“Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen.”
~Ephesians 3:20-21~
These are the verses which come to my mind as I think back over our first three and half weeks here in Africa. Since July 22nd we have been here at RAU making the
Guesthouse/Hall of Tyrannus into a home and place of
discipleship. God is blessing and helping us by His grace and with the help of many here and in America! The RAU team,Carol,and I are all very,very grateful!
I have a number of praise reports to give to you! God is good and He is good all the time!
* In our past newsletters we have been updating you on the
1999 Land Cruiser we have been saving up to purchase. When we last wrote we still needed $8,000 to purchase it, ship it to Mombasa Kenya from Japan, drive it to Kampala, pay taxes, and outfit it for the bush. I am happy to report to you these funds have been graciously and lovingly provided. The vehicle has been ordered and we should have it in 6-8 weeks. Currently whenever I need to go to Moyo for supplies it has nearly taken up a half a day as Sam and I have to walk until we can find a boda (motorcycle taxi), do our shopping and then find one for the ride back. This vehicle will not only help us in this way but will also allow us to go out to minister more freely. Praise the Lord for this provision!
*In our last newsletter Carol shared the need of security and the funds necessary for that provision. The Lord, through His people, has graciously granted us the funds to take care of this need for one entire year! Hallelujah!
*We have also been able to do some more work on the
Guesthouse/Hall of Tyrannus and grounds because of the gifts of God’s people. PTL! Our goal is to have a place where pastors,evangelists,church leaders, and church planters can come for short
discipleship retreats and return to their congregations refreshed, strengthened, and encouraged to plant churches in the unreached villages and people groups in their geographic areas.We also want to be able to graciously host short term mission teams which would come to share their God given gifts with the people. So far three are planning to come before Christmas. With $5,000 more we could be
fully operational. There are so many details which, now that we have been on here, have become evident as optimal if we are going to run smoothly.
* The RAU team has planned for a dedication service to be held on May 10th from 9AM to 2PM to give public thanks to our God and King for all that He has done. It will also be a time to thank all those who have helped us in this journey. Pastors from local churches and from churches in South Sudan as well as Kampala will be in attendance; also local, district and federal political leaders will be invited. A meal will be served. The woman from Abraham’s church as well as the women from a church near us will assist in the cooking and serving. There will be time for speeches and also a time of RAU leaders sharing their vision and plans. Abraham is sending invitations to key people, but we have been told that there may be any number of others who want to come and see what is happening! I wish that all our American supporters could be here! In March of 2010, RAU was formed, land was purchased; ground was broken for the building of the Guesthouse/Hall of Tyrannus in August of 2011. Now, two years, later I am writing from an area which was African bush land just two years ago! Our Lord is to be PRAISED!
“Unless the Lord builds the house,
those who build it labor in vain.”
Psalms 127:1
* We now have over 1,100
Global Study Bibles ready to be shipped out in our container. Our plan is to show pastors, evangelists, church leaders and church planters how to use them during our retreats and outreach conferences. The fruit from these Bibles and other things in the container are immeasurable! Blessed be the Name of the Lord! You can view the list of things which are being put into the container
here. The container has a long and arduous trip to get to us.To buy the container, insure it, and ship it from Seguin Texas to RAU is $20,000. A couple is willing match up to $10,000 to get this “ark” to us. Please help if you can. Specifically notate that your
donation is to go towards the container costs.
We are here,Lord willing, long term. We strongly believe that an integral part of discipleship is relationship. I have actively been working on that since 2007 but always knew that short term trips were not the answer for us.Relationship involves, not only “quality” time, but also “quantity” time. In this regard Carol and I had our first Ma’di language lesson on the the 1st. Maggie, Pastor Abraham’s wife, is our instructor. Along with lessons we, of course, will have time to practice with others all day long. One of the things which is difficult for me (and there are many ) is the tonality of the Ma’di language. There are no real written helps either. Maggie is hand writing flashcards and copying a few primary school readers for us. There are none to purchase. There is a Ma’di New Testament but the Old Testament has not been translated. Please pray for us in this and becoming familiar with the culture.
Please also pray that the Lord will continue to give grace at those times when we begin to think about our family and friends. Those times are the hardest for both Carol and me.
Pray over the needs, give as the Lord leads. We appreciate all that everyone does in praying, loving, supporting and giving! Thank you!
Pressing on for Jesus!
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