In Sickness and Health
Wow! We woke up with a shock yesterday when we realised that we are already at the end of May. Where has the time gone?
The month of May has passed in a bit of a blur. We have been hard at work in ministry at Christ Church Lusaka and even done some travelling outside of Lusaka. We have done our best to keep on top of things while facing sickness, fielding curveballs and enduring more than 12 hours of load-shedding daily.
“Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time, because the days are evil.“
Ephesians 5:15
Vision Trip to Mongu
Right at the start of May, Michael and I saw a small window of opportunity in our busy schedules and took a trip to Mongu. A vision trip to Mongu has been part of our job description from the time we started with SIM, but we just never found the time or opportunity to go. In looking at our schedules for the upcoming 2-3 months we realised at the start of May that there was one week that we could juggle things to make it available to travel: the second week of May. So after scrambling around to make arrangements we set off on an epic road trip.
We have written all about our experience in Mongu and our journey in these blogs:
Sickness and Health
The week after we returned from Mongu I (Renee) started to feel sick. It was flu symptoms so I expected to be down for 3-4 days. Nine days later and after a course of antibiotics I was finally up and out of bed.
He isn’t going down easy though. This week and the following week he is preaching in the place of Dr Kayumba who is abroad, travelling for ministry. Michael also agreed to stand in for Dr Kayumba teaching his Greek classes at Africa Christian University. (Which has been the highlight of his week!) Please pray for him to remain strong and healthy so that he can do what he needs to do.
We were grateful that Michael had withstood the vicious bug. Alas! It seems our joy was short-lived, because he has also started showing symptoms of becoming another fallen victim of the flu bug.
“Two are better than one, because they have a good reward for their toil. For if they fall, one will lift up his fellow. But woe to him who is alone when he falls and has not another to lift him up!“
Ecclesiastes 4:9
Men's Fellowship
We finally got the men from Christ Church Lusaka together for a break and men’s talk. This was really encouraging for all and we have already made plans to do this once a month. I am grateful for the friendships that we are building with each other.
MTS Training
Tim Thorburn from MTS in Australia came again to train a group of Lusaka pastors on effective Ministry Apprentice training. We met over three days as he helped us to think about how to train our Ministry Apprentices to preach. What I love most about this approach to training Ministry Apprentices is that the strategy is to create a community of not only apprentices, but also the trainers. This is a huge step forward for the Kingdom of God in Lusaka as churches start working together to prepare the future generation of pastors for full-time ministry.
Upcoming Winds of Change
The month of June is an exciting month here at SIM Zambia as we are expecting the new director of SIM Zambia as well as new staff on the Lusaka team to be arriving. This also signals that our current interim director and personal coordinator (Jeff and Rose Shaffer) will soon be leaving after 30 years of serving in Zambia. Change can be exciting but difficult. Please pray for all of us here in Zambia and especially for Jeff and Rose as they hand over to Kifle and Betty Berhanu. Pray for good transitions for all involved.
“Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving,
present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding,
will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.“
Philippians 4:6-7
Thank You!
Thank you from the bottom of our hearts for your continued prayer and support. We are so grateful that we can share in ministry with you in this way. Please know that you are regularly in our prayers and always in our hearts.
Praise God For:
The safe travels to Mongu and back
Using the time in Mongu to speak to our hearts.
That Renee is restored to good health
Women’s and Men’s Fellowship meetings that took place this month.
The new Explore group that has started in Matero, Lusaka.
Pray For:
Michael’s health that he would remain strong to complete the ministry tasks ahead of him
The SIM Zambia team as we face many exciting changes in our Lusaka team this upcoming month.
The growth of the children’s ministry.
That God would bring people to church that have gifts of music and children’s ministry to assist in carrying the loads.
That God would increase our support to cover our required budget.
We are missionaries serving with SIM-Zambia. We rely totally on donor support to keep us in the mission field.
Please would you prayerfully consider supporting us financially. You can direct your support to us through SIM or directly to our personal South African bank account. Find out how you can support us here:
