Conference

Pray for provision for an upcoming conference for African missionaries and believers from Muslim background. Pray each one would be encouraged in the Lord and further equipped in their ministry.

Ramadan

Pray for the women I meet with, some won’t want to study the Bible until Ramadan is over. Pray that God may reveal himself to them.

Growth and Provision

Pray for the women disciples, for growth and provision for their families.
Pray also for provision of school fees for many students who have not yet started school due to that challenge.

Gospel outreaches

Our team has organized three outreaches to outer lying villages in the next weeks and months. This includes open-air preaching, choir performances, times of worship and prayer, and a showing of the Jesus Film. Please pray that God would prepare the hearts of those who will hear the gospel in these places, and that we would be led by the Holy Spirit in our planning and sharing, and that His name would be glorified! Our prayer is that the seeds of the gospel would be widely spread through these events.

Flooding

Our area of Tanzania has received a lot of rain this year, and there has been flooding in our area that not only poses a problem for the local farmers and their crops, but can also be dangerous for those needing to cross the water to travel to their families and fields. The water has also restricted the movement and gathering together of the local church, which makes it difficult to enjoy fellowship together and encourage one another. Please pray for safety, God’s provision and that we would continue to persevere together, even if we are separated by water.

Gospel seeds

Thank the Lord for the seeds planted during the youth camp, pray that in His time those seeds will germinate into faith and salvation. Pray for the Youth program, that transformation may continue taking place.

Preaching over Christmas

Yesterday I started my trip to Njombe with Matthew and Joel. This is a week long trip where we will be preaching over the Christmas Holiday. Plan is to be back next Wednesday evening. Pray for the Holy Spirit to move in the hearts of the people as they hear the Word preached. That they would be challenged to be witnesses to the Hope that is within them to their Muslim neighbors.

Camps

We’ve had a good start to camps and things are running smoothly so far.
-Thank God for the many youths who have turned up for our annual camp.
– Pray that many lives will be transformed, and that many will come to the knowledge of Christ.
– Pray that the facilitators will be intentional in walking life with the campers.
– Pray for good health for the campers and that it will go smoothly till the end.

Fruit

Thank the Lord for fruit among the ladies. One seeker has put her faith in Christ and opened her house for study. Pray for her growth in the Lord.
Praise the Lord for another seeker who is almost there, pray that God will remove any fear and doubt and that she can fully put her faith in Christ.
Pray that the ladies will meet together once a week, as well as individual discipleship.

Struggling

Our local church boasts two truly local believers – that is, men who were born in our village and have stepped out of Islam to follow Jesus. One of these believers has been struggling in his commitment to his faith and the church, and it has been a difficult journey. Please pray that he may come to really know the worthiness of Christ, and pray for our team as we seek to disciple and encourage him.

Youth Camp

Pray for an upcoming youth camp to be held in December. We are expecting around 200 youth. Most of them will be seekers. Pray that their eyes will be opened and see the Light and be transformed by the gospel. Pray for provision for the camp and all the preparation.

Weekend outreach

Last weekend we did a three-day outreach in an outer lying village in our region, including worship times, open air preaching, home visits and showings of the Jesus Film in Swahili. We are excited by the response, and are hoping to see a weekly gathering of the local believers take place in the weeks and months to come. Please pray for this young group of believers, as well as others who heard the Word this weekend. May the seeds take root and bear fruit in good soil.

Stand firm

Pray for encouragement for the female believers, that they may stand firm despite many challenges.
It’s another long holiday, pray that the youth will be able to stand firm in doing what is right.

Stand

Pray for individual discipleship going on with different women. Pray that they may keep growing in the Word. Pray for sister M who is facing tough spiritual warfare. Pray that she may stand.

Medical outreach report

Thanks for praying for our medical outreach. It was a huge victory for Jesus. Many prayed to receive Jesus. Many asked for prayer to be released from spiritual darkness, and others from attacks and demons. I could go on for days, but want to highlight just one testimony. On the final night in the village of Kiswele, we showed the Jesus film. The film ends with a prayer of repentance; few will come forward publicly. But we recognize that the Word is powerful and speaks and penetrates where others can’t. That last night, one lady listened intently, silently prayed the prayer and went home. That night she had the best restful sleep ever. She woke up, and knew something had changed in her. In the early morning hours, she hurried over to share her knew found joy. There she made it public with our group of pastors that she was a follower of Jesus and wanted to get connected. The joy on her face was worth the past two weeks of challenges. Many, many seeds were planted and the Word has gone out to those previously who had never heard. I gratefully say a huge THANKS. PRAISE and GLORY TO JESUS.

