Update from Tom Lumppios

"The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.  He makes me to lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside the still waters. He restores my soul." --Psalm 23:1-2

At the end of January we moved (yes, again) to WMPL's duplex in St. Paul. The house is bigger, warmer and overall better for our family. We praise the Lord! Our permanent address will still be in Eden Prairie, but if you would like to contact us from now until June, you may do so to the following address:

1555 Arkwright St.
St. Paul, MN 55130
Our phone number is 651-776-2472

We have been busy with doctor visits, tests and preparing our presentation and scheduling with churches. About two weeks ago, a lady from our church presented us with a most generous gift. She came over and stocked us up on supplements and power-food and with many recommendations to boost our immune system, energy, etc. I have followed her advice and the Lord has used it all to restore my health!  About the same time, I also went to a prayer for healing service where I believe the Lord touched me also. I didn't remember what it was to feel healthy anymore...We have been bursting with praise to our Lord!

We found out also that our little Gracie is suffering from a neurological dysfunction called SPD (Sensory Processing Disorder).  Her case is mild but still she will be needing some occupational therapy so she is not affected as she starts school. Since we are home schooling, Tom and I will have to learn a home program to administer such therapy to her in Mexico. Please pray for us to find the best help possible and for God to provide for us.

Cristina continues to grow in and love her home schooling process. She is reading better and better, writing and doing math. I introduced some drawing exercises to her and she is absolutely loving it. Yesterday we spent 2 1/2 hours just drawing different things from scratch. We may have an artist in the making here.
Tom continues to study and practice his Spanish as regularly as he can. We have not yet been able to locate a Spanish congregation where he could share. Hopefully now that I am better He will be freer to do some more looking. He works one day a week at WMPL helping with property management and is on the "snow removal team." We have been helping with the cleaning of the offices as well once a week.

Last Tuesday we had the opportunity to speak at AFBLS chapel service. What a blessing that was! Please keep in prayer the following dates, would you?

• March 8-10 -- We will be traveling to Rice/Allaida, MN and speaking at Pastor Karl Anderson's churches. There may be a chance  to speak at Pastor's Twight's church in the area as well. Please pray for journey mercies, that good relationships may be built with this churches and for God to make us a blessing to them. Cristina and Gracie may sing at the services :) Please pray for them too!
• March 28-30 -- We will be traveling to a camp in Iowa and speak to some of the broader WMPL constituency.
  We continue to look for a car and pray for God's provision. At this point we are only able to afford something just about the same as the truck that just died on us. We would be fine with that if that is what God wants but we don't have peace about it yet. We will need to return the van we've borrowed at the end of March so please pray that God will guide us to the car He wants for us.

Our blog has finally been updated. It is one long update but there are a bunch of pictures and stories there. When you have a chance take a look at

http://wmpl.org/blogs/tllumppio

 

Thank you very much for your support and prayers. We couldn't do this without you!

In His hand,
To m, Lidia, Cristina and Gracie

Steve Kvale's Current Newsletter Available

The Steve Kvale's latest newsletter is now available.  The Kvales are AFLC World Missionaries on loan to Wycliffe Bible Translators.  You can view the newsletter by, clicking here or on the graphic.

Chmiel's in Minnesota for Medical Care

Greetings from winter Minnesota! :) Yes, we made it safely all the way back to the Twin Cities and we thank God very much for this provision. Miriam was not feeling the greatest when we traveled but otherwise the long flight went without any problems. Our dear friends prepared a great apartment for us here, loaded up our fridge and cupboards with groceries, prepared wonderful welcome gifts and notes, have been bringing us meals… Words cannot express how blessed we are to have friends like this. What a blessing to be part of God’s family!

We are also very thankful for our doctor here who has been very efficient in helping us get things checked, get appointments with specialists etc…  She is also trying to get Miriam on the exact right dose of Coumadin (blood thinner). In Ukraine they were not that detailed and “close enough” was usually good enough :) So we are glad that this too will hopefully soon be under control.

But we have to say that it feels a little strange being part of two completely different worlds. They are so different but in a way they are both supposed to feel normal. For example now we are getting professional US medical care where the doctor gives you a long lecture about how careful you have to be and how dangerous blood clots are and how when you are taking blood thinners your blood has to be checked often etc etc…  But in a month or so we will again be seeing our Ukrainian doctors who will again say “don’t worry, it’s nothing” to most everything we tell them… And even in many other areas we realize how as a missionary you live in two completely different worlds where not only the languages are different but also many things are done differently, many values are different and different things are considered “normal.”

This morning Tomasz called a couple of our Ukrainian friends. It was great to hear them again. One lady said that her daughter is worried that we will not come back to L’viv any more (because of the medical problems we had there etc). So we ensured her that we are very much planning to come back to L’viv because L’viv is our home now. She was very glad to hear that :) But right now we are thankful that we can be back with our home church here in the Twin Cities, with our Minnesota friends, Tomasz is encouraged by having a chance to sit in on some seminary classes… And we are also very grateful that besides having a lot of different doctor’s appointments we are finally able to rest! That is what we both really need right now. Thank you so much to all of you who made this month of recuperation possible for us!

Some of you asked about our mailing address while in the States (we should be at this address until March 25):

Tomasz and Miriam Chmiel

3136 East Medicine Lake Blvd, Unit A

Plymouth, MN 55441

Our phone number here is (763) 746-3092.

Thank you again for all your prayers!

Tomasz and Miriam

Update from Tanzania

It never ceases to amaze me how the weeks pass!  Since my last update, in addition to our normal work of teaching here at Waama, we had the privilege of hosting a couple friends who came to visit us from Arusha!  One was our friend who I told you in my last correspondence had taken us on a motorbike safari.  He is here in Tanzania for a year working with a ministry called Scripture Mission.  He came to visit us together with another mutual friend who we know through the international church we often attend when we are in Arusha.  He is a retired cop from Minnesota whose wife is here working for the U.N.  Anyway, those two came for a weekend…each on their own motorcycle and it made for a fun weekend of guy-recreation.  I have to say, there is also something refreshing about spending time with like-minded, Christian expatriates.  I don’t completely understand it, but there is no doubt that constantly interacting in a foreign culture and language gets tiring after a while.

In short, it ended up being a good weekend for them to come because there were some special meetings happening here at the school which had kept us from being able to schedule any weekend ministry.  So, among other places, we took them out to go swimming at those waterfalls which are about 45 minutes from our place.  I am pretty sure it was the first time most of the natives around here had seen a motorcycle gang. (Pictures will soon be posted at http://benandjesse.blogspot.com)

Another good opportunity we recently had was teaching a couple sessions that were part of a course put on by the Iraqw Language and Culture Trust (ILCT).  Several months ago, I told you about the Norwegian lady here who has dedicated the last 50+ years of her life to translating the Bible into the mother-tongue of the people in this region – Iraqw.  Well, her current work, to a large degree, is literacy training and, more specifically, training local teachers who will then be equipped to offer much needed literacy courses in their villages.  Ben and I were invited as guest speakers on two separate days to teach pretty much anything we wanted with the goal of simply giving these literacy students a change in pace from their otherwise constant linguistic study.  Ben taught an introduction to world history from a Biblical perspective and I gave a basic course on Biblical psychology.  It put a little more work on our plates but was a very enjoyable experience.

Interestingly, months ago, we offered to reserve the weekend of February 29-March 2 to go with the people from ILCT to the village of their choosing so that they could see an Iraqw film showing for themselves.  So, God once again proves that He is a better ministry coordinator than any of us could ever be.  Unfortunately, while Ben went out for the weekend with the ILCT teachers and students, I had to stay home due to an embarrassing little incident that took place on Friday only hours before we were scheduled to leave.

