Matthew 16:24 24 Then Jesus said to the disciples, "If any of you wants to be my follower, you must put aside your selfish ambition, shoulder your cross, and follow me.
I love Jesus’ words – follow me…….follow me & I will make you…….He is so wonderful & gracious.
Renee & I are so blessed to be here once again in Africa serving the Lord in whatever way He leads us to.
First – so many thanks, there are not words adequate to express our love & thanks to all the wonderful souls who contributed to our coming here. There were people who prayed so much for us, others who gave financially, others who looked after us in England like true servants of God, from carting us around to feeding us & looking after so many needs. Being in God’s family is definitely the best! Jesus said (John 10:10) I have come to give you life in ABUNDANCE. We are overwhelmed in His abundance of blessings.
We arrived without incident in Kenya. We shopped in Kisumu for our groceries & got our phones & internet & all that re-hooked up.
We arrived to 2 loving African sons Paul Opanda & Dougie Manyasa helping us coordinate many things & helping us to get back to Butere. We arrived quite tired but had to endure to clean & arrange all our stuff.
We settled in for a couple days, met up with Jim & Cherie Lindsay, 2 friends from the U.S. who have been here a few weeks ealier. We are hopeful to do much ministry together with them.
After a couple days, it was off to Manyalla, a small village with a church that suffered some damage through a pastor who fell away into sin. Our good friend Pastor Enock has taken on the challenge of rebuilding leadership there & has appointed a new dedicated pastor. We went the first day to do a crusade for him & ended up teaching a couple day sessions for believers & then completing the day with a successful crusade with many souls coming to salvation.
The next day we came for the crusade again & saw God’s hand move on the village & more new converts. In the process, I managed to damage my voice – I get so African here & my volume increases with the excitement of what God is doing. I also had picked up a nasty cold in England (thanks Dave! Haha), which created some challenges.
The next day I left Renee in Dougie’s care (he’s a local who lives with us) & went off to a place near Busia which is on the Uganda border for a large youth conference of over 400 attendees.
I was asked if the accommodations & everything would be alright….the conference was at a school & we were accommodated in a large dorm. There were upwards of 50 or so young boys & men staying there. Meals consisted of plain bread & strong tea for breakfast, maize & beans for lunch & ugali (pasty doughy mixture of maize flour & water) & sukumawiki (like pumpkin leaves) for supper. I had no problem with any of it. In the end, one of the ladies in charge said they found me quite unusual, unique in that mzungus (white people) don’t usually take to the food or living conditions. I know that through the challenges I had with sleep deprivation & oversized insects in the pit latrine, that I was fully accepted & made many new friends as a result of not requiring special treatment. Doing as they do & eating as they eat is the best way to friendship here.
Speaking of that – a local church leader invited us out one of those days to bless us with a meal in their home & visit at their church with a few ladies in their congregation. As I was served up my meal, the lady placed a UFO (unidentified food object) on my plate. I asked my close companion, Pst. Alex Miheso what it was & he said it was the gizzard of the chicken which is a great honor they bestow on a guest. I stared at this unique looking piece of anatomy I’ve never seen on a plate before & contemplated shoveling it down my throat. I ate around it & anticipated what this might be like – It almost resembled the Olympic rings minus 2 & the consistency was like a rubber gasket. I did my best & managed 2 bites but my gag reflex kicked in & I failed to consume it in entirety. Hopefully I didn’t insult my hosts too badly.
The youth conference was an amazing success with many salvations, much deliverance & souls being filled with the Spirit of God & enabled, educated & richer for coming. I made many new friends & look forward to the next event with all concerned.
This week, we have only a couple obligations – meetings with locals to help through some issues tomorrow (Friday) & a 1 day youth conference at a university not far from here Saturday. Sunday, I’ll preach in my friend Pst. Enock’s Church, Word of Life in Sabatia. Next Wednesday Renee & I are off to a yet undiscovered area for us called Sondu which is 100Km from Kisumu. We live 50Km from Kisumu & it can take 1½ to 3 or 4 hours to get there some days. Our host Pst. Malaki Dacha is meeting us in Kisumu to escort us to Sondu. We are participating in another youth conference there. We met Malaki at a conference last year. He is a body builder pastor who before salvation used to intimidate & beat up people for their money. Now he uses his body building skills as an outreach to youth, helping them to not only build up their bodies & feel good about themselves, but to build up their faith in Jesus Christ.
We hope to help build up his congregation & the youth in the word of God.
That’s our update to date - Please continue to pray for our health & protection. We are now over our colds, but while at the youth conference I was eaten alive by nasty mosquitos. Malaria is always a concern, as well as typhoid. Some missionary friends, Jim & Doris Lapka who spent 38 years serving in Malawi in Africa told us about an Indian herbal remedy, sardeshan, that helps prevent malaria. We took our rations & it will now be put to the test.
We thank God for you all & look forward to many joining us in the future on the mission field. We would love to get emails from you as it’s so wonderful to hear from friends & family in the west.
Wednesday, November 26, 2008
Wednesday, November 5, 2008
SIGNS & WONDERS
Mark 16:20 And they went out and preached everywhere, the Lord working with them and confirming the word through the accompanying signs. Amen.
