Congo Missions - Mulungwishi

Church visits and Christmas

2011-12-31T17:14:00.000-05:00

White Christmas

We are enjoying a white Christmas here in Denver. As in Congo, Christmas is about the Christ Child. We sing with the angels the arrival of the Prince of Peace and the Good News of Hope for our world. God showed his love to us by becoming one of us and identifying with us in every way. God is with us. Hallelujah!!

Family time

It is good to stop for moments after a whirlwind fall. We returned to the States on the 18th of September. A flight on the 30th brought us to Seattle to meet new members of the family. Andrew married Judy in August. She is Taiwanese and also holds a Canadian passport. Judy‘s has just finished her Master’s degree in art therapy. Her parents, Charles and Lois (western names) flew in from Taiwan and China so we could all get acquainted. Charles had worked for Lever Brothers for 20 years and knew his way around North America and food. Going out to restaurants with them was a wonderful experience. Their son, Nelson, also lives in Seattle doing his medical residency at the University of Washington. We are so thrilled for the increase in our family and these wonderful people God has brought into our lives.

Visits to 38 churches

We flew back to Denver on the 5th of October to begin driving on the 7th to itinerate in our supporting churches. This trip took us 7,000 miles to Missouri, Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Connecticut, Massachusetts, New York, New Jersey, Delaware and Maryland. In all, we did 63 presentations in 38 different churches. Some of the churches we were in have been supporting the work in Congo for over 60 years going back to Lori’s parents. One church was our first covenanting church and saw us off 33 years ago with a one year old. What a blessing to have church communities standing behind you with such faithfulness. We are most blessed.

Thanksgiving break

We did take a week break at Thanksgiving to fly back to Denver. Andrew, Judy and Amber came in from Seattle so we could celebrate together with Michelle, Jeff and Elliot. David preformed the wedding of Amber’s best friend that weekend in Colorado Springs.

Congolese elections

The Congolese presidential election has just taken place. The Supreme Court has declared Kabila the winner and has inaugurated him for a second term. However, the European Union and the Carter Center have declared that there were anomalies in the election process. The opposition has claimed victory and has inaugurated its own candidate. Pray for a peaceful resolution.

We pray the Lord’s richest blessings for you and your families for the coming year.

Mulungwishi update

2011-10-26T10:59:00.000-04:00

We want to ask your forgiveness for being so delinquent in getting information to you about what is happening at Mulungwishi. We will explain more but first we need to tell you how much we appreciate and count on your prayers and support. Your faithfulness through the years has meant so much to us. During these past months we have really needed your prayers. So let us bring you up to date.

Deaths from measles

When we returned to Mulungwishi in March of 2011, we found the area in the midst of a measles epidemic. Even children that had been vaccinated were affected. Many died mainly because they were so malnourished. Our medical team along with Lori‘s nutritional team worked very hard to treat and revaccinate the children. Doctors Without Borders and World Vision came with extra food that was given to the people. Over the course of five months we were able to work with over 1000 families in the Mulungwishi area. Just as we left in September, our station received a large supply of mosquito nets from the “Nothing But Nets” program and a team is now working to hand those out to the community. Yea!

Education

As always, Mulungwishi and the ministry there continues to work through the different educational programs and we celebrated several graduations. About 70 finished in the High School program and took National Exams. Because of your support, 18 pastors and their wives graduated this year and are now going out to their churches in the southern province of Katanga in Congo. As we have said many times before, we never know with the political and economic situation whether we will get to graduation or not? It is always a miracle! The Lord is faithful and you have been a part of that!

Family visit, safari

Along with graduation at the end of June, we were thrilled to have Lori’s cousin, Danita, and her husband, David, come out to visit us. They are the first members of our families to visit Mulungwishi. For years, Danita has wanted to come to Africa and see what Uncle Woodie was doing. It was a great celebration at Mulungwishi because the niece of the founder of the Seminary had come for a visit. The local chief was also happy with their visit because his family had been involved with Lori’s parents. Having them there for graduation was very special. Danita worked on sewing projects with the graduates. David and Danita gave out the diplomas to the 18 graduating pastor and their wives. After graduation, David and Danita treated us to a safari to see animals and Victoria Falls. It was so much fun and a blessing! We looked upon it as our "honeymoon" celebration for our 40th anniversary this August!

VIM teams

Mulungwishi was also happy to host two VIM Teams from the El Paso area and the North West Texas Conference. As usual, these Teams were able to minister and bring their talents and gifts to the community. They were blessed and awed by the Church in Congo and the vitality they experienced. The NW Texas Team was able to participate in the University graduation of over 150 students in IT, education and SISCO Systems. A great celebration!

News roundup

2011-07-04T16:46:00.007-04:00

Below is a collection of links to widely varied articles related to the D.R. Congo. Some give hope, some evoke sadness. Continued prayers are needed for the DR Congo -- for its leaders, for its women, for its children, and for its future.

Indoor air pollution - a Congo killer (a 2007 article, but still important)
Haunted by Congo Rape Dilemma (BBC, 2010)
Electronics fuel unspeakable violence (CNN, Sept. 2010)
Rape in war: the time for 'never again' is now (Oct. 2010)
DR Congo improves education, child survival (Oct. 2010)
Congolese women refuse poverty (Nov. 2010)
Illegal mining continues (Feb. 2011)
Open air justice in DR Congo (Feb. 2011)
50 million people lack clean drinking water (Mar. 2011)
New pneumonia vaccine gives hope for youth (Apr. 2011)
Kiss of life for DR Congo Pygmies (Apr. 2011)
Sowing seeds of food security (May 2011)
Conflict minerals in the DRC (UMC video)
Can rainforests survive logging? (BBC)
Lack of forest management leads to violence (May 2011)
Ebola - A disease with no cure
Rape, death, and the media (Jun. 2011)
Measles outbreak (Jun. 2011)

African Land Grabs report

2011-06-22T14:14:00.000-04:00

Land issue still hot

2011-04-03T00:36:00.001-04:00

We would like to ask you to pray this during the next couple of weeks especially for our land situation. Inspite of having all the documentation, there are still parties claiming mining rites on our property. Dr. Kasap, President of the University, will be going to Lubumbashi this next week to meet with the Minister of Mines to get this situation ironed out. God is faithful.

We also found two interesting articles on BBC pertaining to the mineral situation in Congo. "Kenya & D.R. Congo to Probe Gold Smuggling" on March 4th, 2011. Also, "Can Conflict Minerals Really be Controlled?" on March 29th, 2011. This second article brings in the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform which we applaude the Congress and Administration for passing as a step in the right direction to bring a halt to the violence in Congo.

Thank you for standing with us.

DR Congo 'gold smugglers' arrested in Goma (Mar. 4)
DR Congo lifts ban on mining gold tin and coltan (Mar. 10)

Arrived in Congo

2011-03-30T09:48:00.002-04:00

Arrived in Congo on Sunday afternoon with only an hour and a half at the border. No problems. Praise the Lord!

The work team that was to be there were held up in London so we had a good night's sleep. They came in on Monday.

We drove up to Mulungwishi on Tuesday and received a warm welcome. So good to be back in our own bed.

Thanks for all the prayers.

A fast note...

2011-03-24T15:42:00.000-04:00

We had a good trip. No problems with customs at Lusaka. Got all the bags OK and we drove up to the Copperbelt. Staying with friends. Go up to Congo on Saturday or Sunday.

Fall 2010 to March 2011

2011-03-22T22:38:00.007-04:00

The following is sort of a time line of our happenings.

Kentucky, Tennessee, Texas, Denver

From mid September to November we traveled in Kentucky and Tennessee speaking and ended up going home through Texas. As we wrote, right after we arrived back, Baba Ngoi passed away. He was such a part of our lives and ministry, we will miss him. We arrived home in time to welcome David’s brother John and Dagmar, and son Luke, and Andrew and Amber from Seattle for Thanksgiving.

Of course the main attraction was Michelle and Jeff’s little Elloitt! Or "Mr. Elliott" as everyone calls him! He had lots of attention and it was a great family time. What a delight to have this first grandson join our family. Thank you Lord for this child.

Congo sadness

Right after Thanksgiving, we were broken hearted to learn that the oldest daughter of Rev. Kandolo had died due to medical complications. Irene had been married less than a year and also had had a miscarriage. She had been a friend of Michelle’s and we had watched her grow up. It was very hard for Rev. Kandolo, as he could not return from Canada, where he is studying. Please keep them in prayers.

December in California

December we were privileged to attend a fellow missionary‘s son’s wedding in California. The Wolford family has had two generations of missionaries in Congo with our family. It was good to be with everyone again. Steve and Debbie’s first son Brian was married to Ashley. From CA, we flew to Seattle to spend time with Andrew and his girl friend, Judy, and Amber. We had a great time being with them and meeting more of their friends and surroundings.

Shingles attack Lori

However, during our time there, Lori spent two days in the ER with chest pain and was diagnosed with shingles. Not a fun thing! Shingles put a damper on Christmas but we all had fun and enjoyed Mr. Elliot’s first Christmas. We were joined by Jeff’s parents and brothers and family. Of course, Mr. Elliott had no idea what all the presents meant but he seemed to enjoy all the special attention and the colors and lights! He even examined Santa’s beard and smiled for all! Both holidays were such a blessing with our families.

Sadly, right at New Years, Lori’s cousin Max, (on her Dad’s side) passed away in Texas, so we flew to Dallas. It was a good celebration of his life and special time for the family.

Lori's health

As time went along, instead of feeling better, Lori felt worse and ended up with pneumonia! This stopped all travel plans for return to Congo. We felt mowed down by all this! So now we are on the other side of all this illness and writing to let you know that the GBGM has cleared us to return.

Back to Congo!

Praise The Lord! We will be flying out on March 22nd. Keep us in your prayers as we return and resume our responsibilities and continued health for us. We have to say that being with Mr. Elliott has been so special and to watch him grow and respond. We have been blessed with our family!

We continually thank the Lord for you and the way you have loved, encouraged and stood with us through this time. Thank you for your notes and cards of encouragement. We will try to communicate better in the months ahead. At the same time we still like hearing from you and we continue to keep you in our prayers.

Mulungwishi brochure

2011-03-22T21:35:00.012-04:00

David and Lori have sent along a copy of the new "Faces of Mulungwishi" brochure for the Mulungwishi mission station in the D.R. Congo.

It's in PDF format and 906K in size. We will also link it on the "About Us" page.

Faces of Mulungwishi brochure

You may also note from the web address of the PDF above tghat we are now using Microsoft's Skydrive for storing our files such as this. Microsoft gives us up to 25GB of storage and we can make varied files viewable by everyone.

2010 flew by

2011-01-22T22:32:00.003-05:00

“Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever.” (Hebrews 13:8)

Wow, another year has gone by and 2011 is here! We pray that your Christmas time was blessed for you and yours. We want to reflect on the Lord’s faithfulness to Mulungwishi through the years. We praise Him for the miracles when we thought things looked very bad but He is faithful! When we look at what Congo has gone through, with the turmoil, the wars and the tragic loss of life, it is amazing how instead of fading away the Church has gained strength and despite the difficulties had gone forward with hope and faith. This was exemplified in the theme for the Centennial Celebration of the United Methodist Church in Congo this past July. Yes! We celebrated 100 Years of mission and growth! The Hebrews verse above was the theme for the Celebration and showing their faith for the future in a never changing God!

A great Centennial

The Church leadership did a good job of planning for the Centennial. We have written bits on the blog. It started in Lubumbashi with guests from Switzerland, the States and Church leadership from around Africa. Thousands paraded through the streets of the city coming for 5 hour celebration service outside the Jerusalem Church. All the stops were pull out with dancing, singing, speeches, preaching and worship. It was a blessing to hear reports of how God used different people to bring about the growth in the Church. Two days later, the venue moved to Mulungwishi for the Church celebration and Annual Conference. More than a thousand people were involved. We realized that our families have been a part of the Lord’s work here for the past 74 years!

Again, we look to that verse and see the Lord leading during a very unsettling time for Mulungwishi as He lead us to discover that land taxes had not been paid for over 50 years!! Help!! The University had planned an evaluation and visioning study. Two Congolese gentlemen came down from Kinshasa to do this study. They were excellent at evaluating the situation and the needs for the future. In discussions they realized that the Church and the mission at Mulungwishi had not paid a tax due every 25 years. The Lord brought them at a critical time as mining concessions and diggers were all over Mulungwishi’ s land even though we tried to chase them away! Quickly, Dr. Kasap, our University President, went down to Lubumbashi and started the process of how much and what to do. As we wrote in the blog, things came together quickly and we realized how much the Lord uses our partners. Praise the Lord for the way we received a loan from the Swiss Church and then Churches, individuals, GBGM and GCFA came through to insure the land title for Mulungwishi! The leadership now has all the papers!! He is Lord from the past who started the work at Mulungwishi! He brought us the two gentlemen and all His people in the nowto meet the crisis! Through this, the Lord is leading to the future, in giving us a way to keep our land! Again He is never changing and faithful!

Congo Minister of Higher Ed a blessing

Another person God has used for Mulungwishi has been the Minister of Higher Education in Congo, Dr. Mashako. He has made several visits to the station and has helped with paper work and red tape to keep the University developing. Minister Mashako encouraged the leadership to think about adding a School of Agriculture which the leadership is working on now!! He was traveling around the country evaluating university level institutions. He closed many who were non- viable. In our case, he saw us as a shining example of what a private university should be in serving Southern Congo. Again, God brought the right person into our midst to enable us to keep the University open! The Minister was so excited about the land, the history of Mulungwishi, and its outreach through the years. He was pleased to see the ongoing education and pushing us to plan for the future! Again we see the Lord in the past, the present and the future and He does not change!

Looking ahead in 2011

This year will complete our time in Africa on this contract. We will be returning this fall to itinerate in our supporting churches. We anticipate six months of itineration and then return to Congo. We will then return to the States for six months itineration next year. So we hope to see and visit many of you in the near future. It will also give us the opportunity to strategize for the future in the work we are doing together in Africa.

Prayer is important

Prayer is so important to bring the relationship between churches in Congo and the US. People, there, always say how much it means to them that you are praying for them. We ask you to pray with us for the following:

Our health and travel
The Congo and the leadership, resolutions of the terrible mining practices
Those in ministry at Mulungwishi, the Women’s School, the University, the Primary and Secondary Schools and the medical
Two work teams coming to Mulungwishi

Finally, we want to celebrate with you all the goodness and mercy the Lord has given us this past year, the hope and joy the Christ Child brings us. The knowledge that our Lord is the same yesterday, today and tomorrow is such a comfort in this world that seems so often out of control! It is He, who is faithful and He will lead if we are open and willing. You are part of all of this by your faithfulness over the years. Thank you so much for wanting to be a part of what the Lord is doing and we praise Him for who He is! We continue to pray the Lord’s richest blessings for you in this New Year.

December prayer focus

2010-12-04T11:39:00.002-05:00

During December, please

Pray for Mulungwishi life -- a community of diverse tribal groups.
Pray for our personal family -- David, Lorene, Michelle & Jeff, Andrew & Amber.
Pray for our personal support and well-being.
Pray for us as the Lord's representatives to the Congolese church.

