Bible Club Days 4 & 5

Today we ended our week...with 70 kids!!! It was incredible!
Jesus has really helped us. All six of us are WEARY, but encouraged too!!!
The big girls really took a lot of ownership in this and have been delighted in how Jesus has worked!
19 children began following Jesus yesterday!!!
Many of them came back today to tell us who they had shared Jesus with since yesterday morning.
HALLELUJAH! PRAISE GOD FOREVER!!!!!

Some of the "mamas" who were with us all week!

Sophie in the midst of the crowd yesterday.

CRAFTS! CRAFTS! CRAFTS!!!

Chloe Catherine a bit anxious from the crowd!

Sophia Anne waiting for lunch after the crew went home.

Jane today, delighted in Jesus blessing the little children.

Kirtan, our grocers son...the girls have been THRILLED that he came.



Snack time!!! Today was a Jesus-Happy-Birthday cake for all the children
who had welcomed Him into their lives yesterday!

Lining up to say good-bye and go out to let our LIGHTS SHINE!!!

Bye-bye...part of the crew Billy picked up and carried home each day.

A celebratory lunch with the crew who helped host all week long.
THANKS SO MUCH FRIENDS!!!!!!!

Days 2 & 3

As I sat down to take a few moments to update the blog, I heard the songs of Bible Club ringing in my ears. Literally. I was surprised and tried to find out where it was coming from...

I looked and looked, went outside and looked more. In the trees of our neighbors yard there were kids singing JESUS LOVES ME and the LORD IS MY LIGHT AND MY SALVATION, WHY SHOULD I BE AFRAID!?!?!

So excited that Jesus speaks truth through kids to WHOLE communities!

Jane leading singing on Tuesday

Billy telling the STORM story!

Jesus, or Nimo, asleep in the back of the boat as we acted it out.

Instead of red light green light (a bit culturally confusing) we played STORM/PEACE!

And today it rained again, just like Monday...60 kids in the living room is a LOT!



Popcorn and water for everyone!!!

Chloe perfecting her crawl with her friend Melody after all the popcorn was cleaned up and the crew had dispersed...now to prepare for tomorrow...Jesus calling the first disciples!

Celebrations!

There have been MANY celebrations in just the last 72 hours!!! As you all so faithfully have wept with us in the past months...we want to invite you today to REJOICE with us!!!

Aaron, a friend who is visiting celebrated his 9th anniversary with us...
we are all missing Corrie these days!

Lucy Mae was DELIGHTED to celebrate Jesus healing her from malaria with a daddy date!!!
Thank you for praying this past week!!!

The WGM Arua team is DELIGHTED to welcome our newest teammate!
CT will be on the team for the next 10 months (at least!!).
He arrived this weekend...on his birthday!!!
CELEBRATIONS!!!

Also this weekend, Lilly, another precious WGM colleague made 2!
Hallelujah! Praise God Forever!!!

The celebrations continued Sunday afternoon when Uganda won it's Olympic GOLD!!!
A group was gathered at the house for the afternoon and we were eager to see the win!

We are celebrating a successful day one of bible club!!!
52 folks at one point and lots of happy times learning about Jesus being the LIGHT!
Keep praying!!!



BIBLE CLUB!!!

with Jane...our dear friend, song leader and translator for Bible Club

About two months ago Elsie Jayne and Lucy Mae were looking through a magazine that Nyanya (Joanna's mom) had sent them in the post. They were so excited to see a young girl who had hosted a Backyard Bible Club in her yard and on the last day served ICE CREAM! JOY JOY JOY!!!  They thought this was the best idea ever!

We prayed together over the idea, knowing ice cream wouldn't be an option most likely! The girls asked Jesus who to invite, what days to plan for, etc. Well...finally the day has arrived. Tomorrow we welcome around 50 little people for our first day of Holiday Bible Club (VBS-in America!). We are so excited!!!
As Joanna prayed Jesus brought to mind the names of helpers!!! Will you pray with us for the team?! Billy will share our Bible story daily. Jane will lead songs and help with translation. Jack will organize daily games. Joanna (our 10 year old neighbor) will help serve snacks!  Jacob will make a pinata for the last day...our compromise to the ice cream complications of living in Arua and serving 50 kids! :)

Lucy would like you to know she is the greeter!

with the Waflers...Jacob, Joanna and Jack

Will you be our prayer team!?! We need you to pray over who comes each day. We will be welcoming kiddos Monday through Friday from 9 until 11 (during the twins morning naps). Will you pray they sleep well!? Will you pray Jesus brings the ones ready to here of Him? (we know of 3 Muslims and 1 Hindu who have promised to come) Will you pray the ones who think they know all about Him will be teachable to meet Him afresh?! (lots of little missionary kids are coming) Will you pray for logistics like, picking up kids, keeping kids safe in our yard/house? Pray about the weather. It is rainy season and we are so thankful, but it'd be a blessing to get to host this crew in the yard and not in the living room! :) Pray as He leads you!!! Thanks for being a part of the team!

Already August

August's already here and there are a couple of things on the calendar...will you pray with us?!

7-10 (tomorrow) We will welcome and host in our home 8 pastors for facilitators training, that they might learn to train others to share the stories of God's Word!