Explanation: We have had a bunch of bees residing in our unused chimney for the past several months.  For the most part, they don’t bother us but a couple people have been stung and we know people whose relatives have died from swarms of this types of bees attacking them.  So, we decided that maybe we should try to fix this problem…by smoking them out…then burning a bunch of cardboard in the fireplace below…then spraying insect killer up the chimney.  It wasn’t that bad of an idea…we just should have put the fire out first.  So, when it blew up, my right arm took a pretty good portion of the hit.  I was hoping to still go on the weekend ministry trip but finally decided that it would be easier to take care of myself and manage the pain here at home than in the village…and I didn’t really feel like being exhibit #1 in some sort of weekend village freak show.  In any case, I am especially thankful for God’s protection of my face through the incident.  Furthermore, it has been a good reminder that God can use anything – even bad things – to bring about good.  For example, I had all kinds of time that I wouldn’t normally have had this weekend to write my second semester finals (to be administered March 10-12) and get ahead on a whole bunch of projects…like typing up this email for instance.  Poor Ben…

As I write this (March 1^st), we are still not completely sure of our plans for Easter.  It is most likely that we will go to Uganda to visit Ben’s brother in Jinja.  In any case, we are certainly looking forward to some down time.  For those that have not yet heard, I DO have my tentative date set for returning to the States this summer.  As it currently stands, I will be landing at SEA-TAC on the 4^th of July.  If I do end up returning to Tanzania for another year (as it appears I will be) my stay in the States will last through early September.  During that time, I will be taking care of some necessary dental and medical check-ups as well as trying to see as many of you as possible!!  Again, I will continue to plan as if I will be coming back here for a third year unless God decides to throw something unexpected in my path in the next couple months.

Thank you once again for your continuing part in my life and ministry.  God bless you all.

In Him,

Jesse Long

Gunderson and Palmer Travel to Brazil and Mexico

World Mission Director Del Palmer and Committee member Dick Gunderson left Minneapolis March 5 on a trip the the AFLC mission works in Mexico and Brazil.   They will be discussing the current work with those on the field and making plans for future work.  Pray for Pastor's Palmer and Gunderson as they travel, especially Pastor Palmer who is has back problems and will be having surgery when he returns.

Paul and Becky Abels

Wow!  Where do I begin?  I certainly could write a book about the last three months (don’t worry I don’t have the time or energy to do so).  One day blends into the next as we tackle the task at hand for each moment.  The days have been filled with activities, ministry, blessings and lots of people.  With the people come joys and sadnesses, ups and downs, moments of rejoicing and times of stress.  Missionary life is certainly NOT what some believe to be “an easy life.”  Pressures surround us daily as we carry out ministry, make plans for the future, and work on problem-solving.  Why do I mention all this?  Because we need your prayers.  Perhaps you don’t know how to pray for us – that’s nothing new.  The  Apostle Paul says in Romans 8:26 that we do not know how to pray as we ought. But that should not stop us from praying because the Holy Spirit intercedes for us in accordance with God’s will.  Thank you to those of you who take time to pray for us.  And for the rest of you, perhaps you would consider adding us to your prayer list.  “The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.”  James 5:16

Christmas was a joyful time shared with family and church members.  The choirs and theater groups did a great job presenting at the churches and we enjoyed special meals and fellowship times with several groups of people. It was a special blessing to have Matthew home with us for three weeks. We took a couple of days at the beach between Christmas and New Years to relax after all the Christmas rush and to prepare for the next stage of ministry.

A group of five Canadians arrive the first days of January to spend the month with us.  They blessed us with their presence and labors and gifts.  It was fun for them to participate in our Children’s Camp at the ARCA.  Our theme this year was about prayer and missions.  The following week we hosted the Annual Conference at the ARCA.  And the next week we geared up for our youth camp.  The Lord worked in our lives as we learned about discipleship and how to prepare for the Great Olympics of Life. Our son-in-law, Silvio, was the morning speaker for camp and he did a great job!  Camps are always such a blessed experience and spiritual motivation for our youth and all involved. This year over half of the 130 campers were over the age of 18.  

At the end of January our family grew to include three more young people – Paul’s niece Melissa and nephew Jonathan from Arizona and Ryan, a college student from Minnesota who will be teaching at the English School for six months.  So, those of you who were feeling sorry for me experiencing the “empty nest” can be assured that I haven’t had to go through that challenge yet.  We are also happy to have Paul’s folks with us for about three months.  Plus, my two neighbor girls spend quite a bit of time here and eat with us three times a week.  I’m glad to have young people in the house because there is always something fun happening.  I must admit, though, that I do get more tired out than I used to with all the constant activity.

Joanna is miraculously juggling her responsibilities as mother of two darling little girls, director of the Lighthouse School, English teacher , and choir director and cell group leader at church.  Silvio is just as busy at work, school, church, home and play. I worry about them being too busy, but I can’t say much J  Christina and Daniel are nearing their first year anniversary and seem to really enjoy married life.  Daniel is in his last year of medical school and Christina is in her last year doing internships and working on her senior project. Andrew is happy at Bible School.  He was chosen to be the leader of the Ambassador team from AFLBS so he will be traveling and ministering all summer throughout the US.  Matthew has raised a good part of his support for mission trips to China and Mexico and plans to leave on March 19.  Besides all his other activities he is now working on his part as Bert in the musical “Mary Poppins” to be presented at the end of the year.

The big push now is getting ready for the Passion Play.  Easter is very early this year, so we are pressed for time.  The next weeks will be filled with practices and preparations.  Pray that it will be a wonderful evangelistic impact.  I am also going on a trip with the ladies for a Women’s get-together in Iguacu Falls for the International Women’s Day March 7-9.  We all have to get yellow fever shots because that terrible disease has become a threat in several places in Brazil.  During this month we are expecting three more visitors from the States – Del Palmer,  Dick Gunderson and Lester Hill.  

I have not even begun to scratch the surface of the real “stress” factors in our life.  As if having all this activity weren’t enough, we’ve been going through many difficult times with relationship difficulties between people in our church (very emotionally draining) - moral failure on the part of some key  people, marital separations, etc.  Pastor Jaime is separated from his wife at this time and therefore has stepped down from his responsibilities as president of the AFLC and pastor of the local congregation. Paul is taking over some of the preaching and teaching in his place.  Pastor Nilson is taking on more responsibility in the Campo Largo church to help us out there.  We have meetings and counseling galore. So, I just want to ask again in closing that you remember us in prayer.  I hope to get a regular newsletter out soon with pictures for you to enjoy.  One thing is for sure, the one thing we can count on, the one thing that never changes – God is in control and He is faithful.  May we all be found at rest in Him. Thank you for your continued support.   Sustained by grace, Paul and Becky

Jore's Update

We wanted to update you regarding the pastor who had been arrested.  He was released from the police station last Saturday but has been required to report back this past week.  It seems he was indeed guilty of the charge of forgery.  He had gotten in with a group of people who had been committing such crimes and thankfully he was caught on his first try.  Please pray for a spirit of genuine repentance for him and wisdom in restoring him as a minister of the Gospel.

We forgot to thank you in our last update for praying for our time with Del Palmer and Kevin Olson.  We had a delightful time with them and they encouraged our family a great deal.  We also had several meetings with the pastors and church leadership here in Jinja as well as several trips to the surrounding villages.  Del came to see the work and encouraged the local leadership.  He also shared with them the AFLC World Mission's vision and purpose.  Kevin's main purpose for being here was to help us plan for the training program we hope to begin late this year.  He also blessed us with his handy-man skills in helping to fix our dryer, fridge, car, and lights!  Much progress was made and we were very much encouraged by their time here.

Life is going well and we have been healthy.  We will be traveling to Kampala tomorrow for an ultrasound and checkup for Rhoda.  We are just two months away from the due date! We have recently updated our blog (www.jorenews.blogspot.com) so be sure to check out the new pictures! God bless you all and thanks for your involvement in the ministry here.
Nate, Rhoda, boys, and baby

Check out Kvale's Web Page

Steve and Glenda Kvale are AFLC Missionaries on loan to Wycliffe Bible  Translators.  They have a web site at:

http://www.translatetheword.org/pages/ 

Take a look at their site and find out more about their ministry.

Impacting World Missions Through Our Prayers and Our Kids by Craig Wentzel

In the last few months, the World Missions Committee has seen that prayer and the preparation of our children are necessary priorities for our mission work in the AFLC. We have a good picture of the importance of our prayers and of our kids to world missions in the story of Hannah in I Samuel 1-3. Hannah is best known for two things: her prayers and her son, Samuel. In fact, if not for the effect she had on others through them, we wouldn’t know her at all! Faced with a difficult family situation, she prayed, and the Lord answered her wi th a son who had a great impact on the world, including US!