We thank the Lord for the gift of faith. Romans 1:17 For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, "The just shall live by faith."
Our hearts are overflowing with gratitude to all who have supported us prayerfully & financially. We can’t do any of this alone & God proves His love daily through so many of you.
We are especially thankful for our director (of IMS), leader, mentor & spiritual father, the Rev. Mike Jones who stands with us, has blessed us & encouraged us in every way & has been instrumental in our success in ministry.
PRAYER REQUESTS: In the coming months, we will be ministering in countless ways >>> youth, believer’s & leadership conferences & seminars, church & school meetings, crusades, home groups, orphanages, one on one & in the streets. Please PRAY >>>
1 - For the Lord’s anointing, favour, blessing & provision in all that we do for Him.
2 - For salvations, healings, soft hearts & freedom in Christ for the people we are ministering to in Africa & England. (The Lord has given us a heart for forgotten, hurting & broken people.)
3 - For wisdom & direction in all areas.
4 - For God’s protection & covering. When we were last there, we had bouts of malaria, typhoid & intestinal infections. We also endured many trying circumstances as a result of the political crisis that ensued after the rigged election in Kenya.
5 - For the Lord to raise up men & women of God to join together with us to build the kingdom of God. (We had 3 wonderful young men of God with us last mission – it’s Renee & me this time, but we believe next mission in Oct/Nov 09, for an abundance of missionaries who want to make a difference in this world!)
We believe in a God who speaks to us through confirmation…….accompanying signs.
As Renee & I have talked, prayed & visioned for the future – our mission & purpose serving God; we believe the Lord wants us in Africa half of each year for this season in our lives. We fully believe that God confirms what He puts on our hearts in a myriad of ways. Psalm 37:4-5 4 Delight yourself also in the LORD, And He shall give you the desires of your heart. 5 Commit your way to the LORD, Trust also in Him, And He shall bring it to pass.
We have seen His confirmation of this call through many open doors & favour on our lives. We came through England this April & continue networking there with so many ministries; wonderful men & women of God we are anxious to build the kingdom of God with. Some there are involved in raising up & preparing others to join us on the mission field in Africa. Many have welcomed us (& continue to) into their homes, churches & ministries there & in Africa. Our itinerary is full well into February.
We also believe it is not faith unless it is spoken. I spoke & wrote in faith in a past newsletter & blog that was posted on our website in September >>> “We still have quite a way to go to get the full support we need for these upcoming 6 months in Africa - but we are confident that the Lord will finish what He has started. I said to someone recently, He isn't just teasing us - He has a plan to complete this - He wants us in Africa!” Indeed He has completed this & does want us there!
In the past few years, we’ve taken many short term mission trips to Africa, which were a huge blessing but very costly. We have never been out of pocket for any of it. Once the Lord confirmed in our hearts we were to go, we prayed & believed for provision. It has always come (& not all up front) & the way the Lord provides is unique each time. In Matthew 17:27 (Jesus said) 27 "Nevertheless, lest we offend them, go to the sea, cast in a hook, and take the fish that comes up first. And when you have opened its mouth, you will find a piece of money; take that and give it to them for Me and you."
Renee & I have been praying (& believing) pretty much since we were in Africa this past March 08, for the Lord to supply what we need to go back to Africa. Months went by without anything happening for us financially toward this goal. The windows of heaven opened the first Friday in September, when Renee & I returned home after a tough & grueling week of hard work to find an anonymous financial blessing waiting for us. That’s when & where it began >>> we have received many subsequent gifts from friends, relatives, acquaintances & people we barely know since. We were able to book our plane tickets 2 weeks back (for Nov.12th) when a personal debt from many years ago was repaid. It provided enough for our entire airfare & a bit more. When the Lord opens the door, we feel obliged to walk through. God has been completely glorified in providing our way as in our own abilities, it was not possible.
During our months in Canada, Renee & I have worked at a variety of interesting & sometimes challenging jobs. Our work has included serving coffee & donuts, digging ditches, landscaping, renovating, cleaning chicken coops, houses & chemical plants, merchandising plants & products, as well as tailoring & designing. All these things have provided for us while living in Kamloops, but falls short of meeting our ministry needs in Africa. We are confident the Lord will continue His abundant provision for our subsequent expenses while living & ministering overseas. Please continue to pray into that.
1 Thessalonians 5:18 in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.
We cannot thank our friends & family enough for their prayers & financial support for us & who continue to lift us up to our Lord & Saviour Jesus Christ.
As Renee & I have talked, prayed & visioned for the future – our mission & purpose serving God; we believe the Lord wants us in Africa half of each year for this season in our lives. We fully believe that God confirms what He puts on our hearts in a myriad of ways. Psalm 37:4-5 4 Delight yourself also in the LORD, And He shall give you the desires of your heart. 5 Commit your way to the LORD, Trust also in Him, And He shall bring it to pass.
We have seen His confirmation of this call through many open doors & favour on our lives. We came through England this April & continue networking there with so many ministries; wonderful men & women of God we are anxious to build the kingdom of God with. Some there are involved in raising up & preparing others to join us on the mission field in Africa. Many have welcomed us (& continue to) into their homes, churches & ministries there & in Africa. Our itinerary is full well into February.
