Friends, here is an update from a dear friend and children's leader, Brian Maseko. we trained in August. He is a childrens' leader in Zimbabwe. This is what our training and ministry is about.
"Hello how are you and family, as for me the good Lord Jesus Christ is keeping me well. We finally did our Sunday school teachers training in Harare where I became one of the facilitators. We taught on 7 ways method of teaching. We had people from different provences of Zimbabwe. It was one of my greatest experience to share with other leaders. I was so excited to share what you taught me and pour it out to others. I just want to thank God for what you have done for us because the 7 ways is now is now bieng used in diffrent provences in our Country. We had a children sunday school camp on 2 Dec to 4 Dec with other Baptist Churches. It was wonderful seeing children giving their life to Christ and watching kids became crazy with the song (In My Fathers House).
You know God has been so good to me ever since I came from Botswana my Christian life is not the same. God Has been revealing new things in my life. Thank you for your prayers. Give my greetings to your wife, Tonya, Pastor Todd, Beth and Chylene. Merry Christmas to all of you. Love you lots guys and God bless you."
Please pray for Brian and the children at Rangemoore Baptist Church, Bulawayo, Zimbabwe. His pastor commented to me recently, "I do not know what you did to Brain, he is not the same man. He is on fire for reaching children and teaching them. Thank you."
God has opened doors and opportunities we could never imagined. What a great God we serve to send us to Botswana and reaching out into Africa.
Praising God in a Season of a Baby Worshiping a Living King,
Scott
Tuesday, December 6, 2011
Friday, November 18, 2011
Time to Celebrate
I've been reflecting on what GOD has done in and through us in our first full year here in Botswana I am amazed and humbled. I have tried to determine the impact of both our ministry and on our family. We have held (2) 3-day Children's Ministry conferences - one is Gaborone and one in Masunga; (3) 1-day seminars - in Selebi-Phikwe,at AFM,and at OBC; we have started with will continue (3) weekly leadership trainings; have staffed and run (3) VBS's; have established and will continue (1) Bible Study for the teachers of Gakuto; and we celebrate (5) children ministries that have launched and are continuing on a weekly basis by the impact of what we have taught.
Our Family impact is still under evaluation. We are leaving for our visit in states in a few days. Hunter is leaving Botswana to stay in the states. We have no idea what that will be like for us as a family here but know it is not going to be easy. This past year there have been great days and not so great days. We have missed our daughter and families terribly. We have felt sad and lonely. We have shared many laughs, and at other times felt depressed. We have experienced many extremes being energized, bored, excited, lonely, loved, tried, and tested. We have grown and learned from our experiences and most importantly have experienced God in ways we could never have imagined.
Pray for this little family and how we handle the home visit and return back from the USA. Thank you for your prayers and support and love. Without them, we could have never made it this far. ~ Scott
Wednesday, November 16, 2011
FINAL TRAINING WEEK
We had our first training with the OBC Children's Sunday School team this weekend. 43 teachers were there, including 9 from a church member's preschool. In the training there were 6 people who were not leaders or teachers just considering working in children's ministry. OBC has a very successful children's program for Sunday morning. They reach 200 children and have about 30 in the toddler class every Sunday.
The "win" for the training was to equip the teachers with leadership thinking. The focus was PATH leadership developing the passion, attitude, teamwork and honor for the teaching team. The start of the training first involved asking what and why they did the work they do. Majority was the patent answer from all over the world, "the pastor asked me". As we worked most of the morning the group focused on more about why they were there as individuals who are working as team working for God. It is always a joy watching the facial expressions and conversations change as they learn more about themselves and how they impact the ministry. So many shared the need to be encouraged and loved to fill like they were getting their cups filled in order to continue to pour out to the children. When we finished the day all 6 who were not sure what they were going to do in the ministry have a desire to be part of a fantastic part of God's work. We will be doing continual training with the OBC team every term for 2012.
On Monday, I had my last training for the year at Believers Destiny Academy. Working with them has been a wow God moment. I have worked with 49 teachers for the past 3 weeks every Monday. The work has been a blessing to me and to them. This is the school where we started in a 110 degree tent talking about passion, attitude, teamwork and honor. What a way to start. In 3 weeks we have taught about leadership, personality, mission, vision and values. Their thirst for more is incredible. For the first time, they see the connection on what and how they teach children is guided by the focus of the schools mission, vision and values. They are aware of the importance of continued coaching and training. The school is willing to provide for them. When asked what did they learn, over and over they commented it was encouraging for them changed the way they thinking about teaching and reaching children. They want further training and we have agree starting in February we will continue to provide leadership & discipleship to reach the children in their school.
Destiny Believers Academy already has 100 children in their bible club that meets every Saturday. The club is designed to be a children's church for the area. This has been by word of mouth only. They will start in January advertising after their December Bible School that is expected to have 400+ children. We have trained them on curriculum and how to engage the children with story telling methods and how to connect with the children using games and activities. Once this is successful, they will introduce the same method to 3 other school locations to begin children based churches. What joy it will be to see children worshipping in Botswana at a church where they are the focus.
Please keep both of these ministries in your prays as they seek to reach Children for Christ!
The "win" for the training was to equip the teachers with leadership thinking. The focus was PATH leadership developing the passion, attitude, teamwork and honor for the teaching team. The start of the training first involved asking what and why they did the work they do. Majority was the patent answer from all over the world, "the pastor asked me". As we worked most of the morning the group focused on more about why they were there as individuals who are working as team working for God. It is always a joy watching the facial expressions and conversations change as they learn more about themselves and how they impact the ministry. So many shared the need to be encouraged and loved to fill like they were getting their cups filled in order to continue to pour out to the children. When we finished the day all 6 who were not sure what they were going to do in the ministry have a desire to be part of a fantastic part of God's work. We will be doing continual training with the OBC team every term for 2012.
On Monday, I had my last training for the year at Believers Destiny Academy. Working with them has been a wow God moment. I have worked with 49 teachers for the past 3 weeks every Monday. The work has been a blessing to me and to them. This is the school where we started in a 110 degree tent talking about passion, attitude, teamwork and honor. What a way to start. In 3 weeks we have taught about leadership, personality, mission, vision and values. Their thirst for more is incredible. For the first time, they see the connection on what and how they teach children is guided by the focus of the schools mission, vision and values. They are aware of the importance of continued coaching and training. The school is willing to provide for them. When asked what did they learn, over and over they commented it was encouraging for them changed the way they thinking about teaching and reaching children. They want further training and we have agree starting in February we will continue to provide leadership & discipleship to reach the children in their school.
Destiny Believers Academy already has 100 children in their bible club that meets every Saturday. The club is designed to be a children's church for the area. This has been by word of mouth only. They will start in January advertising after their December Bible School that is expected to have 400+ children. We have trained them on curriculum and how to engage the children with story telling methods and how to connect with the children using games and activities. Once this is successful, they will introduce the same method to 3 other school locations to begin children based churches. What joy it will be to see children worshipping in Botswana at a church where they are the focus.
Please keep both of these ministries in your prays as they seek to reach Children for Christ!
Sunday, October 30, 2011
Cows, Donkeys, Goats Oh My!
I just got back from a long trip training in the village of Selebe-Phikwi and wanted to share what a great experience I had during this trip.
First, the travel was crazy, with all the business of payday and everyone driving wild on the roads to get where they wanted. Took way longer than I expected to reach my destination. My first stop was to visit the Brazilian missionaries who have been watching over my belongings in Palapye after the Suburban broke down (yes, it is still in the shop. Waiting on parts from the US to arrive.) Wonderful family establishing church in their home and reaching 45 children and 23 adults. When they found out our ministry, they were very interested and requested we do a training next year for them. They will organize other baptist churches in the area who need this type of training. Opportunity impact of reaching 150 to 200 children in the churches alone that have no established children's ministry. That Suburban is building my ministry and the kingdom of God by my fuel pump breaking down. I pray the Lord will be done with it soon so I can get it back to help in transportation back in Gaborone. I'm loving what he is doing but sure miss my car.
Because of the late driving, I ended doing something I should not do, drive at night in rural Botswana. Death from driving accidents involving animals is the largest in Botswana outside of HIV. From the main road to Selebe-Phikwi I traveled a road so full of life stock I felt like I was driving trough a farm instead of a road. Cows (dikomo), donkey (ditonki) and goats (dipudi) were everywhere. The locals were driving through as if they were not there, just the flashers going off. I had my hands at 2 and 10 o'clock and my head in the windshield looking out for them. They were in the road walking, sleeping. They were beside the road and even saw a few Impala jumping across the highway. The adrenaline was over the top. I finally arrived and was welcomed by Rob and Mary Grindley, with Branch Ministries to a nice steak and a good nights rest.
The training was with Branch Ministries who asked me train three churches in their ministry. The churches were: Church Of The Harvest (the existing ministry); Botshabelo and Tobane. They are working to develop children ministry in two of them and grow the ministry in the third. There are 140 children attending the churches represented. Branch Ministries was established in 1996 by Robert & Mary when they answered the call to preach the Gospel in Africa. Since that time they have been involved in many types of ministry. Their ministry is primarily in Selebi-Phikwe, a mining town in central Botswana with a population of approximately 65,000. Branch Ministries now includes works and projects of church planting, evangelistic outreaches, leadership conferences. Selebi-Phikwe is an area known to be surrounded by witchcraft and the spiritual battle is very real for all ages. It is a battle field most of us can understand nor begin to comprehend. This is a stronghold capturing many generations.
The next day was a wonderful day of training. Eager participants and who grasped what was taught and a vast desire to learn. A day was not enough for this group. Our mission here is to help establish effective children's ministries in churches. Watching the churches work to organize themselves, determine the roles they were to fill and define their mission, vision and values right in front of me was impressive. I wish Pastor Clay Smith was with me to coach me through the last part. He is the beast at it. I am grateful this grasshopper had a good teacher. God showed up and it was working great as they eagerly got busy putting the work together. Pray for the three churches as the work their next steps in their children ministry and define the direction God wants them to take. The 3 churches have the opportunity to impact 1,600 children that attend school them. I look forward to seeing what God will do here. Pray the next training will be done soon before we head home for the holidays. They want to learn more about creative teaching methods and finalize their mission, vision, values statement. Such a joy to be part of something that is 100% what we provide to churches here in Botswana.
The drive home was uneventful, praise God, with not issues. Glad to spend the night with family and enjoy time with friends who were visiting.
Pray for Hunter's last weeks here and the transition all of us are going to face when we leave him in the US and head back to Botswana in January. We love tall, competitive boy so much. He has such a presence in the family that will be greatly missed.
Scott Shipes
First, the travel was crazy, with all the business of payday and everyone driving wild on the roads to get where they wanted. Took way longer than I expected to reach my destination. My first stop was to visit the Brazilian missionaries who have been watching over my belongings in Palapye after the Suburban broke down (yes, it is still in the shop. Waiting on parts from the US to arrive.) Wonderful family establishing church in their home and reaching 45 children and 23 adults. When they found out our ministry, they were very interested and requested we do a training next year for them. They will organize other baptist churches in the area who need this type of training. Opportunity impact of reaching 150 to 200 children in the churches alone that have no established children's ministry. That Suburban is building my ministry and the kingdom of God by my fuel pump breaking down. I pray the Lord will be done with it soon so I can get it back to help in transportation back in Gaborone. I'm loving what he is doing but sure miss my car.
Because of the late driving, I ended doing something I should not do, drive at night in rural Botswana. Death from driving accidents involving animals is the largest in Botswana outside of HIV. From the main road to Selebe-Phikwi I traveled a road so full of life stock I felt like I was driving trough a farm instead of a road. Cows (dikomo), donkey (ditonki) and goats (dipudi) were everywhere. The locals were driving through as if they were not there, just the flashers going off. I had my hands at 2 and 10 o'clock and my head in the windshield looking out for them. They were in the road walking, sleeping. They were beside the road and even saw a few Impala jumping across the highway. The adrenaline was over the top. I finally arrived and was welcomed by Rob and Mary Grindley, with Branch Ministries to a nice steak and a good nights rest.
The training was with Branch Ministries who asked me train three churches in their ministry. The churches were: Church Of The Harvest (the existing ministry); Botshabelo and Tobane. They are working to develop children ministry in two of them and grow the ministry in the third. There are 140 children attending the churches represented. Branch Ministries was established in 1996 by Robert & Mary when they answered the call to preach the Gospel in Africa. Since that time they have been involved in many types of ministry. Their ministry is primarily in Selebi-Phikwe, a mining town in central Botswana with a population of approximately 65,000. Branch Ministries now includes works and projects of church planting, evangelistic outreaches, leadership conferences. Selebi-Phikwe is an area known to be surrounded by witchcraft and the spiritual battle is very real for all ages. It is a battle field most of us can understand nor begin to comprehend. This is a stronghold capturing many generations.
