Nan Update – Mark 4
Dear Friends,
So this week Penny and I spent a day in prayer and study and God re-laid something on my heart. Before we went to the Bush, He showed me a lot (you may remember) about the Soil of People’s hearts from Mark 4. I re-read that this week and He really opened my eyes and encouraged me about the ‘Job Description’ so to say about the Sower. The Sowers job was to get the Word out. The increase depended on the conditions of the heart on which it fell. So this is what I want to ask you to pray for.
Verse 15- Protection- that Satan wouldn’t be able to steal the Word from their heart.
Verse 16- That the stones would be removed so it will take deep root.
Verse 18- Pray against the cares of the world that they would see past the temporary that their eyes would be opened to the eternal, to see the great worth of Christ that they would forsake all and follow whole heartedly.
Verse 20- Pray for Good soil that all who hear would have hearts of Good soil to accept the Word and bear fruit.
Thank you for being faithful in your prayers for us, we have 7 more weeks in our village, please continue to pray faithfully as we seek to be very diligent Sowers of the Word. Also we’ve been having some trouble sleeping and getting sufficient rest so if you could add that as well to your prayers we’d greatly appreciate it.
Great things are happening. I’ll be sending a more detailed update very soon. Be blessed.
-Nan
Funny Bible Quotes
BIBLE QUOTES
~ Adam: “You are what you eat”
~ Eve: “At least he doesn’t compare me to his mother”
~ Abraham: “I’m goin’ not knowin’”
~ Noah: “Honk if you believe in treading water”
~ Moses: “From a basket case to the promise land”
~ Elizah: “When Jezebel ain’t happy, ain’t nobody happy”
~ Balaam: “My second donkey talks!”
~ Prodigal Son: “All roads lead to home”
~ At the Sinai desert: “Winding road next 40 years”
~ At the Red Sea: “Caution! Subject to sudden flooding”
today’sTHOT============================
He who laughs first also laughs last if nobody laughed in the middle.
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Our Hearts Desire
The entire month of March is being devoted to our Sunday School and the power of the invitation. Inviting is a personal action, one that requires a person to step forward and ask another person a request to gather for a specific reason. An invitation is a sign of acceptance and love as the inviter wants the invitee to be a part of the event.
Sunday School is the our main connecting point for people to meet each other, share their life, and meet Christ together. It is our hearts desire for our friends to come to Christ. In suppor of our Sunday School emphasis this month to PowerUP or Sunday School through the Power of Inviation, our students and adults were asked last Tuesday night at AMPED to identify their friends who needed prayer for their salvation. It was a powerful moment as one-by-one our students and adults came to the alter to put the first name of a friend who they wanted specific prayer for their salvation.
I ask you to join with us in praying for the salvation of our friends and for us as we look for those God Moments to share Christ with them.
The first names of our friends we desire to know to Christ.
Nan Update – Additional Prayer Request
So I meant to add this to the Update and completely forgot… This is going to sound silly, but as silly as it might be it’s actually quite important. As you all know, it gets incredibly hot, like 150 degrees hot. So Penny and I have been praying for the Coldest- Hot season they’ve had in Niger for a long time. Mainly because you can’t do anything when it’s that hot for atleast 6 hours in the afternoon people do absolutely nothing because you just can’t.. So as we seek to the most effective we can be we’ve been praying that the heat would stay mild like 120 or less. So if you wouldn’t mind we would love for you to join us in this prayer. God has already been answering it, Hot Season (as they call it) normally starts the beginning of March till May as of now its still really mild and feels wonderful at night. So the start of Hot season is being prolonged. We Pray this continues.. Thank you for being so faithful in prayer. All our love and His Blessings.
Nan
Nan Update – Victory!
What are we up to…
Well after our many trials through sickness, much weakness and prayer He has brought us through to many victories this week! We finally returned to the bush Monday morning and tried to get back into the swing of things, the first two days were a little difficult still trying to work through sickness and getting readjusted to bush life. But He quickly brought some encouragement our way! It’s amazing how He knows exactly what we need exactly when we need it. On Tuesday we were finally able to meet up with the potential believer you have been praying for named Boaz, this was first successful study with him. As you already know we’re going through the book of John with the people and since we haven’t been able to work out a really good time to study with him we just started but he really enjoyed chapter 1 and wants to finish the whole book before we leave so instead of meeting once or twice a week he wants us to come everyday so he can hear all of it before we leave. What an answer to Prayer!!
We’ve also been visiting with Zoe once or twice a week and Tuesday we went to study John 3 and after she listened we were asking her questions to make sure she completely understood everything she plainly said “Jesus came so that we could believe in him and be saved so we could have eternal life. You cannot have eternal life unless you believe in Jesus.” You have no idea how much it blessed our hearts to hear a Zarma person say in their own language the simple truth of the Gospel with such sincerity. She hasn’t completely confessed to believe but she completely knows the truth, so please keep her in your prayers her heart is ready she just need some discipleship. We will continue to visit with her and study. She is moving to a village adjacent to us in the next couple of weeks. It’s about a 30 minute walk away so we will only be able to visit with her once a week so please pray that we will have wisdom on when to go and that the Lord will make the most of the short time we have with her each week, and that we would be able to see the fruit of her Faith.