We also believe it is not faith unless it is spoken. I spoke & wrote in faith in a past newsletter & blog that was posted on our website in September >>> “We still have quite a way to go to get the full support we need for these upcoming 6 months in Africa - but we are confident that the Lord will finish what He has started. I said to someone recently, He isn't just teasing us - He has a plan to complete this - He wants us in Africa!” Indeed He has completed this & does want us there!
In the past few years, we’ve taken many short term mission trips to Africa, which were a huge blessing but very costly. We have never been out of pocket for any of it. Once the Lord confirmed in our hearts we were to go, we prayed & believed for provision. It has always come (& not all up front) & the way the Lord provides is unique each time. In Matthew 17:27 (Jesus said) 27 "Nevertheless, lest we offend them, go to the sea, cast in a hook, and take the fish that comes up first. And when you have opened its mouth, you will find a piece of money; take that and give it to them for Me and you."
Renee & I have been praying (& believing) pretty much since we were in Africa this past March 08, for the Lord to supply what we need to go back to Africa. Months went by without anything happening for us financially toward this goal. The windows of heaven opened the first Friday in September, when Renee & I returned home after a tough & grueling week of hard work to find an anonymous financial blessing waiting for us. That’s when & where it began >>> we have received many subsequent gifts from friends, relatives, acquaintances & people we barely know since. We were able to book our plane tickets 2 weeks back (for Nov.12th) when a personal debt from many years ago was repaid. It provided enough for our entire airfare & a bit more. When the Lord opens the door, we feel obliged to walk through. God has been completely glorified in providing our way as in our own abilities, it was not possible.
During our months in Canada, Renee & I have worked at a variety of interesting & sometimes challenging jobs. Our work has included serving coffee & donuts, digging ditches, landscaping, renovating, cleaning chicken coops, houses & chemical plants, merchandising plants & products, as well as tailoring & designing. All these things have provided for us while living in Kamloops, but falls short of meeting our ministry needs in Africa. We are confident the Lord will continue His abundant provision for our subsequent expenses while living & ministering overseas. Please continue to pray into that.
1 Thessalonians 5:18 in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.
We cannot thank our friends & family enough for their prayers & financial support for us & who continue to lift us up to our Lord & Saviour Jesus Christ.
We thank the Lord for the gift of faith. Romans 1:17 For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, "The just shall live by faith."
Our hearts are overflowing with gratitude to all who have supported us prayerfully & financially. We can’t do any of this alone & God proves His love daily through so many of you.
We are especially thankful for our director (of IMS), leader, mentor & spiritual father, the Rev. Mike Jones who stands with us, has blessed us & encouraged us in every way & has been instrumental in our success in ministry.
PRAYER REQUESTS: In the coming months, we will be ministering in countless ways >>> youth, believer’s & leadership conferences & seminars, church & school meetings, crusades, home groups, orphanages, one on one & in the streets. Please PRAY >>>
1 - For the Lord’s anointing, favour, blessing & provision in all that we do for Him.
2 - For salvations, healings, soft hearts & freedom in Christ for the people we are ministering to in Africa & England. (The Lord has given us a heart for forgotten, hurting & broken people.)
3 - For wisdom & direction in all areas.
4 - For God’s protection & covering. When we were last there, we had bouts of malaria, typhoid & intestinal infections. We also endured many trying circumstances as a result of the political crisis that ensued after the rigged election in Kenya.
5 - For the Lord to raise up men & women of God to join together with us to build the kingdom of God. (We had 3 wonderful young men of God with us last mission – it’s Renee & me this time, but we believe next mission in Oct/Nov 09, for an abundance of missionaries who want to make a difference in this world!)
Wednesday, September 24, 2008
AFRICA - IS GETTING CLOSER!!!!!
Those happy faces you see here are that way because God has put so many amazing & generous people in the world.Renee & I have been praying for months - actually since we were last in Africa for the Lord to provide our way back to Africa. As you can well imagine, it is an expensive venture. Just to travel there & back is well over $5000Can. Added to that is extended medical, food, rent & overhead for our rented home in Kenya, travel expenses as we visit areas of Kenya & Uganda for ministry, assorted other costs - plus maintaining our home in Kamloops.
When we went last year, we had some financial gifts that helped a great deal, from our church & several individuals. For the most part, we subsidized our ministry out of our personal finances. This year, we haven't had that option as our pt jobs have not been lucrative enough.
Months went by - we prayed - no finances. We completely believe God wants us in Africa; we have a full itinerary through February 09 in Africa & many ministry opportunities in the UK as well on the way there & back. So much has happened pointing to the Lord wanting us there.
We - I say we - had set a date as a deadline to commit to going to Africa....that was the last Wednesday of August. The day came & went without any funds coming in & we had to let our flight tickets be cancelled.
I wondered what the heck the Lord was up to - with that date coming & going & it seeming as if we might have to spend the winter.....brrrr........in Canada working our secular jobs. We kept praying & believing & not wanting to accept this as the final answer.