The Impact of Her Prayers

First, they had an impact on her! I recently heard that O. Hallesby compared prayer to a person in a boat throwing an anchor to the “shore” (God) and then pulling on the rope. Is the person pulling the shore closer to the boat?...Or is he pulling the boat closer to the shore? I believe the Lord wanted Hannah to pray so that He could “draw” her to Himself. He wanted to give her a son, but He had great plans for that son, and she had to prepare him rightly for God to use. As she prayed and offered him back to the Lord for His service, God eased the burden He had given her for the new life of a child. “Her face was no longer sad.” (I Sam. 1:18) And, then, He answered her: “the Lord remembered her. And…she gave birth to a son.” (I Sam. 1:19-20)

Second, Hannah’s prayers had an impact on Eli, the priest. They were a testimony and an encouragement to him as he observed her earnest prayers and then saw God’s answer to her and actually became entrusted with that answer: Samuel!

Third, her prayers had an impact on Samuel. Every time, someone called his name, he was reminded that “God hears”. He, himself, was the answer to his mother’s prayers! Hannah told him why she gave him up to the Lord: he belonged to the Lord because of her promise to give him back as His servant. Because of her great example, he also became a man of prayer. Ps. 99 tells us: “Samuel was among those who called on His name: They called upon the LORD, and He answered them.”

How can WE have an impact on the world by OUR prayers? Like Hannah, we need to be dissatisfied with the way things are (our “comfort zone”) and take on God’s burden for new life in others. Recently, I realized that I had misplaced some very important records necessary to figure my taxes. For 2 weeks, I looked everywhere! I became desperate to find that which was lost! I prayed earnestly, knowing that the Lord knew where they were. Then, when I had no more hope, the Lord brought them to light! The joy and relief I experienced when they were found gave me a taste of what the Lord feels when a lost, eternal, soul is found! Will we let the Lord draw us near to Him in prayer so that we can feel His burden for the “lost” and become URGENT in finding them?

The Impact of Her Child

First, Samuel, her son, had a great impact on Hannah! He, as God’s answer to her prayers, showed her God’s love and power in her life in the most personal way. What she did with Samuel opened the door for the Lord to give her more children. (I Sam. 2:20-21)

Second, Samuel had an impact on Eli, God’s disobedient “servant”. Samuel became God’s “mouthpiece” to him, warning him of God’s judgment and giving him an opportunity to repent!

Third, Samuel had an impact on the world, leading God’s people to victory and setting up their 1^st two kings. Ps. 99 puts him on an equal par with Moses, the giver of God’s law, and Aaron, the father of the priests for God’s people. Samuel was a great prophet and the only king-maker for Israel!

How can OUR children have an impact on the world like Samuel did?...By our giving them godly and sacrificial examples, a concern for pleasing God, and most of all, by surrendering them to the LORD to do with as He pleases, as Hannah did. Are we willing to let the LORD have OUR OWN CHILDREN as missionaries?

By Craig Wentzel

Training of Pastors and Teachers by Nate Jore

“Go and make disciples of all nations… teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you.” -Matthew 28:19-20

Can you picture Jesus sitting on a hillside teaching his twelve disciples? Can you picture a Ugandan pastor teaching the Word of God to a small group gathered under a mango tree? Teaching is at the core of the Great Commission and is the primary reason we have come to Uganda. Paul instructed Timothy to take what he had been taught and to entrust it to reliable men who were qualified to teach others (2 Tim 2:2). Our goal in Uganda is to equip reliable men who will train others to follow Jesus.

Pastor Kevin Olson, former AFLC Youth Director, has begun a training program called the Ambassador Institute designed to provide training in overseas settings. He came to see the work here in Uganda for two weeks in January with the goal of helping us to begin the training of church leaders. While he was here, he had the opportunity to discuss the different aspects of training with the local pastors, and to interact with two groups of potential students in the village. He and I also discussed at length the different training needs that exist and the different possibilities for meeting those needs. A three-phase system was suggested in which phase one would be geared towards training lay leaders and phases two and three would be more advanced training for pastoral ministry.

We are currently planning phase one of the training program. The main challenges in ensuring a successful beginning are to have godly teachers that are trained and prepared to teach and to have all the logistics worked out (location, meals, transportation, materials, etc.). Our goal is to provide training that is affordable, self-sustainable, reproducible and effective. If we succeed in these endeavors, the training will be able to grow and expand quickly, resulting in the training of many people at the grass-roots level. We are making an intentional effort to keep phase one from being dependent on outside funding. If it can be locally sustained, then it can grow and expand rapidly as teachers are called and more students desire to be trained. At this point, it looks like phase one will take place in village locations that are accessible by bicycle to the students who will attend, thus eliminating the cost of transportation for the students. If the training were to be held in the city, it would drastically reduce the number of students who could afford to attend. The training will take place on Saturdays, thus allowing students and working adults to participate. We are looking at a two-year program that will be divided into three terms per year. The plans I have mentioned here are still tentative as we are still considering the best options.

The most crucial aspect of training is finding the right curriculum that will be taught. We have been considering different methods and styles of teaching with Pastor Kevin Olson, as well as looking at existing materials that others are using. Our main concern is that the training will connect with the students in their cultural context and answer the questions that they have. We are planning to have training in the local language even though most of the students are quite familiar with English as it is Uganda’s national language. This will bring the training closer to home and will not exclude those who are not confident in English. The main teachers will be the local pastors with whom I have been meeting and planning for the past year.

Thank you for your prayers for this new training program which we are hoping to begin yet this year. May God bless the spreading of His Word, that it may produce faith in those who hear.

Ingrid Giles Home After Surgery

My surgery went very well on Friday afternoon.  It was a couple of hours later than planned because one of the surgeons was delayed with a patient in Zacatecas.  They let me out of the hospital on Saturday night and I am now recovering at home.  Today (Monday) I am feeling much better -- I even got dressed!

I'm still a little sore, and I'll be on a very restricted diet for several weeks.  Already, the surgery seems to have done its job.  My recovery seems to be going quite well.  Please pray that I don't lose too much weight! 

Thank you all for your prayers, and thank you for the encouraging notes that some of you have sent.  It makes me feel good to know that people are thinking of me and praying for me -- besides the fact that prayer works!

Ingrid

Chmiels Traveling to Czech Republic

THANK YOU so much for your prayers! Yes, the Lord answered your prayers and we are flying to the Czech Republic tomorrow. We consulted two different doctors (Friday and Saturday) and they both said that Miriam should be ok traveling. Of course they both said that they cannot guarantee that nothing bad will happen but at the same time they both thought that it was likely that the flights should not be a problem. But they also suggested that it would be better for us to first travel to the Czech Republic and only when we see that Miriam is doing fine, only after that we should continue to the States. So that is the plan right now. We are leaving Ukraine tomorrow morning; we should be in Prague tomorrow afternoon. We will probably spend about a week or 10 days in the Czech Republic and then we are planning to continue to the States (Minneapolis, MN).

We are hoping to see some doctors in the Czech Republic too. But the only doctor we know (a specialist) was not able to get us an appointment in February. So we will just go see a general practitioner close to where we will be staying and we will hope and pray that the doctors she will refer us to will be good, knowledgeable, helpful and nice. :)

If you would like to see some more new pictures, you can always go to http://www.chmiels.com/gallery.

Thank you so much for all your prayers. We definitely feel them!!! And even though we still do not exactly know what is going to happen next, God has proven Himself faithful in always showing us the next step at exactly the right time!

Blessings,

Tomasz and Miriam

This Week in Uganda

It has been a bit of a long week here, but God has shown Himself faithful.  Many have been asking about Richard of whom we wrote about last update.  I talked to him last week and he said that he has quit smoking and drinking completely and that he is happy.  He came to church the first Sunday and has come to Bible study twice.  He just found a temporary job in a different location making cement blocks which means that we don't see him around here every day as before.  The job also has him working long hours seven days a week, so he has not been attending Bible study and church services.  My main concern is that he have the spiritual encouragement that he needs for his young Christian life.  His two teenage sons are Christians and have been a great encouragement to him. Please don't stop praying for him.

