Welcome back to 2026, I hope you are all refreshed and ready for another new year. 

What New Year's resolutions have you made and how are they going? What have you put in place to make this year different from last year, not just another year on 'rinse and repeat', but a year that will stand out when you look back as '2026 was the year that this changed in my life'? 

I have been challenged by the recent Sermon on the Mount series, and Jerram's message on Salt and Light, challenged by the number of muslims coming to Christ amid terrible persecution, challenged by this quote: “The gospel is only good news if it gets there in time.” (Carl F.H. Henry) We are all called to be salt and light; what does this look like in our day-to-day lives?

What comes through in this latest update from our Missionaries is a passion for the lost and a desire to share the Gospel. To be salt and light with people who are lost and hurting. Our missionaries (missionaries in general) may have given up things we take for granted to be that salt and light. Please continue to pray for them, and consider sending them a note of encouragement!

If you’d like to subscribe to future newsletters, please register your interest by emailing missions@thestreet.org.nz

Merrie Reddington
Missions Pastor

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Ben and Bekah

East Asia

Dear Church Family,

We wanted to share a joyful update with you all. On December 20th, 2025, our family welcomed our son, Giovanni Wesley Baker, into the world! We are so thankful for a smooth delivery and for the way God has sustained Bekah and the whole family during this transition.

The girls, Lucia and Rosa, continue to be wonderful with their new brother. Lucia remains an excellent oldest sibling, and both girls are so excited and absolutely smitten. Life feels a little fuller and a little more tired, but we are deeply grateful.

These past weeks have reminded us of the truth of Psalm 127:3:  “Children are a heritage from the Lord, offspring a reward from him.” In the midst of new routines and sleepless nights, we are continually reminded that this season is a gift from God.

We are especially thankful for the prayers, encouragement, and care from so many of you. Your support has meant more to us than we can easily put into words, and we are grateful to walk through this season as part of such a caring church family.

Blessings,
Ben & Bekah (and Lucia, Rosa, and Giovanni)

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Rachel and Nelson

Mexico

Hi whanau,

We hope you all have had a lovely Christmas and New Year. 

We had an amazing time with a lot of family coming and going over the last few months, and as we settle into the groove for this year we are excited at the changes and challenges ahead. 

Rachel continues in her role as medical leader in the ship's team. Recruiting medical professionals and helping to organize medical brigades and get the local brigades back up and running. She is still doing classes on base, educating about health in missions and holistic health when stepping into full-time missions. 

This year she is looking at ways to promote and create more awareness about women's health in the city, in particular in pre/postpartum care. There is little to no access to education around this topic, and God has opened doors to be a part of a ministry called LifeBearers, which focuses on promoting mothers’ health in Mexico. Rachel is praying for ways to help local women as well as create meaningful relationships with mothers in Mazatlan. 

Nelson has stepped into a bigger leadership role as the marketing and media teams merge. So he is now leading more people with a much bigger workload and a wider scope of content. This includes his previous audience of student marketing and recruitment, as well as promoting the wide range of secondary schools, the different ministries the base has as well as showing what God is doing in Mexico through YWAM Mazatlan. Our base director has also asked him if he would attend a leadership conference in the States, which is an exciting opportunity we are praying about. 

We are also prayerfully starting to look at different house options over the next year. We realise that with a growing family it would be a lot easier to live close to the base, so we are praying for guidance around this and that doors will open. 

We have also had some big changes to our financial support just before Christmas, with a big portion of our support from the states dropping off. Even in this, we can see God working and are excited to see how he will move this year. We would love it if you would join in prayer with us around this, especially for wisdom about how to fundraise. 

But we had an awesome first Christmas with Lani in Mexico. She continues to grow so fast as we just fall more in love every day. She took her first steps before Christmas and just turned 1 at the end of January and is on the move!!!! So we are in for a very mobile year. 

Prayer points:

• Rachel, and the potential women’s ministry, and medical recruitment 

• Nelson for his growing team and work load and new leadership opportunities  

• House opportunity 

• Wisdom around financial fundraising 

• Continued health and wisdom to raise a baby in missions

Blessings,
Nelson, Rachel and Lani

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Caitlin Ormiston

TSCF, Wellington

Dear church family,

Thank you so much for praying for me and for TSCF as we continue in our mission to reach students for Christ and change students for life.

As you read this, the student year will be just getting underway. Most orientation weeks take place in late February and early March, so students across the country will be beginning to find their rhythm. For those new to tertiary study, this can be a daunting season — meeting new people, navigating campus, working out timetables, and developing study habits that work for them.

It is also a critical time for young people as they begin to consider who they want to become as adults, what they believe, and where they will look for meaning and hope. We are grateful to be present on campus in these moments, pointing students to Jesus.

Please pray:

• For the many domestic and international students starting at universities, polytechnics, and wānanga — that they would feel welcomed, supported, and open to exploring faith.

• For TSCF student groups around the country, and for student leaders who may feel daunted by the task ahead — that God would strengthen, encourage, and equip them.

• For our new staff across the country - and here in Wellington specifically for Will, Esther, and Phil as they begin on campus, and for Matt, Anita, Abi, and Esther as they enter their first full calendar year in the office.

• For the office team during this busy season, especially as we welcome many new team members — for good communication, unity, and sustainable rhythms.

On a personal note, I’m grateful for a refreshing summer. As I step into another year with TSCF, I’m reminded again of God’s faithfulness and of the privilege it is to work behind the scenes to support students as they explore faith. I would really value prayer for wisdom as I lead this developing team, sensitivity to the Spirit’s direction, courage in conversations, and perseverance in the quieter, unseen parts of ministry.

Caitlin

Pictured: TSCF Staff & Families camp January 2026

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Sally Hong

Student Life, Dunedin

Dear Whānau,

I hope the Lord has been meeting you as 2026 is well underway now. As you read this update, campus ministry is at its peak! Over February- March we have our O-Week Outreach, where we get to meet university students in their first few weeks of study and get the prime opportunity to share the gospel with them. You might find that as you are reading and praying at this moment, a student may be hearing the gospel for the first time and the Holy Spirit drawing them to Christ. 

