Category Archives: Prayer Letter

Coffey Family April 2019 Prayer Letter

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Prayer Requests & Praise  

  • Please be in prayer for my son Tyler.  He is finishing up his missionary training degree at the Our Generation Training Center soon.  His last step is a 6 month internship in Argentina.  I have included his support letter with this prayer letter, but if you are interested in helping, any donations or support can be sent to our board. 
  • Our 5 Bible college students enjoy their studies very much, but please continue to pray for them and pray more young people surrender to ministry.   
  • We are in need of storage space for Camp Rhino.  Pray we can raise the $5000 for our first storage space. We also need additional camper and staff living quarters.  I will be devoting more time in the near future in raising the needed funds.  More videos and updates are on their way.  Check out our Instagram or Facebook page to stay informed and connected.   

Quick Updates & Reminders:

  • Our new work at Fitches Corner is not taking off as well as we hoped.  We actually have more people at our Thursday Bible Study than we do for our Sunday AM service. Pray we can reach more with the Gospel in this new area.       
  • Tim and Destiny Kelly arrived this week.  They will be a great help with Camp Rhino.  Please pray their needed monthly support and setup fund come in.  
  • New Life Baptist Church and Pastor Sipho are doing well.  The adults and core teen group are maturing well.  Khona Nohamba is doing a great job assisting.  Pray our offering and our numbers to continue to grow so Pastor Sipho can be supported completely by the church.   

Our visa situation continues to be an area of concern.  Amy and I will be traveling to the city of Durban next week to turn in our applications for our visa renewals.  Our lawyer is confident we won’t have problems, but she was pretty condifent we wouldn’t have any issues the last time we applied as well.  It didn’t turn out well.  So…..who knows?:). 

Our teammates Jeremy & Bekah Hall, and Stephen and Ashlee Underwood are waiting to hear back from the same kind of visa application.  We are all hoping there won’t be any hold ups.  For my family, our main worry is having to travel back to the States to reapply  for a new visa if this visa application is rejected here.  Our current visa expires July 30th.  

Please pray we can get this taken care of soon.

Tyler Ellis 

Missionary Intern to Argentina 

I have fantastic news! In June of this year, I will be going to Argentina, South America to train under Missionary Patrick Henry for six months.

Two years ago, I started training to be a church-planting missionary at the Our Generation Training Center in Alpharetta, GA. This six month internship will be the last requirement to finish my degree.  

I deeply appreciate the countless prayers and support I have received up until now. It’s been an incredible experience. 

I am not sure what field the Lord will lead me to following my internship, but I look forward to the practical training I will gain from living in a Spanish South American culture.  

Goals for the 6 Months:

  • Begin learning Spanish
  • Adapt to a new culture and language
  • Gain great church planting experience in a different culture
  • Continue equipping myself for a life long service in missions
  • Win and disciple new believers
  • Get out of my comfort zone

Please pray for me as I prepare for this journey. Pray that God would greatly use, grow, and provide for me. Your prayers are invaluable as I pursue God’s calling!  

I need to raise approx. $12,000 for my timein Argentina.  This will cover everything from airfare to rent.  One-time gifts or monthly support is greatly appreciate.  I can’t do this without help from folks like you.  I currently have over $8000 committed for my trip.  Just under $4000 more to go. 

All support can be sent to: 

Vision Baptist Missions

P.O. Box 442 

Alpharetta, GA 30009 

Please add: “Tyler Ellis Internship” in the memo line.

Thank you ahead of time for your prayers and possibly your financial support.   I pray there will be much fruit to your account as He continues to draws lost men to Himself.

Please check out my Facebook Page “Follow Me to Argentina”  and my website at christianunit.com for further updates! Join me to see the incredible work that God is doing in Argentina!

Yours in Christ,  

Tyler Ellis

Coffey Family March 2019 Prayer Letter

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Prayer Requests & Praise  

  • Several teens over the last few weeks have trusted Christ at New Life Baptist Church and followed the Lord in believers baptism.  We have a few more getting baptized this week as well.  Please pray for their spiritual growth in the days to come.
  • We now have 5 students enrolled at our Bible school, Bay Baptist College which started on Feb. 27th.  Pray for these young men as they prepare for ministry. 
  • Please pray we can raise up more song leaders.  This is slowing down our efforts to start more churches a bit.  For example, one of our preachers is leading music at New Life and can’t really pull away to start a church until we can replace him.    
  • We are in need of storage space for Camp Rhino.  Pray we we raise the $5000 for our first storage space.  

