Hello everyone, here is the letter that I sent out to my church--asking for their prayerful support.
I am so excited to be returning to Puerto
Rico in a few short weeks (29 days)! I will once again be on my way to support the work
of the Evangelical School for the Deaf (ESD) located in Luquillo, Puerto Rico. I
will be leaving on July 23rd and will be returning the 31st of
August, so I’ll be gone about six weeks. The deaf community is one of the most
unreached people groups in the world, due to the communication barrier. Many
individuals who are deaf and live on the island of Puerto Rico face even more difficult circumstances due to both the economic
poverty as well as the extremely limited opportunities for education. ESD has
been providing both educational and spiritual support to students who are deaf
for more than fifty years.
My mother will be flying down with me and staying at ESD for four days, helping to get things ready for the students, before heading back home. During my time in Puerto Rico I will be helping Betsy and a few teachers host a VBS for the students as they return to ESD for another school year! After our VBS, I will stay for an addition four weeks to help in any capacity I can around the school. I will assist in organizing classrooms in preparation of the students’ arrival, helping in the kitchen to prepare meals for the students and staff, join the students in their classes, and help with any maintenance projects that might need doing around the school. I will also be keeping this blog which I plan to update daily with stories and lots of pictures! So be sure to check it out and stay in touch!
I would like to ask if you would be willing to pray for us. We would appreciate the prayers as we prepare to go and, most especially, while we are there. We so desperately want to be a blessing to these children and to share with them the love of God. Please pray that the students do well in their studies and that they are receptive to the word of God. As for me personally, would you please pray that I will be able to hear God’s voice clearly and that I will have the courage to step out of my ‘comfort zone’ and be willing to do and say the things God asks of me? Pray for ‘Holy Spirit boldness’ to overcome my fear of man. I have never been away from my family longer than nine days—much less for thirty-nine days! (The reality of it is finally beginning to occur to me. Six weeks is suddenly beginning to seem like a long time!) I will also be the youngest member of the ESD staff and I am concerned about how much help I will actually be; fearing I will be more of a hindrance than a benefit. In addition, I am rather anxious about my signing…I neither am an Interpreter nor am I completely fluent in ASL, thus I feel rather inadequate and worry about confusing the students. Moreover, I will be flying home alone—which will obviously be a new and unnerving experience. Thank you for your faithfulness and your prayerful support. It is a blessing to know that I have a church family and many friends who have my back. Via my blog, I will be sending periodic prayer updates from Puerto Rico.
My mother will be flying down with me and staying at ESD for four days, helping to get things ready for the students, before heading back home. During my time in Puerto Rico I will be helping Betsy and a few teachers host a VBS for the students as they return to ESD for another school year! After our VBS, I will stay for an addition four weeks to help in any capacity I can around the school. I will assist in organizing classrooms in preparation of the students’ arrival, helping in the kitchen to prepare meals for the students and staff, join the students in their classes, and help with any maintenance projects that might need doing around the school. I will also be keeping this blog which I plan to update daily with stories and lots of pictures! So be sure to check it out and stay in touch!
I would like to ask if you would be willing to pray for us. We would appreciate the prayers as we prepare to go and, most especially, while we are there. We so desperately want to be a blessing to these children and to share with them the love of God. Please pray that the students do well in their studies and that they are receptive to the word of God. As for me personally, would you please pray that I will be able to hear God’s voice clearly and that I will have the courage to step out of my ‘comfort zone’ and be willing to do and say the things God asks of me? Pray for ‘Holy Spirit boldness’ to overcome my fear of man. I have never been away from my family longer than nine days—much less for thirty-nine days! (The reality of it is finally beginning to occur to me. Six weeks is suddenly beginning to seem like a long time!) I will also be the youngest member of the ESD staff and I am concerned about how much help I will actually be; fearing I will be more of a hindrance than a benefit. In addition, I am rather anxious about my signing…I neither am an Interpreter nor am I completely fluent in ASL, thus I feel rather inadequate and worry about confusing the students. Moreover, I will be flying home alone—which will obviously be a new and unnerving experience. Thank you for your faithfulness and your prayerful support. It is a blessing to know that I have a church family and many friends who have my back. Via my blog, I will be sending periodic prayer updates from Puerto Rico.
Love and God bless,
Rachel Mellott
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