The Lord has been doing some purifying around here.  He has been purifying us through different hardships that we have faced recently which have caused us to draw near to Him and to each other.  I was particularly discouraged on Friday, and that evening I received three phone calls, two from the US and one from my brother Ben in Tanzania, all aimed at encouraging me.  None of the three callers had any idea of the rough week we had had.

The Lord has been purifying in our church as well.  Without a lot of details, I had to ask one of the pastors to stop attending our Saturday pastors' meetings because of his divisive spirit and lack of godly character.  Another one of the pastors is being held at the police station on charges of forgery.  I went to try to release him on Friday, believing him innocent, only to find out that he is guilty.  His friends were asking me to pay a hefty bribe to release him which I could not do.  The outcome of the situation is still uncertain at this time of writing, but I believe I did the right thing before God.  The remaining pastors really encouraged me at our meeting today that I had done the right thing.  Forgery is a felony in Uganda with a maximum sentence of 14 years.  He could get anything from 0-14 years at this point, but we shall see.  (The legal system in Uganda seems to have a lot of loop holes for those who have money to bribe).
So, how was your week?  I must say that it is amazing how much peace there was in the midst of the stretching experiences this week.  God is always faithful and your prayer cover for our family is a HUGE blessing to us.  As you pray for us, please remember to cover us with a spiritual shield from the attacks of the Evil One.  It is not uncommon here for an individual to go to the witch doctor to put a curse on the one they are angry with.  We do not need to fear such a thing as we are covered by the blood of Christ, but we do need to be alert to the devil's schemes. This kind of opposition is expected when God is at work. Despite the heaviness of this week, we feel an undercurrent of excitement to see what God will do. We are in a crucial stage of planning for the training program that we hope to begin, Lord willing, this year.
Rhoda and the boys are doing well. Our little one is due to come in just 2 months now, for which we are all eager.
Thank you, friends, for standing with us in prayer. You are a tremendous support and encouragement to us.
Many blessings,
Nate and family

Update from Jesse Long

Dear friends,

We had a very refreshing and productive ti me in Arusha from February 8-12.  We had a lot to do which made the time pass very quickly but just having a change in pace was good.  On Sunday afternoon, we had the opportunity to go out motorbiking with one of our friends there who also has a bike.  He took us to see some amazing areas.  We climbed hills, chased gazelles (I almost caught one…I felt like a lion!), passed solitary Massai dwellings, explored dry river beds, etc.  It was amazing.

Another exciting opportunity we had during that weekend was to visit with a fellow missionary who recently returned from the States with a piece of equipment we are considering promoting here in the future.  It is called the Acclaimer and it is put out by Faith Comes by Hearing Ministries.  It is a self-contained DVD/video projector/sound system.  (You can check it out at the following website: http://www.faithcomesbyhearing.com/acclaimer-portable-video-player)  The beautiful thing is that it can be run on AC, DC, or solar power.  Our goal is to find a sustainable way to equip the local people here to carry on the film ministry that we have been involved with over this past year and a half.  The fact of the matter is that even if we're to give some evangelist all of our equipment, the cost of a vehicle to transport it all to the various village locations would not be manageable.  With the Acclaimer, however, the whole unit weighs less than 50 pounds and could easily be transported by bicycle, donkey, or even on someone’s back.  We are still in the planning stages of how all the details would work of helping the people here acquire equipment like this.  We covet your prayers.

On a slightly different note, I want to share a letter with you that we recently received:

February 3, 2008

Ben and Jesse,

Subject: Thanks for the gift you brought on January 20, 2008

Greetings in Christ Jesus:

As stated above, the Christians of the church here at Barakta village would like to thank you for the gift of Bibles that you brought when you visited our church.  We are so grateful and pray that God richly bless you.  Also, we want you to know that we have already done as you directed and have distributed the Bibles to those Christians who do not have the ability to buy one on their own.  Furthermore, those who received the Bibles send their sincere thanks.  May you continue in the heart that you have shown!

Thank you.

Yours,

Evangelist of Barakta Village

I share this letter because I honestly feel that many of you deserve this thanks as much, if not more, than we do.  Without a doubt it is your prayers and support that make it possible for us to be here and do the things we do.  God is working in this part of the world, not just through our availability, but also through the generosity of you who have partnered with us to make this work possible.  The truth is, if it were not for you, we could not be here much less be the recipients of a letter like this.  Thank you so much for your prayers and on-going support.  More pictures have made it onto our blog in recent weeks.  Check them out at http://benandjesse.blogspot.com.  God richly bless you all.

In Christ,

Jesse Long

Mbulu, Tanzania

PS – Ben took the attached picture without telling me he was taking it.  I didn’t think it turned out too bad so I thought I would send it out so you all can have a recent picture of me and can rest assured that I am alive and doing well.  It is me in front of the church we visited this past weekend.

Continue to Pray for the Chmiels

Since we know many of you are praying for us (and we appreciate it VERY MUCH!!!!) we would like you to know the latest updates…

Our good news is that Miriam’s blood clot is gone. There are still some leftover problems and our doctor said that she will have to be on blood thinners for at least four more months. But after that she should be fine. The only problem is that her blood should be checked often and they are not very good at doing that here in Ukraine. We do not know why but so many times the doctors here seem not to worry about any “potential” problems. Somehow they are not interested in preventing problems; they only deal with them when they come… But still, it’s great that the blood clot has dissolved!!!! Praise the Lord for that!!!

Our bad news is that Miriam had an ultrasound done on her remaining ovary today and there is a big cyst again!!!! :( Not only is it disappointing (we were somehow not emotionally prepared for this news) but now there is also a big question mark on whether Miriam can travel or not. You probably understand that we are trying to be super careful since she already lost one ovary recently. Her left ovary also had cysts and it twisted and then had to be removed even though Miriam did everything she could to prevent it… She was really careful, she was mostly at home resting etc… We had been told that if she does those things, it would not happen, but it did… So now, since she only has one ovary left, we are really thinking about what to do because we want to do everything possible to prevent any more problems.

But at the same time we really want to leave Ukraine ASAP. After all our bad experience we do not really trust the system here anymore. All the doctors and nurses are all really nice and we really like them as people but they have given us so much wrong advice plus they are very limited in what they can do equipment-wise, lab-wise etc… that we just feel like we need to seek medical help somewhere else…

On Saturday we are going to see a different doctor (who is supposedly very good) and hopefully he is going to help us decide whether it is safe for Miriam to travel right now or not. We were supposed to fly to the Czech Republic on Saturday but that will have to be postponed now.

When you are praying for us, please pray that we know what to do next!!!! First we need to know if Miriam can travel… but if she can travel, we need to know where to go… At first we hoped to take care of all our medical problems in the Czech Republic. But then couple different things fell through… couple different accommodation options in Prague did not work out… a doctor we wanted to see gave us the earliest appointment for March 13 etc etc… So when we learned that Samaritan Ministries (we are members) would cover our medical expenses if we came to the States, we were considering coming back to Minnesota for a month or so. In fact many things seemed to fall in place much easier with the option of coming back to Minnesota than going to Prague… There would be a place for us to stay, our clinic confirmed that they would be able to take care of both the ovary problem and the blood thinning problems, Miriam would be able to see a very nice Christian doctor etc… Our only concern was that if for some reason our medical bills got really high, we need to be 100% sure that Samaritan Ministries will really cover them all. But Tomasz called them again today and they again said that they will cover everything related to the cysts, the surgery and the blood clot problems…

So please pray for wisdom and very special God’s guidance for us. At this point we are really exhausted and feel really helpless. It feels like whenever things finally seem to be getting better or we finally feel like we know what we are doing, something happens and we are back to square one…

We appreciate you all very much!!! Happy Valentine’s Day! :)

Tomasz and Miriam

Ingrid Giles - Surgery February 15

I am going to have an operation tomorrow (Friday, February 15th).  I had expected to schedule it for early next week, but it just so happens that the surgeon who comes in from the city to do it was going to be here tomorrow, so my doctor suggested doing it tomorrow.

It is a laparoscopic partial fundoplication.  They are going to take the top part of my stomach and wrap it part of the way around the bottom of my esophagus.  I won't be able to eat real food for three or four weeks -- I'll be on liquids first and then soft foods.