Quick Updates & Reminders:

  • On March 10th we started a new church called Fitches Corner Baptist Church not far from Camp Rhino.  We had 3 adults, 6 teens, and several kids in attendance.  Our Sunday AM service starts at 9am so we can still make it to New Life by 11am.   
  • Fitches Corner Baptist Church is the first of 3 churches we hope to see started before the end of the year.  Pray as we do more to reach SA with the Gospel. 
  • Tim & Destiny Kelly arrive April 10th to help full time here at Camp Rhino.  Tim & Destiny were here last year for a 6-month intership, and we are very excited about having them back here full time.  They are still in need of a bit more monthly support and set up fund.  Please pray they can get that raised ASAP.  

10 years ago this month, God brought Tyler Ellis and Chase Southard into our home.  What we thought was going to be a 6-month stay, ended up beign a liiiittle longer.  God changed our family and all of our lives that day.  My 11 and 9 year old distant 2nd cousins, became my two oldest sons.  What a blessing it has been to see both of them grow into young men who love the Lord.  They are both now training to be missionaries and Tyler is raising support to for his 6-month internship in Argentina, South America with missionaries Patrick and Leslie Henry.  

  • Tyler, Mark, and Chase

Would you consider supporting him during his time in Argentina.  It would be a great blessing to him and especially to his parents living on the other side of the world:).   Any support can be sent for him to our mission, Vision Baptist Missions.

Coffey Family 2019 February Prayer Letter

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Prayer Requests & Praise    

  • We praise the Lord for having paid off over $14,000 of the $17,000 debt we had from starting Camp Rhino.  We only have about $2500 more to pay off.  Please pray we can knock the rest out as soon as possible.  Thank you all who prayed and gave. 
  • Classes for Bay Baptist College at Camp  Rhino are delayed until Feb. 26th.  We’ve had a few students back out but plan to have at least 3 guys and 1 lady begin studying for full time ministry.   Please pray for this first group of students.
  • Our son Chase has settled in Bible College well at the Our Generation Training Center in Alpharetta, Ga.  Please continue to pray for him.  He’s having major car problems right now.  

Quick Updates & Reminders:

  • Several teenagers made professions of faith this past month at New Life Baptist Church.  During one Wednesday evening  service we had three girls and three boys trust Christ.  The very next week three more teen boys trusted Christ, and last Sunday morning two more teen boys trusted Christ.  
  • My son Luke, lead a deaf boy to Christ last week who started attending church after being at Camp Rhino’s teen camp.  Luke worked at building a friendship despite not knowing sign language.  He learned he reads English  and for an hour used a white board to explain the Gospel.  He and his friend  both trusted Christ. 
  • This past week we hosted a men’s breakast with over 45 people at Camp Rhino and we will be having a marriage retreat with more than 50 this coming Saturday.    Pastor Wayne Cofield, a.k.a. my father-in-law, is the guest speaker.
Luke and his deaf friend Athi
Men’s Prayer Breakfast at Camp Rhino

Visa request: Please pray as we are in the process of obtaining long terms visas to stay in South Africa. We have friends who have struggled with getting their visas renewed and have even seen families change fields because of visa problems in South Africa. 

Our family is trying a different route at obtaining a visa that would hopefully enable us to apply for permanent residency.  Once we have permananent residence, there really isn’t any fear of not being able to stay in the country.   

We are in need of raising $2400 to cover the cost of the visa applications for my wife and I.  Because of using all we had to get the camp started, we are a little low on funds.  Please pray we are able to get the money we need asap, so we can be finished with the visa process. 

Thankfully all 3 of our kids living in South Africa did received their Study Visas which was a big answer to prayer.  So worse case scenario, we can leave our kids here by themselves to do the ministry:). 

