KEEP PRAYING

I hope that prayer for the lost is a regular part of your daily life. I was having coffee with a dear brother and sister in the Lord and was encouraged by seeing a copy of Operation World on their coffee table. Pray for the world on a daily basis through Operation World. Operation World books are available through WEC in Hamilton.

The Joshua Project is also a great resource. Under <Pray> click <unreached of the day> and then <subscribe> and have a people group sent to your email every day for prayer.

I really wrote to thank you for your continued prayer for Guyana. The churches we are working with are having 3 evangelistic crusades this week and sent a request for us to pray for them. We have been asked to hold some crusades during our two weeks in October. We now have a team of 16 for our trip in October. There is still time to join us!

Here are a few prayer requests for Guyana: 1) Unity among the Christian churches and believers 2) The good works of  Christians will have an impact on society at every level 3) The churches will have a solid base in God's Word 4) Many hearts from different faith backgrounds will be open to God's Good News in Jesus Christ 5) Tribal people in the jungles of the south will be reached by those who are going into the jungle to speak to them 6) Continued preparations, travel, health and safety.

Again thank you for praying for Guyana, for your neighbors and for the world.

Prayer is an act of faith.
Prayer is an act of obedience.
Prayer is an act of worship.
Prayer is an act of warfare.
Prayer is an act of sacrifice.
Prayer is an act of labor.
Prayer is an act of love.

YOU DID IT

I want to thank God my Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit, and all of you who have given for the provision of $5,000 toward materials for Guyana and for the money for tickets, lodging and food for Diane and I as we make our way to Guyana in October for two weeks. I also want to thank Melissa who took care of extra paperwork in managing the Guyana Fund at Rosedale.

Reaching these goals has been an encouragement to Diane and I, and I hope to you as well. I am still trusting God to add one or two more people to the Guyana team from Niagara. It is not to late so if you sense God is calling you then step out of your comfort zone and into God's adventure for you.

Intercession on behalf of the people of Guyana continues to be the need. Stand before God and ask that the Spirit convicts of sin and righteousness and judgment. We will meet these prepared hearts as we hand out Jesus DVD's and tracts in October. Pray for the 13 so far who have purchased tickets. Some will be staying for one week and most for two weeks. Pray even now for safety, unity, health, flexibility, patience, leadership, the preaching opportunities and other things as God leads you.

Thank you for being part of the team to reach the people of Guyana with the message of eternal life in Jesus Christ, God's only way of salvation.

"God is able to bless you abundantly, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work". 2 Corinthians 9.8

GUYANA SUPPLIES HAVE ARRIVED

Dear friends and saints, I just received an email from Suliman Mohamed that all the supplies shipped to Guyana for the October outreach have arrived in Guyana and have passed through customs and are in the hands of the local Pastors. This includes 35,000 DVD's, 50,000 tracts, and thousands of Bibles and other booklets. All these materials including shipping are now paid for. Many of you dear saints and two churches, Rosedale Baptist and First Baptist, from the Niagara area contributed $5,000 toward these materials. Suliman and I thank God for your participation in this outreach. I have also recruited 3 people as part of the Niagara team and am looking for God to add one or two more very soon.

Now the time has come for booking our flights. The total cost for a return trip to Guyana including tax is $681.76. Food and lodging will cost around $600 for two weeks bringing my total cost for round trip and two weeks on the ground to $1200. My sister in the Lord, Diane Warankie from Rosedale Church will be coming on this trup. If you would like to help with our trip costs you can donate to the Guyana Fund at Rosedale Baptist Church, 11 Rosedale Place, Welland, ON, L3B 1J2. Make sure to indicate your donation is for the Guyana Fund.

Please continue to pray for Guyana. You are part of a strategic plan to share the message of salvation in Jesus Christ with a whole country, a plan that is encouraging the church with Bibles and side by side support, a plan to share a beautiful tract with children in schools. a plan for you to be involved in world missions. If you do not have a flag please ask me for one and I would be more than glad to give you one to remind you to pray. Or if you want to recruit others to pray I can give you as many as you need.