The next day was a wonderful day of training. Eager participants and who grasped what was taught and a vast desire to learn. A day was not enough for this group. Our mission here is to help establish effective children's ministries in churches. Watching the churches work to organize themselves, determine the roles they were to fill and define their mission, vision and values right in front of me was impressive. I wish Pastor Clay Smith was with me to coach me through the last part. He is the beast at it. I am grateful this grasshopper had a good teacher. God showed up and it was working great as they eagerly got busy putting the work together. Pray for the three churches as the work their next steps in their children ministry and define the direction God wants them to take. The 3 churches have the opportunity to impact 1,600 children that attend school them. I look forward to seeing what God will do here. Pray the next training will be done soon before we head home for the holidays. They want to learn more about creative teaching methods and finalize their mission, vision, values statement. Such a joy to be part of something that is 100% what we provide to churches here in Botswana.
The drive home was uneventful, praise God, with not issues. Glad to spend the night with family and enjoy time with friends who were visiting.
Pray for Hunter's last weeks here and the transition all of us are going to face when we leave him in the US and head back to Botswana in January. We love tall, competitive boy so much. He has such a presence in the family that will be greatly missed.
Scott Shipes
Tuesday, October 25, 2011
It is Hot in Botswana
To all our friends and supporters, man it is hot here. Calling for 104 every day until the rains get here. For the rain to come it has to get hot. You have to take the heat to get the rain. Praying for that rain to get here soon. Not only is it hot but the sun is so intense. It takes the energy out of you quickly when you are out and about in it. Enough of my whining about being hot.
Yesterday I had the privilege to teach 49 teachers at Believer's Destiny Academy about children's leadership. It was such a joy to have that many teachers willing to learn under a tent which was 110 degrees for 2 hours. I was able to share the core of our ministry and why they should work to be part of it. They have the ability to reach 40% of the population in Botswana about Jesus Christ who mostly ignored in churches, children. This work should be done with passion, the right attitude, with a team and with honor.
The teachers were engaged, asking questions and wanted more of what we have to provide and willing to come every week for 2 hours in the heat or not to learn. They want to take this teaching to their churches they attend and build their children's ministry. God has shown me the opportunities are out there. We must continue to pray for discernment and His direction as they become apparent to us.
The owner of the school has a vision of running children bible schools on Saturdays at 4 villages where she operates schools for 2 hours. She wants leaders trained to do this work starting the new school year. Tonya, the boys and I ran one of the bible schools for her on Saturday last week. 78 children were there without any advertising or pushing it throughout the village. Just word of mouth. Teaching them they are a child of the King, made in His image and His friend was so much fun. They were excited to hear this and joyful repeating this message to me. They were children who do not attend her school, so this is truly an out reach for the owner. I see God confirming her vision and joyful we can be part of training leaders to help this work.
Pray for the remaining training sessions we have with them. Pray for the energy it takes to pour out to this number of people. Pray for the leaders to connect to the vision to reach the unreached children who do not know God and His son Jesus. Pray for our boys as the final month of school for the year is here and their preparation to be home in the states for the holidays. Pray for my Suburban to get back on the road again before we head home. Pray for my son Hunter who will be leaving Botswana to finish high school in the US to prepare for university.
Thank you for all your support, love and prayers.
Scott Shipes
Yesterday I had the privilege to teach 49 teachers at Believer's Destiny Academy about children's leadership. It was such a joy to have that many teachers willing to learn under a tent which was 110 degrees for 2 hours. I was able to share the core of our ministry and why they should work to be part of it. They have the ability to reach 40% of the population in Botswana about Jesus Christ who mostly ignored in churches, children. This work should be done with passion, the right attitude, with a team and with honor.
The teachers were engaged, asking questions and wanted more of what we have to provide and willing to come every week for 2 hours in the heat or not to learn. They want to take this teaching to their churches they attend and build their children's ministry. God has shown me the opportunities are out there. We must continue to pray for discernment and His direction as they become apparent to us.
The owner of the school has a vision of running children bible schools on Saturdays at 4 villages where she operates schools for 2 hours. She wants leaders trained to do this work starting the new school year. Tonya, the boys and I ran one of the bible schools for her on Saturday last week. 78 children were there without any advertising or pushing it throughout the village. Just word of mouth. Teaching them they are a child of the King, made in His image and His friend was so much fun. They were excited to hear this and joyful repeating this message to me. They were children who do not attend her school, so this is truly an out reach for the owner. I see God confirming her vision and joyful we can be part of training leaders to help this work.
Pray for the remaining training sessions we have with them. Pray for the energy it takes to pour out to this number of people. Pray for the leaders to connect to the vision to reach the unreached children who do not know God and His son Jesus. Pray for our boys as the final month of school for the year is here and their preparation to be home in the states for the holidays. Pray for my Suburban to get back on the road again before we head home. Pray for my son Hunter who will be leaving Botswana to finish high school in the US to prepare for university.
Thank you for all your support, love and prayers.
Scott Shipes
Friday, October 14, 2011
God is so Amazing!
Just wanted to update a continued saga concerning the Suburban's fuel pump failing. After the repair in Francistown by my new found friend Darren, the team picked it and headed to Gaborone. It worked great. Then the new pump decided to stop working properly 170km away in Palapye. It had worked fine until just before the team had to stop at a Hoof and Mouth Prevention station. This process is a lot of fun (not), getting out of the car, stepping in fungicide, spraying the tires and getting back in the car. Once they made this stop and headed down the road, it started to failed again.
When they arrived in the next village, Palapye, where they decided to drop the Suburban at the nearest shop. A God moment was beginning to happen. The team missed the first service station they wanted to use and had to pull into the second one available. There is a bus stop located beside the second station. A gentleman got off a bus near where they stopped the car and offered his assistance. He was concerned the people there would take advantage of them and stayed with them to watch and help. One of the pastors asked him about his salvation. His response was, he had been waiting for Jesus and had not found him yet. He decided he needed to change his life and stopped smoking and drinking beer several weeks ago. Since then, he has been waiting for Jesus to come in his life.
If you know Ken Galyean, with Call to Africa that did not take long after hearing his story. In all this confusion of car failure, this man announced he was a sinner in need of a savior. He is now a born again believer after Ken led him through the plan of salvation and the sinner's pray. A local pastor/missionary arrived shortly after this had happened. One of the team members who knew him and had called him to asked for his help. As they introduced him to the man, the man asked if he knew of a church near where he lived so he could find a church to attend. As God would arrange it, the man lived just down the street from this pastor and his church. Amazing how God can arrange all this to happen at the right moment using my Suburban's fuel pump failure as a catalyst for transformation. The cost of what we experienced to help a lost soul find an internal home, is priceless. God had already been working in his life weeks before they arrived with a broken down vehicle. God used His servants to finish His work.
What did I learn? Our obedience can be uncomfortable, expensive and painful but worth the cost to see God's work fulfilled around you. Not only was one man's life transformed, all of us know God a little more and ready to take a next step with Him. How do I feel? Amazed that He loves me enough to use me and those around in such amazing ways that can not be explained by any other way but, "Go God".
Continue to pray for the work needed to repair the Suburban to get it properly running. Please pray for us not to be discouraged and wait on the repair. I hate using the word patience. I don't like praying for it but we need for us to embrace it right now. Pray for my muslim brother who became a believer 7 days ago. Pray the bible I gave him speaks knowledge and wisdom of Christ to his heart and mind.
Thank you for your love and prayers,
Scott
When they arrived in the next village, Palapye, where they decided to drop the Suburban at the nearest shop. A God moment was beginning to happen. The team missed the first service station they wanted to use and had to pull into the second one available. There is a bus stop located beside the second station. A gentleman got off a bus near where they stopped the car and offered his assistance. He was concerned the people there would take advantage of them and stayed with them to watch and help. One of the pastors asked him about his salvation. His response was, he had been waiting for Jesus and had not found him yet. He decided he needed to change his life and stopped smoking and drinking beer several weeks ago. Since then, he has been waiting for Jesus to come in his life.
If you know Ken Galyean, with Call to Africa that did not take long after hearing his story. In all this confusion of car failure, this man announced he was a sinner in need of a savior. He is now a born again believer after Ken led him through the plan of salvation and the sinner's pray. A local pastor/missionary arrived shortly after this had happened. One of the team members who knew him and had called him to asked for his help. As they introduced him to the man, the man asked if he knew of a church near where he lived so he could find a church to attend. As God would arrange it, the man lived just down the street from this pastor and his church. Amazing how God can arrange all this to happen at the right moment using my Suburban's fuel pump failure as a catalyst for transformation. The cost of what we experienced to help a lost soul find an internal home, is priceless. God had already been working in his life weeks before they arrived with a broken down vehicle. God used His servants to finish His work.
What did I learn? Our obedience can be uncomfortable, expensive and painful but worth the cost to see God's work fulfilled around you. Not only was one man's life transformed, all of us know God a little more and ready to take a next step with Him. How do I feel? Amazed that He loves me enough to use me and those around in such amazing ways that can not be explained by any other way but, "Go God".
Continue to pray for the work needed to repair the Suburban to get it properly running. Please pray for us not to be discouraged and wait on the repair. I hate using the word patience. I don't like praying for it but we need for us to embrace it right now. Pray for my muslim brother who became a believer 7 days ago. Pray the bible I gave him speaks knowledge and wisdom of Christ to his heart and mind.
Thank you for your love and prayers,
Scott
Tuesday, October 11, 2011
Great Things He has done!!
Scott and I returned home from our trip north on Sunday. To say the week was wonderful, eventful, God-filled, and blessed doesn't begin to describe it. Our travel on Tuesday was safe and smooth - a sweet time of "one on one" for us. We meet up with the rest of the team in Francistown for lunch. The team consisted of 4 men from the states that traveled with www.calltoafrica.org , 6 Rally Team members from Face the Nation, and 3 members from OBC. After unloading at the farm in Sebina where we called home for the week we trekked into Masunga. Every evening of the trip we were part of the team doing Evangelistic Rallies in different villages. Tuesday night started in the market area of Masunga. We set up lights, sound systems, keyboard, and puppet stage in front of a small grocery store. The FTN rally team performed and Ken Galyean shared the gospel. We celebrated with Several new believers that night. Below is a picture of me with a young woman (in red stripes) who decided to follow Jesus.
On Wednesday the Pastor's Conference and Children's Ministry Conference began. We were happy to have 12-14 leaders spend 3 days of intensive training with us. Scott did an excellent job as always explaining the importance of Children's Ministry, equipping them with new ideas on teaching, and providing them with 2 years of curriculum. I was glad to be there to assist him and encourage the leaders. Wednesday evening our evening rally was held in Mosojane a village we have served and invested in this past year. The outpouring of the Holy Spirit in that place despite the high winds and sands about blowing you down was incredible. Many, many more people made first time decisions to follow Christ including many of the children we have worked with the past 3 times we visited. Scott was able to pray with the children and encourage them in their walk with Jesus. Please continue to pray for these children to grow in their knowledge of Jesus and to be discipled through the local church. I am attaching a few pictures of the conference and the mosojane rally.
On Thursday Scott took me early in the morning to visit my sweet friend Elizabeth who runs a daycare in the small village of Malambakwena - 5K from Masunga where the conference was happening. Due to transport I ended up spending the day there with Elizabeth, teacher Grace, teacher Kate and 20 precious children. Elizabeth and Grace had both been part of the Children's Ministry Conference we led in August at Open Baptist Church. I enjoyed helping Elizabeth cook, reading to the children, and hearing everything they have learned this year. I hope you enjoy the pictures as much as I enjoyed my time there.
The rally on Thursday was held in Malambakwena. There was a small crowd due to the "unseasonably" cold winds but we Praise the Lord for the one teenage girl who made a public profession of faith. Please pray for her and the others that heard the gospel message. Pray for transformation for this entire village. After the rally we packed up as we did every night and headed back to Sebina for bed. This night I was blessed to have little visitor spend the night with me. Natasha (Elizabeth's 5 year old) wanted to go with me - so of course I took her! ( You never have to twist my arm to take a little girl home with me)!!
Friday was the last day of the conference. We had a few things to do around the villages including going back to the daycare center to repair an awning over the playground and deliver some food that Mr. Brian had bought for them. The conference was a success and the participants left feeling equipped, encouraged, and empowered to continue the good work in their ministries. That afternoon I had the opportunity to go to a prayer meeting at the local high school of Masunga. There were 1200 students in attendance to be prayed over and encouraged before they started their final exams. Friday night was our last rally and was held in the village of Sebina. The farm we had been staying at was owned by one of the local pastors and she had told us of the prayers she had poured out over this village. She shared her heart about Sebina being very oppressed but her vision of it being won for Jesus. I know I have said this many times before but it is hard to put into words what the Lord did that night. As the rally began I sat in the chairs among the people and was soon surrounded by 3 or 4 young kids. After the Ken shared and invited response to the message the little girl in front of me turned around with tears in her eyes and asked me to go with her to the front. It was my honor and privilege to do just that. As the Holy Spirit continued to move many, many others came forward to begin their walk with our Lord Jesus. We prayed with them and took their information to give to a local church for follow up. As this was happening the crowd of people began to grow. Many walked over from the bar next door to see what was going on. Feeling led by the Spirit, Ken decided to start the rally again since so many had gathered. The outpouring of the Spirit that night was beyond belief. One woman testified to having issues with alcohol. She said I have a beer in the car that I am drinking. She went to the car and poured the remainder out. She said I want this Jesus and I want to live for Him!! We prayed with many and counseled many more. Scott was witness to a Muslim man praying the sinners prayer and was able to talk with him and put a Bible in his hands. How can I describe this night? Only one way - "GO GOD!!!" Here are few pictures from Friday.
