Greetings!
Hello to all our faithful friends and supporters! As we look back over the final quarter of 2025, we cannot help but praise God for His faithfulness! We traveled over 3,000 miles across several states where we were able to: help strengthen churches in transition, fill pulpits for pastor friends, help churches with recovery programs, visit supporting churches, be a part of an amazing revival meeting, and end the year in our home church. Here’s a brief look at some of those meetings:
October 5 – Jordan Baptist Church, Lynchburg, VA: We continued our ministry to churches seeking pastoral leadership. It remains a joy to preach, pray, and encourage congregations walking through seasons of transition.
October 12 – Tabernacle Baptist Church, Wilson, NC: Another blessed visit with the Tabernacle family, pastored by Joe Shakour. God’s presence was evident, and the fellowship strengthened our hearts. We love this great church!
November 16 – Bible Baptist Temple, Stonewood, WV: This church has been a great encouragement to Wendy and me for many years. Pastor Charles Madaus gave me the privilege of preaching the Sunday morning service prior to the revival meeting of North Central West Virginia. What began as a plan simply to attend this revival meeting became a divine appointment! Bible Baptist Temple, along with several other churches, had prayed for this week for over a decade. Hearts were tender, and the Lord met with us in a powerful way.
November 16–21 – North Central West Virginia REVIVAL Meeting: This week became the spiritual high point of our year. We came to serve in any way needed—setting up, visiting, preaching, and supporting the effort with our Recovery ministry. We set up a recovery table and wanted to help anyone we could. On the first night, a man who worked at a secular rehab came and visited with us before and after the services. He was a new believer with a heart on fire for God. He brought four coworkers the following night—each one trusted Christ! This was just the beginning! Night after night, souls were saved as Evangelist Scott Pauley preached to crowds of 500-700 at the Clarksburg, WV, armory. On Saturday, Evangelist Chase Williams presented the gospel in two separate meetings to local kids and their parents and 97 of them got saved!
November 16–21 – North Central West Virginia PRAYER Meeting: Morning prayer meetings with a crowd of 60 – 100 plus people, were marked by brokenness, confession, unity, and a deep longing for God to move. One young man was saved during the prayer time itself. The final days brought a wave of burden for lost loved ones, followed by a surge of evangelistic visits and calls. Wendy and I left changed, grateful for what we witnessed. This “symphony of prayer” was led by Evangelist John VanGeldren, and God truly met with us.
November 23 – Rivesville Baptist Church, Rivesville, WV: A pastor we met during the revival invited us to serve his church the following Sunday. God blessed the day. A new believer from the church felt led to begin helping those battling addiction and has already begun training with our materials.
November 30 – Oak Hill Baptist Church, Jefferson City, TN: We presented the Bridge to Recovery ministry and enjoyed a sweet day with Pastor Carter and the church family.
December 10 – First Baptist Church, Brighton, IL: Our hearts were knit again with Pastor Letson and this faithful, supporting church. This church was one of the first to reach out and support us when our ministry direction shifted in 2021. This visit was special to us, and we look forward to returning.
December 11 – Calvary Baptist Church, Memphis, TN: Wendy and I stopped by to visit our dear friends, Bob and JoBeth Hooker. What a joy to see these sweet servants of God BUSY in His work! We are thankful for their faithfulness and example.
December 14 – Grace Independent Baptist Church, Ocean Springs, MS: God allowed us to help launch a Bridge to Recovery ministry in Mississippi. We met with staff, trained workers, and preached throughout the weekend. Pastor Perkins is a dear friend, and we look forward to meeting with them again in the future.
December 15-16 – Faith Baptist Church, Gulfport, MS, and Community Baptist Church, Slidell, LA: We were blessed to meet with dear friends, Pastors Dan Carr, Sr., and Dan Carr, Jr. Each of these men have tremendous hearts for the Lord and a passion to share the gospel. We were able to present the B2R ministry to each of them and spend some time in fellowship as well. We look forward to being with them in 2026.
December 17 – Temple Baptist Church, Gulfport, MS: Wendy fell in love with this church when she spoke at their ladies’ event a couple of years ago and couldn’t wait to take me there to officially meet Pastor and Mrs. Crane. Pastor Crane graciously asked me to preach at their mid-week service. Wendy and I had 3 visitors from the area join us for that service, having met one of them at a nearby restaurant, one at a gas station, and one of them was gloriously saved that evening!
We came back home to celebrate Christmas with Wendy’s mom. This is her first year in the nursing home, and Wendy did not want her to be alone. Will you continue to pray with us that God will grant her good health, comfort, and peace? Thank you to our friends who ask about her and send cards to her on a regular basis!
December 28 – Faith Baptist Church, Fredericksburg, VA: We closed the year at our home church, preaching on a season of prayer and sharing revival highlights. Our desire is simple: that our hearts remain tender, our prayers fervent, and our focus fixed on the glorious gospel until the day we see Christ.
Following this last meeting of 2025, Wendy and I drove to Northern Illinois, where we met all our kids (and grandkids!) and spent some time with them, celebrating the goodness of God in our family. This year marked a new “phase” with a new son-in-law and a new daughter-in-law for whom we are VERY thankful.
As we have now entered 2026, we are looking forward with anticipation at WHAT God will do and HOW He will use us this year. On Thursday, we will head to Louisville, Kentucky for a ladies’ conference; then Arnold, Missouri for Sunday services; then on to Pleasant Hill, Missouri for an annual Missions Conference; and then a Men’s conference in Virginia for the end of January. February consists of a Recovery training in West Virginia, a revival meeting in Virginia, a Marriage conference in Ohio, and more!
As we close this somewhat “lengthy” letter, we ask for specific prayers from you regarding financial support. As previously mentioned, we went through a ministry change a few years ago and have lived entirely on faith since then. Some of our previous supporters came with us immediately (and we are forever grateful for you!) God supernaturally provided in ways that simply do not make sense on paper. God has used many of you to fill needs in our lives.
When Wendy’s mom lived with us, Wendy was paid to take care of her in our home. Since February, that revenue no longer exists. We need to raise more support, and honestly, we are not good about asking for it. Currently, we have approximately $1800 in monthly support, not including any honorariums we may receive. Would you pray that our support would increase this year? This would help us to take care of our own personal health needs, living expenses, vehicle upkeep, and so on. It is our desire to serve the Lord for the remainder of our lives – helping churches help others.
Would you consider partnering with us? We are forever grateful for each church and individual who financially support us. We do not take your investment for granted! We are also blessed by our friends who faithfully pray for us. It is our desire that every one of you pray for us…and we trust that some of you will be led to financially support our ministry as well. We love you and hope that 2026 brings us into your path sometime this year!
Sincerely,
Ben & Wendy Burks
PS – Contact us if you have support questions or comments or to schedule us on your church’s calendar!