Please pray that God will open many hearts to the Gospel

Thank you again for being a partner in this Mission to Guyana. My heart is filled with excitement and joy. ron

MISSION TO GUYANA UPDATE

Greetings friends and prayer partners,
This morning we had a meeting to discuss details of the upcoming October Mission trip to Guyana. We began our meeting with a Guyanese breakfast of "Curry beef, curried fish, dall, chicken chow main, fried pumpkin, fried eggplant, rotie, rice and washed it all down with Mississauga's best Chai tea". Wow! Thank you Suliman for this introduction to some Guyanese staples.

Suliman reported to us how God has provided for the DVD's and we were each given a copy to take with us. This DVD has the Guyana flag on the back jacket along with the contact information and name of the Pastors of eight churches we will be working with. This DVD is in English along with the local Guyanese Creole, Caribbean Carib and a number of other languages. Over 30,000 have already been shipped and one more shipment of DVD's and bibles is leaving soon. Also over 150,000 tracts have been shipped, plastic door hanger bags, New Testaments and full bibles, along with solar powered MP3's with the Bible and testimonies on them for those who cannot read, and Galcom solar powered radios preset to Trans World Radio from Bonair, which is an island just off the coast of Guyana. These solar powered preset radios will be given to people living in remote jungles who will be visited by local believers. We want to do our best to get the gospel to every home in Guyana. We will also be visiting schools and the University in Georgetown. We will be saturating two provinces on this trip and next year doing more remote areas and isolated jungle villages. What an exciting venture for Christ.

The cost of the trip has been reduced to about $1200 for flight, food and lodging. When the Pastor's heard we were going to stay in hotels they suggested that would be too expensive for us so they have rented a large house and will provide cooks and security for us. We will of course pay for the use of the house and labor and food but this will reduce our living costs to less than $500 each and with the flight being less than $700 return the financial costs in terms of what we will be accomplishing is well worth it. If you want to come along we are leaving from Toronto on October 9th and returning on October 24th. The team is about a dozen strong at the moment.

The local Pastors and churches are very excited about our coming and look forward to joining with us on the distributions. I am looking forward to fellowship with my brothers and sisters in Guyana and to hearing their stories and seeing their love for God. I have already been told to be ready to preach so that is another way you can pray for me as you pray for this trip and for the people of Guyana.

Lastly with regard to my personal faith goals for this mission trip to Guyana. I personally committed to raising $5,000 toward distribution supplies and shipping and to 4 to 5 people to come with me. So far $4,030 has been raised from the Niagara area toward the $5,000 goal and $217 toward the cost of the magnetic flags which was $306. Some have made pledges but I will not add those pledges to the total until I receive those pledges. So by the end of July I am looking to God to supply $970 more toward distribution supplies and $89 to cover costs of the flags. I also have 3 who have committed to join me in Guyana and am looking to God for at least one more person to join us. Will you come? If you know of anyone who might be interested in giving to this mission trip or coming on this mission trip who has not yet heard please forward this blog to them and have them contact me.

I want to thank all the individuals who have committed to pray and want to encourage you to continue to pray at least for the next year for Guyana. Will you do that? I want to thank those individuals who have given to provide for the distribution supplies and the cost of the flags. I want to especially thank Pastor Rene and Pastor John who have encouraged me and their churches in this project. I am looking for a rich blessing for God's kingdom and for God's glory in Guyana. All who participate can especially rejoice in the part they have played. ron

MISSION TO GUYANA

I last wrote to you almost 6 months ago on my return from Chad. I spent the best part of a month on my return recovering from my time in Chad and then tried working at a call center but that was not for me. I have applied for other jobs and in the meantime am doing some repairs at home and planning for a short term mission trip to Guyana. Let me share that exciting news with you.

