02 August 2006

Landmarks

Yesterday was a landmark day for the Colemans. Twenty-one years ago - 1 August 1985 - I first set foot on African soil when our family stepped off the plane in Kinshasa, Zaire. A lot has occurred since that day. I still remember the excitement and fear as someone grabbed my passport and disappeared into a crowd. Someone else grabbed our luggage and ran a different direction. There I was, with a wife and two small children, stumbling through high school French - a language spoken only in American
high schools. Somehow "Bonjour Paul. Comment va tu" did not come in very handy when running after complete strangers in a totally foreign atmosphere. Over two decades later I am a little more adept at handling foreign airports but the excitement still remains when I realize why we are here and what we are doing.

In addition, yesterday was the 9th anniversary of the day when Sherry and I were married. A lot has happened since that day, as well. There have been a lot of interesting events and situations and God has blessed tremendously. We are currently in the midst of two building programs and numbers of people are utilizing the Christian Resource Centre. When we look back at what we were doing nine years ago and compare with what we are doing today, it is both amazing and thrilling to see what the Lord has done in our lives. I was told many years ago that God may not give us everything we envision, but He would never give us more. That has been proven to be false because God has given us more than we ever dreamed possible.

The Source of Light Bible Correspondence School continues to grow steadily with twenty-three new students enrolling in the last few weeks. Two hundred and fifty four lessons were distributed, one hundred and ninety seven were corrected and twenty-three certificates of completion were awarded. One of our young men in the English speaking church, was transferred to Chipata (13 hours away by road) and was unable to complete his discipleship series with me so I sent him the last three books and he will send them back to me one at a time for correction and comments.

The "Equal Yet Different" class has concluded. Questions still arise from the lessons and we are continuing to meet with those who are interested. One young pastor came in specifically asking questions on "pride, envy and jealousy" for use in his weekly small group Bible studies. We have an outreach into congregations where we have not personally visited yet because of the scope of our ministry; we are having an influence.

This coming Sunday I will be preaching in Buntungwa Compound. This is another one of the young fellowships I helped to start with Zambian leaders. They are in the process of rebuilding on their property. Two years ago they build a mud-brick structure and now they are using burnt bricks which were made onsite by members of the church. This is another example of churches in rural Zambia that are able to do things on their own with minimal missionary help.

Thank you for praying for Colin's surgery. This past weekend the steel plate was removed from his leg and he is healing well and walking without the aid of crutches. He should be back in action in another five weeks.

Please pray for our students in the various areas of ministry. Many are preparing for final exams later this year. Quite a few of them are spending as much time in private tutoring as they are in formal classes. Still, the Friday afternoon youth classes are growing and the children are asking a multitude of questions about Heaven. We are able to be here because you make it possible through your prayers and support.

Thank you for being a part of this ministry.

In His Service,
Patrick & Sherry