Your support through prayer, encouragement, and funds has let us serve at Mulungwishi for over 30 years! We are grateful for the privilege.

Since September ...

2010-12-04T11:17:00.007-05:00

Greetings from Denver. We closed things up at Mulungwishi, said goodbye to Zorro, the cat, and Isaiah, the parrot. We went through Zambia on our way to the States. While there, we are taught for two weeks at the Kafakumba Pastors’ Training Center. It is much like the conference course of study. These are lay pastors who are serving churches and come in for 4-6 weeks a year for training. After 8 years they are ordained as Elders. Lori taught a class to the women on Wesley. David classes were on Contextualization, the Holy Spirit and the Kingdom of God.

Grads go out into the world

As we left, our graduating class were receiving their designations from the Annual Conferences and were leaving to begin their ministry. Please be in prayer for them as they travel. Many will spend several weeks getting to their appointments. Pray also for their congregations. Several are going to areas that have been devastated by the conflicts in the region. Pray that the Lord will use these graduates to bring God’s good news of forgiveness, peace and reconciliation.

First grandchild

We arrived back in the States on September 19th. Seeing our first grandchild, Elliot, was such a thrill. A few days later, David left to begin itineration in Kentucky. Lori joined him two weeks later. Grandma time is very special.

Kentucky and Tennessee church visits

October and the first half of November found us in our churches in Kentucky and Tennessee. The old Toyota cruised on for another 7,800 miles before we got home. We shared some 44 times in 29 churches or venues. These numbers don’t mean much compared with the personal contact that we had with a great number of you who shared your love for us and the Lord’s work. Truly we are all spoiled being chosen by God to receive his love and share it with the world we live in.

Sanki

We want to share about Sanki. He is a young man that God brought into our lives when he was in high school at Mulungwishi. We helped to support his studies in high school and at university. While at the University, he was part of the Disciple Bible Study. After graduating, he taught at the English Speaking School of Lubumbashi, a United Methodist institution.

From there he went to Africa University where he has just completed his masters in Governance and Conflict resolution. His master’s thesis focused on the plight of women in the northeastern part of the Congo which has seen horrible abuse of women and use of rape as a weapon of war. He spent several weeks in that part of the Congo studying the situation. He found that there are many aid groups there doing a tremendous job ministering to the women who have been abused. Unfortunately, very little is being done to address the cause of this suffering. The international community as well as the government and bordering countries have to make a conscious decision that this is unacceptable and do something about it. Unfortunately, the greed for the mineral wealth and its use in our technology is fueling these conflicts.

Be in prayer for the Congo that the Lord’s peace and justice will come. Be in prayer also for Sanki as he has now returned to Congo and is seeking what the Lord has for him.

Passing of a special person

2010-10-06T22:18:00.003-04:00

We want to share about a very special person in the life of our family who passed away on Thursday. Baba Ngoy's life was one of service to God by his ministry to missionaries. He worked in the house for a number of them at Mulungwishi. Mom Bartlett taught him to cook and his prowess in the kitchen became renown. Many a work team and visitor will attest to that. Jeff, our son-in-law said that he baked the best apple pie he had ever eaten. He was our cook and our right hand man for over 30 years until a year ago.

We could not have done the work we have been doing at Mulungwishi without him. Managing the house and having meals ready for us allowed us the freedom to do the work we needed to do. There was always that twinkle in his eye when he baked a cake especially for David or hid the cookies from some of the single missionaries so they would not finish them all!

But Baba was more than a cook. He was an integral part of our family. When things were complicated, we would ask his council and help. When one of the children was a toddler, he prayed to Baba Ngoy in our prayer time! He reflected God' s love to them. Our children saw him as a grandfather. How many times when the kids couldn't get things out of us, they would go to Baba Ngoy and he would look over at us, smiling, to see what we wanted him to do! Our cats, parrots and plants all knew his loving touch. Our house is like grand central station at the mission.

So many problems and delicate situations come through the door. We are sure that Baba overheard so many private issues. He kept them to himself. He stood with us through the good times and the very hard times. Whenever we had to leave Mulungwishi, either for furlough or evacuation because of political unrest, Baba Ngoy would move into the house and keep everything going and welcome us back.

His place at our table is now empty, but we can still hear his laugh and his influence in our lives will always be there.

October prayer focus

2010-10-02T22:30:00.009-04:00

During October, please pray for the Development and Agriculture Program. Pray for Director Mwenze, the staff, and local farmers.

This vital program helps local people improve their farming skills.

News roundup

2010-09-18T13:56:00.002-04:00

A round-up of links to United Methodoist news related to the D.R. Congo.

Congo church builds up abused youth (UMNS)
Congo Child Soldiers Rebuild (UMTV)
Methodist University seeks donations to repay land title loan (UMNS)
Congo church brings joy to the world (UMNS)
UM Volunteer starts adoption agency (video)
African churches seek equal voice (UMNS)
Malaria ravages poor in Kasungami (UMCom video)
The essence of Congo (video of a sung joyous communal prayer)

September prayer focus

2010-09-05T20:26:00.001-04:00

During September, please pray for the Nutrition Program -- the staff and children. This program provides food and nutrition for the preschool children on the mission station plus to malnourished children from the surrounding community.

This important program touches the lives of about 200 children on a continuing basis.

School out of reach for some

2010-08-28T12:58:00.010-04:00

It is that time of year again. School has finished, report cards handed out and preparations for the next academic year are in progress. We have had a steady stream of children coming to show us with pride their report cards. You should see the smile on their faces. Here comes the hard question they ask, “Will I be on the list again this next year?” The answer to that question resides in the response we have from our friends.

Parents have to pay for school

Two days ago, a handicapped woman using a crutch came to see us. She has been widowed for several years and comes from another part of Congo. She had heard that our part of the country was having an economic boom and so she moved to the city 100 miles to the south of us. With the down turn in the economy and cost of the city she decided to leave and came as far as Mulungwishi a year ago. She feels that in this rural setting she can make a life for herself and her three children. The children have not gone to school for the last three years because she did not have the funds. The money she had saved for a new crutch she is putting to insure that maybe one of her children can go to school. I told her that we would see to it that two children could go to school this year.

Scholarships help

Last year, the response was unbelievable and we thank the Lord for it and each one of you. We were able to educate some 250 children in grades 1-12. The numbers are overwhelming for us. We therefore created a scholarship committee to handle this wonderful problem. The committee consists of the principles of the two elementary schools and the high school with which we are working. There are also teachers from each institution and community workers from the village. They are the people who are closest to the students, their families and their community. They are so much better equipped to assess the needs of each student. The group started by putting down the criteria for students to be included on the list. Top priority is given to orphans. Next are those with only one parent or those with severe poverty. The lists will be coming out with the names of the students we can help.

Low cost for a crucial need

School fees this year are about the same as last year with elementary costing about $50 a year per student and $75 for high schoolers. More than half the school fees go to paying the teachers who are in financial difficulty because the government is not paying them what they should. So these fees do more than just help the child but also the teachers and the whole educational makeup of the area.

How to help

This program was the initiated by Valery Whitfield, wife of Bishop Max Whitfield of the New Mexico and North West Texas Annual Conferences. Therefore all gifts for this project should be channeled through the New Mexico Annual Conference. Please send your gift made out to NMAC (New Mexico Annual Conference) with the designation, "Congo children’s education" and send it to:

Cathy Anderson, Treas.
New Mexico Annual Conference
11816 Lomas Blvd. NE
Albuquerque, NM 87112

Again, thank you for making this blessing happen last year and let’s see what the Lord does this year.

Mulungwishi schools for kids slideshow

August prayer focus

2010-08-01T00:17:00.019-04:00

For August, pray for the Clinic -- for Dr. Napolean, head nurse Alfred, staff, and patients. Please pray for the clinic as it serves the needs of 20,000 people within a 25-mile radius of the local community.

Medical care includes a full maternity program, health administration, satellite clinics, and a vaccination outreach by bicycle!

July news - Centennial

2010-07-31T16:44:00.007-04:00

The big event in July is the Centennial. Praise the Lord for 100 years of Methodist presence in this Katanga Province of the Democratic Republic of Congo. We might add that it is also the year for the centennial of the Roman Catholic Church in this area and the 50th anniversary of Congo’s independence. There is a lot of celebrating going on.

The Methodist celebration took part in two phases. The first was in Lubumbashi on the 9-11th of July. This celebration was the more high profile one that included invitations to all the political, social and religious personalities in the province. From our Methodist family:

Representatives from Connexio (the Swiss Board of Missions)
4 members of the Board of Church and Society
a delegation from the Pacific Northwest Annual Conference
Bishop Max Whitfield (NM and NW Texas)
The Bishops of Uganda and Zimbabwe and the Bishop of the ECC (the Congolese Protestant Council).
The General Board of Global Ministries chose us to be their representatives for the occasion (Bishop Katembo joked that we were the president of the Board for a few days).

Activities in Lubumbashi started on Friday with a symposium of authors from the Congolese Methodist Church who put together a book on the history of the UMC in the region, its present state, and its future outlook. The session was very well received and the Bishops felt that the book spoke to issues pertinent to other parts of the continent. Later there was a cultural event in which tribal drummers and dancers took part.

Bartlett Memorial UMC

Saturday began with the dedication of a new church building in one of the suburbs of Lubumbashi. To our great surprise this lovely church was dedicated and named the "Bartlett Memorial United Methodist Church". We did not know it, but Mom and Dad Bartlett had bought the land for the church just before they left for their retirement in 1985. In the afternoon, a boys’ orphanage constructed with funds from the Pacific Northwest Annual Conference was dedicated. In the evening we attended a concert of the different church choirs of Lubumbashi.

Marching to an outdoor 5-hour service

Sunday’s service was a real celebration. The theme was "Jesus Christ, the same yesterday, today and forever" (Heb 13:8) Groups started marching from three starting points around the city and joined for the service at the main church. The service was held outdoors because of the number of people attending. Bishop Whitfield said that he had never sat through 5 hour service before. It did not seem that long because of all the celebration going on. It was a real tribute to what the Lord had done in this past century and how he has used missionaries and Congolese to build His Kingdom in this part of the world.

Mulungwishi focus

The second phase was held at Mulungwishi starting on Tuesday the 13th. This celebration was more geared for the United Methodist community. The day started with a visit to the graves Bishop John and Ellen Springer. They are the couple who started the Methodist work here in this part of the Congo. Joab Mulela (a pioneer pastor with the Springers) and the Bartletts (Lori’s parents) are buried next to the Springers. The worship service was again held outdoors because of the crowd. Bishop preached a wonderful sermon on the theme. This time the service only lasted four hours. Many of the local chiefs were in attendance. On our part being representatives of GBGM we had to say something. Naturally, we brought greetings from the GBGM. As the senior missionaries in the conference we wanted bring more than greetings. Our families in one way or another have been a part of the work in Congo on a continuous basis since 1936. There was a lot of appreciation for what our predecessors had done.

Reconciliation

We also felt that we had to say that missionaries were humans and had made mistakes. We wanted to take the opportunity to ask forgiveness of the community for the wrongs of the past. Bishop Katembo in the name of the church offered that forgiveness and in turned asked for forgiveness from the church for wrongs committed towards the missionaries. It was a great moment of reconciliation to close out a century and move into the next. That evening was the opening session of Annual Conference which continued on for the next three days.

A century of sharing the Good News

In reflection on what the Lord has done during this past century, our hearts are filled with praise for what he has done. We have known in our life time many of these pioneers. They were heroes and grandparents to us and yet so very human. How the Lord used them to implant His church and bring His good news in this region goes beyond imagination. We are both humbled and overwhelmed by His grace. Indeed we have been privileged to be a part of this and we are most grateful. Join with us in thanking the Lord for his faithfulness.

Graduation at Mulungwishi

2010-07-25T17:19:00.013-04:00

June 26th ... what a momentous occasion ... graduation at the University! We thank the Lord for once again bringing us through the year. Since its establishment in 1951, we have not missed a graduation and it is a tribute to his grace and caring to train His ministers to labor in His fields and now also other young people to take their place in rebuilding the Congo. There were 34 graduates in Information Technology, 14 from Theology, 3 in Psychology and 15 from the Women’s School.

Packed in

The place was packed with so very many parents and friends, who were so proud of their young people. The Provincial Minister of Secondary and Primary Education and also the District Commissioner represented the government. The government is very positive towards the work that is being done here at Mulungwishi.

Spontaneous joy

After each graduate from a certain school received his/her diploma, they gathered at the front of the church and family and friends ran down to congratulate them. Africa’s spontaneous joy was overflowing. Baby powder has taken the place of white lime powder as a symbol of success, peace and joy. Powder was everywhere. We wish you could have seen it.

David gave graduation message

David had the privilege of preaching the graduation message. He shared how God had used individuals throughout history to build His Kingdom. To close, David challenged those students in this centennial year who wanted to give their lives to God to use them in whatever way He wanted to stand. Many graduates and even some in the audience stood. Truly it was a sacred moment. The District Superintendant closed with prayer.

Prayer for the future

Join in that prayer for the Holy Spirit to continue to work in these young people’s lives to be the Lord’s agents in the seeing the Lord’s will done on earth as it is in heaven. Many of you can also thank the Lord for the way He has used your prayers, gifts and love to enable all of this to come about.

July prayer focus

2010-07-03T11:34:00.000-04:00

During this month, take time to pray for the Masters of Leadership program at Mulungwishi.

The program includes visiting professors, church and secular leaders and provides adult learning by extension. The Masters in Leadership Program brings needed skills to church and secular leaders in the region.

Land issue status

2010-06-29T22:47:00.006-04:00

The Lord is so GOOD! Here is the follow up on the land issue. It is a beautiful picture of how the body of Christ is coming together to help Mulungwishi in our time of need.

The Swiss connection

First of all, Connexio (the Swiss Methodist Mission Board) responded to Bishop’s appeal by sending $40,000 immediately as a loan so that we could get the issues taken care of. We then wanted the property surveyed and staked out since there has been so much encroachment on the land. This was done and the survey included all of the mountain in our property. New markers were placed around the property. It was then on to the negotiating process with the government title company. Long story short, it was settled for $37,000. Other expenses brought the total to about $40,000. The money was paid and we hope that within a couple of weeks the new titles will be in our hands. We are so thankful for so many of you praying.

Huge loan to pay off

Now comes the time to bring our financial resources together to pay off the loan. The GBGM is looking into what they can do. A number of friends and churches have contacted us and want to help. One person has put together an article for the Eastern PA Annual Conference paper. Others are contacting friends. It will be exciting to see how the Lord is going to bring this all together.

Status of land title woes

2010-06-22T21:40:00.001-04:00

The United Methodist News Service (UMNS) has added an article by Linda Bloom, "Congo Seminary Struggles to Renew Land Title".

The article summarizes the problem as well as the current status: While a loan from Swiss United Methodists has eased the fear of the land being taken, there is now a huge $22,000 debt.

