In the latter part of July this year we, who were in the Kimotong at the time went out to Kenya because of conflict in certain areas of South Sudan.  Considering that the conflict was unlikely to reach our area, a short while later we were given permission to return. So two weeks after arriving in Kenya, I returned to Kimotong and was warmly welcomed by many in the community.

As of the beginning of September, the full team of AIM missionaries to the Laarim has come and begun the ministry of learning language and culture.  The team consists of 12 adults and 6 children representing five nations: Australia, Holland, Rwanda, the UK and the US.  Many of the children in the village have been especially excited to see the little ones on the team who have come from abroad.  We have begun our weekly team meetings which consist of a time of prayer, worship, Bible study, discussion over assigned readings, and team business.  This month, most of the team is in Kenya for a three-week orientation while our team leaders are visiting their home country.    

Through late July and August the days in the village were quiet as most of the children would wake up before sunrise and head out to their fields.  These children in their fields would sit up on stands erected from cut wooden poles and spend the day protecting the ripening heads of sorghum from the birds.  As birds would land in the field the children would shout and sling balls of clay at them.  This continued each day until all of the sorghum was harvested. After the heads of sorghum are cut off, many of the stalks which are like a type of sugar cane are harvested and consumed.  Often, as those who were coming from the fields would pass by our compound, they would also share with us a few sorghum stalks from which they harvested the grain.  In the evenings after sundown we would hear the children returning home laughing, chattering, and playing their bamboo flutes. We are thankful that this year the harvest was satisfactory.

We praise the Lord for two boys and one girl who have expressed that they have made a commitment to follow Jesus and trust him as their Lord and Savior.  Two of these youth have gone to other locations for a season: one off to school and the other to the cattle camp.  Pray that we would make the most of each opportunity we have to disciple and mentor the youth and children and pray for these new believers wherever they go to continue growing in their trust, love, and obedience to Jesus.

Many months have passed since I started teaching mother tongue literacy in the village.  The process still feels rather disorganized.  One group shows up to learn and the next day it might be a different group. Most of the time I would have a mix of children who were all at very different levels of learning.  But those who have continued to come are learning well and I am encouraged by their eagerness to keep learning.  This also gives me opportunity to share from translated books of the Bible, pray, and share Bible stories with the children.  Many in the group also like memorizing bible verses.  Even some adults in the community are expressing interest in learning how to read.  Please pray that those who are learning will develop a desire to know the Bible more and read it themselves.

Our Laarim friend and brother in Christ, Angelo, continues to be with us over the school holidays.  Over this last holiday, he joined us for three weeks and spent time helping team members with language, translating a script for a Christmas program written by Andrew, and meeting with youth and children to share the word of God.   During that time, our unit leader came to Kimotong by air.  He and the pilot stayed for three nights to make some repairs on the electrical systems and water systems on the compounds.  Since Angelo need to return to Torit and I was ready to go there for a break, we were able to catch a ride on the five passenger plane that was taking our unit leader back to Torit.  Being his first time on a plane, Angelo was quite excited and enjoyed the 30 minute flight. I did not enjoy it so much as I had gotten airsick.   Praise the Lord for Angelo's love for Jesus and his willingness to serve and share the gospel with his fellow Laarim.  Pray for more Laarim to come to Christ and have that same passion.

Strength

(This update was written to be posted at the beginning of July, but due to problems with our internet I was unable to send it out.   Currently our team has come out to Kenya due to the conflict in South Sudan, but we are hopeful that we can go back soon.)

It can be so easy to react to the pressures of expectations surrounding us. Most of us at times feel pressure to hurry because of others expectations or the perception of what is expected of us. I find in many instances that I can easily get anxious when others are waiting on me.  And when I rush through that which is important, whether it is my quiet time in the morning or a task which I know I needs my careful attention, I often find myself frustrated. After a struggle though I know that I must quiet down and come to the Lord in repentance, admitting my sin.   This does happen more often than I would like to admit. But I am thankful for God's mercy and grace which brings me back to the point of quieting the competing voices and being able to hear Him through His word. Over the last few months, I have been brought back to the passage in Isaiah 40:31 which says, "Those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength."  I am comforted when I remember that it is the Lord who not only guides me into my activities for the day, but also gives me the strength to accomplish His purposes through them.

I find that having a rest day each week is also important, but I have also found that I need to occasionally withdraw and go to a different place where I don't feel the pull of my usual responsibilities in my location of ministry. Recently I tore a muscle in my thigh and I decided to go to Nairobi for an MRI and to see an orthopaedic specialist.  I flew out to Nairobi and after a doctor looked at the injury, he decided that surgery would not be a good option.  Except for the first three days after the injury, I have experienced little pain and have been recovering remarkably well.  Though my injured leg tires a bit more quickly, I am able to walk well now.  During the time in Nairobi, I got some good rest. I also had some time reading the Gospel of Luke in Laarim for practice as well as expanding my vocabulary with words I had collected in writing, but never learned well.  I got to see some friends as well, one from Omaha, and a couple from Loryok, which was my home in South Sudan for three years.  It turned out to be a time of rest and refreshment.   Just days before my injury, I was talking to my friend Lotao on the phone, who was brought to Kenya to study and stay with a Kenyan family in the Nairobi area.  He asked me when I would be coming and I said it would probably be awhile, perhaps the following year.  Two weeks later we met in Nairobi and he reminded me that God sometimes has other plans for us.