Suliman is a converted Muslim from Guyana who leads the Mississauga prayer group (MSG). This group goes out every Saturday, passing out Jesus DVD's and literature, and during the week goes to schools to give out Bibles to students after school, and goes to parades and festivals. The group has covered every home in Mississauga and is reaching into other cities. Suliman also leads a mobile ministry in Pakistan that hands out Jesus DVD's to Muslims.
Suliman still has family in Guyana. Earlier this year Suliman's brother in Guyana had a heart attack and Suliman made an emergency trip to Guyana. While there he realized that many Muslims and Hindus were coming to Christ. A vision was born. Why not bring a Jesus DVD and literature to every home in Guyana? So that is what Suliman and his team are planning to do in two trips; two weeks this October and two weeks next year. Suliman made a second trip to Guyana to arrange for this mission trip and to connect with local churches. They are excited about this vision as well. I want to invite you to share in this exciting vision of bringing the Gospel to every home in the country of Guyana by 2016.

Guyana is English speaking, about 10% Muslim, 30% Hindu and 50% Christian but not all born again and evangelical. The evangelical local churches need Bibles and we will be taking some with us. We have a large amount of children's tracts to give out to schools while we are there. The cost of purchasing and shipping the DVD's and literature is in the range of $35,000.

Here is how you can get involved.
1) Prayer - Jesus DVD's and literature on their own will do little apart from the work of the Holy Spirit. Pray for God to move on the hearts of many people in Guyana to receive Christ and to grow in Christ as a result of this distribution. I have some magnetic flags of Guyana with "Pray for Guyana" on them. If you would like one please let me know. Also pray for God to provide the funds needed for this project.

2) Giving - The cost for this first distribution is about $35,000. I have set a goal to raise $5,000 toward this cost and now have about $1,000. I am looking to God and the saints of God to see the value of this strategic mission project and support this worthy project. One of my efforts is to ask for a $10 or more donation for one of the above flags. I am also trying to visit churches and to share this vision to raise support for the trip. Later on I will have to raise my personal support for the trip but for now I want to help with the distribution costs.

3) Coming on the trip - Some of you may be able to join us on this two week trip to Guyana leaving around October 9th and returning around 24th. The total cost is $1600 for flight and room and board. We will be having a meeting to work out details on June 27th so let me know if you would like to attend.

I hope you catch the vision of reaching a whole country and multiple generations with the message of the Good News of salvation in Jesus Christ. Submitting all our small efforts to God will produce a large impact for the Gospel of Jesus Christ in Guyana. Be part of that impact. ron

GOODBYE CHAD

 In a couple of days I will leave Chad and return to Canada after 4 months here. My time in Chad has been very positive and I feel especially to have developed spiritually by coming to know more of the Father's Love and recognizing more areas where the life of Christ rather than my sinful nature must rule.

I will miss my teammates and especially those I have lived with for four months - Adrian, Judith, Aphia, Katharina and Jill.

Adrian, Katharina, Judith and my shoulder as we pack 5 in a Ruckshaw. Aphia is in the front

Jill (team leader), Adrian, Katharina, Judith, and Aphia

I will miss my pupils whom I have come to love.

This is AD and AB

This is AT

This is M

I will miss the children I meet on the way to the store who want me to chase them and pretend I am catching them.

Children I chase on the way to Ibrahim's shop

I will miss the shop keepers along the way to the market

Aphia and I are visiting AB's shop. He is also one of my students

This shopkeeper always greets us and then sends us away with the blessing "que le Seigneur te benit"

Here is my back to Canada bucket list: 1) A long hot shower. 2) A large glass of cold, real (not powdered) milk. 3) A thick slice of juicy ham. 4) A cold can of Club Soda. 5) A bag of microwave buttered popcorn. 6) A thick slice of old Cheddar cheese. 7) A slice of soft bread with a thick layer of smooth creamy peanut butter. 8) A large plate of Swiss Chalet french fries with thick gravy. I will savor and appreciate all of these items as they remind me of the full satisfaction that only heaven and the presence of our Father in complete righteousness can bring.

