destination Zambia

Maternity Ward

2009-10-25T09:00:00.000-05:00

GCMS has been running a small clinic for the last many years. Although small, we have done our best to make sure medicine is stocked and equipment is maintained. It appears these efforts have been noticed. Through the efforts of Lorna Sarra (clinic administrator) the Zambian government has selected our clinic to be exanded. The work is currently under way for a maternity ward extension. We are quite excited to be upgrading our clinic so quality health care may be administered to more Zambians!

nice wheels!

2009-10-20T09:12:00.004-05:00

Just recently we were blessed to have the resources to purchase a small 15 passenger used mini-bus for our Bible Institute. Previously we took our students on evangelism and for community service in the back of a flat bed truck. The truck only had seats for 2 people! Although it worked, the students would arrive normally coated with dirt from the roads. This new tool allows us to more effectively reach people with the gospel! We just continue to rejoice in seeing our Lord provide! It is wonderful to see God answer the prayers of His people and provide in such an exciting manner!

Please continue praying as we look to purchase a second vehicle that will act as an ambulance for our clinic. Our current ambulance vehicle is in need of replacement. We have most of the money we need for this second vehicle it is now just a matter of finding a good used vehicle!

he that ploweth should plow in hope

2009-09-23T13:22:00.000-05:00

Some time ago we received a tractor from some people in the States. However, at the time there were no attachments available. Thankfully, earlier this year we received just what was needed. We have some property that we are hoping to farm to really help supplement our conferences with maize and vegetables. None of us are really farmers so please be praying for God's wisdom and guidance in all of this. We are trying to "plow in hope"!! Thank you to all those that pray, give, and send us supplies and such things to help the people and keep this ministry moving forward.

Kalima - Sunday School Conference

2009-09-21T02:19:00.003-05:00

We took the 3 hour drive over some pretty rough roads to get to Kalima Bible Baptist Church. Since Savannah gets tired easily because of her pregnancy, we decided she should stay back for this one. I later told her, this church was 25 km past the middle of no where! It always amazes me people actually inhabit such places... but, praise the LORD - we have established some churches!

Although a long day, we had a wonderful service. 4 churches gathered at Kalima for a 3 day Sunday School conference. In total, there were 202 people. I was told 11 adults and 51 children were saved over the three previous days. On Sunday, we had another 2 adults plus 8 more children get saved! It is truly wonderful to see the power of God continue to work even in the most hard to reach areas!

Please pray for Pastor Paul as he has only been the pastor for 1 year and has a large task of discipling these new believers as well as leading the rest of the flock forward!

Zambian Police Donation

2009-09-18T03:54:00.000-05:00

When I first arrived in Zambia, many government offices in Zambia would be without any typewriter or computer. Things were very much done by writing a letter using ink. Today there is some change. Occasionally when visiting an office you will see a typewriter or maybe even a computer.

Over the last couple years we have established a very good working relationship with the Masaiti Police. Mr. Magawa (Officer in Charge) has become a personal friend of mine. Some time ago he requested if possible we could provide a computer for the police to be using. Today we were able to make his request come true! I AM was able to ship a couple computers on the last container dontated by church members from the States. Although not the primary role of a missionary, these type of donations go a long way to help build relationships that sometimes the Lord uses to open doors for evangelism, bible studies, and maybe even new church plants.

We were able to give the desktop, the monitor, & 2 flash drives. We were hoping to come up with a printer but that will need to wait until some time in the future.

Visit to the palace

2009-09-17T08:54:00.003-05:00

While my mother was here we decided to take her to the Royal Palace to visit the senior chief. Sure many thoughts run through your mind on what a chief in Zambia looks like but honestly the chief and his family are quite normal.
Upon arrival, we found the senior chief had been called away on business. Thankfully, we were able to spend some time with his wife. She is a wonderful woman that loves the Lord. There are some people that are helping the chief build a new home. We took a brief tour of the home and found it to be very nice! Savannah asked if we could get the same plans and I build one for her... no problem ;-)
Just to note, the man standing next to the chief that looks like a guard, well - he is a guard!