Saturday morning Scott and I packed up to head home to our boys. The rest of the team ran a soccer tournament with the local schools. We made it back to Francistown, got some gas in the car and started the 4 1/2 hour trip home. About 3K out of Francistown the Surburban just stopped. Scott was pushing the peddle and the engine was running but nothing was happening. We made it to the side of the road where it totally stopped. We just looked at each other and said "now what?" with no contacts in Ftown we called the team we left in Masunga. We then called Elizabeth and her husband Pastor Andrew. They started making some contacts with people they knew and before long a pastor and his wife came to help us. We had the car towed and the Pastor helped us get into a motel and gave us some vouchers for dinner and breakfast. In the mean time our sweet friends Andrew and Elizabeth had "hitch hiked" to Ftown to be with us. They wanted to make sure we were OK. We were so grateful to have them with us. We finally got the Suburban to a car repairman that works on electrical issues - which was the problem. In God's divine way the mechanic was also a lay leader of a church and is called into missions himself. We spent some time with he and his wife listening to their testimonies and God stories. Darren (the electrical mechanic) reminded us that God was looking out for us because had we been farther down the road we could have have been stranded and been unable to get back into Francistown before things closed for the day. He also shared of deciding to turn his phone off for the weekend so they could rest and how his wife was the one that called by the other pastor to see if they could help us out. Do things happen by chance? I think NOT - God has divine appointments for all of us. After dinner Andrew and Elizabeth headed back to Mosojane where they live and we had an evening alone with nothing but REST... Something we have a hard time getting!! That night before bed we realized our laptop was missing so we spent much of our "supposed rest" racking our brains on when and where we last had the computer. At this point we were really feeling "under attack" - after all, messing around in Satan's territory doesn't come without opposition. The next morning we continued to try to locate the computer, making calls to places we had been and people we had been with. After we checked out of the motel we were to meet up with the rest of the team on their way back to Gaborone. While Scott was checking out I was looking at our bags and realized one of mine was not there. I told Scott that I thought the bag was in the back seat of the Suburban and that the laptop was in it. He called the mechanic (whose number we now had ourselves) and sure enough it was!!! Relief!! The team made it to Ftown around lunch time and we got in the church van with 7 of them. We arrived back Late Sunday night - so happy to see our boys again. We are blessed to have some really good friends in Gabs that came on Saturday when we got stuck and took them to stay at their house. The boys had fun and we didn't have to worry. We left the Suburban in Francistown to be repaired and are praying to have it back by the weekend. Here is a picture of Darren and Diane with Scott this was our ride into town to meet the rest of the team.
We are home now reflecting on the Great Things HE has done!!
Please continue to pray for the people of North East Botswana. Pray for all of those that made decisions to follow Jesus. Please pray that others would come to know Him as Lord. Pray that all who attended the conference will be fruitful in their ministry to children. Pray for Red Hills Daycare as they seek to reach the youngest, very vulnerable children. Pray that God would meet their financial needs so they can minister to more. Pray for Pastor Alan and wife Lindy as the minister in a church in Francistown. Pray for Darren and Diane as they minister also. Pray that God would supply everything they need to do the ministry he has given them vision to do. Pray that Darren would be able to fix our Suburban quickly and cost effectively. Praise God with us for all of HIS provision on our trip. Praise him for our boys being well cared for by Kez, Mercy and Vivian. Praise him for the Davis Family that kept them on Saturday and Sunday. Praise him for all of His promises including the one we clung too during our time of attack ~ "He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world." 1John4:4
We love you all!!! ~ Tonya
On Wednesday the Pastor's Conference and Children's Ministry Conference began. We were happy to have 12-14 leaders spend 3 days of intensive training with us. Scott did an excellent job as always explaining the importance of Children's Ministry, equipping them with new ideas on teaching, and providing them with 2 years of curriculum. I was glad to be there to assist him and encourage the leaders. Wednesday evening our evening rally was held in Mosojane a village we have served and invested in this past year. The outpouring of the Holy Spirit in that place despite the high winds and sands about blowing you down was incredible. Many, many more people made first time decisions to follow Christ including many of the children we have worked with the past 3 times we visited. Scott was able to pray with the children and encourage them in their walk with Jesus. Please continue to pray for these children to grow in their knowledge of Jesus and to be discipled through the local church. I am attaching a few pictures of the conference and the mosojane rally.
On Thursday Scott took me early in the morning to visit my sweet friend Elizabeth who runs a daycare in the small village of Malambakwena - 5K from Masunga where the conference was happening. Due to transport I ended up spending the day there with Elizabeth, teacher Grace, teacher Kate and 20 precious children. Elizabeth and Grace had both been part of the Children's Ministry Conference we led in August at Open Baptist Church. I enjoyed helping Elizabeth cook, reading to the children, and hearing everything they have learned this year. I hope you enjoy the pictures as much as I enjoyed my time there.
The rally on Thursday was held in Malambakwena. There was a small crowd due to the "unseasonably" cold winds but we Praise the Lord for the one teenage girl who made a public profession of faith. Please pray for her and the others that heard the gospel message. Pray for transformation for this entire village. After the rally we packed up as we did every night and headed back to Sebina for bed. This night I was blessed to have little visitor spend the night with me. Natasha (Elizabeth's 5 year old) wanted to go with me - so of course I took her! ( You never have to twist my arm to take a little girl home with me)!!
Friday was the last day of the conference. We had a few things to do around the villages including going back to the daycare center to repair an awning over the playground and deliver some food that Mr. Brian had bought for them. The conference was a success and the participants left feeling equipped, encouraged, and empowered to continue the good work in their ministries. That afternoon I had the opportunity to go to a prayer meeting at the local high school of Masunga. There were 1200 students in attendance to be prayed over and encouraged before they started their final exams. Friday night was our last rally and was held in the village of Sebina. The farm we had been staying at was owned by one of the local pastors and she had told us of the prayers she had poured out over this village. She shared her heart about Sebina being very oppressed but her vision of it being won for Jesus. I know I have said this many times before but it is hard to put into words what the Lord did that night. As the rally began I sat in the chairs among the people and was soon surrounded by 3 or 4 young kids. After the Ken shared and invited response to the message the little girl in front of me turned around with tears in her eyes and asked me to go with her to the front. It was my honor and privilege to do just that. As the Holy Spirit continued to move many, many others came forward to begin their walk with our Lord Jesus. We prayed with them and took their information to give to a local church for follow up. As this was happening the crowd of people began to grow. Many walked over from the bar next door to see what was going on. Feeling led by the Spirit, Ken decided to start the rally again since so many had gathered. The outpouring of the Spirit that night was beyond belief. One woman testified to having issues with alcohol. She said I have a beer in the car that I am drinking. She went to the car and poured the remainder out. She said I want this Jesus and I want to live for Him!! We prayed with many and counseled many more. Scott was witness to a Muslim man praying the sinners prayer and was able to talk with him and put a Bible in his hands. How can I describe this night? Only one way - "GO GOD!!!" Here are few pictures from Friday.
Saturday morning Scott and I packed up to head home to our boys. The rest of the team ran a soccer tournament with the local schools. We made it back to Francistown, got some gas in the car and started the 4 1/2 hour trip home. About 3K out of Francistown the Surburban just stopped. Scott was pushing the peddle and the engine was running but nothing was happening. We made it to the side of the road where it totally stopped. We just looked at each other and said "now what?" with no contacts in Ftown we called the team we left in Masunga. We then called Elizabeth and her husband Pastor Andrew. They started making some contacts with people they knew and before long a pastor and his wife came to help us. We had the car towed and the Pastor helped us get into a motel and gave us some vouchers for dinner and breakfast. In the mean time our sweet friends Andrew and Elizabeth had "hitch hiked" to Ftown to be with us. They wanted to make sure we were OK. We were so grateful to have them with us. We finally got the Suburban to a car repairman that works on electrical issues - which was the problem. In God's divine way the mechanic was also a lay leader of a church and is called into missions himself. We spent some time with he and his wife listening to their testimonies and God stories. Darren (the electrical mechanic) reminded us that God was looking out for us because had we been farther down the road we could have have been stranded and been unable to get back into Francistown before things closed for the day. He also shared of deciding to turn his phone off for the weekend so they could rest and how his wife was the one that called by the other pastor to see if they could help us out. Do things happen by chance? I think NOT - God has divine appointments for all of us. After dinner Andrew and Elizabeth headed back to Mosojane where they live and we had an evening alone with nothing but REST... Something we have a hard time getting!! That night before bed we realized our laptop was missing so we spent much of our "supposed rest" racking our brains on when and where we last had the computer. At this point we were really feeling "under attack" - after all, messing around in Satan's territory doesn't come without opposition. The next morning we continued to try to locate the computer, making calls to places we had been and people we had been with. After we checked out of the motel we were to meet up with the rest of the team on their way back to Gaborone. While Scott was checking out I was looking at our bags and realized one of mine was not there. I told Scott that I thought the bag was in the back seat of the Suburban and that the laptop was in it. He called the mechanic (whose number we now had ourselves) and sure enough it was!!! Relief!! The team made it to Ftown around lunch time and we got in the church van with 7 of them. We arrived back Late Sunday night - so happy to see our boys again. We are blessed to have some really good friends in Gabs that came on Saturday when we got stuck and took them to stay at their house. The boys had fun and we didn't have to worry. We left the Suburban in Francistown to be repaired and are praying to have it back by the weekend. Here is a picture of Darren and Diane with Scott this was our ride into town to meet the rest of the team.
We are home now reflecting on the Great Things HE has done!!
Please continue to pray for the people of North East Botswana. Pray for all of those that made decisions to follow Jesus. Please pray that others would come to know Him as Lord. Pray that all who attended the conference will be fruitful in their ministry to children. Pray for Red Hills Daycare as they seek to reach the youngest, very vulnerable children. Pray that God would meet their financial needs so they can minister to more. Pray for Pastor Alan and wife Lindy as the minister in a church in Francistown. Pray for Darren and Diane as they minister also. Pray that God would supply everything they need to do the ministry he has given them vision to do. Pray that Darren would be able to fix our Suburban quickly and cost effectively. Praise God with us for all of HIS provision on our trip. Praise him for our boys being well cared for by Kez, Mercy and Vivian. Praise him for the Davis Family that kept them on Saturday and Sunday. Praise him for all of His promises including the one we clung too during our time of attack ~ "He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world." 1John4:4
We love you all!!! ~ Tonya
Tuesday, September 27, 2011
With Thankful Hearts
Hard to believe it's almost been a month since we last posted. Let me start by saying Thank YOU for praying and Thank you GOD for answering!! So many things are happening and we definitely feel and appreciate your prayers.
A week ago Scott was able to return to Gakuto to the Saturday children's program the pastor started after the Millbrook Team served there in June. He was so blessed to see 73 kids there playing, praising, and studying God's Word. He was happy to see that someone in the community had donated cookies and drinks for the kids. Gakuto Baptist continues to have over 100 in attendance on Sunday mornings for worship. We thank God for this and for the eternal investment that Millbrook Baptist Church made and continues to make in that community. We are also extremely encouraged to see the church step up on their own to try to raise funds for repairs to their outdoor toilets and to have money for some youth activities. Seeing a church becoming a producer instead of only being a consumer is a big deal and a huge "next step".
This past weekend Scott and I were invited (from the Pastor's Conference in August) to lead a Children's Sunday School training at AFM (Apostolic Faith Mission). We were told to expect around 17 people. There were 27 leaders there, half of which were brand new. Praising God for rising up leaders to reach and teach the next generation and for encouraging and equipping those who faithfully serve already. At the end of the day they asked the new people who felt ready to step up and help out and everyone raised their hands. Go God!!
On Sunday we were invited to the Evangelical Lutheran Church. They were celebrating Children's Day. We were blessed to see all of the kids sing, present memory verses, and do skits of Bible Stories. The highlight for us was the message from the pastor who spoke on the importance of Children's Ministry. God once again affirmed our call to train and disciple leaders for Children.
We are in the final days of planning and preparations for our trip to Masunga next week. We will lead a 3 day Children's Ministry Conference. We are thankful for God's provision of help with our kids. Vivian, Kez and Mercy will be staying with the boys, taking them to and from school, cooking and "holding down the fort". An answered prayer for sure!!
I am overwhelmed with gratitude when I share what God is doing in the Bible Study in Gakuto. We have just finished up our first study called "Your life in Christ" by Campus Crusade for Christ. This week are starting a new study by LifeWay called "10 lies about God ~ and the truths that shatter them". I have a hard time putting into words what transpires during our meetings other saying the Holy Spirit is present and active. I am thankful for their sharing from the heart and for the way we are being bound together as sisters in Christ. This week the kids that go to the government schools are not in session so I invited the ladies to our house for a time of fellowship. They still have to work even if the kids aren't there but they thought they could get special permission to leave to come to my house for a meeting. I checked with all of them yesterday and they all said they were coming. When they arrived today they shared with me that they had to take a day of leave in order to come but they were so happy to get to come it was worth it to them. We had an awesome time of sharing, eating, praying, singing, and praising some more. This photo was taken today!
