is very much like in the book of Acts – there is persecution (in this case, war) and while it is easy to see the destructive side of things, one can also see that God is at work to spread workers out into other places that desperately need them, as these Ukrainian believers need to relocate but see it as an opportunity for ministry.

August Prep:
This month is all about gearing up for France’s busy September restart so we can begin the fall at a steady, sustainable pace.

Prayer Requests:
· Praise for the Chorale’s amazing season. Pray that God continues to use this ministry to plant seeds and bring people to faith.
· Pray that they can use August as a month of rest and preparation, so they are not overwhelmed as fall starts.
· Pray for the protection of the Ukrainian missionaries placed in Poland and Latvia and that their endeavors may be fruitful in bringing people to Christ.
· Pray that Bev’s upcoming travels go well, and her new grandbaby arrives healthy and safe.
· Also pray for Bev’s upcoming first solo art exhibit. She will be meeting with the director of a large local library in the coming weeks to set a date and then she will be working like crazy to prepare for it.  

Please check out their summer newsletter for more detailed updates!

This week’s missions minute focuses on Josh and Denise Steward who serve at Tralee Bible Fellowship in Tralee Ireland. Their goal is to lead people to Christ, disciple them, and then send them out to repeat the process again.  

One of the most exciting projects going on in Tralee is Project 432. The goal is to raise funds so that a Baptist church can be built in Tralee. There are currently zero Baptist churches in Tralee, so this would be a step that would allow Pastor Josh to gain “credibility” in the eyes of the Irish people. There are many Catholic churches, which is what the people of Ireland are used to. Tralee Bible Fellowship is currently a church that meets on the second floor of a building, as opposed to meeting in a stand-alone church. It is for that reason that Pastor Josh has the goal to raise funds to buy land and build a church in the community. Project 432 is currently at 70% of phase one for the raising of funds! They have been steadily getting closer to their goal. 

Pastor Josh is excited about the 2025 mission’s trip that the Summit Church will be taking to Tralee. The church will be in Ireland August 11-18. There are also several other teams that will be coming to visit him throughout the summer of 2025. Prayers for those trips and what God can do during that time are appreciated. There are also activities that the church is looking forward to participating in such as having church in the town square and the Rose of Tralee festival.  

Finally, Pastor Josh wants the church to know how grateful that he is for all of the support. They have been in Tralee for five and a half years and they have established a growing ministry even though there have been challenges. Through those hardships, he has noticed that the persistent prayer from everyone concerning his ministry and family have been a tremendous help. Other prayer requests include raising the funds for Project 432 and the continuation of leading people to Christ, taking them through the discipleship process, and sending them out.

Dave and Jen Cox provide care and support to missionaries in North Africa, Europe, and the Middle East. After 29 years of living in Romania, they moved to the Boston area in May to continue their ministry.

It has been an eventful summer for the Coxes. After their move, Dave has had two surgeries to remove a malignant tumor from his vocal cord. The good news is since there was no spread, he will not need chemo or radiation treatments. Bad news is his voice has not returned. He is seeing a voice therapist, but it will be late September before they know how much of his voice he will recover.

Despite these challenges, Jen reports they are working well as a team to continue their ministry. Dave can write, type, listen, empathize, and pray. They are meeting, planning, and serving together.
They spent this past week in Germany at Reach Global’s staff conference where they led a workshop and connected with families of the missionaries they serve.

We can pray for the Coxes in the following ways:
Pray for the recovery of Dave’s voice, pray for peace and trust as they walk through this time of transition in their lives, pray for God’s provision for their financial needs.

Nick and Kelly Larson of H2O Kent are having a summer full of community vibes and self-reflection for recent grads. Their big hit? The biweekly “Postgraduate Dinner Club,” where they serve up delicious food and spark deep chats about the wild ride of life after college. It’s a place where grads can share their ups and downs, whether they’re sticking around Ohio or hitting the road to new adventures.

The Dinner Club is a melting pot of stories, with some folks having their future all figured out and others taking unexpected turns. This mix makes the talks super rich and keeps everyone feeling supported.

In addition to the Dinner Club, Nick and Kelly have been hosting small group gatherings and one-on-one meetups with recent grads. These intimate settings allow for deeper connections, where individuals can open up about their personal journeys, struggles, and triumphs. It’s in these heartfelt conversations that lasting friendships and meaningful support networks are formed, making the community feel even more like a family.

But that’s not all! Nick and Kelly are also gearing up for the new school year. As July rolls on, they’re diving into strategic planning with their team, brainstorming ways to connect with new students. Their mission? To create cozy spots that encourage students to think about their faith as they start their college journey.

Recently, The Summit Church honored the Larsons with a thoughtful gift celebrating the arrival of their baby girl, Bea. Nick shared this heartfelt note in response:

“Wow, thank you guys so very much for your generosity!! It means so much to us. Your continued prayer and partnership go such a long way toward us being able to continue in this work! Our family is so grateful for your church community.

Love,
The Larson’s

Prayer Requests:

1. Pray for wisdom and excitement for the staff team at their Staff Retreat in two weeks! They will be seeking the Lord for how to best plan for Welcome Week and the school year overall.
2. Pray for the hearts of the more than 5,000 freshmen who will be moving to Kent in four weeks! Pray that they would be receptive to meeting new people and talking about their own spiritual journey.
3. Specific prayer is requested over Stopher, Johnson, Lake, and Olson Halls, the residence halls where the coworker Brady and the speaker help coach a Life Group! Pray for relationships to be built, and for the Good News of Jesus to be shared.

If you would like to connect with the Larson’s, they will greatly appreciate it. 

Nick and Kelly Larson
937-613-6266
http://www.h2okent.com/