May 9th, 2013 What an exciting few weeks in ministry!

As we wrote in our last ministry update, two churches came together to celebrate the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ. The Resurrection was taught and preached with many visitors coming and many believers growing in Grace. We continue to work the fields and wait to see the fruit this labor will bring forth. We followed the excitement of our Resurrection Conference with a Baptism Service. I am thrilled to report that 12 people came forward to be biblically baptized. There is much confusion over the matter of baptism in Zambia, so we have tried to be careful in our teaching to be abundantly clear of its true purpose and meaning. Others still need to be baptized and we hope in the very near future we may have another service at the river! At Big Tree Baptist, we decided to have a sports day in which the girls played net ball and the boys played football (soccer). It was a great time and many from the community came to watch and participate. After the games finished, everyone gathered and I was able to preach the Gospel to all that stayed! This also gave us a good opportunity to introduce our little church, our purpose, and give everyone an invitation to come. In April, I taught at a little Bible school here in Chipata for 1 week on the subject of the Great Commission. 10-12 pastors attended this crucial biblical teaching. Each day was filled with challenging information and great questions. It is always our hope that the pastors in this area will grow in their knowledge of the Scripture and better help their people to fulfill Gods will for their life. We are pleased to continue our bi-monthly study of the book of Colossians to the ex-pat community in the Chipata area. A family recently ended their contract with their employer and will be heading back to Canada. There are two other new families to the area that are interested in attending. Praise the Lord for our little study. The Lord has given us a great opportunity to not only teach the Bible to Zambians but Germans, Italians, Canadians, Zimbabweans, Malians, Malawians, and other Americans! Wow! Nyau dancers are common to the Chewa people and often a part of the Zambian culture. However, this group of dancers can be demon possessed, believe they take on the image of wild beasts and often try to bring fear to local villages. We recently had an encounter with this group after our Sunday morning service. I was told the dancers are coming near our church because they dont like that Jesus Christ is being preached and Christianity is growing. Certainly God is working in the lives of the people! Please continue praying. As always, we truly thank you for your support, prayers, and love for our family and ministry. Please visit our blog (kevinpestke.blogspot.com) for recent updates, pictures, and videos. Lord bless you The Pestke Family Kevin, Savannah, Analiese, & Gabriella