In a recent quarterly prayer request email, Mark Prater quotes Charles Spurgeon from his book “The Power of Prayer in a Believers Life”. Mr Spurgeon writes, 

"What we desire in prayer is an audience with God. If the Lord does not hear us, we have gained nothing. And what an honour it is to have an audience with God. The frail, feeble, undeserving creature is permitted to stand in the august presence of God, the God of the whole earth. And the Lord regards that poor creature as if there were nothing else for him to observe, bending his ear and his heart to listen to that creature's cry. It is essential that we know that we are speaking to God and that God is hearing us.”

Isn’t this amazing? Because of Jesus’ finished work on the cross, when we pray, we are permitted to stand in the very presence of God, and He bends his ear and heart and listens to our requests. What a stunning reality! And so, with that in mind, here’s how you can be praying for our global endeavours in the month ahead...

1. Please pray for the Sovereign Grace Churches Pastors & Leaders Conference, November 11-13th November, in Orlando, Florida, asking God to work in a way that the leaders, pastors, and wives of our churches would be equipped for what God has called them to do, encouraged in our gospel mission and partnership, and that our unity as a family of churches would strengthened, all for the purpose of advancing the gospel, for the glory of God alone.

2. Please pray for the three interest meetings that will happen on the Thursday afternoon of the conference for Church Planting, the Pastors College and Trinity College. Please pray that God would give attendees both faith and wisdom, as they consider important next steps.

3. Please pray for our SG Commissioned Pastor in Lebanon, Juanjo, as he continues to seek to launch a SG Church in Lebanon. He recently started a bible study that 16 people attended. Please pray for gospel conversions, and that this study would be the seeds for a church plant.

4. Please pray for country of Ethiopia asking God to end the civil war, which has started again between the Ethiopian government and the Tigray Peoples Liberation Front that controls the Tigray region. Specifically, please pray for the members and pastors of Trinity Fellowship, our Sovereign Grace Church in Addis Ababa, asking God to protect and provide for them.

5. Please pray for all the members of Sovereign Grace around the world, that wherever we find ourselves placed, that He would continue to give us a impassioned desire and opportunity to share the glorious gospel of Jesus Christ with the unbelievers in our communities, colleges and workplaces.

6. Please pray that God would continue to provide financially for Sovereign Grace Churches so that we can continue to fund the many gospel opportunities that He is giving us throughout the world.

… What a kind and faithful God He is, and remember that as you pray, incredibly, He is bending His ear and His heart to listen to you.

For many years now our US Midwest/Northwest Region has been relating to and supporting a group of Pastors in Pakistan, who represent over 200 churches. These men are doing some incredible work for the Lord, in what is an increasingly hard place to do ministry. Here’s an update from their key leader (identity concealed for security reasons) regarding a recent mission trip they made to Tharparkar, in Sindh…

Greetings in the precious name of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ!

We thank God for His faithfulness and for your continued prayers and partnership in the ministry. Your support enables us to take the Gospel to communities that have little or no opportunity to hear the Good News of Jesus Christ.

Our ministry team is currently serving in the Tharparkar region of Sindh, where we have been focusing on reaching Hindu families with the message of God’s love and salvation. Reaching these remote villages requires approximately 17 hours of travel by bus over long and difficult roads. Although the journey is exhausting, we are thankful for every opportunity to take the Gospel to those who have never heard the name of Jesus.

We are grateful that the Lord has already been preparing hearts through the faithful ministry of one of our brothers, who has been visiting these families regularly, building relationships, and sharing the Gospel.

By the grace of God, 16 men and women have accepted Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior during this outreach. It has been a great joy to witness their sincere desire to know God despite the many challenges they face. Most of these new believers come from extremely poor families, yet they have demonstrated remarkable faith and a willingness to follow Christ.

Life in these villages is extremely difficult. Many families struggle to meet even their most basic daily needs. Access to clean drinking water is a constant challenge, and poverty affects nearly every aspect of their lives. Despite these hardships, their joy in receiving the Gospel and their eagerness to learn God’s Word have been truly inspiring.

To help strengthen their spiritual growth, we distributed audio Bibles for those who cannot read and printed Bibles for those who are able to read. These resources are helping them hear and study God’s Word in their own language and are becoming an important foundation for their new faith.

Throughout our visit, we organized prayer meetings with the new believers, spent time teaching them from the Scriptures, answered their questions, and encouraged them to remain steadfast in Christ. We also visited their homes, prayed with their families, and enjoyed meaningful fellowship together. These personal visits have strengthened relationships and provided opportunities to encourage them as they begin their new journey of faith.

We recognize that following Christ can be difficult for many of these new believers because they often face social pressure and economic hardship. We ask you to continue praying that they will remain faithful, grow in their understanding of God’s Word, and become faithful witnesses of Christ within their families and villages.

We are deeply thankful for your faithful prayers, generous support, and partnership in God’s work. Every Bible distributed, every visit made, and every life transformed is possible because of the Lord’s grace working through friends like you. Together we are seeing lives changed and the Kingdom of God advancing in places where the Gospel is greatly needed.

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Prayer Requests

• Praise God for the 16 new believers who have accepted Jesus Christ.

• Pray for their spiritual growth, protection, and boldness as they follow Christ.

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“Go therefore and make disciples of all nations…” Matthew 28:19

Thank you for standing with us in prayer and partnership. May the Lord richly bless you as together we continue fulfilling the Great Commission.

An update from Leo Parris, Pastor at Covenant Fellowship in Glen Mills, PA and US Global Missions Coordinator…

Have you ever wondered if it is a waste of resources to send short term missions teams? I’ve wondered that myself, but after participating in several over the last 7 years, I’m absolutely sold on their importance.

Our bibles are full of greetings, trip summaries and promises to send others. They were a family of churches. That’s what we aim to be in Sovereign Grace. An ecclesiastical union bound by confession, but also a people committed in prayer, finances, and relationships. Missions trips are one way that we deepen these ties and catch a vision for what God is doing in His global mission. I’ve seen God transform my own church by visiting Costa Rica. I’ve seen aspiring missionaries move towards the field after spending time with our missionaries, and generous gospel patrons inspired to give by seeing first-hand the opportunities of gospel progress.

We are fresh off a summer full of trips that have strengthened our partnership, by God’s grace. Here’s just a few of them…

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Latin America

In August, Bob Kauflin and Jeff Purswell from SG Louisville travelled to Juarez, Mexico to join Carlos Contreras in leading the Fieles Conference. This conference skillfully cares for the pastors and their wives in Mexico and in many other places in Latin American.