The first Friday of September, we returned home after a week of very challenging work to find an anonymous blessing at our home. It lifted up our faith & excitement levels - thank you Jesus! The following week, we were invited to share at a Woman's Aglow meeting & we blessed again. The next Friday, an email from a couple we barely know blessing us again. Then, last night another email from someone else we don't know really well commiting to support us with a financial gift!
God is so very good & faithful & loving & giving & providing - our faith has escalated even more & our hearts are so full of gratitude for all these outstanding people who have given so selflessly to support our ministry.
We still have quite a way to go to get the full support we need for these upcoming 6 months in Africa - but we are confident that the Lord will finish what He has started. I said to someone recently, He isn't just teasing us - He has a plan to complete this - He wants us in Africa!
Our hearts are already there - we have so much to do. Please pray & believe with us!
Mungu akubarike sana! (God bless you so much!)
Tuesday, August 12, 2008
In Canada - looking to go back to Africa
We have really enjoyed returing to Canada for these past 4 months! We really missed our family, friends & church family as well....and of course, some of our western culture.
We were only home 5 days - my daughter Jennica had come with the kids for a visit & I was so excited! She arrived on the Friday night & we had a great visit. 2 of the kids stayed over night - the next morning, I got up with a fever & had to send the kids packin' & it was off to the hospital......for 10 hours!!! Renee & I were a novelty to the technicians, doctors & nurses as they don't get many malaria patients - next to none. We ran out of treatment from Africa (so reasonable there) & had to pay $150 for our meds! Yikes.
We had a great time seeing all our church family again. I preached for the first time back in Canada in May on Mother's Day. Nick & Geordie & Renee all got up & shared about our African adventures - it was wonderful.
A couple weeks later, we all shared again at the Vineyard Church in Kamloops & invited interested people out to our African Afternoon in June.
Our turnout was moderate - Nick, Geordie, Cassandra, Renee & I shared & there seemed to be a lot of interest in coming, but to date, no one has committed to our next mission. It looks like it will be Renee & I alone - Jim & Cherie Lindsay will be in Africa during the time we are there & we're hoping to hook up to do some tag team ministry.
Renee went back to work at Tim Horton's several days a week. I got a p/t job as a vendor rep with a nursery wholesaler to Home Depot. Along the way, I picked up a couple of other jobs that have turned out to be duds. I continue to apply for other jobs to get us ahead of the bills.
We have spent a lot of weekends camping, which is something we love to do together. In July, there was a family reunion with my family at Missezula Lake outside of Princeton. 2 weeks later, beginning of August - it was Renee's family reunion. Lots of family time & getting to know new family for both of us.
Next weekend we are off to Alberta to learn & share with Jim & Doris Lapka who were missionaries in Malawi for 38 years. I'm excited to listen & benefit from their experience, wisdom & teaching.
Our plan is to leave Canada about October 15th. We will go to England first for 5 days to meet with our ministry friends there.... Stephen Rademan, Nigel & Julie Rowe, Tony Stone, Adrian Bradshaw & so many others. Hopefully, we can meet to share vision & ideas for working together toward great things for the Kingdom of God.
We will arrive in Nairobi, Kenya around the 22nd of October. We have so many bookings with various ministries in Kenya & Uganda - we are so excited about our full itinerary & seeing old friends & making new ones. We are so blessed.
Please pray for us - we believe God for every provision & need which are many. Our God will supply all our needs according to His riches in glory. Amen.
We were only home 5 days - my daughter Jennica had come with the kids for a visit & I was so excited! She arrived on the Friday night & we had a great visit. 2 of the kids stayed over night - the next morning, I got up with a fever & had to send the kids packin' & it was off to the hospital......for 10 hours!!! Renee & I were a novelty to the technicians, doctors & nurses as they don't get many malaria patients - next to none. We ran out of treatment from Africa (so reasonable there) & had to pay $150 for our meds! Yikes.
We had a great time seeing all our church family again. I preached for the first time back in Canada in May on Mother's Day. Nick & Geordie & Renee all got up & shared about our African adventures - it was wonderful.
A couple weeks later, we all shared again at the Vineyard Church in Kamloops & invited interested people out to our African Afternoon in June.
Our turnout was moderate - Nick, Geordie, Cassandra, Renee & I shared & there seemed to be a lot of interest in coming, but to date, no one has committed to our next mission. It looks like it will be Renee & I alone - Jim & Cherie Lindsay will be in Africa during the time we are there & we're hoping to hook up to do some tag team ministry.
Renee went back to work at Tim Horton's several days a week. I got a p/t job as a vendor rep with a nursery wholesaler to Home Depot. Along the way, I picked up a couple of other jobs that have turned out to be duds. I continue to apply for other jobs to get us ahead of the bills.
We have spent a lot of weekends camping, which is something we love to do together. In July, there was a family reunion with my family at Missezula Lake outside of Princeton. 2 weeks later, beginning of August - it was Renee's family reunion. Lots of family time & getting to know new family for both of us.
Next weekend we are off to Alberta to learn & share with Jim & Doris Lapka who were missionaries in Malawi for 38 years. I'm excited to listen & benefit from their experience, wisdom & teaching.
