Getting our Attention with His Word

"As you therefore have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him."

Colossians 2:6

I spent the weekend in Torit and on Sunday morning, I went to our partner church's English service.   The pastor preached on Colossians 2:5-7.  After the service, as I was walking back home I came by a church of a different denomination which holds its Sunday service at the courthouse in town.  There was someone attending the service there whom I wanted to meet in the evening so I decided to step in to see if I could find him and get his attention.  But as soon as I walked in I was noticed by the man speaking up front.  He welcomed me and gave me a chair in the front row next to the pastor, whom I knew well.  So in not wanting to offend anyone, I stayed for the service.  When the pastor came up to preach he read Colossians 2:6-7, the same reading from the other church, and he preached about them.  Both sermons were biblical, well delivered, and pertained to the verses, but they were done in very different styles.  I feel that perhaps it was more than just a coincidence that I heard these two messages. 

So I have been challenged to keep walking in Christ, which requires daily discipline and reliance on Him.  Circumstances do not take away the need for that discipline and neither does going in to full time ministry.  I believe this really is an area that I need to keep growing in.  I thank the Lord for his word and for the ways he speaks to us.

Preparations for the Team

The first couple of months that I spent in Yei village were quite difficult, but it has now gotten much easier as I have been learning what my responsibilities are and what they are not.  I have decided to take weekends with the church in Loryok and the rest of the week in Yei village.  In the village I am able to share Bible stories, visit families, and read the Bible and have a discussion with some of the Laarim students in Kimatong nearby every week.  And I have been encouraged by the interest expressed in a number of Laarim who want to learn more about the word of God. 

It is hard for me to believe that I have lived in Laarim territory for over three years now.  I feel like I am continuing to improve in the language and yet I do not feel comfortable with it.  Last week I had a very difficult time trying to translate from Laarim to English to the group for the preacher in Loryok on Sunday.  I still have far to go in the language.  But I am greatly encouraged by the fact that my first teammate, Andrew is coming to join me this week on either Wednesday or Thursday.  We are experiencing God's answer to our prayers for the last three years.  Andrew comes from the UK and is willing to spend these next two years to minister among the Laarim.  I am very much looking forward to meeting him and working as a team.

Another big event in the village was the opening of the airstrip.  Charlie who is working with AIM, and Clement, a Laarim builder oversaw the work and spent many days clearing and leveling the airstrip.  Soon after it was considered usable, one of AIM's planes landed on it.  The pilots were very impressed with it and quite thrilled that they can now make flights in and out of the area. 

Part of our construction camp setup

Looking southeast from the camp

How you can pray

-Please pray for Andrew and I as we meet and get to know one another and learn to serve together.  The plan is that Andrew will initially be spending most of his time as a learner of the Laarim language and culture before focusing on other activities.  Pray for him in this process.

 -Please continue to lift those up in prayer who are working with the housing setup.  Currently, we have Charlie, Ron, and Clement.  Ron will be leaving for another assignment in two weeks and handing over the responsibilities to Charlie.  Housing setup is both logistically difficult and an emotionally draining job with there being unrealistic expectations from many in the community of what we can provide.

-Angelo, a Laarim believer in Torit, and I are considering getting a team of youth evangelists to come to Loryok and the Boya HIlls area to share the gospel during one of the school holidays.  This could be in a few weeks, or a few months.  Please pray that the Lord would direct us.

-Please continue to pray for the Laarim people.  Pray for open and hungry hearts for the gospel and pray that we would be faithful in proclaiming.

Serving with the Right Focus

Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God - this is your true and proper worship.

-Romans 12:2

Ministry is difficult.  There are frequent conflicts and misunderstandings to be addressed and they are exhausting and sometimes painful to deal with. Those active in ministry will often frequently hear opinions from others about what they should or should not do and they quickly realize that it is impossible please everyone, even in the church.  Furthermore we ourselves as ministers of the gospels will make mistakes and often fail to do things in the best way.  But even when we do what is best, we will face criticism by others who are not happy with how we have handled one situation or another.  There are definitely moments of joy and satisfaction in the work.  But there are also many times where it is easy to wonder if such work is worth the trouble. 

Recently I came across the verse in Romans which reads "offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God" and I began to think of the ministry that I work in.  If my focus is to give my life to please others and I am driven by success in doing so, I will either end up compromising the very principles which I have stood for in order to please everyone, or I will become discouraged and likely give up.  But if I am called to be a living sacrifice to God and give myself up for his purpose, then regardless of how I am treated or what results I may see on this earth, no hardship or difficulty would be able to keep me from doing what God has called me to do.  Not only because I know that obeying God is the right thing to do, but because he empowers me to obey.  I can think of a number of times where I have felt powerless to do what I believe God wants and yet somehow I have been able to do it.  God's grace is wonderful even though it sometimes leads me on a road that is difficult and sometimes painful.   