I'll go into the hospital around 10am and they'll begin to do surgery around 3pm, and then I'll spend the night and come home on Saturday, if all goes well.  Marcela and Danny will take care of me.  :-)

Please pray for me!  Thanks!

Ingrid

Missionaries on Loan

AFLC World Missions has accepted two new missionary families and placed them on loan to other organizations

Tom and Lidia Lumppio

The Lumppios are members of Grace Free Lutheran Church in Maple Grove, MN.  They are both graduates of the Ministry Training Institute at the Association Free Lutheran Bible School.  Tom and Lidia and their family have been serving with World Mission Prayer League in Mexico.  They are home in the United States at this time on a short furlough before returning to Mexico.

Steve and Glenda Kvale

Steve and Glenda are missionaries on loan to Wycliffe Bible Translators.  They will be stationed in Florida where Steve will be working as a computer specialist.  The Kvales are members of Christ the King Free Lutheran Church in Pipestone, MN.  Glenda graduated from the Association Free Lutheran Bible School in 1987.

Information about all our missionaries can be obtained by clicking on the AFLC World Missions link to in the right hand column.

Update from Darwin Jackson

"Father, into your hands I commit my spirit." Luke 23:46

"I am in God's hand and happily take each day as His good gift, leaving tomorrow free of all personal claims, to come or not to come, as our Father sees best. I have strength and can work hard and have the refreshing joy of salvation like a band concert going on inside. So I praise the Lord!"

Paul Lindell (Former WMPL Director less than nine months before he died of cancer)

Thank you all for praying while I was in Sinaloa again. To be honest I didn't really feel ready to go because I had only been in Nogales for three days before that, and I had heard some disturbing news about what has been going on down there since we left. And being a worry wort, I guess I was bracing for the worst even though I was excited about showing the Jacobson's around as they consider serving with us in Mexico.

I had heard that the church in la Cruz was closed because pastor Jose couldn't do it any more. But instead one of Jose's sons is leading the congregation, and doing a great job! Pray for Elias to continue strong and that God would raise up other helpers there.

Ismael is still faithfully pastoring the congregation in Ceuta.
I was really worried about the work in el Rosario. When I asked our pastor in Mazatlan about it, he said with one of those ear to ear grins, "your going to be surprised." Sure enough when we got there we found out that Luis Manuel, the young brother who had been drawn to the Apostolic church (Ones Pentecostal) years ago had come back to us. After all the effort to win him back doctrinally, the Lord won him by grace. He said he just realized that they were motivated and driven by law, and that he loves Jesus for what He'd done and that's why he wants to serve Him. Praise God! He is battling with guilt now. He doesn't feel worthy to be a leader in the Church because of having left, but who is? Pray for him brothers and sisters. I believe God's going to do a great work through him.

Continue to pray:

• For the Jacobson's as they consider Mexico. They are a dear couple who have been pastoring for twenty six years and are going to be retiring.
• For the house to sell in San Diego so that my girls can come home to Nogales.

Let the concert play as we pray and trust God to lead us in His work, your fellow workers,

Darwin, Mary Ann and Gracie Jackson

"But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us." Romans 5:8

Ingrid Giles Prayer Letter

Dear Friends,

The weather this week is very nice -- still cool, but not too cold.      

In the weekly women's Bible Study, we are learning about "How to have Mary's heart in Martha's world," using material that my mom prepared several months ago when she was a speaker for the women at a retreat for pastors and their wives.  Not many women come, but those who do have said that they don't want to miss a single session!

Claudia Gamboa, for whom you have been praying, is opening her own taekwondo school.  She works all day, and now two or three evenings a week she takes her children over to the school and teaches.  She is hoping that one day the school will make enough money that she will be able to work fewer hours during the day.  I admire her for coming alone to church with her four children (two toddlers) every Sunday, and sometimes walking if they miss the bus.  They are rarely even late!  I think it's very good for the children to grow up seeing the importance that she places on her Christian walk.

Oscar, the teenage boy for whom you've been praying, is maturing into quite the young man.  He has started mentoring his younger cousin and brings him to church now.  The boy is named Benigno ("Nino" for short) and is in my Sunday School class.  He is quite eager to do all the work and memorize the verse every week!

Dan and Marcela recently took the youth group to the city of Aguascalientes for an outing.  It sounds like they all had fun.  

I am contemplating having an operation soon.  I'm not sick and it isn't any sort of emergency, but basically the doctor says it's a good idea to do it soon, and now that I've done my own research I'm convinced he's right.  Also, if I'm going to adopt a baby, I'd like to have this out of the way first.  It turns out that the reason my stomach acid goes into my lungs is because my lower esophogeal sphincter (also known as the cardiac sphincter) has apparently been open all my life, and also I have a hiatal hernia.  They want to fix those things.  The only thing I still need to know in order to decide is the price (I don't have insurance), and they can't tell me the price until they do some more tests. 

Here is my prayer list:

Please (requests):

• Pray for my mom and dad and my grandparents, especially during this time that they are together.  
• Ask God to continue to provide for my financial needs.
• Pray for my continued health, that I would soon be able to get the tests and find out the approximate price of the operation, and that God would provide the money if He wants me to have the surgery at this time.
• Ask God to continue to provide Dan and Marcela's financial needs.  They are hoping to rent a house of their own soon, which means that their expenses would go up.
• Please continue to pray for Claudia Gamboa and her kids.
• Pray for God's guidance for me and the World Missions Committee as I continue the process of applying to be a full-term missionary.
• Pray that Oscar's cousin Benigno would become a Christian.
• Pray that God would give me the words and phrases necessary to do the best possible job of translating this Sunday School material so that it will be clear to children from all over the Spanish-speaking world.  Also pray that God would use these lessons to speak to the children and teachers who use them.
• Pray that I'd do a good job as Sunday School teacher and superintendent.
• Ask God to help me spend my time wisely.

Thank you (praise):

• I have learned the cause of some health problems that I had always taken for granted, and they can be fixed!
• I trust that God will continue to take care of my financial needs.
• Oscar brings his cousin Benigno to church every week now!
• Nena still needs a lot of prayer, but she is turning back to the Lord!
• I get to live with my charming nieces and see them every day!
• I thank God for my prayer supporters.  I believe this work wouldn't be possible without them.

Sincerely,

Ingrid Giles

Miriam Chmiel

Dear friends,

We just wanted to thank all of you so much for your prayers!!!! We feel your praying and we are encouraged by your many emails (even when we do not write back)!!!

Tomasz’s sermon went well on Sunday. From how people responded and what they said to him after church, it seemed like God really used both him and his translator, Edgar (a young Ukrainian guy from a different church) to encourage those who were there on Sunday. So praise God for that! And thanks for praying. It was really hard to be focused on the sermon preparation after we found out about the blood clot and with everything else that was going on last week…

Miriam is doing ok… It’s all a little bit of a roller-coaster (both physically and emotionally) but she is feeling better. She has to stay in bed to prevent the blood clot from dislodging but her leg does not really hurt when she is not walking. It is now a little bit of a battle between what is good for her leg/the blood clot and what is good for the rest of her body. For example last week our doctor told us that it would be risky not to put Miriam on certain hormones that would give her remaining ovary a break and some time to heal before it would be forced to “work for two.” But this week he had to take her off those hormones because they were adding to the blood clot problem. Also with all those blood thinners they are giving her, they have to try to help her leg but they have to do it without causing any extra bleeding along the way etc etc…

We are still hoping to be able to travel to Czech some time soon to get everything checked by Czech doctors but right now we cannot really plan much as Miriam needs to be in bed with her leg up.

But we are really blessed to have Miriam’s Mom here with us now. She came on Sunday and it is such a BIG help to have her here!!!! Especially since Tomasz came down with some kind of a stomach bug this morning so right now we are both in bed and Miriam’s Mom taking care of both of us. :)

Thank you again for your prayers and keep in touch. We appreciate all of you VERY MUCH!!!!!!!!!!!

Tomasz and Miriam

PS: The picture is for you to see that Miriam really is feeling better :) The Steele girls (Abby and Beka) came to cheer her up on Sunday.

February Prayer Letter - Dan Giles Jr.