We are thankful for answered prayers regarding Hunter. In January he will return to Sumter, SC to live with our dear friends Mark & Karla Hafner. He will go back to Sumter High School for his last semester where he will get to take 4 college courses and do an internship at Alice Drive Baptist Church. He is thrilled to get to return to his youth group and get a chance to serve with them before he starts college next fall. We are so grateful for the way God worked this out and we give Him the Glory. As hard as it will be to leave another child 8000+ miles away we know with complete confidence and peace this is His will and provision for Hunter. Did you catch that I said leave another child? That's right we are coming home for the holidays!! We are thankful to get this opportunity to be with friends, family, and all of our kids for Christmas. We will return to Botswana on January 10th and ramp up for a new year of ministry.
Please continue to pray. Pray for the church of Gakuto and for Pastor Adam as he serves there. Pray that God would bless their fund raising efforts and that repairs and ministry expenses would be provided. Also, pray for the conference in Masunga to be fruitful and that many new leaders will find a passion to serve the Children of Botswana. Pray for our boys and their caregivers to have a safe and uneventful week. Pray for the new Bible Study I am starting with my friends in Gakuto. Pray that God would continue to reveal Himself in a real and mighty way. Pray that any lies that might be believed about God would be shattered. Pray that He would continue to bind our hearts together as trustworthy friends and sisters in Christ. Continue to pray for Hunter and our whole family as face yet another transition. Please pray for the Hafner family as they prepare to be parents to a teenage son - after all these years of only daughters. Please continue to pray for our wisdom and discernment in our future ministry plans. Scott is meeting with the Dutch Reformed Church tomorrow about the possibility of leading training for them. Our hearts desire is to be where He wants us to be. Join us in praising Him for all He has done and is continuing to do in Botswana. We love you all. ~ Tonya
A week ago Scott was able to return to Gakuto to the Saturday children's program the pastor started after the Millbrook Team served there in June. He was so blessed to see 73 kids there playing, praising, and studying God's Word. He was happy to see that someone in the community had donated cookies and drinks for the kids. Gakuto Baptist continues to have over 100 in attendance on Sunday mornings for worship. We thank God for this and for the eternal investment that Millbrook Baptist Church made and continues to make in that community. We are also extremely encouraged to see the church step up on their own to try to raise funds for repairs to their outdoor toilets and to have money for some youth activities. Seeing a church becoming a producer instead of only being a consumer is a big deal and a huge "next step".
This past weekend Scott and I were invited (from the Pastor's Conference in August) to lead a Children's Sunday School training at AFM (Apostolic Faith Mission). We were told to expect around 17 people. There were 27 leaders there, half of which were brand new. Praising God for rising up leaders to reach and teach the next generation and for encouraging and equipping those who faithfully serve already. At the end of the day they asked the new people who felt ready to step up and help out and everyone raised their hands. Go God!!
On Sunday we were invited to the Evangelical Lutheran Church. They were celebrating Children's Day. We were blessed to see all of the kids sing, present memory verses, and do skits of Bible Stories. The highlight for us was the message from the pastor who spoke on the importance of Children's Ministry. God once again affirmed our call to train and disciple leaders for Children.
We are in the final days of planning and preparations for our trip to Masunga next week. We will lead a 3 day Children's Ministry Conference. We are thankful for God's provision of help with our kids. Vivian, Kez and Mercy will be staying with the boys, taking them to and from school, cooking and "holding down the fort". An answered prayer for sure!!
I am overwhelmed with gratitude when I share what God is doing in the Bible Study in Gakuto. We have just finished up our first study called "Your life in Christ" by Campus Crusade for Christ. This week are starting a new study by LifeWay called "10 lies about God ~ and the truths that shatter them". I have a hard time putting into words what transpires during our meetings other saying the Holy Spirit is present and active. I am thankful for their sharing from the heart and for the way we are being bound together as sisters in Christ. This week the kids that go to the government schools are not in session so I invited the ladies to our house for a time of fellowship. They still have to work even if the kids aren't there but they thought they could get special permission to leave to come to my house for a meeting. I checked with all of them yesterday and they all said they were coming. When they arrived today they shared with me that they had to take a day of leave in order to come but they were so happy to get to come it was worth it to them. We had an awesome time of sharing, eating, praying, singing, and praising some more. This photo was taken today!
We are thankful for answered prayers regarding Hunter. In January he will return to Sumter, SC to live with our dear friends Mark & Karla Hafner. He will go back to Sumter High School for his last semester where he will get to take 4 college courses and do an internship at Alice Drive Baptist Church. He is thrilled to get to return to his youth group and get a chance to serve with them before he starts college next fall. We are so grateful for the way God worked this out and we give Him the Glory. As hard as it will be to leave another child 8000+ miles away we know with complete confidence and peace this is His will and provision for Hunter. Did you catch that I said leave another child? That's right we are coming home for the holidays!! We are thankful to get this opportunity to be with friends, family, and all of our kids for Christmas. We will return to Botswana on January 10th and ramp up for a new year of ministry.
Please continue to pray. Pray for the church of Gakuto and for Pastor Adam as he serves there. Pray that God would bless their fund raising efforts and that repairs and ministry expenses would be provided. Also, pray for the conference in Masunga to be fruitful and that many new leaders will find a passion to serve the Children of Botswana. Pray for our boys and their caregivers to have a safe and uneventful week. Pray for the new Bible Study I am starting with my friends in Gakuto. Pray that God would continue to reveal Himself in a real and mighty way. Pray that any lies that might be believed about God would be shattered. Pray that He would continue to bind our hearts together as trustworthy friends and sisters in Christ. Continue to pray for Hunter and our whole family as face yet another transition. Please pray for the Hafner family as they prepare to be parents to a teenage son - after all these years of only daughters. Please continue to pray for our wisdom and discernment in our future ministry plans. Scott is meeting with the Dutch Reformed Church tomorrow about the possibility of leading training for them. Our hearts desire is to be where He wants us to be. Join us in praising Him for all He has done and is continuing to do in Botswana. We love you all. ~ Tonya
Saturday, September 3, 2011
Planning in the North
This week I had the joy of heading back up north with Jeff Sukup to the Masunga area of Botswana to finalize the venue and plans for a Childrens' Leadership Conference and Pastors' Conference. There are 43 surrounding villages in the Northeast district. This area has been impacted heavily from the civil workers strike, hoof and mouth disease (the government destroyed 70% of the livestock, their main source of income) and poverty. They have requested Open Baptist Church come to the Northeast District and equip church leaders and children's workers.
"Call to Africa" is a group from the US - led by Ken Gaylean- who will hold a football(soccer) clinic and tournament representing 8 schools in the area. Each night while they are there they will hold 4 crusades in different villages throughout the area. Sounds like a lot of work, it is. Very limited housing available and no restaurants make it difficult to have a large group in the village. There will be 16 people required to do this work. We were concerned how this was going to happen in 5 weeks. We prayed for God to provide discernment and guidance as we met with people to find the location and housing. God provided in a mighty way - He always does!
We met a lady who pastors a church and owns a shopping plaza. She will offer her church and building next door at no cost. Her sons owns a catering business and will handle feeding 86 people each day. She will handle chairs and tables. She is friends with people who own a lodge and are working a good rate for us. Go God! The only other issue we had was someone to lead praise and worship for the week. This same pastor told us she had a woman who just spoke to her the day before telling her God wanted her to be in Masunga for a revival and teaching and she would be ready when the time came. Once again God provided. We spoke with her and everything is all set. The greatest challenges were getting taken care of and we now have to wait on the results. Amazing.
All of the schools were excited and felt they were able to participate in the football clinic and tournament. Because of the strike, the students have not played organized football in many months. From our visits we were able to find the 4 locations for the crusade and are waiting for confirmation on the approval. It was like God had been at work before we arrived. Once the faithful arrived to do the work, everything started falling in place.
I had the opportunity to travel to Zimbabwe and visit some pastors and one particular who attended the children's conference early last month. The Zimbabwe pastors were saying they felt God was getting ready heal Zimbabwe. I was blessed to see a young man take everything we taught and put it to work. He made sure his volunteers were born again (not asked here for children workers), trained his leaders and conducted a VBS using a curriculum we provided. He normally has 10 kids. There were 76 jumping, shouting, singing, bible verse memorizing children his first day. The senior pastor said when Bryan returned, "That boy was on fire. I could not hold him back." The pastor is going to use the children's VBS to teach the adults on Sunday morning. Unheard of in Zimbabwe, children's teaching in a church service. He thanked us for the work we did in Gaborone. He said it was going to change his village. Just so happens a new housing development is just about to be completed and bring a large number of families to the area. His church is 3 km away. This is a village in the middle of farm land. Go God! Call to Africa will be holding a crusade for the church at the new housing development. The pastor was so excited. Here is a photo:
At the end of the trip, I was able to meet with more people who attended the conference. Again, life changing and well equipped were words we heard over and over again. They are using the material we provided and were amazed at how well the children responded to scripture memorization and story time. One teacher was a graduate in child development who expressed she never was taught to teach with such passion and excitement as we had shared with her in training. She is now teaching at day care center because of the training she received. We also were able to provide some children at the school with food from OBC and clothes. Here is a photo of some of the children:
I am awe struck and blessed to serve such an amazing God. Please pray for the children's leadership conference in Masunga - 4 Oct to 9 Oct. Pray that lives will be changed and leaders will be transformed. We only have capacity for 20 children's leaders and 50 pastors. I have 2 already signed up from Zimbabwe who will travel there to attend. Pray for the energy needed to make this happen. Pray for our children as we leave them with someone in Gaborone so we can lead the conference. Pray for a land that needs healing and the people who need to be transformed. I heard this testimony from many-"The only thing that kept the country together was the church and God growing the church spiritually".
Finally, the boys start school on Monday. Pray for their getting back in the swing of things after being out for 4 weeks. Thank you for reading our blog and supporting us with your love, prayers and financial support.
Scott Shipes
"Call to Africa" is a group from the US - led by Ken Gaylean- who will hold a football(soccer) clinic and tournament representing 8 schools in the area. Each night while they are there they will hold 4 crusades in different villages throughout the area. Sounds like a lot of work, it is. Very limited housing available and no restaurants make it difficult to have a large group in the village. There will be 16 people required to do this work. We were concerned how this was going to happen in 5 weeks. We prayed for God to provide discernment and guidance as we met with people to find the location and housing. God provided in a mighty way - He always does!
We met a lady who pastors a church and owns a shopping plaza. She will offer her church and building next door at no cost. Her sons owns a catering business and will handle feeding 86 people each day. She will handle chairs and tables. She is friends with people who own a lodge and are working a good rate for us. Go God! The only other issue we had was someone to lead praise and worship for the week. This same pastor told us she had a woman who just spoke to her the day before telling her God wanted her to be in Masunga for a revival and teaching and she would be ready when the time came. Once again God provided. We spoke with her and everything is all set. The greatest challenges were getting taken care of and we now have to wait on the results. Amazing.
All of the schools were excited and felt they were able to participate in the football clinic and tournament. Because of the strike, the students have not played organized football in many months. From our visits we were able to find the 4 locations for the crusade and are waiting for confirmation on the approval. It was like God had been at work before we arrived. Once the faithful arrived to do the work, everything started falling in place.
I had the opportunity to travel to Zimbabwe and visit some pastors and one particular who attended the children's conference early last month. The Zimbabwe pastors were saying they felt God was getting ready heal Zimbabwe. I was blessed to see a young man take everything we taught and put it to work. He made sure his volunteers were born again (not asked here for children workers), trained his leaders and conducted a VBS using a curriculum we provided. He normally has 10 kids. There were 76 jumping, shouting, singing, bible verse memorizing children his first day. The senior pastor said when Bryan returned, "That boy was on fire. I could not hold him back." The pastor is going to use the children's VBS to teach the adults on Sunday morning. Unheard of in Zimbabwe, children's teaching in a church service. He thanked us for the work we did in Gaborone. He said it was going to change his village. Just so happens a new housing development is just about to be completed and bring a large number of families to the area. His church is 3 km away. This is a village in the middle of farm land. Go God! Call to Africa will be holding a crusade for the church at the new housing development. The pastor was so excited. Here is a photo:
At the end of the trip, I was able to meet with more people who attended the conference. Again, life changing and well equipped were words we heard over and over again. They are using the material we provided and were amazed at how well the children responded to scripture memorization and story time. One teacher was a graduate in child development who expressed she never was taught to teach with such passion and excitement as we had shared with her in training. She is now teaching at day care center because of the training she received. We also were able to provide some children at the school with food from OBC and clothes. Here is a photo of some of the children:
I am awe struck and blessed to serve such an amazing God. Please pray for the children's leadership conference in Masunga - 4 Oct to 9 Oct. Pray that lives will be changed and leaders will be transformed. We only have capacity for 20 children's leaders and 50 pastors. I have 2 already signed up from Zimbabwe who will travel there to attend. Pray for the energy needed to make this happen. Pray for our children as we leave them with someone in Gaborone so we can lead the conference. Pray for a land that needs healing and the people who need to be transformed. I heard this testimony from many-"The only thing that kept the country together was the church and God growing the church spiritually".
