The Carlsons

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NEWS UPDATE!

The Carlsons are moving to Ecuador

The first Wednesday in January, we told our children we would spend the day asking God what He wanted us to do and where He wanted us to live. "Instead of eating, your Dad and I will pray and let God know that we are serious about following however He leads," Shirley explained.

Our thirteen year old said, "Mum, I would like to fast with you and Dad during lunch while I'm at school." We had prayed specifically for God to prepare our children for another international move, and Micah's attitude gave us peace. Since January 2010, we have prayed, "Lord, would you prepare a place for us in the harvest and lead us to it?" Now God has opened a door for us in Ecuador and Colombia for Greg to serve as OMS' church multiplication facilitator with One Mission Society's evangelistic church-planting ministry, Every Community for Christ. He will be a coach to four evangelism coordinators, ensuring they use effective, culturally appropriate, reproducible strategies to multiply disciples, leaders and churches.

Making disciples and multiplying communities of believers are at the heart of One Mission Society. That's why Greg was drawn to this invitation to be involved directly with these activities with Christian workers in Latin America. As Shirley considered this new direction, God spoke to her from Luke 5 and asked her to get into the boat with Him to go out a little deeper. God promises a miraculous catch.

In 1960, an OMS missionary visited a small fishing village on the Pacific coast of Ecuador and led a young fisherman named Enrique to Christ. He became a pastor who reproduced himself in the lives of dozens of effective church planters, including his son, David. David, in turn, moved to Spain and bore fruit in the life of Rumen, who is reaching people in Bulgaria today. These new believers have a vision to minister to Turkish people living in Bulgaria so that they can then take the Gospel to Turkey. What a miraculous catch God gave that missionary who "pushed out a little deeper" more than 50 years ago to share the Gospel in Ecuador.

A Faith Challenge

Our family is trusting God to provide for us to move to Quito, Ecuador this July so the children can start the school year with new classmates. It's a bold challenge for us as we "push out a little deeper" to raise the funds in this short time, but God is able.
Will you accept a faith challenge? Believe with us! Ask God, "What would you have me trust you for to provide for the Carlsons through me?"

The Carlsons serve with OMS International at the world headquarters in Indiana. Greg is the director of Regional Ministries, coordinating the vision of eleven geographic regions where OMS relates with US churches to promote missions and develop donors. They have served with OMS in Colombia, Mexico, Russia and Uruguay.

Greg, from Jackson, Mississippi, received a bachelor of arts degree in social work from Baylor University and served two years with OMS in Bogotá, Colombia, in youth ministry. In the middle of his master’s degree studies, he worked for one year in Russia with OMS and the CoMission project. In Russia, he trained educators to teach a Christian curriculum of ethics and morality and conducted neighborhood Bible studies. Greg was ordained by OMS in 2005.

Shirley is a registered nurse, midwife and an ordained elder in the Wesleyan Methodist Church. Born in New Zealand and reared in Australia, she holds a bachelor of arts degree in theology from Kingsley College (Melbourne) and also served two years as an assistant pastor at Everton Hills Wesleyan Church.

Greg and Shirley met while studying at Asbury Theological Seminary and were married July 7, 1996. Both completed master of divinity degrees in May 1996. After language studies in Costa Rica and a delay while recovering from leukemia (1997-1998), the Carlsons served with OMS in Mexico City for eighteen months, then Bogotá, Colombia, for two years and Montevideo, Uruguay, for sixteen months.

The Carlsons have four children:

Micah, born in Brisbane, Australia, on April 23, 1997
Madison, born in Houston, Texas, USA, on April 3, 2000
Nicholas, also born in Houston, Texas, USA, on August 7, 2001
Tiffany, born in Bogotá, Colombia, on April 29, 2003.

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