Greetings to all,

We hope that you all are doing great.  We are having lots of fun watching our two daughters grow, and the youth group growing spiritually and emotionally.

Last Saturday we took the youth group to the city park in Aguascalientes, and they all loved it.  The had time to get to know each other better, it was a great experience for them and us as well. 

Please pray for the youth group.  Jerez is full of drugs, and explicit underground.  It is very hard for them to follow Christ with so many bad influences.  Danny is providing a fun alternative to the boys, they come to play video games and hang out with Danny.   Danny is also helping  Guillermo(Memo) Perez to learn english because he is excited to go the Bible School in Minneapolis in two years.

We had a great opportunity to share the gospel in a very interesting setting here in Jerez.  It happened January 16th.   We went to a coffee house and had a chance to talk about Jesus.  We basically told the people there that without Jesus they were lost.  It is quite a long story, but if you want to know the whole story you can check it in our family blog.

We are still looking for a house in which to live, we really would like to live in a house that is across from Dan and Debbie's.  The owner came to us and showed us the house.  Unfortunately, the house is not empty. There is a man who rents the house, but he really doesn't really live there.  His lease ran out last December so the owner really want us to move in there, and we think it is absolutely perfect for us.  Please pray that either he will find a new  place to live or that we can find another place of our own.

Pray for the safety of our family.  Jerez has become one of the head quarters of one the  biggest drug cartels in Mexico.  A month ago there was a shooting that resulted in seven local and federal police man dead, and nobody knows how many more.   We know that God is more powerful than any power in this world and that nothing will happen to us if He doesn't allow it.

Prayer requests

-Health and safety for our  two little daughters and us.

-Our own house. 

-That the Lord will supply our financial needs.

-Pray for Danny as he teaches the youth group every Bible studies and sunday school.

-Pray for next Saturday, Feb. 9th, we are showing the movie "Like a Thief in the Night" at church.  May souls, hearts, and lives be changed.

Praises

-We praise the  Lord for you, thank you for your payers and support.

-For our daughters, Ariadna and Andrea, who fill our lives with joy.

-Because He has been faithful to His promises to us in every single way.

-For the youth group, they all come to church on Sundays now, when before they were not allowed.

-Because we have been able to learn from our parents, Dan and Debbie, they are great examples to follow.

-We love being close to our sister, she is a great blessing to us.

GOD BLESS YOU GREATLY!

In Him,

Daniel, Marcela, Ariadna, and Andrea Giles

Urgent Prayer Need

Submitted by Kelsie Steele, friend of Tomasz and Miriam.

As many of you are aware, our missionary friend Miriam Chmiel was hospitalized last week due to severe abdominal pain caused by ovarian cysts. One ovary and two cysts were surgically removed, and Miriam has since been released from the hospital to recover at home.

Tomasz and Miriam Chmiel

Today, however, we found out that Miriam has been experiencing pain in her left calf, which began bothering her shortly after surgery. Medical advisers have said that this is a frightening red flag, most likely an indication of a blood clot in her leg. An ultrasound on her leg today showed that one of the three veins in her leg is indeed blocked, and Miriam is beginning a series of shots tonight to address the problem. Should this clot dislodge, however, it could travel straight to her heart. Please pray fervently that God would protect Miriam and that the clot would dissolve very quickly.

The Chmiels plan to return to Czech as soon as possible to meet with Miriam's regular doctors and try to bring closure to this problem. They need to wait about a week though as Miriam is not yet strong enough to travel. Getting stronger involves walking and moving, but because of the blood clot Miriam has been confined to bed rest. So far, with each step the Chmiels have taken forward in the healing process, they have had to take two backwards. Even more frustrating is the fact that this clot probably would not have developed had proper measures been taken by Ukrainian professionals before and during her surgery.

Our hearts ache for these friends who are having such difficulties. Please pray with us that the Lord would comfort and strengthen them, that Miriam's life would be protected, that no further health problems would arise, and that they would be able to return to Czech very soon.

"Behold, the Lord's hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; neither his ear heavy, that it cannot hear." Isaiah 59:1

Miriam Chmiel - Hospitalized Again

Many of you will remember our friends Tomasz and Miriam Chmiel who are also serving as missionaries here in L'viv. About a month or so ago, Miriam had to be rushed to L'viv's state hospital with severe abdominal pain. (Even though it is a very poor facility, all foreigners have to go to this hospital. The Chmiel's are Czech.) It was soon learned that she had two ovarian cysts - one on each ovary. After some ultrasounds and a rather unpleasant stay in the hospital, the prescribed treatment was prolonged bed rest. She was told to come back in a month to see if there was any improvement. (!!!) Oooookay. So she started resting, and even had some checkups, but no improvement.
Then, without warning, the abdominal pain hit again - this time even worse. We tried calling an ambulance, but were told they were all busy and we could not expect any help for at least forty minutes. (!!! again) To make a long story short, God opened the door for Miriam to be admitted to a much nicer hospital located right next door to their apartment. Tomasz and I literally carried her down the stairs from their third floor apartment, down the street, and into the check-in area of the hospital. After trying several different treatments, the doctors were unsuccessful in even reducing the pain - let alone determining a course for long-term treatment. Miriam was exhausted and close to being in shock from the excruciating, relentless pain. Finally, that evening, they decided to do surgery and remove the cysts. She lost one ovary, but they were able to save the other one.
At this point, Miriam is still in the hospital, but seems to be doing very well. In spite of some quirks that they have had to endure from some less-than-professional nurses, the conditions are not too bad. Tomasz is able to be with her around the clock. No that's not normal - not usually even allowed here. Why would you want your husband to be with you right after you've had major abdominal surgery in a developing country?! (!!! yet again)

Miriam gets some rest soon after surgery.

Kels and I have visited the Chmiel's several times, and have had fun playing our latest favorite game - Settlers of Catan - in the room together. Tomasz and Miriam have become very dear friends, and we are grateful to the Lord for His protection throughout this ordeal. Please pray with us for Miriam's full recovery and for wisdom as they seek further medical assistance in the Czech Republic.

This article was sent to us from Josh Steeles blog by Tomasz Chmiel.  Please remember Miriam and Tomasz in prayer/ 

 

What Drives You? - Jesse Long

Some of you may have already seen the picture on our blog (http://benandjesse.blogspot.com) of Ben and me with “Evangelist Musa”.  In any case, I wanted to tell you a little bit about him.  Musa is over 80 years old yet still travels frequently to conduct special spiritual meetings and evangelistic crusades.  In fact, we met him when he was invited to speak at a weekend of spiritual meetings here at Waama during this school year’s first semester.  It is important to realize that Musa is a businessman by profession and not a preacher.  He was first exposed to the Gospel when Billy Graham held an evangelistic crusade here in Tanzania in the early 1960s and it is obvious he has not been the same since.  God truly got a hold of him way back then and still today he will tell you “I have never looked back.”  Others talk about how even now, as a very old man, he will sometimes ride his bicycle or walk to his engagements.  From the very beginning, at his own expense, he has often accepted opportunities or even initiated special events.  When meeting a person like Musa, one can hardly help but ask, “What drives him?”

The fact of the matter is we are all driven by something.  What drives you?  Even as Ben and I traveled during the recent holiday season, we met people serving in various places and in a variety of different capacities.  From the Engineers Without Borders volunteers working in Zambia to the Peace Corps volunteers working in Zimbabwe or the U.N. employees serving in Kenya and the Bible translators working in southwest Tanzania – everyone is driven by something.  Again, what drives you?  Clearly, God doesn’t call all of His people to do the same thing.  That is the beauty of being a part of the Body of Christ.  At the same time, as Christians, regardless of our specific role, it is important that we keep our eyes on our common, final goal: reaching people with the good news of the Gospel.

