Despite the 4 churches on the Ik ridge, the Ik people know very little about Christianity. Through recent conversations, it was discovered that although most of the Ik would say they are Christians, they don’t believe in angels, demons, or Jesus Christ’s saving death on the cross. They believe that going to heaven depends solely on doing good in your life. Please be praying for God to provide opportunities for continued meaningful spiritual conversations. And always be praying that God opens the hearts of the Ik men, women, and children to hear the truth of the gospel.
He Saw Answers to Prayer
Praise God for the ongoing work of oral Bible translation. One of the translators, not yet a believer, prayed for a translation session as he had seen the facilitator do. At the end of the day he was encouraged to see how God had answered their prayers. Please pray that even in the process of hearing and translating God’s word, many Alagwa hearts would be touched and changed by God.
Drawing Out Stories
Please pray as chonological Bible Storying is ongoing in a number of settings among the Nyamwezi: at homesteads, under trees, in villages, in schools, at neigborhood children’s clubs. These meeting times provide a place to share each other’s stories about drawing either closer or farther from God, and hearing God’s narrative from the Scriptures of His stories for our lives. The Nyamwezi are already aware of the supernatural realm and are open to talking about the Creator and spiritual matters. Pray for relationships as they are built, faithfulness in coming to hear God’s stories, oneness as a community, and for hearts to understand God’s unfailing love for each person, whatever their story.
Boldness Needed
One of the members of the SIL translation team is a Rangi believer named K. Praise God for the passion K has to see his fellow Rangi reached with the gospel. Pray for the Lord to give K continued boldness and also to protect him and his family from spiritual attack.
Mega Voices Speaking and Singing
Distribution of Mega Voice players is underway. These are new solar devices that have been updated with all the current Kisandawe scripture and songs. Please pray for safety for the men traveling around from village to village to distribute these players. Ask the Lord of the Harvest to use these devices for His Kingdom and glory and to draw many to Himself.
More Opportunities for the Men to be Together
Praise the Lord that the South Asian family has invited their Christian neighbours to a barbecue Saturday night, where the men will have more contact. And praise the Lord that the women in the family want to continue meeting to hear Bible stories, and that one of the women is reading a Christian book about heaven. Please pray for the salvation of each person in the family, and for a spiritually profitable evening this Saturday night.
Pastor Bargokwet
On December 28 I met with Pastor Silas Bargokwet, who has been working with the Dorobo/Okiek in the Keringet area with us since 1993. Despite challenges, he gave a good report on what God has been doing in that area. They have planted about six churches and completed building a primary school and have started a secondary school. This is an area that serves both Dorobo/Okiek and Kipsigis people in a forested area. Pastor Bargokwet also has a heart for the children of the area, both orphans and children in single parent homes. The government has used him as the contact point to help these children and he’s visited over 300 homes to determine the needs and provide help. He believes God wants him to start an orphanage for these children. Continue to pray for Pastor Bargokwet that God would provide the support he needs for his missionary work. We have planned a meeting with the Dorobo/Okiek leaders for January 22, where we will survey what churches have been planted and how many have become believers. We hope this will help us to create a vision for what still needs to be accomplished.
Mary and Naomi
“Mary” has said over and over, “I feel so at rest when I am with any of your ‘group’.” As we walked last week, another friend joined us, and they discussed the differences they see in the lives of Christians. “Mary” has a Bible; the friend that joined us, “Naomi,” has asked for a Bible, but has canceled each time we were officially planning to meet. “Mary” said that she is too busy to read it. “Naomi” says that she wants to read and study it, but with her husband traveling, transportation is difficult. Pray for each of these women that they would recognize that any beauty in believers is all and only Jesus and that they would be drawn to faith and the Word.
Hungry Sister-Wives
A Rangi woman’s work never ends. Most women are occupied with many daily responsibilities: children, farming, preparing food, carrying water, and so forth. Mama S and Mama M are no different. Unlike most women, however, these sister- wives are also spiritually hungry. They have heard “The Story of God and Man” from Adam to Jesus, using a story set in Kilaangi (the Rangi language). They have listened intently to the words of the prophets about the promised Redeemer, and they affirm Jesus’ teachings and power. Just like a Rangi woman, the Lord’s work never ends either. He is continuing to help Mama S and Mama M think outside of their Islamic box. Please pray that the Lord would work miracles in these women and their husband, and that he would give them great courage. Ask that he would add ‘tell others about the joy of following Jesus!’ to their list of things to do.
He Can No Longer Teach Islam
We heard recently of an Islamic leader in a village several kilometers away who has been listening to scripture in Kisandawe and has given his life to the LORD. He says he can no longer teach Islam. Please pray for this man that he will receive further discipleship and grow in his faith.
Going to the Villages, Broadcasting the Jesus Film.
