The Gales Ministry Update

August 28, 2023

Dear Family and Friends,

So much has happened since our last newsletter.  Two of our grandsons got married.  Andy “Bug”  Galli (Mel and Annie’s youngest) who is in the US Army in Georgia was finally able to get married to his high school sweetheart in July.  If you remember, we flew back for his graduation from US Army Ranger school and for his wedding.  However, due to a misunderstanding of Army regulations, he was unable to get married at that time.

Asher (Jason and Shelli’s oldest) got married just last week in Knoxville, TN.  We flew back for the wedding, which I also officiated.  It was a quick trip but a wonderful time reuniting with family and friends.

One more piece of news is that our granddaughter, Autumn (Jason and Shelli’s middle child) is engaged and the wedding is scheduled for December 29 in Port Gamble, Washington.  Autumn and her fiancé are both students at Montana Bible College.  Aiden, her younger brother is also now attending MBC.  This leaves Jason and Shelli, who just celebrated their 30th wedding anniversary, and now “empty-nesters.”

Even though we have done quite a bit of traveling we have done much here at the church.  With help from some members, the parsonage is totally gutted.  Our project manager who is a retired contractor is taking care of pretty much everything.  I simply do as he tells me.  We also have a hired worker who is also directed by our project manager.  Materials have been ordered and in two weeks (approx) the entire exterior will be removed and replaced as well as all new windows.

We have asked for help from the Construction Workers Christian Fellowship (Hard Hats) and have been approved.  But we have yet to get any volunteers.  Please pray that we will get some Hard Hats volunteers.  

In our last letter, I mentioned that I was going to take the trailer to an RV repair shop in Reno, NV.  We dropped off the trailer on a Monday and they actually fixed it.  I picked it up on Friday.  The cost of the fix was minimal.  I expected a huge bill but I was very pleasantly surprised.  It wasn’t as broken as I thought it was.

Yesterday marked our one-year anniversary here at Orovada Community Church.    For the past nine months, I have been seeking a new full-time pastor but have not had any applicants.  We have been asking the Lord if we should accept the position.  When we were here in 2015-2016 we wanted to stay but there were other family matters that we had to fulfill.  Well, now that Jason and Shelli are empty-nesters they have decided to move to Knoxville, TN next year.  So since we live on their property that means that we would have to move elsewhere.  Since we love being here in Orovada, we took that as a “sign” from the Lord that we should stay.  When I spoke with Dan (the elder) that we would like to stay permanently he was very happy.  We made the announcement to the church yesterday that we would like to be the permanent pastor and everyone started clapping and cheering.

So here we will stay.  We will still be with NICE as a missionary Pastor as OCC is not able to support a full-time pastor.  Your continued support is greatly appreciated.

It seems that all we do is physical labor.  Although we do much there is also much personal ministry going on.  Dayle is extremely involved with the women and the women’s mid-week bible study will resume in a couple of weeks.  I am hoping to start a men’s bible study after harvest season which has just begun.  I am currently preaching through Titus and in Sunday School I am continuing to teach Basic Systematic Theology.  

Praise and Prayer:

~ We praise the Lord that we are going to stay in Orovada as the permanent pastor.
~ Praise the Lord that Ryan Wetterlund of Port Angeles is in remission and has returned to work.
~ Please continue to pray for Pastor Dennis McBride, Lake Havasu City, AZ.  He has surgery coming up to hopefully remove the tumor on his pancreas.
~ Pray for our dear friend, Ed Ortiz of Sequim, WA.  He is also undergoing cancer treatment and has much back pain.
~ Pray for the men of OCC as I continue to try to befriend them and minister to them.


One of the hard things to get used to is not being able to see all of our friends and we do miss you all very much.  Please send us an email, a text, or a phone call to let us know how you are doing.  Or better yet, come for a visit.  

Serving our great God and Savior,

Shelley and Dayle

The Gale's Tales Ministry Update - May 12, 2023

The Gale’s Tales
May 12, 2023
Ministry Update


Dear Family and Friends,

We continue to thank the Lord for your constant outpouring of love and prayer support.  Our great God continues to meet all of our needs.  He is faithful!

We continue to perform much physical work on the building and property and now some of the members are pitching in.  Three of the ladies painted the foyer and hallway to a beautiful white(ish) color which replaced a bright yellow.

Nothing yet has been done to the parsonage basically because we didn’t know where to start.  But we had the husband of one of our ladies, who is a retired contractor, come in and give us a plan and cost estimates.  So, now that it looks like winter has finally departed, even though it snowed last week, we can get started.  The first thing we need to do is to remove the rooftop swamp cooler and replace the section of the roof that has been damaged by water.  Then we plan to replace the siding of the entire exterior.  I still don’t know where all the money (approximately $50K) is going to come from, but the Lord will provide. I will be doing most of the work and I will be recruiting some other volunteers.

Dayle continues to lead the women’s ministry.  Last month Dayle and a few of the ladies put on a Spring Tea.  We had a total of 30 ladies most of which were from outside of the church.  One of our missionary ladies, Janat Hetrick from Kazakhstan, came as our speaker.  She gave a powerful testimony that challenged all the ladies.  There is much excitement in the church right now, especially from the ladies of the church.  Many have taken “ownership” of things and are putting a lot of effort into the aesthetics and weekly upkeep.

I continue to preach through Second Peter and will be finishing it up in the next two weeks.  After that, I will do a few topical messages before starting a new book.  I also lead most of the Sunday service music on the guitar.  However, I now have two excellent pianists who can play anything.  They are not here every Sunday, but when they are here, I hope to use their talents.   I enjoy leading the music on Sunday, but I am glad that it doesn’t have to be the “Shelley show” all the time anymore.

We have been here nearly nine months now.  We have put the word out on several sites seeking a new pastor.  In the past five months, we have had only three inquiries.  Two of them sent in a  resume and we had to reject them immediately.  One man who runs a pastoral search website told me that he has hundreds of churches without pastors and there are very few applicants.   Even in our own mission (NICE), there are 17 churches looking for a pastor.  I originally estimated that we would be here for about a year.  Now I think that it may be longer.  We need a pastor and wife who are doctrinally fit, healthy, active, able to do physical labor on the property, and can accept what the church can pay.  Not a small order but our God can do it.

On April 18th our daughter, Annie, called and told us that her son, Andy, was graduating as U.S. Army Ranger on the 28th.  We weren’t going to go since it was in Georgia until she told us that he was going to get married to his high school sweetheart the following day. So we bought plane tickets and made the trip to the East.  We flew into Norfolk, Virginia where Mel and Annie picked us up.  Then the next day we all drove to Fort Benning, Georgia.  We all stayed in a large rented house that sleeps 21.  So the 14 of us had plenty of room.  We were all pretty excited about the graduation and the wedding until Andy discovered that he needed permission to get married during training.  Even though he graduated from Ranger training, he was to begin another course of Ranger schooling on Monday.  He then learned that this rule is clearly stated in the US Army Ranger handbook.  When he spoke to his commanding officer, he was told that if he gets married that he would be kicked out of the Ranger program.  He was also told that since he did not seek permission before planning the wedding he might not be allowed to graduate as a ranger because it appears that he was being deceptive.  However, the Army chaplain went to bat for him and he was allowed to graduate and become an Army Ranger.  However, there was no wedding.  They will get married in a small ceremony once he completes all of his training.  

Even though there was no wedding, we did get to meet and spend time with Andy’s fiancee and her family as we all stayed in that big house.  We also got to see Mel and Annie’s house in Hayes, VA which is a waterfront property on the York River.  They continue to work for the same company in Oregon, but just remotely.

On May 29th we will be returning to Port Angeles to complete our annual medical appointments.  Then on June 4th, we will be taking a little trip on a cruise ship to Alaska with some long-time friends whom we met in the ‘70s while we were stationed in Cape May, New Jersey.  They invited us to go along with them so, we are going.  After the cruise, we will return to Port Angels for a couple of days before returning to Orovada.

Our trailer has a problem that I have been trying to fix off and on since we got here.  The 14' wide kitchen slide-out has some mechanical issues.  I had tried many different suggestions to fix the problem all with no success.  The latest “fix” even made it worse.  So I finally decided to make an appointment for July 10th at an RV dealer in Reno, NV.  The service manager assured me that they will fix the problem.   Please pray that this will be done!

Prayer Requests:
~ Please continue to pray for this church and for the Lord to send us the right pastor and wife.
~ Please pray for our friend, Dennis McBride, pastor at Bethany Bible Church, Lake Havasu City, AZ.  He has a pancreatic tumor containing cancer cells and is still undergoing treatment.  He has had some complications.  Also pray for his wife, Lynda as this is extremely hard on her.  But they both at praising the Lord even through this difficult trial.
~ Please pray for our friend, Ryan Wetterlund of Port Angeles from Strait View Baptist Church, who is also fighting cancer.  He just completed his last chemo treatment.  Ryan is married to Joy and they have a young son.

We would love to hear from you from time to time so please don’t hesitate to call, text, or send us a note.  It can get quite lonely out here in the middle of nothing.

Serving our great God and Savior,

Shelley and Dayle

Our mailing address: Phones:  Shelley  (541) 218-9717 or (360) 207-1967
P.O. Box 116   Dayle    (541) 450-5576
Orovada, NV 89425


If you would like to financially support our ministry please send support to:
Northwest Independent Church Extension  PO Box 2225, Sumner, WA  98390, and put our name in the memo.

Or simply go to the NICE website at https://nicechurchplanters.org/donate/




 

 The Gale’s Tales
January 31, 2023
Ministry Update


Dear Family and Friends,

We thank the Lord for your constant outpouring of love and prayer support.  

I began our December ministry update with: “Work, work, work!  The work continues with no end in sight.  Yes, there is much work that we have done and there is still very much work to do.” And I must begin this update in like manner.

I continue teaching basic systematic theology in Sunday School and in the morning service I have returned to Second Peter.  The attendance fluctuates between 10 and 27.  Ministering to a farm and ranching community is certainly different from what I am used to.  But we are learning.  Much of what the farmers and ranchers do is dependent upon the weather.  The weather here has been very cold with rain and snow.

Dayle was able to get together with the ladies to plan the calendar for the year. Many exciting events were planned as outreach to the community such as "Trunk or Treat", Movie Nights featuring good Christian based movies, Easter Resurrection Egg hunt, and many more. Dayle also started a weekly ladies prayer group (suggested by one of the moms),  as well as teaching the Tuesday evening Philippians bible study. She also started volunteering at the local school across the street.

We are continuing to work on the property and parsonage.  We just remodeled and painted the nursery.  As far as the parsonage goes, the probate court was just finished and we can now distribute everything and clear out all the stuff.  The person who inherited all the household items asked us to try to sell all the stuff that she doesn’t want.  Dayle has been doing this and has already sold a bunch of stuff.  

We also just had a retired building contractor look at the entire place and he is working up a cost estimate for materials knowing that we will be doing the work ourselves.  We are also looking into the possibility of purchasing the house next to the church if we can convince the owner to sell it and if we can afford it.  The house is currently not being used so we are hopeful.  

