The month of March was a great month for us as we were able to wrap up deputation. It’s amazing to look back over the many months of travel and meetings and reminisce about who we were when we started… and then compare it to who God has made us to be today. As it’s been said many times, there are many things many people wish could be done to improve deputation. (Safety, being the biggest thing for us, obviously.) But, there are still some benefits. God has grown us immensely throughout all this. We are more focused now than ever. We are more determined now than ever. And we have much more to accomplish the will of God with.

But back to what I was saying… March wrapped up with our schedule closing out with meetings in Michigan, Illinois, and Nevada. We then finalized plans to travel to the Dominican and actually arrived on April 5th in Santiago at approximately 3AM.

“Project One” Begins

We’ve now been here for a few days and have begun the process of setting everything up – house, relationships, ministry, etc. We’ve already met with three missionary families while here in order to begin collaborating for our initial project, known as “Project One.” All missionaries we spoke with have been extremely supportive, helpful, and have expressed their desire to assist in our work as needed.

If you’re wondering what “Project One” is then here it is – it’s the name we’ve given to our plan to build a multi-purpose training facility here in the Dominican Republic. We began, continued, and finished deputation with this overriding goal: to train Cubans in the Dominican Republic and prepare them for church-planting ministry back in Cuba. The facility we are going to build will do just that. But not only that, it will also provide a means to:

* train Dominicans for ministry
* be a place to hold special evangelistic outreach events such as a feeding center, camps, sports evangelism, etc
* train other Spanish speaking peoples to reach other unreached people groups
* house groups from North America to come, become involved, be exposed to missions, etc

And one of the most important aspects about this initial project is that it will act as a “test project” that can be replicated in other countries. We believe this model of working with pastors/missionaries here, training laborers, reaching out to the unreached is something that can be done, really, all over the world.

After a lot of prayer and consideration we’re excited to announce that it will be called the “Dream Center” in memory of our daughter, Azlynn, whose name means “dream/vision.” 

So, we need you to earnestly pray for the months ahead. In June we will be looking at land that could potentially house the facility. And in August we are planning on bringing a small group here who may be able to assist with the set up of the facility. Before that time however, we have some important meetings lined up both in the Dominican Republic and back in the US; all of which are integral to the completion of this project.

Another detail to remember and pray for – this coming Monday, April 15th we will begin our language classes. We are both very eager to learn Spanish. Hopefully that enthusiasm will translate to a quick grasping of the language!! With God’s help, we know it’s possible.

We also have some special announcements coming over the next couple months. But those will be released once all our material is gathered and our infrastructure in place. Look for the release of the promotional videos on our Facebook page over the next couple months.

Thank you again for all your support! We highly appreciate it! There were just a couple churches who voted and promised us support that would begin once we put our feet on the field. We ask that you would pray that those churches come through to honor their commitment and begin giving. But, again, those of you who have been faithful in giving and praying we are sincerely and eternally grateful. We have a Story to tell and a world to reach. With your help, we will give it all we can to do both.

Reaching the unreached,

Matt Cretzman
Rooftop Missions

>> FOR A PRINTER-FRIENDLY VERSION OF THIS UPDATE, CLICK HERE.

Here’s a picture I took of one of many children and young people we are trying to reach in the Caribbean.

Ministry Highlights (Jan-Feb 2013) 

The previous two months were both extremely busy and extremely profitable. As many of you know we had been planning on a trip to the East (in speaking of the world, not America!) with my brother (Andrew Cretzman), our dear friends Pastor Jack Cox and his son Joshua Cox, and film maker and friend Andrew Garcia. If you haven’t seen the video update about this trip, I highly recommend viewing it by clicking here. 

INDIA

We started off with about a week in India where we held tent revival services and a time of teaching for the pastors who attended (well over 100). While I have many funny and interesting stories from that trip, we’ll focus on the major highlights for now. One of them is that we were able to see 221 people place their faith in Jesus Christ!

Here is a picture I took of a Hindu priest standing in an 800+ year old temple in India.

SRI LANKA

Our time in Sri Lanka was also very profitable. There we saw approximately 22 people place their faith in Jesus Christ during one of the services held in the mountains. It was an incredible experience to watch as people prayed and accepted Christ in their own language. The missionary we visited there, Terry Unruh, is doing a fantatic job and is being greatly used of God in a very special country. We highly recommend this ministry as a great place to bring a youth group or other team to assist in the work. They could certainly use some assistance as the harvest there truly is plenteous but there is a shortage of labourers. There are countless thousands living in the tea plantations who have not heard the message of the gospel.