Our plan is to leave Canada about October 15th. We will go to England first for 5 days to meet with our ministry friends there.... Stephen Rademan, Nigel & Julie Rowe, Tony Stone, Adrian Bradshaw & so many others. Hopefully, we can meet to share vision & ideas for working together toward great things for the Kingdom of God.
We will arrive in Nairobi, Kenya around the 22nd of October. We have so many bookings with various ministries in Kenya & Uganda - we are so excited about our full itinerary & seeing old friends & making new ones. We are so blessed.
Please pray for us - we believe God for every provision & need which are many. Our God will supply all our needs according to His riches in glory. Amen.
Saturday, April 26, 2008
April 08 Update
Ok – sorry, I haven’t had time to put on the latest happenings in our ministry – been kind of busy. Here we go >>>>
The first part of March 08 was spent doing a lot of school ministry. Geordie & Nick got to preach the gospel in many schools & saw many salvations. As we wind down our stay in Kenya, it’s rewarding to see how much these young men have grown in their spiritual gifts & abilities. God has really done a great work in them both. The last weekend was spent in Maseno, the next town after the city of Kisumu. We participated in a youth leaders conference where we taught on accountability, being a mature Christian & stewardship, especially where time is concerned – African time! It’s something that needs to be taught all over Africa as there are few people who respect time or keep it for any reason.
The first part of March 08 was spent doing a lot of school ministry. Geordie & Nick got to preach the gospel in many schools & saw many salvations. As we wind down our stay in Kenya, it’s rewarding to see how much these young men have grown in their spiritual gifts & abilities. God has really done a great work in them both. The last weekend was spent in Maseno, the next town after the city of Kisumu. We participated in a youth leaders conference where we taught on accountability, being a mature Christian & stewardship, especially where time is concerned – African time! It’s something that needs to be taught all over Africa as there are few people who respect time or keep it for any reason.
We then met with the leaders of the youth center there – they have the same gifts & vision as Renee & myself. We loved what they were doing there, reaching out to the schools & doing so much to reach the youth of Kenya. We look forward to coming back later in the year to spend more time with them in ministry & to know one another better.
We caught the bus back to Butere so we could make it to one of our favorite places – the Butere Boy’s School. We’ve been teaching a series on Evangelism & week by week have seen the C.U. (Christian Union) of this school explode in growth! When we first began visiting the school there were around 30 young men participating & by the last night we were approaching over a 100! Geo, myself & Nick preached & Nick finished up with many young men getting saved. We did a question & answer time that was so much fun & kept us there until after 10pm (from 8pm). That was a hard place to leave as it was a personal favorite to visit.
Renee spent her birthday (March 19th) packing up our Butere house & we flew to Nairobi on the 20th. We met up with Sammy Opingo who leads a worship band & pastors a church in Nairobi. We joined with him to do some street crusades in a marketplace in a lower end of Nairobi. We spent Good Friday at a church in the heart of the prostitute district in the business area of Nairobi. Pastor Daniel Nyaga is doing a great work there & reaching so many of the working girls & turning their lives around. 
The last week, we zipped off to Mombassa with Pastor Panga of “Jesus Touch the World Ministry”. It is in the heart of a predominately Muslim area. This pastor has grown his 10 year old church to around 500. He has lunch time church meetings & 3 Sunday services. We spent the week participating in these services plus doing 3 nights of crusades in the s
lums of this city. It was a successful mission in every way & we look forward to returning & ministering again with Panga. We had a wonderful treat while in
Mombassa; we were able to go for a swim in the Indian Ocean – it was just like being in bath water, so wonderful. What a contrast this place was to the reality of the rest of Africa!
Mombassa; we were able to go for a swim in the Indian Ocean – it was just like being in bath water, so wonderful. What a contrast this place was to the reality of the rest of Africa! On April 1st, we flew to London, where we made our way to Stourbridge, near Birmingham. Nick, Geordie, Renee & myself were hosted by many generous Christians from Amblecote Christian Center. The first Sunday we got up in England was to an unwelcomed surprise - SNOW! What a contrast from the sticky humidity & heat of Mombassa to freezing cold!
I got to preach & the rest of the team shared at Walsall Christian Center in the am of the first Sunday & then we all went to Amblecote Christian Center for the youth meeting in the evening. All of us shared again there. Many of the adults from the congregation came to see what we were doing.
During the week – we had an evening with the UK IMS board of directors that we thoroughly enjoyed. A great highlight came when we were taken to CfaN – (Reinhard Bonnke’s Headquarters) where they gathered all the staff for Renee & I to do their morning devotional. As we shared all we went through during the political crisis in Kenya, they let us know they were all praying for us & were happy to hear about the outcome.
They took us on a tour of their facilities where we were blessed in so many ways, given many of Reinhard’s books, cd’s & posters. Some of the people involved there want us to join with them in a joint multi-ministry venture to train up & take people into Africa for discipleship. It was definitely an answered prayer.
The last Sunday, we got to share at the main service at Amblecote & feel we’ve connected in an amazing way where we can network much more in the future. So many members have commented on the amazing growth in Jonathan Start who spent 2 ½ months with us in Africa.
