Thursday, December 27, 2007

Greetings again from a DRY and hot Tchincombe!

Dear All,

Greetings again from a DRY and hot Tchincombe! We've had no rain in the
last 3 weeks - grass is stopped in its tracks in terms of growth. If it
doesn't rain soon we will need to start making plans to sell animals!

We had a great holiday with Steve, Peggy, Rachel, Rob, Shelley, Peter,
Jasper and our good friend, Brent. Lots of good food, lots of flying of
model airplanes and lots of laughter!

We usually go to the beach for New Year's and my birthday but with all the
travels lately, the weather situation, and no pastor for the church we'll
stay here for the New Year holiday. We'll try and go to the beach on the
weekend 5-7th.

In Lubango on the 8th the UIEA will have its monthly meeting. There are
financial issues to be discussed and reviewed so please pray for wisdom for
all.

January 10 - 16 will be our evangelism/missions conference. Pray for Pastor
Dinho has he leads/teaches and that the Believers here will catch a vision
for the other unreached people groups in Angola.

THANKS so much for praying!! Thanks so much for your words and e-mails of
encouragement at the death of our dear friend. Please continue to pray for
her husband, Fernando, these will be very difficult days for him!

Our 4X4 shipped on 4 December - we've just received the balance due on the
vehicle = 5339 pounds = $11,000. Pray!

In Him,
Donna for all of us!

Monday, December 24, 2007

Hello

Hello. We have gone and come to Lubango in less than 24 hours. We were
able to visit with our dear friend - she was in and out of consciousness but
she did recognize me and she wanted me to pray with her. We are very glad
that we went as she passed away this morning. We believe that she did know
the Lord. Please remember in prayer her husband, Fernando. They have been
married for 35 years and being farmers they have essentially spent all their
lives together. It will be a difficult adjustment for him. His father also
died of lung cancer 20 years ago. Pray that he will hunger to know God.
Thank you for your prayers. In Him, Donna

We rejoice with you to know that Jesus was born, died, and LIVES so that we
might live with Him!

Sunday, December 23, 2007

Dear Friends,

Dear Friends,

Please PRAY - Stirling and I are headed into Lubango ASAP. We just received
word via HF that our dear friend, Jú, is very ill. She thought she had TB
but meds didn't improve her situation - she has lung cancer. The doctor
expects her to live only a day or two. Shelley and Peter will stay here
with Jeff, Meghan and Brent. We'll hopefully come back tomorrow.

In Him,
Donna & Stirling

Wednesday, December 12, 2007

OOPS! The dates for the conference on evangelism

OOPS! The dates for the conference on evangelism are January 10 - 17 not
December 10-17!!!! Sorry!

We all arrived safely back to Tchincombe. We have set up the tree and
decorated the house and are in the midst of baking and present making! It's
pretty hot as we haven't had rain for two weeks.

Please continue to pray for Mena and Zeferino - not only have they lost
their infant son but apparently have been having some marital struggles.
Pray for us as we counsel and encourage.

Pray for Stirling and I as we read together "The Wounded Heart" (by Dan
Alleander) - when I read through it the first time I felt the book was
written about me! In some ways it will be a walk through the valley of the
shadow of death but there is light and hope at the end of it all.

Pray for Twevenonga and his wife - their +/- 10 year old daughter broke her arm
yesterday - she is going to the Evangelical Medical Center today with Peter and Shelley.
Pray that they will experience the love of Christ there!

With Love,
Donna & Stirling

Friday, December 7, 2007

Good Morning/Evening!

Good Morning/Evening! It's 6 AM here but most of you are just going to bed
or have already been in bed a while! It's December! For us a hot, wet and
rainy month - even after so many years it's still strange for me to have
cold weather in December and at Christmas!

We had a great week at the beach! Found a lovely beach - definitely only
accessible with a 4X4. We saw whales spouting in the distance for 2 days,
dolphins once, and a sea turtle lazily swimming in a cove! Each morning on
the beach there were turtle tracks coming up onto the sand to lay their
eggs! We never managed to see one on shore as they came only late at night.
There was a place to go snorkeling - nothing exotic but still fun! Jeffrey
was able to catch 6 good sized fish - the biggest being 3 kg! And we all
managed not to get sun burned!

PRAISE!!! The Latimers did receive their visa!! It's too close now to
Christmas for them to come in December as planned but they will come in
January!

PRAISE!!! Our new 4X4 shipped from the UK on 4 December!! It's scheduled to
arrive here on 7 January! We will not hold our breath for that - it would
be a miracle if it got here in that time - but at least it's on the way!

Today I go back to Tchincombe - Stirling & the children will come on
Saturday as tomorrow he is going to finish (hopefully) putting back together
Pastor Calenga's Land Rover. Stirling will return on Saturday morning along
with Peter and Shelley who will be coming to spend most of December with us.

Peter will be helping us weld desks for the primary school. Up till now the
children have sat on benches only! Shelley will be teaching a Traditional
Birth Attendant course - it will be her first time teaching it - kind of a
practice before the program gets underway here in the Lubango area.

Pray for Pastor Calenga (President of the UIEA) and Pastor Chiquete (General
Secretary) as they are traveling to and from Zambia for a conference.

December 10 - 17 we'll have the head of evangelism for the UIEA come and do
a conference for our little church at Tchincombe! It only occurred to me
now that it will be like our first missions conference in a way! There are
many unreached people groups in Angola. Pray that Tchincombe Church's
vision to reach out will continue to grow!!

Pray for Dagmar, our field leader, she is reapplying for the 3rd time for a
visa to live in Angola! The whole visa application system has changed
AGAIN! We really need her to be in Angola!

