Good News From Betty Jo and Dan Hall

Praise for Betty Jo's recent good medical evaluation at the Mayo Clinic.
Praise for their son, Sam, passing his dental boards at the University of Mississippi School of Dentistry.
Praise and Prayer as they are in their final week in south Florida of "a time to keep (pack) and a time to throw away (or put in storage)" (Ecclesiastes 3:6).
Prayer as they participate in the Field Personnel Orientation at the International Learning Center (ILC) in Rockville, Virginia January 26 - March 25 and the Urban Life Institute (ULI) in Vancouver, Canada April 7 - July 28 in preparation for their ministry in the UK. They plan to arrive in London the first of August.

Jan. 2 urgent requests!

1. Pray for Taryn Blocker, our teammate who was seriously injured in a car accident while in training, to begin to gain strength and have a better appetite. Until a few days ago her jaw was wired shut. Pray also for complete healing for broken legs. We are praying that she will be able to finish training in March and come to the field shortly thereafter. She and her partner, Brook Johnson, are needed for very critical on-site research in Western Europe. Brook needs prayer for her Spanish visa paperwork to be expedited! She needs to get to Spain as soon as possible. Despite the accident and delays, both Brook and Taryn are still very committed to coming to work with the team here and feel a definite call to this task.

2. Please pray for Jim and Lori Spikes who, for reasons totally beyond their control, are having to wait much longer than normal for their visas to Spain. The Spikes are extremely important to the organization and implementation of our Diaspora cluster work in Western Europe.

3. The Diaspora cluster in its initial location in Madrid is at the point of final decision making in the starting of specific new church plants. Pray for God to lead in all aspects of this phase of our work. We praise God for His guidance and remarkable open doors! Pray for new contacts from Peru, Brazil, the Caribbean, and Argentina!

Check out Gary's pic of the cheery Christmas tree at the Plaza Sol!

Christmas is definitely in the air in Spain! And we get to celebrate here until January 6, the day of the Kings, celebrating the arrival of the wise men to see Jesus. This beautiful Christmas tree stands stories tall in the middle of the Sol Plaza in the center of Madrid.

Pachalians bring special language abilities to team -

Can you imagine walking through a crowd in Madrid and recognizing the South American country people are from just by the way they speak Spanish? Pablo and Carmen can do that! Native Spanish speakers with vast South American experience and years of work with imigrants in the US, they are just what THE doctor ordered up for our cluster. Nolen and I have decided that one of the best ways to improve our Spanish is to be around them. They are good Spanish coaches too!

Prayer needed for Spikes Visa process -

Jim and Lori Spikes, headed for Barcelona in January, opened their visa process at the correct time in the correct place, New Orleans - BUT - then that consulate closed its doors! Their process has been transferred to the Houston consulate and things seem to be moving s - l - o - w - l - y ! Pray that it will still be possible for them to make Spain in January. It wouldn't be fair for them to miss out on ALL the cold weather! Thanks for praying for their visa process to be facilitated!

Welcome Buddy and Lois Woodson!

The Woodsons join our Cluster with a background of missions in Chile and pastoring in Virginia. They will be serving in the Netherlands. Please pray for them as they prepare and seek the specific direction that their work should take. Buddy and Lois have two adult children, Dale and April, and a son-law, Tim. We look forward to having them with us in Europe early in 2010!

An update from Brook

Thank ya'll so much! Sorry this is the first i can reply. i was discharged sunday night after 8 hours of getting fixed up in the ER at a different hospital than Taryn. I have a fractured ulna on my left arm and 17 stitches, and scrapes and bruises to my right hand and face with 2 shiners. Taryn has broken fibulas in both legs but had surgery that night to reset them with pins, and some broken bones in her jaw with a swollen face and black eye. today (tuesday) taryn had facial surgery to fix her jaw; she has no memory of the accident. they said she won't have any scarring, and i haven't heard the results back yet. she'll be in a wheelchair for a few months as she is rehabilitated. she's in high spirits and making jokes as she always does :) while i was in the ER i got to share the gospel with several folks, and first thing i heard about taryn she was doing the same! thousands have been in prayer and its evident! the Lord is using this for his glory. my bible flew out of my purse during the accident and was left behind. the man who owned the car went to see it and shared the word with my little bible with a man working the lot. tayrn's nurses won't stop telling about the sweet girl in 214. The Lord has been good. It has kept me going to know that he knew all this was going to happen while we were here at this time, and that he saved our lives. the report from the car by the men who have seen it say Taryn shouldn't have legs, and I shouldn't have a head.

Our greatest prayer needs are for 1) thanks to the Father 2) Taryn's quick recovery with no more apparent physical trauma 3) the Lord will restore my mind from the memory of it all 4) that we will be able to be there in Spain as soon as possible and lastly for our families and friends dealing with this hard time.

I can't thank you enough for all your prayers, they have certainly been heard!!!! They mean more to us than anything else :)

In Love and thanks,

Brook

Please pray for Brook and Taryn!

Please pray for Taryn and Brook! They were in a bad accident Sunday afternoon in Virginia. The girls swerved to miss an oncoming car and hit trees. Brook has been released, after having lacerations treated. Taryn has had surgery and has had pins inserted for 2 broken legs. Tomorrow, Tuesday, she will have surgery for broken facial bones. We are thankful they survived and have a good prognosis for recovery! Please pray for them in these difficult days ahead. I will post frequently so that you can keep up with their progress.

Pridemores in new apartment!

Our new apartment is on the Manzanares River in Madrid. This location is at the North end of the La Latina district which has Madrid's greatest concentration of persons from South and Central America and the Caribbean. Our location as well as Gary and Julie's location in Puente de Vallecas will be strategic for ministry.

Pachalians headed to Madrid! Woodsons to be appointed! Updates!

Please pray for Pablo and Carmen Pachalian who are flying to Madrid today! We are excited to have them join us after a wait of many weeks! Also join us in praising God for the appointment next Tuesday of Buddy and Lois Woodson who will be working with us and located in the Netherlands.

We praise the Lord for Taryn Blocker's visa progress and also ask you to pray that our Journeyman, Brook Johnson, will have her visa process expedited! At present Brook's documents have had serious delays.

One more praise for today is for Gary Clifton who is finally feeling better after being ill for more than a week. Please pray for him to continue to regain strength. Pray for little Matthew Clifton, not yet 2, to adjust to all the moving and unfamiliar activity of his new city. Pray for Julie to have wisdom as she balances being missionary, wife and mom.

I'm sending a picture of our new apartment building located at the Segovia bridge in Madrid. We're finally beginning to settle in! Please pray for us, the Cliftons and now the Pachalians as we settle in and begin to reach out in His name!