A big update is that at the end of January, I made a move down to the South Island to serve with the team on the Otago University campus! It’s definitely a new and exciting challenge, and I’m trusting that the Lord will use this opportunity to reach more students across the country and beyond. 

And as I think about the year ahead, I look forward to how in 9 months' time, the students we are meeting on campus right now will be sharing their faith with family and friends, at their work and on Summer Mission Trips because of how God met them this year.

So to encourage your hearts with expectancy, I’ve attached a story from one of our students, Sherry, who spent 5 weeks sharing the gospel in Taiwan on our mission trip this Summer.

Prayer Points:

• O-Week Outreach Season (Feb - March). Please pray for students to be open and ready to hear and receive the gospel. Pray that as students receive a free cup, a text/call, or an invite to our events - they would meet Jesus.

• Student Leaders. Pray that our student leaders would get the opportunity to disciple and journey alongside key students who are seeking, new to faith or wanting to grow in their heart for the lost this year.

• Otago House. The Otago team is trusting the Lord for a house which will hopefully be a place of ministering and reaching students here in Dunedin more effectively and with generous hospitality. Please pray that God would provide a home that we are able to purchase this year.

• Settling into Dunedin and into a new team. Please pray for a smooth settling-in period - for practical needs like a flat and a home church to be met. And, for the continued provision of financial support. But most of all, please pray that I would be walking closely with the Lord in this season and that the team would work well in unity with new people joining.

Looking forward to sharing some awesome stories of how God works through your partnership in the gospel in the next update!

Much love & blessings,

Sally

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Gabe

YWAM, Tauranga

Happy New Year, Street Family,

Each new year always brings an interesting feeling, a mixture of excitement for the year ahead, but slight disbelief that another year has come and gone! This year I am so expectant for the growth, development and… becoming all that God has for me and the ministries He has placed me in. 

I finished off last year joining the staff team at YWAM Furnace in NZ and jumped right into staffing a 3-month Word By Heart school. This school had a 2-month outreach to Japan from December-February. I’m writing to you from Japan, but by the time you read this, I’ll have just gotten back to NZ!

This season has stretched my capacity probably more than I have ever been stretched before. My last 5 months have looked like facilitating class learning and ministry times for our students while also living with them, perhaps some mild practice for parenting haha! God has shown me so much of His kindness and grace as I’ve shown up in this school, made mistakes, and gotten things right. He’s shown me, especially in my weaknesses, all the space I have to grow, and in that, it’s been a blessing to experience His strength. 

With that, it’s truly been a privilege to journey with our students. They carry a deep hunger for His word, and it was inspiring to see them hold nothing back as they internalised both the fun and heavy parts of the gospel and Jesus’ life. As for the outreach in Japan, it is a place where there are many who have never heard of our God, and I’m often struck by the privilege and responsibility of introducing them to Him for the first time. Japan is becoming softer to God. I hear so many stories, how even just a few years ago, locals were much more closed off to hearing the gospel than now. During our time, we’ve gotten to meet and reach many people through evangelism, relationship building, worship and sharing the Word. We’re truly blessed to have been able to be a part of sharing God’s light here in Japan.

As I head back to NZ, I’d love prayer for settling back in. This will be my first time being in a normal routine with the base outside of the bustle of staffing a school. We’d love to begin navigating our involvement in Oral Mother Tongue Bible translations and need God’s wisdom in this. So those would be my two main prayer points as I begin this next quarter. 

As always, I am so thankful to have your prayers and I hope to make a trip down to Wellington sometime to catch up there too! 

Warmth and love,

Gabriel

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Nick and Sarah

The Way

A movement of missionaries, multiplying disciples & churches for the glory of God. 

Happy New Year to you all! It is with deep gratitude that we share our prayer needs with you, confident that through your prayers the Lord will do many marvellous things, for His glory. 

This year, we continue to lead The Way, training people in Great Commission tools, practices and principles.  Time is spent strengthening churches and leaders and ensuring they have what they need to abide in Christ and make disciples. It’s hugely encouraging to hear many stories of ongoing work in the harvest field of NZ as people use what they learn, led by the Holy Spirit, to reach the lost with the gospel. Some people see lots of fruit, others see little. We encourage both to keep going and to trust the Lord of the harvest. 

No Place Left Training for The Way is making a huge difference to the work here in NZ.  In the month of March, 14 European, British and Australian No Place Left leaders are coming to NZ to train The Way leaders and encourage the churches. We are so blessed to have them come and pray that our leaders will be deeply strengthened. The goal is to identify barriers to the work of the Great Commission in our own lives, churches and ministries - and to see breakthrough! 

2026 also sees us launch part one of “Good Stuff Parenting”, an interactive parenting course helping parents to raise children with a deep love and respect for God, self, others and creation. This is unashamedly a discipleship tool and we are super excited about it. At this stage the first three parenting modules are due to be released to the market at the end of March. There is a good level of interest in Good Stuff Parenting from people here in NZ and abroad. Parents everywhere are asking for a Bible based parenting curriculum - Good Stuff is here to help!

April and May will see us back in Europe in order to attend a three day event in Greece. So often we hear “movement” stories from the Asian world. It’s good to be inspired and to learn from these, but the Western “post-Christian” world has its own unique soil, challenges and opportunities. These three days will capitalize on having a laser sharp focus on the Western world. No Place Left leaders from Western countries are gathering to learn from one another. What is God doing through the work? What common barriers do we face, and what are we learning?  This is set to be a powerful time of mutual learning and encouragement. 

We will also spend a week in Germany with the brothers and sisters who are leading work there, attending and contributing to trainings and on-the-ground ministry. 

