Edge of the World

Well I know it has been quite a while since I have posted.  This last month of transition has been a bit crazy.  Also, I have just returned from 3 weeks in Sudan.  It was a great trip, seeing some old friends and visiting some of the places I use to live.  

From seeing Ben in Rumbek (Tonj) who I was first working with, to Sergey my old Uzbek friend, to Simon and Aloro - friends in Yei, to the driver Henry who I helped spring from prison, and to many faces that were new to me.  Josh and I traveled many many miles and in 3 weeks were not even able to visit all of our sites.  We traveled mostly by plane (a Cessna 206, 208, Caravan, Dash 8 and the last day was a marathon 12 hours back on the DC-3).   We did take a long road trip, had to avoid rebels from Ethiopia, and bypass mine fields.  We have programs all over and it was really good to go and touch base with staff face to face.  Due to some security constraints, I don't feel I can say every where we went.

So now I am back in Kenya, trying to catch up on emails and meetings.  It is an honor and privilege to be back working with this team and I pray the Lord would give me wisdom in the days and months to come.

I will try and get back to blogging and give you some photos later but wanted to at least get something up.

Thank you for your prayers and the emails, I have really appreciated them.  Please continue to remember the team out here and the Christians that are struggling everyday to survive.  Life is short; take the opportunities you can to bring hope and pray the Lord would use you for His glory.

Final from Zim

Well I have now left Zimbabwe. It is sort of hard to believe that chapter is closed and that the Lord would bring me back to Sudan but He does work in mysterious ways.

The last weekend I was in zim, Brighton and I went to a little animal park and saw a few animals. The first area we could drive through and as you can see from this photo the lions weren't too interested in us or our car.



Then we saw some others in a zoo like setting but I have to say I am sort of glad this guy was behind the fence.



This time of year in southern Africa, the Jacaranda tress are flowering. These are beautiful purple tress that are all over the city (this one in my yard).


I leave you with a sunset photo. Zimbabwe will always be on my heart because of the time I spent there. I am hopeful that SP will one day be able to work there and I ask that you remember this country in your prayers. The people and the church are in desperate need. Pray the government would get its act together and that things can stabilize. One estimate now how the inflation rate at 513 Billion %. At any rate, it was truly a blessing to even spend a short time there and I hope to visit again.


Well for now I am off to Kenya and Sudan. Please pray for my transition as I take over the country director role for our projects - I will need lots of wisdom and guidance in the challenges ahead.

Back in Zim

(Sunset in Liberia)

I have now left Liberia and am back in Zimbabwe.  It was truly a blessing to be able to work with a great staff in Liberia and spend some time with my friend Melanie.  

During my time in Liberia, I got an email informing us the SP did not get registered in Zim.  This really broke my heart as I truly wanted to see our projects running there.  The head office has decided to close the office but to also keep a presence there for when the door might open again.  SP will try to re-register after a time of a reflection.

Given that, I was out of a job but after much prayer and talking with others, I have decided to head back to Sudan to be the country director for our southern projects there.  It is hard to believe I am heading back to where I began almost 2 years ago but I guess that is how it works sometimes - who knows the ways of our Lord.  I will be based out of Nairobi, going in and out of Sudan.

I would appreciate your prayers as I transition up there next week and begin getting a handle on our projects.  I will be posting a bit more on Zim in my next update.

Here are a few last pictures of Liberia:

(Kids running home)

(SP Girls Playing Volleyball)

This is actually the 4th volleyball court I (with help) have built, setup or organized at various SP locations (Yei, Nuba, Harare and now Monrovia, Liberia).  It is great for team building and for a bit of exercise.  I must say though, this court in Liberia is probably the most beautiful with it over looking the ocean.

Finally, here is a staff photo of the team in Liberia.  Thank you again for your prayers during my time there.  Please continue to remember them as they struggle to bring hope in the dark.

Zimbabwe

Please continue to remember Zimbabwe. There was a huge praise this week as the government lifted the ban on NGOs.  However, as you can read from the article below, all is not great yet.  There is still a lot of suffering in zim right now as people can not access the food, medicine or basic supplies they need to survive. 