June Prayer Focus

2010-06-01T23:39:00.001-04:00

During June, pray for the Katanga Methodist University ... for President Dr. Kasap, faculty, staff, and students. The university, created in 2002, added Schools of Information Technology and Education to the existing Methodist Seminary.

The university provides an opportunity to train young people in a Christian setting while helping them get the skills they will need to become leaders in the new D.R. Congo.

Urgent appeal!

2010-05-27T22:32:00.005-04:00

During the last week we were visited by an evaluation team from the Church of Christ in Congo (the equivalent of our National Council of Churches). We had contracted with them to do an evaluation and strategic planning for the University and the mission station. This evaluation was generously paid for by Connexio (the Swiss Mission Board). The most critical assessment that was found was that the titles for the land at Mulungwishi were out of date.

According to the law, the titles need to be renewed every 25 years. Nobody at the University, the mission or the Church at large knew of this regulation. The last negotiations about the land date from the late 1950s when my father was the Legal Representative for the Church to the Belgian colonial government. Since then, nothing has been done by the church with regards to the property. So we find ourselves having missed three renewals (1959, 1984 and 2009). Part of this problem is our fault for not keeping up with the property laws.

Part is due to procedures falling through the cracks with independence, secession of the province and eight different governments since independence in 1960 of which only one was settled through an election process.

Help prevent a takeover

The evaluation team told us to get working on this matter right away because churches in the capital, Kinshasa, have lost their property or have had to pay heavily in court because others have bought the property out from under them after the time had expired. This is particularly dangerous for Mulungwishi because of the minerals that people are trying to extract from our property. Already there are 15 operational pits being mined on the Mulungwishi hill by diggers (freelance prospectors). There is a real fear that a mining company will come in and purchase the land; we could loose the entire complex, have to rent our own buildings or get into a very expensive legal battle.

$45,000 cost!

Because of the urgency, Dr. Kasap, President of the University, came to Lubumbashi and has been working with the land title office of the government. Today, we were presented with the bill of some $45,000 that it would cost to have the property completely surveyed, given complete title to the land, pay back renewals and penalties. Dr. Kasap and I took this bill to Bishop Katembo. Bishop has asked me to write this letter on his behalf to all of our partners in the United States and Europe. It is imperative to get this problem resolved as quickly as possible. It is because of the urgency that he is appealing to you as partners. In the meantime, the church here is mobilizing to see what it can do. Also Church and University authorities will be trying to meet with government leaders to see if the figure can be reduced.

Centennial of Methodism in Katanga

On a personal note, we know so many of you and are so humbled by your generous giving through the years. In July, we will be celebrating the Centennial of Methodist work in this Katanga Province of Congo. Mulungwishi has been called the heart and lungs of the Church in this area. The testimony of what the Lord has done through His servants on this property is immense. I dare add my voice to that of Bishop Katembo’s request for help in this circumstance. The future of the training of the leadership of the United Methodist Church in this area would be severely hampered by the loss of the property at Mulungwishi. Would you prayerfully consider a one-time gift for Mulungwishi in terms of an offering of thanks for the Lord’s goodness to us during the last 100 years? At the same time, and most importantly, pray for the Church here as it steps into the next century of involvement in what the Lord is doing on the earth. “It is not by might nor by power but by my Spirit that the Kingdom is built,” says the Lord (my paraphrase)

How to help

Those wanting to send gifts should send them through the Advance Special Program of the United Methodist Church. It should be sent for Katanga Methodist University #14433A with the designation “Mulungwishi Property”.

May prayer focus

2010-05-05T22:33:00.006-04:00

During May, please pray for the Women's School ... for Mama Leone, Mama Kat, the teachers, staff, and students.

The Doris Bartlett Women's School provides education and training for the wives of pastors plus others from the surrounding area.

Photos from the Mama Doris Women's School

Mulungwishi photos added

2010-04-29T15:18:00.000-04:00

I have now completed the scans and posting of photos from the Persons. You may have noticed the changing ones in the mini slideshow in the right column. You can always click on any of those slideshow photos to get to the UMCCongo Flickr account, which has photo albums and the latest photos posted.

Flowers, food, and friendly folks make up the latest additions. Enjoy!

April prayer focus: The Seminary

2010-04-04T20:38:00.000-04:00

The 2010 Mulungwishi Ministry calendar asks us to pray for the Methodist Seminary. The seminary, created in 1951, was the first seminary at university level for the United Methodist Church in French Speaking Africa!

Through the years, Congolese have assumed faculty and staff positions. Today, there are more than 5 PhDs on staff.

Since 1976 women have also entered the ministry. When you look at the growth of the church, you see how these young men and women have faithfully carried out the Gospel message through the years.

Momentous February and March!

2010-03-31T16:53:00.004-04:00

We are back home in Mulungwishi! And sorry we are late getting this off but it has been crazy getting back to our life here!

A very special day!

The first big news is that this March saw a very special day! On David’s birthday our daughter Michelle and husband Jeff presented us with our first grandchild! Elliott Saegar was born by C-section in Denver. We have set up Skype and have been enjoying seeing the precious little boy. We can’t believe this new technology where we can talk and see our children on the internet. The Congolese call this "American witchcraft". Jeff’s parents, Mike and Vickie, are with them helping out. It is also the first grandchild for them. What a blessing to have family present. Our Congolese Family have been dancing and singing to welcome the new baby!

Trip back to Congo

We want to thank you for your prayers for our return. We felt your support and encouragement the whole trip. First of all at the British Air check in, we were helped by one of the counter staff who is Zambian. We have had contact with here before and since we had already checked in on line the night before it went very smoothly for our 18 pieces of luggage. The flight went very well. From London to Lusaka, there were many empty seats we even got to stretch out!
Jeff and Ellen Hoover, missionary colleagues in Congo, met us with our pickup at the airport. We put half the baggage in their pick up and half in ours. They crossed the border into Congo the next day without trouble with the baggage. We ended up spending almost two weeks in Zambia trying to get the car fixed and buy supplies for us and a medical VIM Team coming out in April for Kapanga (a bush medical center about 500 miles from us). Our 4-wheeler double cab has worn well these past 8 years, (plus two years, as it was used), but it takes a beating on these Congo roads!

Border crossing backup

Our border crossing, went well, no problems with baggage, praise the Lord! We crossed into Congo on a Sunday, without incident, and went on to Lubumbashi. At the border, it was a little like Moses crossing the Red Sea ... except it was the parting of ”big semi trucks”! There were trucks backed up for 4.75 miles on the Zambian side (some double on each side of the road) and 2.5 miles on the Congolese. In between the two borders,’ No Man’s Land’ there was about 200 plus semis !!! which some had to be moved so we could go through to the other side! The next week, in Lubumbashi, we continued the purchasing for the team and more car repairs! then up to Mulungwishi!! Nothing like a long way home! Good to sleep in our own bed, finally, after many, many miles! Baba Ngoi, Isaiah, the parrot, and Zorro, our 15 year old cat, were glad to see us!

Getting settled again, evicting roaches

We have been swamped getting the house put together again, teaching classes and picking up all the loose ends, after being away. The roaches have set up a hotel here and we are in the midst of a war with them. We are slowly winning. We got two good weeks of classes in and then returned to Lubumbashi for the final purchases for the VIM Team and loading the truck with supplies, medicine, food, fuel, water and nutritional supplements. We ended up with about two tons of stuff! The truck should arrive about a week and half before the team. Be praying for the transport and the equipment and the medical team and their Congolese colleagues as they minister to the sick in a very remote area.

The joy of Easter is upon us

More and more we celebrate the hope of the resurrection that is Easter. Churches in our district, in fact all over the conference, are having special revival meetings this week. In the midst of the difficulties of Congo, the knowledge and assurance that Jesus is Lord. He has risen and we are a part of his resurrection family, give hope in the mission HE has called all of us to, in participating with Him to bring His Kingdom on earth as it is in heaven. Happy Easter! Celebrate his resurrection!

Congo: water, mosquitos, and Malaria

2010-03-07T18:52:00.001-05:00

Rev. Larry Hollon recently posted a blog article about Community-Based Development in [D.R.] Congo in his Church, Culture, and Media blog.

The post mentions the contaminated water and mosquitos in Lumbumbashi plus the need for bed nets. As we head to World Malaria Day in April, we need to realize that the many insecticide-treated bed nets already distributed don't solve the problem. Many more are still needed.

The United Methodist Church is a founding partner of Nothing But Nets, an organization dedicated to wiping out Malaria by providing the insecticide-treated bed nets. These nets don't just keep mosquitos away -- they kill the ones that land on them. Many United Methodist Churches have formed Nothing But Nets fund-raising teams. If you church has not formed such a team, the upcoming "Change the World" program April 24th and 25th is a great time to start.

And in case you were not aware of it, David and Lori continue to periodically have Malaria "flare-ups" after infections from prior years. Lori says she has learned the symptoms and heads to the clinic when they appear.

March prayer focus: High School

2010-03-01T18:54:00.005-05:00

The 2010 Mulungwishi Ministry calendar asks us to pray for Principle Mazembe, the faculty, and the students.

The High School (Institute Kitabataba) educates 600 students from around the region. The High School offers programs specialties in Education, Math, Physics, and Agriculture.

Web site and blog merger

2010-02-12T18:36:00.005-05:00

People with sharp eyes may already have noticed the overnight change of an added horizontal menu. This "blog" is now a full web site for the D.R. Congo Mission at Mulungwishi.

For several years Avondale Pattillo United Methodist Church in Decatur, Georgia, has been gracious enough to host our "regular" web site pages "underneath" their own. This blog then contained just news about the Mulungwishi ministries. But the plan all along was to eventually have a separate web site just for Mulungwishi.

A big break came recently when Google announced the ability to add "pages" to a Blogger blog in addition to blog postings (articles). So now, this one web site is both a separate web site for the Mulungwishi ministries as well a the news blog for David and Lori. The top horizontal menu links to the information we moved from the Avondale Pattillo UMC site last night.

Please change any bookmarks (favorites) you have to use this web site for D.R. Congo missions at Mulungwishi.

Headed to Congo

2010-02-05T20:56:00.000-05:00

We want to ask you to pray for us as we travel back to Congo on February 6th-14th. It is a little later than we had planned. Towards the middle of January a neighbor gave us a large amount of computer equipment for our CISCO academy at Mulungwishi. We thank the Lord for His provision. So we went to work packing it and sending part of it to a container leaving soon. The rest we will be taking with us. We also thank the Lord for Lakeridge UMC in Lubbock, TX for their generous gift to help us with the shipping. As soon as we get back, we will be involved with the Masters of Leadership program. Be in prayer for this training session. Two of the visiting professors are heads of institutions in Central African Republic and Burundi. It will be good to have them with us and to share together with our staff common challenges that we face. We also want to praise the Lord for so many of you who responded to the need for the children’s education. Money has come in beyond our imagination. All the children signed up will get their education this year, including the three little girls who knelt in our front yard. We thank you for being a such a real part in this partnership with the Lord. It can only be done through His grace. So again, we ask you to continue to labor with us in prayer.

February prayer focus

2010-02-02T20:40:00.000-05:00

The 2010 Mulungwishi Methodist Mission calendar asks us to pray for the Elementary school:

Principal Phillip Mwembo
The faculty
The children

The Elementary School serves about 450 children from the station and the surrounding villages. For many, especially girls, this is the only formal education they will ever get!

January prayer focus

2010-01-23T20:22:00.004-05:00

The 2010 calendar of the Mulungwishi Methodisty Mission - DR Congo asks us to pray for the Pre-School ... Headmistress Mama Esther, the staff, and the children. The pre-school serves over 90 children every day. You can buy the 2010 Mulungwishi calendar, as well as notecards, from: Jeanette Michelin 1230 County Rd., #136 Cheyenne, WY 82009

Christmas message

2009-12-14T12:22:00.003-05:00

Already, we are approaching the Season of Christmas and everyone’s lives are full of plans and special occasions. Wow! It feels like this year passed by faster than ever! As always, our lives seem to involve many miles of travel. Presently, we are back in the States to do more itineration for Bishop Max Whitfield. The North West Texas Annual Conference is in relationship with our Southern Congo Annual Conference. We have been travelling in the Texas Panhandle for the past month and a half. A great treat, as we drive “the flat land of Texas” (Ha!), is being with many of the people that have come out on our Congo Volunteer In Mission (VIM) Teams. They have become part of our Congo’s extended family. Most of the Team’s members have returned two and three times! As, we have shared in our blogs, they have blessed Mulungwishi with their different ministries.

We plan to be in Denver for Christmas with all of our family: Michelle and Jeff, the Seattle two, Andrew and Amber, David’s brother and family (from Chicago) and Jeff’s Family (from Peoria). It will be a special blessing to be all together, for the first time in several years. Getting to be with our family is a great bonus to these speaking trips!

These past few months, we hope that you have kept up with us at Mulungwishi through our blog. When we left the station in mid-October things were buzzing. The University IT program started with 300 students, the School of Education with 50, the Seminary with 40 and the Women’s School 42. There are students in every available corner!

It was so great to have our electricity back and everything back on line including running water! It was so needed to get the academic year started. We started our own classes and left work for the students to do in our absence. Mulungwishi continues to have a strong staff with Dr. Kasap as the President of the University, Dr. Kongolo as the Provost, Dr. Pitchi as the Administrator of the University and Rev. Musalo as the Chaplain. The different schools are headed by Dr. Muntuta in IT, Dr. Kajoba for the Education and David as the Dean of the Seminary. The faculty of the Seminary is filled out with Drs. Nkonge, Kabwit, Jeff and Ellen Hoover as visiting professors. We also have many visiting professors to fill in the needs in the Schools of IT and Education.

Maybe some of you reading this would consider coming to Congo for a short time in order to help teach? Our staff is also comprised of seven with Masters’ degrees. Already, Dr. Kongolo and Rev. Kabange are facilitating courses for the Masters of Leadership Program, with our partnership with Development Associates International in other countries in Africa. The Minister of Higher Education also wants to see the University open a College of Agriculture.

All of our Seminary graduates have reached their designations after long trips and are hard at work. Some of them spent as long as three to four weeks by train, truck, bicycle etc. One of the spouses was very pregnant and we rejoice that she arrived without mishap after a three week ordeal on a train. As we were leaving to return to the States, Rev. Robert Kalau, one of our pastors, phoned to let us know that on that Sunday he was going to baptize some 120 people. Praise the Lord!

Mulungwishi is a strategic place to continue to produce leadership for Congo’s future. It is a privilege to be a part of this adventure. Every day, we are conscious of your daily prayers and faithful support of the work. We know all of this could not happen without the Holy Spirit’s leading, God’s timing and your participation. All we can say is a heartfelt THANK YOU for being a part of GOD’S KINGDOM building.

The beginning of this year, some friends shared a song with us from one of the Gaither Homecoming Videos. The words are by the Gaithers and it is sung to the familiar music of “Finlandia”. We have been touched by the words of this song, “I Then Shall Live“, and throughout these past months have been reflecting on its powerful clear message.

