A Surprising Turn

Aaahhhh! The school year is over! All the students finished the year well and we had some fun and profitable times together in the dorm. The high school teens finished up their year-long novel project and we celebrated with blizzards. Not from DQ, but the homemade kind. We all liked it so much we had to celebrate with them again the last week of school with the whole dorm family. They were just too irresistible!

Being involved with tribal missions as dorm parents has many rewards, not just blizzards, and this week we heard some exciting news from one of our dorm daughters home for the summer in the Mengen tribe. Here is Katelyn’s perspective, “I tell you it has been really exciting seeing what the Lord is doing here. I think we have at least 20-30 new believers….” How exciting for all of us to be a part of this team to see the gospel brought to the Mengen people. Rejoice with us over these recent events and pray that these young believers will continue to follow and grow in the truth that they are hearing from God’s word.

We Praise the Lord for giving Anna a safe trip as she went half way around the world and now she is at CYIA (Christian Youth in Action) training camp back home in Maine. After she finishes up her training, she will begin her summer missionary work with Child Evangelism Fellowship. We do miss her, but we are excited about this opportunity for her to be involved in outreach and to meet other teens who are serving the Lord this way. Please pray with us that the Lord of the Harvest will make this summer as Anna put it, “…all that He wants it to be.”

Our ministry role has once again taken a surprising turn for us. We will continue to serve in the school dorm, but because of families on furlough and changes in education plans for some of the students we will only have two teens boarding with us this year. So…hang on to your seats for this one, due to a shortage of staff and an urgent need in the school for this year, I have been asked to cover as school administrator in our MK school. Many of you are probably chuckling right now as you think of me sitting in the principal’s office (only this time on the other side of the desk :-)). Yes, the Lord does have a sense of humor and He loves to put us in those places where we have to look to Him to do the work, realizing once again, we are only the vessels He uses. He is the one that does the work and gives us the privilege of being a part as we trust in Him.

The Ivanga church continues to press on and we are encouraged with what the Lord is doing among the people there. This week we are waiting for the arrival of a couple of the Bible teachers so we can spend some time together working on some translation projects this summer. Tristan and I would like to get into the village for a visit, but it is the season of unexpected rough seas so pray for God’s timing and guidance in it all.

Thank you for your prayers and encouragement.

Dave, Shirley and Family,