Greater Portland Baptist Church

Jesse and Tiffany Shanks: June 2006

From the beautiful, snowy mountaintops of Canada to the scorching heat of the Las Vegas desert, the month of June brought to us awide variety of situations. We began the month by finishing our Canada trip in two great churches. The Lord has really given us a burden for the people of Canada, and we ask that you would pray with us for those churches there that are shining the light of Christ in a spiritually darkened place. Canada is certainly a mission field, and we are grateful for the time that God has allowed us to spend there.

After a very quick three day stop at home, we were off again for another five week trip. We visited four churches in and around Las Vegas, and we are very encouraged to know that there are several good churches that are reaching "Sin City" with the gospel of Jesus Christ. One of the meetings we had was a missions conference, and the Lord used that church to meet some of the larger needs that we will have when we leave for Togo.

There was one missions conference that had to be canceled by the church at the last minute, which left us with a small gap in our schedule. Although that was unfortunate, we are thankful for the wonderful family time we had because of this. The Lord knew exactly when we would just need some time to spend together as a family. We were able to go hiking, camping, and sightseeing around southern Utah for a few days before heading to our next meeting. Besides Joshua falling on a cactus, he had the time of his life hiking around (and riding on Daddy's back!) and playing with his favorite toys: rocks and dirt!

We praise the Lord for again giving us the privilege of sharing the gospel with many people that we run into. During a particularly hot day in Las Vegas, Tiffany and I went door-to-door on visitation with one of the churches. While our first encounter with 115 degree weather was new to us, the openness of the people was very encouraging. We were able to give the entire gospel message to three individuals who we are praying will be saved.

It is encouraging to see new support coming in from some of the churches that have committed it. We are looking forward to the possibility of being finished with deputation in the next six to eight months. We know that God in His perfect timing has an exact date when He wants us to be done, and we simply want to follow His leading. Please pray that God would lead us to the right churches that He wants us to minister in and partner with.

Prayer Requests:
- pray for our safety as we continue this current trip for the next two weeks.
- pray for the remaining openings in our Fall schedule to be filled with the meetings that God wants us to have.
- pray for the people of Togo, that the Lord would prepare their hearts to receive the gospel.

In His Grace,
Jesse, Tiffany, and Joshua Shanks