Thank you for your ongoing prayers for the work of Feed my Lambs. The blog has been quiet but the work still continues.
Please remember our team in these days. Joyce was involved in an accident last week and was taken to hospital along with a few other people. She gave birth shortly afterwards. We thank God that she and her baby are well. Pray for this family. Pray also for two ladies who are joining the team in Nairobi. We will share more in due course. Pray that God helps as they serve. Much prayer is needed in these days as we seek to serve God.
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As we enter the Summer months, our ministry varies a great deal. We find ourselves involved in different types of outreach and at events representing the work of Feed my Lambs. As a result, our blog postings are not as frequent as normal. So please forgive us for the silence over the coming weeks. There may be occasional posts throughout July and August, but not as frequent as in the rest of the year.
However, we still need your prayers. There are still children who need reached with the Gospel. There is still a work being done in Africa and local workers who need encouraged. There are still people here in Northern Ireland learning about the work as we continue to attend meetings. Please continue to pray that the Lord will bless and save in these days and stand with us in our continued ministry for our Saviour over the next couple of months. We have need of more help in Feed my Lambs and are currently seeking to recruit workers to be based in our Nairobi office. For more information, please follow the link below.
Click here for application details Another week and almost the end of another month. Time is moving fast. We are so thankful for many more children who have heard the Word of God this past week. The photos below were sent to me yesterday from Uganda. They show a few children who heard the Gospel in just one Sunday School yesterday. The teachers here have recently started to use our lessons and as you will see from the blackboard they are trying hard to teach the children their need of salvation. Pray for these dear folk as they witness among the children close to them. Please continue to pray for Joyce. We thank God that she sees improvement in her health on a daily basis but she still needs much prayer. She is supposed to be resting...and she is more than normal....but still she continues to minister. Pray much for her.
Joel also continues to appreciate your prayers for him as he oversees the work in our Nairobi office. He has been working hard on finalising some changes to our Child Protection Policy and we thank God for his ability in this field. Pray for him as he sorts and organises the many boxes in our office; both those which moved from our previous base and those which recently arrived from the UK. Bibles will be distributed soon and some also need sent to Joyce, so please pray for all of the arrangements. William is spending much time preparing for a Children's Day service which is coming up quite soon. Pray that the Lord helps him in these final days before the meeting. Also for a number of other meetings which he will participate in over the next few weeks. As we draw closer to another trip to Africa, William is also praying about what the Lord would have him share in meetings there. Pray for God's leading. I am also looking at what God would have me share when we next travel and appreciate prayer. The next meeting I will speak at here will be the Old People's home in a few weeks time. Otherwise the day to day running of the office here in Northern Ireland is keeping me busy. Today I have been responding to emails; enrolled and set up a student page for the 45th student to register for our online child protection course; communicated with Joel regarding a particular project; communicated with an applicant for the ministry and printed their application form for consideration; prepared and printed some visuals for use in a lesson with children and after this blog, the weekly accounts will be next on the list. We are also trying to complete our latest prayer letter and am thankful that another name has been added to the list today. We are hoping to have the letter printed and ready for distribution this week. Please do pray that the Lord will continue to help those in Africa who are working directly with the children and also that He will continue to help William and I as we continue with our part of the ministry here. We value your prayers for these busy days. Today in the United Kingdom there is shock and dismay following a terror attack in Manchester, England. It is feared that many of the victims were children and teenagers. Over the past few days there has also been shock in our own home town with the sudden and tragic passing of a young 15 year old girl. By contrast, yesterday I attended the funeral of a 90 year old lady. Looking back to when I was 15....around the age of those who have lost their lives....it was this lady who first initiated the opportunity for me to play the organ in Sunday School. A few months later I played on Children's Day and that led to me playing on a weekly basis over many years to come, not only in Children's Meetings and Church Services but also in missions, at weddings and at funerals....even my own dad's funeral! Playing the organ was the first real ministry I had for the Lord and I suppose that's why I always gave it my best and never said no when asked. This lady was also the one who led my mum to the Lord. Her husband led my dad to the Lord and preached on the night I was saved.