It is our total joy to take our sister, Vesna from Wellington with us - she will represent the work in Serbia which the Lord has started through her. And also Jihye and Jonathan, also from Wellington, to represent the “GenZ” work here. The Lord has wonderfully provided funding for all of us to go to Greece, and we give thanks for this!

March - May Prayer Points:

March 3 - March 15 : No Place Left Training

• Please pray for those coming to NZ to serve us

• Please pray for leaders attending trainings in Wgtn and Queenstown

• Please pray for a move of God!

• Please pray for a deepening unity between us all

March : Good Stuff Parenting

• Completion of the first three Good Stuff Parenting modules (Newborn & Baby; Toddler; Preschool) and the creative team pulling this together

• Finances to complete the Good Stuff project (all the way through to Teens module)

• Receptive responses from the churches and organisations we approach 

• Effective marketing and promotion, including a promotional road trip 

• A generation of parents to be BLESSED through Good Stuff!

April 13 - May 6 : Europe & Western Countries Gathering

• Nick and Sarah, Vesna, Jihye & Jonathan - health, unity, listening & learning, ministering to others

• Prayer for each person attending - that we would all hear the Lord’s voice, and truly keep in step with the Spirit

• Prayer for humility, teachability, the ability to encourage one another

• Prayer for the Lord to reveal to us all the things we can learn from one another

• Prayer for deeper, wider move of God in the countries represented: USA, Britain, Australia, NZ, Serbia, Czech Republic, Germany, Spain, France, Greece and others

• Prayer for sincere love and unity of The Spirit

Thank you for praying with us. 

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Ester

Wycliffe Bible Translators NZ

We believe in the universal access to God's Word.

At the start of the year, our eldest brother, Mario Cesar, died - he was 70. With the support and help of Wycliffe NZ, I spent the second week of Jan until the 2nd week of Feb in the Philippines to attend the funeral, reconnect with family and friends and help my youngest brother, Alex, sort out family matters. Alex and I are the remaining siblings out of the original five (5) children.

I went back to work with the PTXprint support team on the 16th of February. While I was away, there have been 2 software releases. 

In May 2026, the plan is to attend the biennial Bible Translation and other related workshops overseas - including the software PTXprint, an open-source software developed especially for the publication of Bible translations and other Scripture related content in print or online formats. Depending on the number of people enrolled for the two(2) PTXprint courses, the maximum length of the PTXprint workshop could be from 2 to 3 weeks.

I would appreciate prayer for the following :

• Wisdom and good communication with my brother as we navigate our grief and the need to attend to the intricacies of unresolved family matters.

• Wisdom and attention to detail - I need to be focused and rest my eyes regularly - helping typeset the Yiddish Old Testament translation as shown below which is a draft / work-in- progress of the book of Hosea. Pray for the translator who actively shares with ultra-orthodox Jews.

• Preparation of our team for the upcoming PTXprint workshops in May 2026, and that many participants will be able to attend.

• God's guidance for Wycliffe NZ during this period of leadership transition. The Wycliffe NZ board has accepted the resignation of our current director due to his ill health and several surgeries.  An interim director will take over for 4 months starting in March this year. Pray for God's choice and provision for the vacant WBTNZ position for Executive Director.

In the lead-up to Easter and mirroring the wider church series, Kids Zone will learn more about the person of Jesus, what his life on earth was like, his teachings and how he calls us to live. This will build on the Family of God series in terms of relational skills and grow a love for Jesus and his words. You can watch the Kids Zone teaching videos on our Youtube Channel below.

Kids Zone Junior is moving through their ‘God Loves Me’ series and the beginning their ‘I Can Love Jesus’ series. They will read core Bible stories and learn Foundation truths about their identity and that they can have a relationship with Jesus today!

Please pray with us:

• That children would gain an understanding of living for God’s Kingdom

• That children would learn practical ways to relate well to others

• That children would grow in their love for Jesus and his words

• That children and leaders would grow in their discipleship to Jesus  

• That kids would grow foundational understanding of their identity in God

Kids Zone is starting up again on January 25th. Overlapping with the wider ‘One Another’ series, children will learn core Truths about the church and its origins, design and function in our lives today. They will focus on relationship skills and learn about New Testament instructions on how to operate. This will lead into the Sermon on the Mount series, where kids learn about Kingdom design for relationships. You can watch the Kids Zone teaching videos each week on our YouTube channel below.

Kids Zone Junior is starting their rotation of ‘God Created Me’ truths, where they focus on their special and unique design, their purpose and their status as image-bearers of God.

Please be praying with us:

• That children would grow in their appreciation for God’s church

• That children would learn practical ways to show love to others

• That kids and leaders would find joy in serving others

• That kids would have a foundational understanding of the limitations and designs of God’s church, that would sow a healthy relationship with and investment in church later in life

• That kids would beg their parents to bring them to church!

• That kids understand their deep and inherent worth, and that they are desired and loved by their creator

Kids Zone is wrapping up the year with a Celebration Sunday on December 7th! Some locations are taking this time to work on their nativity plays for their Christmas service, while others are enjoying fellowship over food! There will be no formal Kids Zone programmes for the remainder of December, though a Summer Challenge Bingo sheet will be handed out to families at locations throughout the month.

If your kids would like to rewatch any of the 2025 Kids Zone teaching material, check out the backlog on our YouTube channel!

Kids Zone starts back again on January 25th!

Kids Zone continues through the series ‘Timeless: Great Prayers of the Old Testament. On November 23rd and 30th we dive into the Christmas series.

Kids Zone Junior spends the first two weeks of November finishing the God Loves Me series looking at the stories of Jesus Walks on Water and Jesus teaches on a mountain. The last three weeks is a Christmas series focussing on An Angel visits Mary, Baby Jesus is Born and Shepherds Visit.

