Building Relationships to Share the Truth of the Gospel

Bethany comes to visit for Christmas!

Our kids altogether in Chivari...and very happy.

A quick day trip with the girls to Cinque Terra, 40 minutes away.

Jeannette and I in the same place (Corneglia).

The girls being silly

More serious.

Our 3rd Christmas in Italy, but the tree is from Ikea!

Kids pretending to sleep...very happy to have Bethany, their big sister with us for 12 days after not seeing her for 6 months.

Ramat came to visit on New Year's Day, his birthday.  He is is modeling the sunglasses and the new watch we bought him as gifts.

Lee and Ramat together being cool.

New Year with our missionary friends, the Paces, from Genova.

Ramat with Phoebe, the Pace's sweet little girl.

Some guests, missionaries, the McEwens from Torino, Italy.

Our kids with the two sisters (in order), Joanna and Rachel who are helping us teach ESL to Italians

Elijah's bday party.  Many of the parents commented that their kids said it was the best bday party they'd ever been to.  We have many relationships with the parents of these children and some are attending our ESL classes.  Pray that we have opportunity to share the gospel!

Hannah, our 2nd oldest finishing up her high school years her in Italy stands next to the roses we bought (160) to be passed out on St. Valentine's Day.

Che bella!

One couple smiling after receiving their free rose and a tract about the martyr, Valentine, and salvation in Christ.

Another couple ladies amazed that we would be doing this.  She is saying in Italian, "I will remember this because Italians don't do this.  They never give anything for free.  I am going to read this because you have got my attention."  What a wonderful result! 

The wife said no to a rose but her husband (in the wheelchair) motioned to Abby to give him one and then to give him a hug (the sign she is holding says "free hugs" in Italian).

This lady lost her husband only a few months earlier.  Full of tears, she was so touched to receive a rose from Abby and from us.

Rachel, one of the girls helping us with ESL, passes out roses.

The girls, Hannah, and Joanna (one of the sisters helping teach ESL) being silly.

Elijah, posing for the camera, after passing out roses to a 80 year old and her daughter.

Lee has a conversation with a lady who can't believe the rose is free and wants to know why.

Lee, sharing the gospel with a young man from Genova.

Abby having fun passing out roses and being silly.

These ladies were also amazed!

Jacob being silly.  Jacob commented that for many Italians, it seemed like they were acting like we were trying to give them a disease by giving them a rose.  Italians don't believe anything can be free, including the gospel.  To pass out 160 roses for FREE, we had to make over 400 attempts.

A sweet couple, talking to Jeannette, who loved getting a rose.

The Walti family with the Knowles girls after passing out roses...what a great team!

Later that night, it was heart-shaped pizzas. They were good!

Elijah after making his (can't wait).

Lee made our ESL fliers. We passed out 2,500!

The girls helping to cut the fliers.

The flier says in Italian, "Learn English for free?" And Snoopy asks, "Could it be true?"  And Woodstock answers in English, "Yes!"

The girls after passing out fliers.

Preparing for English courses!

This our Base (beginner) class of Italians learning English (about 25 students).  We then have activities outside of class that give us opportunity to share the gospel with them.

Hannah is doing a great job teaching!  This is the advanced class (only about 8).  In our intermediate class (no picture here), we have about 15.

The Knowles girls, Rachel and Joanna, are also doing a wonderful job.

From our balcony, soccer teams line up to hear the Italian national anthem...it was the 150th year anniversary for Italy!

“If God does not save men by truth, he certainly will not save them by lies.  And if the Lord's bearing our sin for us is not the truth of the gospel then I have no Gospel to preach.” Charles Spurgeon

Greetings in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ who was and is and is to come!  We praise God for the Gospel of truth that sets men free and we continue to work with a heart to set Italians free.

