Floyd & Amy Dauber October 2011
May 2011 Floyd & Amy Dauber
March 2011 Floyd & Amy Dauber
March letter from Ruth
Dear friends,
By the time most of you receive this email, our team may be in the middle of the 2nd of 4 kids’ club meeting for the Easter season. We had the first one last week, which went very well. Not as many kids came as had registered, but we are thankful for each one that is able to come. As part of the craft for today, we will be doing the wordless book bracelets. Please pray for the kids to grasp the message these bracelets contain, and for the parents’ curiosity to lead them to want to know more about God and his life-changing message.
On Thursday afternoon (tomorrow), Monique and Patrice (she’s the Polish lady I met on the bus) have invited me to an event that include their closer friends. Even though we haven’t seen each other very much lately, I’m hoping and praying that this will deepen our relationship and that there will be opportunities to share Christ with them.
This Friday, I have an appointment at the French government office for my visa renewal. My teammate Vanessa will also be renewing hers. We’d appreciate prayers for this as sometimes they require more paperwork then what they tell us originally.
My team leaders’ 15-year old son, Jaden, will have his baptism on April 3rd. Jaden is inviting some of his classmates to come, and many friends of the Rempel family are also invited. Most are not believers and yet have watched the Rempels live out their faith day after day. We don’t know what kind of impact this will have, but we desire for God to be glorified and for lives to be changed. Perhaps this will be one more link that will bring them closer to a personal relationship with God.
In these last few weeks, I have become more involved in the small France Mission church. There are 5 of us ladies studying 2 Corinthians together every Tuesday. We take turns leading, and we spend time praying for each other and for the community. I personally have loved being a part of this, studying God’s word in depth with others, and getting to know these ladies better.
During 1-7 of April, there will be an art exhibition portraying God’s word through painting, which is organized by this small church. We spent last weekend walking up and down the streets handing out invitation flyers, encouraging people to come. We will be taking turns in ‘shifts’ at the expo to welcome people and talk with them as they come. The church is in an area that has a large Mus;lim population, and perhaps some of them will come. One North African man, a kebab shop owner, wanted several flyers to give out to his customers.
One of the things I enjoy doing is hosting guests in my flat, and I’ve had the chance to do that more lately. My prayer is that each time someone comes over, they will leave with more awareness of God then when they first came.
Please continue to pray for my other friends – Larry and Anne, Jack and Annie, and Elise. So often it seems that something gets in the way of our meeting times and it’s hard not to be frustrated or disappointed when that happens. Pray for wisdom and discernment on my part on how much to ‘insist’ or to step back.
The weather has been incredible in Paris lately – which helps to meet with people! May we take every opportunity God brings our way to share him with others.
Serving with you,
Ruth Estella
March 9th – Floyd & Amy Dauber
Ruth Dauber
Dear friends around the world,
Communication via technology is great, but it just doesn’t compare to visiting people in person. I have been in regular contact with my friends in Poland, but being right there with them in December was simply great! I felt uniquely blessed to be able to visit one on one with so many people and listen to their hearts. Several have had a very tough year, either in their jobs or in relationships, and yet they have chosen to lean on God and his Word. There are some definite challenges in the ministry there, but I came away encouraged by the commitment to God the believers have in Poznan.
Before leaving Paris for Poland, I had prayed that God would reveal to me what I need to see regarding the ministry in Poland, as well as ministry here in Paris. In Poland, I developed deep friendships and saw fruit in ministry early on. In Paris, it’s more difficult to develop deep connections with people. Being away from Paris most of December allowed me to see clearly that God is at work here too. One of the obvious ways is the open door for the kids’ club, which will start up again soon.
One thing is sure, my dependence on God has deepened since I’ve been in Paris. It has been discouraging at times when I think I’m developing a friendship with different ones here, to see it seemingly result into nothing. For a relational person such as myself, that is hard to take. But I choose to believe that each person I meet is a gift from God. In my Poland visit, one day I ‘accidently’ ran into Ania, a girl I had met a couple of times but we had lost contact. For about a half an hour, she shared how God used our times together as part of her journey to finding Jesus. I was truly humbled as God reminded me that he is the one who works in hearts, and we are to be obedient and leave the results up to him.
As I was talking with my mom recently, I came to realize that God has given me a ministry that I was taking for granted. There are several believers, French and other nationalities, that I spend time with. Some are people who work secular jobs, and some are Christian workers. A couple of them have recently reached spiritual burnout. Since meeting with them, we have seen God answer very specific prayers. This wasn’t a ministry I expected to have, but my desire is for God to use me as he wishes, and he’s giving me an opportunity to help them so they can be more effective in Paris. I also continue to meet with Elise every week and just this weekend, one of my neighbors seemed interested in having coffee together.
