Diary Entry

Our Village Church Planting coordinator (Abel) just returned from a week in Gaza and Inhambane provinces where he was working with the fledgling young churches in that area. He visited each church planter/pastor to encourage them and the church, conduct training, and do baptisms. It was a challenge because there were a series of deaths that diverted a couple of the churches he needed to meet with; a sad comment on what is reality here. He came back encouraged and we continue to pray about who we might send from our National church to further the work in this area. Pastor Abel is so faithful to travel back and forth each month to train and encourage the churches in that area.

Late last night we received a text from one of our Pastor/Trainers, Nelio, that he was a proud papa of a baby girl. Mom and daughter are doing very well for which we are thankful. We look forward to seeing this precious new life in a very few days.

Today, Ann took Aimee out to the Khongolote women's meeting and that gave Aimee an opportunity to explain her passion for minstry and her plans to eventually relocate into a community in the northern provinces. In the interim, she is hoping to live with a family from one of the churches to accelerate her language learning (she already speaks excellent Portuguese) and accelerate her cultural learning. Our plan is to take her north on a survey trip in early October to introduce her to the work and church leaders in the northern provinces as well as introduce her to the various contacts and "how to's" of travel into that area. We really look forward to it as it will have been quite a few months since our last trip north and we feel strongly that it is our job to help her get where God has called her to work. I've actually lost track but this will be our fifth or sixth trip north.

I stayed home while Ann and Aimee went to Khongolote to work on the mountain of admin that has been accumulating, making some progress. I was also working on a report I need to complete and that is always an encouraging process because it causes me to look back and to look forward and through that process we cannot help but be reminded that it is God's work, not ours, and that he has been faithful in so many things. As they traveled, Ann was giving directions on the twists and turns on the sand roads and apparently missed one. (She forgot the right turn past the big tree with the big knobby growth on the trunk). She took what we call "kentucky windage" and found her way to the church a new way. Way to go girl! She's acclimated. The only difference is that she did ask for directions at one point, something a guy would never do! But that is also probably why I've been lost for longer periods of time than her! ;-)

Two nights ago, we were surprised by a call from a young missionary couple we know from the Xai-Xai area who were passing through and needed a place to stay. We absolutely love this young couple and their two-year old son and they are always so encouraging for us to be around - you know, the kind of friends where you can let your guard down and relax. We have alot in common relative to our love for Mozambique, interests, and what strategies make sense to us - we just have fun when we are together. We have also watched how God has so blessed the things they are doing in Xai Xai and we love their common sense approach to life. I'm also just crazy about their little guy - he calls us Grandma and Grandpa. We were actually feeling a little discouraged about some things and it was as if God said, "not to worry, I'm sending the Helms to you" and after one evening and morning with them we were back on track. Because of some road construction near us, we are having to use alternate routes and so we guided them from our house across the sand track roads to the national highway, waving goodbye as they headed north and we headed south to the city. We feel very connected to this couple because of being able to see them in the hospital in South Africa literally hours after their baby was born, but that is a "whole other story". I write all this to just thank God for the blessings He provides at those times when we most need it. But, you would have to have heard our heart-felt prayers that morning to truly understand...He does answer.

Tomorrow we need to run in to pay for a sign we're having put on the seminary so people know what it is. Xavier has arranged for some graphic students to do it - pretty cool. However, I'm wondering if we have the right permit! Gulp! And, we need to work on our field plan update - I started today but just didn't make quite the progress I'd expected. That happens.

Love to all of you.

Dave & Ann

"A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity." Pr 17:17

Christian Micro-Enterprise Development

Today we met with our two Christian Micro-Enterprise Development (CMED) coordinators, Mario and Samuel. It is always our joy to meet with these dynamic young men and receive their reports on the many Village Savings and Loan (VSL) groups they are guiding throughout the provinces. We learned that our distance coordinator in Gurue is now overseeing seven groups where Christian principles for handling money are taught. That is great news. Mario is heading for a Special Training Seminar on micro-finance in Nampula from August 2 through August 8 offered jointly by the government and a Non-government aid agency. They are paying his travel expenses (airplane) to participate, which is a wonderful opportunity. These special young men, who are also leaders in one of our churches, are becoming quite the experts on the VSL program and I look forward to hearing Mario's report when he returns. You might remember that Samuel attended a different seminar a few months back and ended up knowing more about the subject than the teacher and actually did some teaching!