We have had quite a few months and it is a big reason you’ve not heard more from us.  It started in late-November when Lee got a terrible case of kidney stones, not for a few days but for 3 weeks!  Shortly after, Bethany arrived from the states to join us for Christmas to only find out 2 days after she arrived, that we all had the flu.  It was not a pretty sight (yes, that kind), right through to the end of the year.  After this, in early January, Lee again struggled with kidney pain.  And after going cold-turkey off of the steroids, he was out like a light for 3 days, not eating and sleeping continuously.  We even went to hospital to get him help, only to wait 3 hours and be told it would be another 4-5 hours minimum to see the doctor! (we finally just went home). 

December and January were two of the most challenging months we have experienced in Italy.  It was actually not until late January, that life in the Walti househould was back to some assemblance of normal.  And then, on February 3rd, two young ladies, the Knowles sisters (Rachel – 20 and Joanna – 18), arrived from the U.S. to live with us and help Italians by teaching ESL (Eng as a 2nd language). 

For about three months prior, we searched for a place to teach English for free but it was challenging with the health problems.  And the many places we did ask, every place either did not want to accommodate us or wanted to charge some kind of fee.  And this would rob us of a critical aspect of our strategy that draws Italians in (being free).  Just as we were feeling like we wanted to give up, one week after the girls arrived, a large pizzeria, whose owners we’d befriended, agreed to let us teach ESL upstairs at their restaurant!  After passing out over 2,500 flyers, we now have nearly 50 people attending (25 in base, 15 in intermediate and about 8 in advanced).

It has been so exciting to be developing relationships with Italians here in Chiavari.  The other day, an Italian, the owner of the local florist shop pulled Jeannette aside and said, “I’ve been watching you and your family.  You always have a peace and a joy and an energy for life.”  She continued, “I want that.”  And proceeded to share her life story with Jeannette, a broken marriage, etc.  Jeannette will be meeting her for coffee later this week.  It started with Elijah walking by and saying hi and then us stopping in and just talking with her, periodically buying some flowers.  Another local kabob restaurant worker told us recently he wants to get together and talk more about Jesus, even though he is Muslim.  Likewise, Hannah has developed a neat relationship with the owner of a bead store (for making jewelry) and we will be meeting with her soon as well.  All the workers at the pizzeria where we are doing ESL are now attending our English classes.  We had developed a relationship with them, they knew we were Christians and now they and everyone else wants to know why in the world we are doing these classes for free?

The cry of God for men to know the truth and for that truth to set them free has gone out into all the world.  His hope is that the light of His love would so shine upon us, His children, that we in turn would be a light, His light to the nations.  We are doing everything we can, by God's grace, to do just this.  As you probably remember hearing, there are about 60 million people in Italy and more than 99% of them do not embrace the truth of the Gospel of grace.  

One of the most unfortunate things for Italy and Italians is the perception the world has of them, especially Americans.  At first glance Italy seems rich in faith, because it’s filled with cathedrals and religious figures.  But when you take a closer look, you’ll see that Italy is lacking the understanding of a true relationship with Christ... a relationship based on grace alone. 

As well, it seems nothing but a romantic place with happy people enjoying life.  Yet unfortunately, Italians are some of the loneliest and saddest people in the world that we have ever met.  They are caught in a legalistic, formal religious church that looks beautiful on the outside but on the inside, much like these churches that have no one inside, they are dead and lacking the life of God’s love.

We are excited to be in Italy helping people discover who God really is and how much He loves them!  You, our supporters, are who have made it possible for us to be here, continuing this ministry.

