Ashraf Abdou (Cyprus)

Ashraf works for Youth With A Mission (YWAM) as the director of its Discipleship Training School (DTS) in Nicosia, Cyprus. The school encourages students to develop in personal character, to cultivate a living relationship with God and to identify their unique individual gifts and callings in God. Ashraf’s students come from all over the world but primarily from the middle east.

At Ashraf’s school, classes are taught in both English and Arabic and begin with a 12 week classroom phase followed by a typically 12 week outreach. In April 2005, Ashraf and his students went to Sri Lanka to assist those affected by the tsunami.

Born in Cairo, Egypt, Ashraf has been with YWAM for 14 years, the last two in Cyprus. Ashraf’s FPC Global Mission Committee Prayer Partner and contact is Ken McCollister and Ashraf asks for your prayers for the following:

• Pray that God would open the doors for more people in the Middle East to have a chance to attend DTS.

• Pray for visa and financial assistance for the students attending the DTS.

• Pray for more wisdom for me as a school leader and for continued financial support.

Bill and Lydia* (Eastern Europe)

Bill and Lydia are using their business and English skills to reach out to those in their community who do not know Jesus Christ.

Beth Allen (USA/international)

Beth is a member of First Presbyterian Church in San Antonio. For several years she served in Bolivia on the staff of Food for the Hungry. Today, Beth still serves on the FHI staff as an administrator and coordinator of international relief and development work. She is now based here in San Antonio and offices at the church.

Dr. William Becknell (Russia)

Dr. Becknell is the founder and head of Agape Unlimited, which focuses on outreach in remote areas of northern Russia. The mission of Dr. Becknell and Agape Unlimited is to carry the gospel through the word and desperately needed medical assistance to the poor and isolated people of Russia who have not heard the Gospel.

Dan and Stef* (Central Asia)

Working under the oversight of the mission organization Frontiers, Dan and Stef serve on a church planting team in a country that is closed to missionaries. Dan and Stef have been in the field for more than a year learning the language and beginning relief and development projects.

John Farmer (International)

John is Operations Director for MedAir, a Christian Relief Orgnaization that works in some of the hardest places in the world. Medair brings life-saving relief and rehabilitation in areas in the midst of disaster, crisis, and conflict by working alongside the most vulnerable. Its mission is to seek out and serve the most vulnerable people, particularly the forgotten men, women, and children who live in difficult-to-access regions in Africa, the Middle East, and Asia.

George Harper Ph.D. (Philippines)

George is a professor at the Asia Graduate School of Theology in Manila. God has gifted George for and called him to teach theology and church history primarily to pastors and students from Asian countries. Upon graduation they return to serve in their own countries.

Steve and Barbara Johnson (Hungary)

The Johsons work with Youth With A Mission (YWAM) ministering to the large number of college students and young adults living in Budapest.. In this post-communist, post-christian society the Johnsons find creative ways to reach out to the young people of their city.

Darren and Elisabeth Kennedy (England)

Darren and Elisabeth are both professors at the Evangelical Theological Seminary in Cairo. Darren teaches in the theology department and Elisabeth teaches in the biblical studies and practical theology department. They train pastors and lay leaders for ministry in the Coptic Evangelical Church, which is the largest Protestant denomination in the Middle East. Presently they are on educational sabbatical in Edinburgh, England.

Donald and Laurie Marsden (Russia)

The Marsdens are PC(USA)-sponsored missionaries who serve in Russia teaching Christian principles and theology. Donald is also involved in coordinating outreach work for both Presbyterians and Baptists among the unreached people groups in Russia.

George and Gail* (East Asia)

Since 1971 George and his wife, Gail, have served in an East Asian country where George grew up as the son and grandson of United Presbyterian missionaries. God has called them to the largely unreached Meghwal tribes, a Hindu-animistic people group. Through literacy work, evangelism, and church planting, the George and Gail have witnessed many of the Meghwal people accept the Gospel and receive Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior.

