Support update for Dave and Cathy

After two months of this blog operating, 22 stories of Dave and Cathy's ministry and 3500+ pageviews, we're pleased to say that Dave and Cathy no longer have a deficit with AFES! Please thank God for the generosity he's shown through you all.

This means that Dave and Cathy are now in a much stronger financial position, however they will still not be paid for the full amount of work they are doing. Their monthly combined support target is $10,700, most of which goes towards paying Dave for 5 days and Cathy for 3 days (although they usually work more than these official amounts). Their regular support is currently around $2,667 below the target, and so they won't be fully paid until they have pledges or ongoing support to reach this amount. Please pray for Dave and Cathy as they turn their attention from the crisis of the deficit, to the ongoing work of inviting people to be invested in this ministry to students.

This blog will remain active, and shift towards more occasional stories arising from Dave and Cathy's recent ministry. In the near future, this will provide space for stories from Dave and Cathy's ministry to international students, and we anticipate presenting stories from their new Brisbane ministry before too long.

Thanks so much for caring for Dave and Cathy, and for the students that they minister to - by visiting this blog, reading stories, receiving their newsletters, praying and giving financially. Dave and Cathy have felt quite overwhelmed by the support that has flooded in, and the encouragement they've received in their work. They feel in a much stronger position to be heading to Queensland for the next phase of their strategic student ministry.

Would you like to partner with them ongoingly in their Queensland ministry? You can partner in prayer by signing up to receive their prayer letters and you can give financial support through AFES.

Bryn's reflections

I studied BSci (Hons) from 1999 - 2002 at Melbourne University and at the end of my third year I became a Christian. Although I was committed to following Jesus I still had a lot of questions to explore during my Honours year (2002). I found that reading the bible often generated even more questions, especially as I encountered passages that either contradicted my world view, or my picture of what I thought Christians believed about God.

What a privilege it was, then, to meet with Dave on a weekly basis in the Union Building to go through my list of questions. Each week I had a new list based on what I had read from the bible and on previous conversations, and whenever we met I was amazed at the way he could answer every one of my questions in a logical and methodical fashion. I am convinced that having a weekly mentoring session with Dave is one of the reasons that I was able to grow as a Christian and 12 years later continue to trust that the bible reveals to us a true picture of God.

My wife and I got to know Cathy later on and have been blessed with the wisdom of both of them as they have helped us think about what a good marriage looks like. We look to them as role models of how we can live our lives as a blessing to all those around us.

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Would you help Dave and Cathy to continue in student ministry with AFES?

Please consider:

• Giving a one-off gift to help send Dave and Cathy to Queensland debt-free*
• Signing up for their regular newsletters so that you can pray and keep in touch with them
• Sharing this with others who might help Dave and Cathy go to Queensland debt-free

* Or even better, become a regular supporter!