Dirty and happy about it on outreach

Akeyla on outreach to Zimowane with the South African outreach team. Just to prove that a little bit of dirt never hurt anyone and she is quite pleased about it too.

The last few days

On Sunday past we went to Chimoio to go and do our monthly shopping and banking. Sunday night we stopped over at some friends just outside of Chipinge in Zimbabwe. It was great to just have a bit of down time and to chat with very good friends. Monday we left quite early and got into Chimoio before lunch time. Although town was quite busy we got our banking done in super quick time. Just as an indication. A bag of 8 kg potatoes at Shoprite in Chimoio was the equivalent of R255.00

Monday night we stayed over at Claire's house in Chimoio and left early on Tuesday back to Espungabera. Stopped at our friends again to drop off a few things they asked us to get for them. And they convinced us to stay over the night and leave early Wednesday morning. Making that break in the trip is just such a good idea. I wonder why we have not done that long ago.

It has been raining for 4 days solid now. Those who have been here in the rain, it's very muddy now!

2013 is almost over, Have been planning 2014

As per usual Bible school will begin again around mid February.
In March and April we are expecting quite a lot of comings & goings in our team.
Some leaving for home and others returning.
Mid May to end June we expecting a team to come from the USA to help Jenn & Cecilia.
2nd week of June there is the bi-annual leadership conference.
End June we have our annual AIM Moz. conference.
1st Half of July is set aside for the S. Africa outreach team.
1st Half of September we are expecting an outreach team from Brasil.

Then from the last week of September Dawn and I need to take our Home Assignment. This will already be over due. As in February 2014 we will have been on the field 4 years since our last Home Assignment. Tentatively the plan is for 6 months. Our object is to try and see all of our supporters and supporting Churches personally. We would like to share with you and be available to show you a presentation or two. We will again be travelling all over South Africa and I will be making a schedule and be contacting folks to let you know where we will be when.

Just makes me long for the bush

Nambwa, Namibia.

Such a nice place! 

what's up?

Jenn, Michael and Kaylee this past weekend went to Beira to drop Kaylee off at the airport. She has finished up her time with us a little earlier than expected. Russell and Nicole went back to the USA for the birth of their twin boys. Kaylee who was helping with the homeschooling of their first 3 children. found herself helping Dawn and I with filing and office organisation before leaving for the USA. Well she gets to spend Christmas with her family. Please pray for her as she seeks the Lord's face in future studies in preparation for a life in missions.

Catch-up time

As ministries slow down because of the planting season, we begin to reel in the backlog of administration type stuff. A whole bunch of emails in preparation for next year.  

YAY! & BOO

What a silly title!
Well it's a really big YAY! for Jinx This past week while we were in Chimoio I picked up my long DIRE (work permit). It is called a permanent but it is for FIVE years now instead of having to renew it every year at almost US$700,00 per person. So the next renewal is in 2018.

The really BIG BOO! is that Dawn's although applied for at the same time was not yet available. Please pray that it arrives soon as a small piece of paper with extension stamps on the back is not ideal.

Recent Rumblings in Mozambique

Media blocks seem to be the order of the day in recent weeks in Moz. However the modern social media like facebook and twitter and so on have got a fair amount of news out there. The attacks at a few of the "hot spots" on some of the main roads seem to be on going. We are all fine and we are safe but travel in certain parts of the country is just not an option and is also a prayer request. municipal elections were held on the 20th Nov. Rumors of fixing and underhandedness are all over and objections to results are being raised.

Please pray that the peace will return and real democracy will become the order of the day.

Update on the old Landy

This the Land Rover which we used to work with and knew it was getting to the end of days. So we bought with your help the green Land Rover Discovery. To be our travel vehicle and hoping the longer trips would spare old faithful above for bush work. Well shortly after having brought the green Discovery home. Old faithful gave up her last efforts and had massive engine failure.

After standing for over a year while I slowly removed the engine, stripped it, bought new parts and finally a few months back got the engine back in and gave it a short test run. We went to Siyabuzana and back. we noticed a small leak and thought it was oil. We left our Discovery in Pretoria to be old in the mean time and would use Old faithful sparingly until we could get a newer work vehicle. However that has turned out not to be the case.