I thank God for the opportunity I have to be here in Tanzania because, as I have told many of you, being in a foreign culture like this somehow seems to make it so much easier for me to keep an eternal focus…it also certainly helps to not have the many distractions of life in the U.S. all around me.  Perhaps it is also that people here see their spiritual need more than the average person in the States…or maybe it is simply that my eyes are more opened to the opportunities when I am in this environment.  In any case, it is exciting to see God at work in everyday life.  For example, in Arusha, we have become fairly good friends with a young man who owns a couple computer shops.  For the most part, our interactions with him have been on a strictly social level.  When we are in town, it is common for us to get together for dinner or some other activity.  Well, one night a couple weeks ago we were out having dinner and he started asking some very insightful, rather ‘deep’, spiritual questions. Apparently, he used to be quite involved in a church but now has simply gotten “too busy” to give God much attention.  It was interesting to see, however, that spiritual things have, without a doubt, still been on his mind.  In fact, it was amazing to see how hungry he was!  In the end, God was able to use a simple dinner appointment to accomplish His good purposes in this man’s life.

Maybe you, too, have people like him in your circle of contacts?  Do they have anyone to discuss their questions with?  What about you?  You know, you don’t have to be a “missionary” or pastor to make an eternal difference in people’s lives.  What’s more, it is quite likely there are a significant number of people within your circle of regular contacts who, other than you, may never have another opportunity to hear of the hope that can only be found in Jesus.  If you have discovered for yourself the unfathomable truth of the Gospel, have you made yourself available to those around you who are still seeking?  God help us all.  1 Peter 2:9 says, “You are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.”

I promise, I will try to make my next email more of an update.  For now, however, I thought I would give us all a bit of a belated challenge for the New Year.  Again, your thoughts and prayers mean so much. You have mine as well. God bless you tons.

In Christ,

Jesse Long

Mbulu, Tanzania

Tom Lumppios on Furlough

The Lumppios have just begun their first furlough and are hoping to travel back to Mexico at the end of June of this year. They have started to schedule speaking engagements so if you would like them to come to your church, you may contact them at tom.lidia@gmail.com. Please pray for a new vehicle for them since theirs broke soon after they arrived to MN. Also keep their health in prayer since they have continue to face challenges in that area.  Ask the Lord for His provision and for His blessing on them during this furlough.

Graduation from Pastoral Training - India

AFLC World Missions started a pastoral training class for the pastors of the AFLC-India in 2005.  Originally the course was to consist of two weeks of classes over six years, but the pastors of India desired receive the training quicker.  To accomplish this a number of training sessions have been held over the last year.  Over the years thirteen teachers have traveled to India to teach classes.  Some of the teachers taught more than once.

Graduation was held on January 17, 2008.  Twenty pastors and two Bible women graduated from the Pastoral Training Classes.  It was a day of great joy for the AFLC-I as these pastors and Bible women have received training to be effective in their congregations.

Luther Dasari, President of the AFLC-I preached the graduation message.  Dr. Francis Monseth who was instrumental in the planning of the classes handed out the certificate of graduation.

Pray for these workers as they are on the front lines reaching the lost for Christ. 

Pray for Richard - Uganda

Hello Friends,

I wanted to write you a quick note to share with you about a situation yesterday morning.  Around 10:00 my neighbor Christopher came over with someone I did not recognize.  Christopher is a college student on break and is a devoted Christian. 

We sat on our porch and Christopher's friend introduced himself as Richard.  He rides boda-boda (bicycle taxi) for a living and is a friend to Christopher.  He is probably in his late thirties, missing some teeth, and frail.  He began to tell me of his struggle with alcohol and smoking that consumed 75% of his income.  His wife had left him five years ago because of his addiction, leaving him with his two sons who are now 12 and 17 years old.  He told of how he had tried to break the habit many times but failed. 

I shared with him about the power of the sinful nature and how it can bring a man into slavery.  I told him that there is only one power that is superior to the power of the sinful nature and that is the power of the Holy Spirit.  He was very eager to confess his sins to God and repent of his sinful lifestyle.  I have never seen a man so ready to be saved!  He was completely broken and weary of the consequences of sin in his life.  He came to Bible study in the evening and said he had declared his new faith to his fellow boda-boda men and had declined their invitations to drink and smoke with them.  I asked him how he was feeling after not smoking for most of that day and he said that he was feeling fine (a miracle, I think!).  Please pray for Richard as he will likely be facing some real temptations in these early hours of his conversion.  He told me that his two sons had gotten saved some time back and that they will be very excited to hear about the change in their father. 

Also pray for the other boda-bodas on our corner.  Those men tend not to have the best reputations and they would sure benefit from a moving of conviction from the Holy Spirit.  We are also praying that this might serve as a breath of spiritual life in our congregation here in Jinja as new believers tend to have such excitement.  May God bless you all and thanks for praying for the lost in Uganda!

Nate
P.S. Please remember Del Palmer and Kevin Olson as they arrive here on Sunday.

What's New in Uganda

Happy 2008 and greetings from Uganda!  We hope that you are all well and that you had a blessed Christmas and New Year.  We are doing quite well despite some minor sicknesses during the month of December.  We thankfully were well over Christmas and had a wonderful celebration as a family (see photos on our blog: jorenews.blogspot.com). We also enjoyed a special service at the church we attend in Jinja, as well as a few gatherings with the missionary community here in Jinja.  The boys are growing fast and keeping busy around the place, greeting visitors and bringing them water or "assisting" our workers (Chris - our yard worker, Tracy and Irene - our house helpers, and Bosco - our night guard). Rhoda is also growing with our new baby due the end of April.  She's feeling well other than being a bit uncomfortable in the intense heat we've been having. We look forward to the cool, rainy season coming soon!
The work is also going well and we have had some great opportunities to minister.  On New Year's Day I had the opportunity of attending the burial of the sister of our grounds keeper, Chris.  Chris is a devoted Christian and had asked me to preach to the crowd of over 300 that had come.  It was a blessing to support Chris and his family with the love of Christ during that time and also to preach the Gospel to hundreds from that community who are not believers. 
We continue to have various people come to us to ask for money or some other kind of assistance. Most of them are individuals that we know, but we also often get requests from people we have never met but who just come to us because we are muzungu's (white people). We usually do not give money to people that we have never met, regardless of the stated need. We often give food and clothing and blankets. Recently a woman came to our door asking us to give her money so she and her 4 children could go back to the village where they came from. Her husband had died and she could not find a job here in town where they'd been living for some years to support her family, so she was living off help from others. We didn't give her money the first time she came, but told her we'd give her a bag of food each week for her family. She continued coming for a few weeks while we prayed about whether or not God wanted us to do more. We used to be much more quick to give money, but after having been "scammed" several times in our first months here or seeing that our giving was promoting laziness, we decided we needed to pray more for discernment and wisdom so that we would be using our resources to help true needs. Eventually we both felt the Lord's leading to send this family back to their village where they'd be able to grow their own food and not be completely dependent on others. They were sure a happy family when they boarded the bus to take them home! It gave us great joy to help them. We share this story to give you a picture of what kind of decisions we face on an ongoing basis here. We need prayer for discernment as we desire to truly help those that the Lord sends to us. Please pray too that our hearts would be open to those in need spiritually and physically, and that we would not grow cynical about and hardened to the pressing needs around us. It's easy for us to get weary of the constant requests and to just want to lock our gate and ignore those that come knocking. But we desire to treat each person as Christ would, and to not let our emotions dictate how we respond.
The work with the pastors is going well and we continue to meet every Saturday for Bible study, planning, and prayer.  They continue to follow-up the Jesus Film showings with new Bible studies and Bible distribution.  Thank you to the many churches and individuals who sent money for Bibles.  They are so gratefully received.  Pastor Ludigo has been going to the village of Bulumba where we had shown the Jesus Film to over 1,500 people in July.  He has started a Bible study there that began with students at a Secondary School but has spread to the community.  He has been invited to various churches in the surrounding villages to preach the Gospel.  I am very excited about the work that Ludigo and the other pastors are doing.  They are beginning to catch a vision of being missionary senders rather than just missionary receivers.  We recently received a guitar from a church back home, and we had great joy in giving it at Christmas to one of the pastors who has a great love for music and has expressed a desire to learn how to play various instruments. He received it on a Saturday and the next day he accompanied all of the music during the service in his congregation. He had never played before that day. God has blessed him with a wonderful talent, and he is excited to use it for His glory. Please continue to pray for the pastors, their work, and that God would supply their every need.
On the 20th of this month we look forward to welcoming Rev. Del Palmer, Director of AFLC World Missions, and Rev. Kevin Olson, Director of Distance Education for AFLC World Missions.  Del will be here for one week to see the work, and Kevin will be here for two weeks to assist us in planning to train the next generation of church leaders.
We are so thankful to have such a supportive group of people praying for us! Thank you for the many ways you encourage us - through your prayers, letters, emails and packages. You bless us tremendously.
With love,
Nate, Rhoda, Elijah, Judah & Baby

Check Out the New Links

Have you ever wanted to go to a missionary's web site or news and prayer page? Now you can by clicking on the link called "Missionary Websites and News Blogs" in the right hand column. This will take you to a page with links to all our missionaries who have sites.

