A Fight to the End!

So here is what's been the battles for this past week. Our toyota truck (AKA Sid the Sloth) has finally been fixed. There's been this rattling noise from the truck which finally got worse. We managed to fix that and put on new tires. I know it may not sound exciting but we were very excited!
Here's been the main battle: the rice shipment! Zambia doesn't want to approve the rice and investigations are being made from our side into the test results. Let's pray over this and believe God that His will is done!!
We now have 9 people on base. The Kus family has joined us for a month helping to serve and praying about moving here for around 3 years in the near future. It's always great to have new people around and I'm positive our time working together will be blessed!
As for next week... only God knows what adventures I'll have! :)

A Quiet Week...

This week has gone by quickly and quietly. I've been sick all week so have spent time resting (or being forced to) as much as possible. It was kind of nice to have time to chill out, study, and just enjoy the beauty of the Batoka Gorge.
We're still waiting for the rice shipment to clear customs, so please keep praying over it. We should be hearing the final results early this next week. Lord, give us favor with the Zambia customs!
It's weird to think that if I had not changed my airline ticket, I would be sitting in sunny Florida right now, moving into a new home, and probably sipping a much needed vanilla latte with an extra shot. When it all comes down to it though, I'd rather be here in Africa then anywhere else!
My friend, Patrick, and I were having a discussion before he left for the UK. We came to the realization that I basically have no home. Chicago is no longer "home" because once you move out, it's always strange to come back. It's visiting the place where you grew up- an odd feeling. I haven't lived in Florida long enough to consider it home, and I currently am not 100% positive where I will even be living when I return. The base in Zambia is the closest place I have to a home, but it's also where I work. We came to conclusion that I'm like Jesus... no place to lay my head. I could also be considered Nomadic since I travel so much and carry all my belongings with me (well almost all). It's an interesting place to be in life and I am definitely enjoying it!
God Bless!

The African Heat Has Come!

It's hot... so very hot and only getting worse. It's about 98 degrees right now without a cloud in sight. It's times like these that I thank God for the thatched roof on our main center because it brings the temperature down quite a bit.
This past week has been interesting. We've been working hard on the base doing detail work (basically cleaning). On wednesday I went to Lusaka to meet with the Dutch Embassy in order to gain approval for the purchase of our new overland trucks. These trucks will be driven down from the UK to Zambia by our staff members, accompanied by some expedition team members. They will arrive at our base on December 15th- of which I will still be here to greet them.
Another funny note is that when the meeting at the embassy was over, and we were being walked out, I slipped on the stairs, nearly falling to the floor, and my laptop sliding down before me. Now that's an unforgettable ending to a meeting!!

Back from the bush

I returned yesterday from 6 days in the rural areas of the southern province of Zambia. The ministry went great! We went back to two of the villages we ministered in during the July expedition. When I arrived in Kanchele, I was surprised to find out that many rumors regarding our previous visit had started. They were saying that we had been thrown in jail for being in the country illegally and were also satanists. It's amazing sometimes at the attempts that Satan makes to destroy the work that the Lord is doing in the lives of people. Fortunately, we were able to meet with the leaders of all the churches and dispel all of the rumors. The enemy constantly warps peoples view of Christianity, but we know that the power of the Word of God can break through any strongholds that Satan has tried to put up. Kanchele has changed so much in such a short times but the churches are growing stronger and the ancestral traditions are losing their hold on the hearts of the people. We've seen people healed, filled with the Spirit of God, and so thirsty for the Word that they ask question after question in order to gain understanding. Praise the Lord for His truth and the power that He has!

A long awaited post...

Okay so I'm probably as good at "blogging" as I am at keeping my daily journal. My schedule is slowing down a bit (maybe) so I think I'll actually be able to keep up with this. :)

Right now I am in the middle of leading an expedition in the southern province of Zambia. We just returned to the base from a two day youth conference in the Zimba area. It was great to minister to the youth and I was really surprised at how much they understood and retained. We had a blast playing games with them, dancing, singing, and sharing about God's love.

Tomorrow we will head out to Chabalanda village to hold an all day meeting with the church members, leaders, and pastors of all the churches in the area. From there we'll travel across two dried riverbeds to Kanchele village and hold a two day pastors conference. I was in these villages with a team in July and am very excited about going back!

I've officially changed my plane ticket and will be staying in Africa until December 18th. This will be the longest I've ever been overseas (8 months total). I'm a bit homesick since the rest of our US staff is now stateside or in the UK but I know that the next few months will be a blast. It will also be very hot, which the weather change has already started. It's now a 95 degree average everyday with no clouds in site. I've been warned it just gets hotter from here... I never thought I'd be praying for the rainy season to come! ;-)

Onto the Western Province!

Hey all,
Well I wanted to post before I head out to the bush for nearly three weeks. My team arrives today from America and we'll head out to the western province of Zambia at 4 am on Monday. Where we are going, Overland has never been; some areas have never heard the gospel or even had outside visitors. God is going to do some amazing things so please keep us in your prayers.
We just had Pettidee, a gospel rapper, in to do a revival concert in Livingstone. It went awesome- nothing like it had ever been done in the city. We also had a pre-concert in Mukuni village. I had been there in 2005 when I came for the first time and had not been able to make it back since until this year. When I was there the first time, I stayed overnight in a church member's home/hut. When we were at the concert, I talked with one of the pastors to try and go visit Katherine, the young woman that I become friends with. I was upset to hear that she was no longer attending church and was instead brewing and selling beer in one of the local bars. The pastor took me to visit her and we found her at work. I sat with her as long as her boss allowed (which wasn't long at all) and just asked her questions about her life now. She was trying to save money to go to school, which she justified by this new business of hers. I encouraged her in returning to church and that God has not forgotten or given up on her. Our time was cut short but the pastor agreed to continue to visit her and share the Word with her. Please keep her in your prayers!
I will be out of contact until the 17th (at earliest). I look forward to hearing from all of you and will update the next chance I get.
Mungu aka bariki sana (God Bless you very much in Swahili)

In the midst of it all

I just said goodbye to my NYC team yesterday and have finally had time to reflect on the past 12 days or so. Patrick (my co-leader) and I had a team of 5 people from Glad Tidings Tabernacle in NYC come out for an expedition. We had gone out a few days before their arrival to scout out new areas in the Sekuti region of Zambia (just west of Livingstone). We met new pastors and were able to bring them with us as interpreters during the expedition. There are many testimonies I could share from driving through thick bush, learning to cook over a campfire, preaching the gospel, salvations, etc. However, the most amazing testimony that I carry from this expedition is something Pastor Enoch shared with me as I was driving him to his home. He told me that if it wasn't for the Lord bringing the team to him he would still be in his village continuing with his ministry. Now the Lord has opened the opportunity for him and the local pastors to push out farther into their area and plant new churches in the areas we ministered in. I was floored by this testimony because it shows how awesome the Lord can work through the hands of those willing to go. It is always our (Overland Missions) goal to empower the local churches and pastors to help them minister in the new areas we take them to. Patrick and I are going to go follow up with them within this next week or so and see how they are doing.
Our next team arrives June 1st or so- we'll be going to new areas in the western province of Zambia. We'll go out again before the team arrives to make relationships with pastors and churches. Please keep this in your prayers. I'll continue to update you along this journey!