Living way out in the middle of nowhere, can be quite challenging.  We have to plan our weekly trips to Winnemucca as it is a 42-mile drive.  But this is perhaps the only drawback of living so far out is when I need something for a job that I am doing, I can’t just run to the local store, because there are no local stores.  But there are some advantages to living here.  The farmers and ranchers don’t throw away much stuff.  So if I need something, anything, I just go to the farm and scrounge around their “bone yard.”  The bone yard contains everything imaginable.  I have gone and found plumbing parts and electrical parts that I took from old mobile homes and used them in the church and parsonage for repairs.  Recently I made a covered porch for our trailer all from used pallets from the farm and other materials that were just laying around.  I did have to purchase two 2 x 6's and five 2 x 4's. (See Photo below) 

On the first of December, I listed the Pastoral position on the IFCA website but we have not yet had a single inquiry. We still continue to pray for the Lord to send us the right man and wife for this church.

As far as our children and grandchildren all are doing quite well.  Autumn is all healed up from donating her kidney to her brother, Asher.  And she just started as a student at Montana Bible College in Bozeman, Montana.  Asher is doing well with his new kidney.  Aiden is currently serving in Florida at a month-long Korean Awana Camp as the Bible teacher.  This gives their parents, Jason and Shelli, a taste of the empty nest which will be coming when Aiden also goes off to Bible college.

Stephen and Neeley and their two little ones, Jack 10, and Pearl 9 are doing well.  Mel and Annie just moved across the country into the house they just purchased in Hayes, Virginia, Their two boys AJ, is busy working in Grants Pass, Oregon, and is not moving to Virginia with his parents.  Andy is in the US Army and is currently in Ranger training. And Andy just got engaged to his high school girlfriend.

Personally, we are doing great no health problems at all.  Although I greatly miss my Hot Springs Spa.   Every day is an adventure for us and we love doing almost everything together.  We were able to go visit Stephen and Neeley and the kids in Sacramento arriving on Christmas day.  I stayed for 6 days and Dayle stayed another week and came home on the Amtrak train.

Financially, the Lord continues to meet all of our needs even though we are down to only two supporters.  We just had a significant expense for new injectors for the truck but this was not a surprise and we had planned for it.


Prayer Requests:
~ Please continue praying for all of our children as each one is contemplating major changes in their lives.
~ Please continue to pray for this church and it’s future pastor and wife.
~ Please pray for our friend, Dennis McBride, pastor at Bethany Bible Church, Lake Havasu City, AZ.  He has a pancreatic tumor containing cancer cells and is undergoing treatment.  He is scheduled for surgery to remove it on March 14th.  Also pray for his wife, Lynda as this is extremely hard on her.  But they both at praising the Lord even through this difficult trial.

We would love to hear from you from time to time so please don’t hesitate to call, text, or send us a note.

Serving our great God and Savior,

Shelley and Dayle

Our mailing address:            Phones:  Shelley  (541) 218-9717 or (360) 207-1967
    P.O. Box 116                     Dayle    (541) 450-5576
    Orovada, NV 89425


If you would like to financially support our ministry please send support to:
Northwest Independent Church Extension PO Box 2225, Sumner, WA 98390, and put our name in the memo. Or simply go to the NICE website at https://nicechurchplanters.org/donate/


   

The Gale’s Tales
December 2022 Ministry Update


Ecc 9:10  Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might;


Work, work, work!  The work continues with no end in sight.  Yes, there is much work that we have done and there is still very much work to do. 

In Sunday school I am teaching basic systematic theology.  In the worship service, I just began a Christmas series.  Dayle is still teaching Philippians in the women’s Bible study. We minister to the people any way we can and we attend community events when they occur.  We have had a Thanksgiving fellowship with a like-minded church in the next town 30 miles to the north.

The not-so-easy part is the constant work on the building and property.  There is much-planned maintenance which we can accomplish as time permits.  Since our last update letter, I have had to be a plumber repairing leaking faucets and drains.  Replaced two sinks in the church bathrooms and replaced the kitchen faucet.  I have been an electrician and wired in and installed a parking lot light and changed several worn-out electric sockets throughout the building.  We have painted the pastor’s study and are about to paint the nursery and the library.  And there are many, many other little projects that have been done.  Some only take a minute or two and others much longer.  Outdoor work is never-ending but it has slowed down now that freezing temperatures have arrived.  .  But with everything we do we are thankful to the Lord for using us here in Orovada.

We did manage to get away for a few days in November and drive to Sacramento to spend a few days with Stephen and Neeley and the kids.  I also drove back to Port Angeles (an 11-hour drive) to get a bunch of tools that I will be needing around here.

On November 8th, if you remember, our grandchildren Asher and Autumn had undergone kidney surgery.  Autumn donated a kidney to her older brother.  Both have fully recovered.  Asher is like a new man.  We praise the Lord for the successful outcome

The Christmas season is here.  The ladies decorated the church's interior and I put up lights on the exterior.  We love this time of year.  We love all the decorations, the parties, the fellowship, the cookies, and candies, etc.  But this year is a bit different.  We had to cancel our church Christmas party because almost everyone in the church has the flu.  Last Sunday's service was poorly attended because of it.  This is making things kind of lonely around here.  I suppose this is one drawback of a small town.  We are praying that everyone will be better for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.

What the future holds for us is still unknown.  I have just listed the Pastoral position on the IFCA website and we continue to pray for the Lord to send us the right man and wife for this church.  There is still much repair and remodeling that needs to be done to the parsonage, but I thought it would be best to start the search process now.

As far as our children and grandchildren all are doing quite well.  Our granddaughter, Autumn, will be going to Montana Bible College in January and our grandson, Aiden, plans to join her there in August.  This will make Jason and Shelli empty-nesters.  Pray for them all.

Stephen and Neeley, in Sacramento, are thinking about making a move if the right job becomes available.

Mel and Annie are moving to Hayes, Virginia the first of January.  Mel was born and raised in Grants Pass, Oregon but he is ready to make a career change and leave Oregon.  They will manage a large vacation rental property on the banks of the York River.  They are currently packing up and downsizing in preparation to move.  Their eldest son, A.J. will be staying in Grants Pass as he pursues a career as an outdoorsman and river guide.  Their other son, Andy (Bug), is in the U.S. Army currently going through Ranger training.