Rancho3M

Lakeview Christian Center (New Orleans, LA) has cultivated a partnership with a school and orphanage called Rancho3M just south of the U.S. border in Texas. This summer they led a 3-night Alpha course along with a mini-VBS. More than 200 people joined each night.  

Six other SG churches also took trips to the ranch this year. Most of these teams focused on VBS-like activities for the kids, but also included evangelistic outreaches. One church sent a team of dentists down to provide dental services to the kids there. God is doing amazing things at the ranch!

Iglesias Biblical de Playa Azul, Costa Rica

This summer 5 different SG churches worked together to send 2 teams to continue strengthening our partnership in Costa Rica.

Iglesias Biblical recently planted another church in nearby Jaco. Covenant Fellowship (Glen Mills, PA) focused their team on construction work. They helped to prepare the new building in Jaco and to continue to improve the community in Playa Azul. Risen Hope (Prospect Park, PA), focused on a VBS for the students in Playa Azul. 

But more than their specific activity, the biggest thing that these teams accomplished was taking our partnership one step deeper relationally.

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Africa 

Jim Brown (Crossway Community, Crestview, FL) and Keith Bunting (Risen Life, Melbourne, FL) along with one of his church members teamed up to visit Ector Makiliki and Christ Community Church in Ndola, Zambia. After spending time with the leadership team, Keith preached on Sunday. Then they travelled to more rural villages to minister to people there.

Doug Hayes travelled once again to visit Covenant Mercies locations in multiple places in Sub-Saharan Africa. This picture shows his most recent time with Zicki Chanda. I love how this represents our long-term partnership in Ndola with Wilbroad and Zicki, and now the current elders of Christ Community Church.

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Asia-Pacific

At the end of the summer, I joined two other SG pastors to strengthen one of our partners in south east Asia. We were blown away by the progress of the gospel there. We ministered to the sick and ran a kid’s camp with the folks nearby. But the highlight of the time was when the church celebrated its first 4 baptisms. We heard people who did not know Christ at all 3 years ago testify to how God has transformed their lives. Marriages marked by conflict now full of peace, the lame now walking. 

Because of the sensitive nature of many of our partners in Asia and some other places, we can’t provide information on many of our partners there. But much work is going forth in the harder soil of unreached people groups as well. Praise God!

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Europe

This summer, two different teams were sent to encourage Grace City in London led by Pat Tedeschi. Trinity Cambridge (Cambridge, MA) sent a small team earlier in the summer, and Sovereign Grace (Marlton, NJ) partnered up with Greentree (Egg Harbor, NJ) to send a team later in the summer. These teams focused on street evangelism and passing out invitations to the church. As a result of their work, several new people have come to visit the church.

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Praise God that He has made us a family of churches working together to join God in His global mission!

Maybe you’re wondering how these churches learned of these opportunities? If you’re interested in getting involved in a missions trip, I’d encourage you to first look to see what your region of SG churches is doing. Jump in on that as a starting place. But even if there are no trips planned, consider if God wants to use your church to start a regional trip.

If you aren’t sure where to begin, don’t hesitate to reach out to me (lparris@covfel.org). I’d be happy to point you in the right direction.

Leo Parris

An update from Ángel Miranda, Lead Pastor of Iglesia Biblica Gracia Soberana, Sincelejo, Colombia…

“The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and covered up. Then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.” – Matthew 13:44

The Lord and His gospel are the greatest treasure my family and I have ever discovered. A little over two years ago, we moved from my hometown of Barranquilla—a major city on the Caribbean coast of Colombia—to a smaller city 240 km away (150 miles), called Sincelejo.

In leaving Barranquilla, we left behind relatives on both my side and my wife’s, as well as beloved brothers and sisters from a wonderful congregation called Iglesia Bíblica de la Ciudad (City Bible Church), where I had served as pastor and which I had helped plant several years earlier.

We also left behind a family business. Yet we did all of this for the sake of the Kingdom, moved by an indescribable joy, to plant what is now an established church: Iglesia Bíblica Gracia Soberana (Sovereign Grace Bible Church).

The Kingdom of the Lord is a treasure worth proclaiming, regardless of the cost.

Our relationship with the city of Sincelejo began when some believers from that city attended a conference in Barranquilla. During their visit, they shared with Pastor Jacobis Aldana, pastor of Iglesia Bíblica Soberana Gracia in Santa Marta, their desire to know and experience the truths of the gospel in their own city.

The Lord heard their cry, and several months later, we began visiting them. Initially, we held one in-person meeting each month, with the remaining meetings taking place virtually. However, it soon became clear that this was not enough, so we began meeting in person every two weeks, eventually progressing to weekly gatherings.

These meetings took place on Sunday afternoons because we served in our respective churches in the mornings and then immediately traveled to Sincelejo. For those of us coming from Barranquilla, the journey took four hours, while those traveling from Santa Marta spent six hours on the road.

For more than a year, we continued this church-planting work from a distance. Eventually, however, it became necessary for the church plant to have a pastor living in the city to carry out the mission.

My wife and I had been praying about this possibility, placing ourselves in the Lord’s hands. If it was His will, we were willing to go. And indeed, the Lord willed it to be so.

On the first Sunday of July 2024, we gathered to celebrate our first worship service with a church-planting pastor now living in the community where the church was being established.

From the very beginning of our work in Sincelejo, we have enjoyed the support of the Sovereign Grace Churches family, of which I am deeply grateful and joyful to be a part, as well as the support of the local churches I mentioned earlier. To this day, God has graciously provided for our financial needs through these ministries.

As for the church itself, we have witnessed the congregation grow in its understanding of the centrality of the gospel. In every gathering, we preach, sing, live, and proclaim the gospel.

Today, approximately 70 people, including children, gather with us regularly. I would like to share a few encouraging things about what the Lord has been doing among them.

Seven people have come to know the Lord through our ministry and have been baptized. Another group of nearly ten people has been learning about Him, and we pray that, if the Lord wills, they too will surrender their lives to our Savior, Jesus Christ.

We also have two men who are now serving in the congregation after more than a year of walking together in discipleship and preparation. In addition, a group of women is preparing to serve in our children's ministry.

Although we have witnessed the Lord’s goodness throughout this journey, we still face several challenges that I would like to share with you.

Challenges Within the Church

• Establishing our music ministry: We are currently training a group of musicians who will eventually serve in our worship gatherings.

• Launching our children's ministry: We hope to begin formal Bible classes for the children.

• Developing biblical and theological training: We desire to establish a weekly Friday gathering dedicated to biblical and theological instruction for the congregation.

Family Challenges

• Our daughter's education: After two years of virtual schooling, our daughter will begin attending school in person.

