Pray for peace over the coming season – Christmas and the dry season in the months after always brings more insecurity as people have more time on their hands and alcohol is more available.
Pray also for unity amongst the believers. Our prayer is that the believers here would learn what it means to be the Body of Christ, loving and serving one another.

Literacy – with the Bible translation more readily available, we are seeing more of a desire in people to learn how to read. Pray this would actually take root! And as people read the Word, they would believe it.

There is a Laarim believer in Torit who wants to be out here in the village as a missionary, but his church in Torit has not been able to get enough finances together to support him. (We desire to see the local church do the sending). Pray the Lord will provide for the church to send him.

Last year there was not enough rain for crops to grow. This year the rain was enough, but the birds were devastating. People are again at a loss of what to do about the lack of a harvest.
There has been progress in the last month in getting the local believers to have a plot of their own, off of the missionary compound, but there has been some resistance from the community. Pray for wisdom and courage for the believers as they move forward.

We are so thankful to have received the Laarim Bible several months ago, containing the entire New Testament and several Old Testament books. It has pointed to the great need for people, especially believers, to learn how to read. There is a very low literacy rate. Pray for those learning to read to persevere and for others to begin learning.

Noblesse is encouraged to see Khalifah eagerly wanting to read and share a biblical passage in their different weekly gatherings. We thank God that the dream Khalifah had for several years of learning to read so that he can read the Word of God for himself and for his people has truly come to pass! Now pray that the newly printed Laarim bibles that recently arrived in Juba will soon be delivered to those eager to know God’s message of love and salvation. Pray for Natiote, Loriang, and Yepote who are faithfully applying themselves to learning to read so that they can read the bible and share it with others.

Peter Lotao is settling well into life and ministry on the Laarim team. Pray for him as he plans to start a Discovery Bible Study (DBS) in Ngarahac, the village where he is from. Please pray that this DBS will bear much fruit for God’s Kingdom. “And the one on whom seed was sown on the good soil, this is the one who hears the Word and understands it; who indeed bears fruit and brings forth, some a hundredfold, some sixty, and some thirty” (Matthew 13:23).

Please pray for Loriang, a young Laarim believer who is very clever at memorizing Bible stories, as well as making crafts and repairing broken objects. Recently Noblesse and Kalifa, one of the mature Laarim believers, were inspired by the value of literacy for him and have begun literacy training. Natiyote is a young Laarim woman who is a believer, zealous to proclaim the gospel. She is able to read very slowly and is eager to improve her skills. Pray for these bright young believers to enhance their leadership with the powerful skill of literacy!

Every Saturday a group of boys is eager to come for chai, games, and Bible stories. Last week I asked the question, ‘Who is ready to go to heaven if we die today?’ One boy said, ‘I will go to heaven…because of the grace of God.’ Yes! However, another boy answered, ‘I will go to hell because I am a sinner.’ I turned now to our memory verse from Romans 5:7: ‘But God shows His love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.’ With this focus on the gospel and our wonderful Savior, the second boy was able to joyfully declare, ‘I will go to heaven!’” Pray that these young boys will fully surrender their lives to Jesus and place their faith in Him alone.

Loriang and Natiyote, young believers, are sharing their faith with others! Loriang says, “Since I started sharing with Balin about Jesus, Balin has changed. I continue to encourage him to follow Jesus.” Natiyote says, “I told Nakiyo about the death of Jesus and His resurrection from the dead, and that we should live according to His word, and Nakiyo accepted.” Praise God! Pray these seeds will grow and produce Kingdom fruit, and that all the Laarim believers would be inspired to share their faith with others.

Pray for the Laarim believers to walk in a manner worthy of Lord, growing in faith, and sharing Truth with others.

Please pray for the Laarim believers to grow in their love for God and one another. Pray that they receive strength to stand against the pressure to partake in sinful peer group practices or temptations. Pray for courage in their hearts to trust the Lord in all hardships. And that when they fail, may they by the Spirit recognize and confess their sin and keep walking with Christ.

I praise the Lord for the Laarim believers. I also give thanks that conflict between neighboring people groups have lessened and people are moving around more freely without the constant concern of being attacked.
I was recently encouraged by Lokai, a young Laarim believer who is in his second year of secondary school. He spent Christmas with us before he returned to school. He eagerly joined me for every ministry activity and has expressed a desire to go into full-time ministry after his schooling. Please pray for Lokai and his future.

