Among the Zaramo many families are very poor, and this causes many young girls to become prostitutes. Some contract diseases and many become pregnant. Please pray that the Lord will save these families and give them honest ways to make a living. A local doctor working in the hospital calculates about 90% of adults in the area are HIV positive. Please pray for the Lord to work mightily among the Zaramo to bring salvation to those who are infected and to change the culture where infection is spread so freely.
Catalyst team growing and going
The Catalyst team met again two weeks ago. They made plans to start training others from within the groups to go out to nine other villages with the goal of sharing the Gospel and starting new discipleship groups. Three other M men will be joining the next Catalyst team meeting in January, who have shown leadership potential and who attended the discipleship trainings we facilitated. We hope to be able to provide ongoing encouragement, accountability, and training/coaching for them. Please pray for Augustine as he leads these meetings for the next few months.
Old Women Teaching Young
Among the Zaramo, older women cling to old evil customs and superstitions, and they purposely teach the young girls these perversions. Pray that God will save these old women and that they will teach their grandchildren the ways of Christ instead.
Victory and Unity
Pray for peace and reconciliation at our church in Eburru. In recent church elections, our Dorobo church leader lost his position as secretary of the church, as new members from a more dominant ethnic group who have started to attend the church elected only members from their group. This has led to tensions and even a big disagreement in the church last Sunday. Pray for our Dorobo pastor for this church, Josephat, as he goes up to meet with the factions on Sunday January 6th. Pray for humility from both sides and for peace and reconciliation. Our struggle is not against flesh and blood but against the principalities and powers. It seems Satan is doing everything he can to find weak spots and attack and destroy this little church.
A New Church Plant
Our town church is considering planting a sister church here in our village. This village has historically chased out any church planters. We have been the only Christians that have been able to endure here long term and make any inroads with the gospel. Pray the Lord would give wisdom & discernment on how to best establish & disciple the body of Christ here in our village long term. Would house churches be best or a traditional church? Or should we continue Sunday worship at our home church, with midweek local home fellowships here? These are things our church is discussing & praying over. Please pray with us for the wisdom & discernment to know how to obey the Lord’s will to establish His Church here on the coast any way He pleases for His glory & the salvation among the Swahili!
Hunger for the Good News
Thank God for the hunger for the Good News. People love the Bible stories. Pray they fully understand and experience that knowing Jesus means a release of bonds. We are going to visit new villages. Pray for open hearts to receive the message.
You prayed…God is answering
On Mar 9, 2018 you prayed for this request: “Praise God for the Alagwa woman baptised a few months back. Despite having come from a hugely demonic background, she is continuing to follow Jesus and rely on him. Please pray for her as she continues to be discipled. Please pray for protection and – Ephesians 3, 17-8- a deepening understanding of how much God loves her.” And God is answering: “Praise God that this woman is continuing to grow in Jesus and seek to surrender her life to him. Praise God that she has recently been asking for prayer that she would become a light in her village to draw others to Jesus.”
Asking questions
A young man came asking questions about Christ and is eagerly listening to truth. Ask for courage and clarity and love for the two brothers (one S. Asian, one Lib’) who will connect with him.
You prayed…He answered
On May 7, 2018 you prayed for this request: “Please pray that the Alagwa will overcome any fears they have and put their faith and confidence in the Lord Jesus Christ as their Saviour. Pray that those who have done so will be a powerful influence and example to others who are considering whether to take the step of faith.” And God answered this way: “We have seen individuals being bold in their sharing of faith. One of the disciples who attended the discipleship training traveled to share Jesus with several other villages. May Jesus be praised!”
Pray for unity
We heard some discouraging news that the 4 denominational churches have stopped meeting together for prayer. Pray for the unity of the local churches to be strengthened again and for these church leaders to be instruments to unite the Body of Christ instead of dividing it.
You prayed…He answered
On May 10, 2018, you prayed for this request: “Please pray for the Zigua to come to faith in Christ through the testimony and friendship of the Christians who live among them. Pray that they will leave behind any trust they have placed in Islam or witchcraft, and that the Zigua will know Him and walk in the power of His resurrection.” Here is how God answered: “Two of our team members’ friends are affirming the goodness and correctness of the Bible. One of them has said she wants to follow Jesus but is scared to do it openly and alone. She asked us to pray that her family would become Jesus followers too.” Praise the Lord.