Kids Zone has a unique month over October. We begin with a school holiday weekend, where some Locations have an All In service, and some have a holiday style programme.
October 12th is Together! This will be a super fun Sunday when we can do things that we can’t when we meet in smaller Locations. We have a guest speaker and HEAPS of fun planned - with live worship too.
We then begin a series called ‘Timeless: Great Prayers of the Old Testament’. This is the same series as our adult services. Locations will be looking through five Old Testament prayers (David, Hannah, Hezekiah, Habakkuk and Jehoshaphat). These will not be in the same order at every Location, and Kids Zone will line up with the adult service at your Location. A wonderful opportunity to learn together as a family and have a conversation on the way home in the car or around the dinner table.

Kids Zone Junior will join with the rest of Kids Zone for Together. The programme is suitable for a wide range of ages and there will be leaders looking out for our younger children and helping them have a super fun and fruitful time.
On the 19th of Oct we take a look at the Fruit of the Spirit, and finish the month starting a God Loves Me, three week series.

It’s an exciting time as we countdown to The Street’s first missions trip in 15 years! A team of eight people from across our Locations are heading to Thailand from November 11-27 to see and experience what God is doing through various missionaries and mission agencies in different parts of the country.

We’ve intentionally called this an ‘exposure trip’ as our team is going with the humble posture of learners and observers to what God is doing, rather than the ones going in to have a meaningful impact. We hope and pray to be a blessing to the people we meet by encouraging them and praying with them and, when invited, to work alongside them.

We will spend a few days with The Street’s missionaries Ben and Bekah Baker in Bangkok, doing campus outreach alongside them. We will also spend a day with an anti-trafficking organisation, meet some local Thai Christians, visit Southeast Asia’s largest red light district in Pattaya and see outreach organisations at work there; then we’ll head to the far north and see some trafficking prevention work, community development projects and possibly some agricultural outreach too!

It’s going to be a packed two weeks but we are excited and expectant for all that we’ll experience and all that God will do. Pray for us as we go, for travelling safety, for meaningful encounters with non-believers in Thailand, and that we would be a refreshing presence to all who we meet.

If you’d like to subscribe to future newsletters, please register your interest by emailing missions@thestreet.org.nz

Jerram Watts
Teaching Pastor 

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Nick and Sarah

The Way

A movement of everyday missionaries, multiplying disciples and churches for the glory of God.

It’s a joy to reflect on what the Lord is doing in the Way. Thank you for praying for the work, and for us personally. We deeply appreciate it. Here are a few things we would treasure your prayer for:

1. Quaylen and Susanna: Along with their three young babies, this is a couple dedicated to living the Great Commission. Quaylen will be in Taumaranui / Piriaka training some new believers in some Great Commission tools. Praise God for this!
   Please pray for a move of God in the Ruapehu region. 

   In a couple of weeks’ time, Q & S and kids will begin the Te Araroa Trail (from top of North Island to bottom of South Island) in order to share Jesus, disciple people, do discovery Bible studies, and train believers in the Great Commission tools. They are also praying that churches will be planted, as disciples are multiplied.
   Please pray for the Holy Spirit to position people along the track and in camp grounds.

2. Marriage On Mission: This weekend (12-13 September), Nick and Sarah will be speaking at the Family First conference entitled, “Marriage On Mission” in Auckland. We will be training couples in how to disciple their children. Along with this we will be training in two effective Great Commission tools which can be used anywhere.
   Please pray for the fruit of families who are “on” the Great Commission.
   
   

3. Four Fields Intensive Training Weekends: Over the weekends of 20 - 21 September and 4 - 5 October we will be running this intensive training in Wellington. We’ve seen a huge amount of Kingdom fruit from the last Intensives we ran in June and are expecting that the Lord will powerfully work in people again, for His glory.
   Please pray for all those who attend - that there will be the fruit of abiding in Christ, entering the harvest field, sharing the gospel, discipling new believers, planting healthy churches, and training others to do the same.
   
   

4. Serbia: Vesna (young believer from Wellington) is going to her homeland of Serbia through the month of October, in order to train and strengthen the new believers she has led to the Lord and is discipling.
   Please pray for strength, protection, discernment and supernatural power for Vesna.
   Please pray for the right people to work with her.
   Please pray for the new believers in Serbia to grow strong in the Lord, that they would be active in sharing the gospel, and that a healthy church will be planted.

5. Churches and Groups: We would love your prayers for the churches and outreach groups (discovery Bible studies) in Auckland, Taumaranui, Wellington, Hutt Valley, Wairarapa, Fairlie, Timaru, Dunedin, Queenstown, Cromwell, Tasman.
   Please pray for the leaders to be good shepherds of the flocks.
   Please pray for the churches to remain on the Great Commission.
   Please pray for salvation and disciples through the ministry of the discovery groups.
   
   

6. Caleb: Caleb is a young man living in Raetihi, in the Ruapehu district. He came to the Intensive training in June and the Lord has been working deeply in him. As a result, he’s heading off to spend time with a number of No Place Left workers in the U.S.A., Germany, Greece, and some other spots. This is likely to be incredibly life changing, as he is immersed in the work of the Great Commission in a number of cultural settings, before returning home.
   Please pray for Caleb - that the Lord will grow him, he will learn well, he will be led by the Lord towards the plans that God has for him in this next chapter of his life.
   Please pray for Kingdom impact here in NZ and overseas as a result of the weeks Caleb spends learning from other labourers in the harvest field.
   
   

7. South Island Trip: November 13th - 25th we will be in the South Island, strengthening and encouraging the disciples and churches in various towns and cities;  looking for Divine appointments along the way; spending quality time with leaders of home churches; running a second training with a bunch of great folk in Fairlie!
   Please pray that the Holy Spirit will be in charge and the Lord will be glorified!
   Please pray for spiritual fruit from the training in Fairlie.
   Please pray that the believers will be strengthened, encouraged and refreshed.
   Please pray that any ‘issues’ will come to light as we meet with leaders, so that there is a deepening in maturity and leadership.
   Please pray for Divine appointments with lost people and with believers who need to be trained.

