Derse Family in Africa May 13,
2013
Dear family and friends,
We want to
express our very deepest appreciation to you for lifting us up to the Father
during these months- especially during these times of such intense spiritual
warfare. The severity of these attacks
to both our family and the Smith family (living in Kijabe) has been increasing
the past few weeks. We are learning what it means to truly seek God for
everything and to cry out for His direction and protection.
The long-awaited baptism of over 50 of the
kids here was cancelled- much to the frustration and disappointment of all of
us. We decided, along with staff, to
make Sunday as special as we could before the high schoolers returned to school
by doing a very special blessing ceremony, presenting them with the
2Corinthians 5:17 bracelets, and worshipping around a campfire ( with
testimonies and, of course, cake). The
kids also really enjoyed celebrating their birthdays all together, with more
cakes and small gifts, as part of the “Who Am I?” devotions for this
month. We were so impressed with how the
older kids took leadership roles in planning a surprise staff thank you party
with thank you books written by the kids, sweets and food, speeches and
music. It was awesome to see how touched
many of the staff were by the letters of appreciation written by all the
kids.
The weeks of break from school
were also filled with volleyball (thank you Nate) and football games, Bible
study, human anatomy/physiology lectures (taught by Scott), and lots of fun
time laughing and playing together.
James premiered the second music video he made of the church choir
yesterday and continues to work on building projects, Maasai culture
documentary video interviews, and the worship CD of the kids. Matthew is really working long hours
finishing up building projects and then taking time every afternoon to play
volleyball with the kids. Megan has
jumped in with every part of herself to be with the kids every minute and make
sponsor family phone calls for all the kids.
It is so precious to see the looks on the kid’s faces when they see
their sponsor families on Skype! Megan
and the two Oasis interns who arrived last week have been painting, helping the
kids write sponsor letters and will be leading the kids in devotions in the
next few weeks. Sarah and I are trying
to finish up some school in the mornings and then she loves spending time with
her friends on the Hill after they are done with school.
As we are on the countdown for our remaining
days here on the Hill, we are so thankful that God has gifted us with this
privilege of knowing and loving these beautiful children. I begin to cry even thinking of how we will
say goodbye to the kids and staff here.
We had prayed as a family that would use this time to grow us and change
us to be image bearers of Christ as well as working through us, despite our
weaknesses, to show these children His love.
It may take some time for us to truly see how God has worked- despite
the warfare, disappointments and challenges, but God has been faithful in
working miracles. We want to extend a huge
thank-you to all of you who have given generously and have made all of this
work possible. God is working through
your giving here in the lives of these kids. Please pray for:
- For the
women’s conference next Sunday with more than 100 Maasai women in the
surrounding communities- that lives will be given to Jesus, hearts will be
healed and all will see the love and power of the living God
- For
our health and protection against spiritual attacks- Kathi had an anaphylaxis
episode few night ago from an unknown source- Scott has thought of
bringing meds needed for such an occurrence and saved her- Praise God!! She
was well enough to speak at church yesterday- twelve people gave their
lives to Christ!!!
- For
our family to finish strong here with time with the kids, teaching,
projects for the home, connections with community members
- For
the two Oasis interns who have joined us- that they will enjoy and grow
from their interactions with the kids and community
- For
God to continue to work in the hearts and minds of the 98 children living
here
- That
God’s will would be accomplished here in this ministry despite severe
spiritual oppression and attack
Thank you, thank you, thank
you!!!!! We are looking forward to
seeing you all soon!
In Christ,
The Derse Family
Scott,
Kathi, James, Sarah, Matthew, Megan