January 2019 Prayer Letter

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Things normally slow down here over the holidays. From December through the end of January, many folks travel back to their homelands. Kids are out of school and most businesses close down for several weeks. It has been anything but slow at our house. As some of you already know, Bekah gave birth to our son, James Siyabonga Hall, on 12/12. However, there were some complications with his heart and lungs and Bo (that’s what we call him in English) had to stay in the NICU for 19 days. God answered our prayers, and he was finally able to come home on December 30th, with a clean bill of heath.

Bo was born on the second day of our youth camp. As a result, I was only able to help in the preparation for the camp and to be a part for the first day. Fortunately, we have a good team of missionaries, interns, and folks from our churches who stepped up and didn’t miss a beat in my absence. God used them and the camp in a great way. There were 19 teens who made professions of faith, two of which were from Soweto.

Due to the holidays, and lack of outreach on our part, we have not had many new visitors over the last month at Soweto. This has already changed some as a several have returned from their trips. Even though the work has been slow, there was one man, a 42 year old named Simphiwe, who came up to me several weeks ago after the morning message with a desire to know more about salvation. This was his third consecutive time in our church. He was broken and physically showing it. I shared the Gospel as clearly as I could and he made a profession of faith. He has been coming faithfully to every service since that day. I am looking forward to baptizing him soon.

Other Prayer Requests: 

  • 1st Semester of our Bible College will start February 12th. I will be teaching Personal Finance and Spiritual Formation (Principles for the Christian Life).
  • We have several visitors coming this month; my in-laws will be with us for 4 weeks, and my pastor, Wayne Cofield, and his wife are coming over to participate in the Organization service for Soweto Baptist Church on February 10th.
  • While my pastor is here, we plan to take full advantage of him and his time. He will also be teaching a couples retreat for the missionary families and families from our churches on February 15-16th.

All that we do here is “to the praise of the glory of his grace!” Thanks be to God for your love and care for my family. 2018 was incredible and we are expecting even greater things to take place in 2019.

Thanks again for all that you do!

Sincerely,
Jeremy and Rebekah Hall
Support Address:
Macedonia World Baptist Missions
Att. Jeremy Hall
P.O. Box 519
Braselton, GA 30517

Home Church:
Whitfield Baptist Church
Pastor Wayne Cofield
2134 Dug Gap Rd.
Dalton, GA 30720
Personal Contact Info:
jhsouthafrica@gmail.com
(770)573-9541
Website: www.projectsouthafrica.com 

Coffey Family January 2019 Prayer Letter

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Prayer Requests      

  • Classes for Bay Baptist College at Camp Rhino officially starts on February 12th.  We are encouraged about our first group of students who will be training full time for ministry.  Please pray for this first group of students.
  • Our 2nd oldest son, Chase, is leaving this week for Bible college in the States.  It’s definitely a bittersweet time for our family. Chase has been an incredible help here in the ministry and we are very proud of him.  Amy will be traveling back with him for 2 weeks to help him get set up.  Please pray as they travel. 
  • Pray we can pay off the remaining debt we have left over from the start of Camp Rhino.  We have raised $5000 so far toward the $17,000 debt we occurred. 

Quick Updates & Reminders:

  • We had 19 professions of faith from our first Teen Camp at Camp Rhino.  That is 25% of the campers who attended.
  • During our first camp we had 75 campers, 10 counselors, 21 helpers, and 16 missionary kids, present with a total of 126 people that were fed for each meal for our first camp. 
  • Our son Tyler arrived with 2 of his friends, Joe & Savannah, from the Our Generation Training Center in Alpharetta, GA for a 18-day trip. It’s been a great pleasure having them all here.
  • Our home church, Vision Baptist Church in Alpharetta, GA, is hosting the Our Generation Pastors Conference February 4th-6th.  Please check out their website at visionbaptist.com and make plans to attend.  I promise you’ll treasure your time there.

I really don’t know how to thank everyone who helped make Camp Rhino a reality.  So many prayers, advice, and gifts of every size were given to make it possible.

I wish you all were able to be a part of our first camp.  We had such a great time.  Our first week exceeded our expectations.  A team from Camps Abroad helped during our first camp and were such a great blessing. I was especially encouraged how their philosophy in camp ministry complemented our goals for church planting so well. Their training and leadership were priceless.  

