Hello friend! 

It is such a joy to be writing to you again. I hope that your month of June was full of an awareness of Jesus’ presence and the reality that He is alive! Those of you who responded to my last newsletter update, thank you so much! It was so encouraging to connect with you all. Please do not hesitate to reach out, I would love to talk with you and pray for you! 

June is already over?! I can’t believe it. Time has been flying as I have been serving at Saving Grace World Missions (SGWM) these past two months. I am learning so much! In our Bible teaching class we have been teaching through 1st Timothy, a short letter in the New Testament, and I have to say I was a bit surprised. On the surface it seemed like sort of an odd book to choose, but as I have been studying I am beginning to see that it is such a great book for us to be going through! I am participating in a missions internship, and it is clear in the book of Acts that missions is synonymous with church planting, so a major part of this internship is learning about the function of the church; and this is what the letter to Timothy is all about! Paul is writing to Timothy about what the church of Jesus should be like! There is so much truth for us aspiring church-planters to learn through studying and teaching this text!

Paul is clear in the letter that reading and teaching the Scriptures is foundational to the church, and he tells Timothy, “Meditate on these things,” that is, the reading and teaching of the Word, “give yourself entirely to them, that your progress may be evident to all” (1 Timothy 4:15). The phrase “give yourself entirely to them” carries this idea of “be in them” or in other words, total immersion.

I am totally immersed in the reading and teaching of the Word here at this internship! I am so grateful for our pastoral leadership and their dedication to feeding us the Bible on a regular, consistent basis. At every single gathering throughout the week, our focus is on Jesus and His Word! This is what equips us for the ministry Jesus has called us to, whether it be in the workplace, at home, or the ends of the earth! Needless to say, I have been gleaning so much from the study in 1st Timothy.

Summer has arrived, and so the school I was teaching at is out! While I have been searching for another job, the Lord has been filling my schedule with opportunities to serve. I just started serving in the youth ministry on Wednesday nights, and I am looking forward to serving the Lord with them through musical worship. We have also been spending time in the office preparing for the upcoming Calvary School of Missions 2021. I was a student last year, so it has been so exciting to play a small part on the other side, planning and praying for those who will attend this year!

Over the past two months, I have had the opportunity to sit under some missionaries who are home on furlough. Hearing the testimonies of how the Lord called them to the mission field, and all the stories of the highs and the lows (oftentimes it is more of the latter than the former) has been encouraging and sobering. They have to sacrifice so much. But their testimonies declare that they took Jesus at His word when He said, “He who loves his life will lose it, and he who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life” (John 12:25). What Jesus is NOT saying is that his disciples need to be miserable and hate their life. Jesus is calling those who follow Him to trust Him with their whole lives– their hopes, dreams, families, finances, futures, everything. He is beckoning them to resist the temptation to place their hope and trust in other people, or money, or fame, or sex, or prosperity, and to instead commit everything they have to Him for the sake of His Kingdom.

As I have been meditating upon this reality, I have been coming back to this quote by A. W. Tozer, “Our Lord came not to destroy, but to save. Everything is safe which we commit to Him, and nothing is really safe which is not so committed.” What a glorious hope. When I give Him my life, and trust in His plan, I am totally safe in Him. He conquered death when He rose from the grave, so I don’t have anything to fear. I don’t have to be afraid of where, or when He has called me to go. My life is in His hands, which means it is safe and it will be used for His kingdom. I pray the same thing for you.

Thank you so much for your prayers, love, and support! I am so grateful that I can lock arms with you as we seek the Lord and endeavor to see the good news that He is alive spread to the ends of the earth. If you would like to partner with me financially, click the “Become a Financial Partner” button, and you will be directed to an online giving form. If you would like to give in a different way, feel free to contact me by directly replying to this email.

I would love to hear from you and to see how I can pray for you! May Jesus ground you in His love so that you can understand just how beyond understanding His love truly is.

Grace and peace

Rachel Martinez 

Praise Reports!! 

• My God has been so faithful to provide for my needs.
• This internship has turned out to be even sweeter than expected.
• I was able to get my car’s AC fixed at a low cost!
• I have been asking the Lord to give me wisdom with my finances and spending, and now I am taking Dave Ramsey’s Financial Peace class as a part of my internship curriculum. He knew I needed it!

Prayer Requests!!

• Perseverance in job hunting, and that I find a job with flexible hours so that the internship can remain my priority.
• Boldness to share the good news.
• That Jesus would pour out His presence on the School of Missions students this year, and give them His heart for the Father and for the nations.
• Please pray for our brothers and sisters in the 10/40 window. It is often dangerous to identify oneself with Jesus in these countries and many of them face persecution. May the Lord make them light and salt!