Our Car is Cruising!

After 4 days we made it to Miami and the shipping company that will ship our car to St. Croix. We prayed and waited a long time to make this decision. So by faith we filled out some paperwork and handed over our keys to this nice young man and last we knew it set sail for the Caribbean on Wednesday, July 27th, the same day we flew back to the island. The Lord has provided us $500 towards the $2300 shipping costs and we are thankful for that.

Little did we know we would need the car so quickly. The one we have on island started leaking gas when we were miles from home. We made it safely here and thankful it did not start afire. Now we are trying to look at the bright side. Sometimes that is hard in the middle of times like this. So we are holding onto one of God's promises.

"Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him and he shall direct thy paths." Proverbs 3:5-6

Serving God always makes life interesting and it will definitely be interesting to see how it all works out!

90 Degrees

It's 7:15 in the evening here in Vassalboro, Maine tonight. Our thermometer says 90 degrees. We have been praying for the Lord to help us adjust to island living but we didn't expect this. Maybe it WILL be cooler on St. Croix. I don't think it gets to 90 degrees there! Oh well, might as well enjoy!

Life After Death

Can you believe this?? Last summer we put a new roof on our cabin and with that came a loft. To keep with the rustic look we put white birch (native to New England) logs for our rails. Once a tree is cut it is considered dead...or at least we thought. This summer when we came home we noticed two new branches growing on one rail.

WOW!!

I began to look at the spiritual. Have you ever been in a situation where death had occurred? Maybe in a marriage, family or personal relationship, your finances, or maybe even death of a loved one. There seemed to be no hope of any life at all..you actually accept that death as something final. Well, I am here to tell you that is not true.
Jesus brings life!

This part gets me quite excited. The story of Mary, Martha and the death of Lazarus in the Gospel of John is where Jesus shows there is life after death. Lazarus was a dear friend to Jesus. He had been dead four days and the two sisters were grieving the loss of their brother. They did not understand why Jesus did not come to them right away and save their brother. Jesus had a better plan just as He always does. He knows how to fix what we think is unfixable.

"Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live: And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die. Believest thou this?" John 11:25-26

May ~ June 2011 Newsletter

Caribbean Missions

Hello from Maine but soon to be back on St. Croix!

Wow! Where has the time gone? Seems like we just arrived in the states and now we are getting ready to go back to St. Croix on July 27th. A lot has happened and we will give you some highlights. But first let's go back to the island for the month of May. Both of us finished up work. Billy completed some projects at The Way of The Cross Baptist Church and Cecilia finished the school year at Free Will Baptist Christian School. Our last Sunday there was a time of sharing our teaching and puppet ministry with our church family. When we return we plan to start a children's church in September. Everyone seems excited about this new ministry, children as well as adults! We NEED your prayers as we get everything ready.

Travel

In early June we arrived in Florida. We visited one of our supporting churches and shared with another church. They have recently taken us on as missionaries. What a blessing! We really enjoyed the fellowship. Then we headed to the Atlanta area to see our youngest son and his wife for a short visit, then to Tennessee to visit our sending church. We did not realize how much we missed our family and friends. The quick hellos and goodbyes are tough on the emotions! After visiting family in Vermont we arrived in Maine June 11th.

A New Baby on The Way

We found out that we will be grandparents again around January 15th. It will be a few more weeks before we know if it is a girl or a boy.

100th Anniversary Celebration

Vassalboro Union Camp Meeting Association marked it's 100th Anniversary this summer and we had a big celebration on July 2, 2011 with special speakers, food and fellowship. We have a cabin there which we call our home in Maine!

It's exciting to see how God is moving in our country. The churches and people we have heard from along the way are active in reaching adults and children for the Lord. Keep up the good work!

Nurse Notes

The school nurses in Chattanooga who have "adopted" the school where Cecilia works have provided some more medical and teaching supplies. We shipped 5 boxes to the island, ready to start the new school year in August. That is  HUGE blessing!

10 Month Mission

We believe God has a work for us to do on St. Croix. We have opportunities to reach more souls for the Kingdom of Heaven. We will be starting a Children's Church in September at The Way of The Cross Baptist Church. Billy will be working with the pastor to help build the much needed addition of the church.

WE NEED YOUR HELP!

Prayer is the biggest need. "If it can't be done by prayer, it can't be done" is the sign on the wall in our church. Our budget for Billy's work is $1500 a month for 10 months. God has proven to us in the past that He is our Provider. Are you one He wants to use to help meet this need?

Ministry for Children

The puppet stage is made and ready for curtains and "The Patchwork Pals."

Come on Down! You're the next contestant on "The Verse Is Right."

Open Doors

Child Evangelism Fellowship (CEF) and the AWANA Program are two areas of children's ministry that have needs on the island. We are seeking the Lord's direction as to our role in these ministries.

Follow our adventures at http://www.caribbeanmission.blogspot.com/

Praises

Safety in travel.

New supporters

Time with family & friends

New grandbaby on the way

Prayer Requests

10 Month Mission

Ship supplies and car

Safe hurricane season

Adjustments to life on the island again

Trust in the LORD with all thine heart: and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths." Proverbs 3:5-6

Thanks so much for all you do.

Billy & Cecilia Stone

Tax deductible contributions may be sent for Billy & Cecilia Stone to

Yes Ministry

PO Box 700697

St. Cloud, FL  34770

or online at

http://www.yeservants.org/

Officially a Maine Resident

Our truck license plate shows that we are legal Maine residents. Since we no longer own a house in Tennessee and our little cabin in Maine is the only property we own I guess we are considered Maine residents. It seems a little strange as we had spent the last 16 years in Tennessee. Now we are back home and this is where we will have our home base. Though the bulk of our ministry is in the Caribbean, specificially St. Croix for now, our hearts will always prove we are "Mainiacs!"