SINGAPORE

In Singapore we were able to spend time with the Chimm family and, because Andrew Garcia was already traveling to that part of the world Chantha was able to use him for some video projects he needed to get done.

Chantha and I both have similar visions in using the places to which we are privileged to minister in as launching pads to reach, ultimately, the rest of the world. The fact of the matter is this – the world is getting smaller. Immigration rates are at an all time high. And, as I’ve said many times before, this means the most effective way to reach into some of the “closed countries” is to have a strong ministry based in a country that is, for the most part, open to the gospel. We look forward to working together with this great family in the future for the cause of Christ!

Commissioning Service

We are pleased to finally announce that we will be having our commissioning service on Sunday, March 3rd at Rosedale Baptist Church in Baltimore, MD! Ecclesiastes 8:3 says, “A wise man’s heart discerneth both time and judgment.” We fully believe by faith that this is the right time for our family to have both our commissioning service and to hit the field. And, as a result, God has led us to become a part of this great church as we move forward in our plan to reach closed countries for the gospel. God is visibly bringing a team together there that is essential to the success of our ministry as it expands and as God gives us the opportunity to reach farther and deeper into impacting this world with the gospel. At the same time we would like to publicly thank Pastor Folger and Cleveland Baptist Church for all their immense help and support last year. We’re sincerely indebted to them as they encouraged us through the most difficult years of our lives last year. We’re thankful that both our eyes are on Jesus Christ and that each of us recognizes the need for us all to be in His perfect will and calling in our lives. We love them very much and are thankful for them. We mutually look forward to continuing to strive together for the cause of Christ.

Pastor Scott Tewell, the staff of Rosedale, and myself are also looking forward to all the great things God is doing in and through our ministries. The service will double as both my ordination service and our commissioning service. Please pray for the safety of members of our family that will be traveling this week. This is going to be a big service for us!! And remember, should you have any questions, you are welcomed to call myself, Pastor Tewell, or Pastor Folger and we will be happy to speak with you.

Hitting the Field

I have been working very hard at lining up as many meetings as possible for our initial landing stage in the Dominican Republic. We will be meeting with missionaries, pastors, and other contacts I have as we continue our plans in setting up a national ministry training center for candidates in the countries we minister in in the Caribbean. We will be traveling there in just a few short weeks on April 4th. In the meantime, I have some very important meetings I need to attend/pursue that are integral to our ministry in the Caribbean, especially. You will receive a separate update about that ministry specifically before our departure.

Thank you all again for your continued support! We are so excited that we are finally hitting the field in April and believe, as we are led by the Holy Spirit, that God is going to continue to open great doors for the sake of the gospel. We ask that you please continue to pray for us and support us as the next stage of our ministry is already upon us.

God bless!

Reaching the unreached,

The Cretzman family

Rooftop Missions

Mark 2:4

As I write this I hold in my hand a card that was given to me on my college graduation day. It’s from my pastor (who is now in Heaven with Azlynn!) and his wife. The personal note at the bottom of the card reads, “We are so proud of you and looking forward to seeing how God is going to use you and Lana (& Otis)!”

At the time our daughter had not been born, and we did not even know the gender of our baby-to-come. So we joked about naming him after my pastor’s middle name, Otis, should the baby be a boy! To this day, when I step onto an elevator, look down, and see the name “Otis” I think about him and the fond memories we share. Then I think about what Paul said in Philippians 1:6, “Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ.

A work was started in our lives many, many years ago…before the world began, actually, by an almighty, all-knowing God. And I think He too echoed the words on the card, “I am looking forward to seeing how I am going to use you.” The only reason for this is because we’ve always tried to stay connected to The Source (God). You see, the Bible says, “He which hath begun a good work in you will perform it…” We can truly say that, as we come to the end of deputation, it was GOD Who has worked in and through us. We have merely been lights plugged into His power outlet trying to shine as bright as we can for the Saviour of the World.

I understand many times supporting pastors and churches and individuals get anxious about missionaries getting to the field. I’ve had a couple who have asked on different occasions when we’re getting to the field. And I do sympathize with the desire to see something tangible and physical accomplished. But, for the most part, everyone has been completely supportive. I even had one pastor in Louisiana call after the accident and say, “Matt, you take your family and get away. Take as much time as you need and just be a family. And if anyone has a problem with that then you tell them to call me because they’d obviously have some serious problems!!” I can’t tell you how much phone calls like that have meant to us. Talk about a comforting, encouraging phone call!

