Ministry News
We had a really good service this Sunday. Bro Martin preached “How the Curious becomes Committed” from the story of Zacchaeus. Bro Martin shares, “I could tell the regulars were drinking in the message. Two came forward for prayer first and then as we prayed for those, more started coming up for salvation, healing, and special needs.” Several of the regulars shared comments afterward how they love their church and are so thankful to have a place to come.
The Hope Mobile was used this week as a moving truck. George*, a disabled man whom we have mentioned in previous updates, found an apartment to move into. Bro. Martin was able to locate some used furniture and move the items into his new home. He was very thankful!
Bro Martin had the opportunity to minister to a man in the Native American Medical Center last week. He shared his negative experiences with churches and had a lot of questions due to the treatment he had received from churches. He thanked Bro Martin for the compassion and concern he showed to him as an individual. He also shared how the opportunity to talk to someone had helped him so much.
Sadly, there have been multiple homicides in Anchorage the last couple of weeks. Bro. Martin received a call this week from the Native Medical Center nurses to visit a family there whose 20 year old relative had been murdered that morning. Bro Martin took the opportunity to share a clear Gospel message with that family. We pray this family will be turned to the Lord through this tragedy.
Please keep the Martin family and the precious people of Anchorage, Alaska in your prayers!
God bless you!
Joanna Rich, Ministry Assistant
Alaskan Update
Everything is going well with the Martins in Anchorage. There has been quite a lot of adjustments to their lives with an increasing amount of snow build-up. They have over 2 foot of snow with a continual downfall and the weather predicts to be snowing all week. Some have told them that this is the worst winter in 5 years! Bro. Martin and Jordan have been getting quite a workout with shoveling the driveway on a daily basis. Upon Jordan’s request, they began looking for a snowblower to help they’re job out a bit. They were able to find one for a good deal! What a blessing!
Bro. Martin has begun picking up the ladies for the Women’s Shelter each evening. He is thrilled to have this opportunity to speak the truth of God’s Word into their lives daily. As he walks through Brother Francis Shelter to gather the ladies, many greet him with “Pastor, Pastor!”
Bro Martin walked into a room in the “Flex” Unit at the hospital last Friday. He was met with a disturbed lady, struggling with the possibility of a long recovery from her illness. Bro Martin felt impressed to share a scripture that he and the children had been memorizing in family devotions, Colossians 1:11 “Strengthened with all might according to his glorious power unto all patience and long-suffering with joyfulness;” He shared how God’s strength isn’t evident only when circumstances are going well, but it is His strength that helps us to have patience, long-suffering and joy in the midst of unpleasant circumstances. This Word in season brought deep comfort to her heart.
On Friday as well, Bro Martin was asked by the nurses to visit a young lady who’s baby had died in the womb. He walked in to find her along with her mother in deep sorrow. The young lady expressed how she had been advised to have a medical performed abortion, but had refused to do so. Bro. Martin prayed with her. With tears in her eyes, she thanked him and said, “The Lord knew just what I needed today. I feel so much better!”
We had 90 in attendance at Hope Church on Sunday with 11 coming forward for salvation. They really cried as they prayed and sought the Lord. Jesus came to bring hope and deliverance! Bro Martin preached “A Wonderful Transformation” from Mark 5:1-20.
I do apologize for the absence of an Alaskan update last week. My husband and I were in Panama from the 13th to the 21st. We ministered in a youth camp there with Derek’s grandparents, Don & Shirley Rich as well as his dad, Leon Rich. The Holy Ghost worked in hearts in a tremendous way bringing salvation, the infilling of the Holy Ghost, and powerful deliverance. I hope to share more of that in the near future.
May God bless you!!
Joanna Rich, Ministry Assistant
Millikin/McCutcheon Ministry in Alaska
We are coming to you with wonderful news from the Martins in Anchorage, Alaska. They have thoroughly enjoyed having the Millikin family and Sis Rachel McCutcheon there this week. They have had some wonderful experiences together such as ministering at the Downtown Soup Kitchen, Hope Church, and God’s Mission House as well as sledding, ice-skating, playing monopoly, and trying an Eskimo delicacy, Muktuk (raw whale).
On Wednesday evening after they arrived home from the Downtown Soup Kitchen, Bro Martin asked Bro Jimmy to give a family devotion. Bro Jimmy shared a personal testimony of how God changed his perspective to see that the rewards of ministry far outweigh the sacrifice. Daddy relayed to me that if they came for no other reason, that devotion was exactly what he and the children needed to hear. The time of prayer afterward was very refreshing for the whole family.
The Downtown Soup Kitchen guests greatly enjoyed the singing each day. They were especially delighted by the children singing as well as Bro Jimmy playing the saxophone.
On Saturday, everyone loaded up in the bus and Bro Martin drove them up to Whittier to do some sight-seeing. They were hoping to catch a glimpse of the Portage Glacier, but it wasn’t clear enough to do so. However, they really enjoyed the beautiful sights along the way.