Jacob and Maria have been living in the house with no windows and doors -
the windows and doors have gone to Chiange pray for the logistics of getting
them installed - availability of cement, sand and a good brick layer!

Continue to pray for teachers for Tchincombe! As well as a nurse! People
who will see the job as a ministry and not just a way to earn a living. We
will be making a trip next week to Chiange to meet with the municipal
Administrator for Education to make a request for teachers. Pray firstly
that the gentleman will be there - there's really no way to communicate with
them before going. Then Pray that he will be receptive to our request.

Thanks so much for standing with us in prayer! You are a vital part of this
ministry!!

In Him,
Donna for all of us!

Tuesday, November 27, 2007

I went to Rio de Huila today and participated in Kamati's burial.

Hello!I went to Rio de Huila today and participated in Kamati's burial. There is no way to preserve the body here so the burial is usually the same day or next day. There was only myself, Mena, Zeferino and Kaketa. Please pray for the family.We talked with the farm and Kavaende was taken to Chiulu which is theCatholic Mission Hospital south of Tchincombe. Her leg is quite swollen and blistering. Please pray for that family as well. They are also Believers. We go to the beach tomorrow for a week so we won't be answering e-mails until Wednesday next week. Thanks so much for standing with us in prayer!
In Him,Donna & Stirling

Tuesday, November 20, 2007

Whew! That was quite an adventure!

Whew! That was quite an adventure! The rain went before as I headed toward
the main road yesterday! It was WET & MUDDY all the way! When I got to the
main road Stirling wasn't there but one of our workers who is on holiday was
there. He had received a message from a passing motorcyclist from
Stirling! "The bridge at Quihita is not passable. I'm waiting for you at
Quihita".

Before the road work it would have taken 35 minutes to get to Quihita but
since the road had been worked on it took only about 10 minutes. The
permanent bridge at Quihita is under reconstruction. The temporary bridge
wasn't built to cope with the river that was now fast flowing because of the
almost daily rain! The road crew was working hard to try and repair the
gap. What a confusion! Traffic backed up on both sides, trucks bringing
earth to try and fill the gap, and lots of people milling about. Plus the
regular workers trying to hurry along the work on the permanent bridge. A
two board walkway was set up for foot traffic across the metal frame of the
permanent bridge.

Stirling received my passengers and then he headed back to Lubango! He'll
be there today and tomorrow putting together the motor of Pastor Calenga's
Land Rover. We hope he'll be able to return on Thursday.

I made it back to Tchincombe at 9 PM. Everyone here was fine. The kids did
well, the calf is nursing well and has found a new 'mom' in Meghan!

Please pray for Jacob and Maria as they have made the move to Chiange. Pray
for them in these days of transition. Pray for us too now that Tchincombe
Church is without a pastor.

Trust each of you has a WONDERFUL Thanksgiving! Steve & Peggy as well as
Peter and Shelley will come for the weekend and we'll do T-day on Saturday.
It's unfortunately not a holiday here!

THANKS for your prayers!
Donna

Monday, November 19, 2007

This day is not going as planned!

This day is not going as planned! The plan was school for the children and
I; Stirling left early this morning to take meat to Lubango, BUT . . . .

The foreman brought word that a woman who had miscarried on Thursday started
bleeding more heavily during the weekend and even more this morning so now
I'll be taking her to the main road where Stirling will meet me.

We borrowed Steve's Ford pickup to bring the freezer this past weekend.
When Stirling came with the freezer on the weekend he was unable to find
fuel in town so didn't come with a truck full of fuel. Even though he put
fuel in here at Tchincombe he didn't put enough not being familiar with the
truck and so ran out of fuel on his way into town! So he got there at noon
instead of 9:30! Now he'll have to drive right back to meet me halfway
where he'll receive the patient and continue on back into town. I'll return
to Tchincombe. Jeffrey, Matt (a friend from town visiting) and Meghan will
stay with our housekeeper.

A cow died calving and so the calf was brought here to the house where
we've given him colostrum that we had frozen for just such occasions. The
cow was thin and weak because rains were delayed.

Mena and Zeferino's child, Kamati, returned from the catholic hospital and
seems no better than he was!! They said he was positive for malaria and
treated him as such. He looks like the classic photo of a starving child -
he's been so sick he's not been eating.

PRAY for Hopete and his wife that she won't bleed so much on the trip to
Lubango - we'll be taking her to the CEML.

PRAY for Kamati that he'll have the desire to eat and gain strength. Pray
for Mena and Zeferino not to be so discouraged that they give up!

Pray for Stirling and I as we travel back and forth - we've both been up
since 4 AM.

Pray for the kids as they stay here. I'll only be gone 4 or 5 hours but I
still don't like to leave them! Last night there was a snake in the
bathroom (a window had been left open in the house). This morning there was
another snake outside the feed room!
With the rain comes the good, the bad, and the ugly - there have been
beautiful sunbirds and swallows, not to mention gorgeous sunsets but there
also bugs of every shape and description and of course, snakes!

Our dear friend Gary Toews who is with MAF and just left for Canada for home
assignment is having bypass surgery right now as I write. Pray for he and
Doreen!


THANKS for praying!
Donna for all of us!

Friday, November 16, 2007

Yipeee!!! On Wednesday afternoon we had 30 mm of rain = > 1 inch!!

Yipeee!!! On Wednesday afternoon we had 30 mm of rain = > 1 inch!! And
there are still plenty of clouds and heat around!

Stirling went to Lubango on Thursday and got back late but brought the
FREEZER!! It's running and has meat already!!

