(a recent prayer letter received from Joshua and Brenda Lei Casey, Spain)

From our family to yours, Happy Thanksgiving, Merry Christmas, and Happy New Year! Many of you were in prayer for our various Thanksgiving events just around the corner after our last update letter, and we want to give a heartfelt ‘thank you’ for those prayers. God has most evidently been at work in the hearts of many of our friends here, and these Thanksgiving events were just one more way to further build upon relationships and create intentional opportunities for Gospel conversations.

In total we participated in six different Thanksgiving events, five of those events revolving around our friends here who have yet to become followers of Jesus. I only mention the distinction between the events, because although we joyfully participate in the local church we currently attend, our long-term goal is to obviously plant a church in the city God has called us to, so investing in those relationships and being intentional about sharing the Gospel with them is very high on our priority list.

Thanksgiving # 1 was an appetizers and desserts night in which we invited our Calle Clavel neighbors and their families. Through this we were able to meet two families (the daughters and grandchildren of one of our neighbors) for the first time. This night was precious to us as we care deeply for the souls of our elderly neighbors.

Thanksgiving # 2 was a Thanksgiving we were invited to! We have one American friend in the city we live in, and she invited us to join her family and all their Spanish friends. We spent hours around a table sharing the love of Jesus with anyone who had a listening ear. It was a privilege to be invited into such an intimate space of love and friendship.

Thanksgiving # 3 was a night of (finally) getting to show off our newborn to many of our friends from the local church we attend. We hosted anyone who wanted to come for an afternoon of snacks and desserts. Like always, we went around the room and shared what we were grateful for that year, and the sweet time of giving thanks to God for both the good and the bad was tender.

Thanksgiving # 4 was our family’s personal Thanksgiving Day celebration. Our girls are worth a day all their own. Hearing our own girls talk about all that they are thankful for brought so much joy to us!

Thanksgiving # 5 was a full-blown Thanksgiving meal, and WOW, our day together was so special. Friends were invited for lunch but didn’t leave our home until around 10 pm, and we wouldn’t have it any other way! We invited three different families who we feel as though God has been at work in the most, and none of the families had met one another before. The true miracle is that all the kiddos got along like angels, allowing us adults to have a very intimate time of sharing all the hardships and struggles this past year has brought. I’m not sure a single person left that dinner with dry eyes. One man there, as he shared all he is thankful for, said, “Josh keeps talking about God and Jesus all the time with me, and I’m not a man of faith at all, but little by little, I think he’s pulling me along.”

Thanksgiving # 6 was our last event. We lovingly referred to this as our ‘oddball’ group. The group was comprised of a couple friends from language classes, a couple friends we’ve met on the streets here in town, a couple families from the kids’ school, etc. As this night came to a close and we bid farewell to our last guests, I heaved a sigh of contentment. What a true joy it was to exert so much effort for such a worthy cause, PEOPLE.

After we wrapped up our 6th and final Thanksgiving event I began calculating a few things, just to more accurately reflect on all that had transpired over the previous 2 weeks. These six events represent 66 people. Apart from the one event that we hosted for our church family as well as our own family, we are aware of ONLY ONE PERSON in that entire group who professes Christ as their Savior. It would have been impossible to plan this, but after all was said and done I counted up 66 dishes of food we made throughout the events. I smiled when I calculated that number, for it seemed as though God so evidently reminded me that He is faithful to bring the people if we are willing to roll up our sleeves and get to work. Apple pie, pumpkin bread, and sweet potato casserole isn’t what brought people to our home. God did. We shared the Gospel at every single event, and every single event has led to more Gospel conversations since then.

A few weeks after the event, I had one of our stateside friends ask me what our ministry plans for Christmas were. I replied, “Nothing! I’m praying we get invited to one of our non-believing friends’ house for the day.”….which is exactly what happened! If you think this isn’t a big deal, let me ask you…when is the last time you spent Christmas Day with an entire family of foreigners? To be invited was such a gesture of familial love, and again–it all circles back to the Gospel going out and going forth! God has created many opportunities for us and reminded us of all the love and ‘family’ we have over here, and for that we’re grateful.