Support Newsletter 719

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HeartFireIntl.org The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners

GREETINGS FAMILY We are overjoyed to share the adventure our family is preparing to embark on as we step into what we believe God is calling us into. We are

AND FRIENDS!

excited and honored for the amazing opportunity God has given us to share His love and provision with those who so desperately need it.

Have a Prayer Request or Question? Contact Us! [email protected]

Lighting a Fire in the Darkness God has set our hearts on fire for the people of Africa, specifically in Malawi. We will be moving there to align ourselves with the work already happening with Iris Ministries . We will be caring for orphans, feeding the widows and their children, raising up pastors, teaching new farming techniques and much more. As a family, we will also be part of a team who will help facilitate short-term mission trips. We are writing to share the vision God has given to us and to express our desire for you to be a part of our journey. A little about us… Daryl recently stepped out of a thriving career in sales to follow the leading of the Lord, and as a family we are following suit! Rebekah recently resigned from a much-loved position working with Extreme Prophetic. Now the whole family is preparing for the next phase. We have four children, our oldest being Averi who is 17 years old, our son Joshua is 15 years old, son Jonathan is 14 years old and last but not least is 9-year-old Caleb. Averi graduated this year and is currently working with Extreme Prophetic as an assistant in the resource department. After much prayer, Averi decided to stay in Arizona to pursue her education in the arts as she continues in the work she is doing with the ministry, which she enjoys very much. Joshua is very dedicated to his ice hockey career and will also be staying behind with family. He is already dreaming about college and his future. They will both be visiting us and we look forward to their first trip being next summer if not sooner. Jonathan will be joining us in Malawi. He will continue his education on the mission field, and is considering online classes for his higher education. Jonathan has a very compassionate heart and looks forward to sharing his love with all of the African children. Caleb, our youngest, will also be moving with us to Malawi. He had the privilege of traveling to Malawi with Daryl this winter for three months, and he is very anxious to return. He found new discoveries and adventure there that he had not known before. Among Caleb’s favorite things to do while there was to hunt for the queen termites, play tag with the other children, and home schooling. It is truly a new chapter for us all! Iris Ministries was started by Rolland and Heidi Baker in 1980. They have launched almost 10,000 churches and care for over 2,000 orphans at bases in 11 countries around the world. One of those bases is in the southern part of Malawi , close to the village of Bangula.

Malawi is a country of 14 million people. 45.8% of the people are under 14 years of age. Life expectancy is 43 years. It is said that almost 50% of children born will die before they turn five. Approximately 12% of the people in Malawi have AIDS. The minimum wage for a DAY’S work is $0.75 (yes that is 75 cents). A 50 kilo bag of maize costs between $25 and $45, depending on the time of year, and it will feed a family of 4 for almost a month if it is supplemented with other foods. A man that works 40 hours a week will get paid $12/month. That is half of what he needs to feed his family. No necessary medical care, no school fees for the children, and no clothing. As you can see, the need is tremendous. There are 53 orphans living on the base in Malawi, the newest is just 6 weeks old. His mother died in childbirth and the father is unknown. We will have the honor of participating in loving, caring for and teaching them all. We hope to see each of them grow up into the man or woman that God has designed them to be. Our desire is to see them go out into society with God’s mindset and values, lighting His fire of love and destiny in every person they come in contact with. There are 6 full time missionaries on the base in Malawi. The base directors, David and Joanna Morrison (www.morrisonafrica.com), have three beautiful children close to the same ages as our own children. LeRoy and Cindy Metzger (www.leroycindy.com) along with Sue Silva (www.irismin.ca/silva) work in the school with the orphans, serve in the jail ministry, and help many widows in the area. Matt Smith (www.irismin.ca/mattsmith) is in charge of construction on base and works with many of the boys, teaching them English and being a mentor. These missionaries are all very passionate about the Lord and love to see Him touch the lives of those they minister to! Some of our main responsibilities in Malawi will be: facilitating short-term mission trips to the Iris base, teaching and discipling the Bible-school pastors, serving in the jail ministry, and working with the children on base as well as children in the surrounding villages. We will also be helping with the monthly feeding program where we feed approximately 3,400 families per month. We have a strong desire to help people become self sufficient in practical ways, such as starting small businesses like chicken farming and bakeries, and teaching more efficient farming practices. With the necessary funding we will be able to do all of this and more. We are taking our move day by day, trusting in the Lord for all of our needs and truly walking by faith, not by sight. We believe we will be leaving sometime between late August and early September. The plan is to fly into South Africa where we will purchase a truck ($11,000 purchase + $8,000 taxes and import duty) from Iris Ministries. The truck will make it possible to travel from village to village as well as facilitate short-term missions.

We will then drive up to Malawi, which will take approximately four days. We are also planning on building a home on the Iris base, which will take approximately five months and $30,000 to complete. Our projected monthly budget will be in excess of $4,000 per month. This includes required medical insurance, food, fuel, travel and ministry expenses. As we move forward in faith, please prayerfully consider partnering with us by sending financial support. We wholeheartedly believe that prayer changes EVERYTHING! We will need a lot of prayer coverage for our preparations, move, travel and settling in. Prayer will carry us through and we believe that is the key to a successful ministry and family. If you partner with us through prayer, we will keep you updated with specific prayer requests and needs as they arise. We cannot wait to share all of the exciting miracles and testimonies that are birthed from your prayer. And we invite everyone to check in on us by visiting our website at HeartFireIntl.org. You can even sign up to receive notifications and updates automatically. We can all be a small part in making a big difference in the lives of those that God wants to touch. We thank you for all you have done to encourage us on! We appreciate you taking the time to read our letter and for prayerfully considering the needs. Please feel free to write, call or email us with any questions. We are extremely excited about this new ministry opportunity and hope you will join with us to ignite God’s fire in the hearts of those who do not know Him yet! GOD BLESS YOU! With much love, Daryl and Rebekah Martin Averi, Josh, Jon and Caleb HeartFireIntl.org Financial donations can be mailed to either: Freedom Gate Church FGIM/Outpost of Freedom 1730 E Warner Road # 10-110 Tempe, AZ 85284

Extreme Prophetic PO Box 1017 Maricopa, AZ 85139

Please attach a note with your check saying “Malawi” to assure your donations will be tax-deductible. A receipt for your giving will be sent to you at the end of the year. Donations can also be made through PayPal by visiting our website.