We have started a new project among Bara people this year. We are broadcasting the Film Jesus in Bara language in Bara villages. Please pray that the film will impact their lives, and leave in their hearts the desire to know more about Jesus Christ.
Please pray for the villages of: Ambatomañga, Isoanala,and Manañovy, where we have already shown the film.
Please pray that God will open doors for us to project the film in as many villages as possible.
May God change hearts and that the seeds of the Gospel planted there would flourish.
Bible Translation into Rangi
Praise God for a team from SIL who have been tirelessly working on translating the Bible into the Rangi language for many years. Pray for continued unity and perseverance as they aim to finish in the next few years. Pray too that God would use the Rangi Bible to help many come to Christ.
New believers’ struggles
Continue to pray for Mart and Light – the new believers you prayed for last month – as they have hit a rocky patch. On the day they were planning on getting baptised, Mart went off to his home island without telling anyone. The enemy is definitely working to stop the growth that has started. Pray that he would come back quickly, that God would help them to work out their marriage issues, and that they would continue to grow in their young faith.
Ruth and Hannah
Thank you for praying for “Ruth,” the Arab woman who was bowing at the church and taking pictures before the cross. God did continue to stir her heart and she brought her closest friend, “Hannah,” a Berber, to our home. “Hannah” led the conversation. “Islam doesn’t make sense. In school we are taught Islamic law, and are mocked if we ask questions. We are told that ISIS isn’t real Islam, but it teaches the same things we learn in university. It is Islam and I cannot follow that way. For a while my family forced me to go through the actions of Islamic prayer, but if it doesn’t touch your heart, it is meaningless. Every night I pray, ‘Lord, please show me the truth.’ “. They both eagerly accepted the written Word and want to read and study together! Exams are just finishing. Pray for a consistent time to meet!
A new Team
Ask the Lord for his guidance as the idea of sending another team of workers to live and minister among the Rangi is considered. Ask that he would open doors and give wisdom for every detail, from the selection of a village to the assigning of team leaders and team members.
New On the Farm
We have 3 fairly new Muslim Background Believers who have joined our farm crew. These young men are hungry to work hard and they are hungry for discipleship. Pray for their spiritual growth and protection and that the Lord would use them to draw many more of their lost neighbors to salvation.
Upbeat Funeral
Recently we bounced up to the village of Narianta behind a pickup hearse to bury the body of Pastor Reuben Sankok, who had died of spinal meningitis. Over 300 people attended the service. Despite the scratchy sound system, the community belted out Christian songs, children gave tribute to their father (Reuben left 11 children), I preached about our hope in the resurrection and a team of Dorobo pastors surrounded the casket and prayed as we laid Reuben’s body in the ground. There was grief and mourning, but there was an optimistic hope, brought on by their growing faith in Christ. Continue to pray for the family, for the children in school and for God to raise up other men to be leaders in the churches in the area.
New Year’s Eve Party
Praise God that the missionaries’ time with the South Asian family on New Year’s Eve was a time of fun and some significant introductions for the men of four families to meet one another. Pray that now the Spirit of God will prompt some of the Indian men to take initiative to connect with the missionary men again. Pray for the salvation of the entire family: men, women, and children in 2017.
A Huge Step Forward for a Local Church
We have a praise item for God’s working among the Rendille. This past December the church in Korr found it needed a new senior pastor. The men in the church met and made some faith based decisions that show great growth and maturity. They chose a pastor from among the elders who is a man who truly loves God. But they also decided that the local church needs to fully support this pastor financially. This has never happened in the church’s history and the first Sunday in January the leadership challenged the congregation to assume full responsibility for their pastor – they need to feed his family, care for his physical needs and pray for him. It was a very good service and a strong step of faith. Many in the congregation stood in unity and with the promise to take care of their pastor. Please pray that this will become a reality this year. Pray for Pastor Erot as he knows he needs God’s power and strength to lead well.
Ladies Heard of God’s Love at Christmas
Pray for the Alagwa ladies who glady heard the story of God’s love at a neighbourhood Christmas celebration. Please pray that the Holy Spirit will touch their hearts and draw them to Himself. Please pray that their eyes would be opened, and they would understand that they actually need to give their lives over to God and follow him.
Praise report
Rev. Raymond Bukenya a Muganda, missionary serving in Moroto gives this report from Christmas day:
For the first time, we baptised 25 inmates who had been through the Baptism Preparation Class. I shared on the true essence of Christmas. The day God gave us the opportunity, through His Son, to see His Face, and His Grace that we all needed so desperately because of our entanglement in sin!
At the end of my Sermon, in which I challenged my friends to receive the Son, the Child who is given for our Redemption, 3 other inmates surrendered their Lives to the Saviour of all Mankind! Led them in prayer, and they joined in to receive baptism! Total baptized Christmas day was 28 inmates! They all received Bibles.