• Financial support: In September of next year, our financial support from Sovereign Grace Churches will come to an end. Although this brings some uncertainty and even fear, we continue to trust in the God who has faithfully provided for and sustained us until now.

There is so much more I could share, but space is limited. There are also many other challenges before us. Nevertheless, I want to emphasize two things: To the Lord alone belongs all the glory for everything He has accomplished among us. And in the Lord alone we place our hope as we face every challenge ahead.

May the Lord bless you all.

Your brother in Christ,
Ángel Miranda

An update from Ed O’Mara, Lead Pastor of Chiesa Grazia Sovrana di Torino, Italy, and SGC Area Leader for Europe…

Writing to the Corinthians, Paul asks, "What do you have that you did not receive? If then you received it, why do you boast as if you did not receive it?" (1 Corinthians 4:7). In some ways, I would say this defines my observation of Sovereign Grace’s culture: all that we enjoy in life and ministry is a gift of grace, leaving us with no ground to boast in ourselves, but only in Christ and His saving work.

This heart of gratitude was on display recently as Bob and Devon Kauflin came to serve in the UK. After serving in London at Music Ministry UK’s annual conference, they came to Bristol to serve Grace Church on 11 October. The following day, we spent time planning and preparing for a WorshipGod UK conference to be held in October 2027. That evening, we gathered with Grace Church. There was time for singing and fellowship as well as an interview so the church could get to know Bob, Devon, and Sovereign Grace Music better. Bob and Devon described Sovereign Grace Music’s goal of serving and equipping churches to proclaim the gospel and praise the Lord for His saving work through theologically rich songs for the local church.

This all led to the “main event” on Tuesday: an all-day mini-conference called Gathered. Nearly 250 people gathered at Headley Park Church in Bristol to sing together and receive instruction from Bob and Devon on various aspects of the worship gathering. The central themes were: the heart posture of a worshipper, the gospel we proclaim, the songs we sing, and our witness to the world. It was both encouraging and well received. I had multiple conversations in which people expressed appreciation for Sovereign Grace Music and our family of churches.

A few pastors also shared a desire to learn more about what it means to become part of Sovereign Grace Churches, and everyone I talked to indicated their excitement and anticipation for next year's fuller WorshipGod UK conference in Bristol. Gathered concluded on Wednesday with a leaders' meeting where Bob taught on practical applications of leading a team, focusing on how worship leaders can seek to edify the local church in the gospel and in unity with the pastoral team. This was followed by a discussion and Q&A session with Bob and Devon, where they helped attendees work through specific applications for their own ministry contexts.

Again, I was very edified by our time together. It was encouraging to see tangible ways that God's grace is unfolding across the UK, and it seems to me that there is a growing desire for gospel centrality. I was particularly affected by the number of young people who attended and seemed to desire solid theological training. An example of this came from one young man who is not currently part of Sovereign Grace, but is exploring future partnership. He remarked that his excitement to pursue Sovereign Grace grew by attending Gathered. He went on to say that his time helped him see that Sovereign Grace does not just have well-defined and articulated gospel theology, but a culture of lived-out theology that is gracious, Christ-centred, and God-honouring. How humbling and encouraging to hear his feedback! But I don’t share this to pat ourselves on the back. Again: "What do you have that you did not receive? If then you received it, why do you boast as if you did not receive it?" We boast in Christ alone! He has granted us salvation! Nothing trumps that glorious treasure. Additionally, it is all to His praise that, within our family of churches, we value singing and celebrating the gospel through song. What a gift it is to be led in this by the joy-filled gospel men of Sovereign Grace Music!

So as we look to the future we thank Him for what He has granted to us, starting with the work of Christ and flowing out in myriad blessings. Would you pray for this to continue in the UK and Europe? Pray:

• that the Lord would cause the gospel to spread across Europe.

• that Sovereign Grace would have many more opportunities to serve pastors, leaders, and churches in the UK and Europe.

• that contexts like next year's WorshipGod UK conference would be times of strategic investment to maximise the glory going to the worthy name of Christ.

May our boast always be in the Lord so the world marvels at His glory in Christ!

The founding generation of Sovereign Grace prayed from Psalm 90 that God would establish the work of their hands and show His power to their children (Psalm 90:16-17). Today, the Lord is answering those prayers, but not just in the United States, He’s answering them all over the world.

On September 23-26, 2027, over 200 young adults (mostly 18-30 year olds) from our churches in the Philippines, Pakistan, South Korea and Australia, gathered in Tagatay, Manila, for our very first RELAY Asia-Pacific Conference... And God met with us in wonderful ways!

To begin the time we had a pastoral interest pre-conference run by Jared Mellinger and Walt Alexander. It is our prayer that God will use these gatherings to help raise up a younger generation of pastors to serve in Sovereign Grace Churches in Asia-Pacific, and so it was wonderful to see over 30 young men attend and lean into this time.

Then from the opening conference message on the Leper Comes Home, to Riley Spring’s closing message on Our Gospel Mission, the Spirit of God ministered to us incredibly through the preaching of his Word. There were breakout sessions on Biblical Manhood, Biblical Womanhood, A Heart Aflame For God, Finding The Will of God, and Thinking About Love. All of which went really well. In addition to the teaching, the conference included passionate singing, fellowship, prayer, and plenty of food, fun and games.

For the vast majority of the young adults, this was their very first experience of attending a Sovereign Grace conference and so it was so good to see the Lord doing far more than we could’ve asked or imagined, as friendships were made, lives were changed, and partnership was strengthened. One particular highlight would be the ministry time we had on the Thursday night. God met with us in truly powerful ways that night. With many hearts touched, it’ll no doubt be a night treasured by many.

On the last night David Zimmer and Caleb Dirnberger hosted a Gathering Around The Gospel evening, with over 800 attendees. It was a wonderful finish to RELAY and another wonderful moment to sing, learn and grow in community with our Sovereign Grace brothers and sisters.

We are excited about the future of RELAY Asia-Pacific, and we believe God will use this conference to strengthen our churches and prepare us for the future, both in generational and geographical transfer. So much so that we are already planning and looking forward to doing it all again in 2028.

If you’d like to see more of what God did during the time, please check out the video below... What a faithful God He is!

Bishop J.C.Ryle once said,

“In God’s Word nothing seems to be too great, too hard, or too difficult for prayer to do.”

That’s so true... Nothing is impossible for the Lord. Nothing it too great, too hard, or too difficult for Him. It never has been, never is, and never will be!

So, with that in mind and in great faith, here’s how you can be praying for our global endeavours over the next month...