Pray for these precious young men and this program that has benefited so many. We are entering into the budget planning process for next fiscal year with no certain funding source and may have to make some difficult decisions regarding CMED. Pray with us.

Dave & Ann

Medical Update

We have received the first of the bills from our daughter's emergency surgery last week. It was breath-taking for an afternoon, a night, and the next day. Our daughter has applied for assistance from the 'charity board' at the hospital and our daughters have begun the bartering process on determining a bill that we have a hope of paying. The process started with "what can you pay?" Now, that's an interesting question and a hard one to answer honestly. What do you mean and what is your basis for that question? It's an interesting process that reminds me of buying something at the Saturday market here in Maputo: "I'll make you a good price" as you go back and forth and back and forth with the seller on the price, never really understanding what is the real value of the goods. So far the hospital has been nothing but gracious with us, for which we are indeed thankful. We are thankful for the good care she received and we want to do our part but with this process we are wondering what is the real value? It's just like here when we go to the market; we pay one (higher) price; Mozambicans pay another. So, if you have one insurance company you pay one price; if you have a different insurance company, you pay another price; if you have medicare, you pay another price; if you don't have insurance you pay another - and it's all negotiated. It's like when you travel on the airplane, the tickets might vary from 100 to 1100 dollars for the same exact flight - so what is the real value?

The politics of it all are also quite interesting. My daughter was refusing to go to the hospital because she didn't have insurance and could have died if a friend hadn't forced her to go to the hospital. She didn't have insurance because the insurance policies for low income people are basically unaffordable. Employers take advantage of using part-time employees so they don't have to pay benefits but do so because they generally can't afford the added costs and stay competitive. Non-profits aren't required to offer a program where you can pay for and carry insurance on a child after they are no-longer eligible for the parent's policy (the COBRA option many of you are familiar with and that we have used before we came to Mozambique). The IRS rules don't consider this kind of a thing 'charitable', so OMS and our church base are unable to help because of potential trouble with the IRS (i.e. offer tax-deductable receipting) - and so here we sit with a breath-taking medical bill. Healthcare is truly a problem and I'm seeing it from the other side of insurance for the first time in my life. I can see the thread of government through all of this and have little confidence they can unwravel the twisted thread. If I knew the answer, I'd write the book, get a presidential appointment, and use the proceeds to pay the bill!

We're not alone. We've received a number of emails from others who have found themselves in the same boat. All of the mail has been encouraging in that God will and does provide and we stand faithfully on that. In some cases the final bills were in the hundreds of thousands of dollars and were resolved eventually. Our problem is small by comparison. And until the negotiations are complete, we don't even know the true size of the mountain.

We'll just pray this mountain into the sea!

And what just breaks my heart is that I live in a country where so many in the villages have no access to health care - none; where someone's equally precious daughter would have just died and even more tragically, died without even hearing the Gospel, without even having a chance to respond to the reason for the hope within us. Come quickly Lord Jesus.

"So Jesus said to them, 'Because of your unbelief; for assuredly, I say to you, if you have faith as a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you.'" Matt 17:20

"And who ever said life was fair?" Dave's response to his daughters when they would say "it's not fair!"

Water Projects

I don't think we would ever be able to describe a 'normal' day here as each one is so different and generally so unpredictable. We try to schedule some relatively routine things as we both need some structure in our lives, but even those things seem to be elusive much of the time. One thing I really look forward to is Wednesdays when we work with our Khongolote pre-school leadership. We're getting a good handle on the finances of the pre-school and I hope we are making a little bit of a difference. It is also alot of fun to be with all the kids there. Today while I was working with Carlos, Ann and Kimberly sat under the trees with the ladies talking and making plans for the next church-wide women's meeting. We squeeze all this in during the kid's naptime and it is always fun to sneak a peek at all this stored energy as they sleep! When we leave, that energy is starting to be released!

On the way we stopped at our church at Sao Damasco and we were happy to see the water line finally going in. We have been planning for this for some time and now there is a water tap on the church property that can be used by church members and the community to get water. The church still has some details to work out on managing the water as there is a counter and there will be a bill. In the first photograph we are talking about the job, in the second we see the two water company fellows working on the counter, and in the last photo, you see the small group of children watching our every move. They got some balloons out of the deal.

