EVANGELISTIC REPORT
ACTIVITIES CARRIED OUT IN PUERTO
PLATA AND OTHER PLACES OF THE DOMINICAN REPUBLIC.
FROM
JANUARY UNTIL NOVEMBER 15, 2017
GREETING:
Beloved brothers and
sisters, fellow servants and sponsors in the Holy Ministry of Christ;
May God always bless
you together with your families and in all that you undertake in the Lord.
INTRODUCTION:
As an introductory
part of this report, we want to express that our God has blessed our mission in
the ten (10) areas of work where you and we, for the mercy of God, collaborate
in the Province of Puerto Plata and other places in the Dominican Republic, for
the honor and glory of our Lord and blessing of his People. Mr. 16: 15-16, with the awareness that
in this mission not everything is rose’s color, since in the good fight of the
Faith we are fighting against spiritual hosts that move in the celestial
regions, Eph. 6: 10-20, but we have the help of God to
overcome evil by doing well. Ro. 8:31.
AND AS REGARDS MY FAMILY AND SERVER :
In general terms, my
family and servant are well by the grace of God, by your generosity as our
sponsors and by your prayers on our behalf.
ASSISTANCE AND SITUATION IN THE CONGREGATIONS
WITH WHICH WE COLLABORATE:
The attendance of the
church that meets on Av. 27 de Febrero
No. 9-A, Puerto Plata, is acceptable, especially in the services of worship
on Sundays.
In Los Sufridos, San Marcos, Juan de Nina,
Imbert, El Ranchito of Los Vargas, Sosua and Belloso, according to the size
of these congregations, attendance is good, however in Luperon and Altamira the number of members and attendance is weak,
so we are trying to strengthen the work in these two areas. Imbert church of Christ have a team of
leaders, and for this reason we visit them from time to time. The brethren from
there have a lot to build a small building, but they need found to do it.
Please remember them in your prayers.
ACTIVITIES CARRIED OUT IN PUERTO PLATA:
On Av. 27 de Febrero, Los Sufridos and San Marcos, outside of our regular
services, we had morning, vigils, retreats and special activities of marriage
and family counseling, given by your server in San Marcos, with very good
assistance from couples, and on Av. 27, in February, given by Brother Josué Pérez, from Santo Domingo, who is a doctor and coordinator of the
National Youth Plan of the churches of Christ in the Dominican Republic. We
also had the honor of having with us from Colombia, Brother Carlos Beltrán with his wife, who also
gave a family counseling workshop. They are leaders of the church in that
country. By the mercy of God we have been blessed in this matter, in a
historical moment of marital, family and social crisis.
VISITS FROM BRAZIL, LA ROMANA, COLOMBIA, SANTO
DOMINGO AND THE UNITED STATES:
From Brazil, we were
visited by brothers Alfonso and his
wife Edivania Pérez, and Isaías Cordeiro, who were accompanied
by brothers Rolfi Mejía, his wife Kilsy and son Wesley, who are from La Romana, Dominican Republic. Brother Rolfi expounded the Word for the church
on that occasion.
The brothers Carlos Beltrán and his wife visited us
from Colombia. They are leaders of a congregation of the Church of Christ in
Colombia. Brother Beltrán expounded
the Word on several occasions, for the church in Puerto Plata.
From Santo Domingo,
Miami Fl. And Tampa, the brothers Luis
Galán and his wife Ana Galán
visited us. Brother Galán is one of
the elders of the church in the Ensanche Ozama, Santo Domingo, who were
accompanied by his daughter Raquel,
her husband Winston Mercado and
their daughters, Raúl Mercado and
his wife Raysa and sister Magalys, who is the mother of my two
cousins and brothers in Christ, all residents of Miami, Fl. On that occasion,
Brother Raúl, was the speaker of
God's message.
On Sunday, we were
visited by our daughter, Dr. Jeannelly
Mercado de Sansary, her husband Joan
Sansary and her beautiful daughter and our little granddaughter Amelia Marie, who is five months old
now. This is another great blessing from God
for us.