Dry season in Kimatong means village life has quieted down. Many have migrated with their cattle to a more viable source of water and grazeable land. Other Laarim have gone to the trading center of Loryok, a four-hour walk from the village. Due to the poor harvest, food is not always easy to find. Life is hard for these people! Please pray for the needs of the Laarim to be met. And pray that such need would awaken many to turn to God and recognize their deeper needs, so that they come to know what they were truly created for.

Jacob was recently encouraged by a youth, Lokwan, who came to faith through the witness of Nyao, one of the young men he regularly spends time with in the Word and prayer. Praise God for Laarim who are coming to faith through the witness of other Laarim believers! Please pray for Lokwam to grow in his faith and to stand firm against the pulls of the world. And pray for Nyao to continue to grow in love and boldness for Jesus.

Love and Tessa were excited to host the first ever women’s fellowship on their compound last month! Four Laarim believers met with Love and Tessa for a time of singing, prayer, Bible discussion and fellowship! The hope is to meet like this with the Christian women from different villages once a month to help encourage and strengthen one another. Pray that through these times of fellowship, these women will “contemplate the Lord’s glory,” and be “transformed into His image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord” (2 Corinthians 3:18).

We praise God for the recent step of faith a couple of young ladies in Chawa have taken, due to the discipleship of Natiote, a young Laarim believer! Thank the Lord for Laarim believers who are living out their faith, sharing the good news of the gospel, and drawing others from the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of light. Pray that God would grow and strengthen His church among the Laarim!

David and Tessa have had some encouraging times the past several months with Logwe, Kalifah, Susanna, and several other believers in the community. One particular highlight was when they shared a meal together with Logwe and his wife Nacici (a recent believer), and Kalifah and his wife Naji (for whom we are still praying to give her life to Christ). They were so encouraged to meet together as married couples, reading from God’s Word and fellowshipping together. Pray for these couples to live as lights in their communities.

Marino, one of the early Laarim converts, hosts a church service in his compound. Recently I visited and about 40 people, predominantly children, but also a group of youth, and a few adults came. All sang heartily and were attentive to my teaching. Marino’s son, Daniel, a primary 4 student, read “feeding the 5000” story from the Laarim New Testament. This reminded me of my recent reading from Acts: “When he arrived and saw the evidence of the grace of God, he was glad and encouraged them all to remain true to the Lord with all their hearts” Acts 11:23. Please pray for the growing number of Laarim who have believed and turned to the Lord!

Pray for Love’s friend, Kiote. Her husband is physically abusive and is kicking her and their children out of their home. Pray that Love would be able to share the Gospel with both Kiote and her husband, and that the whole family would receive Christ. Pray that the peace of Christ would rule their home.

Pray for a young believer named Lokai. He is away at boarding school but came to visit for a few days and shared his faith boldly with his village and encouraged other believers to not be ashamed of the gospel.
Pray he will continue to grow in faith and walk with Jesus at boarding school.

SIL (Wycliffe) Global Publishing, in their final checks before sending the Laarim Scriptures to Korea for printing, found “bugs” in the final pdf produced by the typesetting program. The typesetting needs to be redone! Pray for patience and perseverance, and even excitement, as they come closer to finalizing these Scriptures. Pray for the Lord to prepare fertile soil in the hearts of the Laarim so that when the Scriptures come “they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts and turn, and [God] would heal them” (Matthew 13:15).

After months of showing up each week in Tiringot to share Bible stories and pray with people, Love feels it is time to move her efforts elsewhere. The people in this village seem very hardened to the gospel, uninterested in anything Love has to offer since there isn’t any “physical benefit” to them. Pray that the Lord would “remove from them their heart of stone and give them a heart of flesh” (Ezekial 11:19). Pray for Noblesse, who lives in the village closest to Tiringot, to have wisdom about how to reach this community and continue to water the seeds that have been planted.

