In this issue:
i)
Mission Fields
ii) Paraguay Newsletter - F.R. Sanabria V.
Mission
Fields
BOTSWANA: Jim
and Irene Legge advise that the local assembly hall has become too
small for their meetings. The believers are hoping to build a larger hall,
in addition to the existing building, on the same plot of land and we are asked
to pray that the Lord will clearly guide them in this matter. In addition
they advise that they would like to commence an assembly in another part of
Serowe. They already have a plot of land and are hoping to build a hall
soon. Please remember both projects in your prayers. We understand
that Jim has been unwell recently and was hospitalised. He has now been
discharged and we are asked to pray that he will make a full and complete
recovery. [EoS]
GHANA: Joseph and
Heather Frimpong: "We paid for half a piece of property . . . We are
very excited about it and see that the Lord has been opening doors. We
already have three Bible studies started in that area each week, as a result of
gospel meetings that have been going on in the last few months."
[MSC]
MALAWI: Jonathan and
Ruth Newell: "We have been advised that Jonathan has been
extremely unwell with Malaria. He has been discharged from hospital and is
now recovering at home in Blantyre. Please pray that Jonathan will quickly
be restored to a full measure of health and strength." [EoS]
REPUBLIC OF SOUTH
AFRICA: Robert and Anne Smith advise that the typesetting of the
Emmaus Course ‘What the Bible Teaches’ in Xhosa has been completed and is ready
for printing. In addition to this, they are currently proof-reading three
courses in Portuguese. They have commenced updating some of the older
plates and anticipate that this will occupy much of their time during the coming
year. Please continue to pray for them and their colleagues and for the
Emmaus work in the Republic of South Africa. [EoS]
TANZANIA: Ron
and Maria Cunningham advise that their ministry in the local secondary
schools has recommenced. Ron recently spoke at two school assemblies which
were attended by 1070 students. Please pray for the opportunities he has to
present the gospel to these students. [EoS]
TANZANIA: Allan
and Jacqui McKinnon advise that Kenya and Tanzania are in need of
rain. Water levels are low and it is possible that electricity supplies in
Tanzania will be rationed because of this. Please remember this situation
in you prayers, and also remember Allan and Jacqui as they return to the UK this
week for a furlough. [EoS]
ZAMBIA - Gord
Hanna: "We were really praying that the folks at Nangweshi would by now
be all back in Angola. However, after my visit there three weeks ago, I found
that this was not the case and there were still over 10,000 at the camp.
Conditions are very bad at the camp and I really do not know really what to do.
When I was there they were pleading for help and I promised to do what I
could . . . I am looking into getting some help, mainly in food..."
[MSC]
ZAMBIA: Timothy
and Joy Beer seek prayer for a weekly outreach in the village of
Vilembuluka. This village is home to a multiplicity of religious cults,
and immorality and drunkenness are prevalent. Please pray that the Lord
would bless the preaching of His word in this village. [EoS]
ZAMBIA: David and
Grace Croudace: "We have been kept very busy with visits from elders
and others from the many assemblies in the [Zambezi] area . . . Please pray for
the elders . . . that they will be enabled to follow the Scriptures in every
situation and that they will learn to shepherd the sheep in a way which will be
pleasing to the Lord." [MSC]
ZAMBIA:
We have been advised that Robert Woodhouse and Dennis Bowman are due to leave
the UK on 8th February and will be involved in a Brass Tacks project in
Chitokoloki, Zambia, for two months. Please pray that they will
enjoy safety of travel, good health and safety on site, and that the project
will be completed within the requisite time scale. [EoS]
ZAMBIA: Daisy
Hanna: "The hospital keeps us busy, but remains a harvest field
for the Gospel - each day the Gospel goes forth in the out-patient department
with a public address system to the in-patient wards. There are still many young
people dying of HIV/AIDS before they have lived out half their days."
[MSC]
AMERICAS
BRAZIL: Andrew and Alison Renshaw advise that
4 teenage girls recently came to faith in Christ at a camp at which Andrew was
speaking. Please pray that these girls will grow in the things of the
Lord. [EoS]
CHILE: Anne
Reid: "The assembly had a children's class in a new housing development
... and a few children came along. We are hoping to have a week of classes
there in the summer, to reach out to the whole area, and there is a community
building available." [MSC]
COLOMBIA: Anita
and Kathleen Keith-Gillon seek prayer for Luis who has recently come to
faith in Christ. He has been saved from a background of drug smuggling and
stealing. He is a real ‘trophy of grace’ and we are asked to pray that he
will grow in the things of the Lord. [EoS]
COLUMBIA: Thank God
for faithful laboring brethren and assemblies who walk according to scriptural
principles despite efforts being made to broaden this pathway. Pray for the
Lord's work in this violence-torn land. Pray for Alden and Inge Poehner,
Elsa Barolin and Marieke Oostra, serving the Lord here for many years.