From Santo Domingo,
we were visited by the brothers Josué
Pérez, his wife and a team of young Christians and professionals, who are
part of the organizing committee of the youth program of the Church of Christ
on a National scale, of which Dr. Josué
Pérez is the general coordinator. They did an important job with us in the
worship service on the morning of Sunday, November 5, and in the afternoon, he
gave the marriage and spiritual orientation conference. They also promoted the
next National Youth meeting, which will be celebrated with the favor of God on
December of this year.
From Canton TX, the brothers visited us: Kurt Hook, his son Mateo, Sister Priscilla, her daughter Megan and Bryce Branson,
who during the days they had with us, they visited almost all of our work areas
in the province. Brother Hook
preached in such places. Thank God,
all these visits and activities translate into a blessing for the church and
for the honor of God.
MEETINGS IN HOUSEHOLDS INSIDE AND OUTSIDE THE CITY OF PUERTO PLATA:
At the request of several families, we develop
services to the Lord in different homes inside and outside the city, such as in
the neighborhood Bellas Colinas, Barrio
Oliva, Los Bordas neighborhood, El Javillar, in the Municipality of Sosua, La
Vigía and El Estrecho, Luperón.
LADIES’ PROGRAM:
The ladies' program continues, which meet on
Thursday at 6:00 p.m., and they are developing a group of visits plan in the
homes of the elderly sisters and those who are sick and newly operated. My wife
Jeannette and a team of sisters are
leading that program.
YOUTH PROGRAM:
Our youth meet on Sundays and Fridays from 7:
30-9: 00 pm. Years ago we had an open youth program, in which young Christians
and non-Christians participated, under the direction of an integrated committee
of adults already married, but middle-aged. For that moment we did many
activities in the city and camps outside it, for example: in Bobita, Río San
Juan, when Brother Joaquín Reyes Parra,
together with his family were representatives and collaborators of the Manan
International Ministry in that place, and where there are facilities to house
many people, that is, groups of brothers from the United States, who come to
the country from time to time. By that time, more than 30 young people were
gathering. Naturally, many of them went to each meeting and activity for
different reasons, including: in love, so the monitoring was necessarily
strict, in the case of young non-Christians mixed with believers. After the
Reyes Ramos family moved to Santiago, we focused more on the meetings of young believers,
some of them went to Santiago and Santo Domingo to the university, many of them
are professionals today and others are full-time students. Some have remained
in the faith, others have gone and others have never entered the kingdom of God. Today we have a small remnant of
quality young Christians, who participate in the regular programs of the church
in Puerto Plata, in the national youth camps every year and also participate
Biblical debate that is celebrated every year on a national scale, where Young
people study a book of the Bible every year. For the honor of God, the representation of Puerto Plata
has earned respect, affection and appreciation, since it has been occupying
privileged places for several years. Last year they occupied the second place
in the first round and finished third in the last round, winning silver medal
and as prize sound equipment, which will be delivered to them in the next camp
national, to be held in December of this year. Our young people in Puerto Plata
meet to study the Bible, to pray, to practice songs and we are preparing a new
plan for them, with a collegial direction, in order to attract new young people
for Christ.
CHILDREN'S SUNDAY BIBLE SCHOOL:
Each Sunday the children develop their program,
under the instruction of Sister Núriz de
Sánchez, who is the wife of Brother Alberto,
who is part of the team of leaders of the church on Av. 27 Febrero and is the
preacher of the church in sosua. Our children are fine. This year they were
benefited with gifts from a program led by Brother Joaquin Reyes and family in Santiago, in which families, especially
children from the churches of Christ in the United States, send gift boxes for
children of different ages. A lot of children in different parts of the country
are benefited with this program, which include toys, Candies, clothes and
school supplies.
In Puerto Plata, Sister Marcia Carvajal, a member of the church on Av. 27, has a wonderful
children’s program in her home. We are including photos of an activity held
with them, in which the brothers and sisters of Canton, TX participated. In
this activity, among other things, they were given school supplies.