THANK YOU FOR PRAYING!
There is so much more to share, but this is a taster and we value your prayers so very much. Please pray for us as we seek to be always led by the Lord, serving Him in His mission with these precious people.

GRACE & PEACE

Nick and Sarah

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Ester

Wycliffe Bible Translators NZ

We believe in the universal access to God's Word.

Praise God for springtime and His provision of a new remote team to work with!

The team specializes in supporting a typesetting software called ‘PTXprint’. It was developed to make the typesetting of Scripture free to use and more accessible to all translation teams. Prior to its existence, translation teams had to rely on expensive commercial software. Praise God too that  I will be mentored by another WBTNZ  Kiwi member based in Auckland, one of the original software team (team of 4 before I joined). 

Pray for wisdom to learn the software and good time management during the period of learning the software online with the help of my new WBTNZ  teammate. 

Praise our God and Saviour for good health to be able to continue in His Mission for His Name's Sake and Glory.

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Rachel and Nelson

Mexico

We feel like we have been so blessed this year. Not only has God blessed us with beautiful Lani, but soon after we returned to Mexico He blessed us with a car that we literally saw on the side of the street not a block from our house. We want to thank the amazing people who helped make this possible, because it was only through God that we could buy this car which has been a life saver as we headed into the Mazatlan hot summer months.

Another fun blessing we received was when our friends asked us to look after their house while they were away for the summer. So we have spent three months in a lovely house right across the street from the base. We have had so much fun popping to base for meals and to the beach for morning swims. It has also meant we can have meetings and ministry times at our house.

We are so thankful to God for such a lovely season.

Rachel:  Since returning to the base Rachel has been asked to lead the medical team with YWAM Ships. With the ship ministry expanding rapidly the ship leadership has now been split into different parts. So as medical lead, she oversees the medical staff and has been working on organising medical outreaches on the boat and compiling medical contacts for future brigades. Along with the other leaders, she has also been planning the schedule for next year to be able to invite bigger medical teams for the brigades. She also organises health discussions on the base to better educate people about treatment and prevention of common injuries she treats on a weekly basis and to encourage healthier living.

God has also continued to open doors specifically in women's health. Rachel was fortunate enough to organise a three day training about anti-human trafficking for YWAM and other local ministries in the city after being contacted by a missionary friend who teaches on this topic.

Another opportunity arose in August when a group of YWAM Doula’s visited the base for outreach. Rachel helped to plan their outreach, which included education sessions on bases for women in YWAM and in the community. They also held a session in her house to further educate pregnant mothers from the community as maternity education is almost nonexistent here.

Nelson: Nelson has been leading the marketing department at YWAM Mazatlán, and it’s been an exciting season of growth and new opportunities. Along with overseeing the team, he’s been teaching and mentoring both students and interns, helping them develop their creativity, media skills, and vision for communication.

Beyond the media and marketing side, Nelson is also deeply focused on discipleship. He’s been investing time into leading Bible studies and walking with young people, with the goal of seeing God’s Word bring real transformation in Mexico.

A big part of his role has been partnering with churches and other ministries—coming alongside them to develop vision, design marketing campaigns, and strengthen their communication. His heart is not just to create content, but to help build teams and equip them for recruitment to share the gospel to the nations. He has also been asked to teach on other practical topics such as tools in fundraising and finances.

It’s been amazing to see how these efforts—both practical and spiritual—are empowering ministries and individuals, giving them confidence, sustainability, and a stronger foundation in Christ.

Remnant Surf: One change we have made to Remnant surf this year was shifting ministry time to a Thursday. This is the normal ministry day for our base and now with a family it has allowed us to have a more balanced week. It has also meant instead of drawing in younger kids learning how to surf on Saturdays our older teenage kids are able to attend since many of them now work on the weekends. We have also connected with more local surfers and one guy has just enrolled in September discipleship school. MEXI LOG FEST. Nelson was also involved in the Mexi Log Fest again this year, which is a long board international surf competition. His design for the main branding was chosen for the event logo. So that was very exciting.

Prayer requests: 

• Continued prayer for the ship and volunteers and funding.

• For our surf boys especially the ones enrolled and considering a DTS.

• Rachel is praying about future ministry opportunities in woman’s health and if this is a direction God is leading her in. There are other women on and around the base who are feeling a shift in this direction also.

• Nelson’s marketing team and continued opening of doors in different ministries in Mexico.

• General prayer for our family and baby Lani.

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Paul & Barby

Auckland

Nurturing movements of biblical preaching in the countries of the majority world.

After his busiest travel schedule in the first half of this year, Paul is enjoying three months of no border-crossing at all.  Leading a global ministry from the edge of the world continues to be a challenge, with a different angle on it emerging recently.  In his 12 years as the Programme Director for Langham Preaching, we are yet to have any of the team he leads in our home with us.  Not a single one!  However this changes in December when the Director for Asia and South Pacific, Dwi Maria Handayani (Bandung, Indonesia) comes to New Zealand for a short writing sabbatical—on reading the stories of the Gospels through an honour-shame lens—as well as a weeklong meeting with leaders across the work in the South Pacific.  We are so excited.

One of the highlights of recent months was the opportunity for Paul to join Dwi’s team in Sydney for their annual in-person meeting.  Way back in 2008 Paul was appointed to get the work started in Asia & South Pacific.  It was a very slow, stuttering beginning...  But under Dwi’s leadership (since 2019) the work has grown from 15 to 44 preaching movements.  (Dwi is on the far right in the photo)

Every two years Langham Preaching has a Global Forum, in which we gather people from across the ministry to progress some pressing issue in the ministry.  In July, 25 people from 18 countries gathered in Tirana, Albania for a Forum on “Locally-Raised Support”—as we look to move towards a financial self-sustainability at the level of our local preaching movements, now numbering 120 worldwide.  Paul has just completed a draft report with recommendations for the Global Leadership Team (GLT) to consider (later tonight!).  Please pray for wisdom.