So to those who have patiently waited, prayed, and stuck this year out with us – thank you. Understand something: the work God has done in our hearts in preparing us these two and a half years for the mission field has been greater than any words on a prayer letter can describe. How is this possible? Because every successful battle has been preceded by a time of preparation. As one preacher said in reference to Elijah, “A man must hide himself before he can show himself.” Sometimes we’re quick to look for numbers (and I’m all for them!!), but, more often than not, numbers don’t tell the whole story.

We’ve seen literally millions of people hear the gospel as presented through the events of February 20th (I saved the stats!), and hundreds have responded, we still believe and know that this is merely the beginning of the “work” that was begun in us by God. How do I know? Because we’re still here. And as long as we have breath He has a purpose.

So from the bottom of our hearts we again want to thank you. Thank you to those who have been patient, who have encouraged us, who have sent us a note, email, text, phone call, Tweet, Facebook message, Google+ message (all 3 of you!), snail mail, cards, gifts, donations, hugs, hand shakes, have prayed with us, etc, etc. We love you and can’t wait to be in Heaven together with Azlynn and the Lord Jesus so they can look you in the eye and personally say, “Thank you!”

Two-Month Wrap-Up (Nov-Dec ’12)

November and December were filled with both busy activity and a time for us to “attempt to” catch our breath. As I said to one pastor, I’m having to “sit really hard on my hands!” It’s never been easy for me to slow down. But the life of Jesus taught us sometimes it’s necessary to come apart and “rest.”

So, here we go: November we finished up with meetings at FBC Durham, LBC Mobile, WFBC Milton, CBC in Currytown

and LBC Charlotte. In December I then flew out to Las Vegas for both a doctor’s appointment and for a meeting with GBC followed by a meeting at TVBC in Boise, ID. Lana and I then flew back to FL for Christmas with my family. We had a wonderful time.

One of the highlights was definitely the time I spent with my brother and dad out shooting skeet! Since we’re all from Canada it was the first time we shot real guns together! It was a “blast!” I won’t tell you who won but let’s just say the winner’s name started with an “M” and both other names started with the letter “A”…!! Love you guys!!

Immediately following Christmas Lana and I flew out to NC to speak at the Mid Atlantic Youth Conference at Beacon Baptist Church in Raleigh. The opportunity was very humbling as I was privileged to speak alongside two men of God I

highly respect – Pastor Kurt Skelly and Bro. Scott Pauley. God also used Lana in a great way to speak to the girls. The conference was very well done and extremely profitable for everyone involved. There were over 500 teens in attendance with at least 8 professions of faith and many more making positive decisions for Christ. Thank you to BBC and the Rabon family for being such great hosts and great friends. We love you!

Nothing is dearer to my heart than having an opportunity to influence my generation to accept God’s will for their lives and to be more active in fulfilling the Great Commission, wherever that may be. There is much to do, and the more Christians there are recruited into His service then the more work can be done!

 Special Thank You!

We just want to say “thank you” to all who sent Christmas cards to us this year and to those who helped us get through our first Christmas without Azlynn. We received some special gifts that we’ll cherish each year.

Also, we would like to thank Crosby VW Audi specifically for their generous gift. Because of it, we were able to spend a couple days as a family at Disney World in Orlando. Maddi loved meeting all her favorite princesses! We’ve been encouraged to make special, new memories with our family to help get through all the “firsts” and being able to do this definitely helped. We sure do miss you all. We love you and we think and pray for you all many times!

A Look Back & Forward

Here are some of the notable things done in 2012:

• Personally witnessed at least 15 professions of faith
• Countless decisions for full time ministry
• Scope of ministry expanded and strengthened
• Spiritual, emotional, practical preparation for field made
• Greatest majority of support complete
• Global impact made through God’s goodness, by His grace, and for His glory
• 1,000’s of “Dream” tracts distributed

Here are some goals for 2013:

• 3 meetings left until we hit the field
• Prospective target date: March 30^th
• Trip planned for India/Singapore Jan. 23-Feb. 9 with Pastor Jack Cox, Josh Cox, Andrew Cretzman, Andrew Garcia
• Further development and implementation of ministry plan on field

As we have moved into 2013 and we are literally on the brink of getting to the field, I want to remind you that we cannot be completely transparent with everyone because of the nature of our work. While we have many, many open doors of ministry please remember that some of our information may be filtered from time to time. So your prayers will be coveted even more this year.

After a very difficult but successful year in 2012 we are trusting God even more for 2013. We believe it will be one of, if not the, biggest year yet. There are many big things we are constantly bringing to God’s throne on a daily basis, and we are trusting God to see them come to fruition.