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/7593387.stm

Building Bridges

One of the projects I had mentioned before was bridge reconstruction.  Much like Sudan, Liberia has very poor roads and bridges making access for vehicles, supplies, and aid very difficult.  So we are working to rebuild some of these.  Here is an example of a local bridge (we crossed this in a land cruiser, and below this is a bridge we rebuilt.  After we built this bridge, other NGOs started working with the communities on the other side.  It is great to see some impact of our work. 

SP is also building bridges spiritually, working with communities that have never heard the gospel through vacation bible schools, water projects, and literacy programs.

Local girl doing the dishes:

Strange looking sun, not sure what that ring was around it but made for an interesting sight.

Liberia Photos

Here are a few photos from Liberia for you.  This is a group of farmers that we are working with on a vegetable farm.  We are teaching them farming methods and providing the resources for them to get started.

 This is a swamp farm that we are helping the community to rehabilitate.  The land is cleared, canals dug and then rice is planted.  It is really a great project and the community seems really excited about it.  Other projects we are doing are reconstruction of bridges, livestock, vacation bible schools, and a little church reconstruction.  The area is a thick jungle, very lush, and quite beautiful.

The Good Samaritan

Here is a story from one of the staff in Zim.  She is a single mom with 5 kids (her husband past away) and has been struggling financially.  Please remember her and the team in your prayers.

"Phil, I have a testimony to share with you. For some time now I have been praying that GOD would put me in opportunities to help people. Well on Thursday last week GOD answered my prayer. I was driving to collect my children from school lunch time and I passed a man who was lying flat on his back beside the road. I had thought that he was asleep so I proceeded to fetch the children. On my way back I noticed that he was in the same position and his hands were shaking. So I pulled over to go and check on him. At the same time a lady pulled over. She too had noticed him earlier but had gone to fetch her gardner and some sugar. The man who had fainted was diabetic as all his syringes and insulin bottles had fallen out of his pocket when he fell. After we gave him the sugar to eat he managed to come around. He told the lady in shona that he had walked all the way from Budiriro (which I understand is very very far) and was going to Parirenyatwa hospital to collect his medication which he gets for free. Unfortunately they were no longer givning free medication.

My heart was so sore. He didnt look in a good condition. So I took the empty insulin bottle to go to the pharmacy to see if I could buy it for him. I didnt have much money myself, only 10usd. Well I was shocked when the pharmacy told me that the cost of the medication was equivalent to 200usd. Well I couldnt afford it. So I went back to where the man lay as I had asked the lady to look after him until I came back. By now he was fully awake and mentioned that the medicine at the hospital cost 750billion. It is so sad to know that he didnt have this amount which seems so little. I counted the cash I had in my purse and I had the exact amount. 750billion! GOD is so so good. So I took him in my car, changed my 10usd, gave him 750 for the medicine, 140billion for transport to go back home and a loaf of bread and I dropped him at the hospital.

Then I received and email out of the blue from Joel Osteen (I subscribed there a year ago but they had stopped emailing me  some time back). The message was talking about sowing into people's lives, that GOD will empower us in every way to be able to help, if it is our desire. Well, I just feel that GOD is such an amazing GOD. He answers prayer in His time and according to His will. When I tell you this story, its not about what I did, its about the way GOD works in all our lives. He sent me to help this man when he so desparately needed help. Something is happening in my life Phil. I am growing spritually and I am not only a listener of GODS word but I am becoming a doer of His word. I am so excited about the plans He has for me. Not only am i filled with hope but I have a desire to be a true servant of Christ. Amen.  Cleo"

Liberia

Well after much prayer and discussion my office decided it would be best if I go and help out at another office while things get sorted out in Zimbabwe.  The process there is going quite slowly and while we are waiting for registration to happen I can be of use in another place.  My heart breaks for the people there and I hope to be back soon.

So I am now in Monrovia, Liberia, West Africa.

Liberia has just come out of a 14 year brutal civil war and is working to rebuild its self.  The office is pretty big here with about 200 staff doing all sorts of projects.  One really nice part of this office is we are right near the ocean.