Bobby and Downie Mickler (Uganda)

The Micklers both grew up at First Presbyterain and have been sent out by the church on many mission trips over the years and once to a 3-year stint in the Dominican Republic working with the poor. After serving with Food for the Hungry for a year and a half in Kampala, Uganda, the Micklers have started their own business, EcoNations.

EcoNation is a Christian based, for-profit, eco-friendly, critical service business that employs East Africans in an effort to further development of East Africa and raise up Christian community leaders through business opportunities.

Ron Moyer (USA/international)

Ron has been on staff with Youth with a Mission (YWAM) for sixteen years. Stationed at their training base in Tyler, Texas, Ron oversees and supports a number of international missionaries, leads international mission trips and is involved in training evangelists and church-growth specialists who are deployed around the world.

Pamela Neumann (Nicaragua)

A First Presbyterian Church member since 2001, Pamela has followed God's calling by accepting a three year assignment to Nicaragua with Food for the Hungry (FH). While in Nicaragua, Pamela supports the work of the Nehemiah Center for Transformational Development located in Managua, the capital city. In her role as the Communications and Promotions specialist, Pamela collaborates with many different people to develop and improve communications tools and systems to enhance the ministry's effectiveness and sustainability. Pamela asks for your prayers for the following:

• Pray that her financial support will be adequate for her to do God's work in Nicaragua.

• Pray that she will be able to use her skills and gifts to minister to the poor.

• Pray that the Nehemiah Center will continue to adequately train local leaders in biblical principles.

Pam* (Eastern Europe)

Sponsored by the PC(USA), Pam serves with the International Fellowship of Evangelical Students (IFES) in a predominantly Muslim country. Only a small percentage of the population confess Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior (mostly Russian Orthodox and Baptists). Pam teaches English as a Second Language (ESL) and serves as a team leader for a chapter of IFES, the largest evangelical ministry to college students in the world.

Taikjoo & Youngkyo* (Asia)

Taikjoo and Young lead a variety of different ministries. Taikjoo is the pastor for a Christian Business association for Koreans. Taikjoo also leads the Korean version of “the promise keepers” for local Korean immigrants as well. He also leads a Praise and Worship gathering. Youngkyo leads a local hospice ministry.

Tim* (Eastern Europe)

Tim is an ordained Presbyterian pastor. His calling is to teach the Old Testament through on-site training courses in a Muslim country where residential Christian training schools are not legal. His work is instrumental for church growth in the Muslim world.

Lawrence and Melanie Tucker (Philippines)

Lawrence and Melanie are on staff with Wycliffe Bible Translators doing literacy work in Nueva Vizcaya, Philippines. They train literacy teachers in several language groups in the Bagabag language. Of the 6,000-plus languages spoken in the world today, over 3,000 languages and 300 million people have no portion of God’s Word in their own language.

David and Rachel Weller (Ethiopia)

Rachel and Michael Weller, along with their four children, have served in Ethiopia since 1994. Michael serves in the area of evangelism and leadership training with the Western Wollega Bethel Synod (WWBS) of the Ethiopian Evangelical Church Mekane Yesus.

He works at the Gidada Bible School, which trains adults for various positions of leadership within the church.

Don and Martha Wehmeyer (Mexico)

At the request of the National Presbyterian Church of Mexico, the Rev. Donald Wehmeyer and Dr. Martha Wehmeyer were appointed to serve as mission co-workers in Mérida. Don is director of the School of Continuing Education at San Pablo Theological Seminary, while Martha ministers from home as a volunteer medical doctor.

Chad and Becky White (International)

Chad and Becky work with Wycliffe Bible Translators and are currently serving in the states. Chad is a language specialist and is helping develop written languages for people groups whose language has never existed in written form, and then translating the Bible into those languages.

* Some of these missionaries serve in places that are less than hospitable to the word. So, in some cases, we have withheld posting last names and photos in order to protect their identities.