Dayle and I are doing quite well.  We are just very busy most of the time.  Health-wise,  we both are doing great!  Although I do miss my hot tub spa which keeps my back feeling good.   But we love being used by the Lord and are always amazed at how He always meets our physical and financial needs.    

Prayer Requests:
~ Please pray for all of our children as each one is contemplating major changes in their lives.
~ Please continue to pray for this church and its future pastor and wife.

We would love to hear from you from time to time so please don’t hesitate to send us a note.

Serving our great God and Savior,

Shelley and Dayle

If you would like to financially support this ministry you may send support to:
Northwest Independent Church Extension  PO Box 2225, Sumner, WA  98390, and put our name in the memo.

Or simply go to the NICE website at https://nicechurchplanters.org/donate/

 

 

     


The Gale’s Tales
Update - August 2, 2022
Returning to Orovada, Nevada

Dear Friends;

A little over six years ago after 7 months of interim pastor at Orovada Community Church we installed Bob Burns as pastor.  Bob and his wife seemed to be a good fit for the church.  Three months ago Flora died after struggling with a heart condition.  Then this past Thursday I received a call from Dan, the elder of Orovada Community Church, telling me that Bob suddenly died.  He then asked if we could return as interim pastor to help out and to assist them to find another pastor.

Since returning from serving in Lake Havasu (April 1st) we have been praying about a place for us to serve.  We even kicked around the idea of planting an I.F.C.A. church here on the west side of Port Angeles.  But we are missionaries with NICE who live in a 5th wheel trailer and we can pick up and go anywhere we are needed with very short notice.  So God answered our prayers and we are going to Orovada, NV.  We are saddened for the reason why we are needed there but we are thrilled to be able to serve as needed.  We will be in Orovada for as long as necessary.

Orovada, Nevada is a very small farm and ranch community.  It is located 288 miles due west of Klamath Falls, Oregon where Hwy 140 ends, and 214 miles south of Boise, ID.   It is 42 miles to the nearest grocery store in Winnemucca, NV.  Yes, it is a very isolated place but the hiking and biking trails there are amazing.

Today we are flying to Sacramento to spend a couple weeks with Stephen and Neeley and the kids before they return to school.  Then upon our return we will make things ready and will leave for Orovada about the 23rd of August.. It will take us two days to get there.  Dan said that he will hold things together until our arrival.

Prayer Requests:
Please be in prayer for this small church and for the new pastor that God will provide.  
Also pray for safety as we travel as well as vehicle health.   
Please also pray that our financial needs will be met as fuel prices are very high.

    Always Serving Him,
            Shelley and Dayle
                        

If you would like to financially support this ministry you may send support to:
    Northwest Independent Church Extension  PO Box 2225, Sumner, WA  98390 and put our name in the memo.

Or simply go to the NICE website at https://nicechurchplanters.org/donate/

The Lord is at Work!

Dear Friends and Family,

As I write this update I am reminded of what Jesus said in Matthew 16:18, “...I will build my church; and the gates of Hades will not over power it.” It is almost daily that we the Lord building His church here at Sequim Bible Church. 

When I came on staff last December as associate Pastor the church is in turmoil.  Satan was hard at work in SBC and had won many victories.  The church had lost many members due to a lack biblical leadership and other internal problems that were not properly handled.  In addition to losing many people, there was a strong charismatic faction; a faction of some people who were very critical of the pastor and they met together in one home “bible study” that was led by the elder chairman; and a group of disgruntled people who were only here to be served.  We had an elder board chairman who was a  non-cessationist.  We had a charismatic youth pastor and another charismatic elder.  Because of this we were not able to get much of anything accomplished in our elder meetings.  We could not agree on how the church should operate, or on what we should teach, and what we should even do during a worship service.  One example..a few months ago I took it upon myself to read Scripture during the service and one of them said that scripture reading in the service was too traditional and should not be done that way, if at all.

Pastor Shane and I knew that we were in fact in a spiritual battle and we knew that this was not a battle that we can fight by ourselves.  We began to pray for the Lord to fight this fight as we knew that this battle was far beyond our capabilities.  We asked the Lord to either change the hearts of the above mentioned people or to move them out.  Within one week the Chairman of the elder board (the non-cessationist) got upset and resigned his position and their membership and left the church.  Along with them also left several people in their very critical group.  Then last month the youth pastor resigned and several more people left who were of the disgruntled group.  Then just three weeks ago the charismatic elder resigned and left the church. (Now, don't get me wrong...these were all good men, but it was not a right fit for them to be at SBC.) Suddenly, we realized that the factious and divisive group was gone. Shane said that this is the first time in 12 years that we have a united elder board.  The last elder meeting was the first time that we were totally united in all things. 

We are very encouraged to see how the Lord has been moving people out as well as bringing people in.  By my estimation we have lost about 30 people and yet the giving has not decreased.  We are also seeing many new people who have moved into the area.  We have several new couples now interested in church membership.  One couple left another church in the area because they wanted sound bible teaching.  This too is exciting because it appears that the church’s reputation is beginning to change.  The past reputation has not been good, and we are doing all we can to change that.

Three weeks ago Pastor Shane and I started a new youth group.  The previous youth group was an entertainment based evangelical outreach primarily to the local high school.  Now we have a discipleship based youth group that is designed to teach the Word to the youth of our church.  The first night we had nine kids, then 12 and last week we had 15 kids.  Some of these kids are from our church who had no desire to attend the previous youth group or its activities.

We are now working on many things that were impossible in years past.  Such as Doctrinal improvements and constitutional changes.  Needless to say, we are all quite busy.    Shane and I are are running the youth group.  Dayle is the assistant director of women’s ministry, I am heading up the new men’s ministry as well as overseeing many other ministries. But it isn’t all work and no play.

