Last week, I began my journey for my first home assignment. Home assignment includes R&R, but it is
also a time that I get to speak and present at churches, meet with supporters,
visit friends and family, etc. There are
some plans in place for my time in the US, but there is still a lot of
wondering what these next five months will look like for me.
Regarding ministry among the Laarim, I thank the Lord for
what He has been doing in Loryok. For
the previous few months I had the privilege of spending many evenings with children
and youth on the compound where I stay singing, telling Bible stories, and
praying. As I stumbled over words and
phrases with the Bible stories, those listening did not seem to mind helping to
correct me with my Laarim grammar and vocabulary. After we closed in prayer each time, a number
of youth would thank me for taking time to share with them.
In the early part of June, Pastor Joshua came from Juba to
spend 10 days with me. On our first
Sunday service together, we found a number of young people who had either
expressed that they had committed their lives to Christ or wanted to do so. For
those who professed faith in Christ, Joshua called them to come for several
days of teaching which would be followed by baptism. We had five youth who were temporarily
staying in Loryok on the side of the military barracks and two Laarim youth who
attended the teaching. After doing the
teaching and baptizing the youth, Joshua returned to Juba. I remained in Loryok
with Pastor David and we continued teaching on different topics in the Bible
for the following week until it was time for me to leave. For most of the days we had a good turnout of
youth who were coming for the teaching and Bible study and it was greatly
encouraging to see them hungry for the word of God. That last week I spent in Loryok for me was
stretching yet joy-filled. Stretching,
because I was doing teaching on different bible topics in Juba Arabic every
day, but joy-filled because the youth that I was working with were willing to
come together to learn and pray together each day.
After I finished that week of teaching, I said a few
goodbyes, packed up my items, and hopped on my motorbike for a three and a half
hour trip ahead to Torit. Thankfully the
trip was uneventful, though it was taxing on the body. I am glad to be on my way for a change of
scenery and I am looking forward to spending the coming months with loved ones
on the stateside. While I am away,
Pastor David is continuing to meet with the youth who remain in Loryok.
I am now in Nairobi and in a few days I will be getting on
my flight to the US. Just a couple of
days ago, I had anticipated going to Kampala, Uganda and flying to the United
States from there. But the flight to
Kampala that I was supposed to catch out of Torit was cancelled. This meant I would have to find my way to Juba
and go commercial from there if I wanted to reach Kampala. It was something I
was determined not to do. By the grace of God I found that there was space for me
on a flight to Nairobi from Torit. Also for a price that was not unreasonable
to me, I was able to change my ticket from departing from Kampala to departing
from Nairobi.
Prayer items
Please pray for the Laarim youth who are active in the
church of Loryok and have a need to be discipled. Pray that they would grow in their faith and
stand firm amidst
frequent temptation.
Pray for Pastor David who stays in Loryok and Pastor Joshua
who makes visits there every few months from Juba. Pray that they would have the strength to
effectively work together to teach and disciple those who are in the church
Pray my return to the United States. I am excited to see friends and family, but I
have usually found culture shock to be more difficult returning to the US than
it is returning to Africa.
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| Bible study at my home in Loryok |
