We most trust in Him

Global Lutheran Outreach missionaries Dixon and Christy Gbeanquoi , serving in Tanzania.They write:

With so much uncertainties in the world and the world being shutdown abruptly, and many people around the world losing their love ones, their jobs and so many ministries closing down. The question many are asking now is that “Can we go back to the way the world was before the COVID-19 pandemic or can we get back all that we have lost”? “With God all things are possible”. God can restore us as a people again to where we were before COVID-19. All we need to do is have faith and keep trusting Him.

The Church in Hope, Faith and Prayers during COVID-19

Tanzania is one of many countries that  never opted for lock-down to combat the spread of  COVID-19. Even though all her neighbors declared lock-down, Tanzanians were told to continue their normal activities, except that all schools and higher institutions of learning were closed within the country. Churches and other places of worship were asked to remain open and people were encouraged to pray for the country and the world at large during this period. We at Kisesa had to reduce our regular morning service attendance to about 75 on Sundays. Meaning we had to go for two service on Sundays to make up for the rest of the people that will not be able to come at a particular time. Many of our members did not like changing their service time, so they decided that they will come to the first service, 7:30am to 9:30am, but will stay outside of the building for the service, instead of coming for second service from 10:30am – 12:00 noon.

Building Christ’s Church in the Midst of Pandemic

With the closure of many offices, foreign owned business and borders, yet members are determined to support the building of Christ’s Church. Our church has taken up a big project to get rid of all the plastic chairs and to replace them with modern wooden standard benches, that will also help to in increase the number of people coming in at a time for service(s). We met as a leaders to discuss the issue of replacing the plastic chairs, and it was a wonderful deliberation and it was unanimously agreed that we needed Fifty(50) benches costing $6,525. From the day we had the meeting up to present we have been able to received donations from members for Sixteen(16) benches $2,100.  If there is anyway you will want to help us in replacing our plastic chairs to benches please feel free to contact us through Global Lutheran Outreach.

Resumption of Teaching at the Bible College

At the beginning of this year, Dixon decided to take a semester off the Bible College, so as to help Christy at home with our daughter as she draws closer to her due date. More so, all schools were asked to close due to the Pandemic. All the students who were staying on campus were asked to return home. Again, the school have asked Dixon to resume teaching especially to continue from where the teacher for the Evangelists and Church workers stopped. Since, probably he will not be returning again to Tanzania. What this means is that Dixon has now returned to the classroom and will be teaching Four(4) classes, of which Three(3) classes are combined classes.

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Here and ther

From Global Lutheran Outreach missionaries Tim and Beth Heiney (ed. note: Because of the complications caused by the pandemic, Beth remains in the US with no prospect of returning to Guinea, while Tim remains on the field. ). They write:

From Tim in Guinea: If you remember, in our last update, I had gotten very close to just dumping all my virus rules and just going back to the way I lived before, since there had been no sign of the sickness around here. Well, all my personal rules snapped back into place.

Presentation to the mayor of the donations made to the town of Siguiri to begin rebuilding the market that was burned down earlier this year. THANK YOU

I tried to open up a couple Discovery Bible Studies again, but in each group key members were out of town trying to earn some money or something. But also, this week we heard that the government is going to make a big announcement about the future of our national lock-down on the 15th or 16th. Everyone says they will open the borders and the mosques and churches and schools again. Since it feels like we are so close to the end, I decided not to just throw everything out, but I have started shaking hands again, and things like that. Our small church is on alert now that all the women should be ready. If the lock-down ends, they need to be cooking on the first Sunday, because we will be celebrating Easter on that day, and having our big Easter common meal.

In the meantime, I have been working with one of the members to record scripture passages for our Discovery Bible Studies so that the studies can be used also with people who can’t read. I am also doing some brushing up on the language, and continuing to teach myself Nko, a unique style of writing Maninka with its own alphabet.

