January 2020

And He that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new…
Rev 21:5 

Happy New Year! The plans the Lord has ahead for us are absolutely amazing! Following the Lord daily absolutely excites us. We thank the Lord for the open doors ahead of us and for the amazing opportunities. We thank you all for partnering with us to see the impossible made possible. I say this because to see people saved, lives changed, and churches established is a supernatural work. Thank you so much for co-laboring with us to see the supernatural accomplished for His name.

The Road Ahead
 “It’s like a mix of Egypt and Georgia!!” Sandy excitedly told us. We brought the New Year in together in Dearborn MI. I visited Dearborn before, but it is the first time that Beth and the children experienced our soon to be home and mission field. The kids convinced me to ice skate Downtown Detroit on New Year’s Eve. The next day, we rode down the streets and every time the kids saw Arabic script, they would yell “Arabic!” Beth and the kids definitely saw the need. It shocked Beth to see street after street lined with mosques and Arab owned stores. Joshua loved the Egyptian rice and friendly conversation with some of the Arab locals. Emma and Noah enjoyed their time eating the Middle Eastern snacks. In the end, God strengthened our burden for the place He is sending us to in Dearborn MI!
 

“Please come in!” Mostafa eagerly invited us. Last letter, I mentioned Mostafa, a Lebanese Muslim friend I made while in Dearborn. I wanted Beth and the children to see more than the mosques and Arabic food markets. It was a blessing to visit some of the people that we look forward to winning to Christ. Along with meeting him again, we were able to enjoy an exquisite Middle Eastern meal at Al Amir Middle Eastern Restaurant. I gave our server, Mohammed, a gospel tract that had the church’s name on it. He said that when he was a Muslim child in Lebanon that he went to a Baptist school. He was excited to receive the tract and I told him I wanted to start an Arabic bible study later. Pray as God prepares the way for hearts to be touched when we arrive in the near future.
 

“I am reading the New Testament and I have some questions.” Mahmoud shared with me. It blesses me to share the Lord’s work with friends all over the US. While at a mission conference in south GA, I went visiting with a friend to a nearby furniture store. Raymond knew of a store owned by some young Palestinian men. God opened up doors to share the gospel and give bibles to these young men. Fahmy listened and had great questions about the death of Christ. Mahmoud is excited to meet again. It blesses me to see the Lord using us to spread His name as we go from place to place. Pray for these young men and others we meet along the way.
 

“As I taught, they wanted more!” Gergis happily shared. Pastor Gergis led a 3-day leadership training conference with the faithful in the church in Egypt. He did this to share the 2020 vision for the church. He went over foundational principles while sharing the goals of the church. He taught from morning until evening. The people learned and asked great questions. It’s exciting to see what God started through us continue to move forward. God uses you all to co-labor and reap fruits from this continuing ministry.
 

“I just ordered Overcoming the Impossible!” We just finished our book on missions to Muslims. We wanted to share testimonies of God’s power to overcome obstacles in reaching Muslims. It encouraged me to read the stories of friends in the faith as they confronted Muslims with the gospel. Purchase and download your copy today.
 

We still schedule meetings with churches to share the work. For supporting churches, if you’d like me to come by to share the change of field and update on Egypt, I would love to come by. Please contact me anytime, I’d love to personally share God’s blessings.

Family Matters
 We went to court for the TPR case for adopting Noah. We thank the Lord that it could not have gone better! The court overwhelmingly ruled to take away the rights of the mother. Once the judge signs what he ruled upon, 30 days after DFCS will release him to us for adoption. We will immediately go into the process with our lawyer to adopt Noah. We will go to court for the final hearing and then Noah will finally be ours according to the rules of the state of GA! In the meantime, I continue going to Dearborn and hope to find a home so we can move all things over there ASAP.

For Jesus, 
David, Beth, Joshua, Sandy, Emma, and Little Noah Gates