Then on Wednesday Penny held her second very successful kids club, it was so great. Before we did it Penny was studying in our tunda and little Rebecca this precious little girl who is at our house all the time just loves Penny. So while Penny was preparing she started practicing her story on Rebecca and by the time we had Kids Club she had the story memorized! It was a real encouragement to Penny that the children are really listening and beginning to hide the Word in their hearts. On Wednesday we also had a friend from Niamey come and stay with us, she’s a believer and an incredible encourager- named Trinity. That night we had B&K come out for dinner and our house helper Meg made us an African dinner. As we were all sitting around talking Brandy asked Trinity how she came to Him so she proceeded to tell us this amazing testimony of trials, and persecutions with so much joy it was unlike anything I had ever heard or seen. All the while Meg was sitting with us listening to this beautiful African woman share how Jesus had been with her through all her trials and was completely worth following compared to alternative faiths. The Joy that comes from Trinity is contagious and straight from the Spirit. And then! This is so exciting… God has been really good to us this week. The door was opened so that we were able to show the Jesus Film, B&K stayed to help us get everything ready and Trinity also gave her testimony to the people half way through the movie which was also very powerful, About 200 were there at any given moment most people stayed for the whole thing. It was such an awesome experience for Penny and I because when God starting laying out the Vision for our 5 months here the Jesus film was a big part of that (we’re planning on showing it two more times before we leave) So to accomplish this much attacked plan was a great work of God.
And then! J The next morning Meg came in while Penny, Trinity and I were eating breakfast and told us that she had decided to become a Follower!! We were and still are ecstatic, her attitude was completely different, she radiated joy and new found peace that only comes from one source! We invited her to come study with us when we study with Freda. And she said she would, so she soon by His grace is learning the basics of the faith and how to truly follow! PRAISE HIM!!
What I have been learning…
This question gets harder to answer every week… I don’t mean that as in I’m not learning anything I mean that as in I don’t know how to explain what it is that I am learning, Penny and I talk all the time about how we feel like we’ve been here for years and not just weeks, I feel like I’m 25 not 19. I don’t know if that really makes any sense to you but it’s kind of like, if you’re a solider you train and learn a lot from books and training but when you’re thrown onto the battlefield you grow up. You don’t just talk or contemplate about what you’re going to do; you now have to do it. You no longer just look like a soldier, you have to be one. And we all know soldiers that go to war never come back the same. So it’s complicated to try and explain what it is exactly what I’m learning right now. And how exactly the Lord is changing my heart. I do ask that you pray that Penny and I would have wisdom that comes from above (James 3:15-18) and that we would remember He has given us everything that we need (2Cor9:8)
Penny and I have separate quite times in the mornings then we have a small church service together about what He spoke to us that day and we pray and sing together. It has been very uplifting and encouraging to have that time together just to worship and come together in unity before Him.
You know you’re a Bush kid when…
- Your feet are more dirty when you leave the shower than when you came.
- You gasp when you find out your having meat for dinner because you haven’t had any in a week.
- You determine how many times you can shower a week by how many times you really want to go to the well.
Lift it up, Lift it up, Lift it up
- PROTECTION- HE is moving mightily, which means the enemy is also moving. Please pray that our minds would be protect from his voice (ps 55:3a) Pray that whatever happens we would trust the Lord and cast our burden upon him knowing he will not let us be moved by the schemes of the enemy (ps 55:22 & ps 56:3-4) I added the scriptures to give you something you could pray with power over us..
- The new believers – Freda & Meg
- Kids Clubs- that Penny would continually be blessed with knowledge of the language so she can tell the stories and confidence to boldly proclaim the truth.
- The hearts of those we’re working with- Boaz, Barnabas, Rachel, Rebecca, Alec, Moe, Anna , Jordan, & Zoe
- We have an unusual long week this week. So pray we have perseverance and strength.
- B&K are in Burkina this week at a conference pray that they will be restored and refreshed.
- Pray for continual unity of our team that the enemy would not get in.
- We are also looking at starting a little ministry to reach out to our neighbors pray that we would have wisdom and favor with them so that doors would be opened to the gospel.
- We have 9 weeks left in our village and 10 weeks in Africa. Pray that God would instruct us on how to make the best use of every moment we have left to be the light in the darkness and perseverance to finish this part of our race well.
I love you all and pray for you often, thank you for being faithful in prayer. You keep us strong!
Blessings and Peace,
Nan
Daylight Savings Times this Weekend
Don’t forget to set your clocks ahead one (1) hour this Saturday night before going to bed!
Update on Connor’s Procedure
Connor had a pacemaker put in today and all went well. He will be flat on his back for the next 12 hours and will be discharged sometime mid-day tomorrow (Tuesday).
Thank you to all who have prayed.
New Updates for Leaders
If you are a youth leader from any church who has come to or stumbled upon this page. The resources listed in the “For Leaders” page has been updated.
Enjoy!