This GLT, through which Paul leads the work, is undergoing a lot of transitions.  Through 2024-2025 more than half of the personnel will change.  After the Forum, we travelled to Budapest (Hungary) to commission the new Director for Europe & the Caribbean (Andy Oakridge, on the far right) and to linger for a few days with his family.  With the retirement of the Director for Africa, Femi Adeleye, in December, Paul is in the midst of the process to find a new person.  Please pray for the Lord’s provision.

Barby continues in her strategic calling to work with primary age children at the Refugee Resettlement Center in Mãngere.  We are now moving towards selling our home in Henderson so that we are closer to her work.  It is a horrendous drive!   Last time we tried to sell, it didn’t happen.  Please pray that things will go better this time.  Paul has been granted a short sabbatical (December-February) and our plan is to split the time between him working on a writing project and returning to India for a lingering visit, climaxed with 10 days in Kerala with our Joseph, Zoe, Jeremiah and Isabella who are based in South Asia in a mission capacity.

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Ben and Bekah

Thailand

Dear friends,

The past three months have been a whirlwind for our family, and we are grateful to pause and share a little update with you.

As many of you know, we spent this autumn/spring on home assignment in New Zealand and the US. It was a rich time of reconnecting with family, friends, and ministry partners, and sharing about what God is doing in Thailand. We are especially thankful for the new relationships He provided and the faithful encouragement of those who have walked with us for many years.

On August 21st, we returned to Bangkok. We were so thankful that both Lucia and Rosa slept really well on the plane; it made the long journey much easier! They adjusted to the time difference quickly and are now doing great. We’ve resettled into our previous apartment. Our team has chosen to live in a different part of the city this year, but for us it didn’t make sense to move with the timing of our lease, so we’re grateful to have a familiar home to return to

As a family, we’re enjoying settling back into previous rhythms. We’re thankful for the church we attend, which continues to be a source of encouragement and fellowship. Last year, we did a Bible Study Fellowship course on Revelation. This year, we are both studying “Exile and Return,” walking through the exilic books of the Old Testament. It’s been a rich blessing to be encouraged weekly by believers from many walks of life and cultures.

We also see God uniquely placing people in our lives who are truly experiencing exile. Ben has become friends with a Pakistani Christian refugee whose family fled severe Islamic oppression. Bekah has been getting to know East Asian friends who left their country due to religious persecution. We sense that God is using our own cross-cultural experiences to create spaces of connection with people who are longing for belonging and hope. Please pray that we would be attentive to the Spirit’s leading as we walk with them.

We are still in a season of raising support, and we’d love your prayers for God’s provision. We long to be freed up to focus fully on the ministry in front of us, and reaching full support will allow us to give all our time and energy to the work here.

One highlight of this new season has been welcoming four new interns to our team—Antone, Josh, Adam, and Serena. It’s been such a joy to begin getting to know them, hearing their stories, and seeing their eagerness to step into God’s calling here in Thailand. We’re thankful for their willingness to serve and excited to see how God will work through them in the year ahead.

As we step into this next chapter of ministry, we’re encouraged by God’s faithfulness and reminded of the great need around us. Thailand remains a country where less than 1% of people know Jesus, and yet we believe He is at work, transforming lives through conversations, friendships, and the quiet, steady witness of the gospel.

Thank you for standing with us through your prayers, encouragement, and generosity. We are deeply grateful for your partnership and couldn’t be here without you.

Blessings,

Ben & Bekah 

Praise

• Safe return to Thailand and smooth travel (the girls slept wonderfully on the plane!).

• Quick adjustment after jetlag.

• A familiar home to return to.

• Encouraging new team members - Antone, Josh, Adam, and Serena.

• Rich fellowship through church and Bible Study Fellowship.

Prayer

• For God to provide the remaining support quickly so we can give full focus to ministry.

• That we would walk faithfully and humbly with refugees and persecuted believers God has placed in our lives.

• Wisdom and strength as we welcome and disciple our new interns.

• For open doors among Thai students, and for hearts to be softened to the gospel.

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Sally Hong

Student Life, Wellington

Hi church whānau,

The campus calendar is coming to a close as we head into October! From our National Mid-Year Conference, to students at Victoria University responding to the gospel - there’s a lot to praise God for. So here’s a snapshot of what’s been happening and what we’d appreciate prayer for.

National Mid-Year Conference:

Thank you so much for your prayers over this conference! We had 263 students from across the country gather for 5 days to dive into God’s Word, go deeper in community and be challenged to step out in faith as we explored what it meant to follow Jesus. God was definitely at work, as we saw students commit to taking steps of faith to reach their campuses and the people around them, as well as seeing 14 students who were exploring faith place their trust in Jesus. 

Semester 2:

This last semester of campus, we’ve continued to engage with students on campus as we share the gospel weekly through walk-up evangelism, meet up with those exploring faith and build into students who are seeking to grow in their faith.

Recently we had 2 baptisms of students who came to faith through our mid-year conference (Kendall and Nicky)! It was such a special moment as we got to see these students proclaim their faith and seek to live it out.

Another way we’ve seen students grow in their faith over this semester has been through seeing them apply to go on a mission trip with us over the Summer! It’s been encouraging to see students desire to go to Taiwan, Nelson and Auckland to evangelise as we partner with the local churches to see more people come to know and follow Jesus. 

As the campus calendar comes to a close, the staff team and I are celebrating the many things shared above. But one thing that we are really praising God for is the answer to more local graduating students joining us in full-time ministry so we can reach Victoria University more effectively. We have 2 graduating students, Isabelle and Sean, joining us next year in our internship on staff! They have been key students who have come to faith through our ministry as well as led and discipled students in our movement. So thank you for praying for them over their journey as God has called them to full-time mission.

Prayer Points:

• Please pray for all the students as they head into exam season. That God would give them peace and strength, as well as it to be an opportunity where they get to meet and experience Jesus.

• Pray for our new believers, that they would be solidified in their faith going into the summer. That they would find local churches and a community that they can continue to grow in.