The first week of September Dayle and I hooked up our trailer and went to Klamath Falls, Oregon.  There we set up camp at the home of Bob and Tanya Morgan.  It was such a blessing to be able to spend time with them again and we were able to see many other dear friends from our church in Klamath Falls.  Then we met all the kids at the Lake of the Woods Resort.  We celebrated our 48th anniversary with all of our children and grand children.  Bob and Tanya gave us two child size kayaks for Jack and Pearl and they loved them.  Thanky you Bob and Tanya!!!

Dayle and I have the added blessing of going to the church together almost every day.  We are at the church normally three to five days a week.  This week however, we will be here six days.  Dayle is busy organizing the Women’s Fall Conference which will be Friday and Saturday.  I will be on hand to help out with electronics and anything else they may need.

Support wise we are doing ok.  Our expenses have increased due to a few vehicle and trailer repairs as well as some unexpected dental expenses to fix a broken tooth with a crown.  But we are always amazed at how the Lord always seems to meet our needs.  Health wise we couldn’t be better.  We both remain physically active with hiking and biking. (Yes, I still try to hit the trails a couple of times a week.) Dayle regularly works out with calisthenics exercise and light weights in the trailer.  She also seems to have her osteoporosis in check.

We covet your prayers for our church as we continue to rebuild Sequim Bible Church upon a firm foundation.  Pray for Pastor Shane as he still struggles with all the demands on his time.  Pray that our church will continue to be unified and to bond together as a church family should.

Also continue to pray for our 16 year old grandson, Aiden.  Aiden has Alport Syndrome and will be requiring a kidney transplant probably by the end of the year.  Aiden’s dad (Jason) and his aunt (Neeley) are both under going testing to determine if they are a match to be a kidney donor.  We pray that one of them is a match otherwise, a donor will have to be sought from the National Kidney Registry.

Also please pray for the Galli family.  This is Annie's in-laws.  Annie's mother-in-law, Rosa, has been given just 3 months as her body is riddled with cancer.  Rosa is a strong believer but her husband who is also a believer is taking this very hard.  Rosa has always been like the glue that seems to always hold everything together.

One more item of business:  I am slowly doing away with my Netzero email address.  Please use my longtime Gmail address for future correspondence: Bikerider1004@gmail.com



If you would like to assist us financially please send your donations to:

         Northwest Independent Church Extension
            P.O. Box 2225
            Sumner, WA 98390                Phone: (253) 826-7881

July 2019

Dear Friends and Family,

One of the things that we want to do is send out a newsletter every month.  But it’s been 2 ½ months since our last one.  That’s because we are either very busy or lazy....I think we’ll go with busy.  And busy we have been!

At the end of May we drove down to Southern California to attend my niece Madison’s high school graduation.

After a few days of helping my sister around her house we went to our old church church on Sunday, Grace Community Church. We spent the entire morning at Grace and reconnected with many long time friends.  After the day at church we drove north to our kid’s home in Sacramento where we spent the next 10 days and cared for the grand children while Stephen and Neeley went away for a 4 day trip to celebrate their tenth anniversary.  We had a good time with the kids and we did lots of bicycle riding. Our six year old grandson, Jack, rode about 225 miles with me (Shelley) on the Trail-a-Bike.
 

Dayle and Jack on just a short ride.

We returned home on June 14th driving the entire 800 miles in one day.

The ministry at Sequim Bible Church is a continuing challenge.  But what ministry isn’t?  Myself and the other two pastors are now meeting twice a week.  We are now discussing theological topics as well as working together to be like-minded in ministry.  If the three of us can be unified in direction, purpose, and method then we should be able to lead the rest. This is very exciting and encouraging...please pray for us as we work together for the Lord's glory.

Two weeks ago Pastor Shane finished his office enough to move in and I moved in to his old office.  Here is a picture of my new study.  What a joy it is to have a permanent place to work.


Dayle has jumped in with both feet.  She is the assistant women’s ministry director.  She teaches a mid week women’s Bible study, counsels women, works the welcome center on Sundays, and is one of the church librarians.  She sets up for our Sunday Evening Family bible Study and is ready to help wherever needed.  She also comes to church with me almost every day and never lacks things to do.

Last time I requested prayer for the church’s financial situation.  Finances are still tight but this last quarter we met budget.  This was very encouraging to us as we hope that we have “turned a corner.”  Many of the past problems have gone away and the overall general attitude appears to be more positive.

As far as our monthly support goes, we are still greatly lacking but we are always amazed how the Lord provides.  As of right now we are at about 33% of what is needed.

If you would like to assist us financially please send your donations to:

         Northwest Independent Church Extension
            P.O. Box 2225
            Sumner, WA 98390                Phone: (253) 826-7881

Prayer Requests:
    Please continue to pray for Sequim Bible Church.  Especially for continued unity, love, and growth among the brethren. Pray for the church’s financial situation.
    Pray for continued unity among the three pastors. 
    Pray for Shane, the senior pastor, for wisdom and time to complete all the necessary tasks in front of him (Sermon prep, Seminary courses, counseling, and more.)
    Pray for Patrick, the youth pastor: 1) his wife is about to have their second child. 2) He is having a house built, and 3) pray for his continued rehabilitation.  (Ten years ago at youth camp he broke his neck and has been recovering ever since.  He gets around on crutches and continues to improve through physical therapy although it is a very long process.)

Campylobacter and a trip to the Hospital

Dear Family and Friends,

So much has happened since our last newsletter.  Just before we were to depart for California and the Shepherd’s Conference I got really sick.  I just thought it was a simple case of the stomach flu.  But after three days of severe diarrhea, high fever, and passing out three times we thought it might be serious so off to the Emergency Room we went.  I felt so sick I though that I was going to die.  OK, maybe I am exaggerating a bit here, but I am one of those people who never gets sick.  I was severely dehydrated, my kidneys had shut down, and my skin color was very pale.  They immediately began pumping 2 ½ liters of IV fluid into me.  It turns out that I had contracted a bacteria called campylobacter.  Campylobacteriosis is an infectious disease caused by the bacteria.  Most people can fight off the bacteria without any medical intervention, but not this kid.  For the next two to three weeks my energy slowly returned.  Now five weeks later, I feel normal again. We are so thankful to God that we have great insurance and good doctors.