It's like Christmas - esp for the kids to get the things they were given in
the USA!

PRAY for Jacob and Maria as they will be moving soon. The doors and
windows have been made but not yet transported and taken to Chiange. The
President of the Regional Assembly of the UIEA says they should move on
Monday! We can't see how that's possible so pray that he will be
understanding!

Sunday there are baptisms here at Tchincombe.

Next Sunday is the last Sunday which means a service at the Tchimbolelo
preaching point.

Pray for Jeffrey, Meghan and I as we are in the last month of school - we
are all ready!! Pray too if there is someone out there who would like to
teach the kids that they would step forward!

THANKS for standing with us!
Love,
Donna

Wednesday, November 14, 2007

Ahhhh - we had 4mm of rain last night

Ahhhh - we had 4mm of rain last night - a relief!! We still need more but
it's a beginning!

One thing I forgot to mention is that our beloved Jack Russell , Matti,
died. She and Ebba (our shepherd) had been getting out of the yard
regularly despite our efforts to block their escape routes. One of the
herdsman found her - we really don't know what happened since they had to
bury her before our return. We suspect she tangled with a snake. Pray
especially for Meghan since it was 'her' dog. Pray for the Jenkins too,
especially Beth, Matti was their dog before being ours!

The container from USA with our container is FINALLY in Lubango! Stirling
goes tomorrow on farm business so he'll be able to bring back the freezer -
at least that's the plan!

THANKS!!
Donna

Monday, November 12, 2007

Greetings from a dry Tchincombe!

Greetings from a dry Tchincombe! The rains continue to be late. Despite
rains in Lubango (200km from here) we have had no significant rain. Cows
are getting thin and some of this years weanlings have died do to weakness -
i.e. too far to walk between water and food. We are attempting to put water
to the nether parts of the ranch that have grass - dry though it be - though
the distances are great for piping, etc. Please pray for rain! Pray as
well for patience and wisdom until the rains do come.

We had a fun but at the same time tearful farewell for our MAF friends, Gary
and Doreen Toews. They were to go on home assignment in December but had to
leave earlier than planned for health reasons. Pray for them as Gary has
tests in Toronto today to see what intervention might be needed for a heart
condition. Gary and Doreen have been a great encouragement to us as they
have demonstrated that being a missionary is not about what organization we
serve with but about being part of the family of God! Their home has been a
haven for many of us here in Angola!

While we were in Lubango two families had to be taken to the hospital. Mena
and José Zeferino's son, Kamati, has had ongoing diarrhea which initially
responded to treatment for malaria. While we were away he took a turn again
for the worst. At the hospital he was still positive for malaria. What
complicates things even more is that Mena seems to have lost hope. She has
had dreams that her son was going to die and so has been very passive in his
care and treatment. She is a Believer. Please pray that she will know the
peace and hope of God's presence.

Kandaisesa, the wife of one of our herdsman also most likely has malaria.
She has been talking wildly and feeling poorly - not an unusual presentation
for malaria. This family does not know the Lord. They have had many
difficulties in their lives. She needs healing in more ways than just
physical.

PRAISE: On Sunday, November 18 - 5 people will be baptized!! Pray for
them this week that they will be protected from the evil one - he has a
stronghold on the Ovangambwe people. He really trys to intimidate through
fear and doubt.

Please pray for a visa for Jerry and Louise Latimer. They are due to arrive
here on Thursday, November 22 - but they can only come if their visa is
issued! We will be truly THANKFUL if we can fetch them at the airport!

On Sunday, November 25 we'll celebrate the end of the school year for the
Tchincombe Primary School. All of the 4th grade students except one passed
their official government exams!

A BIG ITEM OF PRAYER: Teachers for the new school year! Pastor Jacob will
be moving to Chiange so he will not be teaching. We hope the two government
teachers will return but they have not been very reliable. We really need a
teacher(s) who will come and make their life at Tchincombe. It's a
difficult assignment because primary school teachers are usually also
wanting to continue their education. Pray for us to be creative in this
department. Satellite internet courses? Traditional correspondence
courses?

November 28 - December 5 we will be taking an honest to goodness vacation!
We're going off to the beach! Our time at the beach would be much more
restful if it would rain!

The quote for fencing Tchincombe is $137,000! Fencing is now essential to
protect Tchincombe's grass and water from the neighbors' cattle. Stirling
and Pastor Chiquete have visited the bank. They are offering a 5 year loan
at 8%. It's a somewhat daunting adventure! Especially since rains are
delayed this year. Pray for wisdom and discernment!

Our new vehicle is still in the UK. We were told we needed a certain
document - took the time to get it only to find out we didn't need it! The
vehicle should be shipping soon!

YOUR PRAYERS ARE APPRECIATED!

In Him,
Donna for all of us!

Saturday, October 27, 2007

Home Again! Stirling and I had a great weekend.

Home Again! Stirling and I had a great weekend. Jeffrey and Meghan both
enjoyed there adventures. We are glad to be home again and reunited as a
family. Thanks for your prayers on our behalf!

We arrived home on Thursday. Meghan came yesterday (Friday) with Peter and
Shelley and we've enjoyed a relaxing day today which included watering the
grass and garden (it hasn't really rained YET!), making bread, cheese and
cinnamon buns, marinating meat for supper, alternator repairs, treating cow
with prolapsed vagina and retained placenta, changing battery in generator,
working with Strider (horse) and getting ready picnic fixings for tomorrow.
Stirling and the rest have gone to check out smoke we can see on the north
side of the farm.