I will give more updates but for more info on Liberia check out: 

www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/li.html

More later 

How much sugar do you have?

A friend of one my staff had a knock on their door last night.  It was the police investigating some horrible criminal activity.  Earlier in the day, the mother of the family had gone and purchased about 40 pounds of sugar to get them through the month.  She had purchased the sugar from a local wholesaler.  However, she had purchased the sugar at a higher price then she should have.  This was because sugar has a fixed price that is so low no shop owner can afford to sell it at that price.  So, needing sugar for her family she had to make the difficult choice to either go without or pay the higher price.

Later that night, the police arrived, asking about the sugar; accusing her of hoarding it.  You see, since sugar is so hard to find, to have that much is suspicious.  They also demanded to know how much she paid for it.  Well they went on to search the whole house even into the attic crawl space looking for more.  

Eventually they left, taking the sugar.  They sold the sugar outside her fence for a 1/5 of the price pocketing the money.

What does 84 Billion Dollars get you...

I have been around this country for a while now but I think this is the worse I have seen it. I asked my staff and many of them also agree we are in some of the worse times. The markets have always been a bit bare but this week has been especially bad (see photos below - cell phone pictures taken at one of the largest super markets here). 84 Billion might buy you a few loaves of bread (currently 25 Billion for one loaf) or a bit of meat if you could find it but for most people even this amount is out of their budget. Many people only earn around 200 Billion a month, which barely gets them to and from work. Now with many countries not allowing products in, and with the country providing the paper on which the currency is printed stopping its supply we may be in a bit of tough spot for a while. This country has one of the worst economies in the world but some of the highest prices for commodities as almost everything has to be imported. I went to buy a surge protector and found it was $200 USD - guess I will hold off on that for a while!

It is hard to say what the future holds but we ask for your prayers.

Pray for the people of this country
Pray for our registration process to be pushed through
Pray for Justice and Peace

Election Day

Another photo from this beautiful country, again from around lake Kariba.


Please remember Zimbabwe in your prayers today.
Here is a good summary article of the events currently taking place.

http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/L26563108.htm

How was your weekend?

Did you have some fun or sometime to relax?

Did you stand in line for 3 hours to buy 1 loaf of bread?
Was your house burned?
Were you made to attend a gathering you didn't believe in?
Did you watched your relative beaten?
Did you hear your staff cry out because of injustice?


Many have lost hope, many are in disbelieve. The believers cry out for justice, they cry out for a renewal of their land - Oh Lord hear their cry today and bring back hope.

A Beautiful Country

 A photo for your enjoyment from lake Kariba, where a friend of mine (Josh) and I went a few weeks back.  This is truly a beautiful country that needs your prayers.

• Pray for the people as they face many difficulties
• Pray for the Church as they seek wisdom to know how to respond
• Pray for our office and our staff here, for safety and again wisdom to know how to respond

There is much pain here and much uncertainty.  For more information visit any major news site.  You can also view this site and join with many others in prayer.

http://www.christiantoday.com/article/reformed.churches.pray.for.zimbabwe/19733.htm

A little Hope

I was walking in Walmart the other day, in the states for just a week of meetings, amazed at the availability of goods and the cheap prices. I came home to find the currency had doubled (in one weeks time), prices had tripled and still no bread to be had. However, the most difficult issue was the suspension of food aid. I can't go into detail here, you can find more out on BBC if you want but soon up to 4 million people will be starving in the 'bread basket' of Africa.

Please pray for this land. Pray for our team and our office here as we try and bring even just a little hope to those so desperate.

If I ever get this internet working I will post some new photos of this beautiful land. Thank you all for your prayers and emails this past month, they meant a lot to me.

Breath

I woke to silence
    Nothing
My heart pounding, my breath labored
    Breath...

What is it she said?
    'Let each breath remind you of Him'
    'Participate with Him'
Her so filled with His Spirit
    Longing to know the divine
Her never settling for the superficial
    Always pushing to show the love of Christ
Her showing His love to many
    That they may know His hope

My eyes close
My fists relax
I smile a bit
    Knowing she is with her beloved
    Knowing Tera is with our Lord

Who was and is and is to come!