Five days after my ER visit,  I felt well enough to drive and so we left for California 6 days later than planned (although this was God’s plan all along). We made it to Sacramento on Saturday and then on Monday I continued on south.  Dayle stayed  Stephen and Neeley in Sacramento and I continued to L.A. I stayed with our dear friends, Brian and Christine Rush for the Shepherd’s Conference as they live much closer than my sister.  As expected the conference was a wonderful time of refreshment and encouragement.

The ministry at Sequim Bible Church continues.  Since our last newsletter we have begun the FLOCKS home bible studies.  We did not get the interest as we expected but we do have two home bible studies that are going and Dayle will be starting a women’s study next month.

On April 7th, we started the Sunday Evening Family Fellowship.  This is going to be a weekly event with Music, food, fellowship and Bible study. We had 50 people in attendance on our first night and everyone seemed pretty excited about the whole thing.  I led the singing with the guitar and I am teaching a basic theology series on Who is God.  I am also team teaching an adult Sunday School class on James with my good friend Tim Smith. There are several other administrative jobs that I am working on which are all keeping me quite busy. I now have a temporary office in the church building where I spend much of my week.  One of the major tasks is the implementation of a program for first-time guests and follow-up.  I have designed a welcome package and the church secretary, Sandy, is busy doing her graphic arts magic.  The plan is to warmly greet first-time guests, have someone invite them to their home for lunch or ask them out, then either Pastor Shane or myself will deliver a plate of home made cookies  We hope to have everything finalized in a couple of weeks.
 
The church continues to have difficulties from the past that we still have to deal with.  But Pastor Shane, the elders, and I are continually working together to take care of these issues in a Biblical manner.  The church continues to have financial difficulties and we have had to make even more cuts. But we are all very blessed to see the Lord working in His church and in the hearts of His people.  The Lord said the “He will build His church” (Mt. 16:18) therefore we will remain faithful to His Word.

Personally, we are busier than we have been in many years but we love the work.  Dayle is at the church at least one full day every week and some times she is there even more.  It is such a joy to be serving the Lord together,  We don’t even mind the 25 mile drive to church every day.

Financially we have not yet even come close to what is required by our mission.  As of right now we are just under 10% of what is required.


Prayer Requests:
    Please continue to pray for Sequim Bible Church.  Especially for continued unity, love, and growth among the brethren. Pray for the church’s financial situation.
    Pray for Pastor Shane as he has much to do and not enough time in the day to do it.
    Pray for our financial support.


 If you would like to assist financially please send your donations to:
    Northwest Independent Church Extension
    P.O. Box 2225
    Sumner, WA 98390                Phone: (253) 826-7881

Shelley and Pastor Shane

Dayle serving at Sunday Evening Family Fellowship

Greetings from Snowy Port Angeles

Hello Family and Friends,

Greetings from a snowy Port Angeles, WA.  Over the last week we have received over three feet of snow.  And more snow is expected soon.  It is so deep that we couldn’t get our cars out.  I even had to dig out my four wheel drive truck .  Needless to say, everyone is tired and sore from shoveling snow.

It is quite obvious that many of you have been praying for us and the ministry at Sequim Bible Church as we have seen things happen very quickly that only the Lord could have accomplished. However, there is still much that needs to be done.  Sadly, we have seen a couple of people leave but also have received several new members.  I like what we are hearing from many of the members about the way the church is going.  So we are quite encouraged.

Pastor Shane and I have been working together on many things.  I am amazed just how much he and I think alike.  It is such a joy to be working with a like-minded pastor and one that really loves his flock.  Shane is quite busy with sermon preparation, church business, a cell phone that never stops ringing, online seminary courses, and family.  Please keep him in your prayers.
   
We have been planning home Bible Study small groups which we will be calling FLOCKS (Fellowship. Leadership development, Outreach, Caring, Knowledge, and Service).  The first one begins this evening. 

We have assisted with the organization and operation of the Women’s Ministry.  Dayle is the assistant director of the leadership team.  The Biblical Counseling course has begun and both Dayle and I along with several other church members and taking it. 

We have had some delays in remodeling the senior pastor’s office due to other pressing matters, but we work on it as we can.  I hope to get him in possibly as early as next week.  But, I have said that before.

In two weeks we will be driving south.  I will be going to the Shepherd’s Conference at Grace Community Church and Dayle will be staying with Steve and Neeley in Sacramento.  I will be staying at my sister’s house for a couple of nights and then with some good friends in Santa Clarita for the conference nights.  Pastor Shane and Tim Smith will also be attending the Shepherd’s Conference but they will be flying down.

Prayer Requests:
    Please continue to pray for the ministry at Sequim Bible Church. 
    Pray for Pastor Shane.  He has much to do and needs wisdom and more hours in the day.
        Pray for additional financial support.   We have much to go before we meet our monthly goal.

 If you would like to assist financially please send your donations to:
    Northwest Independent Church Extension
    P.O. Box 2225
    Sumner, WA 98390                Phone: (253) 826-7881


Always Serving,
Shelley for both of us!

It's "Pastor" Shelley Once Again

We are very excited to announce that it’s "Pastor" Shelley once again. Well more accurately Associate Pastor Shelley. This last Sunday I was privileged to preach and then during the Sunday School hour the entire church met in the sanctuary to get to know and question me. After the Q and A session the elders were unanimous making it official approving me as associate pastor.