A Growing Interest

Ministry among the Laarim has gone well and the boys have continued to eagerly come in even larger numbers to play football, hear a Bible story, pray, and sing together.  A number from the group often come in the afternoon for a literacy lesson.  Most attend irregularly and are learning very slowly, but two youth who come regularly are moving ahead more quickly.  I am greatly encouraged by their desire to keep learning God's word and how to read.  Recently, our team member Andrew started a class at the primary school to help the students develop Laarim songs in their own language.  After the first day, Andrew showed us a video of the class enthusiastically singing a song they developed in Laarim about God creating the world.  The children in the villages during the Sunday meetings learned the song and also sing it.  One Sunday recently, Linda invited women in the community to come over for tea and watch the Jesus film in the Murle language, which can mostly be understood by the Laarim because of their language similarities.  Seven women came and watched very attentively expressed much excitement during the scenes with women.  Because it was getting late, they had to stop half way through, but they hope to come back on another Sunday to finish the film. 

Meeting with children for a Bible story after playing football

We are thankful to the Lord that the required support has come in for all of the team members and they are set to come in this month.  Also, the construction of the houses is complete so that families will be able to move in upon their arrival.

Ways you can pray:

Pray for the nation of South Sudan during this time of conflict.  Pray for the door to be open for missionaries to continue to serve there.

Pray for a continual hunger among the Laarim for Jesus.

Pray for good connections and relationships between the missionaries and community members in each area we settle.

Growth

Ministry here seems to have its months of being in routine and out of it.  I have experienced much transition over these last few months.  Many of the changes have been good, but the frequent adjustments do take energy and add a degree of stress.  Yet I praise the Lord for the many wonderful things he has brought about.

December was the beginning of school holidays and we had two Laarim students, Angelo and Lotao, stay with us over those past six weeks.  For Christmas we joined together with some adults and children in the community to share the Christmas story and have a time of singing and prayer.  At the end of the program, we passed out sweets and biscuits for everyone to enjoy. 

In mid-January we had a team of youth come out from Torit for evangelism in the area.  It was a bit of a surprise to the team to find fewer people in villages because of dry season and lack of food in the area. But those who remained in the villages heard the gospel as our group went home to home to share the message.  During the dry season, many people migrate to different areas where there are larger sources of water and food for themselves and for their cattle.  They usually return in April after the rains have come and they begin planting.

On the last day that the team was with us, I had the privilege of baptizing two Laarim youth, Lotao, and Loboi.  It has been a great joy to see them growing in their love for Jesus and take this step of obedience.  I have known Loboi for several years and would see him regularly during my visits to Torit.  I have seen Loboi over time grow in his boldness for Christ.  Over this last year, I have spent much time with Lotao in the village and have seen him rapidly grow in his love for Jesus, knowledge of the Bible, and his ability to share the good news with others.  Lotao has started attending school in Farasika, which is at the southern end of Laarim territory.  There he will be staying with a couple of Kenyan missionaries who are teaching at the school.  We will miss always having him around, but we trust that the Lord will continue to grow him and use him as he continues to be discipled by the missionaries there.

In our village there are a couple of boys who have been regularly coming to us to hear a story or message from the Bible.  It is exciting to see them increase in their understanding of God's word and desire to learn more.  I am looking to spend more time working with them over these coming months, but I really need to keep improving in my Laarim language ability to effectively lead these young men who have no English.

Andrew, my fellow missionary, continues to improve in his ability to communicate in Laarim.  He continues to work hard at the language and he has even begun sharing simple Bible stories and having discussions with the listeners in the Laarim language.  Praise God for Andrew's progress!  Recently he has agreed to start teaching at the nearby primary school and lead devotions there.

I am also thankful that our leaders for the team, Phil and Linda, have arrived. They  eagerly began the language learning process and seem to be enjoying it.  For these coming months, Phil and Linda will be settling in, building relationships and taking time to observe before they assume the team leader role.  Phil was serving as the South Sudan unit leader for AIM when I first came out in 2009.  Later he took on leadership of the Central Region which includes South Sudan and five other African nations. Now he is here to lead our team.  Praise God for their arrival!

I am also thankful for Clement who is working with the housing setup and preaches on Sunday mornings at two of our building locations.  Clement is Laarim though having grown up away from home, he had not learned the language.  Over these past months he has been learning how to communicate in the Laarim language.  Clement loves Jesus and really desires to see his people come to Christ.

How you can pray.

-Please pray for Phil and Linda as they are learning language, culture, and building relationships.  Pray that God would guide them through these few months as they observe, learn, and transition into role of team leaders.

-Please pray for Andrew to continue to progress in language as well as fit in well to his teaching role.  May Christ use him to impact many lives at the school.

-Pray for the Laarim students, Angelo, Loboi, and Lotao that they would continue to grow in the love for Jesus and obedience to him.  Pray for Lotao to adjust well to his new environment in Farasika.

-Pray for the boys who continue coming to our place to hear the word of God.  May they come to faith in the Lord Jesus.  Pray that I would continue growing in my ability to communicate in Laarim so that I may train them well to be disciples and disciplemakers.

-Pray for Clement to continue well in his work as well as communicating the gospel as he preaches on Sunday mornings.  Pray for him to keep growing in his ability to communicate in Laarim.