Angelo (a Laarim believer who had been a part of the Laarim ministry for several years) is diligently studying in Kenya, planning to return to Kimatong once his nursing training is complete. Pray that he will do well in his studies, and so be able to use his training to serve his community’s physical needs. His real heart is for evangelism, so pray that he would also grow in the bold sharing of his faith, even among his teachers and fellow students, in preparation for declaring to the Laarim “that the Lord… is God; He is the faithful God, keeping His covenant of love to a thousand generations of those who love Him and keep His commandments. But those who hate Him He will repay to their face by destruction” (Deuteronomy 7:9-10).

There was great joy in Kimatong as Nacici was baptized by Jacob last month! It seems that others are now interested in taking this step of obedience as well. Pray for Nabalu, Love’s friend that she has been sharing the gospel with, to make public her faith in Jesus. As the Laarim witness these baptisms and hear the gospel preached, pray they will “be pierced to the heart” and cry out, “What shall we do?” (Acts 2:37). Pray for many to “repent…and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of [their] sins…and receive the gift of the Holy Spirit” (2:38).

The Lord is at work among the hearts of the Laarim. Although evil and violence have a strong grip on the culture, there are ‘outliers’ amongst the community that clearly have had their lives transformed and empowered by the good news of the gospel. The eagerness to grow in faith that these people demonstrate shows the Lord is at work in powerful ways. Please pray for the Laarim believers! It is hard living with entirely different values from the community around them. Pray that the Lord would strengthen and encourage them, and show the team how they can better support their brothers and sisters in Christ.

Please pray for Lotao, a Laarim student whom Jacob had worked with in the village and is currently supporting through secondary school in Kenya. He is in his final year of school (equivalent to grade 12) and is on track to graduate. Lotao stays with a Christian Kenyan family, and Livingston has become like a father to this young man. Thank God for the believers God has put in Lotao’s life – Jacob planted the seeds, Livingston has watered them, but God has made them grow (1 Corinthians 3:7)! Pray that the seeds planted and watered would bear much fruit, and that Lotao would be faithful and obedient to God’s calling on his life.

Tomorrow (Wednesday) Lucia and her son, both Laarim believers who have been in Torit for the last few years, will be going out to Kimatong for 10 days to visit family and members of the community she is from. They are both very excited for the opportunity to share their faith and testimony with the Laarim. Pray that the story of what God has done in their lives would deeply impact all who hear them, and that God would open hearts to receive his gift of grace.

The Word of the Lord is being shared among the Laarim! Two months ago, we started two new evening Bible studies. We are now seven weeks into a twenty-five-week Bible story set at the home of Lonyia and at the home of Pellegrino. It has been wonderful seeing kids start to take over leading the worship songs. People faithfully share praises and prayer requests. Wow, praise the Lord! Apart from these two homes, Love and I (Tessa) continue to share out in the village of Karamarok and at the home of Susanna, one of our believing friends. I also share at the home of Natiote in Chawa, while David continues to faithfully meet with Kalifa as they spend time in the Word together. Praise God! Pray for the Word to work in people’s hearts and for the Spirit to ‘convict them of sin, and righteousness and judgment’ John 16:8.

Recently, Marino’s wife (Mama Labong) has asked Love to come and share Bible stories with her. She and Marino lost a son earlier this year in a cattle raid, and it seems God is using that to help Mama Labong see her need for Jesus in her life and family. Love is now going weekly to Marino’s compound to share from God’s Word with four women, several teens and children, and Marino (already a believer). Pray for Mama Labong and the others – “Let [them] who walk in the dark, who have no light, trust in the name of the Lord and rely on God” (Isaiah 50:10).

Nachichi is the young woman who Love did her homestay with over a year ago. Love had not felt that Nachichi was interested in pursuing a friendship, so she was surprised when Nachichi came to her several weeks ago wanting to hear from the Word of God! Now they are planning to meet together each week for Bible study, as Nachichi has expressed a desire to trust in Jesus as her Savior and be baptized. Pray for Logwe (Nachichi’s husband and Jacob’s disciple) and Love as they disciple Nachichi. And pray the Lord will continue to draw more Laarim men and women to Himself!

We are thrilled that Noblesse is making plans to return to the Laarim in August for three months. He is coming with two other Rwandan men, Bienvenu and Perez, as part of their exposure to missions. Pray for these three men as they raise needed support from their churches in Rwanda. Pray the church will take their role to send seriously and give with joy. Pray the Lord will use Noblesse, Bienvenu and Perez to build up and strengthen His kingdom among the Laarim.

