The Crossroad of Maringa

In our ministry in Maringá once again we have come to a decision crossroad.

The beauty of it all is that this time I don’t have to make the decision alone for I have a group of people for whom we are establishing the church and to whom the church belongs, which we call the congregation, and the congregation helps in the decision making. The art here is to know how to provide leadership and yet involve the people in decision making and responsibility.

Our big decision is between purchasing a property to put a Primavera Project on, renting a hall to meet in, or continue to meet in our house for the time being. I would like to rent a hall, because this would help us in outreach ministries. The congregation feels that this would be too expensive for now, and would like to try to buy a property so instead of spending our money on rent we could apply it on something that is ours. The setback is that we have very little funds at the moment and properties in Maringá are so expensive. We ask that you would pray with us, that God might show us what would be the best move. We want to reach out but we also want to settle down.

We certainly want to follow Paul’s God-inspired recommendation to the church in Rome and reap the same blessing.

Romans 15:5-7, 13. “ May the God who gives you endurance and encouragement give you a spirit of unity among yourselves as you follow Jesus Christ, so that with one heart and mouth you may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. Accept one another, then, just as Christ accepted you, in order to bring praise to God. May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in Him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.”

World Relief - Java Quake Claims Lives

A 6.2 magnitude quake struck Indonesia's ancient royal city of Yogyakarta on the island of Java at the crack of dawn on Saturday. The earthquake destroyed many buildings in a heavily populated area and killed and injured thousands.

We are in contact with several Indonesian church leaders and I am in route with several colleagues from Medan to Yogjakarta. It is still very difficult to communicate with people in the area but relief efforts are underway. Our response will be scaled to the dimensions of the tragedy as it unfolds.

World Relief's Disaster Response team has been active in Indonesia since the 2004 tsunami. Over the course of 18 months World Relief has partnered with national and local churches as well as other faith-based national organizations to provide relief and rehabilitation services in Indonesia.

We would appreciate your prayers for those who are suffering tonight and for our team.

Shalom,

Galen Carey
World Relief
Indonesia Partnerships Director

The AFLC partners with World Relief in humanitarian aid.

The Vision of Distance Education

A number of people in the AFLC have a vision of sharing biblical education around the world in the form of distance education. Pastor Kevin Olson has a burden to make the educational riches of our seminary available around the world in this form. This led to his applying to become a mission’s candidate.
The Olson's were accepted as mission’s candidates on April 3^rd by the World Missions Committee. Becoming a missions candidate is the first step toward a call to world missions.

The World Missions Committee is now in the process determining the feasibility and planning distance seminary education. The planning for distance education is taking place in consultation with the AFLC Schools Board of Trustees.

This is a new endeavor for AFLC World Missions, therefore we would ask for your prayer and ideas as we consider the far reaching affects that this could have on our world.

Biblical Truth in Flight to Tanzania

Pastor Zakaria Dalle/i left for Tanzania this morning after studying for one year at AFLTS.

He is the dean at Waama Bible School in Mbulu, Tanzania. Pastor Dalle/i will be taking with him a rich heratage of Scriptural truth to share with the students who come to study at Waama.

Pray for Zakaria as he shares the Gospel in this part of the world.

Excitment in Maringa

Screeching wheels were heard as the police squad car chased after 2 robbers on a motorcycle. A flying bullet penetrated the iron gate and broke a window of the building across the street from our house, a few yards away from our parked car. Moments earlier we had just finished cleaning the walks and were getting ready for our Sunday afternoon church service in our garage. Soon our church family would be arriving (coincidently 3 of our members are armed policemen who come with their little children).

Our Sunday meeting was peaceful and pleasant. One of the smiley faces present was ‘Aldo’, a young married man who had been an alcoholic who used to beat his wife. “I never want any pastors coming into my home” he said, when he heard we were going to visit them. Yet ever since that first visit we made, he and his wife have become eager disciples, filled with so many questions about the Bible. His mother-in-law recently told us how amazed she was to see God’s complete transformation in ‘Aldo’s’ life.