We went to Chimoio on a regular shopping trip which takes about 6 hours. It took nearly 10 hours with the car overheating every 30 or so kilometres. And the same on the way back. We are absolutely baffled by the problem as everything was rebuilt according to manual. Now we have to make a plan.

We will bring the green Discovery back and carry on the work with it but all the time risking further damage and chance of a fair resale price to be put towards a much newer workhorse. Ai, shame!

We have not been left out in the cold though. Our group of fantastic supporters found a small traveling on tar road vehicle for our longer trips. And that we have with us in Mozambique but it won't make the rough dirt roads. it is too low. Please pray with us for a strong work vehicle.

2014 Plannig in progress

Before we get to 2014 we are going to have Toni with us again for the December university holidays. Yay! and there is a possibility that we some other family as well.

Jan 4th 2014 Manguisa is going to get married, I'm taking the wedding on behalf of American Board Church. He is one of our young men who is involved in the youth but is the young man heading up the Sunday school work along side Cecilia.

We are in the process of planning out reach teams for 2014. Each month on the first Tuesday of the month we have our missionary team meeting so I'm needing to work that into our arrival and departure dates of the outreach teams.

The plan is to have a team from the USA mid May to end June who will come and help Jenn and Cecilia in their youth work.

July to have a team from South Africa to help Jinx & Dawn

And in October to get a team from Brazil to help Cecilia and Jenn.

Our movements and plans

Dawn and I have a number of up and coming events. While we are the team leaders for the Mossurize Ndau team we still have our own ministries. I Jinx  have Bible school at Siyabuzana the week of 21-25 October.

We leave Espungabera on 6th November to travel to Kempton Park for our bi-annual AIM leadership conference for our Southern Region. The conference is for a week 10-16th November. Please pray for good meetings and for us to grow as leaders of our team. To be able to serve our team well and bring Glory to the Lord through our efforts.

Dawn has a doctors appointment just before the conference. And I have to pick up my new glasses. from Deidre. The old one's frames are broken and are held together with tape.

Then In December 9th to 15th we have our AIM Mozambique annual conference just outside of Chimoio. Our team are making the arrangements. There is still so much to be done. before we actually get there to set up and get ready to receive our colleagues.

Check out the INFO on the right

We have updated some information  on the right in the INFO block. Please take a look and join with us as we seek to serve Jesus more effectively.

Update

Time is one of those funny things that slips by and you only really seem to notice it once it has passed by.
It is almost the end of the year again! where has the year gone? Well, we have had a blessed year so far. We have had the privilege of hosting a number of outreach teams. One from Natal South Africa with a number of folks from our home Church. What a blessing! To have folks from "home" coming to be part of the work they sent us out to do.
We also had a team from Brazil, again we had a good time out in the bush with them and met some old friends again Egon & Didi, but we made a bunch of new friends. Jenn had a team of 4 from the USA and they were a massive "pick-me-up" for Jenn.

Our new team members Russell & Nicole who came to fill the doctor's position at the Espungabera hospital arrived. God is GREAT! And they arrived with their 3 small children, Owen, Edith & Akeyla. Then just recently with a big surprise they found out the Nicole was expecting. Bigger surprise with twins. Wow! They are about to return to the USA for the delivery and all sorts of legal things like passports. We are hoping to have them back by March or April 2014.

Dustin & Anne have also joined us on the team and are in the stage of language and culture learning and are in Espungabera right now after spending some time out at Siyabuzana.

Walter and Rosie after almost 4 years on the team and having done an excellent job out at Siyabuzana will be leaving Mozambique for good about the end of March 2014.

Michael who is working at Farming God's Way in the area is doing a good job and is seeing a number of people who are making changes and are trying out what Michael is teaching. We hope that they really reap the benefits of better farming methods. Michael will be leaving the team mid March 2014 to go back to the USA to begin university.

