We leave at 4 AM tomorrow to head to Namibia!

Just to let you know we leave at 4 AM tomorrow to head to Namibia! We will stop at border to talk with a clearing agent about what kind of paperwork will be needed for importing the fence at the end of this month.

You can begin praying now for that whole process – especially that the import tax will be the minimum :-}!

We hope to get to the municipal campground at Tsumeb where we’ll meet our friend Brent who’s down in Namibia awaiting his visa! Please pray that his visa will come in a timely fashion!!

From there we’ll spend two days at the Waterburg Plateau Park where they say if you want to go hiking you must be able to climb a tree because there are rhinos! :-} !

We plan to get to Windhoek on Tuesday for shop and shop – the shops will be happy but the pocket book will not!

Our plan is to leave Windhoek as soon as shopping is done and head back up here s-l-o-w-l-y, camping along the way and enjoying ourselves and arriving here on 22^nd! Stirling has one day to rest and then has to be in Lubango on 24^th for an all day meeting.

Please pray for Firmino, Paulo, Tutyiale as they hold down the fort – for wisdom, courage, confidence in the Lord!

Pray too for rain! We haven’t had any since just before Christmas – crops are in and we’ll be needing it soon! It is hot and clouding up so we trust it’s not far off!

Thank you so much for praying!!

In Him,

Donna for all of us!

Merry Christmas from Tchincombe!

Merry Christmas from Tchincombe!

We are having a wonderful cool, wet Christmas! Since 1 Dec Tchincombe has received more than ½ of what we usually get in a year! We have had overcast skies for more than a week! We are very thankful!!

As word of mouth about Tchincombe beef (yum) goes around we have more and more requests for meat! That’s good and that’s bad! It means we (mostly Stirling) spend more time in the car than we would like – must find a different plan! Stirling is delivering meat today in order to fill everyone’s orders! Pray for stamina!

Please PRAY for Sunday’s services at Imbondwe – that the meaning of Christmas would be clear! God came in the form of a babe to restore us to himself - so that we can know Him and enjoy him forever! He wants to be our God, King, Friend, Brother/Sister & Savior!

Please pray for Stirling as he brings the message tomorrow at 8 AM – he hasn’t had very much time to prepare with all the traveling of the last week!!

Early in the New Year we will go to Namibia to organize transport for fencing. We’ll also take a few days of holiday to go to Botswana to visit two of our nieces and to meet Peter and Shelley who are returning to Africa!

With Much Love,

Donna, Stirling, Jeffrey, and Meghan

The catchment basins are full!!! This usually only happens in Jan or Feb! It’s not a remote dog but a remote boat that you can’t see in picture!

The Adventure continues here at Tchincombe!!!

The Adventure continues here at Tchincombe!!!

We are having rabbit for lunch. Stirling, Jeffrey and Matt (Jeff’s friend) took our weekend visitors sightseeing and hunting on Saturday. So today we have rabbit on the menu! Rabbit cacciatore!

Last night we had microwave omelets and the boys decided to add a little food coloring! Guess what food coloring each used? Jeffrey had orange eggs! Matt had green eggs (no ham). Meghan had bluish eggs! Stirling and I settled for plain old yellow!

Sheila Foster Fabiano returns to the USA tomorrow. She is returning to help take care of Mum and Dad Foster as well as work on her doctorate. Please pray for her transition and for peace of heart as she knows she’s doing the right thing but is torn because she really does love her work at ISTEL (AEA seminary).

Rains have been good. Crops are getting in the ground. The people are really in need of a good harvest – pray that the rain continues well! People here literally live off the food they harvest!

We are looking into ways of purchasing game animals to stock Tchincombe. There are vast tracks of the 60,000 acres that are too thick for cattle but would be great for game (kudu, eland, and impala). These are good meat animals and will allow diversification of income. Pray for wisdom & patience for God’s perfect timing in all of this. Lord willing, in time, we’ll also be able to help repopulate this area’s depleted game reserves!

Continue to pray for lives at Tchincombe and Imbondwe to be transformed! For all of us to understand that God doesn’t just want to save us from our sins but that he wants an ongoing, daily vital relationship with us!

PRAISE – we were able to distribute 90 treated mosquito nets yesterday! We should see a significant drop in malaria! Nets were supplied by Rio de Huila Clinic (another UIEA/SIM ministry).

Thanks for your partnership!

Donna for all of us!