Finally, the boys start school on Monday. Pray for their getting back in the swing of things after being out for 4 weeks. Thank you for reading our blog and supporting us with your love, prayers and financial support.
Scott Shipes
Wednesday, August 24, 2011
Praise Update
Hard to put into the words what God has been doing in Botswana lately. Our summer (winter here in Botswana) has been BUSY to say the least!! We have spent the past 2 weeks without internet so our sharing has been delayed. We just came off of an incredible week with 46 children’s ministry leaders from Botswana, Zimbabwe, and Zambia for our very first Children’s Ministry conference. We were blessed to have Todd Fleming, Beth Beal, and Chylene Burdick from ADBC join us to teach and lead during the conference. The conference started on Monday with registration, introductions, and orientation. The Children’s leaders were a part of a bigger Pastor’s Conference where over 200 Pastor’s came from as far as the DRC (Congo) and Kenya to be equipped and encouraged. The breakout sessions for Children’s ministry began on Tuesday and ran through Thursday where all of the leaders were eager to hear about the importance of Children’s Ministry. Not knowing what to expect we were overwhelmed with the participants’ willingness to interact with us. They asked very good questions and all took part when we had them “practice teach” or pretend to be the children being taught. They loved learning new songs, dances, and games that they could take home to share with the kids in their churches. They were filled with anticipation and excitement at the possibility of starting Scripture Memory Clubs in their churches. They caught the vision of taking in all we could share so they could be vessels to pour out into the kids. Being able to put curriculum into their hands and give them new teaching tips and techniques left them so grateful.
One participant wrote us a thank you note at the end of the conference. She wrote: “When people asked me how the classes are, I’d answer, I am being born again as a child. This is the best way to express what has happened to me these past few days. I would be lying if I said I wish it could go on for longer. I have been thoroughly equipped and have got all I need to do what I need to do. Thank you for all you did, all you said. More than the materials, it’s what we heard you say, what we saw you do and what you had us do. Something has exploded within me, the wells have become unstopped and rivers of living water are about to flow. If someone had told me years ago that I would forfeit a Pastors Conference for a children’s leadership training, I would have called them a liar, but here I am more passionate about the baby fishes than the big ones. This is amazing on its own for me. Thank you for what you have done. Thank you for what I have become. Only eternity can testify to the ripple effects of your awesome act of love and devotion. If I never meet you again on this side of heaven, let us live in such a way that we will one day meet in heaven before the throne of grace, and I will declare, there is the one who set me on this path. May God richly, richly, richly bless you! You have caused my passion to come alive, to find its expression in the things you taught us. I have touched heaven and will now begin to touch earth and impart a little of this love upon these dear little ones.” Another participant commented, “You and your team transformed my world in Christ. I’m touched and encouraged to surrender more to God.” The closing of the conference on Friday morning included saying all of our goodbyes, giving out certificates of attendance, and being blessed by a traditional African thank you where the women bowed at our feet and gave thanks to God for us. Needless to say this was very humbling and overwhelming.
Along with the excitement of the Children’s Ministry Conference I have had the privilege to lead Bible Study with the teacher’s at Gakuto School. The teachers had asked if I could lead a Bible Study with them after we had been there in June and passed out Bibles. Getting our dates and timing together was a bit frustrating but the blessing of seeing God at work in these ladies has been worth it all. The first lesson we did was “being confident of your salvation” there was a lot of discussion about works verses grace. I was overcome with emotion as I watched the Spirit move in that room and had so many of them understand for the first time that their relationship is secure in Christ Jesus and to have them understand that He would NEVER leave them or forsake them. I left them with some homework and some memory verses. We had our second meeting on last Tuesday. There were more teachers present at this meeting and I was very encouraged with those that completed their study at home and did memory verses. This session we looked at verses that showed how sin could interrupt our fellowship with God but would never break our relationship. Again I was astonished to get a glimpse of the transformation God was already doing in their lives. Just the difference in the prayer requests was incredible. The first week the requests were all about them being blessed this week they were are asking for God to reveal His purpose in their lives, for God to have His way with their lives, and for them to have total surrender to Him. I have to admit that I easily fall in love with people and this group of ladies is of course no different. I am really enjoying just getting to know them and call them my friends. I am so blessed to be a witness to their budding love relationship with our Lord. I always leave them praising God for his love for us and being completely grateful for his grace, provision, and His mighty work in people’s lives – including my own!!
We love all of you so much and are so thankful for your love, prayers, and support. My prayer is that you see God at work and get a glimpse of His using you in that work. Scott and I are reminded over and over again that none of this is by our own doing but completely by God’s magnificent design. Our prayer and complete trust has been that He would work through the hearts of His people to accomplish his purposes. We thank you for your part in that.
Please continue to pray for our family. We are facing some family decisions with Hunter’s graduation approaching this November. We continue to need direction in our pace of life here – finding a balance with ministry and family. We have opportunities for more Children’s Conferences in Botswana and surrounding countries. Please join us in praying as we begin to plan and prepare about these opportunities. Our boys will start their last term of this school year on September 5th. Please pray that they would finish well. Please continue to pray for our aching hearts as we are miles apart from our daughter Makenzie and her husband Tyler and the rest of our families. This is by far the hardest part of what we were called to do. Thanks again for praying and for being a part of what God is doing in Botswana.
~Tonya
One participant wrote us a thank you note at the end of the conference. She wrote: “When people asked me how the classes are, I’d answer, I am being born again as a child. This is the best way to express what has happened to me these past few days. I would be lying if I said I wish it could go on for longer. I have been thoroughly equipped and have got all I need to do what I need to do. Thank you for all you did, all you said. More than the materials, it’s what we heard you say, what we saw you do and what you had us do. Something has exploded within me, the wells have become unstopped and rivers of living water are about to flow. If someone had told me years ago that I would forfeit a Pastors Conference for a children’s leadership training, I would have called them a liar, but here I am more passionate about the baby fishes than the big ones. This is amazing on its own for me. Thank you for what you have done. Thank you for what I have become. Only eternity can testify to the ripple effects of your awesome act of love and devotion. If I never meet you again on this side of heaven, let us live in such a way that we will one day meet in heaven before the throne of grace, and I will declare, there is the one who set me on this path. May God richly, richly, richly bless you! You have caused my passion to come alive, to find its expression in the things you taught us. I have touched heaven and will now begin to touch earth and impart a little of this love upon these dear little ones.” Another participant commented, “You and your team transformed my world in Christ. I’m touched and encouraged to surrender more to God.” The closing of the conference on Friday morning included saying all of our goodbyes, giving out certificates of attendance, and being blessed by a traditional African thank you where the women bowed at our feet and gave thanks to God for us. Needless to say this was very humbling and overwhelming.
Along with the excitement of the Children’s Ministry Conference I have had the privilege to lead Bible Study with the teacher’s at Gakuto School. The teachers had asked if I could lead a Bible Study with them after we had been there in June and passed out Bibles. Getting our dates and timing together was a bit frustrating but the blessing of seeing God at work in these ladies has been worth it all. The first lesson we did was “being confident of your salvation” there was a lot of discussion about works verses grace. I was overcome with emotion as I watched the Spirit move in that room and had so many of them understand for the first time that their relationship is secure in Christ Jesus and to have them understand that He would NEVER leave them or forsake them. I left them with some homework and some memory verses. We had our second meeting on last Tuesday. There were more teachers present at this meeting and I was very encouraged with those that completed their study at home and did memory verses. This session we looked at verses that showed how sin could interrupt our fellowship with God but would never break our relationship. Again I was astonished to get a glimpse of the transformation God was already doing in their lives. Just the difference in the prayer requests was incredible. The first week the requests were all about them being blessed this week they were are asking for God to reveal His purpose in their lives, for God to have His way with their lives, and for them to have total surrender to Him. I have to admit that I easily fall in love with people and this group of ladies is of course no different. I am really enjoying just getting to know them and call them my friends. I am so blessed to be a witness to their budding love relationship with our Lord. I always leave them praising God for his love for us and being completely grateful for his grace, provision, and His mighty work in people’s lives – including my own!!
We love all of you so much and are so thankful for your love, prayers, and support. My prayer is that you see God at work and get a glimpse of His using you in that work. Scott and I are reminded over and over again that none of this is by our own doing but completely by God’s magnificent design. Our prayer and complete trust has been that He would work through the hearts of His people to accomplish his purposes. We thank you for your part in that.
Please continue to pray for our family. We are facing some family decisions with Hunter’s graduation approaching this November. We continue to need direction in our pace of life here – finding a balance with ministry and family. We have opportunities for more Children’s Conferences in Botswana and surrounding countries. Please join us in praying as we begin to plan and prepare about these opportunities. Our boys will start their last term of this school year on September 5th. Please pray that they would finish well. Please continue to pray for our aching hearts as we are miles apart from our daughter Makenzie and her husband Tyler and the rest of our families. This is by far the hardest part of what we were called to do. Thanks again for praying and for being a part of what God is doing in Botswana.
~Tonya
Tuesday, August 2, 2011
Serving with the Shipes
This post is by Leandra Livesay, recent team visitor to Botswana. We asked her to summarize their team's experience for us. Here is their story:
12 days ago the Alice Drive Baptist Church Student Team left Sumter to make our way to Gaborone to minister to the children of Botswana and serve with the Shipes. Scott and Tonya are allowing us to share with you just a little bit of what we have been able to experience. The entire trip has been amazing for all of us - from the 3 days it took to get here, to seeing giraffe, rhino and impala on game drives, to shopping in the market, to just getting to be together and spending time with the Shipes. But most of all, it has been incredible to experience God in real and tangible ways - on another continent and in the lives of the children and people here.
We left Gaborone on Tuesday morning to head 8 hours north to the remote village of Mosojane. Mosojane is a village of 3000 people, 490 kilometers North of Gaborone, with 233 children between the ages of 6 and 12 enrolled in the school. Education in school is below par because of difficulty comprehending and reading English. The Shipes are working with Moruti Andrew Mwima the pastor of Mosojane Baptist Church and his wife Elizabeth to minister to the children of the village.
Our group of 11 students and 3 adults ran VBS for the children at Mosojane Primary School. We prepared craft materials, snacks and supplies for recreation for 180 children - 200 at the very most. It was amazing to see how God supplied each day, just like the 'loaves and fishes' as we were able to have just enough to minister to close to 215 children! The children in Mosojane were excited to have a group come and be there just for them. They were very attentive, soaking in the Bible stories and having fun with our students. Much like the children of Old Naledi, many of the Mosojane children are orphaned, have been abused and often go hungry. We also fed them each day - both physically and spiritually - giving them an actual treat they wouldn't normally have as well as the chance to hear the truth of Jesus Christ.
One highlight of the trip was the chance to go into the children's classrooms to see what school is like for them - school without electricity and very few books or supplies. Some of us were surprised when they unexpectedly asked us to actually TEACH the children! Our incredible students did a great job teaching English, Math and Science on the spot! In the classroom and at VBS, our students encouraged, uplifted and loved on the children - something they don't often experience. As much as we had the chance to give to them, the children of Mosojane gave to us through their sincere appreciation for everything they had - even when it wasn't much - and being so thankful for us just being there and spending time with them.
We returned on Sunday evening and over the last two days we have worked at the Old Naledi feeding station and gone to the village of Gakuto. Many have read Tonya's previous blog about the time they spent working with and ministering to the teachers there. When they asked Karla Hafner if someone would do a Bible Study with them, she knew Tonya would be the right person and she was right! Due to a bit of miscommunication, today was actually the first day that Tonya had a chance to lead the Bible Study and I (Leandra) had the amazing privilege of being there.
What an amazing time we had - talking, teaching and spending time with those teachers in the presence of God. Doing a cross cultural Bible Study is a little intimidating - not knowing how they will respond, wondering if they are coming because they think they should, rather than because they really want to. But any fear of that was quickly put to rest. They asked deep questions, interacted with us and were sincerely trying to understand and work out issues of faith and what it means to have a RELATIONSHIP with Jesus Christ. The two hours we spend with them flew by as we felt the presence of the Holy Spirit open their eyes and hearts to the truth of His word!
Today's Bible Study was about having CONFIDENCE in your salvation - that it comes only from God through His son and knowing that once you have been saved, there is nothing that can ever change that. We believe that many of the teachers do know the Lord, but there were many "ah ha!" moments as they continued to understand more of what it means to know God. The most moving moment came from a teacher who shared that she now understands that NOTHING could ever separate her from the love of God - that because she knows Jesus He will always be with and never leave her. Our prayer for the teachers of Gakuto is that they will continue to grow in the Lord and share their love for Him with their students.