Baptized on Christmas Day!
We praise God for our church’s Christmas celebration! It was held at our compound and many people participated, including men and youth. After the meal, three Samburu women followed Jesus in baptism! Pray that others will be encouraged to take such a stand, despite disapproval of some in the community.
You prayed…He answered
On Mar 25, 2018 you prayed for this request: “Pray for the church in one Digo village as we plan to move on Easter Sunday. Pray for unity and for strength for M and his wife as they will without doubt receive much pressure for hosting the church in their home from now on.” And God answered: “As planned the church moved on Easter Sunday; after the move M and his family began to suffer a lot of spiritual warfare, and the church members were afraid to come to the service. After discussion among the leaders, the church was moved again and members have been returning. The next step is to erect a permanent church building.” Praise the Lord.
Diaspora in Portland
Pray for God to open the eyes of a Saudi man and his 28 year-old daughter. A few days ago, Portland team members spent several hours with them, much of the time talking about Islam and the Gospel. Time is short as they may move away early next year. Pray that in their next location, other believers would continue planting & sowing Truth in their lives.
You prayed…He answered
On Apr 21, 2018 you prayed for this request: “Please pray that the Sandawe will come to faith in Christ. A number of faithful believers are purposefully sharing the gospel in areas where He is not yet known. Pray that the Lord will work mightily to bring Sandawe people to Himself.” And God answered: “A group of pastors and evangelists conducted a 10 day seminar in an area where people are setting up homes after having been forced to leave a wildlife reserve area. These people are not Sandawe but many from the church in Wairo, some of whom are Sandawe, participated in the outreach. They had an opportunity to learn from the leaders how to share their faith as they visited with these refugees.” Praise the Lord.
Pray the Doors Will Open
Please pray for 2 Christian resident doctors who desire to do their cross-cultural internships among the Somalis but as of right now the doors seem to be closed. Pray the Lord will open the door and that these doctors would share their faith boldly and find many open hearts.
You prayed…God is answering
On Aug 13, 2018 you prayed for the following request: “An Alagwa friend called to say she would be unable to visit our village, because she was sick. When we discussed rescheduling she told me, ‘tomorrow I have church.’ Praise Jesus! This friend is fighting a hard battle right now against the evil of this world. Please pray for her to have continued encounters with Christ.” How God is answering: “August to December has seen a huge change in our friend who is now attending church weekly. Despite the battle, she is choosing to seek Jesus and is encountering him regularly. Praise Jesus he is faithful and is present with us even amidst the storms.”
Outreach
Visiting a Neem town recently, the SD cards of stories were well received. A church there made up of believers and church attenders from Southern Chad has planned to ‘do evangelism’ in a village of Neem people and Chadian Arabs from 27th December for 3 days. The church is very southern in its way of doing church and many of the 60 people who attend on Sundays do not speak Arabic. Please pray that this enterprise will be effective in reaching the people and will inspire the people who go to trust more in God and to make contacts with people in their own Neem town rather than staying in their small Christian enclave. The religious leaders of the receiving village were already objecting to their going a week ago but the administrative authorities gave permission. Pray that this effort will not antagonise but rather win souls.
You prayed…He answered
On Oct 21, 2018 you prayed for this request: “Please be in prayer for the first showing of the Jesus film by the Kilwa Churches in 3 local villages in the Kilwa district. This is the first time this permission has been given by the District government. And God answered: “Jesus film outreach in Ruhatwe and Kikole went amazing. Both villages have no witness of the Gospel. Both villages very strongly Islamic. Both villages openly received us and over a dozen prayed to receive Christ. Both AICT and myself were blown away by the unexpected response. Both village leaders invited us to start ministry. Pray the Lord of the harvest to send forth workers. The harvest is there. PTL”
Growth!