Kangololo Baptist Church

2009-09-15T08:34:00.003-05:00

There are some times when traveling two hours to church is not so bad - for instance, this last Sunday we went pretty far into the bush to a church called Kangololo. It has only been in existence for a couple years. The church itself was planted by a Zambian pastor - he asked me a few months ago to come, visit, and really encourage the people. I was not excited about going just because the road was in awful shape.
To my surprise - the road had been repaired! After driving two hours, it is nice to be "fresh" and ready to preach. Although have the road in good condition was great, having 1 person get saved and three repent, was truly the wonderful part of the day. Praise the LORD!
Church is not exactly in good shape. After the rains this year, the walls fell down and the church was forced to erect a very humble grass and branch church. They saved up some money, burnt some bricks, and began plans for a more permanent structure. Well, the man they hired to do the brick work stole the money and the bricks they were working on fell apart. Guess there are some days that are just better than others...

blessings from down South!

2009-09-11T03:11:00.004-05:00

We sometimes get boxes of nice things from our friends and family in the States. Recently, we had some people come and bring a wonderful treat... which has made my wife quite happy - GRITS!

Although as a pure Northerner, I was not quite as excited to receive the grits as my wife, but knowing it has made her happy is good enough for me.

Thank you!!

Nakonde School

2009-09-08T14:15:00.003-05:00

It was a long trip (12 hour drive) but well worth it... the purpose of all our travels was to set up a school to teach kindergarten through 3rd grade as well as offer English as a second language for high school students. Ultimately, the idea is that through better education these kids will better comprehend God's word. Of course, through the study of God's word many of these kids will ultimately know, serve, and worship Christ!
Please be praying for Pastor Robert - he is now in charge of all this and will have his hands full until things smooth out a bit. Also, a great big thanks to Bro. Jon for having the vision to start this as well as bringing the necessary tools and equipment. Praise the LORD!

Mishikishi

2009-09-03T02:58:00.000-05:00

On the way to Nakonde we stopped at a church that is working on a building project. If you look closely at the pictures you will see the entire one side of the church wall had fallen out --- guess you could say it is Zambian air conditioning! Actually, the church is building a new church just a few meters away with stronger bricks and a better roof. We were quite excited to find the members have already raised much of the needed money and should complete the structure before the rainy season! Praise the LORD!!
The other picture shows Savannah with a family that we are friends with and are close to our hearts.

Nakonde

2009-08-30T00:20:00.001-05:00

We are heading out this morning for a trip to Nakonde. Actually, we will be going to church this morning about an hour from here. After, we will travel another 6 1/2 hours to Mpika and spend the night there. Monday morning we will travel the additional 5 hours to Nakonde. A man from the States has come to help one of our Pastor's in the area with some educational material. We believe this is going to be a wonderful trip. We will be returning Saturday. Please pray for our time away.

Post Conference

2009-08-27T00:20:00.002-05:00

As many of you know, we had our annual Bible conference at the mission two weeks ago. After the conference, we took our visitors to Livingstone to see Victoria Falls and gawk at God's amazing creation. It was a wonderful time!

The conference itself was amazing! The theme was from John 8:32, "the truth shall make you free". We had some 1,600 children in attendance and I believe the adults were around 3,000 making total attendance around 4,600! Amazing!! We had many get saved, many turn back to Christ, and many reconcile relationships among believers. The Lord truly did a great work. We thank the many of you that prayed, gave, fasted, and participated to make this conference a success!

We are now in the post-conference stage. This is the stage where everyone is exhausted, sick, and in hibernation mode. Because of the outside venue, the night time cold, dust, and smoke combine to help wear everyone down. We are all recovering but it is amazing how the mission station went from 4,600 people and the activity of a small town to 5 people and you can almost hear the ants marching!

VBS "bush" style

2009-08-11T21:00:00.000-05:00

We have begun our 2009 Annual Conference. The first portion of the conference is dedicated to children. We have a team from the States that has come in to work with our Zambian Sunday school teachers and try to reach and build up these kids for Christ. Currently, we have around 1,600 children. It may be hard to imagine and I am sure these pictures dont give the full picture but these kids are staying outside under the stars, singing all night, and hearing from God's word!