Going on a short term mission trip is an awesome experience that everyone should have. But it is so different from LIVING on mission in a foreign country every day. That is not always easy or fun and I'm sure sometimes it is pretty discouraging - being far from family, friends and the comfort of "regular" life. Today, though, I had the chance to see the Shipes on Mission - to watch God work to fulfill the incredible purpose that He has called Scott, Tonya and the boys. Tonya explained to the teachers why they live here and what they are doing as Children's Missionaries - that they can't minister to every child in Botswana - but by ministering to those teachers, the children in their classes will be changed, changing the village, changing the country. What an incredible example the Shipes are of what they are trying to help the people of Botswana understand - total faith, total trust, total obedience to the ONE true God. We are so thankful for the awesome privilege of being just a small part of the work God is doing in and through them.
12 days ago the Alice Drive Baptist Church Student Team left Sumter to make our way to Gaborone to minister to the children of Botswana and serve with the Shipes. Scott and Tonya are allowing us to share with you just a little bit of what we have been able to experience. The entire trip has been amazing for all of us - from the 3 days it took to get here, to seeing giraffe, rhino and impala on game drives, to shopping in the market, to just getting to be together and spending time with the Shipes. But most of all, it has been incredible to experience God in real and tangible ways - on another continent and in the lives of the children and people here.
We left Gaborone on Tuesday morning to head 8 hours north to the remote village of Mosojane. Mosojane is a village of 3000 people, 490 kilometers North of Gaborone, with 233 children between the ages of 6 and 12 enrolled in the school. Education in school is below par because of difficulty comprehending and reading English. The Shipes are working with Moruti Andrew Mwima the pastor of Mosojane Baptist Church and his wife Elizabeth to minister to the children of the village.
Our group of 11 students and 3 adults ran VBS for the children at Mosojane Primary School. We prepared craft materials, snacks and supplies for recreation for 180 children - 200 at the very most. It was amazing to see how God supplied each day, just like the 'loaves and fishes' as we were able to have just enough to minister to close to 215 children! The children in Mosojane were excited to have a group come and be there just for them. They were very attentive, soaking in the Bible stories and having fun with our students. Much like the children of Old Naledi, many of the Mosojane children are orphaned, have been abused and often go hungry. We also fed them each day - both physically and spiritually - giving them an actual treat they wouldn't normally have as well as the chance to hear the truth of Jesus Christ.
One highlight of the trip was the chance to go into the children's classrooms to see what school is like for them - school without electricity and very few books or supplies. Some of us were surprised when they unexpectedly asked us to actually TEACH the children! Our incredible students did a great job teaching English, Math and Science on the spot! In the classroom and at VBS, our students encouraged, uplifted and loved on the children - something they don't often experience. As much as we had the chance to give to them, the children of Mosojane gave to us through their sincere appreciation for everything they had - even when it wasn't much - and being so thankful for us just being there and spending time with them.
We returned on Sunday evening and over the last two days we have worked at the Old Naledi feeding station and gone to the village of Gakuto. Many have read Tonya's previous blog about the time they spent working with and ministering to the teachers there. When they asked Karla Hafner if someone would do a Bible Study with them, she knew Tonya would be the right person and she was right! Due to a bit of miscommunication, today was actually the first day that Tonya had a chance to lead the Bible Study and I (Leandra) had the amazing privilege of being there.
What an amazing time we had - talking, teaching and spending time with those teachers in the presence of God. Doing a cross cultural Bible Study is a little intimidating - not knowing how they will respond, wondering if they are coming because they think they should, rather than because they really want to. But any fear of that was quickly put to rest. They asked deep questions, interacted with us and were sincerely trying to understand and work out issues of faith and what it means to have a RELATIONSHIP with Jesus Christ. The two hours we spend with them flew by as we felt the presence of the Holy Spirit open their eyes and hearts to the truth of His word!
Today's Bible Study was about having CONFIDENCE in your salvation - that it comes only from God through His son and knowing that once you have been saved, there is nothing that can ever change that. We believe that many of the teachers do know the Lord, but there were many "ah ha!" moments as they continued to understand more of what it means to know God. The most moving moment came from a teacher who shared that she now understands that NOTHING could ever separate her from the love of God - that because she knows Jesus He will always be with and never leave her. Our prayer for the teachers of Gakuto is that they will continue to grow in the Lord and share their love for Him with their students.
Going on a short term mission trip is an awesome experience that everyone should have. But it is so different from LIVING on mission in a foreign country every day. That is not always easy or fun and I'm sure sometimes it is pretty discouraging - being far from family, friends and the comfort of "regular" life. Today, though, I had the chance to see the Shipes on Mission - to watch God work to fulfill the incredible purpose that He has called Scott, Tonya and the boys. Tonya explained to the teachers why they live here and what they are doing as Children's Missionaries - that they can't minister to every child in Botswana - but by ministering to those teachers, the children in their classes will be changed, changing the village, changing the country. What an incredible example the Shipes are of what they are trying to help the people of Botswana understand - total faith, total trust, total obedience to the ONE true God. We are so thankful for the awesome privilege of being just a small part of the work God is doing in and through them.
Wednesday, July 20, 2011
Trying to get away in Africa
Tonya and I decided we needed time away to rest before the next big team arrives to Botswana so Saturday, we went to a mountain reserve in Rustenburg S. Africa with friends of ours, the Barkers, who are in Botswana as missionaries with Flying Missions Services. We had camped there with them in February and decided to use their cottages on a mountain side this time since it is winter here. There are hiking trails which follow mountain streams and waterfalls and our children love to go out and explore.
Sunday afternoon, we went on a game drive at another reserve and it was fantastic. We saw lions first thing, wildebeest, zebra, giraffe, impala, kudu, rhino's and a big bull elephant. The elephant was eating brush when he looked over at us taking pictures hanging out of the car and decided he did not like that. He charged toward our car. Tonya freaked out and I jumped on the gas and he moved behind us. As you can see from the pictures, he was just letting me know he was in charge.
Immediately when we got back to the cabins, 5 of the kids went hiking ... Chelsea, Justin, Chandler, Maddy and Myah...their ages are 20, 18, 16, 15 and 11. They had 2 hours to hike before it got dark. We dropped them off at the trail and then went to the waterfall to wait for them since that's where the kids were supposed to end up. Tonya had a bad feeling when we dropped them off, but the kids convinced her that they could finish the trail in the 2 hours before sundown, no problem. The place we dropped them off had two huge zebras there, this was going to be fun!
As darkness settled in, uneasiness heightened and Tonya's momma senses started kicking in high gear as we yelled for them but heard no response or sign of them. We drove to the place where they started their hike to see if maybe they had turned around and were coming back that way. No response or sign of them there either. Greg Barker and I waited at the top by the waterfall at the end of trail. While the moms panicked at the bottom of the trail. We were praying they would be safe and not panic (like their parents). During the evening, God gave us the peace we needed. All of us had our moments of fear and worry our prayers carried us through. At VBS we taught the children faith is trusting in a God you can't see because of the things you can see. We were living that trust that night.
After we drove around looking for the kids for awhile, Tonya and Teresa stayed at the camp with the 4 other kids that hadn't gone on the hike-- and just in case the hikers returned. Greg and I took extra flashlights, batteries, and blankets to try to show the kids which way to go. We stood out on the side of one of the mountains, and flashed the flashlight and called the kids for hours before we decided to hike the trail(that they were supposed to be on) and look for them. I yelled "Chandler" in that loud voice that God gave me and would just get empty inside from longing to hear something in return other than my echo. My voice never got sore or gave away. I know we probably should not have gone out after them, but we had to do something. (It's just the way God made Daddy's) Holding a flashlight and leaning close to the ground looking for green foot prints along the path made me think of the bible verse "thy Word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path". I could only see what was near me in the light. I had to stay on the path one step at a time to get where I needed to go. Running or looking away was dangerous. Then I saw the flashes from a camera and waving of an Ipod in the far distance on top of a mountain inside in the creek valley. They got way off the path. We had to keep going to see how close we could get to them. I thought of the feeling the father of the prodigal son had when he saw his son from a distance after he gotten off the path and was coming home. The emptiness left and became filled with determination and joy knowing they were OK.
Greg and I hiked that trail for nearly 3 hours by flashlight. We fell and slipped a lot but kept going. At one time we finally heard them yell "We are ok. We are on top of the mountain." There was no way we could reach them in the darkness, not knowing the terrain we had to cross. Hiking back without the kids and seeing the crying moms was hard very hard. We were so tired. It was 1 in the morning and we had not eaten or drank anything since 4 that afternoon. All we knew this meant the kids had not stayed on the path that they should have followed and were in trouble. (We found out the next day that they basically took a wrong turn at the very beginning of their hike and headed in the wrong direction - straight up a mountain.)
Tonya and Teresa had prayed and prayed asking God to give the kids wisdom in their decisions for the night. I knew Chandler had learned basic skills to survive from watching his favorite show with Bear Grylles. I had to trust he would remember and use the skills he watched on TV and the discussions we had on what would you do in that situation. While we were up all night with park rangers, police and a Search and Rescue dog, the children knew they weren't going to make it to their destination before dark, so they decided the best thing to do was find or make shelter and huddle together for the night. It was the best decision they could've made - thank you God for answering our prayers. They saw the next morning that there were some very steep drop offs ahead of them that wouldn't have been safe in the dark. The kids were totally unprepared to stay out in the mountains overnight-- no flashlights, matches, blankets not even ONE bottle of water or food. Chandler and Justin had taken extra clothes so they shared with everyone.
So they "built" 2 small shelters in the side of the mountain to stay in overnight. They all cuddled together, prayed, told jokes. They survived their night in fellowship and prayer, in spite being very cold and thirsty. Our prayers were answered because they all got along, worked together, did not become frightened. We were terrified, but they were not. They said they were more worried about us because they knew we were hurting and felt helpless. They were praying for us as well. There were several moments during the night that Teresa told us she couldn't understand why she felt so calm, it was by God's grace. Our amazing God was getting the glory on the top and the bottom of the mountain.
Greg and I had hiked the trail again at 4 am (with the police and the police dog) and found nor heard anything. An hour or so after sunrise, the kids set out to hike for the road. Shortly after making it to the road, the police found the children walking from where we dropped them off the day before and picked them up. We got the call on the police radio and drove back to the cabins and all of us arrived back at the same time around 9am. They were picked up right after the police had ordered a helicopter to come look for them. The kids were really thankful they hadn't already sent the helicopter for them.
Tears, hugs, and stories happened during the next 2 hours. The police interviews and the local newspaper came to get their story and pictures. Our children drank lots of water and ate their dinner from the night before. After their showers, the boys and Chelsea took naps as did their parents. We were supposed to come home Monday the day they were found, but we decided we couldn't due to no sleep. We all had a really good night sleep last night at ate McDonald's and got home to Gaborone at 3 pm.
We are very thankful to all the park rangers and police who stayed out all night helping to look for our kids. And we are so thankful that if this horrible situation had to happen that it happened with such special, faith-filled friends. We now share a bond stronger than ever.
But most of all, we are praising Jesus and thanking God for sustaining our kids and bringing them back to us safely!! We know it could've ended a lot differently and we are praising God it ended the way it did.
Clay Smith, our pastor at Alice Drive, always asks us "What did you learn?" and "How do you feel?" We learned to always be prepared for any situation before you set out on a journey. I learned to know your path before you start out in your journey. I learned again, the Lord provides. I feel blessed to know a God who knows me. God went after me the same way I went out after our children, there is no greater love. I feel loved knowing we have family and friends who can work together in a difficult time. I learned I love Chandler Shipes, words can not express how much he means to his parents and that he knew what to do. I love my other boys because the prayed and supported them through all this. Even Joe-Joe said, "Momma we need to pray." I learned to "handover" my child to the ONE that loves him more than I do with a level of trust like I never have before. I learned once againg that my wife Tonya Rocks and sometimes we need to trust her mother instincts! She and I held on each other and comforted each other when we there was nothing else to do.
Join us in praising our God for His love for us; His pursuit for us when we are lost; His provision; His protection; and for His Wisdom; and for His joyful reunions we are found!!
God's Blessings,
Scott and Tonya
Sunday afternoon, we went on a game drive at another reserve and it was fantastic. We saw lions first thing, wildebeest, zebra, giraffe, impala, kudu, rhino's and a big bull elephant. The elephant was eating brush when he looked over at us taking pictures hanging out of the car and decided he did not like that. He charged toward our car. Tonya freaked out and I jumped on the gas and he moved behind us. As you can see from the pictures, he was just letting me know he was in charge.
Immediately when we got back to the cabins, 5 of the kids went hiking ... Chelsea, Justin, Chandler, Maddy and Myah...their ages are 20, 18, 16, 15 and 11. They had 2 hours to hike before it got dark. We dropped them off at the trail and then went to the waterfall to wait for them since that's where the kids were supposed to end up. Tonya had a bad feeling when we dropped them off, but the kids convinced her that they could finish the trail in the 2 hours before sundown, no problem. The place we dropped them off had two huge zebras there, this was going to be fun!
As darkness settled in, uneasiness heightened and Tonya's momma senses started kicking in high gear as we yelled for them but heard no response or sign of them. We drove to the place where they started their hike to see if maybe they had turned around and were coming back that way. No response or sign of them there either. Greg Barker and I waited at the top by the waterfall at the end of trail. While the moms panicked at the bottom of the trail. We were praying they would be safe and not panic (like their parents). During the evening, God gave us the peace we needed. All of us had our moments of fear and worry our prayers carried us through. At VBS we taught the children faith is trusting in a God you can't see because of the things you can see. We were living that trust that night.
