Dear Faithful Prayer Supporters,

Praise the Lord for each one of you! We are so grateful that you are willing to come beside us and pray for our church and ministries! We are truly thankful and blessed!

It is hard to believe that it is already time to begin planning our annual Christmas service! As we have told you before, Christmas is a wonderful opportunity for us to reach out to unbelievers. Most Muslims have heard about Christmas, but don’t know exactly what it is. Because they are curious to learn, many are willing to visit the church or attend our Christmas worship service. Please pray for us during this time. Pray that the Lord would use this season to open the hearts and minds of unbelievers in Turkey. Pray that He would use us and bless our preparations.

Many of you have heard about the recent earthquake in Turkey, in the city of Van. We were touched by the many emails we received asking if our church and family members were alright. Although no one we know personally was injured, (as of 11/02/2011) 601 people have been confirmed dead. The total number of casualties is expected to be between 700-1000. Churches all across Turkey are raising money to help with the relief effort in Van. Several of our own church members have gone to Van to help. Please pray for these individuals that God would use them to touch those they will be serving. Pray that the Lord would somehow use this horrific event to bring people to Himself.

Our church is very committed to evangelism. In our city of more than 1 million people, there are only between 150-200 Turkish Christians. Because of this, we feel a sense of urgency when it comes to sharing the gospel! But we also feel strongly about discipleship and we make it a priority. In addition to the series of one-on-one baptism lessons each new believer goes through, we have another opportunity for discipleship. This is the Hasat discipleship class. Please pray that the Lord would continue to use these discipleship lessons to help our church members to grow in faith and knowledge of God’s Word. Please pray for our ministry group as well, which ministers to different groups in the church.

The sacrifice holiday time for Muslims is here! Across Turkey, millions of animals will be killed in effort to atone for sin. Muslims will put their hope in the blood of an animal. Pray that God opens the eyes of Muslims around the world to the true sacrifice that has already been paid for their sins.

We will be in Ohio for 4-6 more months. Please pray for us as we build relationships here, visit churches and hope to make more connections as we seek to raise money for our church building project. For updates and information regarding how to donate to our church building project, please visit our website:

www.antalyaevangelicalchurch.com

May the Lord bless you richly,

Ramazan Arkan