Please be praying God would reach these children as they will be the future of Zambia and the future of Christianity!!

mifungu Bible Baptist

2009-08-11T02:36:00.003-05:00

We went about 45 minutes down a pretty bumpy road to Mifungu Bible Baptist Church. We had a great service in which 4 people were saved and others were counseled to a greater walk of faith. The church is a traditional "bush" church with mud bricks and a grass roof. The problem they are currently having is termites - these little critters are eating the branches that hold up the roof. Please be praying for this church and the pastor --- it is a fairly young church and they want to do right but there are many challenges. As always I try to encourage the pastor and leadership to make every endeavor a walk of faith...

Savannah's Bible Group

2009-08-09T14:40:00.003-05:00

This last Friday we had a "celebration" for Savannah's lady Bible study. Savannah spent 8 weeks teaching a group of ladies on a basic Christian principles. We had a nice celebration to the conclusion of her class in which we had some songs, heard some testimonies & devotions, along with the presentation of certificates to the ladies. Of course, all of this was followed up with a nice meal!!

Although some of these ladies were illiterate, Savannah was able to find creative ways to teach them and allow them to understand and comprehend God word! It was amazing to see the different in their lives after such a short period of time. God really did a great work!!

Telesha Ladies Group

2009-08-06T23:55:00.002-05:00

A good friend of mine from the States has come a week early for our August Bible Conference. She wrote me asking if she could be teaching some ladies groups before the conference started. She was able to visit two different churches and teach a bunch of different ladies.

Our theme to the conference this year is "the truth shall make you free". Yesi, our lady Bible teacher, was telling me how her teachings have gone right along with that theme. It is always wonderful to see the Lord bring things together!

a late start

2009-08-02T10:37:00.003-05:00

We were invited to preach at Chilimililo Bible Baptist Church today. I was told by the pastor the service should start around 10:30. Well... he was a bit off. Church started just at noon!! I must admit, I was not impressed.

After some singing, announcements, and the offering - I was given a chance to preach. Only about 36 people were in attendance for this small church. I preached from 1 Corinthian 10 warning the people of the dangers of allowing sin to stay.... don't be ignorant. We had a couple people respond. It is always good to see people hear, receive, and respond to God's word.

Although not many in attendance, it was a special Sunday for us as one very special person was there. This was the first Sunday my mother was here. It is wonderful to have her here!! She arrived safely although a bit tired on Friday afternoon. She was able to get some rest and is now jumping in and enjoying the ministry here at the mission! Savannah and I are very much looking forward to the next 6 weeks of having 'mom' with us!

All too common

2009-07-30T14:00:00.000-05:00

This morning I was asked to preach at a funeral/burial service. My wife and I arrived at the funeral house at 10 am... there was some singing and words spoken by both sides of the family. I was then given a chance to preach from God's word - the message was simple... Turn To Jesus!

Death is a common occurrence. As I was at the burial site - I wondered how many others around the world were being buried at the same exact time? Although so very common, it seems to hit each time with fresh vigor. Today's funeral was for a 9 month old baby of one of our Pastor's. From what I was told, the child was in good health on Monday, by Tuesday he was not feeling well, by Wednesday he was dehydrated... it was Wednesday night the pastor told me his little boy had died.

Please pray for this man (Pastor Collins) and his family. I have often heard the phrase that a parent should never have to bury their own children. After seeing the sorrow on their face I could only pray God would put his arms of comfort around them all.

pray for heat... in Africa

2009-07-30T09:00:00.000-05:00

This may sound like a funny request... please pray for the temperatures to rise in Zambia. We are having a conference in just about 2 weeks in which many children will be coming. Most of these children will be sleeping outside all bundled up in blankets under the stars. It sounds quite nice - but the reality is that current nigh time temperatures are around 35-38 degrees Fahrenheit.