OUR RADIAL PROGRAM:
Our Radial program is being a great blessing
for many people inside and outside the country, who tune in every Sunday. In
this program, we participate in a rotation team every week. In each program
three brothers participate: The master control, the one who directs the program
and the message's expositor. It is one-hour program, sponsored by several brothers
and sisters among us, in which we include a cappella hymns, prayers, greetings,
a cultural section and the preaching of God's gospel.
WORK TEAMS IN CHARGE OF CONGREGATIONS INSIDE AND OUTSIDE THE CITY:
Our workers in the Lord, together with their servant, collaborate with the church of
Christ that meets on Av. 27 de Febrero No. 9-A, Puerto Plata, which by the
grace of God is maintained with an
average of one hundred ( 100) members, and in addition, every week we move to
other areas of work, some in the mornings (Sundays) as in the case of Juan de Nina, Luperón and El Ranchito de
Los Vargas, and the other areas are assisted in the afternoon , in joint
work with local leaders. And also, brothers Daniel Sánchez and Luis
Alvarez are traveling to Belloso
every Tuesday.
BAPTISMS:
This year
we have had some losses, some have died, but we have also had several
reconciliations and seven (7) baptisms, for the honor of God. The fruits of work in the holy ministry of Christ are more than baptisms, however,
without baptisms there are no Christians, although there are baptized who are
not. Apc. 3: 1-3.
The Baptized until November 3 this year are few
in relation to the height of this month of previous years, but in the remainder
of this year, with the favor of God
we will baptize some candidates with whom we are working, in order to increase
our sowing, but with the awareness of what is contemplated in 1Co. 3: 6.
1) On January 6-20: Francisco Javier Sánchez and his wife María
Almonte de Sánchez, from the church in San Marcos, Puerto Plata.
2) On January 1- 2017: Alicia Estrella and Johnny Almonte, at La Vigía, Puerto Plata.
3) On April 16, 2017: Fernando Peralta, from Av. 27 de
Febrero, Puerto Plata. He is our foster child. We received it for 2 years and
it already has 18.
4) On August 3 - 2017: Fernando López Ortiz, from Imbert,
Puerto Plata.
5) On September 20-2017: David Martínez, from Av. 27 de Febrero,
Puerto Plata. He is a very intelligent young man, dedicated to the study of the
word and university student.
WEDDINGS:
In Puerto Plata we have had several weddings,
because "it is not good for the man to be alone", but we also have
some couples with marital crisis inside and outside the city, so we are working
on that matter and we trust that God will complete the work. Those who have
married are:
1) Francisco J. Sánchez and
María Almonte, on January 3, 2017.
2) Melvin Sepúlveda, from Santo Domingo, and Sorayda Hernández Mateo, from Puerto Plata. November 3, 2017.
MEETINGS OF THE PLANNING COMMITTEE IN PUERTO
PLATA CHURCH OF CHRIST.
Members of the Planning Committee meet with
their server on Thursdays. Sometimes we don’t do it consecutively, if it is not
necessary. In these meetings we analyze topics of interest, in terms of solving
issues of the brotherhood, analyze controversial theological issues, and plan
activities for the benefit of the church. It´s because we have not elders, but
we are working about that with God´s willing.
ACTIVITIES OUTSIDE FROM PUERTO PLATA:
1. On February 27, we celebrated the National Fellowship of the church of Christ in The
Dominican Republic. It was in San Juan de la Maguana Province. Many people were
there enjoying about that activity. We traveled there in a big autobus. San
Juan is around eight (8) hours from Puerto Plata. Next year on February 27-
2018, it will be celebrated in San Pedro de Macorís province, with the help of God.
2. National meeting of leaders and
wives, held in
Jarabacoa, in which brothers and sisters of the United States and Chile
participated. The exhibitions and works that took place in this fraternal event
were excellent, the Organizing Committee did a magnificent job, and the
physical plant of the place and the atmosphere of brotherhood were wonderful,
for the honor of God and blessing of
its people. We had the opportunity to visit the tourist place: EL SALTO DE JIMENOA, which is a
wonderful tourist place.
