Fundraising for Cuba!!!!

Dear Friends,

Greetings in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ! I pray that all of you are in good health and are receiving the blessings of God in your life!

God has blessed me in many ways and I am excited about the doors He has been opening for me. To give you a brief update on what I’ve been doing in the recent years. . . I spent a fruitful year as a student missionary in Nepal & India during 2009-2010 following my graduation from Ouachita Hills College. My experience in the mission field opened my eyes to the needs in the world and confirmed to me God’s calling to brighten the dark corners of the earth. I also came to see the importance of obtaining medical missionary skills for any future work in developing countries. I returned to the USA and enrolled at Uchee Pines Institute in Alabama for one year to receive lifestyle-oriented medical training. I spent the next year canvassing door-to-door in the USA, ministering to people, sharing Christ-centered literature, and also learning leadership skills in working with the canvassing programs. This past fall I attended a 3 month academic intensive for midwifery! I am not sure if God will have me continue to become a midwife, but I have been walking through doors as God opens them.

Speaking of God opening doors, another door has opened to me recently. That is, an opportunity to go to Cuba! During childhood my grandmother had the privilege of growing up as a missionary child in the country of Cuba. Because of this background I grew up eating fried plantain bananas, rice & black beans and being told stories about the beautiful country of Cuba. However, Cuba never stood out to me as a place especially in need of hearing the gospel (at least not above that of any other Latin American country). I knew it was very poor. I knew it was Communist. I knew about Fidel Castro. But until recently I didn’t know that access to Bibles and Christian literature was so restricted.

Bibles are not sold in Cuba and the government restricts what is printed and distributed in the country. In many churches, the church members tear a single Bible into sections, sharing it around so that at least each family has a portion of the Bible to read. The restriction of the Word of God, combined with the Communist influence and extreme poverty has made Cuba a field much in need of missionary labor. Because the distribution of Christian literature (a.k.a. canvassing) has been my ministry over the years, this need especially caught my heart strings.

April 15-27 my brother Levi and I will be going to Cuba. We will be putting on an evangelistic campaign for 2 weeks with Henry & Arleen Stubbs, a dedicated couple who have conducted many mission trips to Cuba through the years. I will be preaching during the evening meetings and Levi will be speaking for the children’s meetings. During the daytime we will be visiting people in their homes, sharing in a personal way the love of Jesus and helping with any medical missionary needs. [We are hoping to extend our visa and stay a little longer after the campaign to make the most of the investment made in our trip. If this is possible, we will also be visiting churches in the island, encouraging the believers and sharing medical missionary presentations.] This will be Levi’s first mission trip, so I am eager to see how God can use this trip to open his eyes to the world’s needs and deepen his commitment to a lifetime of service for Jesus. We also plan on “smuggling” in as many Bibles and as much Christian literature as our personal baggage can contain!

So how can you help? We will need help with prayers, Spanish Bibles, craft supplies for the children’s meetings, and of course funding! If you have extra Spanish Bibles or Spanish literature sitting around gathering dust or a big collection of stickers/construction paper/scissors/glue etc. that you wish to help with, you can mail it directly to me: 359 Three Angels Dr., Liberty, KY 42539.

To go to Cuba, Levi & I must each raise about $1,400-$1700. This amount covers the airfare to Cuba, visa expenses, the supplies for the evangelistic campaigns, housing, and other expenses of the trip. You can make a check payable to “World Youth Group” and specify my name or Levi’s in the memo line. You will receive a tax-deductable receipt for your donation. The address to send your check to is:

Henry & Arleen Stubbs
World Youth Group
PO Box 1454
Westminster, South Carolina USA 29693

Thanks so much! “The LORD bless thee, and keep thee: The LORD make his face shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee: The LORD lift up his countenance upon thee, and give thee peace.” Numbers 6:24-26