[PB Group]
Pray for the Lord's work in
ECUADOR, another country where we have contacts only through
literature at present. Ask the Lord of the harvest to send forth laborers into
needy lands. Pray for all who truly serve Him, whoever they may be. As in
Elijah's day, though they may be all unknown to us, the Lord still has His 7000.
[PB Group]
MEXICO: Treavor and
Leoncia Kamstra: "We had a quick visit from 11 brothers from California
. . . who built a little chapel building . . . We now have a building out of the
wind and cold, with lots of lighting for these winter months. We took them
around to the different meeting halls, and a couple of them shared their
testimonies." [MSC]
MEXICO: Eglon and
Judith Harris seek prayer for a young people’s conference due to be
held in Oztotitla on 11th February. Those attending will be from the six
Nahuatl speaking assemblies in the mountains and for some this will be the first
time they have been outside their own community. Eglon is responsible for
some of the Bible teaching. Please pray that those who attend will be
challenged by the teaching of the Word of God.
[EoS]
URUGUAY: Ken and
Eunice Russell: "Pray for a new venture for this year. A couple from
the Rosario assembly has contacted a Christian lady in a nearby town with the
idea of having meetings with couples on the subject of improving one's marriage.
The idea is for it to be evangelistic. We pray that this will be an inroad to
take the Word more extensively later on. Past efforts in this town have left
nothing visible." [MSC]
ASIA
INDIA: E.
K. George (evangelist from Pakkil Brethren Assembly, Kottayam, Kerala)
went to be with the Lord on 6 Feb 2006 at Sharjah (UAE) due to a massive
heart attack. For the past over a month, he was with his younger daughter in
Sharjah (UAE). On the late evening of 6 Feb 06, he complained of
uneasiness and was taken to the hospital. On the way, he went to be with
the Lord. His body was flown to his native place in Kerala and the funeral
services will begin at his home tomorrow (Saturday) morning. E. K. George
was a well-known Bible Scholar and Preacher and was the faculty
member of various Bible Schools including the Brethren Bible Institute,
Pathanamthitta in Kerala. [AV]
SOUTH KOREA: Douglas
and Ho Sook Neiswender: "Seoul Northside Assembly continues much in
prayer to build a meeting place. We pray city planning will zone all our land
for religious use. This would mean that we could use the whole acre, including
what is in the green belt." [MSC]
THAILAND: Peter
and Peggy Ferry advise that Peter is due to visit Pakistan from 6th
February to 2nd March. He will be involved in a heavy schedule of
preaching and teaching engagements. Please pray that he will enjoy good
health, safety of travel and spiritual freshness and that his visit will be a
blessing and encouragement to the believers there. During this time Peggy
will remain in Thailand and prayer would be appreciated for her also.
[EoS]
EUROPE
FRANCE: Mike and Alison Packer – Prayer
partners will be aware of previous prayer requests for Lara, the daughter of
friends of Mike and Alison. Lara has developed a cyst on the tumour which
is leaking fluid into the brain, and is therefore scheduled to undergo major
surgery on 7th February. Please pray that the surgery will be successful
and that she will make a full and complete recovery. [EoS]
FRANCE: Gerry
and Dorothy Seed advise that a group from the assembly in Nantes have
commenced meeting on the east side of the city. Their first meeting was
held on 29th January and they were encouraged by the numbers attending.