3. National meeting of preachers, held in the premises of the Church
of Christ that meets in El Ensanchez Ozama, Santo Domingo. These meetings are
held once and twice years, in order to analyze issues, prepare projects and
choose work commissions to organize works of national interest. By the grace of
God, your server is a member of several of these Working Commissions. From
Puerto Plata we traveled the brothers Daniel
Sánchez, Luis Alvares and server.
These brothers are in charge of the works in Luperón, Belloso and El
Ranchito de Los Vargas.
4. A group of preachers traveled to
Monte Plata, with
the purpose of inspecting a field of 53 land tasks, owned by the church of
Christ in the Dominican Republic, where we plan to build a Conference Center
for the national activities of the church of Christ in the Country, when our
God deems it pertinent.
5. Launch of the Family Encounter of
the churches of Christ: PLANTING VALUES, to be held on June
1, 2, 3, 2018, at the Pinar Quemado Conference Center in Jarabacoa,
Dominican Republic. In this Launch we participate the members of the
Commissions that have to organize this Event, in which brothers and sisters of
different Countries will participate, with the favor of God. I´m including some pictures a link that you be able to watch (to
see) a video about that. https://www.facebook.com/IglesiasDeCristoEnRepublica/Dominicana/videos/2023752481195641.
https://www.facebook.com/IglesiasDeCristoEnRepublica/Dominicana/videos/2055672814670274.
6. My wife and me, participated in a
concert, organized
by Brother Pedro Peña and a team of
brothers from the Municipality of Tamboril, Santiago, where two of the singing
groups of the Church of Christ in the Country participated, such as Los Enviados of God and Voices of the Church of Christ. The
place was full of people.
7. My wife Jeannette and server
traveled to Punta Cana, to meet the couple Rendon
de TX. It was a wonderful experience that we had together. In previous years we
have been at their home in Texas, enjoying his kindness, generosity and
hospitality in the love of Christ.
8. On Saturday, November 11, my wife and server traveled to
Santiago, to participate in the graduation of Brother Nathanael Reyes Ramos, who graduated with honors as a doctor of
medicine. He is the son of brother Joaquin
Reyes Parra and Arcelina Ramos. Brother Joaquin is one of the Ministers of the Church of Christ in Santiago
de Los Caballeros. In this graduation organized by the Technological University
of Santiago, 961 professionals graduated in different branches of knowledge.
MY BIRTHDAY:
On March 13, God promised to fulfill 40 years
in the Lord and sixty (60) years of physical life. Please pray our God, with
the purpose of granting me good health and long life, for His honor and
blessing of many souls in His holy ministry.
PRO-CONSTRUCTION OF
THE TEMPLE OF THE CHURCH OF CHRIST IN PUERTO PLATA, DOMINICAN REPUBLIC.
We are working on the construction project of
the adoration building, of the Church of Christ in Puerto Plata. With the favor
of God, in the next few days we will
have everything ready for advertising information, call plans, design, land
study and budget, in order to manage the contributions that our God according his will
provide, through the brotherhood and the means that He deems pertinent.
It is a ministry of Faith in the Almighty. Ps.
127: 1, and we trust that "it shall be so written, and thus it shall
be done." Please pray for this purpose.
We have a good news for you about the land
study. Thanks to God, on Friday 1 it was made. A Company from Santiago city
came to Puerto Plata to do it.
NOTE:
Because the content of this report is extensive
and with many photographs, which makes it very heavy and we can’t send it by
email, we decided to process it and place it on my blog, along with the 2016
report, so that all can be illustrated and see it in all its parts, like the
previous ones that can be found in the blog: www.mlucrecio.blogspot.com
The report for the year 2015 with many
pictures, will be processed it and place it on my blog next days, with the
willing of God.
A
fraternal greeting for all and May God
bless you forever.
With love, appreciation and gratitude,
Lucrecio Mercado Hernández.
Minister