Kaylee who came to help out with the teaching of Russell and Nicole's children will be leaving us mid February 2014 also to begin her studies.

Such a lot of change and transition for us in the near future and a lot of adjustments will need to happen.

The Old Landy

Today with the help of Michael we put in the engine and gearbox of the old Land Rover. still got to get it fixed into place and a lot of other small things to do as well. Very happy with the days progress. And I still got all the skin on my hands and knuckles.

Koeksisters

Nicole and I made a good attempt at Koeksisters. They were quite yum! But going to make another batch on Saturday to take with to our Team Retreat. Hoping to make them a bit more juicy. Well see.

Today was a "ME" day.

I am really grateful for the day today. It was a me day. I have been putting things off for so long doing many other import things. But today I managed to have a day to do STUFF!. I worked on the old Land Rover's engine and gearbox. They are now together and are ready to be put into the body. I can't wait to get it running again. Now just need another day or two. Thanks to all those up holding us in prayer.

Power cuts

Well it seems that the electricity department in our little town has found a way to compensate for all the power failures we have had recently.
They send through a massive spike but just for a short time, but long enough to make a few things go BANG! and leave a wonderful electrical fault type of smell.

Now we start to replace the item which went bang. Very fortunate that 2 fridges had voltage regulators. And the Satellite equipment had a surge protector on it. But between now and we get the new stuff t.o protect our equipment is a roll the dice kind of situation. However we have our LORD JESUS who is able to do abundantly more than we ever can imagine. So we and if you will too, ask for protection from electricity burnouts and surges. Thanks for praying.

Every time I'm away stuff happens at home???

When I got home this afternoon from Walter & Rosie's. There had been a big power surge. And a few things have gone the way of broken stuff, Two 1500W voltage regulators, one microwave, a transformer which works the wireless router, output 12v. And a light switch which has 3 switches.

But the Lord is good the Voltage Regulators protected 2 fridges. Ours and the Mac's which is in the small house being borrowed by our short term missionary Kaylee.
Shoe! could have been so much worse.

Moving right along!

Yesterday morning Walter & Rosie came up from Siyabuzana to help out with some of the logistics here in Espungabera. And we as a missionary team were able to meet the new administrator (mayor) and introduce ourselves. Was a good meeting and I think we have made another friend. Rosie closed our time with him in prayer, praying that he would come to know Jesus as his personal saviour.

Walter & I then went to get a load of bricks for the wall around Cecilia's house. So many people just wander through her garden and is not quite safe enough for my liking anyhow. After some lunch together we went to Siyabuzana and fetched a load of sand for the dorm rooms while we were in the "neighbourhood".

So we got the Mac's house at about 5pm. Welded a bracket to mount the internet satellite dish. Then this morning got it all mounted and by midday the Mac's were back in touch with family and the rest of the world.

Praise the Lord one less headache for them to work through.

The 2nd special occasion was this.

Mateus from Makumba & Joaquim from Sambanje getting ordained as Evangelists (or Lay-Ministers) What a glorious day! God be praised!

While at American Board Church conference

We were blessed to be part of two very special occasions. First a wedding of Joaquim & Julia from Sambanje. Now tell me that's not COOL!

Dawn & Jinx with a close OOPS!

While we were in Chimoio getting all the paper work and work permits in place for Michael this past Tuesday. At the bank I was writing a cheque and put in the date, also the date of expiry of my work permit. A little later as I was walking into a shop I stood and went cold. "DUNCE" the date on the cheque and the expiry date on the work permit were the same. Which meant that Dawn and my permits were expiring that same day. PANIC, DREAD, EISH! (without the brandy).

Praise the Lord Walter had his computer there with official letters of renewal. Just had to change names and print. Then had to find the provincial pastor to stamp and sign. Get photos done. Then try to organise a huge some of money to pay for the renewals.

I just knew I was not going to get things done in 3 hours. So went to the immigration office right away and explained that I had misjudged things and thought that the permits still had a month to run. They who over the years have come to know Dawn and I said it would not be a problem. But I had to get it done by the next day. Which we did. We are LEGAL again. Talk about a close call.

