Greetings to everyone in the name of Jesus! Summer’s over (sadly) but there is still plenty of sunshine and heat. For everyone over there, the big chill is over and spring’s in the air.

BIBLES FOR AFRICA PROJECT

Several churches began their own internal Bible collections for the container. Overwhelmingly, the Kentwood Christian Church collected the most – over 1,500 Bibles and New Testaments. Two other congregations, The United Church in Los Alamos (NM) and the Holy Cross in Bluffton (SC) also made the call and shipped the Bibles to Michigan. Neither church had ever participated before. Also, two individuals helped a great deal. Kim Wilson (Zephyr Hills, FL) and Jeff Cook (Stroh, IN) personally packed several boxes of Bibles and Christian books. I am sure there were others, too, but these are the ones that had marked their boxes and that I knew about. Certainly, there were many more. By far, there were more Bibles in this last container than any other – over 6,000, new and used!

We thank everyone who participated. God’s Word has gone deep into Africa to places never before reached.  I am being called almost daily with pleas for Bibles from as far away as Kenya and Zambia.

Even the truck driver who delivered the container, Bro Charlie, was astounded to see so many Bibles being cheerfully unpacked.

The container was shipped in October 2015 and the warehouse was prepared to receive it. Dave Foust of Team Africa asked if they could unload it as part of their short term mission project but I said that the container would probably be there already. The Team had been a part of loading it in Michigan. No one expected the delays and the container finally arrived in Jan 2016, just in time for team Africa to help unload it! (There were extremely high winds in Table Bay, which prevented the ship from entering the harbour.)

Unloading the container was an amazing time of hard work, sore muscles and joyful fellowship. Everyone pitched in and well under the two- hour time limit every box had been unloaded.

TEAM AFRICA

While on furlough in 2014, Dave Foust (Northview Christian Church, Coldwater, MI) approached and asked if a short term mission group could help in Cape Town. Extended preparations were made, funds collected and six men flew out, ready for anything. I wanted them to have the full experience and variety of the work of the Mission during their stay. Every task assigned to them was done and they each served in different ways. Everyone was able to teach, preach or share his individual testimony. Many times, I gave little warning beforehand because this is the way the Africans operate. Sometimes, they decide on the spur of the moment.

The Team worked with our children’s ministries, the Cape Bible Seminary classes and youth work. Every time they met and spoke, the level of enthusiasm was very high. I am sure they each have their own testimony of their experiences.