16 February 2005

News from Zambia--16th February 2005

Greetings from Luanshya!

Today was a day of celebration. Brother Silungwe completed the Design
for Discipleship program after two years of intensive study. When he
first began the study, his answers were shallow and his voice was
hesitant. The last book of the series is a verse-by-verse study of the
book of 1 Thessalonians. His answers were succinct and his voice was
clear as he shared his responses. I am very excited that he has
completed this course and that he has determined to use the basic
outline to examine other books in the Bible. He is looking forward to
the opportunity to guide others through the Design for Discipleship
course. By the way, brother Silungwe is 62 years old. Please pray for
him and praise the Lord with us for this senior saint.

Last week Sherry's College and Career group studied the experiences of
Jonah. One of the major points set before the group was that we need to
do the will of God whether we appreciate His plans or not. Jonah most
definitely was not keen on the idea of warning his nations enemies,
Nineveh, of God's impending judgment. However, God in His mercy wished a
message of repentance to be presented to a lost people. The fact that
they did, indeed, repent was a miracle. Jonah rebelled at the immediate
responsiveness of the Ninevites and actually wanted God to destroy them.
It is not often that a preacher prays to be a failure. One of the most
significant lessons in the whole book of Jonah was how God dealt with
His own servant who was steeped in pride and self-pity.

Most people think of Sherry as being quiet and reserved. As she is
telling the story of Jonah, she was becoming animated and actually
acting out the parts of Jonah, the pagan sailors on the ship and the
Ninevites when Jonah was vomited onto the beach and shouted out to the
people "repent"! The class was getting into the story and participating
with the practical applications from their own lives. They enjoyed
themselves and learned something at the same time. Thank you for praying
for this class. Please continue!

The Sunday School lessons last week and the next two weeks are focusing
on Moses. It is interesting to see the story through the eyes of
children who consider it grossly unfair that a little baby would be
stuck in a basket and put in a crocodile infested river. As the story
unfolds, it will be even more interesting to hear the impressions of the
little ones as they walk through the life of Moses and learn that God
has a plan and a time for everything that happens in our lives. We may
not appreciate the circumstances that He brings us through but in the
end we will come forth as gold. God uses our experiences both good and
bad to bring glory to His name and souls to Himself.

Thank you for allowing us the privilege of being a part of God's plan in
Zambia.

In His Service,
Patrick & Sherry