I have a prayer request for a couple who has committed to work at Camp Rhino.  Tim & Destiny Kelly came to S. Africa on a 6-month internship last year and are raising funds to return and work at Camp Rhino full time.  Would you pray this couple can raise their support quickly.  We need their help.  They will be helping us in every area of camp ministry from security and maintenance to counseling and directing.  Tim especially is a young man who allows God to work through him despite the struggles he faces.  He will be a big help to South African kids.  Feel free to contact Tim at 706-970-0340 or via email at timmykelly73@gmail.com.

Coffey Family December 2018 Prayer Letter

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Prayer Requests        

  • We’re finally here. Camp Rhino opens its doors to campers on December 11th for the first time.  Please pray for all our volunteers, and pray we have a great first camp.
  • There will be anywhere from 60-80 campers arriving for camp.  Pray the Lord does a great work in their hearts. 
  • Bay Baptist College- The first classes will be starting in January.  We should have 5 or 6 students our first semester.  We pray from this we will see more churches started.
  • Our oldest son Tyler, who is in Bible College back in the States, and our 2nd oldest son Chase, who will be leaving for Bible college in January.  They both are training for missions.
  • Finances to help get Camp Rhino ready for our first camp from December 11th to 14th.

Quick Updates & Reminders:

  • Missionaries Josh and Meagan Sullivan arrived this past week with their kiddos.  They have completed their deputation and will be starting language school soon.  Pray as they get set up and are working to get their long term visas. 
  • The 4 person team from Camps Abroad with the Wilds in NC arrived and have been a great help.
  • Jens Looney, a young man from the Our Generation Training Center in Alpharetta, GA, arrived this past week for his 6-month internship. 
  • Contact me ASAP if you are interested in leading a mission team to South Africa or if you would just like to come on your own.

Mattresses  are just one of the many things we had to order to get camp ready.  It’s amazing how many little things it takes to run a ministry.  It’s also amazing how easy it is to forget a lot of those little things until a week before camp starts:)

We can’t thank you all enough for helping during these past two years with the prayers and financial support and gifts that have made Camp Rhino a reality.  It’s hard to believe all that has come together to make this camp possible.  Thank you so much.    We pray the Lord blesses your investment multiple times over. 

Our two major prayers as we start camp is that teenagers’ hearts will be pierced with the truth of the Gospel and that many young people would give their lives to full time Christian ministry.  Might we see from the effects of this ministry, more churches started all over South Africa and the world. 

December 2018 Prayer Letter

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Dear Pastor and Friends,

It’s hard to believe 2018 is over. Every year seems to go by more quickly, and every year I probably say that same thing. I am reminded again of a famous quote from Missionary C.T. Studd, “Only one life, twill soon be past, only what’s done for Christ will last.” As I reflect on the past 12 months, I stand amazed at how the Lord has worked in and around my family. I am blessed!

We are busy getting ready for camp. Honestly, the work has been a little therapeutic for me. With church planting, and specifically training young men, a lot of times you don’t see change and it can get a little discouraging, even though you know it’s happening. That’s not the case with building bunk beds, human foose ball games, gaga pits, etc. It’s something you do, and at the end of the day see and understand that you have had a productive day.

Josh Sullivan and family arrived safely last Thrusday. We are assisting (when possible) in helping them set up their home and getting settled in. Jens Looney, a six month intern from the Our Generation Training Center, arrives from the states this week. Also, a group from Camps Abroad, led by Dan Brooks, will be arriving this week to help us host Camp Rhino next week. Saturday and Monday, Dan will teach two eight-hour training sessions to camp counselors and staff.

All of this is happening and my wife is scheduled to be admitted into the hospital tomorrow morning. She will be there for at least the next 9 days. Our son will be given injections of steroids and she will be monitored for the next 7 days before delivering (c-section) on the 13th. This means I also have to play mom’s role for next two weeks to our other 4 kiddos. As if life wasn’t hectic enough already!

At Soweto Baptist Church, we are continuing to progress and get ready for our formal organization of the church. We have been systematically teaching through Bible Doctrines and Church responsibilities for the past three years. My hope was to be able to organize the church last month, but it’s not going to happen until after the new year. It is finally on the schedule for February 3rd. We are excited to take this next step.