The Construction has Begun

In late February, a group of missionaries and I went up to the Boya Hills area to look at some land options that were offered to us and to select one location to start building housing for the team which will be forming over the next year and a half.  We were well received by the community leadership and after looking at all the locations, we made the decision to start in the village of Yei (not to be confused with the larger town of the same name in South Sudan) because of its centrality to the population of the Boya Hills. 

A few weeks later, four of us went to Yei and started the work.  When we arrived we were greeted by the chief. We quickly found a place to camp out while we decided on a location to set up temporary compound to live and store materials while the house was being built.  For those first two nights before we set up, the chief and sub chief slept outside near us so that we would not be alone.    

After the two nights we decided on the location to set up. We hired people in the community to help with the work of gathering materials and building the storeroom.  Many gladly came and we had all the help we needed.  Except for a few bumps here and there, the work has been going really well.  At the same time, this has been one of the more difficult and stressful times of ministry for me, but I am thankful for how the Lord is working in my life and stretching me.

Because I have been staying in Yei village to help with the work, I was concerned about the condition of the church in Loryok.  Few people had been joining us on Sundays and there was only one other adult joining us regularly. At that time I asked many to pray for the church.  Recently, Pastor David came back to Loryok after being home in Kenya for three and a half months.  There have been a few others in the Loryok area who have stepped up also and have been more active in the church.  As a result others in the community are being encouraged and touched by the lives of those in the church.  I honestly believe this is God answering the prayers of many.  With the time I have taken back in Loryok, I have enjoyed spending time with some of the older children sharing the word of God, praying, and singing together.  There has clearly been a difference in the church since I had last written.  Praise the Lord!

How you can pray

Please pray for those who are working on the construction of the housing.  Pray also for our relationships with the people of Yei.  There is not one adult staying in the community who speaks English and this makes communication and dealing with problems more difficult.   Praise the Lord that the work has gone smoothly overall.     

Pray or a hunger for the word of God to be stirred up in the hearts of the people in the village of Yei.

Please pray for the church in Loryok.  Pray for members to recognize their individual roles as part of the body of Christ. 

Please pray for wisdom for caring for my health in this new more remote and harsher environment.  I have found that I need to give extra attention to my body to stay healthy.

Thank you for praying!

Back on the Ground

"When you eat and are satisfied, be careful that you do not forget the LORD, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery."

Deuteronomy 6:11b,12

We often experience our faith as followers of Jesus being strengthened and growing through life's difficulties as we are reminded of our powerlessness and need to depend on God in such circumstances.  Recently though I have been further challenged to recognize the importance of depending on the Holy Spirit when the road ahead looks easy.  It is often during such times that I am unprepared for even the smallest difficulty and I then fail to do what is required.  These surprises come in different ways.  For example it may be the problem of simply not being in the mood to do what I know I ought or allowing the demands around me to divert my attention from doing what is best.  Then when I fail to do what I believe the Lord calls me to do at such times, the result is usually discouragement.  In response to this I believe I need to recognize my need for the power of the Holy Spirit to please God not only in the big tasks that appear to be difficult, but for the simple ones that look easy.  I find that when things are easy I am prone to forget my need to depend on God.  But I believe that when we remember God's faithfulness to us in the past and we regularly acknowledge our need to depend on God regardless of what we see ahead, that we are in a position that allows us to follow his leading in our lives in every moment.  

My Return to South Sudan

I had fun with family and friends during my final months of home assignment in the US.  Though I had been looking forward to coming back to Africa, the longer I stayed in the US, the more comfortable I got there.  But at the beginning of December I was on my way back to Africa.  Now that I am there, my time in the US felt like a dream. 

After departing Omaha on December 2nd, I reached Nairobi on schedule.  From Nairobi though, I experienced a number of upsets in my travel plans that had me scrambling to find another way to get to South Sudan.  I ended up travelling through Juba because I would not be able to make my connect flight from northern Kenya to Torit.  Thankfully though I am now in Torit.

A few days after arriving to Torit, I along with two other AIM missionaries, and a group of youth with Africa Inland Church traveled to the southern part of Laarim territory to build a new house for Jacinta, a Kenyan missionary.  Jacinta's house had recently collapsed and she did not have the means to build a new place.  While the AIM missionaries Jordan and Ray contributed by providing transportation with their vehicles, most of the other needs for the building of the house, including our feeding, were provided by the church and contributions from individuals here in South Sudan.  Everyone put in a lot of effort and we enjoyed working and spending time together.  It was greatly encouraging to see each one play their part in helping this missionary in need who has sacrificed much to serve faithfully for many years in South Sudan. 

Our team putting up the structure of Jacinta's house.