There was a great crowd of people at Hope Church on Sunday! Bro. Martin filled the bus 3 times with people wanting to come to God’s house! The Millikin family and Sis Rachel ministered in song and then Bro Jimmy preached a powerful message. We believe the seeds of God’s Word will bring a great harvest!
Sunday afternoon, they went over to God’s Mission House and ministered there. Bro Martin made mention that God really touched hearts around the altars there. After the service, they had supper for everyone complete with Muktuk. Bro Jimmy & Sis Shauna was able to get it down, but it definitely didn’t leave a pleasant taste in their mouths!
The Millikins and Sis Rachel will be flying out around 2 am in the morning. Please pray for their safety in travel. Julie communicated to me that they feel they have made lifelong friends during this week and will miss them greatly!
We want to say, “Thank you”, to the Millikins and Sis Rachel for taking time to come and be a blessing in Anchorage, Alaska! We know your labor is not in vain in the Lord! (I Cor. 15:58)
Anchorage Update
Happy New Year from the Martins!
We are excited to share some news from Anchorage in the beginning of this New Year! There was a great turnout at Church on Sunday, the 1st. At the close of a great service, many raised their hands for salvation. It is our prayer that each of these will allow God to completely transform their lives by His power!
We partner with the Downtown Hope Center in Anchorage for most of our ministry opportunities. They have developed the Culinary Arts program to give their guests a hand-up instead of just a hand-out. The men who are interested in going through this 12 week extensive course will be presented with certification that will greatly increase their hiring possibilities. The graduation of this program will be next Friday, the 13th. Please pray for God’s wisdom to be granted to the faculty and that God will bless these men with good jobs.
The Martin family of Alaska were happy to welcome Bro Jimmy John, Sis Shauna, Carlee, and Landon Millikin and Sis Rachel McCutcheon to their Alaskan residence early Tuesday morning. Several months ago, Bro Jimmy John felt the Lord lead him to get in contact with Bro Martin and plan a Missions Trip to Alaska. Bro Martin shared with him that if they desired to do sight-seeing, they might want to consider summertime. However, their main thrust of ministry compelled them to come and shine the light of Jesus in the darkness of wintry Alaska. They went sledding on Tuesday in the nearly 1 ft. of snow, which was very exciting! Most of their time, however, will be spent ministering in the Downtown Soup Kitchen, Hope Church, as well as other opportunities in the Rescue Mission and a neighboring church. We look forward to sharing more in the upcoming week’s update.
We greatly appreciate your continued prayers!
May God bless you with a wonderful New Year!
Anchorage Update
We have an exciting report from Hope Church on Sunday. There were around 90 people present at the service. Bro Martin preached about how Mary’s life illustrates that God can move us “From How? To Wow!” Luke 1:37 says, “For with God nothing shall be impossible.” We praise God for all He did in the hearts of those that were present!
It has been a quite hectic time for the Martin family. There have been many things to take care of around the house as well as ministerially. Bro Martin got studded tires on the new bus and has been working to get the previous lettering off. When I called him on Saturday, he was sitting on a bucket in the snow with a hand-held heater trying to get the letters to come off. Brrr!
It continues to snow there, which I guess is expected for Anchorage weather. The homeless people look forward to the snow because it actually gets warmer when it snows. It does cause a little challenge for Julie as she is responsible for taking the ladies in a van without studded tires. On one occasion last week, she had come to the top of a slippery hill and someone stopped in front of her. Thankfully, the car behind her moved out of her way; she rolled down the hill and started at it again. Praise God for protection! Julie’s hours at the Women’s Shelter has changed. Therefore, her alarm now goes off at 1am!
Please pray with us for a powerful presentation of the Gospel this Christmas!
We love y’all!
The Hope Mobile
We are excited to share with you how God has worked in the behalf of the Martin family and Hope Church this week. As you may remember, we mentioned a couple months back about looking for a bus to purchase in order to pick up more people for church. As Bro Martin was praying about this need and looking around, he found a bus that was well taken care of and reasonably priced. However, the main dilemma was the need for Bro Martin to get his CDL license. He began to check into all that was required. He went through the process of obtaining a health card as well as the needed preparation for the extensive tests. We are happy to tell you that Bro Martin passed the test on Thursday and was able to pick up the bus that Hope for the Home Ministries had secured.
There was no time spared in putting the bus to good use. On Friday night, Bro Martin picked up a group of children from Anchorage City Church who had prepared to do a Christmas Cantata at the Downtown Soup Kitchen. On Saturday, the Hope Mobile was used to transport the Martins along with other young people around town for Christmas caroling. And on Sunday, the Hope Mobile was filled with people desiring to be at Hope Church! We praise the Lord for His provision of this vehicle!