God has really enabled him.
We flew home to Canada on April 14th.
We are praying & preparing for our next mission into Africa that we believe will be the beginning of September. We have no idea who the next team will consist of -
maybe it's you!
We appreciate your prayers toward all areas of our ministy.
Thursday, February 28, 2008
Friday - February 29, 2008 Blog
We went to the city yesterday & did some shopping. On the way back it was announced that the prez & wanna be prez of Kenya came to an agreement! There is a power sharing agreement with Odinga becoming PM & Kibaki remaining Prez & they are now sorting out details. So, it’s very good news, what we’ve all prayed for.
So now, we can make definite plans & not have to wander if there will be a road blockage or violence when we travel!
We are winding into our last month here & getting quite ready to return to the west. We’ve had so many different challenges & learned so much. We’ve definitely grown as leaders & believers.
We’ve also found what works & doesn’t work in regards to the people who come with us & how things have been done. We will make amendments to requirements & other things on the website.
We’ve really enjoyed the school ministry & visiting different churches every Sunday. It has given the boys with us the opportunity to do so much more teaching & preaching. All the churches have been so welcoming & loving. We really appreciate the leaders & pastors so much – all of these folks are challenged with lack of income, poor members in the congregations with monumental needs, so much. We respect & love them so much.
I’m excited about this afternoon – I have a crusade to preach, which is one of my favorite things to do in ministry & what I’ve done is split up my preach on the 4 spiritual laws so that each of the boys preaches one of the laws & then I’ll finish off with the last 2 & do the salvation call. Should be fun. We did that kind of preaching – tag team – last Saturday night at the Butere Boy’s school – we taught on evangelism, the why’s of it – next will be the ‘how to’ part. Tag team preaching works well here as the listeners get a variety of speakers for not long & it keeps their interest. We’ve seen so many come to salvation, so rewarding!
I’m not sick of sunshine yet – the dust is bad, but rains have started each afternoon which is keeping it down somewhat. You blow your nose after being in the dust & it’s all black. We went last week to the city & the windows of the van/taxi were open & by the time we arrived, our clothes were brown! It’s a dirty place either way, dust or mud.
Please continue to pray for us – we have 4 more weeks in Kenya and then 2 in England. We thank the Lord for every opportunity He has given us & for His protection, provision & encouragement. We need His hand on us so much as we do the work He has called us to.
So now, we can make definite plans & not have to wander if there will be a road blockage or violence when we travel!
We are winding into our last month here & getting quite ready to return to the west. We’ve had so many different challenges & learned so much. We’ve definitely grown as leaders & believers.
We’ve also found what works & doesn’t work in regards to the people who come with us & how things have been done. We will make amendments to requirements & other things on the website.
We’ve really enjoyed the school ministry & visiting different churches every Sunday. It has given the boys with us the opportunity to do so much more teaching & preaching. All the churches have been so welcoming & loving. We really appreciate the leaders & pastors so much – all of these folks are challenged with lack of income, poor members in the congregations with monumental needs, so much. We respect & love them so much.
I’m excited about this afternoon – I have a crusade to preach, which is one of my favorite things to do in ministry & what I’ve done is split up my preach on the 4 spiritual laws so that each of the boys preaches one of the laws & then I’ll finish off with the last 2 & do the salvation call. Should be fun. We did that kind of preaching – tag team – last Saturday night at the Butere Boy’s school – we taught on evangelism, the why’s of it – next will be the ‘how to’ part. Tag team preaching works well here as the listeners get a variety of speakers for not long & it keeps their interest. We’ve seen so many come to salvation, so rewarding!
I’m not sick of sunshine yet – the dust is bad, but rains have started each afternoon which is keeping it down somewhat. You blow your nose after being in the dust & it’s all black. We went last week to the city & the windows of the van/taxi were open & by the time we arrived, our clothes were brown! It’s a dirty place either way, dust or mud.
Please continue to pray for us – we have 4 more weeks in Kenya and then 2 in England. We thank the Lord for every opportunity He has given us & for His protection, provision & encouragement. We need His hand on us so much as we do the work He has called us to.
Wednesday, January 30, 2008
Back to Butere, Kenya!!!
January 30, 2008 Blog
What an incredible time we have had! Political upheaval & chaos in Kenya – still unresolved & so uncertain. Our mission to Uganda was delayed as we couldn’t move anywhere in Kenya because every village & city had barricades erected across roads by irate citizens keeping the nation at a standstill! It was dangerous to even consider travel as there were people at every barricade wielding rocks & bricks to attack anyone who dared to pass. We watched the situation a few days & then hatched a plan to make an early morning exodus to Uganda.
We arranged with a private van taxi to pick us up at 6am & it arrived with barely any fuel & little hope of finding any nearby. We prayed & left our Kenyan residence trusting God to make a way – knowing the director of IMS, Rev. Mike Jones had enlisted a world-wide prayer team to ‘cover’ us as we made our escape.