Zim Staff

God has truly blessed us here with some wonderful staff. It is great to be able to work with each of them (right to left): Shadrack, Alice, Cleopatra, Ruth, Brighton and Me. Please remember them in your prayers as they work to bring hope in difficult circumstances.

Why?

Some of you have asked me why Samaritan's Purse has decided open an office in Zimbabwe. Zimbabwe suffers from a variety of factors due to erratic weather, high HIV/AIDS rate and an economic crisis.

Life expectancy dropped from 51.8 years in 1995 to 37.2 in 2006; mainly due to a high HIV/AIDS rate but also do to food insecurity.

HIV/AIDS rate has dropped from 20.1 to 18.1 in 2006 through intensive awareness and behavioral change programs but it is still one of the highest in the world.

Over 80 percent of the population is unemployed in the formal sector. This is mainly due to the agricultural decline; the agricultural sector use to employ up to 70 % of the population.

There are currently 1.3 Million orphaned children in Zimbabwe - 77% as a result of HIV/AIDS.

Zimbabwe needs our prayers, they need our help. Please continue to pray for Zimbabwe as it goes through this election time. There is a lot of uncertianity and insecurity for people here. Also, pray for our office as we work to develop the best programs to bring hope both physically and spiritually. This time of uncertainty has also lead to the slowing of our registration process, please pray it can move forward quickly. I hope to post some pictures soon but it is a little tricky right now with the situation to be seen taking photographs. Thank you for your prayers.

More Photos of Mozambique

Current Picture for NGOs

Here is a very good and accurate picture of things in Zimbabwe right now from Reuters.

http://www.alertnet.org/db/blogs/50698/2008/03/14-124329-1.htm

Maputo

Well it has been a long time since I have written on the blog. But, last month I was able to take my home leave and spend some great time with friends and family. Now I am back, from the time I have written a lot has changed at the office. We have hired some actual staff and are starting to actually function. The registration process for us is long but hopefully by God's grace we will be registered by June. The biggest issue right is the current election crisis and the uncertainty of what will happen next. But we press forward.

Me with some of the nieces and nephews:




However, because of the uncertainty there, my office decided it was best I leave for this month. So now I am in Maputo, Mozambique visiting the Samaritan's Purse office there. I have wanted to do this for a while, although the timing is a bit difficult. I can't say too much on this public site but I can say that Zimbabwe needs our prayers during this time. SP Moz is doing some great work in the area of HIV/AIDS, food relief, livelihoods and water/sanitation. They have been great hosts to me here.

Here are some fisherman on the beach in Moz:

To let you know

I did get an update from Sudan and all of our staff are fine. But please continue to hold up this fragile place in your prayers.

As for me, things are moving along fine down here just trying to get everything set up, get us registered and find good staff. I would continue to appreciate your prayers:

-Wisdom as I hire staff
-For the registration process
-For employment permits for me and another staff member
-Safety during this next month of elections
-And again wisdom as we try to find our niche

Urgent Prayer: South Sudan

Please be in prayer for the Christians and for SP staff in this area. I am not sure of the current developments but SP does work here and I know some of the staff there. It is not to far from the main base in Yei.



Uganda rebel attack in Sudan displaces hundreds

Wednesday 6 February 2008 04:30.

February 5, 2008 (JUBA) — More than 300 people have been displaced by an attack near Sudan’s border with Uganda in which dozens were abducted, the top U.N. official in southern Sudan said Tuesday.

David Gressly told journalists 40 people were kidnapped in the Jan. 30 attack in Kajo Keji in Central Equatoria State, less than 50 kilometers (31 miles) from the border.

Four members of south Sudan security forces were also killed in the attack, with reinforcements dispatched to the isolated region, southern officials said.

"There is an ongoing looting in the area," Gressly said, adding that some of those abducted had been released but that fear had kept those displaced people from going home.

Local government officials suspect Uganda’s Lord’s Resistance Army rebels were behind the attack, with the state parliament speaker on Monday calling for the suspension of Sudan-hosted Ugandan peace talks over the attack.

