2022 July Newsletter

Greetings from The Keystone Project and All Our Disciples in the Nations! 

“THEREFORE THERE IS NOW NO CONDEMNATION FOR THOSE WHO ARE IN CHRIST JESUS” (ROMANS 8:1).

I was asked to speak to the interns this week, specifically using the lesson we teach on the Judgment Seat of Christ. I explained to them that the “Bema” of Christ was a judgment of our kingdom works for the purpose of issuing rewards, emphasizing to them that it was not a judgment for our sins. One of the interns was deeply moved and came to me at the end of the lesson and said she had always believed that her sins would be judged in heaven when she died. She saw for the first time that her sins had already been judged and that Jesus had paid the full price for them. She was amazed that her sins were no longer a barrier between her and the Lord. As I pondered this, I thought about so many Christians who, despite having heard the gospel of the kingdom many times, still carry their sins with them. I am convinced that many followers of Jesus do not know or cannot comprehend the finality and completeness of grace through Jesus’ death on the cross. It is my prayer that the Lord will enable and empower all of us to continue to preach and teach the full gospel of the kingdom, that we will do it in the power of the Spirit, and that many, many others, like this intern, will have kairos moments with God’s grace as they hear this wondrous and beautiful message. 

Updates 

• The May training, though just a five-day event, was excellent. We took the students out on mission twice, saw several touched and transformed lives, and baptized six students! I am so thankful for our staff, coaches, and volunteers. They make these training events happen and do everything with excellence. 

• The summer internship program is going very well. We have seen much growth in the interns, and they have made a huge impact on the international students in Keystone. Many of those students regularly attend our Redemptive Community meetings and the intern missional activity times as well. 

• Thanks to Marge Greene and our staff, we celebrated another “Christmas in July.” Many international students participated, and for a number of them, it was their first experience with Christ’s birth. 

• The Online Academy continues to grow and is impacting many people in the nations. We have received several powerful testimonies from students. Our greatest need is for more coaches. Currently, there are 117 students enrolled in the academy. 

• The COVID pandemic really hurt some of our supporting churches. Please pray for them to fully recover in health and membership. We have three support-raising trips planned: Florida (the Tampa Bay area) – July 19-August 2; Minneapolis – exact dates to be determined; Indiana – August 20-28. Pray for us as we travel, preach, reconnect with churches and old supporters, and make new friends and new supporters. 

• We continue to volunteer with Feeding South Dakota by distributing food to the residents of the town. This is something we truly enjoy as we meet the great people of Keystone. 

• God continues to provide for us in so many unexpected ways. The walk-in freezer is filled to the max with food. Several students at the April training made donations to the ministry. Though our support levels have dropped, we are still seeing God’s hand of provision and blessing upon us. I want to encourage you to help us. Even a small donation of ten dollars a month will move us forward in completing the mission God has given to us to make disciples of all the nations. You can easily give through our website, https://keystoneproject.org. 

• Our next training is a month-long event from October 3-28. It will include translation into Spanish and French. This training, as with all our trainings, is provided at no cost to you. Your hotel room and food are included. You can apply on our website. Don’t delay as we are expecting a full class, and seating is limited. 

Prayer 

• Pray for our disciples around the world, especially those living and working in dangerous areas of persecution or where they are affected by the pandemic. 

• Pray for the financial success and growth of the hotel and The Keystone Project. 

• Pray for the interns to have a powerful summer. 

• Pray for our staff, who work so hard and have sacrificed so much to serve the Lord through the mission He has given to us. 

For God’s Glory, 

Richard W. Greene
President, The Keystone Project, Inc.

God is on the Mission!

God is always on mission! Just like we teach in the training, our staff and volunteers are living out the mission right where we are! We believe that, as we go out in the power of the Holy Spirit, we will be led to the people whom God is calling and make an impact in whatever context we find ourselves. This is true of the Redemptive Community we started in Rapid City. Over the last year, the focus of that community has been on a particular neighborhood, which just so happens to be the location for more violence than any other area in Rapid City. That is where God has called us, so that is where we go. In recent weeks, we received word that a gang shooting had just occurred in the neighborhood. We decided to go out days after to set up a tent and see how God might show up. As you may have already guessed, He did! There was a heavily tattooed individual hanging around the area who we were eventually led to. After a bit of conversation, he allowed us to pray for him. During that prayer, the power of God fell on him, and he started to shake and weep. When the prayer was over, he extended a hug and spoke of how grateful he was for the prayer. After he left, one of the people from the neighborhood told us it was good we prayed for him because he was a leader of one of the gangs involved in the shootout! Praise God! 