A and I recently met with M and S and were able to get a detailed update from them. It was so encouraging to hear that the different discipleship groups are growing and the one that M started in the village that had no known believers has more than quadrupled since June, going from 7 to now 32, all from a Muslim background. This is the same village where he was poisoned and he continues to go weekly to disciple this group despite the many challenges. Pray for these new believers to grow in their understanding of who Jesus is and what He has done for them. Pray they are empowered by the Holy Spirit to be bold witnesses of the new life they have found in Christ.
Christmas celebration
Pray for the Christmas celebration among the Zigua today. We want the Holy Spirit to move among us at the celebration. We want Him to have His way. Pray for the Spirit of God to fall on our gathering and move hearts close to Him. Pray for Him to make the Gospel clear and undeniable truth to our friends and neighbors.
You prayed…He answered
PTL God has provided June, a new Mission- minded Clinical Officer who plans to join our team the first of the year, and after orientation will become our AIC T. Dispensary Nurse!!! Woohoo! She specifically said she wants to work in a Mission setting! And she feels that God has led her to us!
Christmas feast
The big Village Christmas Feast is scheduled for Christmas Day – Pray that the message of WHY Jesus came would come across clearly and people’s hearts would be penetrated to respond to the Truth of their need to receive God’s Best Ever Gift of Jesus as Lord and Saviour! PTL for great ‘Ako parties’ with 25-30 kids who we have fun and share the Christmas story with.
His Presence Among Us
Praise God for open eagerness for holding a first ever church service Christmas morning! We will meet outdoors under a tree and a tarp. Pray for good weather and that people will understand the amazing truth of Emmanuel, “God With Us”. Praise God for willing hearts among the leadership for wanting a church in their village, even not of their own religion. Pray for villagers to seek the Way, the Truth and the Life. Pray those that come to belong would come to believe. Ask God for provision of a permanent location and structure from where to worship.
You prayed…He answered
On Oct 24, 2017 you prayed for this request: “Thank God for his blessing, because we are already roofing a classroom, and now join me to pray for finishing the floor, windows, doors and plaster. This is a place for Muslim high school students to come after school for tutoring and to learn about Jesus Christ.” And God answered: “I want to thank God for the building of a classroom, we are now finishing and planning to open it officially on the graduation day.”
I have talked with the chief of Busi and he accepted to be the guest of honor.
Celebrating Christmas
A young woman (who is studying the Holy Spirit but who hasn’t yet believed) just wrote to say she’s planning on celebrating Christmas with believers there! Ask that she and her two sisters recognize the love and grace of God coming to earth … to die and rise…to satisfy the wrath of God.
You prayed…He answered
On August 1 you prayed for this request: “Please pray for young people who have started coming to church with us. A mix of boys and girls ranging from 10-15 years old. Pray they will be changed by the Word that they hear. Pray that Jesus would be their Savior. Pray they would find truth.” Now, praise the Lord! “Two of these kids have put their faith in Jesus and one of the girl’s parents are showing interest as well, which is exciting!” Thank you for praying.
Diaspora in Portland
Today RH has the opportunity to story a portion of Luke for an Iraqi Christmas banquet. Pray for God’s Word to stick in their hearts and for conversational wisdom for all of us followers of Jesus at this event.
You prayed…God is answering
On Jan 16, 2018 you prayed for this request: “Please pray for the 5 believers who were baptised Christmas Eve, for their discipleship and strengthening. Pray especially for one of them who had been possessed and oppressed by serious demonic forces for many years. In the last few months, she finally accepted her need for Jesus and decided to follow him. This is a huge step for her. Please pray for her protection, and that the Holy Spirit will teach, strengthen and protect her over the coming weeks and months.” And God is answering: ” This lady is continuing to walk with Jesus! It has not been an easy path, but if feels like God is teaching her deep things along the way.”
May the kings bow to the King
The kings of the villages are having a hard time with the Gospel. They know that it means a different way of living. Many of the ancestor aspects of their culture cannot be reconciled with the Gospel. Yet the kings are vital when it comes to making decisions. Pray the Lord will speak powerfully to the kings and they will bow their knees to the King of kings.