After we drove around looking for the kids for awhile, Tonya and Teresa stayed at the camp with the 4 other kids that hadn't gone on the hike-- and just in case the hikers returned. Greg and I took extra flashlights, batteries, and blankets to try to show the kids which way to go. We stood out on the side of one of the mountains, and flashed the flashlight and called the kids for hours before we decided to hike the trail(that they were supposed to be on) and look for them. I yelled "Chandler" in that loud voice that God gave me and would just get empty inside from longing to hear something in return other than my echo. My voice never got sore or gave away. I know we probably should not have gone out after them, but we had to do something. (It's just the way God made Daddy's) Holding a flashlight and leaning close to the ground looking for green foot prints along the path made me think of the bible verse "thy Word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path". I could only see what was near me in the light. I had to stay on the path one step at a time to get where I needed to go. Running or looking away was dangerous. Then I saw the flashes from a camera and waving of an Ipod in the far distance on top of a mountain inside in the creek valley. They got way off the path. We had to keep going to see how close we could get to them. I thought of the feeling the father of the prodigal son had when he saw his son from a distance after he gotten off the path and was coming home. The emptiness left and became filled with determination and joy knowing they were OK.
Greg and I hiked that trail for nearly 3 hours by flashlight. We fell and slipped a lot but kept going. At one time we finally heard them yell "We are ok. We are on top of the mountain." There was no way we could reach them in the darkness, not knowing the terrain we had to cross. Hiking back without the kids and seeing the crying moms was hard very hard. We were so tired. It was 1 in the morning and we had not eaten or drank anything since 4 that afternoon. All we knew this meant the kids had not stayed on the path that they should have followed and were in trouble. (We found out the next day that they basically took a wrong turn at the very beginning of their hike and headed in the wrong direction - straight up a mountain.)
Tonya and Teresa had prayed and prayed asking God to give the kids wisdom in their decisions for the night. I knew Chandler had learned basic skills to survive from watching his favorite show with Bear Grylles. I had to trust he would remember and use the skills he watched on TV and the discussions we had on what would you do in that situation. While we were up all night with park rangers, police and a Search and Rescue dog, the children knew they weren't going to make it to their destination before dark, so they decided the best thing to do was find or make shelter and huddle together for the night. It was the best decision they could've made - thank you God for answering our prayers. They saw the next morning that there were some very steep drop offs ahead of them that wouldn't have been safe in the dark. The kids were totally unprepared to stay out in the mountains overnight-- no flashlights, matches, blankets not even ONE bottle of water or food. Chandler and Justin had taken extra clothes so they shared with everyone.
So they "built" 2 small shelters in the side of the mountain to stay in overnight. They all cuddled together, prayed, told jokes. They survived their night in fellowship and prayer, in spite being very cold and thirsty. Our prayers were answered because they all got along, worked together, did not become frightened. We were terrified, but they were not. They said they were more worried about us because they knew we were hurting and felt helpless. They were praying for us as well. There were several moments during the night that Teresa told us she couldn't understand why she felt so calm, it was by God's grace. Our amazing God was getting the glory on the top and the bottom of the mountain.
Greg and I had hiked the trail again at 4 am (with the police and the police dog) and found nor heard anything. An hour or so after sunrise, the kids set out to hike for the road. Shortly after making it to the road, the police found the children walking from where we dropped them off the day before and picked them up. We got the call on the police radio and drove back to the cabins and all of us arrived back at the same time around 9am. They were picked up right after the police had ordered a helicopter to come look for them. The kids were really thankful they hadn't already sent the helicopter for them.
Tears, hugs, and stories happened during the next 2 hours. The police interviews and the local newspaper came to get their story and pictures. Our children drank lots of water and ate their dinner from the night before. After their showers, the boys and Chelsea took naps as did their parents. We were supposed to come home Monday the day they were found, but we decided we couldn't due to no sleep. We all had a really good night sleep last night at ate McDonald's and got home to Gaborone at 3 pm.
We are very thankful to all the park rangers and police who stayed out all night helping to look for our kids. And we are so thankful that if this horrible situation had to happen that it happened with such special, faith-filled friends. We now share a bond stronger than ever.
But most of all, we are praising Jesus and thanking God for sustaining our kids and bringing them back to us safely!! We know it could've ended a lot differently and we are praising God it ended the way it did.
Clay Smith, our pastor at Alice Drive, always asks us "What did you learn?" and "How do you feel?" We learned to always be prepared for any situation before you set out on a journey. I learned to know your path before you start out in your journey. I learned again, the Lord provides. I feel blessed to know a God who knows me. God went after me the same way I went out after our children, there is no greater love. I feel loved knowing we have family and friends who can work together in a difficult time. I learned I love Chandler Shipes, words can not express how much he means to his parents and that he knew what to do. I love my other boys because the prayed and supported them through all this. Even Joe-Joe said, "Momma we need to pray." I learned to "handover" my child to the ONE that loves him more than I do with a level of trust like I never have before. I learned once againg that my wife Tonya Rocks and sometimes we need to trust her mother instincts! She and I held on each other and comforted each other when we there was nothing else to do.
Join us in praising our God for His love for us; His pursuit for us when we are lost; His provision; His protection; and for His Wisdom; and for His joyful reunions we are found!!
God's Blessings,
Scott and Tonya
Tuesday, June 28, 2011
New Opportunity
I am totally in awe watching our God work. He never ceases to amaze me ~ I pray the same is true for you.
When my sister was diagnosed with cancer and told she couldn't travel to Botswana, I prayed that God would make a way for Karla Hafner to join the MBC team to Gakuto. GOD did just that! When He opened the door for Karla to come to Botswana He also opened the hearts of her friends and co-workers to supply many many needs in the school at Gakuto. As Karla spent the week with the teachers doing some training, some assisting and just getting to know them, God opened another door. The teachers were all given a Bible and were VERY excited to have their own. The teachers approached Karla about someone coming to lead a Bible Study for them at the school. Karla told them that she knew just the person - ME!
This afternoon I will go for the first time to meet with the teachers and begin our Bible Study together. Teaching is NOT my gift!! I don't mind talking, facilitating, or leading discussion but teaching is way out of my "comfort zone"!! I am trusting GOD who made the way, opened the door and led me to this, to carry me through it! Please pray for me. I feel like Moses complaining and whining to God that I can't do it or I'm not the one. I know that is OK because 2 Cor 12:9 tells me "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness. Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me."
I am asking all of you my dear friends and prayer warriors to please join me in praying for this study, for God to work through me, for these 13 teachers lives to be transformed by the power of Christ.
Thanks for praying!! ~ Tonya
When my sister was diagnosed with cancer and told she couldn't travel to Botswana, I prayed that God would make a way for Karla Hafner to join the MBC team to Gakuto. GOD did just that! When He opened the door for Karla to come to Botswana He also opened the hearts of her friends and co-workers to supply many many needs in the school at Gakuto. As Karla spent the week with the teachers doing some training, some assisting and just getting to know them, God opened another door. The teachers were all given a Bible and were VERY excited to have their own. The teachers approached Karla about someone coming to lead a Bible Study for them at the school. Karla told them that she knew just the person - ME!
This afternoon I will go for the first time to meet with the teachers and begin our Bible Study together. Teaching is NOT my gift!! I don't mind talking, facilitating, or leading discussion but teaching is way out of my "comfort zone"!! I am trusting GOD who made the way, opened the door and led me to this, to carry me through it! Please pray for me. I feel like Moses complaining and whining to God that I can't do it or I'm not the one. I know that is OK because 2 Cor 12:9 tells me "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness. Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me."
I am asking all of you my dear friends and prayer warriors to please join me in praying for this study, for God to work through me, for these 13 teachers lives to be transformed by the power of Christ.
Thanks for praying!! ~ Tonya
Friday, June 17, 2011
Gakuto Impressions
The Dream Team for Gakuto. 
Family and friends working in our mission was great.
I had a hard time putting words together describing yesterday and I think I can do it. Honestly, Tonya does a much better blogging and putting a personal view of what we experienced. I am giving it my honest perspective. The photo here shows impression made in the sands of photo.
I wanted review what difference we made in Gakuto and did we impact not just relief but development and rehabilitation. I see as I look at the sand foot prints of 288 children who had not been on the grounds in years. We sponsored the first children's bible school in Gakuto teaching about faith and trust. I see 14 teacher prints taking a first step on the church grounds. They were there because we partnered with them bringing supplies, teaching aids and a teaching specialest. Foot prints of a team of SC 10 friends and family mingled with children from every direction. Shipes family foot prints, Hunter's big feet jumping all around playing games with children. Foot prints of Naledi Baptist Fellowship members on their mission trip to Gakuto. Foot prints of elders and church members feeding children and watching with huge smiles seeing life in the church again. The foot prints tell such a story for me.
After 5 days, we encouraged 14 teachers with bibles and gave them basic tools to help their students learn. 300 children performed for us as a gift of thankfulness for reaching out to them. Gakuto Baptist will be holding a children's event every Saturday to continue what we started. I will train 5 people and provide the curriculum they need to continue. Tonya will hold a Bible Study with the teachers once a week. The pastor will work to be there full time. Millbrook Baptist Church, Harmon Class will support the needs for the Pastor to make this happen. The church will grow through the children of Gakuto. There was such a presence of the Holy Spirit with us this week.
We did not pour out typical American gifts to energize the children. We prayed, sang, taught Jesus to them and in return, Jesus showed up. It is what they needed and God provided. Finally, the foot prints I see that makes me stand in awe, are the nail scarred footprints that danced among us. You go God!
Thank you for allowing us to be part of your work.
Scott and Tonya
Family and friends working in our mission was great.
I had a hard time putting words together describing yesterday and I think I can do it. Honestly, Tonya does a much better blogging and putting a personal view of what we experienced. I am giving it my honest perspective. The photo here shows impression made in the sands of photo.
I wanted review what difference we made in Gakuto and did we impact not just relief but development and rehabilitation. I see as I look at the sand foot prints of 288 children who had not been on the grounds in years. We sponsored the first children's bible school in Gakuto teaching about faith and trust. I see 14 teacher prints taking a first step on the church grounds. They were there because we partnered with them bringing supplies, teaching aids and a teaching specialest. Foot prints of a team of SC 10 friends and family mingled with children from every direction. Shipes family foot prints, Hunter's big feet jumping all around playing games with children. Foot prints of Naledi Baptist Fellowship members on their mission trip to Gakuto. Foot prints of elders and church members feeding children and watching with huge smiles seeing life in the church again. The foot prints tell such a story for me.
After 5 days, we encouraged 14 teachers with bibles and gave them basic tools to help their students learn. 300 children performed for us as a gift of thankfulness for reaching out to them. Gakuto Baptist will be holding a children's event every Saturday to continue what we started. I will train 5 people and provide the curriculum they need to continue. Tonya will hold a Bible Study with the teachers once a week. The pastor will work to be there full time. Millbrook Baptist Church, Harmon Class will support the needs for the Pastor to make this happen. The church will grow through the children of Gakuto. There was such a presence of the Holy Spirit with us this week.
We did not pour out typical American gifts to energize the children. We prayed, sang, taught Jesus to them and in return, Jesus showed up. It is what they needed and God provided. Finally, the foot prints I see that makes me stand in awe, are the nail scarred footprints that danced among us. You go God!
Thank you for allowing us to be part of your work.
Scott and Tonya
Wednesday, June 15, 2011
Gakuto Day 3
We had a great day. The van we were using for the team quit working. Changed vans but put us there an hour late. Rushing to get things in place, wind blowing name tags everywhere. Kids showing up early and lunch was late. So much chaos going on but yet we all had a job to do and a message to share. The children arrived and we started following our plan for the day.
The greatness of the day was watching the local ladies prepare our lunch of traditional food. Watching Tonya stir the cast iron pots of melebe and beef. They embraced and enjoyed her laughter and smiles as much we do. Food tasted great, we ate quickly, and started letting the children enter to the church and begin eating.
When it was all said and done, 288 kids showed up today and heard another message about faith and God's plan for their lives. Today was unique in the kids did not keep a distance from us like yesterday. They wanted to be close to us and touch us. They embraced us and embraced our message we had to share. Hilarious when the little ones were watching the story time skit and bolted toward the door when Abraham (Stan Harmon) entered the room. We learned they are afraid of white men, crouching in a room wearing a long white beard.
It was a great day in Gakuto. Pray as we prepare for Day 3. Pray as we speak more boldly of God's Word. Pray for our lunch with the teachers tomorrow will be a blessing for all of us celebrating the gifts and bibles the team presented. Pray our energy level remains strong. Pray that children will have a desire to know the Lord.
Thank you for your prayers,
Scott and Tonya
The greatness of the day was watching the local ladies prepare our lunch of traditional food. Watching Tonya stir the cast iron pots of melebe and beef. They embraced and enjoyed her laughter and smiles as much we do. Food tasted great, we ate quickly, and started letting the children enter to the church and begin eating.