Here’s a head’s up about one of them: we are working on a children’s book in memory of Azlynn. I have been working with a designer over the past two months and have the majority of the sketches done. It will be a full colour, hardback book designed to be a conversation starter for parents to talk to their children about Heaven. Also, an expanded version of our tract with a clear gospel message will be on the back for unsaved parents. The launch date will be in February. Please be in prayer about this and everything else we believe God wants us to do in 2013!

We love you!

The Cretzman Family

> Over the past two months we’ve been in missions conferences and meetings with churches in San Leandro, Morgan Hill, Santa Clara (for the National Pastors and Workers Conference), in Simcoe, Ontario (for the Canadian National Conference), in Fort Collins, CO, in La Verne, CA, in Phoenix, in Newport Beach, in Lacey, WA, in Rosemount, MN, and just recently in Durham, NC. Overall, at one point, I drove 5,000 miles in just 18 days. I went from sunny coasts, to the cold north, to a snow storm, to clear skies, to another snow storm, more clear skies, another snow storm, then into the moderate temperatures of the south… Needless to say, your prayers for safety are never taken likely.

> We would personally like to thank each and every pastor, staff member, church member in each of these churches who made each meeting a complete success. It has been a very difficult past two months just for the sheer amount of miles I’ve driven (most of them on my own) but you’ve all been an encouragement all along the way. I’ve laughed, cried, shared goals and dreams with many of you. I’ve preached in Sunday School classes, youth groups,  main services, shared testimony after testimony, and even topped my all time high by speaking seven times to seven different groups of people in just one Sunday! Yeehaw! But you’ve all provided the kind of support we need to continue down this incredible journey in missions. And for that, again, we say, “Thank you!!”

Praise and Prayer Requests

> Pray for me as I travel up to Canada to bring our belongings across the border into the US this week (Nov. 7, 2012). Really hoping there won’t be any trouble! (but aren’t borders always?)
> Wisdom concerning our schedule of meetings and in specific ministry goals/opportunities. December and January will be key months in planning for 2013.

> Please be in special prayer on December 8 (my birthday) and December 15 (Azlynn would have turned 4). All of the upcoming holidays are going to be difficult, for the first time, with our precious Azlynn in heaven.
> Praise for the souls we’ve been able to personally lead to Christ these past two months and the countless decisions made in and out of church services! I don’t know that I’ve ever been in a “normal” church service (in recent months), but each one has been evidenced to have the Holy Spirit’s involvement. It’s a privilege to serve God in the capacity that we do!

Reaching the Unreached,

The Cretzman family

FOR A PRINTER FRIENDLY VERSION OF THIS LETTER, CLICK HERE (PDF) or CLICK HERE (Word Doc).

Azlynn and Maddi Kate earlier last year in AR

FOR A PRINTER FRIENDLY VERSION OF THIS UPDATE, CLICK HERE.

The months of July and August were ones in which we quickly got ready for the fall schedule and then jumped right back into our busy routine. We would, however, like to thank Liberty Baptist Church, Pastor and Mrs.Cox, and all who attended the Ladies Conference for allowing us to take a family vacation. They so kindly provided the funds, and we enjoyed the precious family time we shared. Thank you very much!!

It has been a long and sometimes difficult journey the past two years of deputation, as many of you know. We would like to thank every supporting church/pastor for being patient with us as the Lord prepares us for the field. And we would ask that you continue to do so. We are going to finish out the meetings we had previoulsy scheduled, and then, Lord willing, we’ll leave for the field in March 2013. Further in that regard, Lana and Maddi have stayed back while I finish out our last meetings. But instead of traveling alone, the Lord allowed Ralph Caballero to travel with me. He is a teenager whose family and my wife’s family have been close for many, many years. He believes God has called him to preach and, so, he is learning first-hand what his life as a preacher one day might look like! I’m thankful for the oppor- tunity to help Ralph grow and be strengthened in the faith. He will be traveling with me until Oct. 8th, 2012. Please pray with me about God’s working in his life.

IMPORTANT UPDATES AND PRAYER REQUESTS

• We had four churches decide to take us on for support in the past two months.
• I had some medical testing done as a precautionary measure prior to leaving the field; the results were good. We are very thankful to the Dunford family for helping us immensely with all that! We love you guys!
• We were able to lead two individuals to the Lord, had others come to Christ after services we held, and countless people contact us about decisions they’ve made for God through our testimony of the Lord’s strength amidst trials.
• Pray for me as I will be preaching at the Canadian National Pastor’s Conference on Wed., Sept. 19.
• Pray with us about a date to leave for the field. We’re specifically considering March 2013 as a good time to leave.
• A book Lana and I were contributors in that was compiled by Mrs. Trieber and NVBC Publications is being released on Monday, September 10 at a conference at North Valley Baptist. It is specifically geared towards parents whose children have passed away. I believe it can be a great encouragement to many. Go to http://nvpublications.org/ for more info or contact us about it if you are interested. We’re thankful again for everyone at this church for the immense help they’ve been.
• Things are moving forward with our full colour, hard back children’s book. We should be able to provide a timeline shortly for its release. We’re continually amazed at the great ministry opportunities God keeps giving us!
• Continued healing for our family and divine strength to carry on.