“I then shall live as one who’s been forgiven; I’ll walk with joy to know my debts are paid; I know my name is clear before my Father; I am His child, and I am not afraid; So greatly pardoned, I’ll forgive my brother”. “I then shall live as one who’s learned compassion; I’ve been so loved that I’ll risk loving too; I know how fear builds walls instead of bridges; I dare to see another’s point of view; And when relationships demand commitment, Then I’ll be there to care and follow through”. “Your Kingdom come around and through and in me; Your Power and Glory, let them shine through me; Your hallowed Name, O may I bear with honor; And may your living kingdom come in me; The bread of life, O may I share with honor; and may you feed a hungry world through me. Amen, Amen, Amen”.

Several times this song has brought us up short as we have evaluated our lives and ministry. Do we always walk with the joy that our debts have been forgiven? How readily do we pardon? Every day, do we bear His name with honor?

The Christ of Christmas is the reason we have been forgiven … the reason we can walk with the joy expressed in the song. The Christ of Christmas is the reason we can have compassion and care and commitment. The Christ of Christmas is the reason we are to reflect and help bring His Kingdom here on earth!

This Christmas … through this year … our prayer is that we may all live his love and joy more fully … Live his compassion and forgiveness more freely … clearly … and may we continue to lift up his name and live out his kingdom with honor! Halleluiah! Immanuel, Christ with us! Christmas!

We pray for His Blessings and His Peace for you.

Bookmarks now online

2009-12-12T15:22:00.004-05:00

Mulungwishi prayer cards formatted as bookmarks are now (I can almost hear Lori saying, "Finally!") online. These feature a photo from Mulungwishi, the logo, and a request for prayer.

You can print these and use as bookmarks. If you have a color photo printer, you can open a word processing document, insert a few photos, print, then cut for bookmarks.

Photo paper will give you the best results, as it has a nice glossy coating plus is stiffer than normal paper. The only down-side is that the shiny side of photos don't do well when water or sweaty hands touch them. So some people may prefer to print on thinner paper and then laminate. The choice is yours.

We plan to later post double bookmark photos -- ones designed and sized to print well as a 4"x6" photo. You print that double bookmark, then cut down the middle. Getting the sizes right on those has been tricky, as different printers cut off different amounts of the edges of 4"x6" photos. We'll announce those separately when they are ready.

Local kids plead for school

2009-10-26T23:11:00.000-04:00

We have just arrived back in Denver. We will be here until January. The purpose of our return is to itinerate in the NW Texas Annual Conference for the Seminary and University. The itineration will take us into December. Christmas will be a celebration including a family reunion in Denver. We want to share with you something close to our hearts that we experienced this last month in Congo.

Three years ago, when Bishop Max Whitfield, of the New Mexico and NW Texas Annual Conferences, visited Mulungwishi in the Congo, he saw the need for the education of the children in the villages around the mission station. Because of the poverty, the war and the aids pandemic, many children could not afford to go to school. He brought this burden back with him to the New Mexico Annual Conference. Valerie Whitfield took this burden and challenge upon herself and mobilized the wives of the pastors within the Annual Conference as well as those in the NW Texas Annual Conference to make contributions to this project. In that first year, over $5,000 was raised and over fifty children were able to attend elementary and high school. Last year the program increased to some 90 children. This year, with the economic downturn which has hit our part of the world in a devastating fashion, the need has exploded. We must say that the last couple of weeks we were in Congo were amongst the hardest that we have faced in our ministry these 30 years. It broke our hearts to see children on their knees begging to be put on the list of those who would have their school fees covered. It reminded us of the movie "Shindler's List". Here were children wanting to go to school and their only means of survival was to be included on the list. This is particularly true of the girls who in their society would be married off at the age of 13 or 14 if they were not in school.

After we closed the list, we had three girls for three consecutive days on their knees in our front yard for hours. Every time we came to answer the door for whatever reason, there they were, "Please Sir, put us on the list". We finally called the village pastor to investigate their situation. They were refugees from the war and had been travelling the year before fleeing from the conflict to the north of us. They had been pillaged by the rebels and later on by the government troops. They had made their way to safety and settled with relatives in the village next to Mulungwishi. They were without means. The list provided the one chance for them to go to school this next year. This was too much for us and we included them in on the list.

Long story short, we have over 220 children on the list this year. We have taken this as a leap of faith and compassion for the year. It costs about $50 a year for a child to go to elementary school and $75 to go to high school. Seeing the need as being so great, Valerie has opened the doors to others outside the original circle of pastor's wives who want to participate in this ministry to children to do so. All contributions are run through the New Mexico and NW Texas Conference Offices.

Please be in prayer with us for this project and also for our time in the churches in Texas. Pray that we will be able to faithfully interpret what the Lord is doing in the Congo and the spread of His Kingdom.

Outside view of the Mulungwishi ministry

2009-10-18T19:20:00.002-04:00

The following is a copy of an e-mail written by Tom Stanton, a Trinity-First UMC member of the work team from El Paso. We thought that you would like another point of view of life here at Mulungwishi and what a work team is involved in. “This has been a day where we have experienced in a poignant way the life cycle of the Church in the Congo. Early this morning, Mary Len, Ann, and I met for "morning prayer"; the daily 5 a.m. prayer time in the chapel at the Mission Station. We begin our day with a walk in the dark into the church for energetic song, hand-clapping, scripture reading and a sermon. These two days Mary Len, Ann, and I have sung; both days an arrangement by John Eby. It is profound to me that John, a member of our church family in El Paso, composes and arranges melodies which we share with our brothers and sisters in the Congo. John, with Mary Len's flute, and our voices in harmony we tried to justify your work. Later our team gathered for our team morning prayer/devotional and sharing. Dan, Phil, and Becky headed into the clinic. Both Dr. Dan and Dr. Phil have full days diagnosing patients, making recommendations, and as they grow in their understanding of the range of medical needs in the community, they are dialoguing with the local clinicians on the future of the clinic. It will be exciting to see where that leads us all as the Body of Christ. Ann, Mary Len, and I had a "play date" arranged with about 40 children; 4 years old to about 13. Yesterday and today we met out on a patio to sing, play games, and dance. Now, what is not to like about this "missionary" gig? Ann and Mary Len are an absolute delight and together with the children, language has been no barrier. In fact, the joy and laughter seems all the more profound as we make linguistic connections on each game. Dan and Parvin are working on some much-needed construction. Our Pastor seems to know his way around cement molds, plastering and plumbing. John was pleased to see that several of the plumbing fixes that he creatively attempted two years ago are still holding up. David and Laurie Persons, the Mission couple, still have the only flush toilet within many miles thanks to John's work. The life cycle part of this heading? Beginning at about 1:30 and lasting until 5 p.m. we participated in the funeral and graveside service of a local pastor who died yesterday. We all learn a lot about each other, and where we line up in our faith at a graveside. David Persons translated for us in whispers as the service proceeded in Swahili. We were moved to tears at a point where 30 pastors came forward, including Pastor John to lay hands on the casket as we sang in Swahili the hymn tune, "It is Well With My Soul." So today has given me much to reflect upon, and to give thanks for. On my list is giving thanks to each of you in El Paso who join us in prayer that our journey is safe, and that through our presence, the Lord's plan for his children here and in El Paso is made manifest.”

July-September happenings

2009-09-09T00:39:00.003-04:00

Electricity and water!

We arrived back at Mulungwishi on the 4th after a couple of weeks in Zambia. Guess what we found when we arrived back? Electricity and permanent water! The day we left for Zambia, David paid for the transformer that had just come in from South Africa with the funds we had received from the Governor. During our absence, it was installed. We praise the Lord for His faithfulness and your prayers during this two year ordeal. Thank you for being there with us.

Water system for four villages

Throughout the month of July, the Danes were here at Mulungwishi. You remember that they are the ones who rewired our station in 2003 and reworked the water system in 2006. What a blessing they are. This year, they put in a water system for four villages near the station. How excited the population was (particularly the women) to have water faucets a few yards from each house. Prior to this they were walking for over a mile to get to a source of water which may not have been clean. What a tangible expression of God’s love the Danes shared with the Congolese.

400 at VBS

On the heels of the Danes came a team from the Northwest Texas Annual Conference. Children, children everywhere! Some 400 at Vacation Bible School and what a time they had. Also the girls dormitory got a fresh coat of paint.

Catching up on winding down

Mid-August found us in Zambia getting the car fixed, purchasing school supplies for the Women’s School and visiting friends. It is a blessing to be able to share with others who have the same calling you have. We also took much needed time to relax. Lori worked on a quilt and wrote 40 letters while David read a couple of books.

Theological education in Africa

David made a side trip to Kampala, Uganda to take part in a consultation on theological education in Africa. He was joined by representatives from all the Methodist Episcopal Areas of Africa, GBGM, GBHEM and UMCom. Hopefully, this will begin a much needed interchange between the theological schools in Africa.We are now back at Mulungwishi getting ready for the next school year. We are joined by a work team from El Paso, TX. Some were here a couple of years ago and it is a real joy to have them back. They are the ones who put in our ‘flush toilet’. Now that we have water, they can see that it still works. Isn’t great that we can rejoice over such things as a “flush toilet”? We are asking them also to contribute to the blog about their experiences at Mulungwishi.

Texas, here we come

2009-08-29T11:15:00.001-04:00

We have been in Zambia for a couple of weeks and will return on Monday. We have now purchased our tickets to return to the States to itinerate in the Northwest Texas Annual Conference.

We leave on the 17th of October and arrive in Denver on the 18th.

Burning bricks for the Kingdom

2009-08-27T15:45:00.000-04:00

As we celebrated graduation at the end of June, and watch our graduates go out to their designations, we always feel like parents when their children break from the nest and head out towards the world! It is a happy –sad time and we are always in prayer for our graduates, their families and their ministries. Two years ago, we wrote about our graduates and how far they would travel to reach their designations, and what mode of transport they would use to get there. After we returned this year, we have been contacting some of them and wanted to share their stories … their testimonies.

Considering the continued instability of the country, the economic downturn, which has been very serious for Congo, because of the stop in mining, and the places to which they went, torn by the war and tragedy, they have been living in the midst of miracles! It is with great joy and praise to our Lord, that we share what He has guided them to accomplish! We want to call this “Burning bricks for the Kingdom!”

Rev Kabambe and Mama Ilunga

Rev Kabambe and Mama Ilunga went out to their first church assignment using train, steamboat and bicycles! The journey took three weeks and 250 miles. They were sent to Mulongo where there is a strong Methodist presence. They found a congregation of 250 members and a foundation for a larger Church! With vision and tenacity the Church family is burning bricks for the new sanctuary and also a pastor’s house. They are also trying to raise money for the roofing. Despite having been wiped out during the war, and returning to nothing, people have started to rebuild their lives. At the same time, Rev. Kabambe is teaching at the local extension of the national university in the College of Education. The graduates of Mulungwishi are highly sought after because of their academic preparation.

Mama Ilunga is sharing the knowledge she gained at the Women’s School with the women in the area and hopes to start a women’s sewing center. The Church is also working to organize a local kindergarten. Together, they are doing a great deal of counseling with victims of the Rwandese Rebels. Many women and children were raped and families torn apart and have lost everything because of the conflict. There is also a local radio station and Pastor Kabambe gives a weekly message on forgiveness, reconciliation and peace. So in the midst of devastation the Good News is being shared and lived out through Rev. Kabambe and Ilunga.

Pastor Timothy Numbi Lukengo and Mama Banza

Pastor Timothy Numbi Lukengo and Mama Banza were designated to Kyolo where there was no church building! It took them more than three weeks to get to their appointment using the train, steam boat, canoe and finally bicycles! They found a small and struggling congregation. During this past year, they have built the congregation to 500 and have made a temporary structure in which they are worshipping! Due to the incredible growth, they also are burning bricks in order to build a permanent sanctuary and a parsonage. The North Katanga Annual Conference has also provided 80 sheets of roofing. Pastor Timothy also teaches religion in the public school and classes at the Brethren Bible School.

Mama Banza is teaching women in the area knitting and other skills she learned at the Women’s School. Pastor Timothy is also working in a program of evangelism in partnership with the Church of the Brethren, the other Protestant Church present in the area.

Pastor Robert Kalau and Mama Umba

Several times in our letters we have shared about Pastor Robert Kalau and Mama Umba. They had been on route for more than a month to get to their appointment at Kongolo because the trains were not running as they should. They found a foundation for a large church and the existing Church filled. They went to work burning bricks to continue with the construction. A month later, Bishop moved them to Nyunzu where Robert became the District Superintendent. Again, it took them 7 days, on the back of an old truck, to reach their destination. Their work has been greatly involved with bringing reconciliation in the district because of the conflicts in the region with the Mai Mai rebel group and other armies from Rwanda and Uganda . One of the Mai Mai leaders, who was involved with so much witch craft, has become a Christian and is now the lay leader of one of the churches! Praise the Lord!

Other leaders, challenges

Other churches are being established with other lay leadership. It is difficult to describe the depths of the horror, death and destruction the local people have lived through. Now, with very little, their people are making a comeback! They are mainly building with mud brick and grass roofs , digging new gardens ... and trying to find some way of doing commerce locally including sending produce by train. However, these last three months the trains have not run and the prices of salt and other staples were incredible! Can you imagine having to pay $2 for a small glass of salt! It will take awhile to renew the land but also heal the memories of horror and loss.

The Lord is faithful and just this last week, Robert sent us a message that they had baptized 170 pygmies this past week, from a Church in his district! Besides his ecclesiastic responsibilities, Robert is also teaching at the local university extension in the college of education . Umba is taking nursing courses at the university and teaching women in Churches during weekend.

In each step of the way, we have asked for your prayers and you have been involved with support, encouragement and prayers for these ministers. Isn’t exciting to see more of the Kingdom realized! God through His people is bringing healing, redemption, and New Life! Thank you for being apart and for reaching out to people you do not know but giving in faith!

The reality is that not only are they burning real bricks but these young Pastor families are helping to build the growing members of the Lord's Kingdom! Thank you for praying and being faithful. Keep praying! We give the Lord all the praise and glory!

In the news

2009-07-21T23:40:00.003-04:00

A few recent news media stories related to the DR Congo...

Violence against women (World Council of Churches News Release)
Rapes by Army a growing problem (Human Rights Watch report)
Mineral firms fuel Congo unrest (BBC)
River blindness can be beaten (BBC)

Beware -- email scam

2009-07-10T21:51:00.001-04:00

Two of our faculty members, Kongolo and Nkonge, are in Senegal giving courses in our Masters of Leadership program. While there, they visited a cyber cafe to check their email.

Somehow their email address and passwords were pirated along with their address list. People on their list are now getting fake emails from them saying that they are stranded in London and could money be sent by Western Union. This is a scam.

Both Kongolo and Nkonge are getting new email addresses.

Pastoral student dies

2009-06-22T22:28:00.000-04:00

Yesterday was a difficult day. We lost one of our second year Seminary students to liver cancer. Longesa was complaining of abdominal pains in March and we sent him for an echo[cardiogram] to see what it was. The Doctor diagnosed it as liver cancer. We then sent him to Lubumbashi to see Dr. Delgado, a good friend and 7th Day Adventist Surgeon. After consultation, he did surgery taking out over a third of the liver and a very large tumor (generous gifts from Hobbs, NM were sent for the surgery.) A graduate, Rev. Chal, from last year’s Masters degree, has a Church near Delgado and his congregation helped the family with donations of blood, food and transport. It has been different for us, as the culture here will not tell an individual that he has a terminal disease as they feel this would shock the person and he would die prematurely!

