Prayer Needs for Benin - October 29, 2025 Praises:
The team from Grace Chapel in Colorado arrived in Benin this past Sunday! On Monday they travelled to Hevie to work on the construction of the new church. 12 people from the United States, along with 1 person from Nigeria, are on this team. A team from Benin prepped the site ahead of time, so the mission team would be able to start upon their arrival. A well was dug, many bricks made by hand, and the water collection system was constructed. The goal is for this team to help lay the foundation for the church so contruction can continue after they leave.Tomorrow (Thursday) the evening crusades start. We pray for many people to come, hear the Word of God, and accept Jesus as their Saviour!
The ministry team is thriving! The pastors completed the 3 weeks of prayer and fasting, during which they gave an account to God for the past year, and were opened to what God has for them in the upcoming year. They were also able to spend time with their families and their congregations. About 100 people from the team came together in Cotonou on Friday, praying from midnight to 5am. Saturday they spent time talking together, for all the site leaders to know what the ministry is about and share what God has been doing, and what they are being led towards. The pastoral team is planning to gather in December, a time of celebration to the Lord for what He has done and glorify Him. They will plan together for next year, and then at each site, the pastors will spend time with their own teams to develop these plans.
Dieu Donne is doing much better, praise the Lord! He had an MRI, which didn't reveal anything concerning. While he is still feeling tired and dizzy sometimes, he returned to work last week. He will be having blood tests done to see if the doctor can determine the cause of these symptoms. The students at Hope Sewing School are eager to move forward to new projects. The teachers are looking to recruit new students and start a new program in January. God's Grace Hevie expected 30 students to start this year. They currently have about 23 attending. Things are going very well. God's Grace Cotonou students just completed their first assessment of the year. The students and teachers are looking forward to starting new lessons in November. Prisca and her team are planning field trips for the students....they can travel in the new van! Boxes of Grow Shoes and reading glasses were sent to Benin with the Grace Chapel team. We are excited to hear how these are received with the students and villagers. Thank you to everyone who donated, and we will share photos once we receive them.
Pray for:
*Health for the ministry team, doors to be open for Gospel sharing, and for the upcoming evening crusades to be fruitful - that villagers will hear the Gospel and come to Christ. *The political situation in Benin - The opposition party selected their representatives, however they don't have enough people in parliament, so they are out of the election. The ruling party is behind the creation of 2 other groups, so there are additional names on the ballot, but this is only for the election to "look good", and there isn't only a single name listed. Pray for political stability, as Josue does not know what will happen. They do not want there to be unrest leading to a rebellion. Josue was approched to sway people to vote for the ruling party, as a way to get the church to validate what they are doing. Many people will go along with whatever the church says, which is why the rulers want church support. Josue refused as the church doesn't want to be involved, especially because the ruling party supports idol worship, which the church is opposed to. Please pray for this delicate situation. *Continue to pray for Dieu Donne, that answers may come from his tests.
Benin Updates - October 8, 2025 We were very excited to hear about Josue and Glory's trip to Abuja, Nigeria. Josue shared this was a precious time they shared together. This was the first time Josue and Glory had spent time like this together. It was great for him to hear Glory's dreams and what she wants for her future. They visited some food processing businesses - which was very eye-opening for Glory, to see all the possibilities. It broadened her perspective and gave her so many ideas for her future. Glory is currently in her final year to obtain her Bachelor's degree. She would like to continue to earn her Masters, however she is, as of yet, unsure of what she wants to focus on. Glory did share with Josue that she doesn't want to stay in Benin to earn her Masters, instead she would like to go to France or India! As Josue shared, it's easy for kids to dream, without knowing the cost! We pray God will lead Glory in the path He has planned for her. God's Grace for Kids Hevie is doing very well. The staff are expecting 30 children, currently they are getting 25 children, but not all are coming on a consistent basis. This is an economically poor area of Benin, making it difficult for families to afford to send their children to school full-time.
Josue has launched a sponsorship program for the children of God's Grace for Kids Hevie! This will provide you with the opportunity to sponsor a child, allowing for an educational experience they wouldn't otherwise be able to obtain. There are already 6 kids being sponsored, with the goal being 25! More information, including photos of children along with their stories, coming soon!
The pastors are all doing very well. They are currently in a time of prayer and fasting until October 19th, after which they will come together with Josue to see what direction the Lord is leading them. Josue visited with the churches in Cotonou yesterday, this Friday to Sunday he will travel to the church in Glo, and next week to the church in Save. Please pray for the churches and pastors, that God will sustain them and provide wisdom and guidance. We pray for Pastor Benjamin, whose sister recently passed away from breast cancer. The burial will be taking place this coming Friday. May God surround them with peace and strength at this time! Grace Church is finalizing plans for their trip to Benin on October 26th. The team will be involved in starting construction on a church plant in Hevie. May God bless those who are travelling to Benin and bless the work they will be doing. We pray this will open the door for more teams to come in the future to continue construction and finalize the church building. Josue's hope is to have at least 3 teams travel to Benin every year - particularly January, summer, and November as these are drier seasons and not as hot. If God is calling you to a mission trip, this is an amazing opportunity to serve Him and the people of Benin! Isaac did very well with the presentation on October 5th at Bent Tree Fellowship in Dallas. Isaac shared with Josue that he was a bit hesitant and fearful initially, but that he was very happy with how it went. We were blessed to have 8 people sign up for the mailing list! This provided Isaac with the confidence to be ready to speak at other churches and events in the area as they arise. It is such a blessing to have Isaac branch out into this role for the ministry. A new class started at the farm the beginning of October. This is a class of 6 students, who will be studying for 9 months - more than the usual 6 months! - as they want the opportunity to attend all 3 farm areas and learn about the different practices. May this group be blessed by this time, learning about the saving grace of Jesus Christ, while learning about agriculture and how to support themselves and their families.