Greetings From Southwestern Iowa
Dearest Friends & Family,
Greetings from the cornfields of Southwestern Iowa! Today marks 1,000 hours since arriving on the field, greeted warmly by the gathered congregation of Faith Community Church as we drove into town on May 21st. It’s been both encouraging and challenging as we seek to advance the Gospel here in every way with every soul with every encounter because we know that the best thing we can be on our best days is a sign that points clearly to Christ—and there are MANY in Southwestern Iowa who need Him.
Southwestern Michigan is culturally Dutch in Heritage and reformed in religious practice, and Southwestern Iowa is much the same, except that the flavor is a little different. We Scotts have landed in the midst of one of the most dense settlements of Danish immigrants in America, dating back to the mid-1800s. With those immigrants came the Lutheran religion and we’ve already discovered, as we share the Gospel in everyday conversation, that many souls here, if not most, are trusting in their family traditions of infant baptism and their confirmation classes to get them to Heaven.
Salvation, so many here believe, is something that was done to them by someone else (parents & pastor) and something they accomplished (completing confirmation class), not something that God does. Salvation by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone is a foreign concept to most here, so we really are missionaries, as there is no other church in this town sharing the Ephesians 2:8-10 Gospel with the people here. It seems a strange idea that here in America, you can drive through towns without a single, strong Gospel-preaching, Gospel-sharing church. But you can. And God cares about this one 16 miles north of I-80 in Western Iowa enough to send us here! Goodness.
This fall our Faith Community Church will begin hosting evangelistic Bible studies in homes not only in Audubon, but in the surrounding communities of Elk Horn, Manning, & Atlantic. Also, as school starts, Shannon will be introducing herself to the teachers here in Audubon and in surrounding areas, offering her help as a National Board certified reading specialist available to help those students who are struggling to read for FREE. She’ll be helping those students in their homes, in the school, and at the church, as a way to give away something of tremendous and lasting value to families that we can then give Christ the credit for and open a clear pathway to share the Gospel that saves souls and transforms lives.
Living in VERY rural America has presented some challenges that required some patient adjustments. One of those is our AT&T phones were dead as doornails on arrival here. No service at all. It took a little time to acquire new phones and service, and we are both sad and depending on grace as we know we’ve lost texts and voicemails we’d LOVE to return. Now, beginning with our first email newsletter here, we get to begin really connecting again. If you sent us a note of any kind after May 20th and have not heard back from us, please try again. Here’s our contact information on the field:
606 E. Division Street
Audubon, Iowa 50025
Dave’s email: TeachingSomethingGood@gmail.com
Shannon’s email: VinitaReading@yahoo.com
In our first 1,000 hours here, we’ve logged conversations with more than 100 souls (there are fewer than 2,000 here in Audubon)! Some of those conversations have been 5-10 minutes. Some have lasted hours. Some contained elements of the Gospel we were able to slip in and others included clear Gospel presentations. We’re thankful for each of these Divine appointments as we recognize they are each arranged and prepared by our Savior for us as gifts so that we have the opportunity to please and bless Him, much like a father giving money to a child so the child can buy him a Father’s Day gift! We’d ask you to especially pray for a few of those souls we describe below the Lord brought us to who stood out to us as folks the Lord really wants us to connect with for His Name’s sake in the coming days, weeks, months, & years.
Bob S. — I met Bob at 5:30 AM my second day in town, as I was walking to the church for a breakfast meeting. I spent just over 30 minutes talking to this 79 year old atheist who is hard-working and friendly, but describes himself as not a “church guy.” I shared a little of the Gospel, but he was focused on other things, so I asked him, “If you’re not a church guy, are you a lunch guy?”
“Huh?” Bob said.
“You eat lunch don’tchya?” I said with a smile.
“Sure,” Bob grinned, “if you’re buyin.”
“Done deal. I’ll be in touch soon.”
“Sounds good.”
And just like that, I’ve got a lunch date with an atheist who lives close by.
