We want to give God the glory for His hand upon us throughout the past busy week as we have attended the Bangor Worldwide Missionary Convention each evening. We enjoyed spending time at our stand and being able to share about our ministry. We thank God for the new contacts made, both among the congregation and among the representatives of other missionary organisations. We are tired, but rejoicing in the Lord for this latest opportunity to serve Him. The photos below show our stand at Bangor and also a little glimpse of one of the halls of missionary stands, there was also a second hall. The photo doesn't really give you a clear picture of just how many organisations were represented. We now have produced new prayer cards, if you would like one, just let us know. Remember also the DVDs and pray that they will be used of God. Can you share some among your friends or Church? Remember also that as we are now a registered charity in the UK, we can claim back gift aid on any donations made by UK tax payers. Please feel free to contact us if you require more details of this or would like to sign up.
More big decisions to be made this wee regarding a possible Safari Kenya event in Northern Ireland and also with the ongoing office situation in Nairobi which is beginning to weary us a little. Pray that God will do something soon. Finally we wish Joyce and her husband a very happy 1st wedding anniversary. It is so hard to believe that one year ago today, by the date, we were attending her wedding in Kenya. It has gone in a flash. We look forward to seeing them again soon. Before that, our focus has now shifted to our special anniversary meeting in October. We do hope you will be praying for it as we prepare and that you will plan to attend. It has been a busy few weeks. We are tired.....but rejoicing that we can burn out for God.
0 Comments
We thank God for being with us over what has been a really busy week....probably the busiest since FML began, apart from the times we have actually been in Kenya. There was just so much to do getting our DVD completed, leaflets printed and our display sorted out for the missionary exhibition. William made a really great notice board and it looked really well with our photos and information on it.
We were encouraged by the interest shown in FML at the exhibtion last night. There was a sell out crowd of almost 2000 people in attendance, so it is definitely true to say that a lot more people now know about FML. Our stand was in a good position and we are thankful for those who took the time to stop and chat, to take and our literature and to sign up to our mailing list. We look forward to heading to Bangor tomorrow afternoon to set up our stand there for the exhibtion which will run every evening from Monday to Friday. Pray that the Lord will continue to help us and give us good opportunities to share about the work in Kenya. Pray for safety as we travel each evening and for plenty of energy as we are already tired. At the meeting last night, everyone in that 2000 strong crowd received a program. To see an organisational profile of FML in it's pages among all of the worldwide missionary organisations that we have grown up with, was quite humbling and yet so exciting to be reminded at just how far the Lord as brought us over these past 5 years and we give Him the glory. The DVD of our work is now completed after many hours and months of work. It lasts around 15 minutes and should give you a little insight into our work. Everything on it was filmed during our trips to Kenya so it is very personal to us. The DVD is free of charge so please let us know if you would like a copy. We will be sending a batch to Kenya very soon, so it will be available there also. Yesterday was the deadline for our email students to have their first assignment in by. Most have managed it, though we are a little disappointed that not all have kept to time...but we understand that internet access can be a problem in some countries at times. We look forward to getting them all marked and returned. We have been advised that the container carrying our lessons should be arriving in Kenya very soon. Because of the amount of aid being shipped into the country to help with the drought, there is the possibility of a delay but we continue to trust the Lord. The agent who found the most recent property for us had an encouraging meeting with the owner and they were most helpful. We are waiting to see a copy of the lease at the minute and to have a few things clarified, we appreciate your prayers as the price is higher than we would have liked and we need something very clear from God to show us that this is the one. The deadline for paying the balance on our flights is fast approaching, please pray that the amount needed will be provided. Last but not least, please pray for one of our team members in Kenya who was surrounded by a number of men during the week and robbed of their phones and some money. Obviously this is an upsetting experience and we ask you to pray for them, whilst thanking God that they were not seriously hurt. At the Holiday Bible School in my own Church this week, one of the memory verses taught was "I will never leave thee nor forsake thee"....what a precious promise from a great God. We thank God for His promise to us that He will do a new thing in our lives and ministry. We trust Him for the days to come.