Picnic fixings are for us to take when we go to the Tchimbolelo preaching
point tomorrow. It's two hours from here. Please pray that people in the
area will remember that it is the last Sunday of the month and come! Please
pray for open and receptive hearts. Ask the Lord for discernment about
whether we need to change location or timing, etc. as each time there seems
to be less people and last Sunday there were no Ovangambwe present - only
workers from the farm of another people group who have had the gospel for 3
generations. Pray that these folk would catch a vision for evangelism!

On our one day in Windhoek Stirling was able to follow up on contacts about
buying fencing that he made during other trips. We have found a credible
company and they have given us a reasonable quote to fence Tchincombe.
During the executive meetings the UIEA leadership approved the idea of
looking into a bank loan so pray for Stirling as he talks more with the
leadership of the UIEA and as he talks with the manager of the bank. We are
hoping there will be low interest agricultural loans available.

As the land is thirsting for water PRAY for rain!
PRAY that people will thirst for the living water and PRAY for the Believers
at Tchincombe that we will point people to the LIVING WATER.

Your partnership is indispensable!!!!
Donna for all of us!

Wednesday, October 17, 2007

Hello - it's hot and steamy but no real rain yet!!

Hello - it's hot and steamy but no real rain yet!! We've had sprinkles that
are increasing our longing!! The rain clouds are all around - pray for them
to dump on us!!

The house has been quiet this week! Jeffrey is away at Schoenfeld (click here to see it)and
Meghan went to Lubango on Monday. She is spending the week with her Dutch
girlfriends who have holiday. They are all going to the beach tomorrow.
Pray for safety in travel and at the water.

Stirling and I are going to have a belated anniversary celebration.
Tomorrow we'll go to Namibia and stay at a bed & breakfast, Friday and
Saturday we will go a little further south and camp. Sunday we'll get to
Windhoek - Monday shop, Tuesday go to Schoenfeld to pick up Jeffrey,
Wednesday start back toward Angola and camp near the border. Thursday back
to Tchincombe! Pray for safety and rest!

Pray too for Paulo and Tuciale as the hold down the fort in our absence
(Firmino is on holiday) - always it seems that the staff come up with some
'when the cat's away the mouse will play' stuff! Pray for Paulo and Tuciale
to have wisdom.

Good friends of ours, Gerald and Louise Latimer, would like to visit in
November and help around the farm - pray for their visa to be granted!

Continue to pray for us a community to know what it means to love our
neighbor. Today we looked at John 13:34 where Jesus says for us to love
others as he has loved us!!!

THANKS so much for being part of our team!!!

Love,
Donna & Stirling

New Pictures!

Playing pretty, pretty princess with Aunty Karen.
Meghan turns 8!

Pounding grain and carting water are never ending tasks for the ladies at
Tchincombe

To the beach for the long weekend - fishing - Jeffrey and Meghan were
thrilled!

Wednesday, October 10, 2007

You have been praying and God has been working.

You have been praying and God has been working. Today in our ladies'
meeting how to show love to our neighbor especially in the case when the
neighbor is rude. Kaketa said when she greets Marta, Marta will not return
her greeting. In Olungambwe culture it is extremely rude not to greet
another person. And it's not only to Kaketa that Marta reacts this way. We
had the opportunity to talk about the fact that a person has a wounded heart
they don't know how to relate appropriately to others. Apparently Marta is
afraid that people will laugh at her when she sings or goes to church or
when she wears nice clothes. There is another lady, Emilia who is also
sometimes very rude. Here are some things that we at the ladies meeting are
praying in these next weeks - will you pray with us?

*That God would show us if any of us have in any way offended these ladies.
*That God would show us how to love them even though they are not acting
lovable.
*That God would work in their hearts to heal whatever is there and that he
would cause their hearts to turn to Him for healing and salvation.
*That God would prepare the way for one or two of us to talk with these
ladies about the way there are feeling or acting.
*Pray especially for Marta as over the years it has been clear that there
are definite psychological problems in her life.

Stirling, Jeffrey and our friend Brent went down to Namibia on Monday.
Jeffrey started his two week work experience yesterday - pray for him!

Stirling and Brent have gone on to Windhoek to do purchases and plan to head
back on Friday.

Pray for rain!!!

Pray for me as lately I feel like I am tired all the time - maybe it's just
the heat, maybe the tasks in general seem overwhelming! THANK YOU!

Meghan cut her hair short - we'll try and send a picture when we can!

THANKS for standing with us in prayer.
Donna for all of us!

Tuesday, September 25, 2007

Stirling is home after a week of meetings in Quito, Angola.

Hooray! Stirling is home after a week of meetings in Quito, Angola.
THANKS so much for your prayers - even though there were difficult things to
discuss and resolve there was a good spirit and camaraderie amongst the
delegates.

We will stay in Lubango today and head back to Tchincombe first thing
tomorrow morning.

THANKS so much for your prayers on behalf of the ladies at Tchincombe - we
have had 10 - 12 ladies each Wednesday the last month and there has been
real interest and participation. We are memorizing Matthew 22:37-39 in
Portuguese and Olungambwe - pray that God will help us to understand these
verses and how they impact all areas of our lives.

About 2 months ago we bought young 14 chickens for laying eggs - last week
we got the first egg - this week they are all sick and dying despite our
treatments! They are HUGE birds (really a meat chicken) we think that the
heat stress they have been experiencing has just been too much. We'll keep
buying eggs and look for more chickens - eggs are 600Kz for 30 eggs (750kz =
$10USD)!