Outreach

We had a community-wide outreach back in June, and it was a great opportunity to do evangelism with the local church, show the Jesus Film and encourage one another. Since then, we’ve been able to do several children outreaches and showings of the Jesus Film in out lying villages, and we’re planning another one for August 26. Please pray for us as we continue to follow-up on recent outreaches and prepare for the next one. Pray the seeds of the gospel would fall on good soil and bear much fruit for His glory.

Ministries

Thank God for the opportunity to serve in local schools. Pray that many students will be transformed.
Thank God for the Youth program. Pray that those who are still in bondage to drugs will be set free by Christ.
Pray for the women’s ministry. Some women are facing challenges, pray that God will help them stand firm.

Church building

Construction of the church building in our community continues. Please pray for God’s provision in all needed resources – workers, knowledge, funds, equipment, etc. Please pray also that the local church would continue to take ownership of this project and not become discouraged.
We have several new seekers reaching out and asking questions. Please pray that they would become convicted by the Truth of the gospel and seek to grow in their knowledge about Jesus.

Medical Outreach Aug 6

Our prayer request is for our medical Outreach, August 6 thru 21. We are targeting 4 new villages that are unreached and have no church presence. We want to see that change. 5 TZ doctors from the capital are joining us and our team here of 10. The group of 16, traveling around 4 unreached villages trying to evangelize with medical Outreach and Jesus film is a huge undertaking. We need your prayers for many things: logistics, protection from demonic attacks, finances, clear communication, and common goals. Would you please stand with us in prayer that Jesus would be lifted up in every way and that many unreached peoples would hear of Jesus.

Discipleship contines

Pray for the ladies I’m meeting with. Discipleship is continuing at individual level in their homes or businesses, and as a group on Sunday morning. Pray for those who come on Sundays who are still Ms, that as we do DBS, that they may encounter Him. Pray for M, who is a seeker, and her family at risk of breaking apart, pray that she may run to Him who is the Prince of Peace. Pray for M and L who are believers that they may grow in their faith. They are running small businesses, let’s pray that God will provide a way to expand their businesses.

Far away town

Pray for M who has recently believed. However, she moved to a far town that is totally unengaged. Pray that I can disciple her through media and that she will eventually become a light to that village.

Busy

Pray for the ‘Come Follow Me’ discipleship class. The ladies have gotten busy lately during the week because they have to earn a living for their families. I am following them individually to disciple them in their small businesses. Pray that this will continue, and pray for growth and provision for these ladies.

Come Follow Me

We have two MBB engaging with our pastor and regularly working through the “Njoo Nifuate” (Come, Follow Me) program – designed specifically for believers of a Islamic background. Please pray for their progress and understanding, and that this may build them up in their faith going forward. Pray also that we, as a team, may know how to best use the tools available to us to reach the people we are working with.

Family following

Recently we saw a new family choose to follow Jesus together. Praise the Lord! Please pray for them as they grow in understanding and knowledge about God and His Word. They live a significant distance away from the village and the church (as do many other believers), so please remember to pray for all of them in their isolation – that they may stand firm in Jesus and value highly fellowship with other believers.

Fast

Last week our community began their month-long Ramadan fast. Please pray that during this intentional month of seeking to please Allah, many would come to know the Holy God who cares for them and desires to be known by them. Please pray for us as a team to use the opportunities this time represents to speak of God and His love for His people.

Transformation

Pray for the ladies I am discipling. We are using the discipleship book called, “Come Follow Me’ in Swahili. Pray for consistent attendance and life transformation.
Pray also for sister X, who is still a Muslim, but is studying John with me. Pray that she will encounter the Truth.

Needing discipling

Praise God for a group of new believers in Mbate. They have asked Yohana, the evangelist in Ruhatwe 10 km away, to come and disciple them and lead worship services in their village. Pray for Yohana. He is trying to go there every other week. Pray these new believers would grow strong in their faith and share with others.

