Wednesday, June 3

Hey everybody!  Happy Wednesday.  Rather than the details of my day today – which was similar to yesterday except for what I taught, I thought I’d talk about a few other things.

First, I have 2 bicycle stories – stories of how the pastors are using their bicycles.

The first one came from a pastor in Grade 4 (a senior).  Mande Ndonga uses his bike for outreach and witnessing.  He heard of a village about 100km (about 60 miles) away that did not have a church.  He prayed about it and sensed God calling him to plant a church there.  He had some resistance from his church but he decided to go ahead with the plan anyway.  The bike given him by St. Mark’s is the only thing that allowed that to happen.  The church is planted – by God, Mande Ndonga and a bicycle.

The second is more local.  Right now in Zambia, the country is in a bit of a mess.  The doctors and nurses are on strike.  When one of the children from a local United Methodist Church got sick, they took her to the local dispensary only to find out it was closed.  They had to transport her about 90 km (55ish miles) away to the next nearest medical facility for treatment.  The father came to pastor’s school asking his pastor (who is attending) for help so he could go visit his child.  The pastor lent him his bicycle and the father rode the 90 km.  The bikes have been a blessing.

Not only the medical professionals are on strike.  The teachers are on strike, too.  That means that all those pastor’s children who were supposed to be in school are now at pastor’s school.  That is putting a strain on some of the resources and volunteers, but God is supplying.  Pray for patience and blessing on the children’s ministry here.

A couple days ago, I gave you a pop quiz on the 7 deadly sins.  In case you’re wondering, here they are:

Pride, Envy, Anger, Sloth, Avarice, Lust, Gluttony

Bet we’re all guilty somewhere!!

Here’s another game for you if you sponsored a pastor — see if you can find your pastor in the picture on my previous post.  That should have all the seniors in it, so your pastor should be there.  If they’re holding a Commentary, you know they’re English speaking.  If not, we’ll give them the money to get one!

Please continue praying.  God is blessing.

I miss you all!