Jeffrey has a wonderful opportunity coming up! At this point he wants to be
a PH (professional hunter) - he has experienced the lovely side of that life
- that is being a guest a game farm in Namibia. Our friends at that game
farm have offered to have Jeffrey come and work for 2 weeks to see the work
side!! We are grateful for this opportunity. Pray for him as it will be
his first time away from us (aside from times when he has been with family)
- mind you Hartwig and Elke seem like family so we are not so worried on
that score! Pray for Jeffrey also that even at 13 he will seek what God's
will is for his life! He'll be there from 9th of October.

That's all for now!!

Thanks for all your love, prayer and concern! You are a vital part of all
that God does in Angola at Tchincombe!

In Him,
Donna for all of us!

Monday, September 17, 2007

Hello from smoky smelling Tchincombe!

Hello from smoky smelling Tchincombe! The fire is out - Stir and the guys
(including Jeffrey and his friend Matthew - MAF MK) worked until 11 PM and
were successful!! Today we'll be moving 2 herds to a different part of the
farm as their grass is all burned up! Pray for early and good rains!
Thanks for praying! Donna The fire is out - Stir and the guys
(including Jeffrey and his friend Matthew - MAF MK) worked until 11 PM and
were successful!! Today we'll be moving 2 herds to a different part of the
farm as their grass is all burned up! Pray for early and good rains!
Thanks for praying! Donna

Sunday, September 16, 2007

Dear Faithful Prayers!

Dear Faithful Prayers!
Pray! Stirling left at 2:30 PM today to fight a bush fire - he and the
workers are still at it - it's almost 7 PM! Every blade of grass is
precious at this time of the year. We don't have the reserves of pasture
that we should as many of our neighbors' animals have been grazing on
Tchincombe! Pray for the men to have stamina and that the wind will calm
down so that they can get the fire out. THANK YOU for PRAYING! Donna for
all of us!

Tuesday, September 11, 2007

Again from Tchincombe!

Again from Tchincombe!
Meghan is feeling much better - vomiting stopped yesterday morning. She
then slept through the night with only a little fever. Today she has had no
fever. We are grateful!

Thanks to all for your words of encouragement and support!!

In Him,
Donna

Monday, September 10, 2007

Items for prayer:

Greetings from Tchincombe!

Items for prayer:

Meghan started yesterday with diarrhea, high fever, headache, and vomiting.
We were in town 2 weeks ago where there were plenty of mosquitos and even
though we don't have a way to test her we have started her on treatment for
malaria. Though it was a somewhat sleepless night she seems to feel better
this morning and has been able to keep the medicine down.

Stirling goes to town tomorrow for an admin meeting. On Wednesday he will
be putting a motor back together for one of the UIEA church leaders. He
likes working on Landys so it will be a break in some ways!

Next week the UIEA has it's annual national meetings. They are to be held
in Quito - more or less the middle of Angola - it will take a long day of
driving to get there - Stirling will be gone at least a week. Pray for the
delegates from all over Angola as they travel to Quito for safety in travel.
Pray that each delegate will desire above all to see the name of God lifted
up. Pray for wisdom and discernment for all who participate.

Pray especially for our friend and colleague Dr. Karen Henriksen. It seems
that she will have to go to these meetings to represent the medical
department of the UIEA - it wasn't in the plan but the individual who should
go has had to be dismissed because of immorality - this puts more work on an
already too full plate for Karen. Pray for her strengthening.

There are 22 more heifers and many goats that still need to get to Cavango
this month - we need to find a truck and driver.

Gerald and Louise Latimer would like to come in November and give us a hand
here at Tchincombe. Pray for visa. The Embassy in DC hasn't been issuing
visitor visas - pray for that block to be removed!!!

As always - pray for ladies' meeting on Wednesday - we had 12 ladies last
week!

Pray for last Sunday of every month for the outreach at Tchimbolelo.

Lastly pray for me (Donna) as I try to balance all my responsibilities -
that I would rest in what I was able to accomplish and not fret about what
wasn't done. Especially pray that I would be able to find the time to get
language study done!

THANKS!
Donna for all of us!

Sunday, September 9, 2007

When you don't hear from us PRAY

I should say right off that when you don't hear from us PRAY - either we
are very busy - too busy or are feeling very discouraged. In this last
silence it has been both!!

The HEAT IS ON! Day time temps are soaring though nights feel like spring
and a light jacket is needed. Here and there trees are starting to bud and
a few are already in full leaf! This goes a long way to break up the gray
and brown all around. Everything is perking up in anticipation of the rain
that should be coming in October - pray for that!

Stirling did arrive home safely from Namibia. He arrived at 11 PM on
Wednesday (29 August). Meghan was up early on Thursday as it was her
birthday - 8 years old! Steve & Peggy and Peter and Shelley came for the
weekend so it was very special.

I wrote during Stirling's absence about the fan belt of generator breaking.
A new fan belt came to the farm the next day after the old one broke coming
with a 3 person team from Zamibia who 'just happened' to be headed toward
the border at that time. They got the fan belt here. The generator got
going right away BUT the Zambian team's car broke down and our farm truck
had to pull them about 3 hours south to the main road so they could find
another vehicle to pull them to the border!

Today is a general holiday at the farm - a bullock has been slaughtered and
there is a big meal for the personnel. We are wanting to acknowledge the
Lord's goodness in harvest as well as let the workers know we appreciate
them.

At the ladies meeting this week we studied Paul's prayer for the Colossians.
We ask you to pray for the Believers here that we will know the Lord's will
and that we will be strengthened with the power of the Holy Spirit. And
that we will be aware of his presence in everyday living.

Thank you for standing with us in prayer!!
Donna for all of us!