After recovery from the surgery, Longesa returned to Mulungwishi. For several weeks now, he had been going downhill. A week ago, we and the chaplain called in the family to talk with them about the situation and to prepare them for what was to come. We were able to have prayer with the family and with Longesa several times in this past week.

Longesa passed away around midnight on Saturday. His funeral and burial were on Sunday afternoon. Parts of the family and church people from all over the area have come to celebrate his ‘ homegoing’. The ‘kilio’ or wake will be three days. People stay all night and sing and pray. He is the first student that we have had in pastoral student to have died while at school. He is survived by his wife and 8 children. Please pray for them as they face the future.

At the same time, we have lost a sweet good friend, Vicki Owens, a pastor’s wife from Bear, Delaware. She also suffered from liver cancer. Please be in prayer for the Owens family also. We are so grateful for the hope of the resurrection that we have in Christ.

We thank you so much for your continued prayers and we always enjoy hearing from you.

Visit by Minister of Higher Ed

2009-05-26T23:39:00.005-04:00

We want to thank you for your continued prayers and standing with the people of Mulungwishi in the things that are so pertinent to our lives. In the past few weeks, God has done wonderful things in putting pieces together.

Electric hope

In terms of our electricity, the railroad has ended its strike and there is hope that they will be bringing in another transformer to replace theirs that was burned out. We have ordered a new more powerful transformer for the mission station. It is being assembled in South Africa and we should have it in Congo within 6 to 8 weeks.

College of Agriculture too?

The Minister of Higher Education came to visit the Universities in the Province. Mulungwishi was on the agenda. Everything that he was looking for in a University, he found at Mulungwishi. He said, “The hope for Congo and its educational system is found in the private Christian Universities.” He also wanted us to start a college of agriculture. He commented that our library was probably the second or third best in the country. The Minister also visited the graves of Bishop and Mrs. Springer, who started the Methodist work in this part of the Congo, Mom and Dad Bartlett and Congolese pastors.

Lori destined for TV?

The Women’s School was a revelation to him and he insisted that Lori be interviewed for national television. Over supper, David gave a speech outlining Mulungwishi’s past, present and future. He mentioned the problems of miners wanting to take over the Mulungwishi hill with the cross. That hill is a symbol to the Christian community and an historical site containing the caves where Msiri, a chief who opposed the Belgians, hid during the colonial period. Below the hill is the underground river which is the source of the station’s water supply. David also mentioned the abandoned farm across the road which belongs to the state mining company. Since the minister is pushing us to open a college of agriculture, this farm would be ideal for this project and could the government give it to us. The minister wanted to take all this information and take it back to the capital to the members of the Cabinet.

Be in prayer

We have put together dossiers on the hill, the farm, accreditation for our Masters of Leadership and also accreditation for the College of Public Health at our extension in Kamina. Dr. Kasap, the President of the University, and Bishop Ntambo have flown to Kinshasa to present these dossiers to the various Ministers concerned. Be in much prayer that the Lord would intervene and give us grace in the eyes of the authorities.

More photos

2009-05-18T18:00:00.007-04:00

I've completed scanning and posting of the 2008 Graduation period photos. Also, Esther, a volunteer from Switzerland, was kind enough to mail a CD of some photos from her visit to Mulungwishi in July and August, 2008.

The photos are mostly about the Nutrition Program, Doris Bartlett Women's School, and of children, but there are a few others. Included in the newly posted photos are ones of kids at Fungurume, a town about 18 miles from the Mulungwishi campus.

David says, "It will soon be a boom town. There are fantastic copper and cobalt deposits and they are just beginning the production. The big investors are Phelps Dodge out of Phoenix. They have just been bought out by Freeport. But it is an impressive setup and one that would make Americans proud. They really care about safety and the environment. I won't go into details, but it is mining done right and with concern for the population."

Post-Easter news

2009-04-18T23:41:00.003-04:00

We have just celebrated Easter and we rejoice in the truth of our risen Lord! What a hope we have. Our local Mulungwishi Church celebrated with special music and baptisms of three babies, eleven children, and thirteen adults and then received thirty-two into membership.

Lori's aunt died

This Easter was particularly meaningful to us as a family this month. We lost Lori’s Aunt Joan on Palm Sunday. She was Lori’s mother’s younger sister and died at the age of 86. Aunt Joan was like a second mother to Lori, particularly when she was separated from her parents when they were in Congo. All through the years she has been encouraging and always had good counsel. She was a wonderful person and we will surely miss her. On Easter Sunday evening, Lori’s second cousin on her father’s side, Kyle, passed away from cancer. She has been battling this for several years. She was in her 40’s and leaves behind her husband and three children. It has been a hard week for the Family. Truly the resurrection brings us hope in the midst of these losses. As Paul says, “Death where is your victory?”

Internet access is intermittent

We also need to catch you up on several items that we asked you specifically to pray about. We have to explain that even though we now have Internet in our home, it does not always work! Smile! Also, we need the generator running … sometimes we think the Internet runs when the power is not on and stops when we put the power on! So we are not always able to keep up with your emails. Keep praying for patience! Wish we could send our parrot, Isaiah, to tell you about everything because he picks things up and makes comments all the time!

Bandits may be under control

First, our concern with the armed bandits that had come on the station several times and have beaten people and stolen their money. Part of the problem, was one of the local chiefs, who was also the police chief for the area, and has a real alcoholic problem. He had come on to the station, out of his head with all kinds of accusations and didn’t make sense at all. He was angry and threatening to anyone who tried to help him. As he got angrier and he said he was calling for soldiers to come and destroy the station and also he wanted to shoot our Dean Emeritus, Dr. Kajoba! Finally he left. It was that night that the first bandits came on the station. So there was a real sense that his people were behind it. The following day police from outside the area came to make an investigation and we called in all the local chiefs and explained what happened. They were appalled and that evening he was arrested and removed. It put everyone in a state of insecurity as we have not had to deal with people with arms before. The District Commissioner and head of the police came and brought a new police chief. We have two policemen, patrolling with arms, on the station and we also have students patrolling from time to time. Things seem to have quieted down but we remain vigilant. Thank you for your concerns and prayers. We trust these were isolated incidents.

Electricity problems

Our second and more complicated problem is that of electricity. The Train Company remains on strike! As you know, our own newer transformer was blown. Then from time to time we were lent one from the Train Company … paying rent for a lesser one and yet it was their fault that ours blew! Then with poor maintenance the small transformers blew also! We need a new one, with more power, than before, as the University keeps growing! We wrote all this up as a project, as well as construction for new dormitories. This project was presented to the Governor of Katanga in mid-February. He gave the order that we be given $50,000 for the project ($25,000 for the transformer and $25,000 for the construction). Will wonders never cease! However, knowledge of his letter and his gift was kept from us by his staff for several weeks. Finally, we got the message! Yea! Dr. Kasap, the President of the University, went to Lubumbashi to follow up on this and get the money. It took him a month to get it! (Kind of like paperwork in our government! ) The lower echelon of government people were not interested in parting with so much money if they did not get something also! Dr. Kasap held firm and didn’t lose his cool but persistently kept pushing to get the money. They cooked up many hurdles to get through! (Someday, we should write a book!) They finally had the money for him. Praise the Lord for answered prayer and using people we did not expect help from!! In a real concrete way, He is bringing light into our darkness!!! We are now working with engineers and people in South Africa, to order the best transformer that fits our needs. Our guess is that it will take two to three months to get it!! Also, we have to have the Train Company up and running and work with the Electric Company. This will mean more leg work and paperwork and getting the right people to work on installing! Keep praying!

Everyday news

On the everyday home front, we keep teaching classes and answering the hundred needs at the door. With the world financial crisis, people, here, are struggling even more than before, if that is possible! The mining groups have closed most of their places for now, waiting for copper to go back up! Soooo much malnutrition and children hurting for help! Thank you, to all those who keep the nutrition program going.

Prayer request

Again, we want to thank you for your continual prayer support during these difficult times. Indeed, God’s presence in these times and your standing with us is a great comfort to us and to all living at Mulungwishi. We are very much aware of the financial crisis in the States and what you are going through, so it means even more, to have your faithful gifts and support! Keep praying!

Dozens of new photos

2009-04-03T23:33:00.003-04:00

As I scan in more printed photos, the online albums are growing. Most of the latest ones are of the Nutrition Clinic, but they also include a new one of Lori in local dress.

Photo Album

Our hope is in the Lord

2009-04-01T21:24:00.001-04:00

We want to thank you for your continued prayers for Mulungwishi Station. The tension has subsided somewhat since we wrote last. The local village chiefs have been around to talk and to help. Also the regional administrator and police chief have been to the Station to investigate. The Bishops have also been following the situation closely. We are comforted by their concern. There are just so many people who have been laid off and are desperate. The use of guns is a new thing here. There have been robberies before but never life threatening with weapons. Everything … classes and work are going along normally during the day but then at night it changes. With no electricity it makes any kind of guarding and prevention difficult. We have students patrolling at different times of the night and even some of the chiefs have been helping out. People are being very careful and lock up their houses as soon as the sun goes down. We know that our ultimate security lies in the Lord and continually people are encouraging each other and praying. This is such a new twist for us here, that is seems that it is not even true! Along with the prayers for safety, we are sooooo wanting to have the electricity back! The Train Company is now, back at work after being on strike for almost three months. (because they had had no pay for 36 months!) So we are now trying to work with the top people to get connected to some kind of transformer. There is always careful negotiations with the top because they are hungry too! Then things will have to be set up … rebuilt and reconnected. Thank you for being there with us.

Water

2009-03-30T00:06:00.003-04:00

Surrounded by ants in the bath-basin ... a fight to the death! They are not getting any of my water except what I flush them down the drain with! The spout off the porch roof would make a wonderful shower ... think I'll ask the Lord to heat it a bit! Of course that may not be a good "missionary" connection with the neighbors! David is out washing his hair [photo at right. Click the photo to see it and the other rain-related ones] while collecting water in buckets at the roof spout. I think we should just soap him down and then he could have a bath and we could wash his clothes at the same time! Just think of the millions of people who have no close water supply or it is a dirty shallow well. They walk miles carrying buckets, basins, or any containers that will work ... tied to their bicycles, their backs, on their heads ... with always a line to wait through! We are so Fortunate! that we have the good well and the rain here at Mulungwishi! Pray for others and the many leaders of nations who do not see these issues as important and may it also challenge us to use water wisely. Pray for more rain!

Prayers needed: Typhoid fever and armed bandits

2009-03-27T21:47:00.004-04:00

We apologize for not being in contact with you. This is due to a lot of factors. The first being the lack of electricity, which also limits our Internet time. We have also had to hit the ground running in order to catch up on our classes, and different projects that we have. We continue without electricity. This has developed other problems that we can add to what we have already written. There has been an outbreak of typhoid fever in the area due to bad water. We are going into the dry season and we need to pump water so as to provide clean water. We have started to pump twice a week using diesel fuel at $5 a gallon. When we have electricity, it is free and we have it 24x7. The other problem of lack of electricity is the living in the dark. Already twice this month, armed bandits have come on to the station and have robbed, beaten and tortured a number of our teachers. In fact as we write, we are up because four men in black clothes were spotted coming on the the station and looking for our driver. The students are mobilized and are circulating around the campus. However they do not have guns. Since we will be up most of the night, we figured we would try to catch up on some of the e-mails. This is where we are and we need your prayers.

We have internet!

2009-02-25T14:34:00.003-05:00

Hallelujah! Will wonders never cease! We are on the internet from our living room! Can you believe it? Thanks to Joe Barnes who came out on a team in June of 2008 and our local computer expert, Cedrick, we can receive internet at the house! Amazing! Of course to keep us humble, this only happens when the generator is on! The airconditioning unit the team installed in the computer server room was hooked up and working prior to the transformer blowing. Now it is in the same position as when the team came. No electricity, no airconditioning. Keep praying.

Mulungwishi Rain Dance

2009-02-23T20:04:00.002-05:00

We are doing a rain dance at Mulungwishi! Since we have no electricity, our water pump is not functioning. We praise the Lord that we are in the rainy season. So every time it rains, we run out with our buckets to collect the water coming off the roof. This is known as the Mulungwishi Rain Dance.

Highs and lows

2009-02-17T22:59:00.003-05:00

Green, green everywhere. Thousands of different shades and hues brilliant against the blue skies and white billowing clouds. It is good to also feel and smell the rain.

We are still in Lubumbashi after days of car work and now the Leadership Masters Class. We hope to go with tow of the visiting professors of Leadership to Mulungwishi on Thursday.

Guess what! Again the train company let the small transformer blow. So we are without electricity! So pray!

In Congo

2009-02-02T12:04:00.002-05:00

Drove up Sunday to Congo from Zambia. Had a little trouble at the border but got through without having much problem.

We are in Lubumbashi where David started on a leadership training semianr for teachers for the next 4 days. Probably head up to Mulungwishi early next week.

Thanks for the prayers.

New photos

2009-01-28T17:40:00.002-05:00

David and Lori mailed a slug of new photos, so I scanned them in and posted them to the Flickr photo blog today.

The photos include several ones of the mural being painted in the Kindergarten classroom. Visiting team members, staff, seminary students, and even Lori contributed to the painting.

New photos also include ones of flowers, people, the Nutrition Clinic, and the Dispensary.

Slideshow of recent photos

Pray as David, Lori return to Congo

2009-01-25T16:56:00.004-05:00

An email today from David today asks us to pray for he and Lori as they travel back to the DR Congo. The road is hard, from physical dirt road conditions to the hassle of getting bags through customs -- in fact, Lori calls it "hassling the bags through customs".

The trip usually entails flying to Kitwe, Zambia, then driving up through Lubumbashi, on to Likasi, finally reaching their Mulungwishi home. It's a long, slow trip.

2008 slides into 2009

2009-01-20T22:30:00.006-05:00

Time is running by us … Help! It is the New Year! Happy New Year and we pray that this beginning season is blessed by Our Lord’s grace and peace in your lives. We wanted to let you know about the events that have slowed down our return to Congo.

Medical leave

We had originally returned to the States in October to itinerate in New Mexico. Our plans were to return to Congo in mid-December. But during the itineration, Lori had some problems with heart burn and chest discomfort. When we returned to Denver, she visited her primary care physician who ran an EKG. The result was that there was a change in the EKG from the one she had had previously. The GBGM then put us on medical leave in order to find an answer to this problem.

Needless to say, this brought on stress tests which were positive, then a heart cath! ... Which was negative! Yea! We have appreciated the good support from Dr. Tom Maddox, a cardiologist who visited us at Mulungwishi this year. He set us up with a friend for the heart cath. Therefore the weeks leading up to Christmas were somewhat stressful and crazy! Not in our plans at all!

