Wow! Christmas is
over and another year has passed by.
With every New Year comes resolutions and new commitments. We pray that each of you takes time to
evaluate and determine areas where you can improve this coming year. You know, maybe eat healthier, spend more
time with family, read the Bible a little more etc. We know we are far from perfect so we have
also set new goals for this coming year.
Ministry
While we were home in September we shared with our
supporters how God has called us to prepare our ministry for a transfer of
leadership. Back in April of 2016 we
started focusing on training Simon to take leadership of all ministries and we
started training many individuals to lead in their specific area of ministry.
In no way, do we compare ourselves to the Apostle Paul, but
we do follow his example of leadership as a missionary. The Apostle Paul traveled to preach the word
and would start a church in that city.
He would train leaders to leave behind to oversee the church, and to
help it grow spiritually.
While they
were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, “Set apart for me
Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.” Acts 13:2 (NIV)
We are training men and women to lead in our absence and we
will continue to do this until we leave.
The men and women are working hard to lead now, not in our absence, but
in our presence, so we can give any assistance needed during this time of
transition.
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| Sewing Ladies are so Thankful for their gifts!!!! I never beleived such loud hooting and praising could come from just 5 ladies. Notice how hard they have been working on the Pad Project too. We will be ready to launch in February! |
Leaving Uganda will bring such sorrow in one respect, but
joy in two ways. We are filled with
sorrow because we have become so close to our friends who we feel are
family. The joy we also feel is twofold
because our family is now self-sustaining and able to lead on their own. Secondly, we feel joy because there is
another mission field that is in need of the same training we have given to the
village of Naigobya.
When we left in 2014 for Uganda, we committed to three years
of service working in the village of Naigobya.
Many of you had asked how long we were going to serve and then committed
to supporting us for the three years. We can’t thank you enough for your
faithfulness! We are asking you to prayerfully consider continuing to support
us through the end of July, which will be the end of our three-year
commitment. We are also asking you to
prayerfully consider supporting us for our next commitment as we are feeling
called to serve in another area.
We will be flying back to the States the end of April. We will be taking a vision trip mid May to
Dominican and Haiti to meet with a couple different organizations to discuss
working with them to reach a totally different people group in great need. The work being done is very similar to what
we have been doing in Naigobya, Pastoral training, Disciple training, and
vocational.
We will be meeting and sharing with you shortly after we
return from the Dominican to make sure this is where God wants us. We are sharing this with you now so that we
give you the proper amount of time to consider partnering with us on another
Exciting Journey, serving God reaching the lost for Christ.
By an act of faith, Abraham said yes to God’s call
to travel to an unknown place that would become his home. When he left he had
no idea where he was going. By an act of faith he lived in the country promised
him, lived as a stranger camping in tents. Isaac and Jacob did the same, living
under the same promise. Abraham did it by keeping his eye on an unseen city
with real, eternal foundations—the City designed and built by God. Heb 11:8 MSG
More Exciting Ministry Happenings
As previously stated, ministry here is moving along very
well. The Pastoral leadership courses
were completed December 9th.
One of the men in the class is pastoring a church in a neighboring
village. He came to us this past week with an amazing story to share! He and a group of 15 men from his church,
spent one week going door- to-door doing Evangelism and held a revival for
three days. He shared that 150 people
accepted Christ from the revival and an additional 50 from the door-to-door. God is so good!!!! I want to send out a big thank you to ‘REACH
TANZANIA’ for the use of the pastoral training material, especially for the
class on Evangelism!
Thank you for all the various supplies that have been sent
to the village from individuals, churches, special donations and supplies left over
from the container sent by Hillcrest and ECM.
Because of your generosity we were able to bless students at St. Paul’s
with a Christmas party, sewing ladies with gifts, families in the church, and
many in the community.
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| Gifts! Gifts! Gifts! & Smiles! Smiles! Smiles! |
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| Waiting for their special Christmas meal! |
Parents of children in the church were able to come pick out
some new and used clothing just in time for the Holidays. They were so excited to have a couple of new
outfits! Over 150 kids received a
blessing!
Thank you for being a part of this special
Christmas!!
Our PRAYER
Requests & Praises
- 200 New Believers!
- Praise for Evangelism and discipleship training taking hold and being used by those we have been teaching!
- Gifts given out for Christmas!
- Daily Safety as we travel the roads
- We stay healthy from sickness and disease
- Pray for Wisdom and Discernment as we continue to transition the leadership over to the Nationals.
- Pray for Clarity as we seek God’s will for our future