Sunday, August 26, 2007

Greetings from Tchincombe!

Greetings from Tchincombe!

The fair went well. Stirling worked hard and long hours getting helping
with the auction. Pray for fruit from this labor - that opportunities would
arise to share with our farmer friends the good news of the Gospel!!
Tchincombe's heifers sold before the auction. It's an honor that our
neighbor's want to buy our heifers. A lot of heifers bought two years ago
were brought back to the fair this year as cows and won first place in their
class!

We arrived at Tchincombe on Monday and Stirling headed to Namibia early on
Wednesday morning to get price quotes for fencing and piping. And to buy
needed farm parts and spares. He and Peter Duplantis went. Peter will
drive back the Ritchies vehicle - SIM colleagues who flew out of Windhoek to
go on home assignment.

Doesn't something ALWAYS breakdown when a husband goes away?!? The fan belt
on the main generator for water pump broke yesterday and we unfortunately
don't have a spare on hand - this is one of Stirling's purchases in
Windhoek. Colleagues in town are looking for the right fan belt - the plan
is for Shelley to meet me half way so that I don't have to go all the way
into town for the part! The running of the generator is critical as it's
the height of the dry season and most of the cattle are drinking here - the
other borehole is still not working properly!

Please pray for Sunday's preaching at Tchimbolelo.

Jackie left on Sunday for the USA. Pray for her - she only has a week
before her classes begin! She was a great blessing!

Meghan had a stomach ache with vomiting and diarrhea yesterday but seems her
happy self today.

Pray for the children and I as we hold down the fort during Stirling's
absence and get school done!

We do appreciate your partnership with us!!!

In Him,
Donna for all of us!

Sunday, August 19, 2007

New Pictures!

Loading up supplies in Lubango

Tchincombe ranch hands at Agricultural fair.

Jeffrey gets his puppy! No labs available- just a local pup. Jeffrey named him "Ruger"- he has adjusted well to his new life- a rags to riches story!

Meghan observing a cataract surgery at CEML- she loved it!

Municipal market.

Wednesday, August 8, 2007

We had very good prayer meeting and 50th B-day celebration

Hi! We had very good prayer meeting and 50th B-day celebration last
weekend! This weekend we are Tchincombe and having a visit with Dr. Karen
Henriksen, SIM colleague. She's come to get a rest and have her Land-Rover
checked out! We do enjoy her company!

Stirling is still recovering from the Cavango trip! In spite of his fatigue
he preached a good message today (only found out on Friday that he was
preaching) - pray that hearts would ponder what they heard and respond to
the Lord!!

Pray for renewal here! It seems that folk are tired and in a rut! It is
hard to grow spiritually with no Bible in one's language! Pray for the
translation team at Ngunga! They are working on TEE (theological education
by extension).
With the experience gained in translation we hope and pray the time will
soon come for the Bible to be translated in this language group!

We are in the middle of the dry season - everything here is gray or brown!
I am already looking forward to our first rain and it won't be till October
- Lord willing! We still have a long wait! We do have a little patch of
green in the backyard and a few rose bushes - that helps!

We go to Lubango a week from tomorrow for the Ag fair. We will stay in
town for about 5 days. Jackie our teacher will leave 2 weeks from today -
at the end of the time we are in town for the fair. Her time here has
flown by! It has been great to have her! She was just what we needed at
this time of getting settled after home assignment! Pray for her to have
energy and stamina as she is a second grade teacher and the school year
starts for her at the end of August!

Thanks for standing in the gap!!!

Love,
Donna for all of us!

Monday, August 6, 2007

Pictures!

A good day's work done.
Threshing!

Threshing!
Resting from threshing.
Bolunga (refreshing drink made from boiling millet in water and then adding sugar - it is made the day before needed).
Kids waiting expectantly for bolunga.
Newly threshed millet-will still need winnowing on the next windy day.
Moving millet from pile to take to threshing floor.

Janesia helping with Teresa's baby.

Working on the water pump.
Cattle coming to drink.
Jackie with Comries (Roy & Gwen) speakers at Spiritual Life Conference.
Dry season...
Cattle coming to drink.
View from retreat center where we had Spiritual Life Conference.
Tchincombe in dry season...
Tchincombe in dry season...
Tchincombe in dry season-we're beginning to thirst for rain!

Greetings from Lubango!

Greetings from Lubango! The children, Jackie and I drove in on Friday to be
here for SIM's monthly team prayer meeting as well as to celebrate Peter
Ritchie's 50th birthday (Peter and his wife, Areni, work with SIM in
literacy.

Stirling and Firmino and the herdmens arrived on in Lubango on Saturday at
4PM. He said that on Thursday at 3 PM when he talked with me on the radio
they had hit a real low in morale and despaired of getting the truck out of
the mud - just after that I sent you the update. The truck was a double
articulated semi and with the load of animals everything weighed about 45
tons - all stuck in the mud since 1 AM - 16 men worked all day to get the
truck unstuck! The truck -i.e. the tractor without the trailers came
unstuck at around 5 PM, then the first trailer out at 6 PM and the second
trailer at 7 PM - they were trucking toward Cavango by 8 PM. THANKS for
your prayers! We believe it gave them the stamina to go on - you must
understand that they had been on the road since Tuesday at 10 AM and had
spent a good bit of Wednesday stuck in sand. They arrived at 11:40 PM at
Cavango, had a quick supper and by 2 AM had the cattle unloaded - though
stiff and sore from the trip they all arrived alive!

On Friday at 7 AM Stirling was awoken by the church leaders to preach!
People in that area are keen for teaching and preaching since they were so
isolated during the war. The rest of Friday was spend looking to the cattle
and getting rested for Saturday's return trip.