We traveled back roads & found a place that sold us a minimal amount of fuel, but enough to make it to the border. We hoped to find more there for our friends’ return to Butere. Not long after getting the fuel, we had a blowout. The tire didn’t want to come off but we persisted & were successful. Barricades were evident in every village we went through but we found our way around them. As we neared the border, policemen on the side of the road motioned us over & one got in our van to escort us to the border. Many police are corrupt in Kenya, but the Lord provided us with one with the right heart. We all rejoiced as we went over the border to Uganda without any problem.
We staying in Kampala for a night & continued on to Kaihura, to ‘Bringing Hope to the Family’, a ministry we’ve been involved in for over 4 years. We met up with Faith Kunihira the director & enjoyed a reunion with all the orphans at ‘Home Again’, the building that they live in. Our two kids, John & Enoch were so happy to see us again – lots of hugs. Of course, the rest of the kids call us Mama & Papa & are thrilled when we come to visit. Jon, Nick & Geordie had their hearts touched in a big way & saw why we’re so drawn to these kids & this place. They are all praying about what they can personally do to help.
We’ve been involved this week with our friend, Marvin Mutongole of ‘Destined to Win’ International Ministries. He has put together his first ‘believers’ conference & it’s been a rousing success with 1500 people in attendance. All involved were overwhelmed as we were expecting around 2-300. We thank God for his provision as all attendees had to be fed & looked after. We can’t wait to see what happens next year!
After spending about 10 days commuting from Bringing Hope’s compound to Katoke, about 45 mins away where the conference took place, we went back to Kampala City for other ministry. I (Greg) preached at Marvin’s home church – Jesus Alive Center – and we were blessed to spend time with the congregation.
During the week, we met up with Canadians Greg & Sandy Lemky, who have had a ministry (SOLMA – Spring of Life Ministries) for the past 10 years in Uganda. We were inspired & blessed as we shared dinner & fellowship & heard of their ministry challenges & success. They gave us many great ideas for money generating projects & other terrific ideas. The fruit of their ministry is evident everywhere.
After a week in Kampala, we had several open days without obligations, so we headed back to Kaihuru to Bringing Hope’s orphanage where we surprised the kids & spent 4 days ministering to them with daily devotionals, helping ready the new building for the kids by painting & moving furniture & just loving the kids. All of us were so blessed & happy to have more time together.
We came back to Marvin’s home in Kampala for the final weekend before returning to Kenya. I preached in another church & the Spirit of God moved on the people & blessed so many.
So we made the decision that Monday, January 28th was our day to return to Kenya. We got it all together, hired a private vehicle to take us from Kampala City in Uganda to the border & shoved off early. God always seems to have a purpose I can’t immediately see – the guy who was our driver was a Muslim when we began our journey & by the end of the first hour, we led him to Jesus, praise God!
The trip from Kampala city to the border is about 4 hours – when we were in our last hour, we started to receive phone calls from friends in Kenya that trouble had erupted again & especially at the border crossing we were going to! Argh! So, we altered our plans to go to the next crossing, which cost more money & added delay. As we were heading for the other crossing, we get more calls that all the towns to pass through for the ride we hired to pick us up had erupted in more chaos. Then we wondered what the heck to do – we were out of Ugandan Shillings; we didn’t want to get ourselves into a problem in Kenya again, but expenses have gone through the roof for us & it’s cheaper for us to be in our home in Kenya. So we prayed & moved on. Calls kept coming in from our Kenyan friends & even when we arrived at the crossing, the border people said they weren’t sure if we should go across. Issues – never-ending sometimes.
We opted to go across & trust God. Once across, our ride called to tell us they were only 10 minutes away from us. We met up, they took us for groceries in a larger town close by as we had nothing to go home to in Butere & heard we couldn’t go to Kisumu to shop as there are huge problems there – so we stocked up & should be good till we leave in March for Nairobi & Mombassa.
Our tentative plans are to minister in and around Butere for the next few weeks. If anyone is wondering, Butere is probably one of the safest areas of Kenya at the moment as it isn’t close to any major city & has few of the Kakuya tribe around (the one related to Kibaki, the current president) as the few that were here were chased away at the end of December. We feel relatively safe here & are prayerful about our situation and hope others will continue to pray for our safety & wisdom & favor in our decisions.
Jonathan Start, who is with us from England has flight out of Nairobi on February 18th. We have booked him a connecting flight from Kisumu, so please pray for the timing for him to be able to get through on the road without problems.
As for the rest of us – we are booked to fly out on April 1st – our last 3 weeks of March were to be spent doing ministry in Nairobi & Mombassa, but if problems continue, we will opt to stay in and around Butere for ministry as there is plenty to do.
Thank you to everyone who is praying for us. Do not worry or be anxious about our situation as we have great people around us who are looking out for our well being & we trust in a God who never leaves us or forsakes us. Greater is He who is in us than he who is in the world!
What an incredible time we have had! Political upheaval & chaos in Kenya – still unresolved & so uncertain. Our mission to Uganda was delayed as we couldn’t move anywhere in Kenya because every village & city had barricades erected across roads by irate citizens keeping the nation at a standstill! It was dangerous to even consider travel as there were people at every barricade wielding rocks & bricks to attack anyone who dared to pass. We watched the situation a few days & then hatched a plan to make an early morning exodus to Uganda.
