Gospel Outpost

In the picture above is what we call our "outpost" for the Gospel. This is a library (maktaba in Swahili), but I am definitely not a librarian! This is just a way to make many Christian books, tracts, and Emmaus courses available to everyone here, and to make the Gospel available to Muslims and others who have not yet believed. This maktaba is a light in a dark place, so we call it Maktaba ya Nuru ya Ulemwengi" or Light of the World Llibrary. It's all about the GOSPEL!

This outpost enables us to reach out with the Gospel in an area where few have ever heard this Good News. We are enjoying teaching through the Gospels in the schools right now. I recently taught on the cross and the students were very receptive and shouting "Amen!" multiple times during the lesson. Pray for these precious children to give their lives to the Lord :)

We recently had 2 students finish all of the Emmaus courses and receive their certificates of completion! We had a small celebration in the maktaba to celebrate the accomplishment of Riziki and Daudi. They were gifted new Bibles and Jennifer made us a nice cake for the celebration :)

We are also excited about how we see the Lord leading with the Emmaus courses in the prisons. We are partnering with a few local pastors who are taking the courses into the prisons, and another fellow missionary is providing Bibles. The first prison had 8 prisoners sign up, another prison in the region had 17 sign up, and I was just given another list of 30 names from a different prison! PTL! We are starting to receive exams back of the first course. Pray for these prisoners as they take these courses, for salvation and spiritual growth.

I have started doing home visitation in Ujiji with 2 TZ friends. It's a joy to serve the Lord with them and take the Gospel house to house. Typically we spend about 30 min to one hour at each house! (So different than in the US.) After sharing and answering any questions, we give them an "Injili" (New Testament in Swahili and Arabic) provided by Voice of the Martyrs. Pray with us for the many who are lost and need the Lord!

I was invited to speak at a high school graduation for one of the elder's sons. These folks love to dance, no I mean they REALLY love to dance :) I challenged students to "Start with Jesus" as they begin their own journey through life. Jesus is the key that unlocks the meaning of life, He unlocks the understanding of the Bible, He unlocks the door of Heaven! Start with Jesus !

It has been a very busy two months since we have been back! I, John, will be going to spend this coming weekend with Isaac for his midterm break. He seems to be doing really well, and his grades are looking good. :-) We are both looking forward to this weekend together in Nairobi! We are able to text with Isaac on a daily basis, and usually FaceTime about once a week. Here is a picture of Isaac with a group of his friends on a hike together to a local waterfall. :-)

We appreciate your prayers as we continue to set up the foundational aspects of the youth camp here. I am working with a lawyer to set up a Trust and we will need to register with the Ministry of Social Work here in TZ eventually. I am learning lots of new things throughout this process, and everything takes sooooo long to get done here 🤪! Pray for the clear leading of the Lord and for His protection as land fraud is so common here. Hopefully soon, we will begin the work of building Nuru Youth Center! (Nuru =Light).

Here are a few pictures to enjoy from September! How many chairs can you safely ride on a motorcycle?