We are in Lubango today and will head back to Tchincombe tomorrow - that is
the current plan!

Thanks so much for your prayers!!
Donna for all of us!

Thursday, July 26, 2007

!! Stirling, Firmino and the cattle still have not reached Cavango!!!!

!! Stirling, Firmino and the cattle still have not reached Cavango!!!!
Yesterday they were stuck in sand and today they have been stuck in mud all
day! Stirling called on the radio about an hour ago and said that they are
on the road again! There is still 50 km to go!! They have been on the road
since 10:00 AM Tuesday. They of course have had very little sleep and the
last 50 km will still take several hours! The heifers seem to be coping
though they are very tired. The guys managed to give them water but bucket
- imagine 60 animals to water by bucket! Pray for stamina and safety!
THANKS!!!
Donna

Wednesday, July 25, 2007

Dear Faithful Pray-ers!

Dear Faithful Pray-ers!

Whew - life never seems to slow down!

Stirling left as planned at 5 AM on Monday to load the heifers BUT the truck
didn't show up until Tuesday morning! They were loaded by 10 AM - as of 1
hour ago they are still in transit (26 hours on truck so far) to Cavango -
Stirling hopes to reach the mission by dark!

One of the sons of Twevenonga, a herdsman who is accompanying the heifers on
the truck, got himself a nasty wound just near his knee when he fell on a
stump yesterday. It seems that such things happen when our spouses travel!
We cleaned it out today and took out lots of splinters and will have to
clean it daily for a while. Pray for the boy and for Twevenonga.

Jonathan Holden was flown out to SA accompanied by his brother Paul. We
understand he has had at least two surgeries on his ankle. Pray for a good
recovery and for strength, stamina and peace for both of them!

We started tattooing calves yesterday - so far we've done 88.


Other things to remember:
*This afternoon - ladies meeting
*Sunday - preaching at Tchimbolelo (preaching point where we hoping to
establish a church)
*the logistics of getting Pastor Jacob & his family to Chiange.
*pray for me while Stirling is away for wisdom and discernment in dealing
with workers - yesterday I was informed of a difficult situation with one of
the workers and we will be meeting these next few days to decide what to do.

THANKS for praying!!!!!
Donna for all of us!

_________________________________
Stirling & Donna Foster
CP 33 Lubango, Angola, via Portugal
tchincombe@uuplus.com
stirling.foster@sim.org
tchincombe.blogspot.com

satellite phone:
870 (or 871) 76 252 5235

SIM-USA
PO Box 7900, Charlotte, NC 28241

SIM Canada
10 Huntingdale Blvd, Scarborough, ON M1W 2S5






Thursday, July 19, 2007

New Update!

Our Spiritual Life Conference went very well! The Comries have been
missionaries for 47 years and so shared with us many encouraging accounts
of God's faithfulness - a big picture perspective - sometimes the right here
and now are hard to comprehend BUT when we look back we can see what God was
doing or how He used the difficult times!! It was a great time for us to
reconnect with others after home assignment!

Thanks for your prayers for Pinto Miguel - he is scheduled for surgery in
August - it appears the tumor on his leg is not the malignant type - we are
thankful!

This has been a busy week - we have made orange marmalade, pumpkin pie and
soup from a pumpkin we were given, butter (cream from dairy cows), and for
supper tonight meat pie (recipe courtesy of Carolyn Gardner)!

There have been several very sick people these last 10 days - one of our own
families we had to take to the Catholic Hospital 3 hours south of here -
their child seem to have pneumonia and malaria. Two women from the
neighboring farm and another women from here at Tchincombe have had very
severe cases of malaria. Pray for these families! THANK YOU!

Pray too for Jonathan Holden - he's an MK of about 17 years old. He fell
while climbing and broke his ankle and has a head wound - there is talk of
sending him to South Africa via Med-Evac - haven't heard yet what the final
decision has been.

Meghan and Jeffrey are having a great time with Jackie! Her time will come
to an end all too soon!! She leaves on 19 August!

The next few weeks will be busy - please pray:

Monday, 23 July: Stirling will accompany the cattle truck to Cavango to
deliver the first 60 animals for that project. Pray for patience and that
the cattle will make the trip with no injuries - we hear that the road is
better!

Also on Monday we will start tattooing calves in preparation for weaning.

Wednesday, 25 July - ladies meeting at Tchincombe - we will be studying in
Colossians and then learning how to prevent worms.

Friday, 27 July - we head to town for our SIM monthly prayer meeting. Pray
for Peter and Areni Ritchie who are preparing for Home Assignment - they
leave in early August.

Sunday, 29 July - preaching at the Tchimbolelo preaching point.

The last part of July and first few days of August Stir will make a run to
Windhoek to get price quotes for fencing and piping as well as other
supplies that the farm needs.

August 8 - 15 is the Agricultural Fair - lots to do - we are sending 15
heifers. Stirling has been asked to help organize the auction - it's an
excellent opportunity to develop relationships in the ag community.

Check out the blog after Monday - will be sending photos to town with
Stirling!

With Love and Thanks!!
Donna

Thursday, July 5, 2007

Jackie, Meghan and Jeffrey

Hard at work!
Jackie with Meghan and Jeffrey in front of the school room.

Tuesday, June 26, 2007

Greetings from Lubango!

Greetings from Lubango! Meghan and I drove to Lubango yesterday because
Jackie received her visa and she arrived yesterday - yoohoo!!! Jackie
received her visa just in the nick of time - on Wednesday and flew out
from USA on Thursday! It will be a fun two months!