God has confirmed to me in several ways that I am in the right place. You are a huge part of what I do here, and your prayers – well, I simply can’t do without them. I can’t even express the appreciation I have for you. There can be some lonely times here, but it encourages me to know that you are behind me, both in your prayers and in your giving.
Happy New Year/Bonne Année to you all!
Ruth Estella
PS. One of the highlights for me in Poland was visiting with Agnes. She was one of the first Polish people I met after arriving in Poland in 2004 and the director of Gospel Joy choir. (recent GJ photo attached) At that time, she was resistant to the gospel until she surrendered her life to Jesus in July 2007. She has come a long way since then and is deeply rooted in her faith. Please pray for her husband, who is not a believer. As you can imagine, that is heavy on her heart.
Floyd & Amy Dauber January 2011
Blessed Christmas From Floyd & Amy Dauber
Dec. 19, 2010
“Jesus said, ..I am the Light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” John 8:12
A few days before leaving Spain, while drinking coffee in an outside café with one of our friends for the last time, we began discussing the world situation. Then A. asked, “How much longer will we need to wait for a change? Thousands of years have passed but things continue to be the same, even though man has progressed in intelligence and knowledge. How long do we have to wait? In all of history there has been something missing. I wish God would send a light to show me that missing piece.” What an opportunity to share the good tidings of great joy that would be for all people that the angel told the shepherds that first Christmas night. “For unto you is born this day in the city of David a SAVIOR, who is CHRIST the LORD.” God did send THE LIGHT, JESUS CHRIST, the SAVIOR to this messed up sinful world. This time A. listened intently and seemed desperate to know the answer. His attitude now was in clear contrast from what it was before our leaving Spain in 2009. He would laugh and try to argue about what I (Amy) would share with his wife about spiritual matters. We have been praying for the salvation of A. and P. That conversation alone was worth our trip to Spain! They treated us royally and served us to an exquisite Persian meal.
We were privileged to be invited into many homes of believers as well as of nonbelievers, often including meals of delicious Mediterranean Spanish and Moroccan cuisine. We were shown great kindness and generosity. We also had friends over or took them out for a meal. It was quite a challenge cooking without an oven with only a two burner electric stove.
We resumed the former ministries at the open market on Saturdays by giving out Bibles, literature and DVD’s as well as leaving a witness in the homes of our unsaved friends whom we visited. I was able to have coffee and visit with Maria Jose, now a widow, whom I had made friends with and had given her literature on different occasions. Now she has lots of time to read and was grateful for what I gave her. Also it was a blessing to be part of the small congregation in Fuengirola participating in prayer, music and teaching. We were encouraged to see new ones in the church and the spiritual growth in the new believers that were baptized in 2009 as they use their gifts in the local church. José is now one of the leaders who sometimes preaches on Sundays and is in charge of the literature ministry. Sabina is very quick to witness to anyone she encounters. She and I made a visit to one of her friends, Fina, who has seen a great change in Sabina’s life. Fina made a profession of faith and began to attend the Sunday services. Mari Carmen continues to grow in her spiritual life and now it is no secret to her husband about her faith and church involvement. She has opened her home to us and the church people. One afternoon she had us all over for a tea and a carol sing.
December 22nd, we will be travelling by Amtrak from Staples, MN to Everett, WA to spend Christmas and New Years with Tim, Andrea, Megan and Emily. We will be returning by air. We surely will miss Peter, Naomi, Hannah, Lydia, Jadon who are serving in Uruguay and Ruth serving in Paris (actually in Poland during the Christmas season).
Please pray for our trip to Ecuador January 21 through April 10. February 5 we will be joined with a work team of 9 or 10 to Rio Bonito for two weeks. (note: there is still time to join this team.) After that we will be helping with a new church plant in Cuenca which is a branch off of the Machala church where we served for seven years.. Many of the logistics still need to be worked out about housing and transportation.
We again want to communicate how thankful we are for your stepping out by faith and being faithful partners with us, some now for MANY years. You have been such a blessing to us and God has faithfully provided through you and for that we are grateful. He is our ultimate Provider.
May God continue to bless you and
MAY YOU HAVE A BLESSED CHRISTMAS AND A HAPPY NEW YEAR
Floyd and Amy Dauber
32308 Channel Road, Breezy Point, MN 56472 –Phone: 218-562-4332 or cell 218-232-3731.
AVANT MINISTRIES 10000 N. Oak Trafficway, Kansas City, MO 64155