Husband and Wife Serve Together
Pray for opportunities for a Rangi evangelist, P, to share Jesus through his interactions with the nursery children and their parents. Pray too for P’s family as he has become a husband and a father in the last year. Ask God to continue to grow a heart and passion to reach the Rangi in P’s wife, Deb.
Youth Bible Conference
Please pray for the youth in Karamoja as they meet together in Lotome for a 3 day conference. May accurate and anointed Bible teaching be there and that the Holy Spirit as teacher would move through these young adults and teenagers.
Family settling into life in the US
The precious Arab/Berber family who moved to the States is doing well, learning language and settling into life while they live with a believing family. They have watched children act out the nativity, played games with the widows of the church, painted houses, built fires and simply lived daily life with disciples of Jesus. We are so thankful that as they joined the family for church, a MBB from Yemen sat next to them and translated into Arabic. Continue to ask for their salvation!
How to Continue in the Future?
A Christian worker showed the Jesus movie on New Year’s Sunday, after showing it on Christmas Day. Twenty kids watched it the first time, and then she played it again for the kids that showed up late—in the end there were almost 50 gathered on the porch in front of her computer. Right now, she thinks it is a good conversation starter and another tool, along with the children’s Bible that gives kids exposure to who Jesus is. Maybe she should show it once a month on a Sunday? Please pray for wisdom, and for the salvation of the children and their families.
Severely Tormented, Now Freed
Just before Christmas, a young woman from a different town had a demonic manifestation in the Sunday morning church service. She had been severely tormented by the demon for many years and was ready and willing to both give up her religion of Islam as well as be freed of this particular demon. She prayed the ‘sinners prayer’ and is hungry to grow as a disciple of Jesus. Her name is Eva, and she has Christian relatives. Would you please pray for this girl to be discipled and taught from the Word.
Ceasefire…
A ceasefire has once again been announced for 2 months and the military convoys have been stopped. Pray that it will remain peaceful all over the country and all adhere to the ceasefire.
A Bold Digo Christian family
In a village where little truth is actually known about Jesus, the Jesus film in the tribal language was shown at the prompting of a bold Digo Christian man and his family. Almost 100 curious people showed up to hear Jesus speak their language! May His words penetrate the Digo hearts in the village of M and accomplish what He purposes. His words will not return to Him empty.
Christian Neighbors: the only Jesus some people will ever see
Approximately one-third of Nyamwezi say they are Christian. They are the neighbors who may be the only Jesus some people ever see. Please pray that they would reach out in conversations with their non-Christian neighbors and share their stories of salvation and how God is personal in their lives. Ask that God’s love would be unleashed. Pray for those who are drawn to relate with their Christian neighbors, that they would likewise be drawn to God and come to know God in their own lives. “Draw near to God and he will draw near to you.” James 4:8
Visits, Football, and Peace
Praise God for several good visits to the Mbororo recently. A football (soccer) club has started on Saturday afternoons in the village where relationships are growing. Pray for fruit: for opportunities to share God’s Truth, for hearts to be opened, and for salvation to come. Meanwhile in a village in Eastern CAR, a Mbororo man was apparently murdered. Retaliation took place, and there have been high tensions between the Zande and Mbororo in that area. Pray for peace. The Enemy would love to capitalize on this conflict. Pray that the church (mostly Zande) would be strong in showing love during this time.
She Turned to God First
Praise God for a lady who is seeking Jesus in our village. A few weeks ago, she had understood for the first time that the power of witchdoctors does not come from God. (Traditionally, there is the belief that the witchdoctors “do good” and therefore must be empowered by God.) Recently, her eldest daughter who lives far away started to suffer from stomach problems. She came to arrange for an opportunity for her to be prayed for at church, or at one of the pastors’ houses. Praise God that she turned to Him first.
Please continue to pray that all the Alagwa seeking Jesus will understand that only God has the power to heal their bodies and souls.
An Extravagant, Joyful Christmas
This holiday season we were abundantly blessed to be able to host 2 separate celebrations in our town and we saw nearly 100 people come to celebrate with us! One neighbor who offered to direct the work of making sure that a giant meal was cooked for lunch said, “If this is a day of joy for you, it’s a day of joy for us.” We were humbled and blessed to see many of our neighbors and friends take responsibility for parts of the celebration, without ever being asked to do it. Because of their taking the lead in so many ways, the gatherings felt very culturally appropriate and seemed to be well understood by everyone who came. And yet so many who came through the door said, “Happy Christmas!” It was humbling to see their extravagant demonstration of loving us, their neighbors. And it was a joy to see them experience celebrating the birth of Christ in a way that made sense to them. One dear friend said, “We never celebrated this before you came here,” with the biggest smile. Please pray that our people would continue to reflect on the day, to be challenged by the fact that it broke stereotypes about how Christians typically celebrate, and that many would be stirred to seek more information about the One whose birth was celebrated that day.