Sequim Bible Church

As far as the full extent of what my duties will be has yet to be determined. But for now I will be coordinating the small group/home Bible study program, men’s discipleship ministry as well as being involved with the counseling ministry training program. I will begin leading a home bible study beginning next week. I also hope to take some of the load off the senior pastor.

Dayle will be on the board of directors for the women’s ministry and she also is working on getting her Biblical Counseling Certification

The first task at hand is to get Pastor Shane into the senior pastor’s office. I have been busy remodeling, sanding, painting, and refinishing cabinetry. I hope to have everything finished and get him moved by the end of next week.

I will be remaining on missionary status with N.I.C.E. Assigned to Sequim Bible Church as I help Pastor Shane and the elders rebuild the church. The past year has been quite difficult for the church with a partial church split resulting in serious financial problems. The elders have said that it is like they are starting all over. There is much work to be done and we are very excited to be part of it.

The church is just 25 miles from where we live and we are very thankful that we will not have to move our trailer to another location.  We did ask the Lord for a ministry where we would not have to leave the kids.  We are truly amazed how He always takes care of us!

Please partner with us in prayer support. Specifically, please pray for unity and wisdom among the church leadership. As far as our financial support goes we still have much to go. I am confident that our great God will supply all of our needs. If you would like to assist financially please send your donations to:
    Northwest Independent Church Extension
    P.O. Box 2225
    Sumner, WA 98390                Phone: (253) 826-7881

Always Serving,
Shelley for both of us!                            www.SequimBible.com

Returning to Active Duty

Dear friends and family,

As we are writing this, we are on our 6^th week of our "Across the USA Adventure", towing our house behind us. At every step of the way, we are constantly reminded of the awesome power and love and mercy that God has and continues to shower upon His creation. We have seen many wonderful sights that we have never seen before. We took the northern route, I-90 across the USA. Then in Sioux Falls, SD, we went south to the I-80 until we arrived at Clarks Summit University (Baptist Bible College) where we attended Bible college. The president of CSU, Dr. Jim Lyle and his wife Diane, were neighbors in the trailer park where we all lived during college days and they gave us the "red carpet treatment". We actually parked on the campus for the week we were there. Just walking the beautiful campus brought back such fond memories. From CSU we went south along the coast, stopping at many historical places of the early days of our country, as well as Civil War locations. We went south all the way to Beaufort, South Carolina.

But the most exciting part of this trip has been reconnecting with friends and many "long lost" friends. The first three days of the trip was spent in Yakima, Washington for the NICE 60^th Anniversary Regional Conference. There we saw many friends and met some new ones. In Montana we stayed with our good friends from LAPD and Grace Community church, Dave and Lisa Roward. In Indiana we spent time with Dean and Pat Shroud that we met while serving in Lake Havasu, AZ. And then came the long-lost friends! We reconnected with Cappy and Herb Parsons, friends from our Coast Guard days when we were first married (1971--that was 47 years ago). One couple that we last saw in 1979 when stationed at Air Station Cape May, NJ, was Dan and Debbie Scoggins. Dan got me started playing guitar and was also one of the few Coast Guard couples who were believers. We also saw many friends from Bible college days, Dar and Jim Sikorsky, Evelyn Davis, and Jim and Diane Lytle. In Beaufort, SC we parked in the drive way of our Bible college neighbors, John and Janie Chitester. It was only 29 years since we last saw them. With all of these dear friends, it is very encouraging to see their faith and how the Lord continues to work in the lives of His children.

After Beaufort we then turned west, officially marking the beginning of the return leg of our trip. In a few days, I am very excited to be seeing my best friend and next-door neighbor while growing up and his family in Tipton, Missouri. As I write this letter, we are at Big Bone Lick State Park in Union, Kentucky because it is right between the Creation Museum and the Ark Encounter, which we will see in the next two days.

When we return to Port Angeles around December 1^st, we will begin a new ministry at Sequim Bible Church. For the past 2½ years we have been on a leave of absence from "active duty" with NICE while our son, Jason, was completing his Coast Guard career at a unit on the other side of the state. We were there, at first, to take care of the family and things around the house. Well, now he is retired from the US Coast Guard which freed us up to return to active service with NICE. But there is just one little problem. We absolutely love being there with the kids and we made their home our home. We still live in our 40 foot 5^th wheel trailer, which we park under a huge carport. I also built an office/music room on the property.

During the past 2 ½ years we were serving in two different local churches. In the last church I was preaching regularly for over a year, but now that they have a new pastor it was time for us to return to NICE. It just so happens that Sequim Bible Church (SBC) is in desperate need of help. SBC is just 25 miles from our house so we will not have to leave the kids. The church recently went through a major internal problem with an elder and because the church leadership did what was Biblically right, a large number of people left the church. This created a huge financial shortfall and the senior pastor decided to retire six months early. The church, then, wisely asked the assistant pastor to be the new senior pastor. The new senior pastor, Shane McCrossen, has asked us to come onboard and we are excited to do so. Pastor Shane has asked me to head up a men’s discipleship ministry, teach a theology class and also lead a home bible study. Dayle will be involved in women’s ministry and discipleship. We also talked about starting a Biblical counseling ministry and other things. Obviously, this will be a long-term ministry.


Because of the church’s financial situation, they will not be able to cover our expenses, which will primarily be office and travel expenses. My mission agency, (N.I.C.E.) has approved this ministry and has required that we raise some financial support as well as prayer support. SBC cannot afford to offer financial assistance at this time. But serving in churches that need help and can’t pay for it has been our ministry for these past 8 years.

We do believe that the Lord will provide all our needs and we also know that He uses us to accomplish His will. Therefore, if you feel the leading of the Lord to partner with us in prayer support and/or financial, we would be very grateful. Any support sent through NICE is tax deductible and when sending to NICE be sure note our name on your check.