Jake S. — Jake lives next door to us and has been nothing but kind and eager to talk. He speaks about church experiences, some good and some bad, but, like most, is focused on his work, family, friends, and pets (he’s a dog guy). He’s not yet come to a church service, and I don’t have a clear understanding of if he’s saved, but we’re set to eat lunch together in a couple of days. I intend to find out.
Curtis P. — Curtis owns the local pest control & carpet cleaning company in town. I called him to come clean and restore the carpets in one of the larger sections of the church that badly needed it. Because a few sections needed repair that has taken some time, I’ve already spent more than two hours with Curtis. As I shared the Gospel, he was surprisingly open to talking about it, but guarded in acknowledging any need on his part to be anything other than good. He’s coming to finish the carpet work soon, and I’ll be looking for the Lord to show me the best way to share. I’m so glad the carpet needed work!
Courtney N. & Amanda K. — These young women helped us arrange to receive our new driver’s licenses and license plates. In a small town like this, it’s not uncommon to spend more time talking through what brings us to town, who we’re living next to, and to share a summary of your life story. We were the only ones there and it took the better part of an hour, but we learned so much. When people are your focus instead of your agenda, you’re free from the frustration many feel who want to control their own lives instead of the Lord controlling it for them!
Courtney is in her 20’s, married, with a young child and grew up Lutheran, but never completed her confirmation class. I gently told her there’s no class required to spend forever with Jesus. Her response was characterized by a hopeful confusion, and she’s interested in something different than what she “grew up with.” We’ll be following up with Courtney. Amanda converted to Catholicism when she married her husband, but she said it doesn’t do her any good. We were able to share with here elements of the Gospel, but follow up is needed. That will happen soon, Lord willing.
There are dozens of other stories we could share, but as the author of Hebrews wrote, “…what more shall I say? For the time would fail me to tell of…” (11:32). We’ll save more stories for another newsletter. The folks I’ve mentioned above are normal, not special. They live everywhere. These are the ones we’ve met in Audubon, Iowa, where there’s no other full-time shepherd and his family sharing the Gospel. We’re THRILLED to have been chosen to be sent!
In addition to praying for Bob, Jake, Curtis, Courtney, and Amanda, we have a couple of very specific requests we’d LOVE for you to take to our Father the next time you speak to Him:
1) Our wonderful son, John, is 9 years old, in a church that has no other children just yet. He’s adjusting well in every other regard, but it’s obvious he’s missing being with other children in a big way. We absolutely believe the Lord cares about him and his good desires and needs.
Would you please pray with us the Lord will provide for John in this area in a way that’s obviously His provision, so our family can share a future update and clearly say, “Look what the Lord did!”
2) The speed with which the Lord provided to launch us into the field here in Iowa was nothing short of miraculous. We are responsible for inviting other believers to come alongside of us to provide our need of a total of $5,000 every month.
Currently, the Lord’s providing $3,366 of that total through dozens of His faithful servants who are sacrificially and cheerfully rooting, praying, and giving so that the people here can hear of Jesus, believe in Jesus, and call on Him for their salvation. “How then shall they call on Him in whom they have not believed? And how shall they believe in Him of whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without a preacher? And how shall they preach unless they are sent?” (Romans 10:14-15).
We’re so thankful for that miracle, and that moves us to absolutely believe He’ll miraculously prepare the hearts of those who will provide the remaining one-third of funds needed. This 67% the Lord has already provided is 2/3 of what we need and isenough to be sent, but not enough to sustain—for us to remain on the field beyond a year or so. With such clear need, direction, and opportunities before us, we do not believe the Lord means for this to be a short-term assignment. If it’s His will, though, He will provide for His will to be accomplished, as He always does and has.
Will you pray the Lord will provide for our good desires and needs, trusting with us He will?!
Thanks for investing in us and being our friends, caring enough to read, pray, and send us.
If the Lord leads you to partner with us to provide the needed support as a way He’ll answer the prayers of many, you can start the process on this webpage:
https://give.villagemissions.org/donate/missionaries/missionary-detail/a-scott-dave-and-shannon
Please DO ask if you have any questions. We love you! The Lord loves you MORE!
Living for Jesus,
Pastor Dave Scott
Faith Community Church
Audubon, Iowa
712-563-2059 (church)