Raindrops keeping falling . . . . !

Raindrops keeping falling . . . . J ! While we were in Namibia Tchincombe had 109 mm of rain (> 4 inches). Since our return we’ve had 80mm (>1.5 inch) and it’s raining as I write – WOW! What a relief!

We are glad to have Jeffrey back with us! He had a great time at our friend’s farm and learned a lot.

While we were away Perpetua’s nephew stole some things from our pantry. This young boy, Njonjombua is an orphan. He and his two brothers have been living with Perpetua’s family for a few years now. There have been other incidents of petty robbery over the years (within the family as well as in the community). Perpetua and her husband have decided to take the boys back to another uncle. Pray for the boys that they will turn away from this way of life. Pray for Perpetua and Nobrega who feel betrayed by their nephews.

Pray for the ladies at Tchincombe to hunger and thirst to know God better!

Pray for the people in the Imbondwe area to see the futility of a life without Christ. Our next meeting there is the 27^th of December.

For your prayers and gifts of support we are grateful!

YOUR PARTNERSHIP IS ESSENTIAL!

Donna for all of us!

Meghan and I finished 3rd grade!!!

Hi Again!

How could I forget to tell you that Meghan and I finished 3^rd grade!!!

We are free from school for 6 weeks! Thanks for all your prayers on our behalf.

Love,

Donna

100° F today!

100° F today! No rain since 3 weeks ago! Grass is beginning to wilt. There were NO clouds yesterday and day before BUT today lots of clouds! PRAY for rain! AND PRAY for us to not be anxious!!

There were 72 people at Imbondwe today – PRAISE God that there many new people. PRAY for desire to know GOD!

The professors from ISTEL (the Evangelical Seminary of Lubango) came this weekend to Tchincombe for a work retreat. Seems like a contradiction in terms BUT here at least they were away from cell phones and people knocking at the door! PRAY for the staff of ISTEL as they seek to train leaders.

Tomorrow we head out to Namibia to pick up Jeffrey. We hope to be back at Tchincombe by next Sunday – i.e. it will be a whirlwind trip! As always we’ll be doing shopping for the farm and for ourselves!

PRAY for Firmino, Tutyiale and Paulo as they direct the work of the farm and the community here!

THANKS so much for standing with us in prayer!

Donna for all of us!

We did FINALLY have more than an inch of rain!!

Hi!

PRAISE - We did FINALLY have more than an inch of rain!! On Sunday, 9 days ago, 30mm of rain fell and quenched the earth’s thirst! It was wonderful! We have had sprinkles now and then. More rain is always welcome and needed.

Each year we watch the sky with anxiety. Will there be enough rain? Will it come at the right time? What if it doesn’t? What will we do? We ask you to pray for rain. We really should ask you to pray for us not to be anxious! To pray that we would remember that the people, land, cattle and we ourselves belong to God! Whatever falls or doesn’t fall from the sky - God will sustain us! To pray for wisdom to make good decisions!

PRAISE – We have received the money from cattle sales and then transferred enough money to buy 30 km of fencing (includes poles, gates, wire, droppers) – ½ of what we need to fence the entire perimeter of Tchincombe and 5 km o f water piping! God’s timing is really perfect as the exchange rate in Namibia is 10 to 1 – hasn’t been that good since we started thinking about fencing!

PRAY for Jeffrey. He’s two weeks into his 4 week work experience. We talked with him on Sunday. He’s happy, enjoying himself, working hard and a little tired. We leave 1 Dec to pick him up. PRAY

for him that he’ll learn to rely on the Lord. Give thanks for the farm family where he’s living – for their generosity in having him. We’ll then go to Windhoek for a day or two to do some Christmas shopping and to arrange for the transport of the fencing.

PRAY for us to understand how great a salvation we have been given. And what it means that Jesus is our High Priest. (Can you tell we’re reading in Hebrews!)

PRAY for meetings at Imbondwe on 29/30 November – openness to God’s Word.

The granting of visas for missionaries continues to be an issue – please PRAY the two couples in Portugal who will be needing visas.

Don’t forget to lift up the Fox family daily! They have all their outgoing expenses – are in need of monthly support so they can join us here at Tchincombe!

ONE LAST THOUGHT: Are you looking for year-end tax deductible giving options? Consider the work here at Tchincombe J ! All gifts to our ministry account would be appreciated greatly!

In Him,

Donna