There are fewer members of the team around owing to my home assignment and the harvest season, which means that it is not easy to follow up and disciple people. Pray for Abe, a blind older man who was listening to the word with me. He has a solar powered audio player which he seems to be enjoying. “Abdullah” borrowed it from him for a few days and said it was truth! I supplied another for him but left before I could find out whether he took it. Pray for them both that the truth will touch their hearts. Nobody was prepared to follow up with Abe because he lives too far away.

Please keep praying for various people who have received solar audio Bible players. Several have been lost/stolen/’borrowed”. Pray they will be well listened to and many believe the message.

Pray for various people who have received solar audio bible players. Several have been lost/stolen/’borrowed”. Regardless, pray the players will be listened to and many will put their faith in Jesus.

Pray for children I meet in their homes as I visit women or several who visit me at my home. Pray for wisdom in how to talk of God with them. They are as lost as their parents and most have little idea of spirituality.

I continue to work with mentally ill and epileptic patients. Patients are few these days because roads are terrible and people are busy with farming. Pray for San’ who has a bad psychosis and then severe heart side effects of medication. His relatives neglect him as do so many. Pray for openings to talk of Christ.

Pray for my work with mentally ill patients. Surprisingly high numbers of patients are coming  considering it’s the rainy season and people are busy planting. Pray for a paper to be signed by Minister of Health to authorise medications coming from Kenya. I’ve been waiting almost two months. Pray for grace and discernment talking with local people of Good News. There seems less resistance although still present. Pray for hearts seeking truth and hope.

Opposition seems to be reducing here. Where one team member was banned from visiting a believer, she has now been twice. Meanwhile there have been many deaths recently, some of friends of the team. Pray that in consoling families, we can impart something of God’s love such that people will want to know more of the gospel. Pray that there will be no more deaths from HIV. I can think of 5 people at least who have died without treatment or almost so because of the associated stigma.

Pray for new believers: Pray for H’bib, that God would calm the anger of his family after he told them he is a believer, help them to listen, and open their own hearts to the gospel of Jesus Christ. Pray for Abo’, a new believer, who has been uncontactable. I fear that something bad has happened. Pray for Cham’ and for his wife, as she considers becoming a believer in Jesus.

Pray for us, we are hoping to hold our first seminar soon, mainly for women. This will be an interactive seminar helping people understand how to avoid a particularly damaging weed that reduces output. Pray that this will open up new relationships and opportunities to share other truths as well as help people farm more successfully.
Pray for permission from the authorities and all the practical details of setting it up.

Pray for ‘Ruth’ who we have prayed for previously. On Friday, while a worker was visiting her, Ruth’s mother in law came and chased away the worker telling her to never return and citing local authorities (Islamic I assume) who don’t want Christians around. We had known that during Ramadan words had been said against us. Strangely, however, the lady said Ruth could come visit me. This morning we arranged by phone that she would come tomorrow. Pray she does so. In the past she made many promises to do so but didn’t come. Today she seemed eager. Pray for Ruth’s faith that this would strengthen her and not deter her. She seems to have been rather wobbly in her faith recently attending Islamic teaching and praying with actions as a Muslim where before she had stopped.

Pray for ‘B’ who has been listening to the gospel and apparently appreciating it. Pray that this will touch him.

Pray for an openness in our community as we as a team and as Christians interact with people here. Pray for an openness to hearing the gospel and that their eyes will be opened, and they can turn from darkness to light. Pray that God would break the power and chains of satan and they would turn from being under the power of satan to God so that they can receive forgiveness for their sins and find their place among those who are being sanctified by their faith. (Acts 26:18)

Pray for progress in evangelism: that those whom team members are regularly sharing with would join Bible studies and seriously pursue truth and understanding.

Pray for God to continue to reveal himself to those who have heard and responded to the gospel. Pray for a church of MBBs to be birthed in Abdi!

Continue praying for Ruth who still enjoys hearing the word of God and says she has no fear now. (Persecution from neighbours made life difficult for her before but wasn’t violent in any way.) Today, hearing the parable of the sower, she said she wanted to be somebody who followed God well and produced fruit in her life. Pray that this might be so and for her husband that she might be able to explain to him so that he will want to follow too. She has just delivered her 6th child.

Pray for ‘Beth’ who has been listening to parts of the good news with interest. Just this last week her husband divorced her. Where can she go? Who will help her? She told me that she has kept everything in her head that we talked about and saw (parts of the Jesus film) last week and is thinking about it. Pray that I can continue to talk with her after she has travelled to ask her brothers for help. Pray that God will console her in her difficult situation. Her husband had not been giving her anything to live on for two years so maybe he is no loss except that living without a husband means a low status in this community. Pray that she will believe!