Nanguoko, Natiyote, and Lokolong are all Laarim believers. Pray that they will see the need to grow in their relationship with the Lord by joining with other believers for times of Bible study and prayer. Pray also for Khalifa as he disciples Loduko, to help this young man understand God’s love and salvation through faith. Pray for all the believers in Chawa to discern and understand that, “the ways of the Lord are right; the righteous walk in them, but the rebellious stumble in them” (Hosea 14:9).

Love has been faithfully meeting with Nakai in the village of Karenge to share Bible stories. She is encouraged by this growing friendship and the opportunity to share God’s Word with her friend and any others who come to listen. Love is still visiting Tiringot, the village next to Karenge, but waiting for an invitation from someone in the community to ask for her to share Bible stories. Pray for Nakai to come to a saving faith in Jesus as she hears God’s Word; pray for a spiritual awakening in Tiringot and that people in that village would “seek the Lord while he may be found; call on him while he is near” (Isaiah 55:6).

Pray that Love would know how to encourage Maria and Suzanna, women she is discipling in Kimatong, to be part of ministry and Bible studies with her in other villages. Pray that these ladies would have a desire to share their faith and hope with others who are still in darkness. Pray that their testimony and changed lives would speak to the Laarim’s need for Jesus.

Please pray for Jacob’s disciple and dear friend, Lokolong. A week ago he developed some pain in the hip area that gradually worsened to the point that his mobility has become greatly limited. It is very painful for him to stand up from a sitting position and walking is very difficult as well. Pray that Lokolong receives the right medical advice and treatment in Torit, and would be able to continue his work in the gardens. In the midst of this challenging time, Jacob has been grateful to spend more time with his friend, having some good times in the Word and prayer, often with other fellow believers. Pray God would use Lokolong’s struggles with illness and pain to learn to trust: “My (God’s) grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness” (2 Corinthians 12:9).

David and Tessa are starting to lead Discovery Bible Studies (DBS) at various compounds. They have decided to start sharing at two different compounds in their neighborhood, and as time moves on, potentially adding more. They are excited to be sharing God’s Word at these families where they have built strong relationships. They go out together at dusk (since people are out in the gardens most of the day) and sit together as people start to gather. Then there is a lot of singing Laarim worship songs. They spend time sharing praises and prayer requests, followed by a story from the Bible which they then interact with by asking questions. It is encouraging to see that there are people with an interest in learning these stories. Pray that as people hear the Word of God, it would become more than just a story to them. Pray that people would truly desire to walk in the freedom and newness of life found in Christ.

On Tuesday evenings Jacob has a time in the Word and prayer together with a few of the believers from the area. It is a time where they read a passage in Laarim together and then talk about what it teaches them. Jacob often gives direction with the discussion, but loves how the others willingly participate and share their thoughts and questions that they then look to answer together. They also share their difficulties and pray for one another, along with other needs. Please pray for these Laarim youth to grow in zeal and knowledge!

With the Laarim, if a person dies from a cause other than old age, it is often believed that a sorcerer caused the death, and this is sometimes followed with people then identifying, accusing, and killing another person whom they believe caused the death through sorcery. This has been a problem for many years and the team would hear of the occasional lynching of a person which had followed the death an individual, but it was only occasional. This year, though, there has been an extraordinary number of lynching related deaths in these past months following deaths from sickness or killing by neighboring people groups. Please pray for an end to this wicked practice that only adds death upon death. Pray for wisdom and courage for the believers over what their role should be in addressing this. “The way of the wicked is like deep darkness; they do not know what makes them stumble” (Proverbs 4:19).

There is just a handful of believers who meet regularly for church, so pray that all the believers would start gathering regularly and the church would be established. Pray for Laarim Christians to “rid [themselves of all malice and all deceit, hypocrisy, envy and slander of every kind. Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it [they] may grow up in [their] salvation, now that [they] have tasted that the Lord is good” (1 Peter 2:1-3). Pray for a church that is led by the Holy Spirit, founded on the Word of God, and a light that reaches into the darkest parts of the community.