• Pray that all our students would be growing in their faith, going from strength to strength. That God would use them over summer to reach their families, friends, co-workers with the gospel.

• Pray for our Summer Mission Projects: Taiwan, Nelson and Auckland. Pray for provision over this project and for people to hear and receive the gospel.

• Pray for students who are considering/committing to stepping into leadership with us next year. For wisdom, maturity and a Spirit-filled life in the student leaders of our ministry going into 2026.

• Pray for Isabelle and Sean as they step into full time ministry next year. Pray that God would provide for them both spiritually and physically, as they seek to find a team of ministry partners who will back them financially and prayerfully for the season ahead.

Thank you always for your partnership in the gospel to see the lives of students here in Wellington transformed by Jesus. Myself and our Wellington Student Life Team couldn’t be a part of what God is doing without your prayers, friendship and support.

In Christ,

Sally Hong

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Caitlin Ormiston

TSCF, Wellington

Reaching students for Christ, changing students for life

Kia ora church,

I’ve just recently returned from an extended sabbatical, a time of much needed rest and refreshment. I give thanks to God for His clear hand over this time, and that he holds all things in his gracious hands. In particular, it was a real privilege to visit some of the Biblical sites on a tour of Turkey, especially ahead of the recent ‘In The End’ series here at the Street. It was also precious to spend extended time with family, the value of which cannot be understated. Thanks so much for praying for me during my sabbatical. It’s now good to be back in Wellington, settling into a rhythm and getting back into TSCF, church life and other activities.

Thanks for praying for TSCF’s national camp Summit in July. My colleagues found it a joy to have students from across New Zealand to be equipped for mission on campus, considering together what it means to ‘Walk with Jesus’. Even from the first day we had members of our groups expressing courage to step into new leadership roles, and others testifying to how God was growing their faith and trust in him. Give thanks to God!

As we now head towards the final stages of the year, please pray for students heading into exams and final assignments. This can be a really stressful time for students – pray that those who know Jesus would keep looking to him as the source of all peace. Pray that they would be able to bear witness to him as they approach their studies. Pray that those who don’t know him would come to find peace and hope in Jesus.

Coming up at the end of October is our Staff Training, one of just three times across the whole year when the whole team gathers together, this is always a time of encouragement as we reflect on the year and look ahead to 2026. Pray for encouragement and unity in the gospel as we spend time looking at God’s word, praying and worshipping together, and looking at a few key topics facing ministry together.

Finally, we are thrilled that Will and Esther Chu have recently joined the team here in Wellington. Will and Esther bring several years of experience working with students with our sister movement InterVarsity Christian Fellowship in the USA. These guys are a real answer to prayer! They are spending the coming months acclimatising to Wellington and learning about our cultural context.

Esther will also be giving some of her time to the office team, and I’m really looking forward to having her join us. I’m really looking forward to working with Esther in the office, where she will bring an invaluable blend of gospel ministry experience and admin – ministry experience. Please pray for Will and Esther as they settle into TSCF and Wellington life.

Thanks for holding me, and TSCF, in prayer. Your partnership is precious!

Caitlin

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Gabe

YWAM, Tauranga

Hello family!

I feel many people, myself included, get to any part of the year and say, “I can’t believe it is ___ already.” But this year feels different, it feels quite easy for me to believe it is September. Not with any good or bad connotation attached to that. It’s just been a full year, I can imagine that it has taken 8-9 months to fit all that in!

I stepped into my first season of missions in Nepal to check out and learn from the Oral Mother Tongue movement that has taken place there, to get the Bible into all mother tongues. It was good to learn the process of empowering locals to translate the Bible but more than that, it was exciting to see peoples’ faces as they hear God’s word in their own heart language for the first time, some of them don’t even speak the trade language so they really have never heard scripture before! The base I was at hosted an outreach team from Singapore too and in that time we did a first draft of the Gospel of Luke in Singlish (the local slang that is looked down on and discouraged over there) and that is where I was able to experience for myself, the nuances and perspectives that come up when you hear God speak in a language you grew up around. Take the prodigal son for example, I have had much experience of Asian men and authority figures in my life. My Dad is a very godly man, a great role model but I have never heard an Asian/Singaporean Father speak that humbly to his son! It allowed me to experience God as a Dad in a much more personal way, Praise God!

I was in Nepal for a total of four months and as I prayed about next steps, I felt that it would be good to return to NZ, to the YWAM Furnace base in Tauranga, to help them navigate what it could look like to support this OMT movement, through the YWAM NZ body and eventually the church body of Aotearoa. That may look like engaging with translations for local mother tongues or working alongside recent immigrants who may not have God’s word in their heart language. Pray for us as we journey alongside God in seeing this unfold. I have committed 1 year to start with at this base.

During my time here, I’ll also be involved in other YWAM Furnace ministries. To start I will staff a school called Word By Heart, a three month school to help people unpack the historical and cultural context in scripture, to experience these stories and events as if we were the eyewitnesses and allow God to show us how He was moving and who He is. At the end of the school all students give a 90 minute presentation of a curated selection of Bible stories off by heart! I did this school last year and it completely changed the way I read scripture and hear from God.

Super excited to start this final quarter of the year. Would love if you could join me and support me in praying for the following points:

• Direction as we pray about how we can support this OMT movement. That God will connect us with people who will burn for this vision.

• Pray for us as staff to set a family culture with students and that we will teach what God wants to share in class. Students arrive next Thursday 18 September!

• God’s guidance as I prepare to settle into Tauranga and as I get set up to be a missionary here in NZ.

Warmth and love,

Gabe

Kids Zone Continues through the Parables series. The 7th of September is Father’s Day and we take a look at the parable of the Prodigal Son. On the 14th and 21st we look at the parables of the Unmerciful Servant and the Good Samaritan.

Kids Zone Junior also begins the month with a Father’s Day focus on the Prodigal Son. Then finishes the ‘I Can Love Others’ mini series looking at the stories of The Hole In The Roof and The First Church.