The attack happened on the same day the Ugandan government and LRA rebels agreed to extend a ceasefire for one month, paving the way for the resumption of stalled peace talks in the southern capital Juba.

Central Equatoria parliament speaker Zamba Duku said the attackers were believed to be LRA because there are no other military groups in the area.

The leader of the LRA delegation to the peace talks, David Matsanga, last week said the rebels were not responsible as they were 500 kilometres (310 miles) away from the area that was attacked.

"We are not sure that the attack was by the LRA," Gressly said.

Asked if the U.N. had any leads as to what could be unfolding, Gressly said: "Frankly, we don’t understand what’s happening."

A few photos

Zimbabwe country side on the road to Mutare.



Drove out to Mutare the other day. This is most likely where we will be doing our projects. This is a beautiful country.




Here our my teammates: Shadrack (left) and Brighton overlooking Mutare

First Days

Well I just wanted to give you a quick update.

Things have been going very well here, very hectic but good. We have found a compound and are starting to set things up. I don't have a lot to say and no pictures yet but thank you all for your prayers. There are lots of things we can work on here and I believe the Lord is opening those doors.

Here are two more articles on Zim:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/7203303.stm

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/7204350.stm

We have been without power and water for quite sometime now but we are figuring things out.

More later

Life in Zimbabwe

Well I am headed down tomorrow. Because all of the communications in the country are closely monitored I may not be able to post what I am really seeing there. But I would encourage you, if interested, to read up on the country.

BBC has some good info:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/programmes/from_our_own_correspondent/6982183.stm

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/7183009.stm


See the right hand column) for more info. BBC has actually been banned from the country along with any free media but they still have some interesting stories. I have also put some links on this page to various information outlets.

Thank you for your prayers.

Zimbabwe

Well I am headed out to Zimbabwe on Monday. Here are a few prayer requests:

-Safety as we travel
-Quickly finding a place to stay (long term)
-Favor with local government and UN officials
-Favor with Zimbabweans as westerns are not looked upon with favor there
-Wisdom as we look for the best place and work for SP to be involved in

I will be writing more about Zimbabwe late but it is a country that is in dire need; inflation is over 8000% (highest in the world), it use to be the bread basket of Africa but now millions are on the brink of starvation, and thousands have been killed or tortured by the current government.

Our brothers and sisters there need our prayers.

Final from Sudan

Well I have now left Sudan and am headed for Zimbabwe. Sudan was an amazing place to me with a complex history and interesting people. I will truly miss my quiet evenings in Kauda and our daily volleyball games. Now it is back to the unknown and new challenges. But I know that the Lord will guide me as He has in the past. It is by His strength that I move, and I pray that with each breath I take I am reminded that He is the Lord; it is through His mercy and grace that I have a new life in Him.

Here are a few last photos for you

Local Girl:



I went on a great hike north of Kauda in Heiban my last week:



Kauda is dry now with the crops harvested:



Thank you for all of your prayers while I was there. Please continue to pray for our brothers and sisters in Sudan. I would also appreciate your prayers as I head to Zimbabwe.

Happy New Year

Well I know it has been a while since I have posted. Our internet here as been very poor lately, one of the joys of living in the middle of the Sudan. It is still not good so no pictures or videos but I did want to let you know a few things happening here.

We had a great Christmas and New Year here, pretty low key but did have some good food and a few games of monopoly.

I had a really nice R&R with my friend Melanie around mid december. Just before I left on that, SP asked me if I could consider going to Zimbabwe and starting a new office. After praying through this I have decided to accept the position there and will leave next week. It is going to be a huge challenge there with lots of logistical and political challenges; I would appreciate your prayer for wisdom and discernment as I am stepping out in a bit of faith. Sudan has been a great place to me, allowing to me experience a lot of the country and have many different jobs.

Please continue to pray for the staff here as they go through a transition time. Also pray for the Christians and the peace process. Finally, remember our brothers and sisters in Kenya as the country as exploded with violence following the election.

I will update when I can with photos and information from Zimbabwe.