So here we have an elderly lady who has been unwell for some time and yet, we have young people who have died with no warning whatsoever. I am reminded of the story of the child who asked his dad to tell him what age people are when they die. The father handed the little boy some string and told him to go around the cemetery and measure the headstones. The little boy did just that. When he had finished, the father asked him what size the headstones were. The little boy replied they were all different sizes; to which the father explained it was just like death; it takes all ages. It surely reminds us of the importance of being ready. Our hearts today go out to the dear man who lost his wife of many years. Our hearts also go out to the family in our locality who have lost a daughter and to those in England affected by this terrible attack. But our hearts also go out to the families of little children and indeed adults in Kenya and Uganda who have lost their lives due to the great drought. They may not be on our doorstep as some of these other events...but they are still lives which have been lost and there are still families there who weep for the loss of those they love. We know that each are suffering real pain in their own circumstances and we pray that all will know comfort in these difficult days. The Lord's command to go into all the world and preach the Gospel is still as relevant today as it was when Jesus said those words. On Sunday evening in the mission hall we attend we were reminded again of people across the world who are hungry for the Gospel. There was a time when missionaries traveled for months to reach their place of service, but today the world has become so small. Travel is faster and it is generally easier to reach various countries. Meanwhile, people of many nationalities are now arriving on our shores....the mission field is coming to us.
Of course technology plays a huge part. The internet, email, facebook, whatsapp and others make conversations with people on the other side of the world very easy. Today, it is taking me a long time to write this blog and it may even appear very disjointed, because I am stopping and starting to communicate with children's workers in 3 other countries....non of them are in Africa. They are countries I am less familiar with but all have contacted us asking for help in their ministry. My heart is burdened as we communicate back and forth with them. As I learn of their ministries and the needs they have, the Macedonian cry of "come over and help us" becomes very real. We want to help, but we are so limited. Limited in man power, limited in finance, limited in time, limited in resources, limited in experience. But we thank God that He has no limits and He is able. Pray that God will guide us in the coming days as to how best Feed my Lambs can develop and be effective to it's full potential. Pray that we will be focused on where God wants the organisation to be working and where He wants each of us as individuals to be working. As we ponder on how God is leading and challenging...what about you? What work does God have for you to do? What burden has He placed upon your heart? The command is there....Go ye into all the world and preach the Gospel to every creature. We appreciate your continued prayers. We know that our team in Africa also appreciate your remembering them.
Joel's wife has been in hospital but we are thankful she is doing better. Joyce, one of our team, is also unwell at the moment and appreciates prayer as she undergoes tests this week at a local hospital. Eunice, from our Nairobi office, has been studying since the beginning of the year and only working in our office one day per week. This hasn't really worked very well and there have been numerous challenges. With a heavy heart the decision was made that her position with us be suspended. We will speak with her when we visit Kenya and discuss the way ahead. Personnel issues are just some of the day to day dealings we have with our team in Africa. Our team face many challenges in the same way as families here in the UK. Spiritual attacks, money problems, sickness and even personality differences in the ministry. These are just some of the problems they face. We not only reach out to the children of Africa and to those who work amongst them....but we are also missionaries to our own team of workers and as such we need God's help and wisdom as we try to advise, guide and pray for them. While I am often the one who types the messages, William is much better at thinking through an issue and coming up with possible solutions. He also appreciates your prayers in these days as he deals with many aspects of the ministry; as he plans for some future projects; as he prepares to speak at a children's day service in a few weeks and as he continues to work to provide an income for us. A few evenings ago in our local town we watched a lady try to support a man, we assume was her husband. He was drunk and could hardly walk. He leaned over her and she struggled to walk with his weight upon her. I just turned to William and told him how thankful I was for the godly husband I have....a husband who is also called into the same ministry as I am and we are thankful that we can serve God together. The work here in the Northern Ireland office varies each day. A few days ago we were communicating regarding boxes and the hire of a lorry as a container of literature from here in the UK arrived in Kenya. Monday usually brings accounts and adding up from the previous week as well as website updates. Today I have also been answering numerous emails and messages....to a Pastor in Uganda who is planning for our visit; to a Prison worker in Albania who is requesting prayer; to a lady in a slum area in Kenya who is trying to teach deaf ladies to sew;.....these are just some of the varied messages we receive. Also on my desk today I have 7 child protection assignments to mark. These are from students in Africa who are currently taking our online course. We need prayer and wisdom as we help in these very practical areas. We also appreciate prayer as we make preparation for our next trip to Africa. There are many official hurdles still to cross and we are trusting God to open up the way before us. If in Kenya, please note that our Nairobi office has now relocated to Ngong Road. Contact us for more details. Please pray on. We have just issued our monthly email prayer update. If you would like to be added to our mailing list, please do contact us and let us know. We updated our list at the end of the year and it may be you forgot to tell us you'd like to continue receiving our prayer news. It's still not too late....feel free to let us know you'd like to hear from us each month.