Please pray for:

• Pray that God would give us many opportunities to share the wonderful grace of the gospel,  clearly and naturally
• Pray for our first activity with our students (about 50) as we go bowling this Friday night
• Pray for next weekend (March 5-6) as Lee will be preaching for a church in Canelli, in the Piemonte region, and  they will be working with us in the near future to do evangelism, etc.
• Pray for the possibility of a youth camp we are hoping to have July 23-30, including in partnership with the previously mentioned church and others.
• Pray for a young lady, Hannah Irwin whose church has approved her to come serve us during this same time. She came last year and did mimes in the piazzas and activities to reach children.
• Pray for another young lady, Jenni, who is considering joining us in fall 2011 to teach ESL (pray she is able to pay off some debt in time)
• Pray for other creative ways that we can reach Chiavari and the Liguria region
• Pray for another group who would like to come in summer 2012 (a martial arts group) and for other mission teams to come!
• Pray for two godly Italians, Giosue' and Benito, who Lee is trying to meet with weekly to encourage them to consider joining us in starting a new church and movement here in Chiavari
• Pray for Ricky and Michelle Simpson who are moving ahead in their plans to join us in Italy 

Well, we truly love you and are SO THANKFUL for your participation in the gospel up to now.  Please continue to pray.  We are regularly up against spiritual powers and forces of darkness.  Sometimes this sounds strange to those living in the states but the spiritual warfare here is so thick, the only way we can cut through it is by the power of the sword of the Spirit and by the grace of that same Spirit.


Love you,
The entire Walti family

"Let nothing ever set your heart beating so mightily as love to Him. Let this ambition fire your soul!" ~ Spurgeon

"Save us, O God of our salvation,
and gather and deliver us from among the nations,
that we may give thanks to your holy name,
and glory in your praise."  1 Chronicles 16:35

O God of our Salvation!  The fire in the heart of bringing God glory...what a great and glorious motive!  It's the only motivation that matters according to Spurgeon. And for that matter, to God.

"To glorify God and enjoy Him forever" is the first catechism for Baptists, Presbyterians and nearly all other Protestants.  Author pastor, John Piper, says it this way..."God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him." But Piper's point is to so lose ourselves (and our lives) in being motivated and satisfied by His glory for His glory!

Save us, gather us, deliver us from among the nations.  Italians desperately need the gospel.  Like  others in nations where the gospel is not going forward, God must do a divine work to deliver them!  The difference here is that over 99% have never heard even a presentation of the gospel.  And the hearts are very hard and cold, contrary to the romantic notions of Italy, especially after the lies and corruption and great disillusionment with the R. Catholic Church.

Yet God is working...we are seeing people even in Chiavari drawn to the gospel of grace.  We just really need your prayers and support.  As we have been setting about the challenging work of planting a new evangelism/discipleship ministry and church movement, here in Chiavari, Italy, we've found it is a very lonely work.  There are no visible rewards, no "atta-boys," no friends close by to talk things out, and we do not have a team or a church or others to fellowship with, yet.  And these days, the emails, letters and calls from afar are fewer and further in-between.

Please don't take us wrong...we know you are praying for us.  In fact, we greatly sense your prayers on our behalf and appreciate them greatly.  And though we feel less connected to family, friends and loved ones due to the distance and time that has gone by since we arrived (we are now beginning our 3rd year) and we're tempted to long for the relative ease and comfort of the states, we know God is with us here and the intensity of this task forces our weak, stumbling souls to turn to Him in everything.  We have to remember daily that His promise to us is clear in the great commission mandate given by Jesus Himself (Matt 28:19-20:

Literally...

"As you go, making disciples of all nations...I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

That we may give thanks to your holy name, and glory in your praise!  Because we know God has called us to this work and because He promises to be with us always, we are filled with thanksgiving and praise unto the glory of God.  We know difficulty, trials and even suffering bring about faith and greater reliance upon Him...and as we do, God does great things.