World Relief Working in Kenya

Thanks for your continued prayers for the people of Kenya.  As you may have been following via the news networks, the situation in Kenya continues to be improving—fighting is subsiding and talks between Raila Odinga and President Mwai Kibaki are a possibility. 

Sadly, the pre-election normalcy of Kenya is still far away.  The death toll has doubled to 600 people killed and government officials expect it to continue to climb as more bodies are reported found. 

World Relief has activated a national alliance of churches that has brought together over 300 pastors in the city of Nairobi to respond to the current crisis which has left thousands homeless and without food and water.  World Relief is partnering with other Christian ministries in the country along with the Red Cross and other UN organizations to link churches to those in need. They are reaching out to the poorest of the poor, including those in Nairobi’s slums whose houses were burned and those who had to flee to save their lives.

Yet in the midst of this strife, the Church is shining a light of hope with the intent to care for those and to be the agent of healing and reconciliation.  The Nairobi Baptist Church and Nairobi Chapel welcomed those who had to flee the Kibera slum when their houses were burned.  Already, Nairobi Chapel has been caring for over 2000 internally displaced persons (IDPs) while Nairobi Baptist’s Clinic in Kibera has been overwhelmed by the needs of people coming to seek medical, psychosocial and physical assistance.

Here are ways you can get involved with the post-election crisis in Kenya: 

· Pray:  Please continue to lift up our staff and Kenyan churches that they would be a light of peace and of reconciliation.  Specifically, the Kenyan church network is made up of

o Nairobi Baptist Church

o Nairobi Chapel

o Nairobi Pentecostal Church-Valley Road

o Parklands Baptist Church

o Africa Inland Church-Milimani

o Nairobi West Presbyterian Church of East Africa

o All Saints Anglican Church.

· Give:  We need $327,213 to respond to this need.  Thank you in advance for giving to this need.  Please visit our secure webpage.

AFLC World Missions partners with World Relief to do relief work around the world.  Donations may be sent to AFLC World Missions or directly to World Relief.

Pastoral Training in India

A number of people are traveling to India for leadership and pastoral training.  World Missions Director, Dr. Lyle Mattson (World Missions Committee Member) and Dr. Francis Monseth departed January 11 from Minneapolis.  Rev. Craig Johnson and Rev. Al Pinno traveled separately.  Course work for the pastoral training sessions were developed by Dr. Monseth and the World Missions Department.  This session will last two weeks and will conclude with the first graduation from the course of study.  Please pray for the students and the team traveling to India.

Greetings from Ben Jore and Jesse Long

Happy New Year!!  As our Christian friends here in Tanzania say, “Praise the Lord!  We have been chosen to see another year…to do the work of the Lord.”  It truly is a blessing.  Furthermore, I can’t thank each of you enough for your continuing, faithful prayers and support on our behalf as we serve in this part of the world.  I pray God strengthen and encourage each of you in your work in 2008 as well.  I am increasingly aware that God doesn’t have “degrees of importance” within His work.  Your work, in obedience to Him and on His behalf (right where He has placed you), is just as important as any other work in His field.  We are all simply vessels…called to be faithful where He puts us.

To give a brief update, Ben and I were blessed to have a relaxing time off over the holidays.  Despite some minor motorcycle issues (broken chains and dirty fuel filters), God kept us safe over many kilometers of travel.  We were able to have almost an entire week on the Island of Zanzibar just off the East coast of Africa.  While we didn’t “want” to be there that long, we were virtually “obligated” due to the fact that the embassy in Dar was closed for the holidays until January 2^nd.  (You may have been able to detect a slight amount of sarcasm in that last part.)  Anyway, we were finally able to get more pages added to our passports as needed and then return to Arusha on the 3^rd.  For pictures from the past couple weeks, check out http://benandjesse.blogspot.com.

Now we are back to work.  Classes started up already today and even the students seem excited to be back for this second term.  The classes Ben and I are responsible to teach include: 1 John, 1 Thessalonians, Piano, Guitar, English, and Computer.  Please keep us in prayer as we seek to effectively and accurately communicate Biblical truth in each class period.  Pray also for the students who will go from this place after a few short months to be spiritual leaders in their various villages.

With regards to weekend ministry and Jesus film showings, we have our entire schedule set until the end of this term at Easter time.  While it is a relief to have our plans in order well in advance, it also means that a lot of village invitations will be turned down in the next couple months.  We appreciate your prayers as we coordinate and schedule this ministry, especially into the third term.

Thank you again for your part in this work.  As a closing request, I would ask again that you continue to pray for Ben and I as we seek God’s will with regards to our futures – both long-term and not-so-long-term.  We are both certainly willing to remain here for as long as He wants but are open to new direction, as well.  There are definitely opportunities but His will is what we are seeking.

Thank you again.  I will sign off for now.  God bless you all richly!

In His service,

Jesse Long

Mbulu, Tanzania

Check out Jonathan Abel's Current Newsletter

Have you ever noticed that God shows His mercy in such a way that we are baffled?  Such is the case with Tales, a truck driver from our church.  In 2007 he not only survived prostrate cancer through successful surgery but also 2 accidents which could have taken his life. On one occasion he had just finished calling his wife from a payphone in a restaurant and proceeded to call another trucker friend in our city when his friend heard a huge noise as the phone went dead.  What had happened was that a semi trailer had crashed through the wall and pinned him to the interior wall of the payphone. . . .

 

Click here to read the whole newsletter in PDF format.

World Relief Involved in Kenya

January 3, 2008

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

"It was one of the worst scenes in my life. Seeing women and children who have sought safety in the house of God getting killed is just as bad as it gets.” –A Red Cross official in Eldorat

In Kenya, hundreds have died and tens of thousands have been displaced by violence following the December 30 election results.  Mwai Kibaki, the current president, was declared to have won another term after a controversial three-day vote count.

After the opposition declared the voting rigged, violent gangs took to the streets in protest.  Burning churches, homes, businesses and cars, the raging mobs are leaving incredible destruction in their wake.  In the Rift Valley region alone, more than 70,000 have already fled their homes.  Hundreds have crossed into neighboring Uganda seeking safe haven.

Churches across the country have opened their doors to provide a safe haven to those fleeing violence.  One church in Eldoret, Western Kenya, was burned to the ground by rioters killing at least 35 of those seeking haven inside.

Raila Odinga, the opposition leader, has called for a peaceful rally to take place on Thursday.  Many fear this will lead to violence and further destabilize the situation.

Pauline Nasenya, a young woman in Nairobi says, “We are living in fear. All we hope for, all we pray for is peace.

Please join with us and the people in Kenya as we pray for peace in Kenya.

World Relief is working with local churches and volunteers across the country to respond to those in desperate need around them.  We will work to help evacuate those in great danger and ensure that their greatest needs—food, shelter and water—are met. 

Long-term, we will continue to work with pastors and Christian counseling centers to provide trauma counseling to those impacted by this conflict and the HIV/AIDS crisis that exists there. 

In Kenya, World Relief is equipping local church volunteers to help those affected by the violence. Local churches will play a crucial role ministering to the needs of the displaced, providing shelter, food, water and trauma counseling.

In Kenya, people are dying.  People are living in fear.  The situation threatens to spiral out of control, but in the midst of this chaos, you can help. 

Please pray, give and engage today; Kenyan lives are counting on you. 

For more information visit us online at www.worldrelief.org or contact me at gcfairchild@wr.org or by dialing 443.451.1936, or my cell: 443-570-0184

As always, thank you for changing a little bit of this world for Christ! 

Gary Fairchild

World Relief

International and Denomination Relations