December Highlights
We were blessed to enjoy another holiday season (despite some tough OSU losses)!
Scott completed FHU graduate courses in Greek I and Gospel of John
Alexis, Scottie, and Samantha attended Exposure youth camp in Huntsville, AL
Scott taught Bible classes at Woodstock on the book of Amos
Logos Answers Statistics for December:
| Lessons Published | Visits / Views | Interactions |
English | 4 | 234 | 36 |
2022 in Review
Launched a new mission effort. This has been an exciting year of adjustments and trying new things as we have done our best to adapt to the direction God has seemed to lead us in. After several doors being closed for us to move internationally, we were welcomed to the congregation in Woodstock, GA in April. In June, we started our mission work to develop a digital platform for global evangelism. After much effort to learn new skills and to develop lessons, we launched the English website, logosanswers.org, in November. Already, we have seen some early success in engaging lost souls with these simple lessons.
Traveled to Mongolian for a mission trip. In July, the whole family traveled to Mongolia to build up the congregation there, and to reach lost souls with the truth of the gospel. Alexis taught ladies classes and conducted evangelistic Bible studies. Scott preached, taught, evangelized, and counseled — both for the body and for the lost. The kids also learned a lot about chipping in to help a small church in another country. While there, we were able to partner with the local church to start translations for the website.
Continued our education. Alexis has really dug deep into God’s word with her personal Bible studies in the Gospel of John. Of course, Alexis continues to homeschool the kids full-time. Garrison is progressing in speech therapy. Scott is working toward his Masters of Divinity from FHU.
2023 Goals
We are really excited for what lies in store for next year. We are starting to gain some momentum with expanding our mission effort, and we have made some helpful connections for translating and evangelizing in other countries.
Create new video lessons bi-weekly. We think we have found a formula for engaging non-Christians on YouTube, while still maintaining the goal of easy translation to other languages. These 5–7 minute videos are visually engaging, practical, and communicate a simple Bible truth. The goal is to produce a steady flow of content that will engage those who do not know Jesus or the Bible. For example, one series of lessons we have planned is titled, “What’s Your Struggle?” These will cover universal challenges like depression or pornography addiction and will provide Biblical encouragement to seek help from God and the church in addition to offering practical advice.
Translate to six new languages. We have already started translation in Mongolian, Khmer, and Arabic. We hope to have these sites live in the first quarter of the year. In addition, we hope to develop content in at least three other languages before the end of the year.
Grow through new partnerships. In order to accelerate our pace of developing, translating, and promoting content, we need additional partners in the work for at least three areas — writing lessons, translating, and creating graphics. Since we do not have the funds to hire anyone full-time, we will be seeking those who can help on a volunteer basis as part of their current ministry.
Educate preachers on digital evangelism. We have learned that progress is slower if everything has to be coordinated by one person through one platform. On the other hand, if local preachers and missionaries can be trained on digital evangelism, then we can empower them to develop content and lead the effort in their own area. The gospel doesn’t need to be preached just through logosanswers.org. If we can train and encourage someone to evangelize on digital platforms, then that is still a win! For this reason, I hope to provide some instruction to missionaries and preachers on how to use digital tools to reach more people with the gospel.
Prayers Requested
As a reminder, the world is large and spread out. We are now at a world population of 8 billion. Only 32% identify as Christians, leaving over 5.5 billion in need of hearing the gospel. How many can we reasonably reach with the gospel given the vast geographic span of this planet and our limited resources? Other statistics show that of those 5.5 billion not identifying with Christ, 3.4 billion are now active on social media! As a church, we need to do a better job of using the tools available to us to reach the lost in far off places. We have a dream and a plan for doing just that.
Will you help us? Will you pray for us? We’re confident that God will continue to bless you and empower us as we work together for the sake of this important and urgent mission.
Love,
-The Ihle Crew
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