There was a great turnout at Hope Church this Sunday. About 70 were in attendance and 5 precious souls came up upon the invitation to be saved. To God be the Glory for the things that HE is doing!!
The head chef at the Downtown Soup Kitchen has now offered to prepare food for Sundays. This has greatly relieved Julie, Jalisa, and Joy from the load of cooking on Sundays.
We want to thank you once again for praying for the ministry of the Martins and Hope for the Home in Anchorage, Alaska!
Hope for the Home Update
Bro. Martin, Julie, Jalisa, Jordan and Joy flew back to Alaska on Thursday of last week. They were greeted at the airport by their friend, Naomi, and the beloved family dog, Jingles! What a great reunion!
They went up to the Downtown Soup Kitchen on Friday and the people were SO glad see them! The excitement was mutual. The crowd was somewhat down at Hope Church yesterday, yet they still had a tremendous service with 2 people coming up for salvation. Praise God! With the absence of many, Bro Martin will be making contact with as many as he can. It is a possibility that some may have obtained housing because of the push the city has been making for that reality.
Julie started back to work this morning at the Women’s Shelter. The 3:00am wake-up alarms may be a little adjustment after an extended time off and especially in this extremely cold weather. Today, the thermometer read -10F degrees! That’s what we talk about frigid cold!! Julie had a staff meeting on Friday night, and they informed her that they have increased their capability to house 50 women instead of 30. This opportunity is exciting, yet with more people comes more need of God’s wisdom to deal with each situation. Please continue to pray for Julie and all the Women’s Shelter staff.
The family will be getting back into the routine of ministry this week. We covet your prayers for God to guide them each step of the way.
Alaska & Family Update
We received another wonderful report from Hope Church this week! We greatly appreciate the burden with which Rev. Steve has taken care of the services the past three weekends. He shared with Bro Martin last night that there was around 50 in attendance Sunday. Devin* testified during the service how God had delivered him from drugs and alcohol. Praise God, We serve the Deliverer!!
We trust you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving week. We sure did! It was a joy to be together again, reminiscing and sharing special events and memories. Since Bro Martin, Julie, Jalisa, Jordan, and Joy will be leaving on December 1st, we celebrated Christmas while many were shopping for Christmas gifts! It was a very special time!
Bro Martin, Julie, Jalisa, Jordan and Joy ministered Sunday in Stuttgart and Russellville, Arkansas . They had great services at both churches and enjoyed being with dear friends.
Bro Martin and the children are working steadily to finish some projects at the home place before they fly back to Alaska on Thursday. It is hard for them to leave family and friends, but they are excited about getting back into their normal routine, being reunited with the family dog, Jingles, and ministering hope to hungry souls.
Thank you for your continued prayers!
God bless you!
*Name changed to protect privacy
Martin Family Update
We had a very blessed week. Bro. Martin and the four children were able to get some much needed projects done around the house there in Texas as well as spend time with some of the family. On Saturday around noon, we had a Martin side family reunion/Christmas gathering. It was good to be with some of the family that we rarely get to see except for special occasions such as this.
Bro. Martin ministered at Chelsea, OK on Sunday morning and in Bristow, OK in the evening service. It was a treat to have the family stay with Derek and I and we were privileged to be with them in service on Sunday night. The Presence of God was so real as Bro. Martin shared many of the stories we have communicated here on the website in our weekly updates. We praise the Lord for the tremendous response in the altars.
Bro. Martin received a text message on Sunday evening from the minister that has taken care of Hope Church for the past two Sundays. He said, “Hello Pastor James, We had another good meeting today – 50+ folks. Praise and worship led by Will*. A team led by Ben* fed the meal again today. I believe we’re keeping the fire of the Holy Spirit burning until you return. Look forward to talking to you this week.” We are so thankful to hear how the Lord is working in these precious hearts. We know one thing for sure – Jesus loves them!
We trust you have a wonderful week leading up to Thanksgiving Day. Happy Thanksgiving!
*Name changed to protect privacy
Martin family Update
This was an exciting weekend in the Martin Family as Jamin and Allison were united in Holy Matrimony. Oh, it was precious to see the seriousness with which they made each vow, and the happiness that was evident upon their countenances. We are so excited to see what God has in store for this precious couple.
We heard a tremendous report from Bro Steve who ministered at Hope Church yesterday morning. He shared that there was around 50 in attendance and 2 precious souls came up for salvation. We praise the Lord for how he is working in these hearts. We are so thankful for Heart of the City Church who offered to prepare the meal after the service.
Bro Martin, Julie, Jalisa, Jordan, and Joy ministered at Faith Tabernacle in Ft. Worth, TX this past Sunday morning and Faith Tabernacle in Denton, Texas in the evening. Both Bro Martin and Julie shared that God met with them in a special way in both services shown by the tremendous response in the altars.
Thank you for keeping us in your prayers as we endeavor to follow God’s purposes each step of the way.
God bless!