Some of the students on our email course have sent back their first assignments and we have been encouraged by their efforts. The rest of the assignments will be due in this incoming week, so please pray for the students as they complete the questions and for myself as I mark. This week will be so busy as we prepare to bring our stand to the missionary meeting in Belfast this coming Saturday and then to Bangor every evening of the following week. This is a new venture for us, something we are both excited, and nervous about. Both events will be a great opportunity to make our work known. Please pray that we will know the Lord's help and blessing. We have much to do over the next few days in finishing off some printing of literature and appreciate your prayers for help and provision. One of the agents who has been working on our behalf in Kenya has found a property which seems to tick all of the boxes for an office. It doesn't have the commercial permit as yet, but the owner is willing to apply for this. Please pray that we will know the mind of the Lord over the next few days. We have become excited so often over properties and then they have fallen through. This one definitely seems good. We are short on the amount needed to secure the property, so please pray that God will very definitely provide if this is the place for us and then we will be left in no doubt. I will also be involved in the Holiday Bible School in my own Church every evening this week so please do pray for help in that. We realise that busy days lie ahead for us over the next couple of weeks but we give them into the hands of the Lord and trust Him to go before us. Thank you so much for your continued prayer This week we sent out the first assignment in our new email course. Please pray for the 19 students who will now be beginning to study. Pray that the course will be of some benefit to them. It will take 10 months to complete this particular subject. We hope to launch more courses in the future, which may overlap with this one. Already we have a further 7 people who would like to be notified when we are next enrolling as they are also interested to study. We thank God for enabling us to use technology in a "good" way.
Please continue to pray regarding our trip and pray that God provides for us to pay the balance on our flights which is due at the beginning of September. Please take time to read our home page which gives advance notice of a special meeting we are having here in the UK in October to give thanks to God for 5 special years. We hope to have a similar meeting in Kenya towards the end of the year. We believe it will be a good evening and we look forward to launching our new cd "Joy of the Lord" on the same night. This is a recording of Kenyan children singing and we know you will enjoy it. We are also putting the finishing touches to a DVD telling about our ministry and this should be available within the next few weeks. Please contact us if you would like a copy. We continue to appreciate your prayers, we know that we serve a prayer hearing and prayer answering God. After 3 years and 3 months of trying, we have finally been granted charitable status here in the UK. We thank God for this and would also like to thank those of you who have been praying. We believe more of our prayer partners have been conscious of this issue in recent days and we believe that God has answered prayer. However, a related issue is a little unclear and brought some disappointment, so we would appreciate your prayers that we would know wisdom in knowing what step to take next.
William has had a busy week cutting firewood for the stall, people will soon start to stock up for the winter. He has put aside his own paid work to spend the week doing this practical task for the Lord's work but we know that God will continue to provide his needs. Friday and Saturday were exceptionally busy days at our stall and we thank God for this. Please remember us this week as we send out the first assignment in the new email course. This is another milestone for us. Remember the 19 students who are registered, please pray that this course will help them in their labours for the Lord among children. Today is the deadline for registering for our first email course. We had been praying for 15 - 20 students and we have been blessed with 19 people who have registered. Pray for them as they begin studying at the beginning of August.
We thank God for His help at the market this past weekend. Typically these last few weeks, Friday has been the busier day and Saturdays have been quieter. This was again repeated this weekend, but Friday was especially busy. We were able to set out a lot of fresh items for sale and this has really helped. Our latest prayer letter has just been emailed and hard copies will be posted within the next few days. If you are not currently on our mailing list but would like to be, please feel free to contact us. We are very excited that we have been able to book flights to return to Kenya. Dad, William and myself are really looking forward to our trip in November. As you will be aware, this is later in the year than we originally thought would be the case, however, we know that God is never late and we have a peace that this is the right time to travel.
God has been gracious to us, in that, for the first time we have been able to book with a small deposit and have until the beginning of September to clear the balance. Please pray that there will be no fuel increase in the meantime as this would affect the price we pay...so the sooner the balance is cleared the better. We have a full programme over the next few months leading up to the trip, so we value your prayers for everything which will take place. Please also remember Pastor Aringo in Kenya who will have the responsibility of overseeing the arrival of the lessons which have been shipped out from Northern Ireland. We are still unsure of exactly when they will arrive, but it will most likely be a number of weeks before we travel. We believe that God will continue to lead concerning these. Please continue to pray regarding the new email course which will commence at the beginning of August. Places are now very limited and the closing date for registering is in one week on 25th July. Please pray for any who have still to register and pray for me and all of the final preparations for sending out the first assignment in a few weeks time. God is surely answering prayer and we give Him all of our thanks and praise. We appreciate your continued prayers for us as we serve the Lord.