11-17 We welcome Community Health Evangelism (CHEIII) to Arua.

13-17 Holiday Bible Club in our front yard! Pray with us as this idea was birthed in the big girls' hearts and they are so excited to be apart of sharing Jesus with their friends and neighbors!

7-21 We get to host a friend serving in the middle east, who is coming for a bit of time away and a storying refresher!

19-25 Billy will be in Kampala for meetings including a Pastors Training of Trainers. The men that are with us earlier in the month with help facilitate this training!

27-3 September-We host a Mango Ministries (South Sudan) orientation in our home! Praise Jesus for new teammates!

We are on week four of illness in all four girls and just confirmed today Lucy is fighting malaria. The others have all started antibiotics now for throat and ear pain and deep deep coughs. Lucy's fever today was high and she seemed miserable. While holding her at the clinic, waiting on her test results, I could feel her heat radiating into my own thighs and she said, "you know the best part of today, mom?" "what is that, Lucy?" "my blood was pink mom; I never knew!"  She was so delighted her blood when smeared around on a little glass looked pretty perfectly pink to her! Pray with us as we go into these intense days of training...that we might have a Christ-like perspective and live each day giving thanks! Truly, Jesus is going before us!

A look at where July has gone...

Enjoying time with Melody!
Play dates are one way Joanna gets to share Jesus with those who haven't heard and
encourage those who have said yes to keep walking in Him!

Being stuck at home sick means more time for school which both of the big girls LOVE!
Obviously we all have different strengths.
Lucy may be an administrator!

Our friend Jennifer made us fabulous new dresses and we even got to paint our fingernails with Eva!!! 
All this preparation but not able to go to the wedding...I think two had fevers that day!

The pastors from South Sudan were happy to pose with the twins even if they did feel a little under the weather.

Joanna welcomed a group of ex-pat ladies for an evening together early July!
Six nations represented.

Precious baby Melody made one year!!!
We joined David and Medline in a fun celebration!

Feeding 9 pastors three meals a day...
We held a facilitators training in our home in July for South Sudan pastors and now beginning tomorrow we will host the second training for our Ugandan pastors. 



Pray Jesus will enable the men being trained in storying to share the Scripture clearly and others might be drawn to walking with Jesus!

Will you pray with us for our friends Simon and Beatrice (pictured)?
There just seems to be a burden of needs at their home right now.
Nothing is too difficult for Jesus!

There and Back Again

Every safari begins with the right teammates. On our most recent survey trip to Beni, Congo and Mbarara, Uganda, we had a great team. Pictured here are Scott Rambo, Pastor James Ouma and Joshua Friedeman. Also along for the adventure were Josh Hallahan, Matt Burke, Kennedy Kirui and Billy.

And what is a safari with maps and still getting lost at least once!

Some of the roads were incredible...

And some roads were not so incredible. But it is all part of the journey, right? Well, that is what we tell ourselves only we were 7 men in one truck so that meant one of us if not two were always in the way back... and on Congolese roads, let's just say that part of the journey was "less than a blessing."

We met with a group of 20 pastors from numerous denominations in Beni to discuss training possibilities. Pastor James (here in black jacket) was a tremendous help as all the communication was done in Kiswahili.

Pastor Jerusalem, "like the holy city," as he explained, was our host in Beni. He is seated here in red stripe shirt with Scott Rambo and another pastor called Timothy. They graciously answered our long list of questions about life and ministry in Beni.

Both afternoons we were in Beni, different churches welcomed us with wide open Congolese hospitality. Notice the drums -very impressive!



And streamers!  

The woman in green is the pastor of the church shown above. She cannot read anything except her Bible. Call that whatever you want, but we had to say, "Praise Jesus."

Once back in Uganda, we headed towards Mbarara and the highway ran right through a game park. This rogue male was enjoying some alone time right beside the road.

Here is Tusker again... because he was amazing.

Mbarara is one of the strategic cities WGM Uganda has been praying over. We would love to locate a team there, specifically to begin discipleship with university students as well as strengthen Africa Gospel Church in western Uganda. We were able to meet with some leaders involved in university ministry both in Mbarara and in a near by town, Ishaka. Pictured here are some of the student leaders in Ishaka as well as Josh (far left), Kennedy, (suit coat), and Pastor James (far right)

Tusker and then Zebra on the way back to Kampala! We felt the Father's delight as all of us relished seeing zebra, some for the first time in Uganda.

Over all the trip was a positive one with ministry possibilities in both Beni and Mbarara. Many of you were praying for our wives - THANK YOU! Our family as well as the Rambos came down with the "throw up bug" - Jesus sustained Joanna and Meg though and all seven of our children lived. Hallelujah! Praise God Forever!

We would ask you to continue praying for God's leading as several members of the team were asking hard questions about where God is leading their families. Please pray for His clear direction.

Also, we'd ask you to pray for some of the key contacts we met. They are increasing the Kingdom...

Pastor Jerusalem and Pastor Timothy as they give leaderhip to New Life Church in Beni;

John, Gideon, and Joram, students giving leadership to United Faith Chapel in Ishaka;

Brian, Richard, and others who are seeking to train and disciple students in Mbarara.

Again, we thank you for being a part of what God wants to do in East Africa - May it be more than we ask or imagine - Eph. 3:20