God’s transforming power is only one part of what we are seeing take place here. Not long ago we had an anointing prayer over two women; one who had undergone 2 knee surgeries and was in a wheelchair struggling to recover, the other one was getting her life in order as she was doing cancer treatments and facing great pain all over. Now Dna. Luzia has retired her wheelchair and is back to driving her VW bug and Dna. Lucia, pain-free is rejoicing that her new health exam results show no sign of cancer.

We are excited to be witnessing these victories and anticipating new ones ahead, such as finding a new permanent place for worship (hopeful to buy a lot and build a church), and also finding a more permanent housing situation for our family as our rented house is up for sale. Please join us in prayer over these two pressing needs and we look forward to reporting God’s answers to you!

Missionaries Jonathan and Tamba Abel

World Relief's Ministry in Darfur, Sudan

As violence continues to increase in the Darfur region of Sudan, please keep the people of Darfur in your prayers.

The peace agreement signed over the weekend is a hopeful sign, but only one step in the process. Your prayers, advocacy, and support are still needed to contribute to the restoration of Darfur. They will allow World Relief to extend our service to those suffering from malnutrition, displacement, and destroyed livelihoods.

In Darfur, as many as 400,000 people have been killed and 2.5 million people have been displaced. Darfurians struggle to survive amidst daily violence and attacks. Their precious lives are disregarded by their perpetrators, but God does not overlook their suffering, and neither should His Church.

Christians have been responding to the conflict in Darfur by supporting the Darfur Relief Collaboration, a group of Christian relief and development agencies who have combined skills and resources to care for 90,000 Darfurians.

As the lead agency in this collaboration, World Relief is engaged in improving health conditions through food, nutrition, water, and sanitation services. For more information on the work of the Darfur Relief Collaboration please read the attached “Darfur Report,” or visit WORLD’s article at http://www.worldmag.com/articles/11823.

Over the past 2 years, World Relief has invested $2.6 million in Darfur, made in large part by a match grant from the Canadian Food Grain Bank. In August, this phase of the program will finish and we will be eligible for a new grant; however, to leverage this grant World Relief needs to raise $200,000.

Please prayerfully consider whether you or your congregation would be willing to support the ongoing work of the Darfur Relief Collaboration. Because of the match grant from the CFGB, your contribution will be leveraged at an approximately 10 to 1 ratio, so that $1,000 will make $10,000 worth of impact, and $10,000 will make $100,000 worth of impact.

To give online, visit https://www.wr.org/gettinginvolved/donate/ or send your check to World Relief , 7 E Baltimore Street, Baltimore, MD 21202.

There are two other ways that you and your congregation can lift up the people of Darfur. Through prayer and advocacy you can give voice to Darfur before our Father and before our government. For specific prayer requests, please refer to the “Darfur Report,” and for more details on advocacy, please read the attached “Darfur Action Plan.”

If you would like to raise awareness in your congregation, then a bulletin insert and powerpoint are available upon request.

Thank you for remembering those who are so often forgotten. We are praying for God’s healing hand in Darfur and for lasting peace in Sudan. We are praying that God would raise up His Church to be a voice for the voiceless, that this suffering would come to an end. May it be so

Linda Haabak Commissioned

Longtime AFLC member Linda Haabak was commissioned as a Wycliffe missionary at New Luther Valley, in McVille, ND. The commissioning service took place on May 7 with congregational members and the AFLC World Missions Committee officiating.

Although Linda was never commissioned, she has been a missionary with Wycliffe for thirty-two years. The members of her church wanted to put it off no longer and asked the World Missions Committee if they would also be involved.

During the thirty-two years, Linda has served in a number of missionary support roles within the United States. She is glad to be part of an organization bringing God's precious Word to those who don't yet have it in their languages and grateful for the many partners throug the years who have "held the ropes" through prayer, financial support, and encouragement.