Chad I love you but it is time for me to say goodbye. I leave you physically but you will always be on my mind and in my heart and especially in my daily prayers. I love you because of the people I have met - my teammates, my students, the people, the children on the street, and the shop keepers. I love you because of your weather and beautiful rough landscape. Although I have seen little of you I have heard of the beauty of your mountains in the North and the abundant harvests of the South. Your people are mostly happy and friendly and easy to love. Goodbye Chad. My hope for you is not for material riches but for the spiritual riches that can only be found in relationship to Jesus Christ. May God open your eyes and your hearts to the Great Lover of your soul, and may the Lord of the Harvest bless you with more loving, competent, praying Christian workers to show you the way to Jesus. Chad in loving you I have come to love all of Africa. I see your great physical needs, your government corruption, your abundant aid with little apparent effect. But I thank God that some of His people are willing to love and serve you on their knees, with their finances, and with willingness to live with you to serve you and to share with you life changing Good News. My hope is to rejoice with many of you in eternity. Until then Goodbye.

MARKET DAY

Every Monday it is my responsibility to cook the midday meal. This requires a trip to the market (usually with Aphia my cooking partner from Vanuatu) to pick up needed supplies such as tomatoes, lemons (the size of gold balls and not distinguished from limes), cucumbers (round and the size of cantaloupe), bananas, peanut butter paste (choice of brown or white), and perhaps a can of corn or peas.
This is not a tourist market. Abéché is not a tourist city. This is a practical, local, daily market. Most locals do not have refrigeration. We only have hydro in the city a few evenings in the week and anyone who needs regular hydro uses a generator. At the Center we use solar power for our hydro. So this market is a place for locals to shop daily for what they need. No nick-knacks or expensive baubles just the staples of life.

The market looks like a squatters village made up of many shelters of a roof woven from corn or millet stems held up by tree branches. This works well in the dry season when there is no rain. I can`t imagine market day in the rainy season with all the mud and these non-rainproof shelters. The government is in the process of building a brand new large market area made of cement buildings. It is nearly completed.

All you need can be found in the market or in the stores surrounding the market. From the staples like corn or millet flour to specialty items like spiced fried grasshoppers (crunchy and very spicy, the hardest part of eating them is the big bulging eyes looking at you and the thought of eating a grasshopper, I prefer popcorn). From goat or camel meat to live or dead chickens. From cucumbers to apples and carrots and mangoes. Dried and "fresh" fish and other assorted creatures.

Assorted flours and beans

Fried spicy grasshoppers

Fresh meat

Surrounding the market are various kinds of shops and craftsmen. From motorcycle repair shops to leather shops. From carpets to soap to canned goods. From pots and pans to tinkers. From dress makers to tailors to laundrymen. Along the way there are roving shoe/sandal repairmen, sellers of cigarets, plastic bags, trinkets and many other items.

Leather shop

Typical shop for canned goods and other items

Soap, chairs, carpets, cushions

Abéché has no malls but is serviced by many individual shops. There is no spirit of competition but each customer finds his/her preferred shop and uses it on a regular basis. I found the standard of honesty and friendliness. Often more product is added to the purchase in good faith of future purchases.

These watermelon sellers have claimed the corner of our street as their shop

A seller can set up shop most anywhere along the street. Many items are sold from tables set up on a street corner or along the road. A small stand of edible goods or drinks, or hand made items, or baked goods. Everyone works to earn their daily bread and so life goes on in Abéché and in Chad.

Going to the market in Canada is most often a weekly trip to pick up some fresh produce or flowers from the local farmers but in Chad is it regular daily life. Going to market means a leisurely walk with friends, meeting other friends along the way, greeting shopkeepers and security guards, encountering the smells and garbage, and the people we are here to serve. It means making new friendships. I love walking to the market with Aphia and Katharina. God has given them special favor with the people along the street to the market. There is a love there, a respect, as they greet each other and chat together. When I go down this street alone the shop keepers ask me "where is Katharina today, how is Aphia"? Going to market has led to giving out literature and visits to the Center to deepen relationships. I cannot imagine Jesus doing ministry in today's Canada but can imagine him going to the market with his disciples and relating to those he met along the way. Perhaps what we need in our modern world is more of a market day mentality of relating to one another and less of our present shopping mall consumer crazed mentality. Perhaps our advanced society is not so advanced after all!