the little sprout

• This weekend we are having 3 new Storying teams come our way. Each team will be working in a different village/ people group developing a story set specifically for those people. Over the next couple weeks they will be trained and adjusting to all the new things that will be their life for the next 2 years. Pray for them as they begin!
• Ramadan is coming to an end, so as the people here seek to honor God,  we are praying that God would reveal His truth to them. I am also praying that as conversations are had, God would give all of us here the words and break down language barriers so God’s truth can be shared.
• Pray for me and my time continues winding down. That each day i have left here, God would lead me to exactly what he wants for that day. For boldness that any conversation God wants me to have before I leave, would be had. For saying goodbyes here and readjusting to life in America. Finally, for Him to show me the next step.
• Sept. 7th we are having a volunteer come join our Sunni team for 4 months. His name is Ben. We are getting everything finalized for his stay here, so pray for that and that God would show us and him exactly where to go. It is exciting to finally have a guy here that can join our team specifically. There are so many Sunni men we know that are seeking and have questions that Ben will be able to spend time and share God’s story.

These past couple of weeks have been devoted mostly to finishing stories and beginning new ones. We have kept going to the “seller’s” house to test stories and they are still LOVING it. It amazes me how open they are and how much they enjoy it. Wednesday, we were testing an Abraham story and one of the ladies came in late. She asked what this story was about and told us to start it over so she could hear the whole thing. She kept telling us how much she enjoyed listening to the stories and that everyday we wanted to come over and play stories! If she only knew what we had planned for this house!  One of the ladies at this house has been sick for 2 years now. She has had surgery twice on her side and we aren’t sure of the what the problem is, but know it is some type of abscess or growth. She also told us on Wednesday that she is just so worried about it because she is not feeling any better, her wound has fever, they keep paying the doctor, but it is not getting better. She is the one who spends the most time with us and we are praying for a miracle. She has shared with us that people today cannot talk to God and God doesn’t show himself in dreams to people…I am praying for the opposite that God would show himself to her and heal her body.

We also have found out some big news recently about Moses, our story crafter. We have been trying to meet with him for a few weeks now, but he tells us he is very busy and doesn’t have the time to work on stories. Well, last week we found out he was going on a trip to visit his father, because it was time to tell his father he has decided to follow the Jesus road. No one in his family knows!!! He is going to tell his father because he is getting married and is going to tell the bride’s family. We do think the women is a believer. So I am happy he has decided to start sharing his faith,  but at the same time don’t want  him to marry and unbeliever. Also, we are not sure how long we will have to work with him for stories. Ask God to give Moses courage as he tells his father and is very likely to receive some sort of persecution. This is a huge deal for him to tell his Father!!! Pray for us all as we seek to do the task God has given us with all the events going on, that we would still put or trust in HIM.

Last week we dove back into the story set. We wanted to continue testing the stories with different houses, so one afternoon we had some free time and we have been wanting to go to “the purse man’s house”. Abby and I both felt that was where the Father wanted us to go, so we went. We  were sitting with  ”the purse man” and his father and we asked if we could  share a story from God’s Word. They both agreed, so after we asked if we could ask some questions. Well to that the son agreed, but the father didn’t and in our culture that means No. We were not discouraged by this because we still felt like that house is where the Lord was leading us to, they did get to hear God’s Word, and now we know the son is seeking, but the father is not.

Well the next day we went to another house, who I have never mentioned on here. I will call them The Sellers. We know The Sellers from our village, Yosemite. Well after we arrived and sat for a while we told them we had a story from God’s Word and wanted them to listen to it, then ask some questions and talk about the story. The “mom” of the family said she would listen to it first to approve it, and after she heard it she instructed us to play the story for all the ladies. We played the story 3 times and then started asking questions. The women LOVED it. They said they understood it, wanted us to put them on tapes(which is the plan). A lot of the times when we begin to ask questions the women are hesitant to answer because they think they don’t know the answer and so they just say they can’t help us . Well the Mom starts empowering all the women “telling them to answer, it is easy you just talk to them about the story” so we had all sorts of answers and everyone was involved. It was great!  They are interested in the other stories too, so we plan to go back. We are so excited for these people and the plans God has here. He is showing us who is interested in His Word and who isn’t. People are hearing for the first time. Pray God will open their hearts to His Story, that as they hear the hard parts, their hearts would accept it.

Dinner with Eli

Last night Abby and I went to Dinner at Eli’s house. It is Ramadan here so they are fasting from 4/5am to about 7pm, and he invited us to come for their big meal. We had a great time, as always, but we just ask people to continue to pray for him. We gave him a copy of God’s Word in French because he has really been seeking hard and we believe he wants to follow.  He has told us he wants to follow, but can’t imagine the courage it takes to follow. Last night he said he has been reading and has more questions, but can’t talk about them in his home. We plan to get together soon in a “safe” place to talk more about the Jesus road. Pray God would open his heart too and would give him undeniable courage to follow.

The last week in July we headed out-of-town to the beach for a spiritual retreat time and regional meeting other personnel. First this was my first real beach experience since being here and it is amazing what that can do for a person. Second, I am always surprised at how much the Lord shows me when away from the daily routine here and can just be with Him without distractions. During that time I was refreshed and renewed about a lot of things. I am beginning to be more and more aware of how little time i have left here, 2 MONTHS! It is easy to get so distracted about finishing what I feel God has called me here to do instead of just walking with Him daily. During our meeting time we met a lot of new people and heard testimonies of people who have been overseas for 20 or more years. They have been through a lot obviously, but they are content with just walking with God and not having all the steps mapped out. They are in love with the people they are serving are just happy to be with God. It was convicting for me to see this because so many times since I have been here, I have wanted God to choose someone else or wanted different circumstances. I have been afraid to admit that it was hard or that I didn’t like it here, but of course there are going to be hard times. These times do bring me closer to God and the fact of the matter is God’s call on my life. As my term come to a close I am just starting to recognize the true joy that comes with living here, in a place where I am forced to rely on Him, in a place He has been preparing me for. Part of me feels like I am not ready to leave because I am enjoying my time here and there is a lot to do. There will always be something to do, until Jesus comes back. But, I know it is my time to leave and this is just a small step to whatever He is calling me to do for the rest of my life. Sometimes I feel like I sound like a broken record when I write these types of things, but I want to be able to share something with yall from all parts of my life here. Thank yall for everything! With out yall giving, we wouldn’t be able to come together to learn from each other, pray for one another and rejoice with one another, or have the spiritual retreat times! And without your prayers the hard days would seem lonely and overwhelming. I Love Yall! (and will see you soon)