It has been a long time since I last wrote and a lot has happened since then. First of all, let me give you an update on the accident victims.
Thank you so much for praying. It has been a tough time for a number of these men and their families and continues to be difficult for Waama, but your prayers have definitely carried us through. Since my last prayer update, the two teachers from Waama (Pastor Mao and Israeli) made it back to Waama safely, Pastor Mao got his broken collar bone set, and Israeli stepped up and by default began operating as dean of Waama in Pastor Dallei's absence. You would never guess that Israeli was even in an accident. He is working very hard to keep the school functioning while we wait for an interim dean to be assigned by the head office.
Pastor Mao has been resting the whole time, trying to give his collar bone a good chance to heal properly, which it appears is happening. He is hoping to start teaching soon, possibly even this week. Per (the Scripture Mission missionary) is doing very well. The stitches in his head have been removed and his hair around the wound is growing back where they had to shave to do the stitches.
A few days after my last update, Pastor Dallei, accompanied by Jesse, was flown to his hometown of Haydom and was admitted to the Norwegian hospital there. Jesse is fine. I have seen no stress or depression or paranoia or anything as a result of the accident. That is a huge answer to prayer. The only result of the accident is a scab on his elbow which is healing nicely. Pastor Dallei (the dean of Waama) is not doing so great. The good news is that every doctor's report I've heard as well as all the results of all his head examinations say that there is nothing wrong with his head. This is a huge answer to prayer. The bad news is that he still experiences a lot of pain, babbles quite a bit, and actually seems like he is regressing. What Pastor Dallei needs more than anything is to rest so his brain will have a chance to heal from the trauma, but the culturally appropriate thing to do when someone is sick or hurt is to visit that person. So Pastor Dallei is constantly receiving guests and visitors even though the doctors have said that no one is allowed to visit him. Everybody says that when he receives visitors, he gets all riled up, starts talking a million miles a minute and doesn't stop until he gets worn out. Needless to say, this constant stream of visitors is not helping the healing process. Many people have said that head injuries like his can take many months to heal. And all the tests having came back positive, we are hopeful for a complete recovery. Thank you for continuing to pray for him.
Last time I wrote, Adela was here. As it turned out, the volcano in Iceland prohibited her from leaving Tanzania when she was scheduled. So we "suffered" through an extra week together. Actually, it was the best week of our time and capped off a wonderful month together. She is now back at the Association Free Lutheran Bible School in Minneapolis where she is finishing up this school year. She continues to work as an RN doing home health and is eagerly anticipating my return on June 25.
Thank you for your prayers for us as we continue to plan our wedding and look forward to married life.
Waama is going quite well. Teaching is fun and challenging as usual. We are already half-way through our final semester at Waama! Finals are the first week of June and then the students will have 2 weeks to bring in the harvest before graduation on June 20. It promises to be a very busy month and a half! This semester I am finishing teaching 2nd and 3rd year Biblical History (each year-long courses), English, and 1 Thessalonians.
It is such a blessing to teach these men and women.
Our Jesus Film ministry is also coming to a close. Jesse did a weekend trip while I was taking Adela to the airport (the second time =) ) and we showed at a high school the following week. We praise God for the freedom to show the truth of the Gospel in the high school to close to a thousand students of all religions. We have one Jesus Film trip left to the region of Sabilo on May 21-23. Please pray for strength for us and that the seeds which have been/will be planted will bear much fruit.
Also connected with the Jesus Film ministry is the Vista project - the solar-charged, battery-powered Jesus Film kits. We (with the help of some friends in the States) purchased three of these kits and brought them to Tanzania. We have been trying to sell them to local evangelistic teams for roughly a third of the price but they have been having some difficulty finding that sort of money. Now we are happy to say that the first Vista has been purchased, paid in full, and placed in the capable hands of a Tanzanian Lutheran pastor. He was very excited to get the equipment and we are thrilled to see this first kit being used. Please pray for its use and also the sale of the other two kits.
I'd like to share one final prayer request with you. It seems like the first few months of every new year has seen a shortfall in our monthly support. This year is no different. Both Jesse and I have been feeling the financial squeeze. April was the first month in 2010 that I broke 50% of my monthly quota. With a wedding coming up and married life to plan for the temptation is to worry, but God has always been faithful and will continue to be faithful. My hope is in him. Would you pray with me that God will supply for all of our needs?
Thanks for your encouragement and prayers on our behalf!
Ben