‘Helen’ stood up in church two weeks ago and announced that she wanted to leave Islam and follow Christ (NB, the church is entirely southerners with no MBBs). She is not a local lady but came from a Muslim family in the south. Her husband having been a church goer became a muslim and married her but now has become ‘nothing’. Helen lives in the same compound with her husband’s first wife. She noticed the women of the church visiting the other wife after she had twins and was attracted to the community. Visiting Helen I found she had understood little of Islam and now understands little of the gospel. So, we have started looking at the ‘God story’, a chronological bible storying film. Two other ladies from her language group plus the first wife have joined us. There is much need for basic teaching for many church goers. Pray that these ladies will grow in their faith and become witnesses amongst their Neem neighbours. Pray that their husband will also turn to Christ. Praise God for the stirring of the Spirit in Helen’s heart.

Pray for God to break the bonds of Islam in this country, to remove the veil from eyes that have been blinded, to reveal the lies of Islam, and to cause Muslims across this country to seek something greater than what they currently have.

Pray for Ruth, who is still keen to read the Word and wants to follow the Savior, and pray for Faith, who wants to follow too but isn’t as keen but is doing language with Anna and is getting some Bible that way.

The team gives thanks for relationships being built with locals despite many being out in their fields most of the time. Pray for open hearts and minds to hear the good news and a great search for truth, hope, and joy that only comes from the Lord.

The team gives thanks for relationships being built with locals despite many being out in their fields most of the time. Pray for open hearts and minds to hear the good news and a great searching for truth and hope, and joy that comes from the Lord only. Continue praying for Ruth and Faye, who have declared their desire to follow Jesus Christ so that they might draw close to God. While Ruth seems happy to hear and consider the Bible, Faye seems uninterested.

Continue praying for Z, who has heard enough to understand but who is reluctant to go against her family.

Pray for Z’s brother “Oswald,” who is a language helper for one of the team. He declares that he’s a Muslim but not really into religion as he sees his sister Z severely handicapped. Pray that in language study and chatting afterward, he might hear and understand that following Christ is not just religion but a living way to have fellowship with God.

Pray for Z, a handicapped lady who has understood much of the gospel but fears to turn from her family’s religion because she is so dependent on them. She understands much of the good news and well may believe it. Pray for grace to overcome her fear.

Pray for Zaya, who has heard of good news over 2+ yrs. but hasn’t shown much interest. Her husband recently died. Pray that she might understand the consolation of the gospel and turn to the Lord.
Pray for Ajoda, a southerner who has said she wants to follow Jesus and has prayed to accept Him as Saviour. She doesn’t understand French to come to church. Pray for bible studies with her, where she listens in her own language (she can’t read), and then we discuss in Arabic. She understands very little of the Christian walk.

Pray for Ruth and Faye, who seem to be following our Lord, and Jane, who isn’t yet but still is somewhat interested. Jane says that words against associating with us/me continue, but no one seems to be bothered meeting me. I once gave an Arabic script New Testament to Ruth, thinking that she could read it. (She can’t). She says her husband is reading it. Faye told me that her husband borrowed her memory card to listen to various audio from New Testament and Neem stories based on the creation to Christ. Pray that these men will discover the truth and that the truth will set them free. Maybe it will be possible to talk with one. The other I rarely see.

During Ramadan people were told not to meet with Christians. Thankfully many seem to be ignoring this instruction but those with whom I have had much contact have been accused of “working for/with the church”
‘Ruth’ had said she wanted to follow Jesus but admitted she was scared by what neighbours were saying. However she wanted to meet and said I could visit early in the morning so that people would not notice. Praise God that her desire to know more has persisted. Pray that she will listen to the memory card I gave her. Some is in Arabic and less easy for her to understand. There are only a few  Christian materials in Neem .
In contrast, Jane is very afraid and doesn’t want to meet. When I visited her, she said she was going out. Pray that I can have some opportunity to remind her that Jesus Christ remains the same. She too had said she wanted to follow although her level of understanding is much lower than Ruth’s.

Pray for ‘Heather’, ‘Nicola’, ‘Mary’ and ‘Hannah’ with whom I have been going through a film from creation to Christ which explains how God had planned to send a Saviour since the beginning and shows how sin brings sadness and destruction. Pray that this would help them see their need for Jesus and the lack of hope in their own religion.
(mistakenly posted under Chadian Arabs)

As we end the season of fasting, pray that people will realise the futility of trying to attain the glory of God through their own efforts and that they will search for the true way from Christians. Pray for those (few) who have said that they want to follow our Lord, that this period will make them search to know more whether through audio and video files (e.g. Lumo) or through asking questions. Pray that they will also talk of the better way to those of their friends who are fasting.