1. Please pray for the short-term missions teams from Greentree Church (Egg Harbor, NJ, USA) and Sovereign Grace Church of Marlton (Marlton, NJ, USA), that will be heading to London, England, 2nd-12th. Please pray that our London Church Plant - Grace City Church, led by Pat Tedschi, would be greatly encouraged and strengthened by this team, and that the good news of the Gospel would continue to go out across this great city.

2. Please pray for Bob Kauflin as he heads over to the UK, October 14th-19th, to run a SG Music Mini-Conference, as we prepare to run a full Worship God Conference in Bristol in October 2027. We’re eager to pick up the pace on planting and strengthening Churches in the UK, hence the strategic nature of the timing and location of these conferences.

3. Please pray for the country of Ethiopia and for the dear saints of Trinity Fellowship Church in Addis Ababa, as sadly clashes broke out again last week between the Ethiopian government and the party that controls Tigray, the Tigray Peoples Liberation Front. They both accuse each other of violating a 2022 peace deal that ended a brutal two-year civil war, which according to the Africa Union, cost the lives of 600,000 people. Please pray for his country, that the war would come to a swift end, the gospel would go forward, and that God would protect the dear saints of Trinity Fellowship.

4. Please pray for Ken Delage, Leo Parris, Shawn Woo, Todd Born, and Watt & Fone (Short Term Team from Mercy Hill) as they head out to Thailand to visit with Family of Grace Church, before heading on to attend the Great Commission Congress in Bangkok, October 26th-28th. Please pray that this would be a rich time of fellowship, service and learning for everyone involved. We’re eager to see how we may increasingly reach the unreached.

5. Please pray for our SG Commissioned Pastor in Lebanon, Juanjo, as he continues to seek to launch a SG Church in Lebanon. The doors have opened for him to start a Bible Study which had 16 in attendance last week! Please pray that God would bless his preaching and would open people’s hearts so that they may truly know Him, stand in awe of His glory, delight in Him, and find their deepest satisfaction in Him.

6. Please pray for the many works going on in SGC LATAM this month, with Carlos Contreras teaching and preaching in Lazaro Cardenas, Michoacan, Mexico, 15th-19th October. Marty Machowski speaking at Muestra Cristo (Show Us Christ) Conference in Medellin, Colombia, 9th-10th October, and Joselo Mercado speaking at a conference in Peru and continuing to build relationally with pastors there, 26th-31st October. May His grace abound to everyone involved in these endeavours.

… For God alone can make great things happen… So thanks for praying!

A key part of our strategy in planting and strengthening churches around the world, is to see men trained at our Sovereign Grace Churches Pastors Colleges. For Africa, this means Trinity Fellowship Pastors College in Addis Ababa in Ethiopia. The following is a very encouraging update from Josh Pannell, Dean of Trinity Fellowship Pastors College…

In the Lord’s kindness, we saw our third pastors college class graduate recently—a day which also marked our five-year anniversary as a college (it’s hard to believe those words as I type them!)

Since I started the pastors college back in 2021, our mission has been to give our men a “pastoral education” that seeks to train both the “head” and the “heart,” or, as Paul said, that pays close attention to both “life” and “doctrine” (1 Timothy 4:16), precisely because a pastor must be a man who both proclaims the gospel with accuracy while also living a life which adorns the beauty and transforming power of the gospel for those to whom he ministers.

In the Lord’s kindness, we’ve seen that mission continue—and even grow and mature!

This year, 9 men went through our program. They studied the doctrines of Scripture, God, man, sin, salvation, Christ, the Holy Spirit, the Church, and the “last things.” They took classes on the Torah, Old Testament Historical Books, Old Testament Wisdom and Poetry, the Prophets, the Gospels, Pauline Epistles, the General Epistles, and Revelation. They took classes on pastoral ministry (2 of them!), pastoral counseling (3 of those!), marriage, parenting, leading congregational singing, preaching (3 of those!), and more!

Not to mention, I taught them Greek throughout the year, and I even ended the year by teaching a class that read through 1 John in Greek while also studying assurance of salvation in 1 John. 

One of my favorite classes I taught this year was on the pastoral qualifications. Every Tuesday morning throughout the year, we set aside 30 minutes for me to teach on a single qualification and call the men to the next step of faithfulness in their pursuit of holiness. That slow pace allowed us to cover several of the qualifications twice! It was such a sweet joy to see each of these men grow, not only in their theology, but also in their holiness as Christ further formed in each of them. 

“All in all, they completed 42 one-week block classes, each consisting of roughly 25 hours of classroom instruction, read approximately 12,600 pages, and wrote 420 pages for their regular classes, and they also completed a 30-page thesis paper that they worked on throughout the year. 

They also attended weekly community groups, monthly men’s groups, monthly groups for the wives to meet and discuss the joys and difficulties of being a pastor’s wife, monthly marriage groups, regular one-on-one discipleship meetings with Trinity Fellowship pastors, came to both my house and Michael Granger’s house several times for college events, along with several other informal discipleship contexts over the year.

It was a full year, indeed, and it was quite a joy to see each of them grow.

Our class this year was quite diverse! 5 of our students were Ethiopian and came from Trinity Fellowship Church. One came all the way from Pakistan and represented a growing number of churches interested in partnering with us. And a special joy was having three men from Nairobi, Kenya (one country south of us), all of whom hailed from Sovereign Grace Church of Nairobi, a church we helped plant back in 2024 when we sent Brian Kiama (a 2022 pastors college graduate) and his family to plant the church. In the Lord’s kindness, SGC Nairobi continues to grow, and their sending three of their members at such a young age is a kind reminder from the Lord that he will build his church, and the gates of hell will certainly not prevail against it!

Of the five Ethiopians the Lord gave us as students this past year, we’re happy to say that we believe three of them are ready to move into our pastoral residency program for 2026-2027. Please pray for them as they move from the “classroom” to the “counseling room” this coming year, and please pray for us as we continue training them for future pastoral ministry.

An update from Carlos Contreras, Lead Pastor of Iglesia Cristiana Gracia Soberana, Juárez, and National Leader for SGC Mexico…

On September 19, we celebrated the 40th anniversary of our church. While our original group of young people began meeting in a local park nearly 50 years ago, it took another decade before we were officially established as a church. During those formative years, People of Destiny International (which became Sovereign Grace Churches) played a significant role in helping us understand what it meant to become a local church.

Our celebration was simple yet deeply meaningful. We gathered on Saturday for a special worship service centered on thanksgiving for the countless evidences of God's grace throughout the past four decades. A worship team and choir of thirty people led us in singing songs that have marked different seasons of our church's history. For those who have been part of the congregation since its early years, it was a moving and nostalgic experience; for many newer members, it was a wonderful glimpse into our heritage.