Ndau
Recently we heard that there was going to be a “ceasefire” for 7 days- an agreement which was made by the heads of the the main political parties. This made us very excited as we have been hearing of more and more fatal attacks happening in our area resulting in the folks not going to their fields (once again). Two days after the announcement a leader of the opposition party was killed. When is this going to end? Please continue to pray for the nation and especially the Ndau in our area that are being affected. Pray against the senseless killing of innocent people and for those who believe to stand strong in the Lord.
Is it impossible for Bara to follow Jesus? No!
If the years of little fruit were a discouragement to the missionaries who worked among Bara people, now is time to rejoice! The seeds planted have started to bear fruit and everyone is part of this harvest. Many Bara have come to faith after this malaso and witch doctor become a follower of “Jesosy, Anaky’Ndrianañahary” (Jesus, Son of God), as we posted here previously.
Please pray for him. His name is Jean Claude, and we ask you to pray for his life, security, strength and guidance. May Jesus, through his Holy Spirit, bless and encourage him to continue being a powerful witness of the Gospel. May the Lord protect him against the spiritual forces that operate powerfully among Bara keeping them in bondage. And may Jean’s life shine as a light among his community. Blessed be the Lamb!
Fear and isolation
Pray for our local brother who so often feels alone. He knows no other local believers in our city. When there are threats or danger, he tends towards isolation which increases fear. Ask for wisdom for him to know when to meet with foreign believers; he is so welcome, and invited, but concerned. Pray that he will know when and who to share with, and that God would gather local believers here to encourage one another.
A Crippled Boy Walks
Over ten years ago I helped a Dorobo mother, whose son Isaiah had crippled legs and could only crawl on all fours. I prayed for Isaiah at the time and told him he would one day play soccer. Eventually Isaiah went to a crippled children’s centre in Kajiado and after a year or two of calipers and treatment, he was able to walk and he’s now in his last year of high school. I’d almost forgotten the incident, but Pastor Musanga invited me to his house just before Christmas to meet Isaiah, who has become a vibrant Christian and spends his free time sharing his faith. He and Pastor Musanga had held a meeting at a nearby village at Christmas and after Isaiah preached, two people accepted Christ as their Savior. We had a cup of tea and Isaiah thanked us for helping him on his journey of physical healing as well as his spiritual journey following Christ. As we left, Isaiah, who is short and walks with a limp, told me God had answered my prayer for him and he did play soccer at his school. We asked him to pray for my knee (injured in a recent rugby game). It was humbling to hear him offer up a powerful prayer for God to heal my knee. Pray that God would use Isaiah in spreading the Gospel among the Dorobo.
New believers
Praise God for a new group of Muslim background believers among the Rangi! Ask the Holy Spirit to guide these believers as they meet together to study the Bible each Sunday. Pray for strength and encouragement for them as they face opposition from their friends and family.
Heavy yokes
Zahara, a woman who had read the gospel online and had asked for an Arabic NT, missed our meeting to receive it because of sickness. As Fatima and I walked at the park a few days later, Zahara called to say that she had just seen us walk by. Only her eyes were showing and I would have walked right on by without her call. As we continued on walking together, she explained that it must have been God’s favor that we meet. Praise Jesus for his arrangements! Then she and Fatima got into a conversation about the troubles in the country and comparing Christians and Muslims. Zahara said, “It is easier to enter Islam if you have not yet met a Muslim.” She turned in apology to her fellow Muslim, but Fatima was nodding. Hypocrisy is always horrible. Pray for these women who are drawn to what they see in followers of Jesus, but who are still trying to hold onto Islam if only it is “done right.” Pray that they will find the yoke of Islam too heavy to bear, and that they will see the open arms of Jesus on the cross, holding out forgiveness and grace.
Peace for the Ik
Although the Ik believe strongly in peace, they live in- between two strong, warring tribes, the Karamajong to the south and the Turkana to the north in Kenya, causing countless problems to the Ik. Over the years, there have been many casualties among the Ik even though they weren’t directly involved in the conflict between the tribes. Lately both of the tribes have been encroaching on the Ik ridge, desiring to bring their cattle through in search of grazing land. Pray that the Ik can take a peaceful stand so that the Karamajong and the Turkana don’t take advantage of them by destroying their land, and instead respect their wishes. Pray also for the safety of all on the ridge as these tribes many times bring violence. Pray the Prince of Peace would be made known.
Growing in Their Understanding
Bibi Chai, Mama Naa, and others are still growing in their understanding of who Jesus is as they visit with Christian neighbours. Please pray that in the new year there will be many opportunities for missionaries to regularly share Bible stories and the gospel message with Swahili people in a small village on the coast of the Indian Ocean.