From Beth in the USA: Where to begin??. I was super excited last week when I actually got through to Delta Airlines and was able to make a reservation on July 10th to fly back to Bamako. I figured if the border was not open by then I could reschedule…yet again. Not two days after that we got a message saying that Air France has cancelled everything from Paris to Bamako through to the end of August. While this has been disheartening, I’ve also been having some issues with my back. About 35 years ago I had a Herrington Rod placed in there to stop the twisting caused by scoliosis and always felt so blessed that I never had any issues with it at all. A little over a year ago, while in the US, I slipped on some ice and landed smack dab full force on my tail bone. When people say they “saw stars” I now know what that feels like. Most spines have cushions between the vertebrae. Not mine. Since then something just hasn’t felt right back there, so I need to get that checked out. Maybe there’s a reason God has me here after all.

Blessings and love,

Tim and beth ><>

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One year

From Global Lutheran Outreach missionary Cheryl Kruckemeyer (serving in Mwadui, Tanzania) She writes:

One year ago, May 27, 2019, I departed from DFW Airport for the one-week field visit and introduction to Mwadui, Tanzania, marking the beginning of my commitment to this ministry in Tanzania. On January 27, 2020, just before the Covid-19 virus was a known worldwide threat, I made the journey to begin a new life here. I ask the Lord to bless me here, make me useful to my neighbors, friends, acquaintances, students, those in need, and other poor sinners in this place, thereby displaying to His people His infinite wisdom, love, and mercy.

One day while I was observing, one of the young workers told me he did not have a Bible. He was very happy when, the following day, I handed him a Bible written in Kiswahili. God is so good. Dorothea Kruse, an agricultural missionary from Germany, serving within the Mennonite organization, moved into Mwadui and is living with me. She was seeking protection and isolation from the corona virus. Being familiar with Mwadui and Abel’s farm, she felt safer here than in Shinyanga or Mwanza. Cooking and working on Abel’s farm are her favorite pastimes.

Time Well Spent

The Wednesday morning Ladies Bible Study group is digging deep into Matthew 14:13-21. Weekly mentoring sessions with students, in between their duties on the farm, are helping them gain self-confidence, develop plans, and take steps toward their dreams and career goals. Observing and occasionally lending a hand, I’ve spent time with the manual laborers on Abel’s farm harvesting rice, planting Chinese cabbage, and working the land.  President Magafuli announced prayers have been answered and there is no more coronavirus in Tanzania, in spite of conflicting reports. Truth is evasive and simply directs us back to the Bible, knowing there is only one truth on all the earth.

“Prove me, O Lord, and try me; test my heart and my mind.” (Psalm 26:1-2)

When do we test God? And He us? Testing God is actually a lack of trust in Him. Only God knows the hearts of His people. Martin Luther responded to requests for advice during the bubonic plague in Germany, and his advice has withstood the test of time. He tells us to take reasonable preventative steps and to love our neighbors. We all have responsible roles during these days of the coronavirus, even now when the threat is hopefully diminishing. But never are we to forsake our neighbors in their time of need, whether that need is physical or spiritual. It is most certainly more blessed to give than to receive.

Click here to read the latest newsletter from Cheryl

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Baptism in the time of COVID-19

From Global Lutheran Outreach missionaries David and Luz Maria Ernst (the Ernst are serving in La Curamuca, Venezuela ).They write:

On Pentecost Sunday, May 21, 2020, seven-month-old Reiber Santiago Pirela Parra, received the gift of new life in Christ through holy baptism. We also celebrated the Eucharist for the first time since “national quarantine” was declared about two months ago.

In my last communication, I expressed hope that the quarantine would be lifted by Pentecost and we would be able to resume offering the Lord’s Supper every Sunday. wrote those words, the quarantine was extended to June 12. But the rules have since been “relaxed”. Schools, including our preschool, will not reopen until the new school year begins in September. Students are supposed to complete their studies on-line (something of a challenge, as I will explain) and we have opened the preschool every morning to distribute food and homework assignments to families in our community. Although the availablity of public transportation has been greatly reduced, we have been able to obtain the food through use of the car that your donations enabled to purchase.

The Lord’s Supper.

