Nov 16' Update

“Where did the last two months go?!”I keep asking myself that question because ever since September 14^th life has been a blur. That was the day that I left for a four week trip to the Philippines. Thankfully, Tina was able to be with me for part of it and she wrote about her experiences in last month’s update which you can find here.I arrived home on October 10^th only to prepare for a missions conference I was doing at Community of Faith Bible Church (CFBC) in South Gate. Thank you for your prayers for that conference. I was so encouraged by the fellowship with our brothers and sisters there. After preaching at CFBC on the morning of October 23^rd I found myself on a plane heading for a two-week trip to Malawi, Africa that very night!Reflections on MalawiThis was my second trip to Malawi where I again taught at the newly formed Central African Preaching Academy (CAPA) which is part of the TMAI training ministry. They began a Master’s of Divinity (MDiv) program last year which is the first of its kind in Malawi. There are currently about 25 pastors enrolled in the program.While I was there I taught through Luke and Acts as part of the New Testament studies course. I also taught a preaching workshop where we covered how to preach from parables and Old Testament law passages. In addition to that, I participated in the preaching labs where students are given the opportunity to preach and be given feedback. These brought back “fond” memories of standing before my seminary professors awaiting their critiques. Overall, I was very encouraged at the progress these men had made in their preaching since the last time I was there 18 months ago.My time there was also a warm reunion as well over half of the MDiv students were in the classes I taught when I was there last year. I was also encouraged to see how many of the pastors have continued to stay with the training. I was also again blessed by these hard-working men who have sacrificed so much to be trained. Several of them expressed to me just how grateful they are for CAPA and for the missionaries who are there and for the many who come to teach them.Speaking of the missionaries, the Lord has raised up several families to minister full-time in Malawi. I was greatly encouraged by the commitment and faithfulness of these men and their wives to live in such a very different place than the U.S. and their desire to see the pastors of Malawi trained so that they may effectively shepherd and equip their flocks from the Word of God. These are precious families who showed me such warm and loving hospitality during my stay there.[gallery ids="666,668" type="rectangular"]Yes, we did take some time to have a little fun together … well, they had fun at least. This was only the third time my life that I had golfed. I think I spent more time in the trees than I did on the grass. At least I was shaded from the heat most of the time.Another highlight from the trip was an opportunity that Shawn Staples and I had to visit a church plant of one of the MDiv students. We met in an old school room where Shawn led the time of praise and I preached. The people were so encouraged to have us there and we were blessed to be a part of God’s work among His flock.Prayer Requests

• The pastors of Malawi: pray that they would remain steadfast and endure the challenges of pastoring and supporting their families and taking the MDiv classes on top of that.
• The missionaries in Malawi: pray for the missionary families who are there: Ayres’, Floreen’s, McCracken’s, Temple’s, Kopp’s, Cogburn’s. Pray that they would be of the same mind as they serve there and that the Lord would give them wisdom as they shepherd their children and as they minister to the people and pastors of Malawi. Pray also that CAPA would get accreditation for their diploma and MDiv programs this year.
• Preparations for next year: Please pray for wisdom in preparation for next year. I am currently planning on taking four trips to the Philippines and one to Malawi, with a couple of other potential trips as well. This means a lot of study as well in developing the coursework and in preparing to teach it.
• Doctor of Ministry Studies: Please continue in prayer for me to complete all of my assignments by the end of the year. I had over 40 left when I returned from Malawi, but still have 15 remaining. That may sound like good progress except that I did the shorter and easier ones first J.
• Family: Continue to pray for my children to abide in Christ and to be a testimony for in their school and work. Pray that they would maintain time with Him each day. Pray also that the Lord would strengthen and grow our marriage in what has been a busy and difficult year with all the changes in our family and ministry.
• Support: The Lord has graciously provided for what we needed this year. We are still about 10% short for committed ongoing support. Thank you to all who have entrusted us with your support. We are so grateful for the many ministry partners God has given. By the way, in response to those who have asked what percentage of their donation goes to the Pastor Training Ministry, the answer is 100%. Calvary Bible Church kindly takes care of the administrative needs of the ministry without taking any compensation.

With that in mind, if the Lord leads you to continue supporting this ministry, you can do so by check made out to Calvary Bible Church with ‘suggested use Carns Missions’ on the memo line. The check can be placed in the Sunday offering or mailed to Calvary Bible Church at 1101 S. Main St, Burbank, CA 91506.Pastor Training Ministry now has a Facebook page! If you'd like additional updates via Facebook, follow our page by clicking here.