Several special guests joined us for the occasion, including some of our founding members. Also, we had the joy of having Mario and Margarita Jacobo, who traveled from Tijuana to celebrate with us. They were sent out in 1995 as one of our first church plants and they have served that church faithfully for over 30 years.

As part of the event, our production team prepared a commemorative video highlighting significant moments in our history. These included the founding of our Christian school 33 years ago, the construction of our church facilities 25 years ago, and the faithful perseverance of our congregation through the difficult years of violence and instability that affected our city from 2008 to 2012. We also reflected on God's remarkable work in the years that followed, including our national expansion, the launch of the Fieles Pastors Conference in 2014, and the eventual formation of Gracia Soberana México as an ecclesiastical family of churches.

Following the video, I shared a message on why we celebrate and, more importantly, whom we celebrate. The focus was not on our accomplishments, but on God's faithfulness, grace, and glory. I also had the opportunity to recall some treasured memories and recognize a number of leaders who have served faithfully over many years.

One particularly meaningful moment was something we had never done before: a memorial display honoring many of those who have gone home to be with the Lord. Through photographs and personal memories, we remembered saints whose lives and service have left a lasting impact on our church family.

The service concluded with a special arrangement of a song written by Lalo and Roxana Muñoz. We chose this song to honor their immense contribution both to our church and to Gracia Soberana. For more than twenty years they faithfully led worship, and they were among the first to work with Bob Kauflin in translating and recording Sovereign Grace Music in Spanish. Hearing this song again after forty years was a deeply emotional experience for many of us and especially for them.

After the service, everyone made their way through a large gallery of photographs, videos, and memorabilia that chronicled the story of God's faithfulness over the years. The exhibit led out to the patio, where tables, chairs, and games for the children had been arranged. Food trucks and local vendors served tacos, flautas, enchiladas, and tamales, allowing us to enjoy fellowship together as one large family.

It was a joyful day of remembering God's faithfulness, celebrating His grace, and giving Him all the glory for forty years of ministry. As we reflected on His goodness throughout the years, we were reminded that the Lord who has sustained us thus far will continue to guide, strengthen, and uphold us in the years ahead. Our prayer is for the next generation, that they would be firmly committed to remaining faithful in all that God calls them to do as He continues to build His church. We ended all reading this passage out loud:

“Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen”.
Ephesians 3:20-21

An update from Jeff Palen, Lead Pastor of Center Church of Star, Idaho, USA…

Center Church of Star, Idaho, began as a prayer of Center Church in Gilbert, Arizona. In 2022, I began to sense that God was doing something that would ultimately lead my family and three others to move a thousand miles north to the unknown world of the Northwest United States in 2025. Those three years felt like ten as we prayed, met with regional leaders and pastors in the Boise area, took numerous trips north, and, still praying, were sent by our dear friends in Gilbert to plant in Star.

We had almost no idea what we were doing, and with many watching us and wondering what we were thinking, but God paved the way for our little group to find homes, jobs, and schools in our new little town. What a big change it was for us too. Gilbert, Arizona, and Star, Idaho, are nearly opposite in terms of climate. When our family left Arizona, we were still wearing summer clothes, and when we pulled into our new home, we hit freezing temperatures. One of the guys on our team must have purchased three or four winter jackets in those early months!

Everything we ran into was new for all of us. Even the neighborhoods were new! Not just new to us, but freshly built! Star has been a rapidly growing area in the US, doubling in population twice since 2010. So when we moved into our new homes, we were surrounded by others moving into theirs too! Most of them were new to Idaho, coming from Washington, Oregon, and Northern California. 

Early on, we were building relationships within our neighborhoods, and most of our first six months consisted of get-togethers and cookouts we affectionately named “driveway dinners.” So by the time we were ready to launch the church in October of 2025, most of our attendees were the people we lived next to and spent time with every day.

When it was time to start meeting as a church, we had several options in Star that seemed perfect for a church plant. However, when we started to inquire, we were surprised to find that none of them worked out. So after our last option fell through, we decided it was best to meet in one of our members’ garages! They painted it and installed a heater, and by October 5th, we were ready to go! On our first Sunday, we met a handful of people who heard about our church and had been waiting to come! Although the garage felt a bit odd at first, it quickly became a part of our story.

Not long after launching, we were excited to learn that one of the neighbors, who had no background in church or faith, reached out and expressed faith in Jesus! A few months later, we were blessed to have our very first baptism celebration! I am so thankful to have been able to be a part of this, and even more so to walk with this brother as he continues to grow and walk with the Lord.

After about six months of meeting in the garage, we found a local gym that was closed on Sundays and was happy to rent to us for our weekly gathering. The best part about this is that they were already set up for children’s ministry and had enough room for us to grow. We are so thankful for the central location, and many visitors have found us because of it.

Our church is still pretty small, but we have so much to be thankful for. While we were surprised to see how God has chosen to work in Star, we are continuously reminded that he is, in fact, working! As we celebrate our first year as a church, we continue to see the same faces show up week after week. We are eager to start reaching out to the community through programs like the Bridge Course. One of our members even got approval to run a Bridge Course at his office!

As we look to the coming year and many after it, please pray that God brings more people to worship with us, new friends to serve alongside us, and called men willing to help lead us. We are so thankful for all the prayers and encouragement from our friends and churches across the globe. Please pray that God moves in power in Star. We are eager to see all he has in store for this little church and the town of Star.

One of the big reasons that we are so passionate about planting and strengthening churches around the world, is so that more people can come to know Jesus Christ as their Lord and Saviour.

All around the world the Lord is building His choir, with people from every tribe and language and nation, and what a privilege we have to give out the invites. Jesus is not hemmed in by geography, He holds the whole world in His hands and so what a joy it has been to see His saving hand here in Australia.

Recently SGC Parramatta celebrated the baptism of three dear saints. Lives that have been changed and transformed by Jesus, all by His glorious grace. You can listen into their inspiring testimonies below… Praise His Name!

We are thrilled to welcome the Sovereign Grace Pastors College Class of 2027 to the start of their year in Louisville! Over the next ten months, these men and their families will immerse themselves in rigorous theological training, personal discipleship, and life in the context of our local church. Please join us in praying for them as they begin this journey—that Christ would be exalted in their studies, their homes, and their hearts as they prepare for a lifetime of gospel ministry.

To meet each student, be sure to watch the intro video below… Enjoy!

A.C. Dixon once said,

“When we depend upon organisations, we get what organisations can do; when we depend upon education, we get what education can do; when we depend upon man, we get what man can do; but when we depend upon prayer, we get what God can do.”