We are so thankful that rains in Kenya and Uganda have been increasing. This has been such an answer to prayer after many months of drought. Of course, there are still those who are suffering and life is far from normal for many.
The rains have been a cause for rejoicing but they have also brought other challenges. One Pastor who works closely with us distributing lessons etc. has contacted me because of the situation with his Church. When the rains came they washed away one of the walls of the Church. The congregation are now in desperate need; they have done as much as they are able themselves and are now at a standstill. Please pray that they will be able to complete the work. We have told the Pastor that we will share this great need here and we would ask you to prayerfully consider whether you would be in a position to give anything; no matter how small; to this need. The ministry is being greatly affected and the people are keen to be able to meet together again to hear the Word of God and to witness to the children. If God burdens you heart to give, you can do this via this website and we will pass it on. Simply mark your gift "Samuel's Church" or send us an email to say you have donated for this purpose. Failing that, we would ask you mostly to pray. Thank you. This is just a reminder of the many practical aspects of ministry. Not all service for the Lord is preaching. This past week William and I have been involved in Fire Safety training and Child Protection Training. We have been going through legal papers regarding FML and we have been finalising applications for short term team members. William also organised a demonstration of the Passover Meal at the mission hall we attend and I was the speaker at the Parent's Night of a weekly Children's Meeting. Having recently completed the application process for the Charity Commission for FML, I have been asked by the Committee at the Mission Hall if I would prepare paperwork for them and next week we will have a training session to guide them through the process and what is involved. I appreciate prayer as I prepare the presentation. William and I also have a meeting to speak at on Sunday so appreciate prayer for that. Our team in Kenya are also involved in some very practical work at the moment and we will share more about that over the coming weeks. Meantime, please do pray for them as they sort everything out. Remember Joyce also as she continues in ministry. As we approach the Easter weekend, let us remember to give God thanks for the gift of His Son, the Lord Jesus, who died in our place and rose again that we may live and have the gift of eternal life. We appreciate so many people who take the time to pray for us and the team who make up Feed my Lambs. We all need your prayers.
We are sometimes conscious of people who are praying for us; yet they are way behind in their knowledge of the work and where we are at "today". So, here are a few reminders of how you can keep informed. Here....this blog, updated most weeks. Website....the main purpose of the website is to give an overview of the work. As such, a lot of the content stays the same for long periods. However, keep an eye on it and you will see little variations from time to time. Facebook....we have a page. Like and encourage others to like "Feed my Lambs Children's Ministry. Prayer Letters....Our main prayer letter is issued a few times each year and is sent out by post or by email. If you provide an email address you will also receive monthly updates. In fact we have just sent out our latest update....did you receive it? If not, you're missing out! These email updates are by far the most efficient way of keeping up to date with prayer requests and answers to prayer. If you would like to be added to our mailing list, you can sign up by clicking here! Of course, you can always just ask us. Send us a text or an email or give us a call and we'll be glad to answer your questions and tell you how you can best pray for us and the work among the boys and girls. |
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August 2022
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