We know many of you have been praying for us and we are so thankful and aware of the Lord’s keeping and healing. Lori has had a couple of other tests and they are negative so we are heading back to Congo the 25th of January. We know the Lord is in control.

Christmas at Thanksgiving

Our original plan was to leave before Christmas, and we had our family celebration over Thanksgiving. Andrew and Amber both flew to Denver from Seattle. It was good for us to be together. We celebrated Christmas with Michelle and Jeff and his family. We are thankful to have our place in Denver and to have so many of you around the States as a supportive community.

A year of violence

This past year was surely a very different one and this new one seems to have started with continued violence and suffering for so many … again … still … the Middle East, and the many different African and Asian countries…and again Congo with the horrifying rampaging of Gen. Kunda in the North east. For us it tears our hearts and we wonder how many people, especially women and children have to scream before their cries are heard? Again, we join with you in praying for leaders all over the world and asking you to contact those you know about this. We pray also for the new leadership in our country and for our nation’s heart to change in our policies and dealing with the world around us. We are excited to be here for the inauguration and we keep the new President and our country in prayers.

Prayer requests

Our travels and getting back into our ministries in Mulungwishi. We leave Denver on BA Sunday afternoon and arrive in Lusaka, Zambia on Tuesday morning. We hope to have our car meet us and we will take a couple of days on car repairs and supplies. Then drive up to Lubumbashi and have several days there with paperwork and supplies before heading to Mulungwishi. We will be traveling with equipment and things for Mulungwishi.
Be also praying for the Seminary and University as they continue to train young people for the Lord’s work.

Thank you again for your caring, encouragement and prayers this last year and we know you will be faithful in keeping Congo and us in your prayers in this New Year. We ask that our Lord’s blessing and grace be with you in your lives and ministries. May His strength be a constant reflection of Christ’s Love to this world.

Christmas 2008

2008-12-29T22:15:00.004-05:00

It seems this year has gone by very fast and our world has changed incredibly. It is good to know we serve a sovereign Lord who never changes. The Christmas story reminds us that God came to us as homeless, in poverty, a refugee, surrounded by injustice and violence. God wants to share with us in the problems that we face. His presence with us enables us to sing with the Angels and the shepherds, “JOY TO THE WORLD, THE LORD HAS COME!”

Itineration

As we look over the past year, we have so much to be thankful for. God has blessed us so abundantly. As you know, January through mid March found us completing a six month stint of itineration in which we were in contact with some 125 churches over 20,000 miles. Indeed, we were blessed by so many people opening their homes to us. We are grateful to the Lord for his healing hand upon Lori and the eye problem she had, David’s shingles and for His hand upon Amber.

Return to Congo, then back to U.S.

We returned to Congo in June to finish out the school year. During the summer two work teams from New Mexico visited us and again the Lord’s blessings flowed. The reality of Christians coming together from different parts of the world and working together on a common goal is a beautiful thing to watch. Bishop Max Whitfield of the New Mexico Annual Conference invited us to itinerate in the conference during the months of October and November to develop this partnership between the Annual Conferences.

Lori arrived in the US at the beginning of October to attend the 40 anniversary of her nursing class. It was a blessing to be with old and life long friends who have remained close through the years. David stayed on at Mulungwishi in order to bring to conclusion our first class of the Masters of Organizational Leadership & Management by extension. Eight candidates defended their thesis in public session and graduation was held on October 5th.

Masters in Leadership Program partners

Dennis and Jeanette Fulton from Development Associates International (DAI), our partner organization in the Masters of Leadership Program, were present for this first graduation for French speaking Africa. The Fultons had been missionaries with the Methodist Church in Congo before their tenure with Mission Aviation Fellowship and now DAI. It was Dennis who first shared with David about the DAI and their program of leadership. The Lord took that conversation and through His grace has done a mighty thing putting together this program at Mulungwishi. Our Seminary was the first place chosen for the program in Africa. This choice was made because of the Seminary’s reputation and outstanding faculty. Now, some of our own faculty have been trained and are teaching in the program. Dr. Jean Marie Nkonge, the former Provost, is now the coordinator for French speaking Africa. Praise the Lord for partnership like this continuing training for the leadership of God’s people in Africa!

Methodist Clinic blessed

The one thesis David had mentored in the Master’s program was that of Dr. Kasongo Irung. What an exciting privilege it was to be a part of his work. Dr. Kasongo is the head of our Methodist clinic in the mining city of Kolwezi. The clinic ministers to the medical needs of many people in the city. Most receive $10-15 a month and are not able to afford high medical fees. The clinic has been operating on a shoestring budget to survive. Lack of medicine and the ability to have equipment were a constant pressure. Dr. Kasongo became a part of this leadership program and he felt it changed his life and his way of looking at leadership in every day issues. He realized more personally what the principles of leadership as a Christian meant. He was to serve others and not just be the “big boss doctor”. He felt convicted and remolded his ministry. Armed with these new tools, he was able to forge a partnership with Crusader Health, a for-profit Christian based health provider which has come to help Congo. Crusader Health brought to the table the finances and the possibility to sign contracts with mining companies to provide health care for their workers. Dr. Kasongo provided the facility, the reputation as the best clinic and the staff. The result was that the clinic was refurbished, new equipment brought in, medicines made available and salaries raised. But more than that, contracts were signed with the mining companies who could afford paying for the care and this enabled Dr. Kasongo and his staff to increase and widen their services to the poor at a reduced price. This thesis was more than a paper. It was a living report of what this leadership program had done in the life of a doctor in bringing health care to a community in need. We praise the Lord for the results.

Joy of family

After our travels in New Mexico, we celebrated Thanksgiving as a family in Denver. Andrew and Amber flew in from Seattle to join Michelle and Jeff and Jeff’s brother Dustin and his wife Saca. Again, we are thankful to the Lord for the family he has given us.

Continue your prayers

Be praying for Congo amidst the constant conflict in the north-east and the instability it brings to the whole country. Continue to pray for the Seminary, the University and the young men and women the Lord has called to be a His witnesses in this part of the world. We covet your prayers for us as we prepare to return to Congo. Thank you for your faithful support and caring for Congo.

We celebrate Christ’s coming with you this Christmas season.

Medical problems for Lori

2008-12-11T23:59:00.001-05:00

A quick note to call you to prayer for us...

We have been held up again on our return to Congo for medical reasons. Please forgive us for not keeping in touch. We have been overwhelmed and surprised by the events.

Lori will be undergoing a procedure tomorrow. When things are clearer, we will let you know.

Thank you for your continual support, love and prayer.

December prayer focus

2008-12-06T18:38:00.005-05:00

During December, pray for the Persons family — David, Lorene, their children, and their extended family.

Pray for their personal support and well-being as God's and your representatives to the Congolese Church.

November Prayer focus

2008-11-15T18:21:00.002-05:00

The Mulungwishi ministry 2008 calendar asks us to pray for church life. Pray for pastors, teachers, and lay leaders.

Pray for churches and schools being established in the villages surrounding Mulungwishi mission station.

Mulungwishi church-related photos

History of Congo fighting

2008-11-11T13:41:00.002-05:00

From Channel 4 News (UK)...

Larger video

Congo in Crisis

2008-11-11T13:17:00.002-05:00

Recent news headlines are not good. Pray for the Congolese people and their leaders. Pray for peacekeeping forces.

How to comment on blog posts

2008-10-29T23:06:00.006-04:00

Several people have told David that they are not sure how to add a comment to a blog posting they read online. So below are two ways to add a comment to a blog posting:

Method 1: Go to the posting's separate page.

Click on the title of the blog post, as in the figure below:

When the new page appears, scroll down until you see the "Post a Comment" area, as in the figure below:

Method 2: Select the "comments" link at the bottom of a blog posting.

Scroll down in the blog until you see the "comments" link at the bottom of the posting to which you want to add a comment. The link shows how many comments have been added to the blog posting so far. Feel free to comment. That's one of the great things -- communicate with the Persons right through blog postings.
Click on the comments link to immediately go to the "Post a Comment" area (see the image above) of the separate blog post page.

Mulungwishi wrap-up

2008-10-29T22:05:00.003-04:00

Back Stateside?

Too many days have flown by and you are asking what is happening. Believe it or not we are back in the States for two months. Bishop Max Whitfield invited us to speak in churches in the New Mexico and North West Texas Annual Conferences in order to promote the partnership between these Annual Conferences and the Southern Congo Episcopal Area under Bishop Katembo Kainda. We are traveling in New Mexico and some in Texas through October and November. We are trying to plan some family time at Thanksgiving and then back to Congo in December.

Small generator helps a bit

August and September still found us struggling with no electricity. It was a balance act to keep the fridges somewhat cold and secretarial work for the university offices, plus minutes here and there for Internet! A small generator was set up at the Clinic to help with the lab and at night. With one generator for the University, we had "an outside office" with people, computers, printers, etc. in our payot (the African version of a gazebo) working off the generator in the garage!

Lori: Sew sew

Lori worked on sewing projects with the women, especially quilting, as we had received special quilting things in the container! Yea! Another session of the Christian Leadership was held in Lubumbashi. Then we had a quick time in Zambia.

Volunteer teams paint classrooms

We arrived back in Mulungwishi to help host a work team from the New Mexico Annual Conference under the leadership of Rev. Jeanie Riley. In the tradition of the great VIM teams that have come out, wonderful relationships were created with the Congolese on the station. The focus of their work was refurbishing and painting the preschool and kindergarten classrooms and nursing at the dispensary. The children of the preschool were so excited to have a newly painted classroom with pictures of Noah’s ark and animals on the walls. The children kept looking in the windows as the paintings appeared and they could not wait to come inside and show their parents!

Lori's KU reunion

Lori left at the end of September in order to join her friends in Kansas City for the 40th anniversary of her nursing class at Kansas University. It was worth the four days of flying to be with wonderful friends and catch up on our lives and memories. Go Jay Hawks!

Another first

David stayed on at Mulungwishi to help bring to a conclusion our first class of the Masters of Organizational Leadership & Management by extension. Eight candidates defended their thesis in public session and graduation was held on October 5th. Dennis and Jeanette Fulton from Development Associates International (DAI), our partner organization in the Masters of Leadership Program, were present for this first graduation for French speaking Africa.

Small power transformer helps

The good news is, two days before David left Mulungwishi, the railroad company put in a small transformer (because they still have not been able to fix our old one ) and Mulungwishi is back in the "light"! This brings a big sigh of relief, as the cost of using the generators was terrible! We are still hoping to have the bigger transformer fixed.

Cross Hill status

We have also been working with the Bishops and officials about the mining of the Cross hill. So far no sale has been registered with the government and it looks like a private deal with the local chief. We are putting together a dossier of the property boundaries of the mission station to present to the governor. Please keep praying!

Continue to pray for:

The Leadership program
The beginning of a new academic year at Mulungwishi
The itineration and travel in New Mexico

In the headlines

2008-10-03T18:36:00.004-04:00

While you can always read news by using the "News, weather ..." links at the right side of this blog, below are selected links to recent news -- mostly bad news for the Congolese people.

August to October in Mulungwishi

2008-10-03T14:54:00.005-04:00

[This is a catch-up posting, which explains the title.]

Difficult months

The last two months have been amongst the most difficult of our missionary life. The continued lack of electricity, lack of communications, colleagues disappointing us, the local chief selling the cross hill, suffering children coming to the nutrition clinic, miners from other countries (particularly China) taking Congo’s mineral wealth and leaving nothing for the Congolese, corrupt politicians selling the country, and David’s shingles. Sometimes you wonder where God is in all of this. Well, He is right there inspiring you to pray. It is such a comfort to know how you are keeping us before the throne of grace and petitioning the Lord on our behalf and also on behalf of the Congolese people.

Pray for Cross Hill, electricity

On the political side and also with the cross hill, it will take time to work out and we need to continue to pray. We hope that the electricity will soon be back. Definitely David’s shingles have been very minor and have not moved. The rash is drying up nicely and he has had very little pain. He still gets tired quickly. Thank you for those prayers.

Servant leaders

Last week, we spent in Lubumbashi as part of a team giving seminars in the Master’s of Leadership program. It was exciting to see leaders from the different denominations; Para church organizations and the secular world realize that Jesus has given us a new paradigm of leadership, being servant-leaders. This is a huge revelation to them since the only models they have had was that of a big boss (colonizers, village chiefs and military dictatorships). God is good at challenging our preconceptions and call us to live a different life style in His Kingdom.

A graduating student couple

Our graduating students are gradually leaving to take their appointments as the Annual conferences are taking place. One such couple is Robert Kalau and his wife Umba. We wrote about them a few years ago when they had just entered the ministry. During the last two years they have been in the masters program at the seminary. We shared together and prayed before they left. Robert and Umba shared part of their ministry with us.

This couple had been in an area that had had been heavily influenced by the violence of war, the Mai Mai militias, and countless atrocities including cannibalism and witchcraft. In the midst of this they brought the light and good news of the Jesus Christ and the love, forgiveness and freedom He brings to His children. They sometimes had to travel by foot, bicycle and canoe to reach villages where they started churches. In one village, a former Mai Mai rebel is now the lay leader.

Isn’t this what it is all about. God’s love reaching down and touching people. Sure we get tired, depressed and just plain fed up. Guess what, the Lord is still at work. It is by His Spirit that these things are done. To Him be the glory!

Thanks for being there for us.

October Prayers

2008-10-01T18:19:00.001-04:00

During October, pray for the Development and Agriculture Program. Pray for Director Mwenze, the staff, and local farmers.

The Agriculture and Development Program helps local farmers improve their farming skills.

September Prayers - Nutrition Program

2008-09-08T20:23:00.003-04:00

During September please pray for the Nutrition Program -- the staff and the children. The Nutrition Program provides food and nutrition for preschool children at Mulungwishi Station and also to malnourished children from the surrounding area.

The Mulungwishi staff regularly touches the lives of about 200 children.

Nutrition Program slide show

August Prayers

2008-08-20T21:32:00.003-04:00

Prayers are always needed ... for many people and many situations.

The clinic at Mulungwishi station serves 20,000 people within a 25-mile radius of the local community. Medical care includes a full maternity program, health education, satellite clinics, and a vaccination outreach -- by bicycle!

Please add prayers this month for the Clinic ... for Head Nurses Jean and Alfred, for staff, and for patients.

Mission Station Hill sold! - Urgent Prayer Request

2008-08-05T23:14:00.006-04:00

Annual Conference is in session now in Africa. Today David Persons received a call from one of their Bishops. He had just learned that one of the local tribal chiefs has sold the mission station's hill to a Greek mining company.

This is the hill on which Woody Bartlett (Lori's dad) built the large cross out of metal barrels. It is also the home of their water well. Full details are not known at this time, but David has a meeting later this week which will hopefully give him further direction.

David and Lori ask for massive amounts of intercessory prayer and fasting from all of us.

Prayers for Mulungwishi

2008-07-22T22:42:00.004-04:00

Mulungwishi still has no electricity

At $8.00 per gallon of gasoline Mulungwishi is only able to run their generator a short time in the morning and evening to keep the refrigerator cool. When it gets dark outside, it's dark everywhere.