There’s no doubt given the size and number of opportunities that we have before us in Sovereign Grace, that we need only “what God can do”. Prayer, by very nature, is the translation into a thousand different words of a single sentence: “For apart from me (Christ) you can do nothing” (John 15.5). So with dependant hearts, and in a thousand different words, here’s how you can be praying for our global endeavours over the next month...

1. Please pray for our 2026-2027 Pastors College students and their families as they settle into Louisville, KY, asking God to provide for them and to give them grace to grow over the next year while at the PC.

2. Please pray for the Sovereign Grace Churches RELAY Asia-Pacific Conference, September 23rd-26th in Manila, Philippines. Around 200 young adults from churches in Australia, South Korea, Pakistan and the Philippines, will be attending this conference. Please pray that God meets with the next generation in wonderful ways as they come together and that He does so much more than we could’ve ever asked or imagined.

3. Please pray for Angel Miranda and his team as they plant Iglesia Biblica Gracia Soberana in Sinceljo, Colombia, asking God to draw unbelievers and the unchurched giving them opportunities to share the gospel with them.

4. Please pray for Iglesia Gracia Soberana Cd. Juarez as they celebrate their 40 year anniversary on the 19th September. Please pray that they may revel in the kindness, faithfulness and grace of God over this special weekend. What a wonderful and faithful God He is.

5. Please pray for the African Pastors College graduating class of 2026, students and their families from 3 different nations who having moved to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, for the past 10 months, graduate on the 13th September, before heading home to make a difference in their local churches. Please pray for a smooth transition back home and for faithful and fruitful days ahead for each of these graduates.

6. Please pray that God continues to provide financially for Sovereign Grace Churches so that we can fund the many gospel opportunities He is giving us throughout the world.

7. Finally, please pray that God would give the members and pastors of Sovereign Grace churches opportunities and courage to share the gospel with unbelievers in our communities, workplaces and on our campuses. Praying for the saving grace of God to reach many.

   … For apart from Him, we really can do nothing.

An update from Jeff Purswell, Director of Theology for Sovereign Grace Churches and Dean of the US Pastors College…

It seems we say this every year, but by God’s grace we’re still marveling over all that the Lord did in this past year’s Pastors College class. Thirteen men joined us this year in Louisville: eight from the US, three from Canada, and two families from the Philippines who braved the visa application process, the logistics of an international move, and the challenges of life in a foreign country to be a part of this year’s class. This rich demographic combination, with students ranging in age from 22 to 41, included two ordained SG elders (the first to have attended the PC since our new polity), another second generation PC student, and two men from outside of SG seeking to join our family of churches.

Beyond the intensive classroom learning experience—at which these men labored diligently and excelled—we observed a remarkable, transformational community form among the students and their families. These families endured an unusual number of trials this year, from financial struggles to acute health challenges (providentially, two of the students were nurses!), all of which served to knit their lives deeply together. And this went well beyond the students themselves. Their wives were wonderfully engaged in each others’ lives and families, as well as with many in our host church, Sovereign Grace Church of Louisville.

It was particularly gratifying to see the children of the class, from toddlers to teens, growing in their love for each other and for the Lord. One of the wives wrote this in a note addressed to the ladies entering the PC this year: “Perhaps my greatest joy, though, was watching our children flourish during this PC year. Seeing them grow in their love for the Lord, delight in being with God’s people, and genuinely love the local church has been one of the sweetest blessings of this season.” To those of us seeking to serve these families, few words are sweeter.

All of these various components—academic, pastoral, personal, and relational—combined to produce a year, not just of equipping, but, by God’s unspeakable grace, of transformation. Yes, after 36 weeks of class, 800+ hours of lecture, an additional 1000+ hours of outside work, papers, exams, and approximately 12,000 pages of reading, these men have a solid foundation of biblical, theological, and pastoral knowledge upon which to build their lives and ministries. But the Pastors College is more than an academic institution. It provides a rich immersion in the doctrine, values, and culture of Sovereign Grace churches. As I like to say, it is “pastoral training calibrated to our partnership”—training that is Scripturally-rooted, theologically faithful, gospel-centered, local-church connected, relationally nourished, and life-and-doctrine focused, and all aimed at equipping men and their families for ministry within Sovereign Grace.

The fruit of this year is deeply encouraging to consider. Seven of the students entered full-time vocational ministry. One returned to take over senior leadership in his church. Two entered a specific church planting track. And to a man, they left relationally knit, doctrinally deepened, pastorally sharpened, and ready to make an immediate impact in their local church.

We’re already receiving this year’s students, 14 in all, and are eager to begin a new year. Which prompts us again to give praise to God and thanks to you, our pastors and churches, for your faith and sacrifice in sending such quality men and women to be equipped in the college. The Pastors College exists not for itself, but for you—and we could not do what we endeavor to do without you. 

An update from Carlos Contreras, National Leader of SGC Mexico…

This year’s Fieles Pastors Conference was especially significant for several reasons. First, we celebrated the 10th edition of the conference, which began in the summer of 2014. Second, the conference focused on the theme “The Worship of the Church” and served as the host venue for the Sovereign Grace Music WorshipGod Conference. Bob Kauflin provided outstanding leadership throughout the event despite continuing to recover from a serious leg injury. Third, we welcomed a record attendance of nearly 900 participants, including pastors, ministry leaders, their wives, and worship team members.

Attendees came from 27 states across Mexico and six different countries, representing more than 150 churches. Yet what encouraged my heart most was seeing the 180 volunteers from our church who served with joy, humility, and tireless dedication throughout the conference.

The main sessions centered on the biblical worship of the church and were led by our special guests Dr. Miguel Núñez and Sugel Michelén, internationally respected pastors and authors from the Dominican Republic, along with Hanibal Rodriguez, Lead Pastor of Wheaton Bible Church in Chicago. Additional messages were given by our own Joselo Mercado, Jeff Purswell, and Bob Kauflin.

The conference also featured a variety of workshops focused on both the theology and practice of corporate worship, as well as specialized musical training. One of the most well-attended workshops, Balancing Ministry and Family, was led by Jonathan and Sarah Jerez, who partner with Gracia Soberana Música in producing and recording worship music in Spanish. We were also blessed with many rich times of congregational singing. In fact, the voices were so enthusiastic and strong that my Apple Watch repeatedly alerted me that the decibel level was too high!

Our prayer is that this conference will help open the door for future WorshipGod Conferences throughout Latin America and further strengthen the ministry of Gracia Soberana Música as a faithful instrument in God’s hands, serving His church throughout the Spanish-speaking world.

To God be the glory for all He accomplished during these memorable days of worship, fellowship, encouragement, and equipping!

