God’s saving and sustaining grace continues to be so evident in our lives and the new ministries here in Tabora, Tanzania.
In our last prayer letter, we asked prayer for the “Kids’ Day” in June. It was incredible! At least 80 children walked to the church that morning, and we even had a few adults. Jason and Janna, two prospective missionaries, were visiting from the States and were such an encouragement by helping out on this day. Along with Sarah and Timothy, they provided a very entertaining puppet show for the children. Following the Gospel message, 3 children trusted Christ that day, and the following day (Sunday), 2 more trusted Christ as their Saviour. We are very thankful that most of the children came back the next day, and many continue to come faithfully every Sunday. Please pray with us that we may be able to reach their families with the Gospel.
Although we have seen many trust Christ these past few months, we would like to recount a few especially interesting examples of God’s saving grace. I continue to lead a morning service at the orphanage every Monday through Friday. Recently when I gave the invitation, 2 of the caregivers responded, trusting Christ as their personal Saviour. One was a brand-new employee, and the other was a Muslim who, on a couple of occasion, had asked prayer for her children and even for herself. After seeing Jehovah answer prayer, it was evident she was under conviction and took the step of faith to trust Christ. On a recent Sunday morning, three children were peeking through the side doors of the building during the service. Sarah went out to see if they wanted to come inside. They told her that they were Muslim and were not allowed, so she shared the Gospel with them outside. Two trusted Christ as their Saviour. After the service I took them home and met the father of Joha and Shabani, and I invited the family to church. The following Wednesday evening service, Joha (who had already trusted Christ) came with her brother Shabani, and Rachel had the privilege to lead him to Christ. Praise the Lord for HIS saving grace!
We are so thankful that the Lord has provided a place for us to stay at the orphanage through our very kind Irish friends, but we are very anxious to get settled into our own home. We do hope that you will continue to pray with us for all that is needed to complete this house project and that those who are helping to do the work would be faithful to complete their specific jobs.
We have found God’s will for a reliable, used 4WD vehicle in a very dramatic way, which is unmistakably HIS sustaining grace. This answer to specific prayer was “above all we could ask or think” and came in HIS perfect timing. As we were preparing our 2014 tax returns, it was apparent that we would need to pay almost $2,000 in “self-employment” Social Security taxes. Needless to say, we went to God in prayer about the matter. We sought the assistance of a Christian tax-return-preparation service that specializes in clergy. At first they agreed that we would need to pay the $2,000 amount, which was humanly impossible for us, and then they realized that we qualified for the “Earned Income Credit.” We not only did not have to pay anything, but the amount we were refunded was within just dollars of the entire amount needed to purchase, ship (from Japan), and import the vehicle. PRAISE JEHOVAH-JIREH!! God again has provided in such a miraculous way!
Sarah was completely surprised and overjoyed by the many cards that she received for her 18th birthday (attached picture). We are so thankful for each expression of love for Sarah and our family. Your friendship and prayers mean a great deal to us.
“Life is simply our faith in HIS grace!”