John 3:16

2009-07-29T00:17:00.002-05:00

I was asked to come preach at Agape Baptist Church. Pastor Chisenge has a congregation of about 130 people. The church is growing, vibrant, and seems to really want to know Christ more and more. With that in mind, I felt the need to remind these people about God's amazing sacrifice that "
He gave". If we could all just get a better grasp of the Gift that was truly given... I believe sacrifice, devotion, contribution, and commitment would not seem like the exception, but more like the norm!

Maunda Bible Baptist

2009-07-21T09:05:00.002-05:00

Although Savannah has not been feeling well, over the weekend, it was my turn to have stomach problems. All night Friday and throughout the entire day on Saturday I was experiencing the joys of food poisoning. I was not sure if I would have the ability or strength to preach at church on Sunday.

Thankfully, after carefully getting out of bed on Sunday all systems checked out for a GO! It was a wonderful service - the Pastor seems to have a good handle on what needs to be happening for spiritual growth. I preached a message from James 1 - in which 3 people responded to the call of salvation!

Being sick was a reminder of how fragile we truly are made. We like to think we are in control but it only takes a minor sickness for us to be reminded that our bodies require a delicate balance that only God can hold together!

Psalm 127:3

2009-07-16T09:07:00.004-05:00

About 10 days ago Savannah was not feeling well. We took her to get tested for Malaria - it came back negative. Still a few days later she had not eaten and was very nauseous. I took her to another clinic in which they tested her again for Malaria - the doctor told us the results to the Malaria test were negative but the test for pregnancy was positive! We were both shocked, thrilled, awed, and of course VERY excited!!! We took time to pray and thank God for the little gift He has given us!!

This morning we went back to the clinic to get further verification. They were able to do an ultra sound and see our little prize! Hallelujah!! Please continue to pray for Savannah and our new addition!!

Ecc 7:2

2009-07-14T00:12:00.002-05:00

Sharon Kalusa, the wife to one of the local pastors here at Kafulafuta went to be with Jesus. She left a husband and two small children behind. Yesterday I spent the day at a funeral. I was expecting to be there for maybe 2 hours - in the end, it was an ALL day event. It was well worth it...

There was a crowd of probably 400 people that gathered. Family members, friends, politicians, police officers, pastors - you name it - this family is well loved. Please pray for Pastor Kalusa and his children as there will be a large adjustment in all of their lives.

As Solomon states, it is better to go to the house of morning... although I have never enjoyed going to funerals, there is something sobering and penetrating that occurs. It is a time of reflection that forces a person to re-think what is important and be reminded of the frailty of life. Oh to God we would not waste this life...

July 2009 Refresher Course

2009-07-12T10:32:00.003-05:00

This year's refresher course was different than in the past. Normally we have some men from the States come in an preach/teach on a certain subject or theme that we have seen to be a weakness or an area that needs improvement. This year, I wanted to see the Zambian pastors take the responsibility for encouraging and challenging each other. I made the theme this year to be "men of God" and I picked 10 different men from the Scriptures and asked each man to speak for 90 minutes. It was wonderful!! I chose both town pastors and rural pastors - each man stepped up to the challenge.

I believe this is a history book week! The 55 pastors that came were challenged as the Spirit of God worked in all of our hearts. When I asked a couple different men their thoughts about this format, the response, "fantastic" and "wonderful". We were all refreshed as we sat aside the things of the world for the week and just feasted from God's word!

Mpika seminar

2009-07-07T11:52:00.003-05:00

Savannah and I returned from Mpika late Sunday night. It was a wonderful time! I was originally told I would be preaching 3 different times. However, when I arrived I found out there was a need for 6 lessons! Had to do a little last minute prep... but it all worked out!

There were probably 45-50 people during each session. The theme was "rise up and build". The messages were:
Building with the hand of God
Building the Temple of God
Building the People of God
Building the Church of God
Building the Kingdom of God

During one session in particular, the Lord seemed to really move in the people. There were so many people praying that even the singing stopped. It was wonderful to see God's people praying and seeking the face of God!

Please pray for the people of Antioch Bible Baptist Church. They are really seeking to serve the Lord. We were privileged to give out many BEAMS KJV Bibles!!