What a wonderful time is Spring, which arrived September 22! The weather is warming, and leaves are begining to emerge on the trees. It is as if all the trees are just bursting forth to praise God that the winter dry season is ending. This new life in the trees awaits the rains- please pray that the rains will come as hoped for in October and November. Pray that hearts will be ready to hear the Gospel message, that lives of people reliant on their own means to reach God, will be changed to new lives in Christ.

We are living amongst people who do not follow Christ. We are asking God that we would have eyes to see them as He sees them – as His people who will accept Christ and become part of the Kingdom of God. Pray that the Nyamwezi will be freed from their bondages and unclean spirits that hold them. Pray that they will understand new life in Christ. Pray that they will work out the difficulties of their life with Jesus as their rock. Jesus cares about all people and has a plan for all to come into a personal relationship with him. We ask that you join us in praying for a people movement among the Nyamwezi. They need light!

A visit to a mosque for an open-community dinner led to a request for solar lights for the building, the leaders inside explaining, “As you can see, we sit in the dark. We need light.” Please join us in praying for light for our Muslim neighbors, and how to respond to this request. John 8:12 “Jesus spoke to them, saying, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”

• Nyamwezi, especially in the outlying villages, have limited access to medical care. Imagine paying several days’ wages just to get bus transport to a medical center. Imagine not even having cash on hand for such a trip, since most Nyamwezi are subsistence farmers. Praise God for funding for a new clinic building that will be in walking distance for several villages. However, the road washed out during the last rains. Pray that the government will fix this road so heavy trucks with equipment and building materials can be brought to the site.

Pray that the Nyamwezi would seek answers for the truth. Recently an imam walking down the road stopped to engage in conversation about questions he had about Christianity. Several witnessed the dialogue exchange, and listened to a clear presentation of the Gospel. Pray for more opportunities like this and for people to accept Christ.

• The Nyamwezi are in the middle of the six-month long dry season. Water is scarce and one must travel farther and farther by foot to haul buckets of water as the water holes dry up. Many working among the Nyamwezi are seeking to locate places for drilling boreholes; places which will become a gathering place for physical and spiritual refreshment. Pray for the Lord to lead in choosing locations, and for funding of these water projects.

• The 3/10/2016 prayer request was for “introductions and opportunities to build relationships with Nyamwezi people of influence in the community”. Praise God for having met many leaders and people in influence both in the town and in the village. Recently village officials came to ask if we would host 40-50 children who lack a classroom building for Kindergarten. We replied the same as Jesus, “Let the little children come”. Pray for continued connections with these leaders, the children, and their parents.

• A centennarian who had turned many in his family to Islam died. As one of his grandsons was driving a motorcycle to come to his funeral, he was hit by a train and died. Grief tore through those mourning at the wake, with no certainty of going to Heaven for either of the deceased. Pray that these coinciding deaths would lead the family and attending mourners to consider the assurance of salvation found only in Christ. John 5:24 “”Truly, truly, I say to you, he who hears My word, and believes Him who sent Me, has eternal life, and does not come into judgment, but has passed out of death into life.”

Pray that God’s unity would prevail, as missionaries from various organizations met together for a Prayer Summit on July 6th for those working among the Nyamwezi. Pray for unity, blessing, and joy in the Holy Spirit. Pray for networking to begin among Nyamwezi who have a passion to reach those in their tribe.

Thank you for praying! A local official has taken us to two local schools. A Christian school sent $200 for a desk campaign, and this has meant so much to the villagers, as well as giving us an open door to the community. Most of the teachers are not from the area, and many are Christians who have an open door to reaching these kids. Pray for opportunities to meet with teachers who are like minded and want to take the Gospel door to door as they make home visits to their students. Pray for wisdom to develop a good long-term strategy.

Pray that despite blindness of Islam, misunderstandings about Christ’s atoning work would be made clear. Pray that the Nyamwezi would believe God’s promises and place their faith in Jesus Christ. Pray that those who come to Christ would be filled and empowered by the Holy Spirit. Acts 2:17- “In the last days, God says, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams.”

Ramadan Day 28. Pray that God’s Word would be more readily available and read. The Nyamwezi have a strong oral tradition and keen ability to memorize detailed stories. Praise God that a group called Faith Comes By Hearing has the material needed to start recording Nyamwezi audio Bibles. Pray that the New Testament audio recordings will be well comprehended and distributed.
Only a few days remain before the end of Ramadan. Pray for the Holy Spirit to work powerfully in bringing people to Christ.