Jacinta in front of her new house.  The remaining work of mudding of the walls
is now being completed by the local church members in their community.

This year, I celebrated Christmas on Christmas Eve in Torit with the other missionaries.  There was a turkey brought up from Kenya and we had a feast with all the good stuff followed by exchanging gifts and playing a game.    

This past week, I spent six days at my home in Loryok to reconnect with the community.  Because of the need to renew my visa in Torit, I was not able to stay longer.  It was good to reconnect with the people there and to see an interest among many of the children to continue learning the word of God.  I was saddened to see an apparent decline in interest among some of the youth in meeting together.  I am hopeful though that as we begin having more activities that more will join us and hear the word of God and experience his working in their lives.   

The year ahead is looking very busy for me as I will have some responsibilities related to a team coming to join me in the effort of reaching the Laarim.  My first team member is planning to join me in July or August 2015 and a couple who will lead the team is planning to join in early 2016.  Praise the Lord for this answer to prayer!   

How you can pray

-Continue to pray for me as get back into using and practicing the Laarim language.  I still have far to go with it.

-Pray for a growing hunger for the Lord in Loryok as we continue to focus on reaching the community with the gospel.

-Pray the team that is forming for reaching the Laarim.  Pray for the preparations that need to be made.

-Please pray for peace in the land that will allow the gospel to spread among the unreached in South Sudan. 

When a Crocodile Gets in the Way

During my first year of living in Loryok, I loved going out to jog in the mornings.  I would get up at six o'clock when there was just enough light to see and go along the road out of town for a few kilometers and then turn around to come back. Those mornings outside of town were quiet and peaceful and I enjoyed watching the sun rise from behind the hills in the east as I ran.  One morning I jogged along looking straight ahead of me as I was crossing an irish bridge at the edge of town.  I must have really had my eyes fixed on something ahead because at the moment I looked down I saw a crocodile right next to me that I had not noticed beforehand.  It wasn't very large but it didn't matter to me.  Terrified, I sprinted ahead as quickly as I could.  I don't think I even bothered to look back.  Once past the bridge I slowed down to a jog.  On my way back as I approached the bridge again, I saw the crocodile ahead of me still in the same place and I began to worry about how I would get around it.  When I reached the bridge though, I realized that the crocodile had been dead and I could cross without fear.

A year and a half ago I came back from Africa for a five-week visit to Omaha.  I was happy to see friends and family, but the sudden change of environment hit me pretty hard and I had an anxiety attack that night of my arrival.  The feeling was like looking down and seeing a crocodile at my feet.  For awhile the anxious feelings would come and go, and sometimes I feared that I would be overwhelmed by them.  Jump ahead to the summer of this year when I was returning to the US for home assignment and those familiar feelings returned.  This time around though I have been learning that such feelings and thoughts need not control me or even the way that I think.  As I consciously cast my anxieties on the Lord, those moments of anxiety become less intense and less frequent.  It is like coming back to the bridge and seeing that the crocodile that was once so terrifying never had the power to harm me as I feared.

Back in the US

I have now passed the halfway mark of my home assignment.  It truly has been good seeing and spending time with family and friends here and to be with my home church.  In the beginning of September, I was able to enjoy a couple of weeks in Mississippi with family.  At the end of September, I enjoyed a long weekend with relatives in Minnesota.  I have had the opportunity to share at a few churches and groups. Wherever I have gone, I have been encouraged by the many who have taken a genuine interest in what I am doing in South Sudan.  Time here has been a good balance of rest, fun, and work.

But in some ways, it has been hard to be away from South Sudan.  Since I left Loryok two people who were dear to me there have passed away.  My adopted Laarim father Joseph, had been ill for a few months before he passed away in August.  I spent quite a bit of time with Joseph over the past two years.  We often sat, talked, and prayed together.  He taught me a lot of practical things for working on and around the house and in the garden.  Though I was often slow to learn, he was always patient.  He also demonstrated a love for Jesus and a love for his people.  I will miss him.  More recently I received news that Mama John, a kind and caring Kenyan woman who was active with the Loryok church, passed away.  She often would join us during our times of fellowship and outreach throughout the week.  When neither David nor I was in Loryok, Mama John gathered the children together and led them in singing and prayer on Sundays. She will be missed in our fellowship.

Joseph with Laarim youth in Torit

I now have less than two months to go before my planned return to South Sudan.  With eight weeks left and more to do, I am beginning to feel the pressure.      

How you can pray

-Pray for the church in Loryok.  There are no leaders there at the moment so I am often concerned for the young believers.

-Continue to pray for the nation of South Sudan.  Pray that the door would remain open for the gospel to spread among the unreached.

-Pray for me as I spend time here in the US and make preparations for returning to South Sudan in December.

Thank you for praying.