Other Prayer Requests:

  • At the end of February, I plan to begin a new work in an area called Zwide. We have a couple of people who have moved to this area from Soweto, which hopefully gives us an open door. Pray the Lord will begin to prapare hearts now.
  • Pray for Aphiwe Maboma, our song leader at Soweto Baptist Church. He has been away for two weeks now in the bush going through the cultrual process of “coming of age.” There are many sinful temptaions during this time. Please pray he would remember who he is and continue a walk controlled by the Holy Spirit.

Thanks again for all that you do. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Sincerely,
Jeremy and Rebekah Hall
Support Address:
Macedonia World Baptist Missions
Att. Jeremy Hall
P.O. Box 519
Braselton, GA 30517

Home Church:
Whitfield Baptist Church
Pastor Wayne Cofield
2134 Dug Gap Rd.
Dalton, GA 30720
Personal Contact Info:
jhsouthafrica@gmail.com
(770)573-9541
Website: www.projectsouthafrica.com 

November 2018 Prayer Letter

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A New Name Written Down in Glory: Thursday night, at our midweek service, a 57-year-old lady named Nobeko visited us for the first time. During the invitation she raised her hand to receive more information about salvation. I spoke with her briefly after the service, but I could tell she had been drinking, so I asked her to come back tomorrow when she was completely sober. To my surprise, when I showed up Friday evening at church for our movie night, Mama Nobeko was there waiting for me. I had the privilege to share the gospel with her for about a half hour before our movie started.. By the end of our conversation she was in tears. She made a profession of faith. She stayed around to watch our movie and afterwards told me she would see us on Sunday. Praise Jesus!

Soweto Baptist Church Leadership: It is exciting to see men step up and attempt things completely out of their comfort zone. Mxolisi Dama, our treasurer at Soweto Baptist Church, taught Sunday School for the last three weeks. This Sunday Matthew Olwethu will teach. These are two men who have grown tremendously in the word and we fully expect God to use them in big ways. Please remember them in your prayers.

Next Step of Faith: After the new year we plan to officially organize Soweto Baptist Church. We have been preparing for this for over 2 years now, teaching through basic Bible doctrines, developing our own personal Statement of Faith as a congregation, and outlining our Constitution (Church Covenant). As soon as this takes place, we plan to immediately take another big step of faith and begin a new work in an area called Zwide. We currently have one family attending our church that live in that area. Please pray that God will continue to ground his people in their faith, open doors of utterance and supply a meeting place for the new work.

Other prayer requests:

  • December 10-14 Youth Camp at Camp Rhino. If you would be interested in sponsoring a camper, the cost is $50 per camper for the week.
  • Camp Rhino is bare bones at the moment. We have much work to be done in order to use the property. Dorms, bathhouses, pavilion, kitchen; pretty much everything needs an incredible amount of work. Please pray for my cousin Mark as he leads this project. Pray for wisdom and funds.

As always, thank you for your partnership with our ministry through prayer and giving. May God bless you richly for His Kingdom’s sake.

Sincerely,

Jeremy & Rebekah Hall
Support Address:
Macedonia World Baptist Missions
Att. Jeremy Hall
P.O. Box 519
Braselton, GA 30517

Home Church:
Whitfield Baptist Church
Pastor Wayne Cofield
2134 Dug Gap Rd.
Dalton, GA 30720
Personal Contact Info:
jhsouthafrica@gmail.com
(770)573-9541
Website: www.projectsouthafrica.com 

Coffey Family October 2018 Prayer Letter

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Prayer Requests      

  • South Africa Bible College on the grounds of Camp Rhino- The first classes will be starting in January.  We should have 5 or 6 students our first semester.  We pray more training will result in more churches.
  • Our oldest son Tyler, who is in Bible College back in the States, and our 2nd oldest son  Chase, who will be leaving for Bible college in January.  They both are training for missions.
  • Finances to get Camp Rhino ready for our first camp from December 10th to 14th.  Our most pressing need is funds to outfit the camp kitchen for a little under $7000.
  • Tim and Destiny Kelly as they have started their deputation to South Africa.