Elsewhere, we have witnessed God showing up in random places. While on a trip to connect with other ministries, God let us know right away that He was at work! On the first leg of our journey, while at the airport waiting on a flight, a waitress came up to give us coffee. After a quick exchange, she asked us if we were Christians. Over the next hour, she shared her story of growing up in Eritrea and coming to Jesus. She spoke of her love for evangelizing those she meets at the airport terminal. She then called up another waitress who told us about her salvation and how she too uses her testimony to reach people. The best part about this is the two waitresses were giving their testimonies loudly in an increasingly more crowded terminal, so that at least 100 people were able to hear about the good news of Jesus! At one point, one of the waitresses got on her knees and asked us to pray for her in the middle of the crowd! Another Kairos moment! 

These stories continue to happen to us and those around us, not because we are special but because we are always looking for the moment. We go where God calls us, and we respond to what God is doing, which allows us to witness His heart for people! For this cause, we are taking two missional trips this year through several African countries and then to Peru/Ecuador. We will be bringing the teaching of disciples making disciples and also taking people out on the mission! Our prayer and our hope is for many new disciples and for the mobilization of the church to the harvest field! We are convinced that this work of multiplication will result in many of the enemy’s gates coming down at the outpouring of the Spirit of God! We have already witnessed movements starting in many, many cities and states around the world as we endeavor to reach the lost with the good news of Jesus! 

We need your help! Please pray for us to continue boldly running into the mission and to never get comfortable with yesterday’s stories. Also, please consider partnering with us financially, as we want as many of our staff participating on missional trips as possible. Throughout the year, most of our staff are fully invested and engaged in serving as intern leaders, coaches, and various responsibilities during the training events. These missional activities overseas keep them energized on the work of the mission in the “off season,” when activities in Keystone come to a halt. Each member is challenged to raise support, but we want to alleviate their burden as much as we are able. If you would like to partner with us with a one-time gift or a monthly one, know that your funds will be going 100% to the work of the mission in seeing disciples make disciples! Simply go to https://keystoneproject.org and click “Giving” at the top of the page to setup your gift. We are grateful for your investment with us in the work of the Kingdom, and know that we are praying for you as well! God is always on mission!

Shawn Walker,
Director of Operations

The Keystone Project Network is Growing!

Greetings from the city of Houston! I just returned from the National Hispanic Conference of the Missionary Church held at Bethel University, South Bend, Indiana. I participated in presenting a brief testimony of what God is doing in the ministry and about our upcoming international trips and trainings in Keystone, SD. I connected with the organization’s international and national leaders; their hospitality and openness blessed us and encouraged us to continue working together to fulfill the Great Commission. I strategized with key leaders on how we can continue to collaborate to equip the Body of Christ to fulfill the Great Commission and glorify Jesus in the nations. We expect a lot of things coming out of that event. Get ready; we will soon begin planning a tour with a training in Israel in 2024 and extend our training to Brazil. 

Over the next few weeks, I will be getting ready for my trip to Africa. Five weeks, five nations! Please keep me in your prayers as I travel from August 23 to September 27, 2022. It is an all-terrain missions trip with a loaded schedule, four Vision-Casting Trainings, two missional activities to share the Gospel with the lost, and a trip to the central part of The Republic of Benin to visit a few missionaries who are pushing the Gospel to the north. We expect to reach and connect with hundreds of pastors and leaders in those nations. The potential is off the charts! Our efforts will begin a process to bring more leaders to be trained in the US and to offer the Online Academy as a tool to continue training hundreds of leaders in their regions. We will also summon the African nations to a one-week training with Richard Greene in West Africa in the first quarter of 2023. 

I can’t stress enough the need for your prayers and financial support. As God continues to open doors in the nations, we face the growing challenge of ministry and travel expenses. We’ve seen how our training mobilizes the Church to reach the lost and inspires our students to invest their hearts and passion in fulfilling the Great Commission. Thank you for prayerfully considering supporting us in this assignment. 

David Saldivar,
Director of Global Ministry