Reaching the unreached with the gospel,

Matt Cretzman & family

WHAT’S NEW

Chick-fil-A Spirit Nights

The last two months have continued our trend of being very busy. The month of May saw us involved in some more meetings with churches, coordinate and execute two very successful Spirit Nights with Chick-fil-A, wrap up our stay at Gospel Light Baptist Church in Walkertown, and hit the road full time again. We have been going to some meetings over the past three months since our accident, but we had been traveling to and from the meetings and the house we were staying at on Gospel Light’s property. So it was difficult, once again, to completely pack up the house, load our vehicle, and put the remaining stuff back in storage. It was a difficult hurtle to jump over but the Lord has carried us through.

Back on the Road

God’s Goodness

After Long Beach we attended the Spiritual Leadership Conference at Lancaster Baptist Church. It was an incredible honor to be the guests of Pastor and Mrs. Chappell that week. They treated us with special care and saw to it that it was a time of encouragement for our family. The conference is one of, if not the, most equipping conference with some of the best fellowship and preaching in the nation. It provided some rejuvenation and invigoration for our family and ministry. And on Tuesday night Pastor and Mrs. Chappell took the time to be a special blessing to us in giving us a special gift from they and the church family. It was something Lana and I will never forget. Thank you LBC!

Prayer Requests

Never before in my life did I ever dream those words would hit so close to home. And yet they have become our reality. Not a single day goes by when we do not think about Azlynn or are touched deeply by something that reminds us that she is no longer here. It’s a tough pill to swallow! I know, for the most part, it’s difficult for many people to even understand what it must be like to be in our shoes.. I certainly couldn’t relate to Job very well when he made that statement. But I sure can now. And yet in the midst of all the turmoil and disruptive events of the past sixty-five days there’s a calm. A certain tranquility that breaks through and pushes aside all clouds of doubt. It’s a peace and trust that feels so real, it has become our reality. Not the doubt, not the worry, or anger… But peace! Faith! Hope! And a love from a God Who knows what it’s like to lose a child. Oh how glad I am that we do not walk this road alone; for He is there!

The past two months have been very eventful.

• Lana has been healing up very well. She plans on being able to walk again very soon.
• We’ve been in quite a few meetings with many of them being in North Carolina. As a side note, we cannot say enough how thankful we are for the churches in this area (and state, really). They’ve all been such incredible blessings. It’s become a regular occurrence for us to be eating in a random restaurant and have the owner pay the bill because they go to a church that’s been praying for us. Incredible! In the words of Pastor Trieber, we sure do love the people of God!

We still receive so much contact from so many people with each one sharing a special blessing that has come about since Azlynn’s home-going. One in particular was from Bob Williams of Prayer Cards USA. To make a long story short, he went on to tell me that because of all the attention he’s received through reposting our information on his website, a missionary in Taiwan was able to get in contact with him in order to receive tracts for work in China. Fifty thousand tracts will be going to the underground believers in China because God desires to use this “tragedy” to bring glory to His name! And Azlynn gets a part in that! I also had someone contact me about getting the Bible printed in the Pashto language. We were able to pass them on to the right person and, Lord willing, have a part in that work! And I could take much more time to tell you of so many more. But suffice to say, God is at work; and in a mighty way.

Here are some highlights of some events we’ve been a part of:

• Finishing up meetings in Pennsylvania, Virginia, and NC.
• Thursday, May 3rd from 12-8pm we held a special Spirit Night at the Thruway Shopping Center Chick-fil-A in Winston Salem, NC (391 Knollwood St, Winston Salem, NC). Some of the proceeds went to our family and ministry. There was a prize wheel, the Chick-fil-A cow, and the main event – a “Milkshake Chug for Missions Challenge!” that was actually covered live by the local Fox 8 station. (Click here to view the news story.) A local radio station was also able to get involved and we had the privilege of sharing our story on the air! All in all it was a great opportunity for us to be a witness in the community and to say “thank you” for all everyone has done to uphold us during this difficult year. (For more information about this event, click here to view the flyer, click here to view the video, or click here to see some pictures.)
• We will continue to carry on with our schedule as planned. We have meetings taking us through the end of the year. Afterwards we will plan on heading to language school in Costa Rica.