Melissa Newell’s return to Ecuador
We are pleased to share the news that Melissa Newell will be returning to her ministry with the Methodist Church in Puerto Misahuallí, Ecuador.
Melissa had previously served through the Lay Mission Partner programme of the Methodist Church in Britain. Now that this programme has ended, we're delighted that Melissa has the opportunity to continue her work in Ecuador with the South American Mission Society (SAMS) Ireland. She will be flying back to Ecuador in early November for a short stint, returning in late January in time for SAMS' annual conference on 31st January.
Melissa will be responsible for raising the necessary funds for this role. Currently, it is estimated that this will cost around £28,000 per year.
World Mission Partnership have agreed to provide up to £20,000 per year toward this cost, for the next three years. This represents more than 70% of the total required. That funding is only possible because of your donations to World Mission Partnership. Through your generosity, together, we are able to support mission partners like Melissa and the ministry of sister churches around the world.
The support for Melissa and SAMS is our first "Mission Service" grant, which is designed to enable Irish Methodists to serve in overseas mission. We hope to offer more of these grants in the near future - so stay tuned for updates!
Melissa has two remaining speaking engagements before she leaves:
Wednesday 16th October (tonight): Dungannon Methodist, 7.30pm. This is open to anyone who would like to hear from Melissa, everyone is welcome.
Tuesday 29th October: Cullybackey Methodist Ladies, 7.30pm
Look out for Melissa as she visits more local churches in the coming months to share about the valuable ministry she is involved in Misahuallí and pray for her as she prepares to return to Ecuador.
Prayer points:
For her final few weeks before heading back and all the preparations which still need to be finalised
For Pastora Fabiola, who is currently on maternity leave with her new baby Pablo Jehu
For members of the church leading in Fabiola’s absence
Ecuador is currently in the midst of an extreme drought, meaning there are concerns about water levels. There are daily power outages, as most of the electricity comes from hydroelectric plants. Pray for rain for Ecuador (the entire country) and other Amazon regions, which are also suffering
Melissa was featured in a recent Belfast Telegraph article, you can read the article here.