Please pray for the transformer to be repaired soon. The people who operate the train are responsible for repairing it and seem to have numerous problems that keep delaying the repairs.

David has Shingles

David's Shingles are very painful. He really needs some rest and down time, but his schedule with Teaching and Annual Conference does not allow time off right now. Unfortunately David and Lori's lives are full of stress right now and stress is the main cause of Shingles. The local Congolese do not realize he is sick because they cannot see a problem. It's exasperating, but David and Lori have not been able to find the word in French that will explain the Shingles to them.

Please put the Persons and Mulungwishi on your prayer list and share these concerns with your church.

Finally home ... a hectic week

2008-07-11T00:34:00.004-04:00

The Journey home

Can you believe we are writing to you from Mulungwishi? Thought we would never get here! We have hit the ground running. We left Denver on June 10th on a night flight to London. It was a good flight arriving at mid-day and that evening took the night flight on to Lusaka. Charles, a Zambian coworker, was waiting at the airport for us with our car and drove us up to Ndola (about 200 miles) where we spent the next two days with close friends and colleagues, John and Kendra Enright.

On Sunday, the 15th, we crossed the border (considered by Lori as "purgatory!") with very little trouble, praise the Lord! We arrived in Lubumbashi in the late afternoon. Thank you for your prayers. Purchases for settling in and for the coming work team, preparations and paperwork were the agenda for the next two days.

On Wednesday we drove to Mulungwishi. The road from Lubumbashi to Likasi is better in spots and still being fixed BUT "the road" on to Mulungwishi is at best the worst we have seen it in 30 years and something out of a car rally horror film! It took four hours to do the 100 miles! The eggs had the best seat on Lori's lap as we were jolted and jarred in every direction. There was a great greeting with people out with songs and flowers to welcome us back! It was good to get home and be in our own bed for a change! The same 'ole' cat, more fat and retired then ever, crazy parrot, and of course our special Baba Nogoi all welcomed us with open arms.

Box-filled house

Our house, thanks to many of you, was somewhat "changed" because of all the boxes from the containers filled with lovely baby things, yarn and things for the Women's School ... half the living room and most of the office! Wow! With the help of Women's School teachers and members of the New Mexico Team we have managed to sort half of it and now we can see our fire place! All we can say is a big thank you to the Church friends that gathered and packed the things and to Mike and Terri Hobbs and the Washington Team that got the containers here. These things will bless many babies and women in the months to come! Again thank you for your prayers!

Night one surprise

Night one of our arrival, guess what? The Electric transformer from the train station blew and we have pretty much been without electricity since! Help! Lori went right to work with Mama Kat and their team organizing the kitchen and food for the coming visitors. Don't you just love candle light! Yea! Thank goodness for charcoal babulas!

Teams of visitors

Friday, David drove back down to Lubumbashi to meet the Team. Our 13 visitors from Hobbs, NM came in on the Saturday flight from Nairobi. They arrived safely but 19 pieces of luggage did not arrive. (Some came latter in the week, thankfully) They were good sports about it and those without extra clothes dipped into a box of scrubs. We started calling them "the blue team!" In the mean time, we realized that the repair of the electric system was going to take longer then we thought, so we picked up a small generator to help preserve the food we had bought for the team. All that week Lori felt like a "mother hen" figuratively sitting on three freezers making sure that they had enough electric time to keep food cold because we could not afford to run them all day. Smile! People! Gasoline prices here are at $8 a gallon. Enjoy your $4 a gallon in the U.S.! Also, with no electricity we are back to pumping H2O with diesel fuel three times a week so save that cup of water!

Sunday, after church in Lubumbashi, the team took off for Mulungwishi. What a reception they received when they arrived. Flowers, singing, dancing and prayers of thanksgiving for their safe arrival thrilled the visitors. One of the team, cardiologist Dr. Tom Maddox, remained in Lubumbashi for two extra days in order to give seminars at the Medical School of the University of Lubumbashi and to share with fellow cardiologists.

Graduation week

The next week was a flurry of activities leading up to graduation on Sunday the 29th of June. Monday was the public defenses of the Master's thesis. Thursday, renewal of wedding vows for out graduate students who had never had a chance to have a Christian wedding. Friday was the agape supper for the whole Seminary community. Each team had been paired with each graduate to pray for each other during the months leading up to the Team visit. During the week, they were able to share together. Good fellowship was also done between the team leader, Roland McGregor, and Dr. Kajoba, the Dean Emeritus of the Seminary. It is for them that the first chair of professorship was named.

The team worked with various ministries during the week ... the dispensary, the Women's School, Children's program. A major effort was putting in the ceiling and air condition in the computer server room. Also the basic installation for wireless network on the station was mapped out by Joe Barnes and Congolese Prof Cedric. We would we have loved to have electricity to get it all up and running! Barry Dickens, DS of Clovis, led the meditation on the Friday night. Steve Chappell, Senior Pastor at First UMC of Hobbs, preached the graduation service. Each Team member blessed our community with their gifts and abilities and we Praise the Lord Jesus Christ for their willingness to come share with others. It is so good to be a part of God's family. We are just plain spoiled.

We need to add that the team were great sports dealing with no electricity and very little water. They became schooled in the Mulungwishi "save every ounce of water " method and flush last!

Thankfulness and Praise also has we celebrated a combined Graduation of the School of Education, School of Information Technology. and the Seminary, helping send out new leadership for the Congo!

Please pray for

Our continuing reentry, as it really seems like a "time warp" after being in the States as we get back into the routine of Mulungwishi.
For the graduates who are waiting for their designation and ordination at Annual Conferences later this month.
For the repair of the electric system!
For travel and wisdom for the Church as our Bishop, Bishop Katembo has started one of the five Annual conferences that will take place this summer.
For the Congo and the government that they will remember the people of the country and it's future with the riches of the mines that seem to be flowing out to other countries!
For world leaders, business leaders, economic policies and decisions that seem to keep so many across the world struggling to live in 18th century conditions when we are in the 21st century!

Thank you for being a part of this ministry and for your support. We love you all.

Odds and Ends

2008-07-08T19:32:00.000-04:00

While surfing looking for Africa-related sites, we came across some interesting pages at National Geographic:

Virunga Park under seige -- 18-year timeline and photos
Great Apes Survival Project (GRASP) - a United Nations effort
GRASP Newsletter (PDF file)
Africa Brainteaser
Jigsaw puzzles - animals of the world
New animals found in DR Congo (2007)
Women carrying rain forest wood to a charcoal processing plant (photo story and wallpaper)
Democratic Republic of the Congo facts
DR Congo music
Photo gallery: Malaria
Giraffe (wallpaper)

July prayers: Masters of Leadership Program

2008-07-01T20:21:00.001-04:00

The 2008 Mulungwishi Ministries calendar asks us to pray for the Masters of Leadership Program during July. Pray for:

Visiting professors
Church and secular leaders

The Masters of Leadership Program adult learning by extension, bringing needed skills to church and secular leaders in the region.

New Mulungwishi challenges

2008-06-23T22:30:00.004-04:00

David and Lori report that God really blessed their flight from Denver and it was great all the way to Africa. The road trip from the airport to Mulungwishi went very well until the last 25 miles and then the road was so destroyed it took two and a half hours to navigate that stretch.

Since then they have had several challenges:

Transformer explosion. While they were in the states, the transformer exploded so they have no electricity and because the water pump runs on electricity, they have no water. David was in Lubumbashi trying to buy a generator as we spoke. This has also caused a critical situation with their frozen food.
Email down. They have no access to email at Mulungwishi (presumably until the transformer problem is fixed).
Cooking challenges. A work team of 19 from Hobbs, NM has just arrived at the station. Lori is trying to cook meals for all of them over an outdoor charcoal fire and for that many people it is a challenge. The team arrived fine, but they did not get their luggage and who knows when it will arrive or even where the luggage is.
Graduation. This coming Sunday is a combination graduation including students from the seminary, the University, and the IT Program. There will be at least 150 dignitaries coming in for this ceremony. Again, Lori will be cooking over charcoal (she says please pray hard). This is also the use for most of the frozen food mentioned above, they are praying they can keep it.

There are numerous other challenges in the area but these are the pressing ones right now. They asked us to forward these to you and ask for lots of prayers. We all know God is so much bigger than all of this and He will provide. It’s just a little overwhelming right now.

New Photos

2008-06-20T20:00:00.002-04:00

We just uploaded over a dozen photos to our Flickr photo site.

This photo of the Persons family, Christmas 2007, is one of them.

An easy way to keep up with new photosis to "subscribe" to the umccongo "photostream" at Flickr. Only the photos you have not yet "read" (seen) will appear.

The Mulungwishi mission station, D.R. Congo photostream

People from 63 countries visit blog

2008-06-19T20:44:00.004-04:00

People from all over the word visited the Congo Missions - Mulungwishi blog over 3,000 times from June 2007 to June 2008. They surfed from the 63 countries below, representing 6 continents. Click on the map above to see a larger, clearer image.

Afghanistan
Argentina
Australia
Austria
Belgium
Bolivia
Botswana
Brazil
Cameroon
Canada (7 Provinces)
Central African Republic
Costa Rica
Croatia
Czech Republic
Democratic Republic of the Congo
Denmark
France
Gambia
Germany
Ghana
Guatemala
Honduras
Hong Kong (China)
Hungary
India
Ireland
Israel
Italy
Ivory Coast (Cote D' Ivoire)
Kenya
Liberia
Malawi
Morocco
Mozambique
Namibia
Netherlands
New Zealand
Nigeria
Norway
Oman
Pakistan
Peru
Philippines
Poland
Republic of Congo
Romania
Russia
Scotland
Slovakia
South Africa
South Korea
Spain
Sweden
Switzerland
Taiwan (China)
Tanzania
Togo
Turkey
United Arab Emirates (UAE)
United Kingdom
United States of America (49 states)
Zambia
Zimbabwe

ClustrMap now zooms

2008-06-12T10:56:00.002-04:00

The ClustrMap in the "Blog visitors come from..." section at the right now lets you zoom in for a closer look of the locations of our visitors.

After you click on the map on this page, click on any area of the world you want to zoom in to.

Our hearts are warmed that visitors from nearly every continent (come on, Antarctica) find something of interest in our blog of mission efforts at Mulungwishi.

Request for prayers

2008-06-10T18:02:00.000-04:00

We request your prayers as we travel back to Congo. We leave Tuesday the 10th and arrive in Lusaka, Zambia on the 12th. We will then be going by car to Ndola. Probably, on Sunday the 15th, we will drive across the border into Congo.

Ideas for using our photos

2008-06-08T22:00:00.001-04:00

Our Mulungwishi photo albums continue to grow from the many fine photos taken by visiting volunteers as well as people at Mulungwishi.

Here are some ideas on how to make good use of these in your local mission efforts for Mulungwishi.

Choose. You can choose to download different groups of photos, such as:

Single photos -- your favorites
The latest photos posted online
Photos in an album (set)

Display. No matter what you download, here are a few of many ways you can display them:

Print a small collection for a poster board or bulletin board display at your church.
Save the images to a memory card (CFC, SD, or whatever), then insert the card into an electronic photo frame and have a rotating slide show of the photos.
Save the images to a computer and project a slideshow onto a screen.

Theme. You can display photos for several different purposes, such as:

Photos tied to the Prayer Focus of the month (from the current Mulungwishi ministry calendar -- also get from this blog).
Photos about a specific area of the Mulungwishi ministry -- the Nutrition Program, for example.
Close-up building photos linked by string to its location on a large photo of the Mulungwishi campus.
A "Year in Review" type presentation.
A special theme at your church, for which the photo just happens to fit.

Do you have other ways to use these photos? Add a comment and let everyone know what has worked for you or your church.

June Prayers: Katanga Methodist University

2008-06-06T18:13:00.001-04:00

During May, the 2008 Muungwishi Ministries calendar asks us to pray for Katanga Methodist University. Pray for President Dr. Kasap, the faculty, staff, and students.

The University was founded in 2002, with Schools of Information Technology and Education as well as the Methodist Seminary. KMU prepares its students in a Christian setting, helping them today to garner the skills they'll need to be Congo's leaders of tomorrow.

Returning to Congo!

2008-06-06T16:00:00.000-04:00

Greetings! As always time and miles have flown by. We apologize for being so long in writing – it seems that these trips wore us out more than usual! For the six months period we did more that 20,000 miles in the car. Again it was good to renew old acquaintances and meet new friends and see our beautiful country. We have been held up in Colorado due to Lori having medical tests and David translating for General Conference.

As we watch our students graduate each year, you feel like a parent watching our children leave the home. Because of Congo’s great distances, it is hard to meet up with many of our students again. We try through word of mouth and letters to touch base with them. While we have been here in the States we have been contacting our staff at Mulungwishi to keep up with our students. We thought it would be neat to share with you some of their testimonies because you are invested in the lives of those receiving training at Mulungwishi.

IT grad Danny excels, spreads gospel

While at General Conference, David visited with Danny Kapend. What a wonderful story! Danny’s father was a Methodist pastor and District Superintendent in Congo in our southern area. He died a number of years ago of kidney failure. Five years ago a scholarship was given to Danny to attend the new Information Technology School at Mulungwishi. He was part of our first graduating class in the School of IT of the Katanga Methodist University. We were very pleased with his academic work. Then, Bishop Katembo worked it out for him to come to Lon Morris College, a Methodist related Junior College in Texas.

After a year, Danny transferred to McMurry University (again a Methodist related University) in Abilene, Texas. He is finishing his junior year in Computer Science. An internal competition was held in the computer department and Danny won. He is considered one of their best students. All of this speaks well for the education he received at Mulungwishi.

What excites us even more is how he is sharing the life of the Lord Jesus where ever he goes. Strangely enough, refugees from Congo, Sudan, Rwanda and Burundi are being resettled in Abilene. With the help of Rev. Derrell Patterson, the Senior Pastor of Aldergate UMC, who has been to Congo on several occasions, Danny has started a Swahili Sunday School class for the refugees. It just shows how incredible God is in bringing us together around the world.

The ravages of war

The northern part of our Katanga Province has been particularly devastated by the war. Villages in this area have suffered from all sides. They have been burned out and pillaged by the government troops because they have been suspected to have collaborated with the rebels. On the other side, when the rebels come, they think that the people have collaborated with the government and then destroy what is left of the village. A group known as the Mai Mai was formed as a sort of local militia in order to protect the villagers. They in turn became violent and involved with witchcraft to the extent that they became more deadly than the other two. It is into this sort situation that a number of our students have gone to minister.

Woman pastor hunted; God protects

Umba Ndolo Kebele, one of our women graduates, was sent with her children to Kibamba in the Kinkonja District. Her husband, a Catholic professor, remained in Kamina where he was teaching. The Mai Mai came to her village specifically to find her and kill her. God was gracious in protecting her. She hid in a back room of the house with her children and they were not able to find her. As they were looking for her, she was able to slip out of the house with the children and climb a tree where they spent the night. Unable to find her, the Mai Mai left pillaging the village. Umba was rescued the next day and rejoined her husband in Kamina where she is now the pastor of the Umpafu congregation.