An update from Dave Taylor, SGC Director of Global Strategy & Development…

Last November, Typhoon Tino swept across the central Philippines, bringing powerful winds, heavy rain and widespread flooding. The typhoon made landfall across several central islands including Negros Occidental, where our brothers and sisters at His Dwelling Christian Church (HDCC) in Isabela, Philippines are located.  

In the aftermath of the storm, several families within the HDCC church community had been particularly affected. One family had suffered a complete loss of their home and belongings, while other families experienced severe damage to their homes, crops and sources of income, leaving many in urgent need of support and basic necessities.

By God's grace and provision, Sovereign Grace Churches were able to extend financial assistance, allowing the church to respond to the practical needs of their members, including the provision of rice, groceries, drinking water and household supplies.

A significant part of the relief effort was directed beyond the church walls too. With the heart to serve the wider community, help was also extended to surrounding communities. These residents were invited to the church, where they received food packs and assistance, and more importantly, an opportunity for the Gospel to be shared – a moment of hope in the midst of disaster.

For the church members themselves, this relief brought great encouragement to them, reminding the congregation of God’s provision and faithfulness during challenging times. Many expressed deep gratitude, acknowledging how their faith and sense of community had been strengthened.

We are so grateful to God for the generosity of our churches and for the privilege of being able to support our brothers and sisters in the Philippines in a time of need. Please continue to pray for the people affected by Typhoon Tino as they continue to recover and rebuild their lives, and especially that the Gospel would continue to go forward through the local church. We give thanks to the Lord that even in the midst of disaster and loss, it is a joy to see the body of Christ caring for one another, demonstrating Christ's love, compassion and faithfulness across countries and cultures.

From HDCC Isabela:

“We, the members and leaders of His Dwelling Christian Church – Isabela, express our deep gratitude to Pastor Jeffrey Jo and Sovereign Grace Churches. Your generosity enabled us not only to respond quickly to urgent needs but also to bring comfort and hope to families whose lives were shaken by the typhoon. Your partnership in the work of the Gospel is felt deeply, and your support has been a tangible reminder of God’s faithfulness and provision. May the Lord reward your compassion, and may this act of kindness continue to inspire unity, generosity, and love within the body of Christ!”

Do not neglect to do good and to share what you have, for such sacrifices are pleasing to God.
(Hebrews 13:16)

An update from Matt Chapman, Senior Pastor of Grace Church, Bristol, England…

This August we had the joy of gathering 26 young people aged 11–18, from seven different churches, together with 12 adult leaders for our annual G2 Camp, spending six days together in beautiful Pembrokeshire, West Wales.

Our theme for the week was “The King We Need”, and each evening we opened up the story of David together. We began in 1 Samuel 16 with The King God Chooses, before seeing David as The King Who Fights for Us in his victory over Goliath, and The King Who Waits as he refuses to seize the throne for himself.

Later in the week we came to the darker story of David’s sin with Bathsheba in 2 Samuel 11–12. It was a sobering opportunity to see that even God’s chosen king was a sinner who desperately needed mercy — and therefore could never ultimately be the King God’s people needed. We finished in 2 Samuel 9, seeing David’s kindness to Mephibosheth and looking beyond him to Jesus, the greater King who welcomes the undeserving to his table.

Our mornings were spent studying Philippians in smaller groups. It was wonderful to see the young people opening their Bibles together, asking thoughtful questions, praying for one another, and being challenged to live with Christ at the centre of their lives. Of course, camp involved plenty more besides Bible teaching! We enjoyed a day at the beach, an afternoon on an inflatable aquapark, games around the campsite, a talent contest, and many late-night conversations. We even had the unusual privilege of watching a solar eclipse together during the week!

One of the greatest encouragements of the week was seeing the young people worshipping together, sitting eagerly under God’s Word, and growing in their knowledge of Christ and of the wonderful gospel of grace and mercy we have in him. It was also a joy to see relationships deepen as young people from different churches grew in friendship with one another, while leaders had many opportunities for conversations about faith, struggles, questions and what it means to follow Jesus. We are very conscious that a week of camp cannot manufacture spiritual fruit, but we came home deeply grateful for the ways God seemed to be at work among us.

The Sunday after camp, some of the young people shared with Grace Church Bristol about the week. It was especially encouraging to hear them speak for themselves about things God had challenged or taught them through His Word. We also showed a slideshow from the week and gave thanks together for God’s kindness to us.

We’re enormously grateful for everyone who served — preaching, leading Bible studies, cooking, organising activities, caring for young people and doing all the unseen jobs that make a week like this possible. Above all, we’re grateful to God for another opportunity to put his Word before the next generation and to point them to Jesus, the King we truly need.

Looking ahead, we hope to gather again for G2 Camp in August 2027. Please pray that God would continue to strengthen friendships between our young people and churches, raise up another generation who love Christ and his Word, and use these camps as one small part of building his church in the UK.

If you’d like to see a little more from the week, this recording of our Sunday service begins with a short G2 Camp slideshow followed by testimonies from a number of the young people who came with us. Watch it here.

An update from Edgar Flores, Dean of the Mexico Pastors College…

By the Lord’s grace, we were able to celebrate the graduation of the fourth class of the Mexico Pastors College. It was an occasion of great joy and gratitude as we witnessed, once again, God’s faithfulness and goodness.

Over the past year, we witnessed the Lord’s generosity in providing the resources needed for the students to devote eleven months of full-time study to their preparation for pastoral ministry. This year’s graduating class consisted of four students.

This year was especially significant because three of the graduates desire to plant Sovereign Grace churches in Mexico: Eli Warren in Ciudad Juárez, Isaac Alarcón in Guadalupe, where the Rancho 3M Orphanage is located, and Alejandro Mascareño in Mexicali.

During the graduation ceremony, Pastor Carlos Contreras exhorted the graduates to aspire to be faithful to the Lord. On behalf of the graduating class, Eli Warren shared a message of gratitude, reflecting on the work God accomplished in this time at the College. Following the ceremony, we enjoyed a time of fellowship and celebration, giving thanks to the Lord for this year of training.

We are also looking forward to welcoming the next class of the College, which will include three students: Alfredo Gutiérrez (Ciudad Juárez), Jesús Reyes (Tuxpan, Veracruz), and David Lucas (Oaxaca, Oaxaca). We are encouraged to see that the Lord continues to raise up men with a desire to serve His church faithfully.

We ask that you would pray for us. First, that the Lord would continue to provide the churches with the resources needed to send men to the Pastors College. Second, that He would grant us the grace to serve these men faithfully and contribute to their training, and that the Lord would continue to bring more teachers to serve at the College.