Hope in Jesus

Please pray for our neighbors, Bibi M & her husband. She had expressed interest in watching the Jesus film some time ago, but it never seemed to work out. Recently we showed the Jesus film in the market nearby and she said that some people on the path prevented her from coming. Her husband has had a stroke recently and is housebound. He joked about us carrying him to watch the film. We have offered to come and bring it to their house. Some of the family are trying to say that he’s not strong enough, but he really wants us to come. Pray that we would be able to find a time to watch this film with them and to talk about the hope we have in Jesus.

Heard the gospel

At Christmas time we had several new visitors to our church celebration, as well as a event organized at the home of a few of our team members later that week, where several people heard a presentation of the gospel for the first time. Please pray that these interactions may be seeds planted in good soil, and that they would generate more interest and questions from the people in our communities, and ultimately lead to locals coming to know the saving love of our Lord Jesus Christ!

Praise the Lord

In church we had a good time of sharing the good news during in the Christmas celebration. Our neighbors came to join us and see what Christmas is all about. More than 100 people celebrated with us in Likawage, among them were six new believers.

Huge Need

During a free morning, several of us went to survey another village called Mtoni. About 6000 people located right on the Ocean. Hard to get to for sure, but very, very needy for the Gospel. No church present or Outreach happening. Village leaders (Muslim) invited us to come and were ready to offer us land. My heart goes out to such places. Saw lots of kids running between the coconut palms and wondered when they would get the chance to hear about Jesus’s love for them. Please pray as the team here thinks what our response is to this huge need. We so lack laborers to go.

Baptism

Just before Christmas, our local church got to celebrate the baptism of six believers. We’ve had several individuals go through baptism over the course of the last year, but then fall away since then. Please be praying for this group of believers to remain strong in the face of difficulty and pushback from loved ones and the community. Please also pray for us as the local church and leadership, for wisdom on how to explain well the mystery of Christ and the cost of following Him; that we may equip new believers well and help them grow in faithfulness.

Outreach opposition

I would appreciate your prayers for the coming 4 days as we head to a village called Masaninga. There’s no church yet, but the FPCT would like to start discipleship and worship together there. I feel in my spirit much opposition from the evil one. Please pray for boldness and confidence in Christ.

needing reconciliation

Please pray for M, an elderly man who has frequently come around looking for work or to sell things to feed himself. More recently he has enjoyed the Gospel of John and several books by Christian apologists and comes with questions such as “Why do Christians say that Jesus is God?” or “Why do Christians celebrate Jesus’ death?” Last month he tried to deceive us and when confronted acknowledged what he had done and promised to make it right. Now he seems somewhat embarrassed to come around to visit. Pray for him – that our relationship would be restored, but more importantly, that he would be reconciled to God through faith in Jesus.

mercy and forgiveness

Please pray for the integrity of the believers. This past week one of the church leaders stole some money and then lied about it. When confronted, he repented, made restitution, and thanked those who confronted him for not letting him get away with it. Thank God for His mercy and forgiveness and the example that is in this culture. Pray that believers would be strong in God’s word and hold each other to a higher standard.

Animistic rituals

In the last several months our team has observed a lot more of the animistic rituals and beliefs that form the foundation of our people groups’ worldviews. Demon worship and tribal rituals are commonplace in our communities, as well as charms and treatments performed by witch doctors. Please pray for wisdom on how to present the gospel – contextualized but uncompromised, and how to shine His light in this dark facet of life here.

Rainy season

With the rainy season/planting season around the corner, our local church attendance is always affected. Some of the believers walk up to 10km to meet with us on Sundays. Some will move out to their farms even further away during this time, and meeting together becomes nearly impossible for some due to road conditions and distance. Please pray for us as a church, that we would have wisdom on how to support our members and creativity on how to continue in fellowship together.

Baptism preparation

We have four new believers in the local church who want to be baptized! Praise the Lord! Please pray they will be well prepared for this exciting step, and that they may truly understand and “count the cost”.

With planting season starting soon and the distance between the homes of each believer, it can be difficult for them all to meet together. Please also pray for safe travels for those going out to meet with them regularly.

New believers

Praise God for 3 new believers in Ruhatwe. One started attending services after witnessing and being impacted by the funeral of a coworker who was recently buried there. Another is from one of the small local tribes. Please pray that these new believers would grow in their faith and be witnesses to their own communities.

Church

Our local church currently meets under the trees on the church property, but is seeking to build a church building. Please pray for the raising of the funds for this project. We hope to see the local believers embrace ownership over this project. May God be glorified in both the building itself and the way we get there!