Pastor and wife a light in the darkness

Pastor Makobo Young and Beatrice were sent to Kamungu, in the Kabongo District. This area had been particularly had hit by all sides. At the beginning of their ministry, most of the parishioners were hiding and living in the bush, afraid to be in the village. As the war subsided, they began to return. A number of past choir members had joined the Mai Mai and been involved in the atrocities. Slowly God’s spirit showed them the error of their life style. They repented and once again have become a part of God’s people. Makobo and Beatrice have been a light in the darkness helping to heal the wounds of many who have suffered in this war. What a loving God we serve, who brings His Love, His Mercy, and His Reconciliation to whoever seeks Him! How wonderful to have pastors willing to go into the hardest areas to bring God’s Love!!! Now, there are songs of forgiveness, thanksgiving and praise coming from this His family.

Praise the Lord with us, for His faithfulness. How wonderful to see Him use these young men and women in sharing His Kingdom! Thank you for your part and sharing in their lives. You have never met them but you have faithfully given and prayed through the years. Rejoice and give thanks to the Lord.

Request for prayers

As we pack to return to Congo, we want to share these prayer requests:

For travel and grace for the trip back to Mulungwishi
For the graduating classes this year and the running of the University
For the country of Congo: the healing, the restitution and the reconstruction
For our family: Michelle and Jeff in Lakewood and Andrew and Amber in Seattle

Special prayers for the Congo

2008-05-26T14:07:00.006-04:00

Dear Friends,

Special prayers have been called for in Congo for the dates of May 27-30. We want to share with you the subjects that they will be praying for.

We also invite you to join with your brothers and sisters in Congo to bring these concerns to God in Prayer.

Pray for sustainable peace in the Eastern DRC. Pray for the AMANI (peace) Initiative led by Abbe Appolinaire Malu-Malu.
Pray for the implementation of the five key performance areas (chantiers) for the DRC. The Congolese people are waiting for effective implementation of these five KPAs.

Employment
Road infrastructures
Health and Education
Shelter
Water and Electricity.

Pray for the Church and its mission in the DRC.
Pray for the DRC President, the Government, the National Parliament, the Senate and other institutions so God can provide to them further wisdom, good governance, etc. in order to be able to serve the people.
Pray for children (separated and abandoned) and women (sexually abused) affected by ethnic and armed conflicts.
Pray for the newly established mining companies. They have to avoid child labor, corruption and fraud, destruction of the environment, exploitation of highly radioactive minerals, etc.
Pray for the civil servants who are not paid for many months. This situation has led to many social problems, including prostitution, street children, crimes, etc.

Congo departure delay

2008-05-22T21:48:00.000-04:00

We seem to live in a continual state of complications. Our departure for Congo has been postponed until early June. We are doing this for family medical considerations which need to be taken care of. For right now we felt that it would be better for us to be on this side of the water. The GBGM agrees with our decision and have been very supportive.

We covet your prayers for our family at this time. Please continue to pray for the Seminary and the University as they move towards graduation.

May prayer focus

2008-05-09T23:10:00.001-04:00

During May pray for the Doris Bartlett Women's School. Pray for Mama Lorene, Mama Kat, the teachers, staff, and students.

The Women's School educates and trains the wives of seminary students and others from the surrounding area to be women of God.

Cleared for Congo return!

2008-04-21T20:56:00.001-04:00

Praise the Lord! Good News! This past week, we completed the testing having to do with Lori’s eye and arthritis.

The rheumatologist was able to rule out lupus. He was not sure about the rheumatoid arthritis because he has found that those of us who are malaria carriers mess up the numbers on that part of the blood test. So we are working on the pain management having to do with her arthritis and phybromyalgia. The ophthalmologist said that the cotton wool spot on her eye has disappeared but there is still a spot on the retina.

Long story short, their opinion is that we can return to Congo. We have sent the results in the Wellness office of the GBGM for clearance to return. We appreciate so much your prayers for us. If all goes as planned, we hope to leave around the middle of May.

In the mean time, David arrived in Ft. Worth today to interpret for the French speaking delegates at General Conference. He is looking forward to being with so many Congolese colleagues and friends. Be in much prayer as our church leaders gather to dialogue about issues facing the church and what the Lord wants us to do in the coming 4 years.

April prayer focus

2008-04-05T22:46:00.001-04:00

The 2008 Mulungwishi Ministries calendar asks us to focus our April prayers on the Methodist Seminary at Mulungwishi. Pray for the faculty and the students.

The seminary was founded in 1951 and was the first University-level seminary for the United Methodist Church in French-speaking Africa.

Through the years the faculty has become Congolese; today the seminary has over five PhDs on staff.

Since 1976, women have also entered the ministry.

Latest news ...

2008-03-27T18:41:00.004-04:00

Back in Lakewood

A quick note to let you know what is happening in our lives and a call to prayer. After some 20,000 miles on the road we are back in Lakewood!! It was good to see and fellowship with many of you along the way and we are thankful for your warm hospitality.

Lori's eye shadow

During our last week of itineration in Arizona, Lori developed a shadow in her left eye. We went immediately to an optometrist to check it out. The shadow is gone but the spot on the retina is still there. She said we should have it checked out by an ophthalmologist as soon as we got back to Denver. Long story short, she is busy seeing a number of doctors and getting tests. At this point, we do not have results or what the treatment will be. We covet your prayers for us, for her healing and the doctors who are ministering to her.

Return to Congo delayed

We were due to return to Congo on April first. In fact the tickets were in hand. The General Board of Global Ministries and their Wellness Program have been very understanding and have put our return on hold until the picture is clearer and we know what we are dealing with.

David to be French translator

Since we were to be here through April, the GBGM contacted David to help with the French translation at General Conference in Fort Worth at the end of April. He is looking forward to being with so many African delegates and helping them with the language in order that they may fully participate in our Methodist procedures. He is especially excited that six of the delegates are professors of the Seminary at Mulungwishi. This speaks very highly of our institution and the respect that our faculty enjoys within the Church in Congo.

March prayer focus - High School

2008-03-10T18:53:00.003-04:00

The Mulungwishi Ministry 2008 calendar asks us to pray for the High School -- for Principal Mayonde, the faculty, and all the students. The High School educates 600 students from around the region. Program specialties are Math, Physics, and Agriculture.

IRC News links

2008-02-10T16:46:00.000-05:00

Some Internal Rescue Committee (IRC) news links related women in the D.R. Congo:

Ending Violence Against Women (an IRC project)
Program for survivors of rape
Helping women heal in Congo

An ongoing crisis: Mortality in DRC

2008-02-10T16:32:00.000-05:00

The Congolese people have been victims of war for over a decade. The most recent conflit caused:

Mass displacements
Collapse of health systems
Food shortages

All of these have contributed to a major increase in mortality ... deaths equivalent to the state of Colorado or country of Denmark ... all in a decade!

In addition to the video below, please read the IRC's special Congo Special Report: Congo in Crisis.

February Prayer Focus - Elementary School

2008-02-05T23:06:00.000-05:00

Pray for the Elementary School ... for Principal Phillip Mwembo, the faculty, and the children.

The Elementary School serves about 450 children from Mulungwishi station and the nearby villages. For many of these children, especially the girls, this is the only formal education they will ever get.

As we travel ...

2008-02-04T20:59:00.000-05:00

Donations fund transformer repairs!

What a great God we serve and what great brothers and sisters we have in the Lord!! Our prayers have been answered. The money has been raised for the repairs for our transformer at Mulungwishi. We want to specifically thank 1st UMC Stillwater, OK; Ardmore UMC Ardmore, OK; Reynoldsburg UMC Reynoldsburg, Ohio and the Pillsbury’s in Ft Mohave, AZ for their gifts. Praise the LORD!

Pacific Northwest Conference visits

We have just completed visiting churches in the Pacific Northwest Annual Conference. We appreciated so much the welcome that we received in those churches. We also had wonderful visits with so many who had visited us in Congo. It is so exciting to be able to connect with people who have caught the vision of what the Lord is doing in Congo and are taking it back to their local congregations. Some have returned two and three times to Congo. We were also in contact (particularly Mike and Terry Hobbs) with those who loaded and put together two containers for projects in Congo. The items for Mulungwishi are already there. Cartons of baby clothes and material for the Women’s School are in our living room waiting for us to return. Can’t wait to celebrate Christmas in March.

On to Northern California

We are now starting our itineration in Northern California. From here we will spend a couple of days in Southern California in Churches we were not able to visit last year. Our tour ends up in Arizona from mid-February on. We return to Denver in March to pack up and return to Africa.

Story of one seminarian

We want to share the story of one of our new students in the Seminary. Kambongo Longesa (Jean-Marie de Dieu) is married and has 3 children. He was born of Christian parents in 1962. His wife’s parents are also Christians. He grew up within the church and as he grew older took more and more responsibilities within the church. Kambongo was influential in the construction of two churches, Jerusalem and Tshiwengo. He became disillusioned with the church because of the conduct of the clergy (both Catholic and Methodist).

Later on he was wooed back into the church by the activities of the youth group, choirs and scouts. It was in a retreat lead by Pastor Sul-A-Nawej (one of our Mulungwishi graduates) that Kambongo received his call into the ministry. The verse from 2 Timothy 2:2 is the verse that inspired him to follow Christ and become a minister of the Gospel: “and the things that you have heard from me among many witnesses, commit them to faithful men who will be able to teach others also”. Pray for Kambongo and his family as he starts his studies to fulfill the all God has put on his life.

Tips on printing our photos

2008-01-16T21:07:00.000-05:00

We know many of you like to view, download, and print photos. What we don't know is how most people are using the photos -- just viewing online, printing small 4"x6" prints, using for Windows wallpaper, printing larger photos, etc.

Most of our photos currently online are in the same size dimensions as they came from a digital camera. Compact size digital cameras usually take photos in a 3:4 ratio, whereas the old film cameras take them in 2:3 ratio and produce 4"x6" prints.

Photos that came from scanned photos are naturally in the printed photo dimensions (4"x6").

The pain comes when you print a 3:4 ratio image from a digital camera on 4"x6" photo paper. Part of the image gets lopped off, as shown at the SmugMug site. There are only two ways to fix this problem:

Crop the 3:4 ratio image to a 4:6 ratio (2:3) and then print as a 4"x6" photo.
Use a print service that lets you print 3:4 ratio prints. See the PC World article on digital print services.

Also note that newer and more expensive digital cameras may let you choose the image ratio or use the 2:3 ratio for its images be default. Some compact Kodak cameras let you choose the 2:3 (4"x6" print) size for saving photos.

The image ratio you want depends on the intended use.

For Windows "wallpaper", use a 3:4 ratio image to cover the screen.
For 4"x6" prints, use the "normal" 2:3 ratio images
5"x7" and 8"x10" (4:5 ratio) prints require special image ratios. You'll need to crop these before printing or take what the printing system gives you for a photo crop.

We mention all this as a way of saying we'd like to provide you with what you need. As long as we don't get flooded with requests, we'll provide any ratio image you request.

We don't recommend that you download and crop the online image yourself. Why? Each time you edit a JPEG type photo (JPG files) the image quality decreases. So if you edit an already edited master image, you decrease the quality. We have the master copy of each online photo and can provide the same quality photo as the online one but in the image ratio you need.

Changes in photos we upload to Flickr

Since we suspect that most people who want to print photos will want the standard 4"x6" prints, we will start uploading photos in the 2:3 image ratio that is best for the 4"x6" prints. If you need a different size, for example for Windows wallpaper, just send an email request to our webmaster.

Also, we will start using 1280 pixels on the longest side of photos we upload. This gives a bit better quality printed photo and fills more of the screen on wide-screen monitors. That also increases the image file size, so it will take a few seconds longer for you to download photos. We think you'll find the trade-off well worth it.

We welcome your comments and suggestions.

New photos from 2007

2008-01-12T22:43:00.000-05:00

The Mulungwishi photo albums at Flickr now include about 50 new photos, taken by Dan, a visiting volunteer in 2007.

The inside photo of the chapel at right is one of those taken by Dan.

I'm working my way through seven CDs of photos from visitors during 2007. I'll announce new photos when a lot are uploaded at once, as is the case here.

Also note that as we add new photos, we add many to existing sets as well as create new sets. So check out the list of sets to see if you want to review those too.

Slideshow of newer photos

January prayer focus

2008-01-05T14:54:00.000-05:00

The 2008 Mulungwishi Mission calendar asks us to pray for the Pre-school ... for Headmistress Mama Esther, the staff, and the children.

The Pre-school serves about 90 children every day, helping prepare them for academic challenges ahead.

Mulungwishi in WikiMapia

2008-01-05T14:46:00.001-05:00

The folks who started the online encyclopedia WikiPedia have created a map encyclopedia too -- WikiMapia. As with WikiPedia, content is submitted by anyone and then reviewed, with commenting allowed.

I have added a proposed map site, Mulungwishi. In order for it to be added to their permanent map encyclopedia, other people have to verify that the placement and information are correct. That's where you come in.

Please do the following:

Surf to the proposed Mulungwishi map point in WikiMapia
Click on the yellow bordered square with the target center. That pops up the description I added.
If you agree that this is correct, lastly click on the green number (which starts at zero) or the "Yes" link in the upper left of the location information pop-up.

After enough people verify that the information is good, it gets added to the map as a valid location.

Congo Missions - Mulungwishi

Church visits and Christmas

White Christmas

Family time

Visits to 38 churches

Thanksgiving break

Congolese elections

Mulungwishi update

Deaths from measles

Education

Family visit, safari

VIM teams

Related links

News roundup

African Land Grabs report

Land issue still hot

Arrived in Congo

A fast note...

Fall 2010 to March 2011

Kentucky, Tennessee, Texas, Denver

Congo sadness

December in California

Shingles attack Lori

Lori's health

Back to Congo!

Mulungwishi brochure

2010 flew by

A great Centennial

Congo Minister of Higher Ed a blessing

Looking ahead in 2011

Prayer is important

December prayer focus

Since September ...

Grads go out into the world

First grandchild

Kentucky and Tennessee church visits

Sanki

Passing of a special person

October prayer focus

News roundup

September prayer focus

School out of reach for some

Parents have to pay for school

Scholarships help

Low cost for a crucial need

How to help

August prayer focus

July news - Centennial

Bartlett Memorial UMC

Marching to an outdoor 5-hour service

Mulungwishi focus

Reconciliation

A century of sharing the Good News

Graduation at Mulungwishi

Packed in

Spontaneous joy

David gave graduation message

Prayer for the future

July prayer focus

Land issue status

The Swiss connection

Huge loan to pay off

Status of land title woes

June Prayer Focus

Urgent appeal!

Help prevent a takeover

$45,000 cost!

Centennial of Methodism in Katanga

How to help

May prayer focus

Mulungwishi photos added

April prayer focus: The Seminary

Momentous February and March!

A very special day!

Trip back to Congo

Border crossing backup

Getting settled again, evicting roaches

The joy of Easter is upon us

Congo: water, mosquitos, and Malaria

March prayer focus: High School