Today we travel back to Tchincombe and also traveling with us are Roy
and Gwen Comrie who are speaking at our SIM's Spiritual Life Conference.
They arrived on the same plane as Jackie. We then return to Lubango on
Thursday - a little grueling to travel these roads twice in one week -
but you do what ya gotta do!

SP (Samaritan's Purse) is going to purchase 129 animals from Tchincombe
to send to the area of Cavango. They will be a great blessing to help
families in that area rise above subsistence standards!! Stirling and
Tuciale will be involved with arranging transport for these animals and
helping to get them established. It is exciting to be at a stage in the
life of Tchincombe to begin to reach out to meet the wider needs in
Angola!

Stirling and the guys will be starting to install the new pump - it's a
massive job to put the pipe in one section at a time to go down +300ft -
it will take about 4 days.

Thinking of the future please continue to pray for the Foxes and for the
Verhoefs as they prepare for service in Angola!

Paulo's mother had surgery last week at the CEML for cancer in her
mouth. She lost a lot of blood (not unusual for mouth surgery) but is
doing well. It has been a hard 1 1/2 years for Paulo and his family -
remember his sister died, his stepfather killed a man in a drunken brawl
and then committed suicide some days later. Pray for Paulo's Mom that
she would come to know God's peace in his heart.

We brought another herdsman from Tchincombe to CEML with what appears to
be a bony tumor on his leg. His name is Pinto Miguel. It is the first
time he or his family have ever been to town! Pray that he would
experience the love of Christ at the CEML.

Until the next time - THANK YOU for praying!!
Donna for all of us!

Friday, June 15, 2007

The laptop is talking to the sat phone so we're in business again!!

Hi! The laptop is talking to the sat phone so we're in business again!!
A big thanks to Gary, Doreen and Rob (MAF colleagues) who searched the
net for the driver for the serial to USB cable while Stirling was
shopping and doing other business in town!!

Stirling arrived home at 11:30PM last night vividly reminded that he was
in Angola! He couldn't get fuel at any of the 3 places he stopped!
Thankfully a farmer friend gave him 20L of fuel to get home! Stirling
says he has to get used to the roads again . . . slow. . . and jarring;
and on the way a bolt on the axle of the trailer broke so he had to come
even more slowly - a testimony to the harshness of the roads!

Thanks for your prayers! Feel free to write - we will receive all
messages under 100K here at Tchincombe - all messages over 100K will
just wait at the server till we go to town.

Pray that Jackie (teacher) and Heather (vet assistant) will be issued
their visitor visas!! There has been no movement on visas at the
embassy! Jackie plans to arrive on 24 June. Heather should have been
here already.

In Him,
Donna & Stirling

Tuesday, June 12, 2007

Monday, June 11, 2007

We had a good weekend and feel much more rested! School with J&M went well this morning – our first day back since starting our return journey to Africa so we have some catch up to do!! Stirling is going to town tomorrow and he’ll send these e-mails via the internet! We are still working on a solution to do e-mails from Tchincombe – we think that we can put our server software on our desktop (Shelley has downloaded it to CD for us – we did not have a hard copy only what’s on the laptop and we couldn’t copy that on to disk) until we can get the cable to connect our laptop to the satellite phone. We would prefer to do the e-mails on one computer and since it’s hard to take the desktop to town we’ll try and find the appropriate cable – we are told that serial to USB cables don’t always work!!

PRAISE - The well drilling company DID come and clean out the well while we were away!!! Wonders never cease!! We bought the new motor in Windhoek and so we’ll be installing it soon. Then we’ll need to lay 10 km of water pipe so that the animals can get to the edges of the farm to eat the grass there!

THANKS for standing with us in these months!

Love,

Donna for all of us!

Greeting FROM Tchincombe on Wednesday June 6!

Dear Ones,

Greetings FROM Tchincombe on Wednesday June 6! We are home!! We arrived last night at 6:45PM! We had a good night’s sleep and have been busy! We took 3 days to come up so we’re not so travel weary but we did enjoy a peaceful night’s sleep last night. The last two nights we were camping just outside Etosha Game Park (we spent Monday in the park) at a place called Onguma. And the lions were calling to each other almost all night from outside the fence – and even though the camping ground was fenced it wasn’t as restful sleeping as it could have been but it was . . . .adventurous!!!

WELCOME to those of you who are new to Tchincombe Updates – thanks for signing up to pray - we really appreciate it!!

Our old batteries for running the solary system are definitely kaput (we knew they were weak when we left) so Stirling has had to spend the day putting in the new batteries (THANK YOU to our family at GBC)!

The kids have been hanging out putting their stuff away and playing with the things that they haven’t seen for 6 months!

It seems that things ran well during our absence but we haven’t had time to hear all the story just yet!

Guess what?!!? Just discovered that our new computer does not have cables to talk to the satellite phone!!! SO – I don’t know when you’ll get this e-mail!! We’re working on a solution!

Thursday – talked with colleagues in town about getting the appropriate cable for computer/sat phone – Rob (MAF) is getting in touch with sat phone shop about ordering a cable – only get here earliest on 24th June! Meanwhile, Peter (SIM) heard our HF radio discussion and said he has said cable that we can borrow for the mean time – we’ll be able to get it early next week when we go to town – YEAH!

After talking with Rob and Peter Stirling remembered he had a cable for the old GPS we had – it’s the right thing – YEAH but wait . . . .no driver .. . . .searched high and low and found many other disks but not a driver disk . . . . waiting to go to town to download driver and/or borrow Peter’s cable if he has a driver . . . more waiting!