Tuesday, May 19, 2015

Prayer Request


     Today I have a special prayer request for you.  Our 4-year old son, Josiah, has been having what appear to be a type of seizures.  Our suspicion is that this is not something that would have been caused in any way by living in Africa, but rather a condition present from birth that takes time to make itself manifest.  We have received advice from six doctors - including a family practitioner, 2 pediatricians, a pediatric neurologist, a neurologist, and an anesthesiologist.  They have all advised us that Josiah needs an MRI and EEG.  Neither of which are available here.  Even if they were available, there is nobody in this country that is qualified to read the results.  We have been advised to take Josiah to the US where these evaluations can take place.

     In light of this counsel,  Tiffany and the children will return to the States on June 1.  Meanwhile Daniel will stay in Tanzania carrying on the work for the time being.  Our hope is that tests will prove there is no major problem, and the family will be back in Africa in a matter of weeks.  At this point, we can only take this one step at a time.

     Please pray for Josiah's health, the doctors diagnostic abilities, and that Tiffany and I will handle this situation wisely.  If you would like to make a donation to help defer these unexpected costs, then that would certainly be welcome as well.

     Thank you for your support and encouragement.

Your fellow worker,

Daniel



Sunday, May 17, 2015

Take Time to be Holy




     Today we had the pleasure of worshipping with the Ngordoto congregation, located in a remote area on the side of Mt. Meru.  We had some delays along the way and got terribly lost.  Our path took us through mud holes, across creeks, down footpaths, and through animal herds, but we finally arrived... 1 hour 45 minutes late.  Yet judging from the fact that there were no empty seats, not a single soul had given up on us and left.  Can you imagine that in America?
     Starting so late, you might expect that there would be an abbreviated service.  Not so!  Those Christians put in a full 3 hours of worship and study just like they would have otherwise.  They didn't "short change" the Lord any time just because we were running late.
     The Tanzanians, especially away from the city, are much more "event-orientied" than they are "time-oriented."  Sometimes that's a little aggravating to us westerners, but when it comes to worship maybe they're on to something.  What if we took down the clocks and just gave worship as much time as it needed to do it right?  I know that there are various reasons why that may not be very practical in a lot of places, but there may still be something to say for slowing down and letting worship have its time.  Just food for thought.

Enjoy some pictures from our day:




















Sunday, May 3, 2015

Outreach Effort is Bearing Fruit



     Today we had the pleasure of worshipping with the Njiro Nane Nane congregation.  The rotating "Spiritual Disciplines" seminar is beginning there, and that congregation will be blessed by the study for the next 3 months.  

     A few weeks ago we announced to you a new outreach initiative that partners the Andrew Connally School of Preaching and the local congregations.  Through this effort our preaching students are being sent to area congregations on weekends to help with evangelistic efforts, and serve in worship service.   After the first month of this program, we are very happy to announce that good fruits are already being produced.  So far this effort has resulted in 17 baptisms!  Additionally,  21 unfaithful souls have been restored to the Lord's church.  I am so proud of our students, and I look forward to seeing all of the ways that God continues to use them.