You prayed…He answered
On Sep 25, 2018 you prayed for this request: “We are in the testing phase of our stories. Last month I was able to meet with groups in 3 different locations and get feedback for our stories. In November we are hoping to have the stories available on memory cards. Pray for us as we make the changes we need and final recordings over the next two months. May God’s Word move with power among the M people!” And God answered: “Praise Jesus! We finished recording all 18 of our stories last week with our crafting team. This week we will be distributing the 50 memory cards and 12 solar players that we have. This was a project we started in 2015 with our team and it is exciting to see it through to this phase of distribution.”
Christmas opportunities
Christmas always gives us opportunities to share. Pray for the Christmas English Club party and for other opportunities as they come. The brothers and sisters also hope to get together to celebrate, most likely on the weekend before Christmas (22nd or 23rd).
You prayed…He answered
On Aug 2, 2018 you prayed for this request: “Just a quick note to ask for your prayers for all the details of our planned Kids’ Club – starting this afternoon, and hopefully finishing next Friday. Pray for lots of lasting fruit from all the seeds that are being planted, and pray that God will keep the clinic load down, and especially no ‘on-call’ stuff during those important afternoon hours. And God answered: “A great turn out for the 5 afternoons of Kids’ Club (with no ‘on-call’ emergencies during those days). There were MANY seeds sown and many positive interactions – however not any open and lasting response, that we know of.” Please pray the seeds would sprout!
Determined Families
Two families who have been separately listening to the recorded Bible stories have almost finished and were encouraged to start meeting all together. They immediately set a plan for themselves for every Thursday late afternoon. This is such an answer to prayer! The first week, there were many obstructions and obstacles it was unbelievable. It felt like an attack on many levels. Some gossip has started about them too, that they’re becoming Christians, but they say they’re still committed to making it happen again this Thursday. Please pray for them, and pray against Satan.
You prayed…He answered
On Jun 10, 2018 you prayed for this request: “Please pray for a principal for the school. Our acting principal David has done a wonderful job. Please pray God would call a man like David to replace him.” And God answered: “A Christian young man has come to be our principal. He has shown a heart for missions and a serious love for God and desire to have a solid Christian environment for the students. This is truly an answer to prayer.”
New vision for reaching out
The holes and rocks in the dirt road made the trip a bit longer, but the truck full of eager followers of Jesus hardly noticed as they shared stories of their personal journeys and talked of the gathering they’d come together to experience. With new insights and encouragement from others who had chosen to follow Jesus from a sister tribe, they discussed new approaches and creative ideas of how to more effectively reach out to their family and neighbors. Pray for courage for Mwani believers who reach out with the love of Christ as they often face ridicule and rejection.
Christmas
Just like the rest of the world, Christmas here in the Lopit Mountains is a pretty big deal. People go from house to house receiving yummy food treats, children get new clothes, and there is a general feeling of celebration. Pray that at this time people may come to celebrate the gift of salvation through Christ and not get hung up on worldly celebrations. Ask the Lord to speak through His word during church services and community meetings.
You prayed…He answered
On Sep 26, 2018 you prayed for this request: “The radio ministry is doing well, but so far we only broadcast for 5 hours a day. We’ve had a great response and the biggest request at this time is more hours. So please pray for us as we try to install two wind turbines next month to increase our broadcast time and scope- we hope to boost the signal from 350w to 1000w.
And God answered: “We have put in the foundations for the wind turbines last week and next week by God’s grace we hope to get the turbines hooked up!”
You prayed…He answered
On Sep 23, 2018 you prayed for this request: “Thank God we have two peace-makers who are willing to work with us in the community. Pray for Far’sa and Far’ya, who want to help their people with English classes, workshops, children programs etc. Pray for their salvation and our partnership. May God use all these activities to show Somali people His love, grace and salvation.” And God answered: “We thank God one of the Peace-makers, Far’sa, is still willing to work with us. Please pray for her salvation. Besides English classes and children activities, I have two students who are interested in learning massage skills and some students want to do exercise together.” Praise the Lord.
Grow daily in faith
Praise God for the 30 new believers who have followed the Lord’s instructions to be baptized as an outward symbol of their inner commitment to Jesus this year here in Laarim. Pray for them to grow in their faith daily, and to recognize the devil’s snares which so easily can entangle them. Amen.