If you know of AFLC members who are serving as missionaries with other missions organizations please let us know as we are starting to keep a prayer list. Our email address is worldmis@aflc.org

Prayers Answered - Another Request

Yesterday we asked for prayer for Fransisco. Today Fransisco had all the tests done on his heart and kidneys etc. Then we saw the internist again. After seeing the results, and checking over brother Francisco again, he said, "I don't understand it, there's nothing major wrong with this man now!" He does have Tuberculosis, and will be getting free treatments from the government. But like I told the good doctor and Francisco, we have more than one hundred people praying for him, "should we be surprised when He answers prayer in Jesus name?"

Now another request, a neighbor of ours is a missionary with Mobility Project (http://www.mobilityproject.org/), he came over tonight to say that his wife Miriam has had a brain hemorrhage and has asked us for prayer. She had laser work done several months ago in Mexico city.

Thanks for praying,
Darwin Jackson

Effective Prayer in Mexico - Darwin Jackson

"Does the Bible ever say anywhere from Genesis to Revelation, 'My house shall be called a house of preaching... or of music?' Of course not. The Bible does say, 'My house shall be called a house of prayer for all nations'. Preaching, music, the reading of the Word - these things are fine; I believe in and practice all of them. But they must never override prayer as the defining mark of God's dwelling. The honest truth is that I have seen God do more in people's lives during ten minutes of real prayer than in ten of my sermons."

Jim Cymbala

The Lumppio's are bringing Fransisco and his kids to us today because I was sick yesterday and couldn't go get him last night. The visit last Friday with the doctor was not so good. Not only are his legs etc. swollen, but his heart as well. The doc sent us to an internist who confirmed that Fransisco is in trouble, and because he's at the bottom of the economic scale of things, doesn't have much hope. He highly recommended three test be done immediately, X- rays of his chest area, ultra sound of his heart, and another test that I don't know what it is. We have appointments today at noon and at two o'clock. Please pray for Fransisco.

Paul Abel's Coming Home

The Paul Abel's are arriving for furlough on May 18th. This will give them time to attend Andrew's highschool graduation from Hillcrest and then visit churches on their way to the Annual Conference in Washington State.

Paul and Becky will be available to speak in churches this summer and fall.

Update from Jore's

Our greatest need...

We recognize the spiritual battlefield we are entering and know that there is nothing in ourselves that is capable of making it without the power of the Holy Spirit. A missionary friend recently told us that it is crucial that we have strong prayer backing before we leave. We are asking you to pray! We will not make it without prayer support. If you would like to commit to praying for us regularly, please let us know by e-mail and we will add your name to our prayer team. We are already sending out monthly prayer updates and will continue to do so when we are in Uganda.

Prayer Requests

• For our final weeks in Minot – good closure and time to pack
• Flexibility for our boys as we move and begin traveling
• For the Lord’s protection on our family as we’re on the road this summer
• For greater faith and greater dependence on the Lord
• For freedom from fear
• For the Nation of Uganda – more souls for the kingdom

Jore's Speak at Taylor, ND

Nate and Rhoda Jore presented their future work in Uganda at the AFLC Church in Taylor, North Dakota last Sunday, April 30.

Pastor Gary Woods who is serving the congregation is also the director of New Hope Uganda. New Hope Uganda is a missionary organization that bring Christ to Uganda through compassion ministries especially orphans.

Pastor Woods has been a great resouce as we attempt to go into the new field of Uganda.

Mission Conference in Thief River Falls

Our Saviour's Lutheran Church in Theif River Falls held its annual Missions Conference on April 23rd. Missionary Connely Dyrud and Mission Director Del Palmer were the guest speakers.

This years theme was "A Mighty Wind Blowing in Missions." Texts were taken from the first two chapters of Acts where Jesus promised the disciples that they would receive power to witness to the world. The fulfillment of the promise came in Acts 2 when the Holy Spirit filled the believers and they began to boldly proclaim the Kingdom of God.

The emphasis was made that this same mighty wind of power is working in missions today.