And in fact, God is truly blessing beyond our expectations, doing some very exciting things:

• We've completed our Strategic Planning document, a lengthy process for a successful future that we have been working through with help from others!
• We're putting together an advisory board along with the help of our director, Jonathan Gilmore.
• We were pleased to host Ricky and Michele Simpson here in Italy for the last week who are considering God's call on their lives and if the Lord may be leading them to come join us here!
• We just received notice that Rachel and Joanna Knowles will be coming this Feb to May to join us teaching English as a 2nd language, something that allows us to usually get about 100-150 Italians out, attending our classes, and enabling us to develop relationships in the community!
• We also have heard that a good friend of ours from Orlando, Marco Fiorentino, may bring a team of his marital arts students to Chiavari to do exhibitions in the piazzas, on the seafront and possibly at some of the local schools!  Please pray that God would work out all the details.
• We have been asked by a church in the Piemonte region to partner with them to have a youth camp next summer!  We will be visiting them the weekend of Dec 11-12 to do some planning and Lee has been invited to preach for the congregation.
• We just recently heard from another college age student who is looking at the possibility of bringing a mission team in Summer of 2011 from her bible college.
• There is a possibility that we could host an evangelism and discipleship training conference here in Chiavari in the year ahead, coordinating and administrating it for several churches in the area.
• And a small thing for you but an incredible blessing for us, we have some supporters visiting us, arriving this weekend!!!  Praise God.

Please pray for us in the following areas:

• For wisdom, discernment and insight on God's will for our future here in Chiavari; that God would give us clarity on His plans for this city and region
• For faith when we are tempted to doubt, to be depressed or to be lonely
• For our support situation...we need a minimum of $1,000 in new monthly support for our family and then, we must begin raising investment for our church and evangelism ministry here
• For continued adjustment to Chiavari, schools, apartment (1,300 sq ft, one bathroom), etc
• For our walks with Christ, for our marriage and parenting; that God would help us to be holy and content in Christ
• For all the future possibilities of ministry and for those who are considering joining us
• For Lee's health; much better in Chiavari but still on steroids for his lungs / asthma; pray for great doctors and for other, healthier options
• For a strong year-end financial giving response as this often sets us up for a successful year of ministry in the year ahead; we will need to pay for a number of ministry expenses including the promotion of spring ESL classes (5,000 printed flyers, curriculum and other materials, etc).

THANK YOU so much for your kindness in praying for us and supporting our ministry.

If you would like to give a special gift now to help us, please go to www.italianministriesusa.org and click "Donate" and then click our name from the drop down box.  Thank you ahead of time...you are greatly appreciated.  You are our lifeline and we cannot continue without you.

We know that like us, your lives are anything but easy and you too face incredible challenges.  It is for this reason we are so incredibly grateful that you choose to stand with us month after month to reach those less fortunate than us...those who have not yet even had the opportunity to hear the true gospel of grace!!!

The challenge for all of us is finding our motivation in glorifying God.  Will it be the fire in our bellies?  The thing that keeps us going when everything else, including Satan, is seeking to get us down?  Can we find, in the midst of trials and suffering, the hope that we are called to?  Will we remember that there is no greater goal, no greater purpose, than displaying God's glory and love to others that they too may glorify and give thanks to His name?

Let us "give thanks to [HIS] holy name, and glory in [HIS] praise!!!" (1 Chron 16:35)

We hope you enjoy the pictures below from our ministry experiences this last month or so!

LOVE YOU!!!

Our friends and supporters, the Stager family visiting us in Chiavari!

Doing worship with the youth mission team from Switzerland. We did evangelism and tract distribution together throughout the Ligurian region.

This is 2 cell groups together for fellowship and food in Genova.  Sweet Christians!

Claudia with Jeannette..............and Francesco with Lee...sweet friends.

Our kitchen in our 1,300 sq ft apt with 1 bathroom (no dishwasher and a very small fridge).  It's not going to be boring!

Celebrating 21 years of marriage!

A sweet anniversary lunch outside in the sun.

We had a grigliata fellowship at our new apt with 30 people! 

Great fellowship and wonderful worship...so sweet.

Jeannette with other missionary ladies.

Lee with other missionary buddies.

Ricky and Michelle Simpson who visited to consider joining our team long-term.