Our desire is to continue investing in the next generation of pastors for Sovereign Grace churches in Mexico and throughout Latin America. We are convinced that by doing so we are preserving and passing on the convictions we believe, embrace, and celebrate as a family of churches, all for the glory of the Lord. 

Bert Turner is a Pastor at Covenant of Grace Church, Copley, Ohio and is the SGC Representative for our work in Brazil. Bert shares this update from a recent trip…

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“So, being affectionately desirous of you, we were ready to share with you not only the gospel of God but also our own selves, because you had become very dear to us.”
1 Thessalonians 2:8

Igreja Graça Soberana of Rio Grande

“Affectionately desirous of you” is how I feel about Igreja Graça Soberana of Rio Grande, Brazil. This July marked my eighth trip since 2019 to visit these precious saints – many of whom are dear friends. It’s been a privilege to walk alongside them through some very difficult times and some very blessed times. It is a joy to see them flourishing now.

Emerson Soares, pastor of Igreja Graça Soberana, and I spent days of unhurried time together immersed in Scripture and prayer in relation to the growth of Sovereign Grace Churches in Brazil. We are beginning a process of transferring the role of liaison between the churches in Brazil and our wider family of churches from me to Emerson. 

It was also a joy to teach a couples class, meet with the leadership, counsel and preach on Sunday. It was a highlight to fellowship with a Community Group that meets in Emerson and Tati’s home.

Igreja CasaVide in São Bernardo do Campo

“Highly relational” is how we describe our family of churches and the sweet process of exploring partnership with churches like Igreja CasaVide in São Bernardo do Campo, Brazil. It has been a delight to deepen our relationship with pastors Rafael Yamashiro and André Casamiro and their families during my recent trip there. We had a fruitful time working through some of the nitty gritty ecclesiological implications that inform statutes and practices with the help of Fabiano Medeiros, a Sovereign Grace pastor who attends CasaVide.

It was also a joy hanging out with some of their kids – Melani Yamashiro is a joy and it was fun teaching some of the finer points of handling boa constrictors to Caleb Yamashiro and his friend Pedro.

Rafael and André have wisely invested time relationally – going on retreats with Emerson Soares and me, going to the Pastors Conference, visiting our church in Ohio – before talking widely about Sovereign Grace Churches with the members of CasaVide. The time was right on this trip for an invitation for me to preach and then, in a meeting following the service, to share about our family of churches and what partnership would look like.

Sovereign Grace Music in Brazil

We are in the final stages of recording the second album of Sovereign Grace Music songs in Portuguese. We are grateful to God for Bob Kauflin’s vision, expertise and sponsorship of this project. It would be hard to overstate the importance of the gift from God that Fabiano Medeiros is in releasing these songs of worship to bless God’s people in Brazil and other Portuguese-speaking peoples.

Fabiano has developed a talented team of volunteer translators who produce wonderful versions of the songs in Portuguese. Karen, my wife, and I serve on that team since we speak English as our first language. Fabiano also leads through the recording process in Brazil using talented vocalists from local churches. I was happy to deliver gifts of Sovereign Grace Music hoodies to the translators and vocalists.

Sovereign Grace Churches Publishing

We are very excited about the goal to publish 10 Sovereign Grace books in Portuguese. We have received a $5,000 grant from the Sovereign Grace Latin America Fund and a $10,000 gift from a couple in a Sovereign Grace church in the US. Again, Fabiano is playing a crucial role given his expertise and relationships in publishing. His team has already translated “The Holy Spirit and the Church,” by Jeff Purswell and “Who Governs the Church,” by Jared Mellinger. Both of these books uniquely bring doctrinal clarity to areas in which there is much confusion in Brazil. 

We are looking forward to a visit from André Casamiro and Emerson Soares at the 2026 Pastors Conference.

Here are some ways you can be praying.

• For the Lord to strengthen and grow the churches in Brazil

• For the Lord to bless the lives and families of Emerson and Tati Soares, Fabiano and Marcia Medeiros, Rafael and La Rainny Yamashiro and André and Deanna Casamiro

• For the release of the 2nd album of Sovereign Grace Music in Portuguese.

• For the publication of Sovereign Grace books in Portuguese.

• Transition of the liaison role

Victorian Baptist preacher, Charles Haddon Spurgeon, once urged his Pastors College students to “make the most of prayer,”, for “prayer is the master-weapon.” Spurgeon continued, “We should be greatly wise if we used it more... All hell is vanquished when the believer bows his knee... Prayer links us with the Eternal, the Omnipotent, the Infinite; and hence it is our chief resort.”

All the way back to the ancient times, we find a great cloud of witnesses testifying to the power of prayer, and now this is our time. God delights to answer the prayers of His saints and so with that in mind, here’s how you can be praying for us in the month ahead...

1. Please pray that God would give the members and pastors of Sovereign Grace churches opportunities and courage to share the gospel with unbelievers in our communities, workplaces and on our campuses. Praying for the saving grace of God to reach many.

2. Please pray for our 2026-2027 Pastors College students and their families who will be moving to Louisville, KY before classes start at the end of August, asking God to provide for them and to give them grace to grow over the next year while at the PC.

3. Please pray for Ed O’Mara (SGC Area Leader for Europe) as he visits with Steve Dyer, a potential SG Church Planter, along with his plant team, in Swansea, Wales. Please pray that the Lord would continue to build the group into relationship with Sovereign Grace and that Ed will be helpful to them as they look to the future and plan for the church plant in the Swansea area.

4. Please pray for Matt Chapman, (Senior Pastor of Grace Church, Bristol, England) as he leads the G2 Youth Camp, 10th-15th August. There will be around 30 youth from Bristol and South Wales, meeting to encounter the Lord and grow in their faith. Please pray that the Lord will both save and grow a deep commitment to Him in the hearts of these youth.

5. Please pray for Angel Miranda and his team as they plant Iglesia Biblica Gracia Soberana in Sinceljo, Colombia, asking God to draw unbelievers and the unchurched giving them opportunities to share the gospel with them.

6. Please pray for the 2026 Fieles Conference in Juarez, Mexico, who for this year are joining the conference with Worship God, August 12th-14th, in the hope that God will use this conference to promote other Worship God Conferences throughout Latin America. Please pray for the 900 attendees, as well as the 180 volunteers and staff that will be serving to make it all happen, and the National Leadership Team of Mexico who will be leading the time. May the Lord protect them and may His grace abound to everyone involved.

7. Please that God continues to provide financially for Sovereign Grace Churches so that we can fund the many gospel opportunities He is giving us throughout the world.

… Thank you so much!