Quick Updates & Reminders:

  • Our house in the States sold which enable us to pay off the $42,000 loan we used to purchase the property for Camp Rhino. Praise the Lord!
  • We closed on Camp Rhino on Oct 20th, just 5 days after we closed on our house in the States:)  God’s timing was perfect.
  • Teen Camp will be Dec 10-14.  Pray for the 4 person team coming from the Wilds in NC to help with our first camp.
  • An updated list of future projects and cost can be found on our website at projectsouthafrica.com. 
  • Contact me ASAP if you are interested in leading a mission team to South Africa or if you would just like to come on your own.
  • What a blessing to host the team from Fellowship Baptist Church in Madison, VA this past month.  They were a great blessing. 

This may not sound like a big deal, but we have our first couple from New Life Baptist getting married.   Khona and Thando have been going through marriage counseling with Amy and I, and they will be tying the knot on December 1st. 

Outside Pastor Sipho’s and my family, they will be the first married couple in our church.  Here is SA, finding young married couples is a difficult task, let alone getting them into church.  The rate of single moms here is extremely high.  Usually the dad is no where to be found.   We have a few married women in our church, but unfortunately their husbands don’t attend with them.  We are pray this young couple will be the first of many won to Christ who have a desire live godly and raise their children in church. 

Pray also as we minister to our teenagers.  We are praying God’s word will take root in their lives and they will truly desire to live a godly life in spite of their surroundings.

September 2018 Prayer Letter

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Dear Pastor and Friends,

I want to begin by thanking all of you who gave so generously last month to Camp Rhino; especially Newton, New Life, and Mt. Carmel Baptist Churches. The land has been purchased and we are about to begin remodeling the structures which are there, as well as make preparations for the installation of several new facilities. Please continue to pray as we are expecting to use the property for camp on December 10th-14th of this year (click here to see a video of the property).

Soweto Baptist Church continues to progress. We are currently studying through and developing our doctrinal statement as a congregation. We do this during our mid-week service and Sunday School. As soon as we finish this, we plan to officially organize the church. Also, I am really enjoying preaching through the book of Ephesians on Sunday mornings. Through this study, Phendulani, a 28 year old young man who has been attending our church off and on for the last six months, made a profession of faith last month.

Our Bible Institute started their studies again on August 21st. From Soweto, there is currently one student enrolled, Matthew Olwethu. We have several others who are showing more and more interest in the Word and work. Please pray with us that more young men and women will step up and begin preparation for the work of the ministry.

The family unit is almost non-existent where we work. Out of the 50+ kids who attend our church, I know of three who have both a mother and father at home. Most are being raised by a grandmother or older sibling. They have no idea what a true family looks like, much less a godly one. Unfortunately, several of our teen girls (as young as 14) have already stepped over into motherhood. I was just informed last week of another young lady who is pregnant. It’s heartbreaking and overwhelming at times. There is an epidemic of kids having kids, continuing in this cycle of chaos. Of course, we know this ultimately stems from a heart issue and the Gospel is the only hope for true change. Please remember and pray for these young ladies and thousands, if not millions, more like them around this country. Also, please join us in praying specifically for 10 new family units at Soweto Baptist Church. These young people desperately need more godly examples to follow.

Another need I would like to put before you this month is a fellow South African church planter, the Bond Family. They have been serving the Lord faithfully here for over a decade with very little recognition and support. They are a solid family of like faith. They are in desperate need of transportation. My brother and I are trying to raise $8000 in order to help buy them a vehicle. If you would be interested in helping with this need, please send any donation to Macedonia labeled “Bond Vehicle Fund.”

One more final prayer request:
Vinchesto is 24 year old young man who visited our church for the first time last Sunday. He came with Wandisile, another young man who was recently saved. Today, while I was studying at the church, Wandisile brought him back so that I could share the Gospel with him personally. The Holy Spirit really seemed to be convicting him. Please pray this young man would see his need for salvation and trust in Christ for reconciliation with God.

Thanks for all you do for us and our Lord Jesus Christ!

Sincerely,
Jeremy and Rebekah Hall
Support Address:
Macedonia World Baptist Missions
Att. Jeremy Hall
P.O. Box 519
Braselton, GA 30517

Home Church:
Whitfield Baptist Church
Pastor Wayne Cofield
2134 Dug Gap Rd.
Dalton, GA 30720
Personal Contact Info:
jhsouthafrica@gmail.com
(770)573-9541
Website: www.projectsouthafrica.com