Planning Praying, and Preparing — “For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works,
Which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.” Ephesians 2:10
Greetings Loved ones! We hope this newsletter finds you well.
March flew by, and we find ourselves on the verge of spring and the cusp
of the next season of ministry. The past several months have been a sort
of recovery and preparation period. We’ve been getting our house and
family back in order after a very stressful and chaotic year shadowing
Lighthouse Church in Dublin. At the same time, we have been planning,
praying, and preparing for the building of our Galway City Church.
We were so incredibly thankful for Madisen, the daughter of
our Living Hope Church Pastors, who selflessly came over to help us get
back on our feet. She was here for 8 whole weeks, and played a vital role
in watching the kids during the day, giving Larena and I a chance to tackle
some important projects. Not only that, we finally had a babysitter, which
meant we could go on dates! We were tremendously blessed by the peace
she brought, the help she provided, and the relief we had as we began to
get caught up on things, finally getting our heads above water. Out of our
thankfulness, we wanted to bless her in return. So, we regularly made it a
point to take her to see various parts of Ireland. It was exciting for us to
see the sheer joy and awe on her face as we drove through Connemara or
sat at the Cliffs of Moher soaking in its beauty. For St. Patricks Day, we
all went to Athenry and watched the parade, spent time at the park, and
then had fellowship with the pastors of Athenry Gospel Center and their
family. Madisen was only here for two months, but she really became part
of the family. From day one she just slotted right in. We joked about her
staying forever, but deep down we weren’t really joking! Unfortunately,
she had to leave on March 18th, and our family grieved as if we were saying
goodbye to one of our own children. There’s certainly a Madisen shaped
hole in all of our hearts. But she’s left a lasting impression on us, and
helped us get to a place of stability and strength as we head into a time of
crucial ministry development. Thank God for Madisen!
We were able to get into town with the intention of blessing a
few homeless people. Our goal was to connect with them, love on them,
help them feel like they weren’t invisible, and see if there was an immediate
need we could meet for them. Larena spoke to a Romanian woman named
Nadia. She was an older lady begging on the streets in the freezing cold.
The thing she needed the most was relief from pain. She asked for
ibuprofen, we got her some, and prayed for her. I met Costa, a Romanian
man who had set up a cardboard residence across the road from St. Nicholas
Church. All he asked for was a hot coffee to keep him warm, so Anora and
I went and got him exactly what he wanted. When I got to the bridge next
to the Hotel I met Thomas, an Irish man in his 50’s. He was lying under a
thin blanket, trying to stay warm, yet his feet were sticking out. I knelt
down to talk to him. It was clear that he was drunk and miserable. I put
myself in his shoes for a moment, and imagined what It’s like to not have
a place to go for warmth. I imagined the rejection and sense of
hopelessness as he lay there. Many people might walk past and look down
on him, judge him for being drunk, and chastise him in their minds. But,
God put compassion on my heart for Thomas, and I spoke to him as a
friend. When I asked him if there was anything he needed, he immediately
said “blankets.” Larena and I then went and bought him a nice warm
blanket. When I returned and covered him with it, tears welled up in his
eyes. He was so thankful for this simple act of kindness. He began to
open up and tell me that he wanted to die, but the only thing keeping him
from jumping in the river was his dog, who he revealed was under the
blanket with him. It broke our hearts! God help us reach Thomas! He was
very adamantly against prayer, and cursed God…but we believe Thomas
will open His heart to Jesus and that is our prayer.
These interactions put in us a deeper desire to learn more about
any programs that currently exist to help these people, with the intention
of partnering with them. We already have a relationship with COPE, who
provide meals and beds at night for people. Also, we’re connected with
Bridge Watch, whose goal it is to reduce the number of suicides that take
place off of the numerous bridges in Galway City. If it doesn’t already
exist, we would love to see something that provides shelter for those who
have nowhere to go. Please be in prayer for this ongoing effort. Once we
find the space in town, we’re looking forward to doing a lot more to bless
people like Nadia, Costa, and Thomas.
As the Russian invasion of Ukraine began, we ourselves
braced for impact. There’s a real sense that Europe will be greatly affected
by this impact. Right off the bat, there was panic about fuel shortage and
prices skyrocketing. We put an appeal out to our network of supporters,
and immediately received overwhelming responses. We were able to fill
our home heating oil tank to the top right before the prices went through
the roof, praise God! We are now taking some steps to prepare for possible
food shortages this upcoming winter, as some reports are projecting.
Our hearts go out to the Ukrainian people as they suffer. I
spoke to a Ukrainian girl who was in my CCI classes in Dublin. She has
family who are in the middle of it all, and told me about her father who
might be called to fight. Please join us in praying for the innocent people
who are caught up in this conflict, as well as for the people in European
countries (including Ireland) who will no doubt be affected by the ripple
effects. Our financial needs have increased significantly, but we’re in awe
of how God orchestrates our support without us having to itinerate. We’re
so thankful for all of our faithful supporters, and blown away by one in
particular (you know who you are) who stepped up and helped us with our
great need! Praise God that we have such an amazing army of prayer
warriors and supporters alongside us. God bless you all! ~The Johnstons
Prayer Requests
We would be honored if you would pray with us concerning:
Please pray for the perfect leading and direction forthe space in town.
Please pray for Madisen, that she will be blessed for coming here and blessing us in this season, pray for
her future and Gods great plans for her life!
Please pray for Nadia, Costa and Thomas. May we continue to build relationships with them, and lead them to Jesus.
Please pray for the city center location we have been fervently praying for and seeking. We know it’s
Gods timing, but we are anxious to get into town to start this great work God has given us to do in
Galway!
Support Information
If you would like to team up & contribute to this important mission, please make checks out to:
Hope Ireland Missions
229 W. Exchange St.
Crete, IL 60417
(Chris & Larena Johnston on the memo line)
or simply go to:
www.hopeirelandmissions.com
& click on “partner.”
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