When it was all said and done, 288 kids showed up today and heard another message about faith and God's plan for their lives. Today was unique in the kids did not keep a distance from us like yesterday. They wanted to be close to us and touch us. They embraced us and embraced our message we had to share. Hilarious when the little ones were watching the story time skit and bolted toward the door when Abraham (Stan Harmon) entered the room. We learned they are afraid of white men, crouching in a room wearing a long white beard.
It was a great day in Gakuto. Pray as we prepare for Day 3. Pray as we speak more boldly of God's Word. Pray for our lunch with the teachers tomorrow will be a blessing for all of us celebrating the gifts and bibles the team presented. Pray our energy level remains strong. Pray that children will have a desire to know the Lord.
Thank you for your prayers,
Scott and Tonya
Tuesday, June 14, 2011
Day 2 For Gakuto Team
God showed up today. First, I dropped off a photo I took of the chief that I had framed for him. He was so excited and showed it to everyone in the Kgotla. He expressed how the church is good friend to him and his village. He felt this would be a special blessing because of our visit. Pray for Abdul, he is not a believer and does not know saving grace of Jesus Christ.
We started the day with 13 teachers receiving 7 suitcases full of school supplies. They said songs of praise and danced. We filled the room full of supplies, teaching aids and books. The biggest celebration was when we provided them with NIV Bibles with Old and New Testament. The head master just sat and rubbed the bible page by page. With joy she explained it is her first Bible and she wanted to read from it. She read Psalm 103 verses 1 & 2. "Praise the Lord". How many Bibles we own and take for granted the gift of having one to read.
At least 275 children showed up for VBS. We fed them physically and spiritually. They were so great to be with. We were blessed to be part of this event. The team taught them about "Faith" and trusting in a God you can not see but believing in the things you can see. The teachers came to the church with Bible s in hand and laughed with joy as they watched the children express themselves. They were so proud how well they responded to what we were teaching.
Naledi Baptist Fellowship helped put this together as their first mission trip. They were so excited and looking forward to us doing the same program their next week. Mhathata said this was the best children's experience he had ever been part of doing. The message and stories spoke directly to him and the children and what they needed to hear.
Pray the team maintains the energy they need for tomorrow. Pray preparation needed for more children to arrive tomorrow, there are 35 more who did not show up. Pray for God's Word continues to be boldly expressed in Gakuto. Pray the children will understand and comprehend what we are teaching, this is always a difficulty for Botswana. Pray the teachers, now empowered with the Word of God, will continue what God has started in Gakuto today.
Thank you,
Scott and Tonya
We started the day with 13 teachers receiving 7 suitcases full of school supplies. They said songs of praise and danced. We filled the room full of supplies, teaching aids and books. The biggest celebration was when we provided them with NIV Bibles with Old and New Testament. The head master just sat and rubbed the bible page by page. With joy she explained it is her first Bible and she wanted to read from it. She read Psalm 103 verses 1 & 2. "Praise the Lord". How many Bibles we own and take for granted the gift of having one to read.
At least 275 children showed up for VBS. We fed them physically and spiritually. They were so great to be with. We were blessed to be part of this event. The team taught them about "Faith" and trusting in a God you can not see but believing in the things you can see. The teachers came to the church with Bible s in hand and laughed with joy as they watched the children express themselves. They were so proud how well they responded to what we were teaching.
Naledi Baptist Fellowship helped put this together as their first mission trip. They were so excited and looking forward to us doing the same program their next week. Mhathata said this was the best children's experience he had ever been part of doing. The message and stories spoke directly to him and the children and what they needed to hear.
Pray the team maintains the energy they need for tomorrow. Pray preparation needed for more children to arrive tomorrow, there are 35 more who did not show up. Pray for God's Word continues to be boldly expressed in Gakuto. Pray the children will understand and comprehend what we are teaching, this is always a difficulty for Botswana. Pray the teachers, now empowered with the Word of God, will continue what God has started in Gakuto today.
Thank you,
Scott and Tonya
Monday, June 13, 2011
Day 1 for the Gakuto Team
We had a fantastic day with our team of 10 people from Aiken, South Carolina. Met with the Chief of Gakuto, church elders, church leaders, the school teachers and all of the community leaders (or should I just say all of the community). The team got a taste of the "laid back" time schedule of Botswana. They did great and were very flexible and "go with the flow". It was so nice to have the whole team at our house tonight for dinner. We are very grateful that God brought our friends and family to serve here. Tomorrow begins the actual VBS. Please join us in praying for everyone that will be impacted by this team. Pray that many will come to know Jesus as savior!!! This team is so prepared and we know without a doubt that GOD is working through them. Gakuto- a small village that could seem forgotten... God didn't forget!! He put together and sent one of the best teams of people to love on them, serve them, and show them JESUS!!
Wednesday, June 1, 2011
Busy Season
I know some of you can relate to this being a busy season. I remember plainly the month of May in the states being as busy as the month of December with all of the end of school year stuff. Seems like everything has to get crammed in to one month. Tests, field trips, parties, programs, and graduations all at once!! In Botswana the month of May is a different kind of busy. As everyone in the states is winding down for some summer fun we are "ramping up" for some summer serve!
In 10 days we will welcome our first short term mission team. Are we thrilled?? You bet!! The team is coming from Millbrook Baptist Church in Aiken, SC. We can hardly wait to serve our Lord alongside close friends and family from my hometown. Hosting a team is a highlight for us but requires a lot of prep work on this side. Please pray for us as we continue to daily put together the necessary arrangements, secure supplies, build props, paint posters, plan meals and meet with the local leaders.
Please pray for the team that is coming: Mike, Makela, Susan, Ricky, Stan, Joan, Janet, Lindsey, Justin, and Karla. Please pray for safe travel, for prepared hearts, and for the kids and community of Gakuto. We are planning to serve 300+ kids. I told Susan as we were making some preparations, "We are trusting GOD to supply the kids, the energy to reach them all and the supplies we will need." Pray that God would use this camp week to change lives and an entire village for His Glory. Pray that children would meet Jesus and would be drawn into a life-saving relationship with HIM. Please pray for the teachers in Gakuto as well. These 13 ladies are the ones that invest into the lives of these children on a daily basis. Pray that their lives will be touched by Jesus and they will be the leaders, mentors, examples for these kids everyday ... even after we leave. We will be providing Bibles for them, presenting some teacher training workshops - thanks to Karla, providing some school & teaching supplies. Pray that we not only leave with physical needs met but more importantly that their hearts and lives will be changed by Jesus.
As we anticipate the arrival of this team we are also planning and preparing for others. Continue to pray for the Alice Drive Baptist Student team and the Highlands Baptist Team that both come in July.
Please also pray for us as we prepare to lead our first Children's Ministry Conference in August and for the Alice Drive team that will come to assist us in that.
Our call to Botswana and our prayer has been for the church leaders of Botswana to catch the vision and passion to reach children for Christ and to begin Children's ministries at their churches. Join us in Praising God for answering our prayer. We have been approached by some church leaders to be a part of the Gakuto kids camp so they can learn and then run one at their own church. Please pray that God continues to burden the hearts of church leaders to reach the next generation and that more and more ministry to children will be started and sustained.
Busy, Busy, Busy but filled with so much anticipation about what OUR GOD is doing in lives of Children, Church leaders, and even us here in Botswana.
We love you all and are thankful for your prayers!! ~ Tonya
Phl 4:19-20 "And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus. To our God and Father be glory for ever and ever. Amen."
In 10 days we will welcome our first short term mission team. Are we thrilled?? You bet!! The team is coming from Millbrook Baptist Church in Aiken, SC. We can hardly wait to serve our Lord alongside close friends and family from my hometown. Hosting a team is a highlight for us but requires a lot of prep work on this side. Please pray for us as we continue to daily put together the necessary arrangements, secure supplies, build props, paint posters, plan meals and meet with the local leaders.
Please pray for the team that is coming: Mike, Makela, Susan, Ricky, Stan, Joan, Janet, Lindsey, Justin, and Karla. Please pray for safe travel, for prepared hearts, and for the kids and community of Gakuto. We are planning to serve 300+ kids. I told Susan as we were making some preparations, "We are trusting GOD to supply the kids, the energy to reach them all and the supplies we will need." Pray that God would use this camp week to change lives and an entire village for His Glory. Pray that children would meet Jesus and would be drawn into a life-saving relationship with HIM. Please pray for the teachers in Gakuto as well. These 13 ladies are the ones that invest into the lives of these children on a daily basis. Pray that their lives will be touched by Jesus and they will be the leaders, mentors, examples for these kids everyday ... even after we leave. We will be providing Bibles for them, presenting some teacher training workshops - thanks to Karla, providing some school & teaching supplies. Pray that we not only leave with physical needs met but more importantly that their hearts and lives will be changed by Jesus.
As we anticipate the arrival of this team we are also planning and preparing for others. Continue to pray for the Alice Drive Baptist Student team and the Highlands Baptist Team that both come in July.
Please also pray for us as we prepare to lead our first Children's Ministry Conference in August and for the Alice Drive team that will come to assist us in that.
Our call to Botswana and our prayer has been for the church leaders of Botswana to catch the vision and passion to reach children for Christ and to begin Children's ministries at their churches. Join us in Praising God for answering our prayer. We have been approached by some church leaders to be a part of the Gakuto kids camp so they can learn and then run one at their own church. Please pray that God continues to burden the hearts of church leaders to reach the next generation and that more and more ministry to children will be started and sustained.
Busy, Busy, Busy but filled with so much anticipation about what OUR GOD is doing in lives of Children, Church leaders, and even us here in Botswana.
We love you all and are thankful for your prayers!! ~ Tonya
Phl 4:19-20 "And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus. To our God and Father be glory for ever and ever. Amen."
Tuesday, May 24, 2011
First Bible School Planning - Gakuto
We had a great meeting in Gakuto today. Tonya and I along with our summer intern, Chelsea, looked over the church to make account of what we would need to do while a team from Aiken, SC is here to do a VBS. Gonna be a busy week of hard work and seeing true needs being met. We need to paint, hang some screen to prevent birds from roosting in the church, repair some broken windows, hang some doors and replace broken locks. Not to mention we have some serious yard work to do. Chelsea commented when she saw the thorns, she thought again about the crown of thorns Jesus wore. These things look like sharp tooth picks heavily covering branches from every direction. The great part is we will work along side the people there and another church here in Gaborone for their first mission trip.
Another wonderful part of this trip, we will work with the primary school there to encourage and help the teachers. With the strike, this is great timing. We met with teachers and they were happy to hear we are bringing a team in 3 weeks to help the children and church in Gakuto. Their faces were filled with brilliance when we said we are bringing a teacher to provide a workshop for them who specializes in reading. The teachers were literally dancing when they asked if we could bring them each a Bible since they did not own one and we said yes, of course. They asked if we could help them with supplies they have difficulty receiving. This list includes Glue bottles, glue sticks, skinny and fat markers, pens (red, blue, and black), water color paints, teaching aids (specifically phonic posters, charts, etc.), colored pencils, pencils, paint brushes, rulers, board games (Scrabble), puzzles, whistles, and tennis balls. The teams along with us here will work hard to get this list complete. The headmaster even said "that these kids needed God to know the right way. It will change Gakuto with hope."
The Lord has big things in store, moving in amazing ways and has a BIG VBS in store. The teachers said today that there are 300 kids enrolled at the school and think every kid will want to come because there has never been anything like this in the village. We were expected half that number. This church has no running water or electricity and limited toilets. It's going to be a great experience!
Please continue to pray over our preparations, the teams travel and our week together with them in Gakuto. The VBS will start 13 June. Pray also for the kids, the church in Naledi who has their first mission trip with us and for the church where we are working at that only has twenty regular members. What a might God we serve.
The Shipes & Chelsea
Another wonderful part of this trip, we will work with the primary school there to encourage and help the teachers. With the strike, this is great timing. We met with teachers and they were happy to hear we are bringing a team in 3 weeks to help the children and church in Gakuto. Their faces were filled with brilliance when we said we are bringing a teacher to provide a workshop for them who specializes in reading. The teachers were literally dancing when they asked if we could bring them each a Bible since they did not own one and we said yes, of course. They asked if we could help them with supplies they have difficulty receiving. This list includes Glue bottles, glue sticks, skinny and fat markers, pens (red, blue, and black), water color paints, teaching aids (specifically phonic posters, charts, etc.), colored pencils, pencils, paint brushes, rulers, board games (Scrabble), puzzles, whistles, and tennis balls. The teams along with us here will work hard to get this list complete. The headmaster even said "that these kids needed God to know the right way. It will change Gakuto with hope."
The Lord has big things in store, moving in amazing ways and has a BIG VBS in store. The teachers said today that there are 300 kids enrolled at the school and think every kid will want to come because there has never been anything like this in the village. We were expected half that number. This church has no running water or electricity and limited toilets. It's going to be a great experience!
Please continue to pray over our preparations, the teams travel and our week together with them in Gakuto. The VBS will start 13 June. Pray also for the kids, the church in Naledi who has their first mission trip with us and for the church where we are working at that only has twenty regular members. What a might God we serve.
The Shipes & Chelsea
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