Dear friends, Is time going fast everywhere or just here in Africa? I can’t believe we are already well into February! Thank you so much for your prayers as Ben and I have begun teaching again here at Wa/ama Bible College. Things are progressing well. It is a busy term for us but the challenge of additional classes is good. We continue enjoy getting to know the students better. They were so happy when we came back with our residency permits and were sure to tell us that they had been praying.
Some of the best opportunities we have to get to know the students are on the weekends when we are able to go with them to their villages and participate in the Sunday service and show the ‘Jesus’ film. This past weekend we had an invitation to go to the village of Guse along with several of the students who were from that area. In all, about 12 people ended up going. It was a lot of fun. For the first time in a Sunday morning service, I preached in Swahili!! Afterwards, we were able to show the ‘Jesus’ film in the local dialect for the first time.
The plan was for it to be a relatively short trip – leaving at 6:45am and being back by 8:00pm the same day. As it ended up, around 7:30pm on the way home we got stuck in a very bad mud bog. We had experienced some problems in this same place on the way to the village but on the return it was much worse. In fact, we all got out of the car and some started trying to dig, push, etc. This went on for a couple hours at which point one of the students found a guy with a truck nearby and asked if we could hire him to pull us out. He came with his Land Rover and some of his friends and they proceeded to try to dig, jack, push, and pull the truck for the next several hours. Due to the fact that all of us were planning on a short, day-trip, nobody had extra food, water, or warm clothes. Many of us simply wrapped up in whatever we had and tried to find a dry spot on the road where we could get some sleep….until it started raining around 2am. Around 4am everyone decided to get some rest and continue the effort after sunrise. It made for a crowded car. The efforts resumed around 7am and sweet success finally came at 10:30am – 15 hours after we got stuck. I will include one picture with this email others can be seen on our blog at www.benandjesse.blogspot.com. Praise God for His protection!
Weekend ministry opportunities continue to abound. We could be gone every weekend if we wanted. Many of the students are excited to have us see their place of ministry and meet their family and friends. Pray for wisdom in all that, too.
This is a special weekend at Wa/ama and we ask for your prayers. Beginning tomorrow, we will be having several days of ‘spiritual meetings.’ Pray that this would be a time of encouragement and re-focusing for everyone.
It is hard to know all of what the year ahead might hold. My original return ticket is currently scheduled for early April but it is looking like I will at least extend it and maybe just throw it away. I can push it back only as far as July before it expires. The main reason for a return home at this point would be to have a much overdue check-up with my diabetes doctor at the University of Washington and get my prescriptions renewed as the insulin I take is not available here. I am feeling more and more certain that I will be over here for at least another year or year and a half. If that is going to happen, I would need to come home at some point this year as I currently only have enough insulin to last me through October. We will see.
Thank you so much for all your love, prayers, concern, and support. Ben and I continue to feel so blessed by the way God guides and provides each step of the way.
I pray the same for each of you.
In Him,
Jesse
Dear friends,