• Pray that despite blindness of Islam, misunderstandings about Christ’s atoning work would be made clear. Pray that the Nyamwezi would believe God’s promises and place their faith in Jesus Christ. Pray that those who come to Christ would be filled and empowered by the Holy Spirit. Acts 2:17- “In the last days, God says, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams.”

Ramadan Day 28. Pray that God’s Word would be more readily available and read. The Nyamwezi have a strong oral tradition and keen ability to memorize detailed stories. Praise God that a group called Faith Comes By Hearing has the material needed to start recording Nyamwezi audio Bibles. Pray that the New Testament audio recordings will be well comprehended and distributed.
Only a few days remain before the end of Ramadan. Pray for the Holy Spirit to work powerfully in bringing people to Christ.

Ramadan Day # 15. The Nyamwezi are fasting during the month of Ramadan. This means no food and no water during the daylight hours. Please pray for them during this time. They do this because they are seeking after God. Pray that the TRUE God would reveal Himself to them through dreams, visions, and Scripture!

Pray that the teachers who are followers of Christ would be welcomed into the homes of Muslim Nyamwezi people who respect those who are their children’s teachers. May teachers be welcomed to present the Gospel message in students’ homes.

Pray for Nyamwezi children that they would be freed from the darkness that binds and they would experience God’s forgiveness and joy of new life in Him. Pray that they would see the light of Jesus even if their parents are steeped in darkness, that they would know personally God’s love and peace. Pray that children would be saved, and carry His message into homes. Pray that in Christ whole families would be brought to saving life in Christ.

Pray that, like Apollos, preachers among the Nyamwezi would learn to handle the Scriptures accurately, and that God would equip bearers of His Word with eloquence of speech, and enthusiasm in the Spirit. Pray that they would tell the whole story– Old Testament to New Testament. Pray that missionaries and national evangelists would be able to bring out “proof after convincing proof from the Scriptures that Jesus was in fact God’s Messiah” Acts 18:28

Pray for a missionary’s plans to travel with a local official as he has invited him to go meet the surrounding village leaders. Pray that in these visits, missionaries and national church workers would be welcomed into these villages. Pray that people’s ears would be quick to hear, and God’s joy would be revealed in His love.

Thanks for praying for relationships! A government official invited us into his home, and we were able to pray for his wife, whose foot still is bothering her following a snake bite in December. We’re so thankful God keeps letting us meet key people in this area of Tabora!

Pray for introductions and opportunities to build relationships with Nyamwezi people of influence in the community of Tabora, and that those key people would accept Christ. Praise the Lord for a piece of property obtained, with permissions to build a church on that property.

Ramadan Day 25
This year many new workers have come from different organizations to the area with the goal of ministering to Mu$lims. Pray for these workers as they are reaching out. Praise God for the 12 Mu$lims who have received Christ this past month! Pray they would stand firm during the pressures of Ramadan.

Ramadan Day 9
Pray that the believers will show Christ’s love and be bold witnesses during this time to their Mu$lim friends and neighbors. Pray that God would reveal Himself to these people and that they will be more open to listening to the Truth.

I am happy to let you know that more missionaries have come to minister to the Wanyamwezi.
– Pray that all those who have come will be working together as one unit and therefor have a powerful witness of unity and love as they minister and reach out to this tribe.
– Pray for health and safety. We have already had some severe illnesses amongst those who have come to serve. Malaria and typhoid are the main health problems. (Tabora has the highest amount of Malaria mosquitoes in Tanzania)
– Pray that the Wanyamwezi will open their hearts to the Gospel. They are a tribe which seems aloof.
– Pray for a change of heart and understanding and accepting of the Gospel. There is a lot of drinking and sexual immorality and the Tabora region is the one area where HIV/AIDS continues to increase. Only God can help them overcome these problems.

Ramadan Day 28: Pray for Muslim women and children around the world who are neglected or abused. Pray they would have an encounter with God like Hagar did and understand that “He is the God who sees” (Gen. 16:13).

Ramadan Day 17: Pray for worthy men and women in Muslim communities to open their homes and hearts to evangelists. Pray for local churches as they reach out to their Muslim neighbours.

Ramadan Day 6: “Great indeed, we confess, is the mystery of godliness: He was manifested in the flesh, vindicated by the Spirit, seen by angels, proclaimed among the nations, believed on in the world, taken up in glory.” (1Tim 3:16) Ask God to reveal this mystery to fasting Muslims, that they too might be among those who believe.