I'm sure that there where a whole heap of you folks praying for us. THANKS AGAIN!

Michael & agriculture

On Monday the 22nd we picked up Michael a young man who has come to join our team for a year. His main thrust is to teach and train local folks on better methods of subsistence farming. "Farming God's Way". So right now he is just finding his feet and would appreciate your prayers for all that lies ahead in the planning, preparing and implementing.

American Board Church conference in Beira

17th to 21st April was the American Board Church annual conference. We as a Mossurize Ndau missionary team took part. There were many lively discussions and great to through a few ideas of our own in the melting pot. The presiding leader of the denomination was re-elected for another term of office. This result was a land slide and received with a long and very loud session of clapping. Pastor Madeira the Lord bless you richly in the next years of service for Him.

Update on the weekly Bible study in Espungabera

It has been wonderful to see how many people are actually interested in learning more. I have started to use the Building On Firm Foundations teaching material. For those who don't know. It is a chronological teaching on the Bible.

Interesting to see that the ladies who have not had much formal education are the ones who are really interested. But the study so far is being well received.

Check out the latest

Click here for the latest Bush Telegraph Newsletter

Prayer needed

A few weeks ago while sitting in Church on Sunday, I felt a leading of the Lord to start a new Bible study. I felt that the Holy Spirit was wanting me to teach the Bible to our local folks in such a way that their Theology would deepen and also their walk with the Lord.

For so many years at the Church in Espungabera there has only been the Sunday service and very little else. What happens is that whoever the preacher is for that day preaches on whatever passage. And no matter how good the message is, it is a bit here and a bit there.

So I'm asking your prayers along with my own to make the right choice of where to start. We begin our first study on the 6th March at 4pm to 6pm. Pray the Lord to fill my heart, mind & mouth to make Him known.

Moving right along

Yes things are moving right along in our "neck" of the woods. There such a lot happening right now. And a whole bunch which has already been achieved. Russell & Nicole's house is getting so close to being live able. Praise the Lord for a great group of hard working men, Teceira, Alex, Gilbert, David & Armando. But as you may know, getting the finishing done takes up such a lot of time. And materials are not easy to find here.

What we still need to get done; Doors need to be hung, Kitchen counters need to be made and fitted. A small part of the lounge floor needs to be completed,light fittings need to be bought and installed, window handles and opening latches need to be bought and fitted. The ceilings need to repaired and the cover strips need to be fixed in place. The septic tank needs to have the lid cast. And I'm sure there are a few other things that need doing as well. The water  mains pipe needs to be connected. This is a whole challenge of it's own. We need to dig a trench of about 800 meters to connect water.

Tomorrow 18th Feb. I go to Siyabuzana for the week. This is going to be the first Bible school for the year. I'm hoping all the guys make it there. There has been a lot of rain and rained most of last night and is still raining on and off so far today.

Russell and Nicole arrive on 20th Feb in Beira and will need to wait for excess baggage to arrive as well. I will need to go to Beira and help them as they need to get their work permits applied for and handed in. We have to get their car to them in Beira as well so that they have transport. It is in Espungabera at the moment.

Cecilia and Jenn are coming back from their holiday. I think they are going to be happy to be back. Jenn on her birthday got malaria as well as getting a serious infection in her lower leg. Praise the Lord that the doctors in Beira were able to help her and that Cecilia was there as well.

Walter and Rosie are on their way back and should arrive end of March. It's going to be great having them back.

Michael will be arriving during the second half of March to come for a year. He is going to be working with "Farming God's Way". To help local folks to be able to provide much more and a better way to farm. This is working well in a number of other countries and we are so happy for someone to come for a full year. So he will be able to go through the whole cycle of preparation, planting, caring and harvest. He will also need a lot of prayer for the teaching and training, as is the case with many of us, we don't like change. Neither do the local folks with their farming methods.

Dustin & Anne seem to be on track for arrival in mid May and we are looking forward to that. They have been having such a difficult time getting their support in. Please pray for them as they do their last presentations before coming out and their packing and goodbyes before leaving home.