In addition to closing of schools, most businesses are allowed to operate for a strictly limited number of hours per day, although the “relaxation” means some businesses are able to stay open longer now. However, as far as I know, there are no rules specifically pertaining to place of worship. Since our chapel is not on public property, we have continued to hold Sunday morning services, although we will not celebrate the Lord’s Supper again until after June 12. Those who attend our Sunday morning worship are a small group of people that we see every day anyway. Nobody in our vicinity has shown signs of COVID-19 infection so far, so praise be to God for that as well.

Facemasks are in fashion.

Two thousand years of experience and scientific study have shown the likelihood of contagious disease being passed through the sharing of the communion chalice is very low. If your immune system is that compromised, you really should not leave your house anyway. Of course, we tell our communicants that they are not obligated to receive communion every time it’s offered, and if there is any indication that that they might be infected with COVID-19, they should stay home. While we certainly do not believe or teach that the Lord has promised the faithful immunity to pestilence whether we take precautions or not, we do believe that He will watch over us as we do the work that He has commanded His church to do.

Reiber Santiago’s parents, Ronelbys and Maria José, told me nearly seven months ago that they wanted their baby baptized in our chapel. They wanted Reiber Santiago baptized, so that if he did get sick and die, he would have the promise of heaven. So it was done on perhaps the best of days for a baptism, Pentecost.

To see more pictures from this past month, please click here.

To everything there is a season

As the writer of Ecclesiastes says, “To everything there is a season, a time for every purpose under heaven”, and sometimes the time for everything is all at once. We have entered Venezuela’s rainy season, the period from May to November in which total rainfall may add up to 78 inches. Just in time, too, because the water level in our well was getting very low. However, now we have the problem of heavy cloud cover reducing the efficiency of our solar-powered electrical backup system, combined with longer and longer power outages almost every day. However, a somewhat more pressing concern is that our cellphone/Internet service used to last six hours after the public power went down, but now it only lasts two to three hours. This means that after a particularly long blackout, we will be without electricity, telephone, television and Internet service. This stymies the children trying to complete their studies on-line, but of course the situation is potentially more troublesome than that as we are completely cut off from the outside world.

Click here to read the latest newsletter from the Ernst!

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Joy and Sadness

From Global Lutheran Outreach missionaries Eric and Linda Funke (ed. note: the Funkes are in the midst of repatriating to the USA after serving 7 and a half years in Tanzania).They write:

The suffering in the world feels so potent right now— so much injustice, so much pain, so much conflict, so much loss. As a friend recently shared her pain over the loss of a loved one, I reminded her that lament is Biblical and that Jesus cried. As I have been thinking more about lament, I have naturally been drawn to the book of Lamentations. I was reminded that “because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for His compassions never fail. They are new every morning.” In spite of it all, we cling to hope. Here are some of the bits of hope God has shown us this past month.

Virtual Presentation
After many hours of prep, we are thrilled to say that our video presentation is now online 🙂 You can find it at www.youtube.com/EricFunkeGLO. This presentation is what we would have shared with you all if we had been able to visit in person.

Zoom Calls
We are planning to host a Zoom call with each of our partner churches in the coming months. This call will give us the opportunity to connect with you all on a more personal level and answer any questions you have about the presentation, about what is happening in Tanzania right now, and about what is happening in our lives. We are still working on scheduling these calls and will let you know when they are all scheduled.

A Job For Eric
On May 4, Eric attended a virtual job fair for Garland Independent School District. By the end of the day, North Garland High School issued him a letter of intent. We are happy to announce that he will be teaching Algebra 1 (one of his favorite subjects to teach) at North Garland starting in August. We thank God for this answer to prayer!

The Big Move
On May 2, we signed a lease for a rental house in Richardson, Texas, and on May 8-10 we loaded up a trailer to be delivered to our new home. After more precious time with our family in St. Louis, we drove down to Dallas on May 12.  We stayed with Linda’s parents for the next week while we waited for our trailer and repainted the 3 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms (all of which were pink) and all the ceilings in our new house. On May 16-17, our Davis family helped us unload all of our belongings.  To see more pictures from this past month, please click here.

Click here to read the latest newsletter from the Funkes!

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