Northwest Independent Church Extension
P.O. Box 2225, Sumner WA 98390
Phone (253) 826-7881

Our permanent mailing address is:
300 Dan Kelly Rd
Port Angeles, WA 98363

Cell phones: Shelley (541) 218-9717
                     Dayle (541) 450-5576

Prayer Requests:
1. For continued safety and vehicle health as we travel
2. Pastor Shane McCrossen and Sequim Bible Church
3. For our future ministry at Sequim Bible Church

　

Sincerely in Christ,

　

Shelley and Dayle Gale

Special Missionaries

Our Son Retired for the U.S. Coast Guard

We have been in Port Angeles for over two years now.  We first came here at the request of Jason and Shelli.  For the last year Jason was stationed in Ilwaco, Washington which was a 4.5 hour drive away. He came home every other weekend and we were here to help out in his absence.  While here we got involved in several ministries which included teaching a home bible study, teaching in the home school cooperative, teaching and preaching in church, and made some very good friends.

But three weeks ago, Jason left his Coast Guard unit for the last time. After 25 years of service to our country he has retired.  So what does that mean for us?  We are free!  We are free to resume ministry with N.I.C.E.  However, we have several things that we need to accomplish this Summer first.  We just got back from a week in Pinon Hills, CA and attended my nephew's high school graduation.  The weather was sunny and very warm which we greatly miss.  Aside from the graduation the highlight was that my sister convinced my Dayle to ride one of her horses.  Dayle has not been on a horse since a scary horseback ride shortly after we got married in 1971.

   [Click on pictures to enlarge]










On Sunday June 10th Dayle leaves for Mexico City to be with her sister (Ellen Parker) in Mexico City.  She will be there for three long weeks.  During that time they will be going to Cancun where both Ellen and Dayle will be speaking at a women's conference.

While my Dayle is away I will be quite busy working with Jason as we run water, electricity, and Ethernet cable for an RV pad in the back of the property.  This will be for Jason's RV which will be used as a guest house especially for Shelli's parents.  They will be here in July and we are all looking forward to their arrival.  

This Summer we hope to spend some time with Stephen and Neeley in Sacramento. Then in September we hope to begin a cross country trip with our 5th wheel trailer and then hopefully in January we will return to "active" duty with N.I.C.E.  But, of course, everything is tentative.  We don't know how much longer we will be needed to fill the pulpit in our church, and there is another nearby church that keeps asking me to come on board and serve with them in an assistant pastoral capacity.  

Now that Jason has retired he began to work as a handyman/small job contractor.  He is quite a talented craftsman and has already received several jobs.  He is not a fan of doing drywall.  So the deal is that he puts up the drywall and I will do the taping, mudding, and finishing.  We have completed one job together and it was so much fun working with my son.  I think we make a pretty good team.  So this too is something we need to consider when it comes to our future long-term plans.

So as you can see we have much going on and even though we have plans everything is dependent upon family needs and ministry needs. 

As for our health we are both now on Medicare and are in near perfect health.  We still have the normal aches and pains but we refuse to let any of that stop us.

Please pray for Jason and Shelli as they enter married life for the first time while not being in the Coast Guard.  Also pray for clear direction in our future ministry.

Life and Ministry Continues

Since our last post in April, there has been so much happening that it will be difficult to list it all so I will summarize.

I have been preaching regularly at Peninsula Bible Church.  This church lost its pastor and had several struggles since then. We have gotten to know many of the members and we have decided to make PBC our new home church. There is much opportunity to serve at PBC and we a looking forward to continued fellowship and service.

Both Dayle and I are teaching a Bible class at Alethia, the home school co-op on Wednesday mornings. And I am teaching a Friday night home Bible study.  Dayle desciples two ladies every week. So, we are keeping pretty busy.

Right now we are in Sacramento for Christmas with Stephen, Neeley and the grandkids.  We will be returning home the first week of January.

Another Chapter

Since our last posting several things have changed.  Last year we joined Strait View Baptist Church and had hoped to be an asset to the pastor as well as be involved teaching and assistant pastoral ministry.  As time went on it became quite obvious that we were not really needed there.  I contacted our mission director and asked him to put us back on the "active duty" list.  Then almost immediately two opportunities came our way.  A local church here in Port Angeles (Peninsula Bible Church) has asked me to help out with some pulpit fill until they get a new pastor.  And another church in Sequim has asked me to come and head up their men's discipleship and training ministry.  I will be meeting with the pastor soon to discuss this further.  I am scheduled to preach at PBC on April 30th.

So, just before we took a short two week vacation to be with Stephen, Neeley and the kids in Sacramento, we said our farewells to Strait View Baptist as we embark on yet another new ministry.

We both continue to teach Bible classes in Alethia, (the home school coop run by our daughter-in-law, Shelli and her close friend Kerry).  I also teach a home bible study every Friday night at the home of one of our friend's in town.  Dayle continues to disciple two young moms from Strait View Baptist church.

We both also now volunteer at My Choices, Pregnancy Resources Center which is the local crisis pregnancy center.  Dayle is training to be an advocate or counselor for clients.  I am their handyman and I am now the Director of Community Development Public Relations.  I will be going throughout the communities which we serve and educating the public concerning what we do.  We both have committed to one day a week and other days and times as needed.

Jason finally got his transfer orders to Ilwaco, Washington.  Ilwaco is the extreme south west corner of the state and is a 4 1/2 hour drive from Port Angeles.  So Jason will be living in a camp trailer in an RV park and will come home on weekends.  He plans on doing this until he retires in 2018.  We are all very thankful that he didn't get transferred any further.  This will still be a strain on Shelli and the kids but we will be here to help out.

Softball season is starting again and Asher and I are once again on the US Coast Guard team.  I am the assistant coach.  Speaking of Asher.  Yesterday was a very special day.  Asher was baptized.  He stood up in front of everyone and gave his personal testimony on his journey to true faith in Christ.  Please keep him in your prayers and he grows in the Lord.