September ends with the first week of school holidays when we take a break from our regular Kids Zone programme.

Parents - are you looking for things to do in the school holidays?

Christian kids camps are a fabulous option!

Kids build incredible friendships, enjoy loads of fun and have the opportunity to grow closer to Jesus through teaching and times of worship and prayer.

Two of the camps we are familiar with are El Rancho in Waikanae and SUNZ (Scripture Union New Zealand)

Click here to read about SUNZ (for kids in school years 6-8)

Click here to read about El Rancho (for kids aged 8-12, and leadership opportunities for 14+)

If you would like to receive registration dates and information for future camps, please contact these organisations so you don't miss out. Often camp registrations fill up quickly!

Sometimes, cost can be a barrier to attending camps. Both these organisations have support for this if needed.

Kids Zone Continues exploring the Lord’s prayer through ‘Your Will Be Done’ and ‘Give us, Forgive us’.
The last two weeks in August they begin a new series focussed on the Parables Jesus taught through the Gospels.

Kids Zone Junior finishes the ‘God Created Me’ mini series looking at the story from 1 Samuel: A Good Heart and then runs through the ‘I Can Love Jesus’ mini series through the stories Daniel and the Lions Den, Fiery Furnace and Lovely Thoughts. The last week in August they look at The Lame Man to uncover how they can love others.

Kids Zone takes the first couple of weeks off for the school holidays. On the 20th of July they begin a new series looking at the Lord’s Prayer. On the 20th the focus is ‘Our Father ‘and on the 27th the focus will be ‘Your Name Be Honoured’

Kids Zone Junior also takes a break starting back on the 20th looking at the stories of David and Goliath and The Brave Queen as they think about the truth that God Created Me.
Kids Zone Junior uses The Beginner’s Bible.

Kids Zone completes the Heroes of Faith series looking at King David, Jonah and Paul.
The fourth Sunday in June is centred around Matariki and they finish the month with Kids Zone at each Location taking a break from regular curriculum to serve their community.

Kids Zone Junior finishes the cycle of ‘I Can Love Others’ through the story of Jesus Goes To Heaven. Then they move into ‘God Loves Me’ focussing on the stories of the Lost Sheep, The Beginning and The Lord is My Shepherd. On the 22nd of June they have a special focus week on Matariki.
Kids Zone Junior uses The Beginner’s Bible.

Kids Zone registration for Together closes on Sunday 11th of May.

If you have not already done so, please register your family today :)

On registration, children are automatically added to the correct programme based on their age and school year. Detailed information will be sent to parents before the day.

Kids Zone begins a new series called Heroes of Faith. Each week we will look at the story of one well-known character in the Bible. Rather than focusing on the characters themselves, we will focus on what God is doing through that character.
Over May we will look at a character on the first and last week - with the two weeks in the middle focussing on Mother’s Day and a special time as we gather Together from all six Locations at Wellington College on the 18th.

Kids Zone Junior spend the first and last week looking at ‘I Can Love Others’ through the stories of The Wise King and The Good Samaritan. In the middle weeks they also focus on Mother’s Day and our gathering at Together. Kids Zone Junior uses The Beginner’s Bible.

Dakoda Raymond Earnest Schleif

12/10/2007 - 31/3/25

It is with much sadness that we share the passing of Kody Ray.

The Schleif family have been part of The Street Church for over 20 years. During the past decade, they have been unable to regularly attend Sunday services due to Kody's medical needs, but Ange has a deep connection with her Mosaic group and many, many families from across The Street Locations will have a connection with the family in some capacity.

Kody's fighting spirit and love for his family, which shined through till the end, will be sorely missed.

A funeral for Kody will be held from 11am at 9 Hania St on Thursday the 10th of April.

Anyone is welcome to join Ange, Shawn, Brooklyn, Paxton and their wider family and friends for this celebration of Kody's life and to say goodbye.

Kids Zone completes the Life of Jesus series looking at the following two aspects of who Jesu is. Jesus is our Saviour and Jesus is our risen, living Lord.

Kids Zone Junior spned two weeks looking at the Easter story through the following Bible stories. Jesus is Arrested and Crucified and Jesus is Risen!. Kids Zone Junior uses The Beginner’s Bible.

Both Kids Zone and Kids Zone Junior take a two week break for the school holidays.

Kids Zone takes a look at the life of Jesus. Diving into various aspects of His character through classic Bible stories. Over March they will cover the first five of this seven week series.

Kids Zone Junior begins the month looking at Adam and Eve and then spends three weeks talking about ‘I Can Love Jesus’ through the following Bible stories. The Lord's Prayer, A Voice in the Night, Earthquake in Prison. Kids Zone Junior uses The Beginner’s Bible. They finish the month with a week on the Fruit of the Spirit.

Do you have a child preparing for or is a junior in primary school this year?

We are currently piloting a new course, written specifically for families heading into the school years.

The transition periods in family life have a profound impact on discipleship and this course is designed to guide you through some of what you can expect, so you can prepare well. The course is video based and can be completed at home at a time that suits your rhythm.

We kick back off in Kids Zone on the 26th of Jan 2025.

Kids Zone begins the year with the same series as the adult services. It is called Rhythms of Grace. Jesus anchored his life with practices that kept him connected to the Father and focused on the mission for which he came. We will dive into the practices of Silence & Solitude, Hospitality, Sabbath and finishing the last week of February with Generosity.

Kids Zone Junior learns from the following Bible stories under the topics God Loves Me and God Created Me. Jesus is Coming, Jesus Calms the Storm, Food from Heaven, Samson and Noahs Ark. Kids Zone Junior uses the Beginner’s Bible.

Sunday 5th May, 10am

Together will be a significant moment as we unite as six Locations to powerfully encounter the Living God! This is a Sunday not to be missed. Mark the date in your calendar. Registrations will open later this month. Check out this video from Mel for more information.