They hope to establish a monthly meeting and are renting a seminar room in a
nearby hotel for this purpose. Please pray that the Lord will bless this
new venture. [EoS]
REPUBLIC OF
IRELAND: David and Kay Stevens advise that they hope to run a
‘Christianity Explored’ course in the University of Limerick in fellowship with
the Christian Union. The campus has a student body of 10,000 so there is
considerable potential for evangelism. Please pray that all the
administrative arrangements will work out well and that this course will be
blessed by God. [EoS]
REPUBLIC OF
IRELAND: Noel and Liza McMeekin seek prayer for this year’s
Postal Bible School prizegivings which are due to continue until 7th
April. In all they will be attending 44 prizegivings, which will involve
them in travelling considerable distances, and also a considerable amount of
administration. Please pray that they will enjoy safety of travel, good
attendance, and that through this series of prizegivings lives will be touched
by the gospel. This coming week they will be visiting Lifford, Monaghan,
Belturbet, Castleblaney and Sligo. [EoS]
ITALY: Alec and
Patrizia Catchpole seek prayer for Anna. She came to faith in
Christ just over a year ago but is currently wavering in her faith. Please
pray that she will grow in the things of the Lord. [EoS]
ITALY: Rod and
Debbie Jones seek prayer for the continuing outreach in the town of
Monterusciello. This is a socially deprived town of 40,000 inhabitants and
the spiritual needs are overwhelming. They are involved in a programme of
various outreach activities and ask us to pray for suitable premises in the town
where these can be held. Please remember this matter in your prayers.
[EoS]
ROMANIA: Paul
Clarke is due to leave the UK on 9th February and will be visiting
missionary personnel in Romania. Please pray that he will have a safe
flight and that his visit will be a blessing and encouragement to the believers
there. [EoS]
ROMANIA - Elisei
Rusu: "Tomorrow morning Adriana, Pat and Barb Pieters (our friends from
Georgia) and I are leaving for Suceava, the major city on the North-East part of
Romania, Moldova. In the late afternoon, Pat will install a computer in one of
the partner churches with TBI and he will give an interview for the Christian
radio station about his work in Romania. Adriana will meet with some wives of
local church leaders and I will speak on the radio about the impact of the
Christian family in society. "On Saturday I will speak at the pastors and
church leaders four hour conference about vision and strategy in the churches
from the Suceava area. In the evening I will speak at a youth conference. "On
Sunday, February 12 Pat and I will preach in three churches."
[MSC]
SPAIN: Ken and
Alison Barrett: "Prayer partners will be aware that Alison was
experiencing some bureaucratic obstacles from within the Education section of
the Spanish Protestant Federation which was delaying the commencement of her
teaching practice in a local school. These obstacles continue and so we
are asked to pray that they would be removed. Ken is
among the Brethren assembly churches of the capital of the Dominican Republic
this week, preaching and teaching. Please pray for freshness and
concentration in the midst of the heat, and for God’s blessing and encouragement
among believers and in evangelisation." [EoS]
SPAIN: Terry and
Kath Wickham seek prayer for a missiology seminary due to be held in
Castell Defels from 20th to 25th February. One of the speakers is unable
to attend and Terry has agreed to speak in his place. Terry was already
due to speak on this occasion but now has to cover the material that this
individual was due to deal with in addition to his own subject material.
This will involve him in additional preparation and we are asked to pray that he
will be helped in this.
[EoS]
Paraguay
Newsletter
Fidencio R. Sanabria
V
In
December 2005, the local Missionary Foundation (FEMIPA) organized a special
meetings for missionaries and families, and delivered special Baskets with
grocceries, food, house cleaning stuff, etc. for 40 local and foreign
missionaries working with the Brethren Assemblies in Paraguay. The ladies
committee worked very hard to raise funds, sent letters to the churches to
cooperate and donate the stuff, and finally to prepare the baskets.
Taking
advantage of the school summer vacation, the Campamento y Escuela Biblica
Maranatha (Bible school and camp) had the traditional four weeks Bible School,
which has been running for more than 15 years in a row. The Camp was started in
1970 by Paul and Lucille Laven, missionaries from the USA to Paraguay for many
years. It is located in the City of Hernandarias (350 km. from Asunción and in
the border with Brazil, only 10 minutes away from Itaipu, the world largest
Hidroelectric Dam, and close to the famous Catarata de Yguazu
Falls).
In
January 2006, the Camp runned three different camps or one week each. The first
week is for children from 7 - 12 years old; the second for adolescent from 12 to
15 years old; and the third week for young people 15 years old and above.
Overall, more than 250 children and young people attended these camps with
is of tremendous blessing for those who attend and the churches. The Director is
Juan Figueredo and his wife Trifona helps with logistics in the kitchen
and prepares food, etc. Qualified and well known elders of the Bretheren
Assemblies are invited to teach and for sports and games. Ladies also help in
giving lessons to children and cabin leaders.
Palabra
de Vida (Word of Life Ministries) also runned two camps or one week, one for
children and adolescents and another for young people.
Both
camps resulten in many decissions for the Lord. To God be the
glory.