A miracle has happened! Mike (and friends) were actually able to fit *everything* into the shipping container! If you saw all the stuff he had to put in there (including a tractor, attachments, an ATV, rolls of water piping, and soooo much more!) you would not believe it. When I saw all the stuff I said, “This is going to have to be like Jesus with the loaves & fishes, except in reverse- he is going to have make everything shrink!” Well, God did it! Praise God!
The container is locked & ready to go- which is great because Mike leaves for Africa tomorrow morning! He is traveling with one team member, John from Woodland. They will spend their frist week in Ethiopia- working with All God’s Children International on an “extreme makeover” project for a daycare there (along with our church’s assistant pastor & his wife and other AGCI team members). Then Mike & John will continue on to Rwanda and be there until December 2nd. Mike’s main goal is to get TTI’s paperwork finished so we are registered as an NGO (non-governmental organization, same as being registered as a charity). We need this completed before the container gets there (the container will leave soon & should take about 77 days to get there).
We have three more team members joining them Nov. 21st- Darcee, Jill, Karen. They will be there til December 15th. The team’s main project is going to be working along with Ngoga to create profiles of the street children who attend the feeding program. They will find out more about them, including if they have living relatives, a possible home, where they stay, etc. We are needing this so that once the Home of Innocence is complete we will be able to identify which children are ready to be helped.
Mike will return to Rwanda January 5th so he can be there before the container arrives & get things ready. Our family, along with two other team members- Chris & Jerid will join him January 25th. The team members will stay for two weeks, but our family will be staying for 3 months.
Please pray for the container- for it to arrive on time, with no delays, no extra fees imposed, and for all the items inside to arrive safely (after traveling over the ocean!). Please also be in prayer for Mike & John as they prepare to leave early Saturday morning. Pray for safe travels, for their luggage & supplies to all arrive when they do, and for health. Pray that they will be able to get a lot accomplished on this daycare in Ethiopia. Please also pray for this NGO paperwork to be completed & for God to bless their time in Rwanda.
If you are wanting to help one of the team members go, please visit our “giving” page. Going in January is a possiblity for you too- you can find an application on our website! We are still half way to our goal for the amount needed for the Home of Innocence/Acres of Hope phase I. The construction will begin in January and we continue to pray for God to provide all that’s needed for completion, including leading us to the street children He wants us to help. Thank you for your partnership in reaching out to “the least of these”. We thank God for you!
In Christ,
Lisa
P.S. Pray for me as I am a single mom for the month of November! And most of January! We will miss Mike very much!
(Here’s Simon enjoying the kids in Rwanda.)
