RAINY SEASON

RAINY SEASON

The rains have come.

 After almost 6 months with nothing more than a light drizzle or two, the rains have finally come to Kigoma. You know the expression, “When it rains it pours”? In Africa, it seems that it is true in more ways than one! When it rains here it really comes down hard.  The thunder and lightning seem to me to be a bit stronger than I am used to in North Carolina. Everything here in Kigoma went from brown to green within a week!  It’s amazing what a little rain will do!

That expression, “When it rains it pours”, has also been true for us in the figurative sense. About two weeks ago while we were at the meeting on Sunday morning, our home was broken into. It could have been much worse, but our computers were stolen, along with a few other small things. We are so thankful that our true treasure cannot be stolen, but it has brought new challenges. 

( Like updating our blog!)

“ Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the Lord delivers us out of them all.” 

Psalm 34:19

The rains eventually bring forth fruit! This is a mango tree in the village of Kizenga. How many mangos can you count? We heard yesterday that there were no mangos left on this tree because they have all been eaten. 

Also we know that trials produce fruit in our lives as we yield to the Lord and allow Him to work in us. We (including you!) have been praying much about how the Lord specifically wants to use us here, and we are starting to see some fruit from our prayers. 

About six weeks ago I rented a small store front with the intention of opening a public reading room. I found a great location on the main road in a small village called UJiji. This is the very place where missionary David Livingston heard those famous words, “Livingstone I presume?”. There is a small museum there in his memory. This village is about 15 minutes from our house, it has a population of approximately 100,000 people which are mostly Muslim, although there are a few small churches there.

 The people of Ujiji have been very welcoming and seem delighted that I am there. I have already made many new friends while working to prepare the room, and am  looking forward to meeting many more while growing on my Swahili.

We named the reading room, “MAKTABA YA NURU YA ULIMWENGU”, which means, “ Light of the World Library” We are excited to finally open as we know His Word does not return void (Isaiah 55:6-7). We plan to open on Monday 12/3.

I am very thankful for the opportunities I get to teach at the weekly missionary meeting in English! Recently I had the kids meeting and we studied the healing of the blind man in Luke 18. The following week I had the privilege of bringing a devotion for the adults. This meeting has been such a blessing to us, especially in the midst of all the adjustments and language learning, to be able to gather each week and be encouraged in the Lord in English! 

There are a lot of street boys that hang out in town and beg for money. Most of them have at least one parent, but spend very little time at home. We have been burdened for them, but have been puzzled about how to truly help them. We have been praying for them, and one day Jennifer invited two of the boys to church. They came, and the next week they came again with a few friends, and then the next week more friends. This past Sunday there were almost 20 boys waiting for us when we pulled into the chapel parking lot! These boys are so hungry, not just for food and water, but love and attention.

You could imagine how hard it is for them to stay awake during the meeting after being on the street all night getting little sleep. With the help of some young men at the chapel, we have started meeting with the boys once a week for Bible study and soccer. Our first get together went really well with over 20 boys showing up!

Pray for us as we navigate through this opportunity and for these boys that not only their souls would be saved, but their lives would be rescued from the streets.

Luke Johnson and I, with the help of our wives, have organized a monthly youth meeting for the youth at the chapel. Once a month we pick up the youth and bring them to our house and have a time for games, Bible study, and then end the time with snacks and fellowship.

Our first meeting was a few weeks ago, and it was a real hit! We all had a lot of fun playing “steal the bacon”, and enjoyed studying God’s Word together too! We are already looking forward to our next meeting (12/7) and praying that this will be an encouragement to them.

We had a baptism at the chapel this past month where four believers were baptized. It was so exciting to see them take this public stand for the Lord Jesus in believers baptism. Baptisms here are filled with singing, cheers, and flowers!

We thank the Lord for all He is doing here in Kigoma. We covet your prayers as we press on in these various ministries and opportunities. We are reminded daily of what the Scripture says, “Without Him we can do nothing.”. We covet your prayers more than ever.

Please pray:

•  for the Gospel to continue to go forth unhindered

•  for our children’s spiritual growth and their homeschooling

•  for protection over us, our home, and the work here

 

It’s amazing what a little rain will do!

Isaiah 55:10-11

“For as the rain comes down, and the snow from heaven, And do not return there, But water the earth, And make it bring forth and bud, That it may give seed to the sower And bread to the eater, So shall My word be that goes forth from My mouth; It shall not return to Me void, But it shall accomplish what I please, And it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it.”

Amen.