We arranged with a private van taxi to pick us up at 6am & it arrived with barely any fuel & little hope of finding any nearby. We prayed & left our Kenyan residence trusting God to make a way – knowing the director of IMS, Rev. Mike Jones had enlisted a world-wide prayer team to ‘cover’ us as we made our escape.
We traveled back roads & found a place that sold us a minimal amount of fuel, but enough to make it to the border. We hoped to find more there for our friends’ return to Butere. Not long after getting the fuel, we had a blowout. The tire didn’t want to come off but we persisted & were successful. Barricades were evident in every village we went through but we found our way around them. As we neared the border, policemen on the side of the road motioned us over & one got in our van to escort us to the border. Many police are corrupt in Kenya, but the Lord provided us with one with the right heart. We all rejoiced as we went over the border to Uganda without any problem.
We staying in Kampala for a night & continued on to Kaihura, to ‘Bringing Hope to the Family’, a ministry we’ve been involved in for over 4 years. We met up with Faith Kunihira the director & enjoyed a reunion with all the orphans at ‘Home Again’, the building that they live in. Our two kids, John & Enoch were so happy to see us again – lots of hugs. Of course, the rest of the kids call us Mama & Papa & are thrilled when we come to visit. Jon, Nick & Geordie had their hearts touched in a big way & saw why we’re so drawn to these kids & this place. They are all praying about what they can personally do to help.
We’ve been involved this week with our friend, Marvin Mutongole of ‘Destined to Win’ International Ministries. He has put together his first ‘believers’ conference & it’s been a rousing success with 1500 people in attendance. All involved were overwhelmed as we were expecting around 2-300. We thank God for his provision as all attendees had to be fed & looked after. We can’t wait to see what happens next year!
After spending about 10 days commuting from Bringing Hope’s compound to Katoke, about 45 mins away where the conference took place, we went back to Kampala City for other ministry. I (Greg) preached at Marvin’s home church – Jesus Alive Center – and we were blessed to spend time with the congregation.
During the week, we met up with Canadians Greg & Sandy Lemky, who have had a ministry (SOLMA – Spring of Life Ministries) for the past 10 years in Uganda. We were inspired & blessed as we shared dinner & fellowship & heard of their ministry challenges & success. They gave us many great ideas for money generating projects & other terrific ideas. The fruit of their ministry is evident everywhere.
After a week in Kampala, we had several open days without obligations, so we headed back to Kaihuru to Bringing Hope’s orphanage where we surprised the kids & spent 4 days ministering to them with daily devotionals, helping ready the new building for the kids by painting & moving furniture & just loving the kids. All of us were so blessed & happy to have more time together.
We came back to Marvin’s home in Kampala for the final weekend before returning to Kenya. I preached in another church & the Spirit of God moved on the people & blessed so many.
So we made the decision that Monday, January 28th was our day to return to Kenya. We got it all together, hired a private vehicle to take us from Kampala City in Uganda to the border & shoved off early. God always seems to have a purpose I can’t immediately see – the guy who was our driver was a Muslim when we began our journey & by the end of the first hour, we led him to Jesus, praise God!
The trip from Kampala city to the border is about 4 hours – when we were in our last hour, we started to receive phone calls from friends in Kenya that trouble had erupted again & especially at the border crossing we were going to! Argh! So, we altered our plans to go to the next crossing, which cost more money & added delay. As we were heading for the other crossing, we get more calls that all the towns to pass through for the ride we hired to pick us up had erupted in more chaos. Then we wondered what the heck to do – we were out of Ugandan Shillings; we didn’t want to get ourselves into a problem in Kenya again, but expenses have gone through the roof for us & it’s cheaper for us to be in our home in Kenya. So we prayed & moved on. Calls kept coming in from our Kenyan friends & even when we arrived at the crossing, the border people said they weren’t sure if we should go across. Issues – never-ending sometimes.
We opted to go across & trust God. Once across, our ride called to tell us they were only 10 minutes away from us. We met up, they took us for groceries in a larger town close by as we had nothing to go home to in Butere & heard we couldn’t go to Kisumu to shop as there are huge problems there – so we stocked up & should be good till we leave in March for Nairobi & Mombassa.
Our tentative plans are to minister in and around Butere for the next few weeks. If anyone is wondering, Butere is probably one of the safest areas of Kenya at the moment as it isn’t close to any major city & has few of the Kakuya tribe around (the one related to Kibaki, the current president) as the few that were here were chased away at the end of December. We feel relatively safe here & are prayerful about our situation and hope others will continue to pray for our safety & wisdom & favor in our decisions.
Jonathan Start, who is with us from England has flight out of Nairobi on February 18th. We have booked him a connecting flight from Kisumu, so please pray for the timing for him to be able to get through on the road without problems.
As for the rest of us – we are booked to fly out on April 1st – our last 3 weeks of March were to be spent doing ministry in Nairobi & Mombassa, but if problems continue, we will opt to stay in and around Butere for ministry as there is plenty to do.
Thank you to everyone who is praying for us. Do not worry or be anxious about our situation as we have great people around us who are looking out for our well being & we trust in a God who never leaves us or forsakes us. Greater is He who is in us than he who is in the world!
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