Pray for ‘Faye’, ‘Ruth’ and ‘Jane’ who have said they want to follow the Lord. Pray that God will transform their hearts and give them a great thirst to understand more and to know God better. All are illiterate and one has no telephone. Pray that we can meet regularly to study, especially during this difficult time of Ramadan. They are not at a level of faith to not fast.

Pray for “Ruth, Jane, and Faye” that they will thirst to know God and his word better. Ruth already seems to want this; Jane has just returned from the fields to live at home and knows very much less. Pray that Faye will seek opportunities to listen and reflect.

Give thanks for the arrival of three new workers (plus two children) to work amongst the Neem. Pray for them as they learn language and culture and settle in. Pray for much fruit from their presence here. A fifth person will be with us, we hope, in the new year. He is learning French (needed to work alongside the church here.)
Pray that we can use this Christmas season wisely to talk of the special gift of God in a way which attracts many to want to know more.

Three ladies have expressed a desire to follow Christ. One, “Faye” has certainly understood the gospel but doesn’t seem to see the need to continue learning. Living with her extended family, it is difficult to get her alone but I did recently have opportunity to read from John 15 with her. Her sister ‘Ruth’ seems to understand increasingly, enjoys watching the God Story and hearing John’s gospel in Neem even when she has visitors. She is growing in understanding. Praise God! A third, ‘Jane’ has very little knowledge and I have hardly seen her in several months because she has been busy working in her fields (even sleeping there). Pray for all of them to have a great thirst to hear from God’s word and that we can meet regularly together.
Pray that they might be fully committed to Jesus and experience the joy which surpasses all understanding.

It has been difficult to meet with the 3 ladies who have decided to follow Jesus because they are busy with the harvest and other things. Pray they will continue searching for more of Jesus. One doesn’t even have a telephone to listen to scripture.

Pray for three ladies I have been visiting who have talked of wanting to follow Christ with varying understanding. Ask the Lord to give them understanding and courage to follow Him.

Work amongst Neem has ups and downs. Recently a lady declared that she wanted to follow Jesus. Unschooled in everything including matters relating to God, she had never heard of Jesus Christ until I came along. How much does she understand? I’ve explained but I don’t know. Another lady who also says she wants to follow Him seems fairly keen to hear about God. Today, however, when I asked directly, she said she didn’t know why Jesus came. And I thought I had explained clearly enough. Back to the drawing board.
Farming season is upon us and so finding people in their homes is hard. Pray that I can meet weekly with these ladies and a 3rd who was the first to want to follow. She seems to have understood the basics but now is less interested to understand more.
Pray that I can share our story – God’s story – in a way that is understandable and relevant to them.

“Listen, listen to me and eat what is good, and your soul will delight in the richest of fare. Give ear and come to me; listen that you may live.”
Ask that the Lord would continue to call the Neem people, and that they would not fear to listen to the message the workers there are bringing.

Lord, please gather the Neem to you. This is a difficult part of the world to live in, and workers say there is “much sadness” encountered in the health care work there. Please give Neem people joy in your house of prayer. Please help them know how to bind themselves to you, to love your name and be your servants.

May was international evangelism month. Our church elders were keen to participate with a week of 5 a.m. prayer meetings using a comprehensive prayer guide. They also took a collection for the national committee.
With encouragement to do some mission activity, they decided to go visit patients and prisoners. They collected money to buy gifts- impressive generosity for a poor church!
They prayed for whole wards, but without much explanation, so I returned after for individual evangelism. Asking women what they knew about Jesus, the answer was, “Nothing.” Pray for these people that many might come to work amongst them and that the church members might cross the language barriers to plant a few seeds.

The trip to Z village was achieved and I certainly had several occasions to talk of the good news or at least plant a few seeds. My main impression was of it being a drop in the ocean as far as need is concerned. Ask the Lord of the harvest to send workers to this harvest field!

On the 8th May I will go with the local pastor to revisit the village Z where we went after Christmas to talk of ‘Good News’, hoping to follow up with some of the people we had visited. We will stay until 9th pm so that I can go visiting and not just fill my time with seeing patients as rather happened last time. Pray for open hearts and minds, much time for visiting, fluency in speaking (most of the women there only speak Neem) and much fruit from this visit.