Final Thoughts

Thank You

We are so grateful and appreciative of your sacrificial and generous giving towards our family and this mission effort.  We are blessed to have partners like you who make this trip possible every year. 

Once again, GRAZIE (thank you)!
 

Prayer Request

· That he 7 new souls baptized at camp will continue to grow in their faith and knowledge of God.

· That God will give wisdom and strength to the Christian young adults in Italy as they see their role and leadership within the churches.

· Prayer of thanksgiving for safe travels and a blessed time in Italy.

· For our family, as we see and discern how God wants to use us in His work in Italy. 

 

Future

Titus has been asked to return to Italy during the first 7 days of October to help hold a seminar that will focus on families and issues within families. This family retreat is being hosted by the Viale Jonio chiesa di Cristo in Rome.  Families from all over Italy will be attending this important event. 

He will also have the opportunity to visit several congregations again and spend time with the young Christians of Italy. 

We continue to see our main focus to be the churches, youth, and families.  We are excited to continue to join God’s work in Italy and around the world!

 

"Momenti Sul Monte" Bible Camp

Always a highlight of our trip is getting to be a part of Bible camp.  The camp celebrated it’s 20th anniversary and it was special to be there since Titus was one of the first campers to this camp.  The camp has grown from 8 children to usually about 100 who participate in this camp, with 50% of the children attending every year coming for the first time to any kind of Bible or Christians based event.  This year’s theme was “Messages to God.  The who, what, when, where, and why of prayer”.  I was blessed to teach the 15-17 year old class (pictured below) and have Davide, our midwife’s son, in my class.  He said: “Titus, you invited our family to come to camp several times, and we never did.  Now, I wish I would have come sooner, because this is such a great experience.  Thank you for making me a part of this wonderful group of people”.  What a great testimony and class; teenagers eager to hear the Word of God!  Again, for over a year, the staff and churches around Italy, and the world, have planned and prayed for the campers who would attend this camp; that their hearts and souls would open to accept Jesus as their Savior and wash away their sins through baptism.  This year, 6 young brothers and 1 young sister made that decision!  Praise God!  It was a privilege for Titus to get to baptized Giacomo Tassi (pictured on the left), a servant-leaders among his peers.  Since there is no source of water at our camp, we have to fill up a deep freeze!  It is a such a joyous occasion when we have fill-up our “baptistery”!  Glory to God!

 

Discipleship Weekend

After a year of planning with Franco Verardi, an Italian vocational minister, the first ever Discipleship Weekend was held for 20 Christian- young adults.  We wanted this weekend to be a time of intense Bible study and discovery.  We wanted the Word to speak to them in regards to what it means to be a true disciple of Christ.  It  was also an opportunity for the group to spend one afternoon in Ascoli Piceno, a city where the Gospel has never been preached, and let them talk with people about the saving message of Christ trough song, skits, flyer distributions, and in-person conversations.  Hundreds of people where able to witness Jesus thought the boldness of these Italian Christians!

 

Catania

We enjoyed a wonderful evening of fellowship and Bible study with the chiesa di Cristo in Catania.  Stefano and Rina Spina work with the church there on a full-time basis and are dear friends of our.   They do such a good with the church there.  Catania is very blessed to over 100 members, young families with children, and faithful elders.  We enjoyed visiting with so many of our old friends and encouraging them to pray and persevere for the sake of the Gospel.  Our prayer is for the continued growth of the churches in Sicily and Italy. 

Paterno'

From Rome, we flew to Sicily to visit two churches that are about 20 minutes from each other.  The chiesa di Cristo in Paterno’ has a church that is comprised of many children and young people.  We enjoyed spending the day in the city, visiting mainly Salvo and Daniela.  They are doing such a great job being patient and working with the church to keep it united.  In the evening, we came together as church and shared the Word of God together. 

 

Church Equipping Labs in Rome

To help the churches in Italy in creating a vision for their future, the Viale Jonio chiesa di Cristo invited us to hold a weekend for their congregation that we called Church Equipping Labs.  These three days were filled with intense discovery Bible study and reflection on who God is, who Jesus is, who we are, and what are our roles in the kingdom of God should be.  With an average of 15 in attendance each Friday and Saturday evening, we were encouraged to see the study and determination of these faithful Christians.  One lady, Isabella, attended these labs and was recently baptized on Sunday, July 14th!  Praise God!

 

Rome/Anzio

We left Bondeno, Wednesday, June 19th heading 4 hours south to Rome.  We would spend the next four days working with the Viale Jonio chiesa di Cristo in Rome.  This is one of only three churches in Italy with elders.  We stayed with Vittorio and Tonia, one of the elders for the church.  Wednesday evening, Titus and Phil Jackson (Director of Europe for Mission Resource Network) taught Bible class for the adults. On Thursday, we traveled 45 minutes south of Rome, to spend time with the church family in Anzio and have a Bible study.  The church in Anzio is always so welcoming and inviting.  Their smiles encourage our hearts.