After meeting in the open for one year and under a cloth tent for the second year, our congregation outside of Islamabad, Pakistan, now has a building! Our people are thrilled and the completed building is creating quite a stir in the community. Only two years old, the Islamabad church has between 600 and 700 adults attending the Sunday service. Our building will only seat 800 so we are already nearing it's maximum capacity. We will probably go to two Sunday services sometime this year. At the current rate of growth, Pastor Safeer and I believe that we have the capacity to grow to well over 2,000 within the next two years.

We have 16 home groups, but they are very large and we need to multiply our leaders. With all the construction activity over the past year, we have allowed the small groups to continue as is, but we are now able to focus on their multiplication. With the leaders we have, we should be able to expand our number of cell groups to 36 groups by the end of 2008.

Pastor Safeer has begun to teach our congregation on tithes and offerings, and as they mature they are beginning to respond. Nearly all these believers are newly born again and it has taken time for them to develop. About 80% of our congregation is illiterate. With an average income of around $50 per month for a head of household, giving is quite a challenge. But the monthly offerings are right at $850, which encourages me greatly!

Pakistani Christians live under the heavy hand of Islamic fundamentalism and a Koranic system of justice. They really have very few rights and even fewer opportunities. I have quite a dream for this church and this community. Once we have the congregation well established, I want to help the community with education, orphan care, and medical care. The conditions in which they live are unimaginable, and I believe the Lord would be pleased if we were able to help better their lives. Thanks for all you have done to help us serve some of the most deserving believers in the world.

Rick