The Lord helped at the two training sessions with the group who are travelling to Poland. Please pray for them as they head off this coming weekend to work with children in an orphanage there. Pray on for the children in Kenya as they study the lessons. We continue to pray that souls will be saved as a result of what they learn. Pray also for the container as it continues on it's journey to Kenya. Remember the need for Bibles. We would like to purchase more very soon. The office continues to be an ongoing need. We need much wisdom as the search continues and as we weigh up the possibilities. Remember the urgency in that we need to have storage arranged for the lessons arriving, which could be August/September time. It now seems that we will not be travelling to Kenya in July as we had hoped, however, God may be opening another door which we will keep you updated about. Whilst we are disppointed, we also accept that this is God's will for this month. His timing is perfect and He knows best. The market in Portadown will be closed this coming weekend and will reopen the following weekend, 22nd and 23rd July, as normal. The verse mentioned above has been an encouragement to us. To know that God knows all about our labours for Him and is with us each step of the way.
We are still praying that we will be able to travel this month to Kenya. Flights are still not booked, but we are holding on to God and we have not given up. Pastor Aringo has viewed so many properties for prospective offices that we have lost count. There are two of particular interest. The one we mentioned last week is still a favourite but another one is a possibility also. Please pray that we will know very direct and specific guidance. Please pray concerning this matter. Please pray that we will have something sorted in time for the lessons arriving. We have been making plans for a meeting here in Northern Ireland later in the year to give thanks to God for 5 years of FML. The venue is now booked and we hope to share more details with you very soon. The market was again quiet this weekend, especially on Saturday, as more and more people head off on holiday. I have a different routine now as schools are off and I am looking after my nephews during the day, with the result that I am spending a few hours most evenings doing some FML work which would normally be done during the day. This week I will take two training classes for the group who are heading to Poland later in the month. Please pray for them as some are preparing lessons for the class and will have to teach them. Pray for me also as I mark them and give them feedback. The amount of teaching time and the contents of the sessions have been changed a number of times which has challenged me and meant that I have had to spend a lot longer in preparation than originally thought as I have had to redo and replan different aspects as I am notified of the changes, however, we thank God for His help and guidance. I am now completely prepared for the two sessions this week (each around 2 and a half hours long) and have handouts prepared and printed, so hopefully those who attend will benefit and know the help of the Lord. We continue to be encouraged by the launch of the email course. Our first class is almost full with still a few weeks left for more to enrol. We look forward to sending out the first assignment at the beginning of August. Please also pray for us as we put together information and budgets for another "Safari Kenya" event. We are praying that we will be successful in securing another property for a longer period of time and ask that the Lord will open up this opportunity over the coming weeks. It is a wonderful promise we find in the Word of God that if two agree on earth then whatever is asked will be done for them. We know that more than two are praying that we can travel in July and more than two are praying that God leads us to the office of His choice. So we keep believing.
We desperately want to book our flights soon and are conscious that malaria treatment starts one week before travel. We would ideally want to travel around 8 or 11th July, so time is short. The search for an office has made some progress and there are few possibles. There is one in particular that we feel quite drawn too, but again we ask you to pray that God leads very definitely. We continue to be conscious that we are asking for big things. We were calculating roughly that for 3 of us to travel to Kenya for a few weeks and all the associated expense with this, to secure an office by paying the deposit and advance rent required and to be able to equip it basically with some shelves and also beds etc. we reckon we need around £10000!!! Yes, we are asking for big things but we have a big God. Thank you for praying for the training on Thursday evening. The Lord helped and the next session has been brought forward to this week with a possible third session being considered before the team head to Poland. Please continue to pray on for the market. Friday was fine, Saturday was probably our quietest day since we began in December 2008 - we sold only one item! But we thank God for His continued help and appreciate that we are coming closer to holiday time and many people are away at the weekends. Please continue to pray for us, especially that we can travel soon. |
Read on for...regular updates and thoughts from Northern Ireland and Africa... Archives
August 2022
Categories |