This good water source will well serve the church and as we've said so many times - it is the fundamental thing needed for good health - clean water. At the end of the day we passed back by and the job was complete and the water in use. Thank you Lord!

Blessings!

Dave & Ann

"...while three-quarters of the Earth's surface is covered with water, less than one percent (0.37% to be exact) of that water is drinkable. Furthermore groundwater, where we place pumps for wells, only accounts for 0.28% of freshwater across the globe. " Global Water Cycle and Supplies - University of Wisconsin, Eau Claire web page

Out of Surgery

We've received word that Lynsey will be released from the hospital in a little while. The surgery went well for which we are thankful. Her two oldest sisters made it there to help her through the next couple of days. She would have had all of them there but Allison was knee deep in school and two sisters is enough! We had to tell Allison to stay put as they were all coming running. However, in all of this, it hits us deeply as we feel like we are the ones who should be running. It has especially crushed Ann as she knows that hospital, knows the medical stuff, and wants so badly to be there with the daughter she calls her "neat kid". (Each one has an endearing name!).

Sarah and Krista are handling all the details and I'm holding my breath on the bill. She is in the gap group - Since OMS is a non-profit, they don't have to offer COBRA and so when she came off our insurance, there were no realistic options for us other than to pray for a decent job with some benefits in an economy where bottom feeders are cruising around. It was a gamble and as in all my experiences with forms of gambling, it came out the way it normally does! Buy high and sell low - right? However, the sisters are checking into various options through the hospital and so we look forward to seeing how God will work in this. I think I have four of the most amazing daughters that they can deal with this as a united group and care for each other like they do.

I am so thankful number 3 daughter is recovering and it wasn't more serious (such as a burst appendix). I'm so thankful she received good care. I'm so thankful her old room-mate (Polly) was so attentive to her needs and insisted she go to the hospital. Lynsey didn't want to go because she didn't have health insurance! There is a cultural statement! Of course, it weighs very heavily on us - we made choices in response to God's Call on our lives and here is an emotional and human cost that makes what we do very difficult. We may have left our four precious pearls in the States but there was certainly no less love or concern for each of them. I really think there are very few who really understand how deep of a cost this is to us.

On another topic - we met with the Mozambique coordinator for Evangelism Explosion today. This Mozambican pastor is going to work with us introducing this program into our seminary classes and we hope into our churches as well. It is the same program that we are intimately familiar with from the States except that the program is in Portuguese and it doesn't include all the slick stuff (memory cards and the like) to help keep the costs down here. So, we purchased our first 40 books and will be introducting this into the curriculum right away. Ann is quite an expert on the program actually and really engaged the Pastor about the program and how it works in Mozambique.

What we worry about is something we've seen quite a bit here. You can go in and offer all sorts of training, and people love to come and participate and attend, but then no one seems to do anything with it. We've seen that with our Chronological Bible Story Telling for example. It's an excellent program and we've done lots of training on it and provided lots of books and pictures for people to share with their friends and churches, but very few seem to actually take it and use it. We don't want Evangelism Explosion to be the same thing - we train lots of people, but then they take the material home and put it on the shelf. That's where the Spirit of God is so important - to put the desire in the heart to share their faith. Without it, it is just another program. Another key seems to be lots of practical application - something we need to focus more energy on.

Blessings!

Dave & Ann

Sunday

We just got the word that our third daughter was admitted into the hospital this morning and is facing surgery in a few minutes. There is question as to what it actually is, and so they will be exploring a bit - could be appendicitis or something ovarian. She has been admitted to the same hospital that Ann trained at years ago and that is both good and bad. She knows it a good hospital but she also knows that students learn to do surgery there so that is the other side!

So here we are - helpless. And to top it off, the Internet isn't working well so we're making phone calls instead of skype calls - running up costs quickly. And that isn't working well as our local cell phone carrier only works about half the time. And our text messages aren't going through - which has been an inexpensive way to get basic information relayed. All of our normal venues of communication are failing. And we've been feeling low for a while now for a variety of different reasons and this is like one more hot knife in the gut. Lord, help us understand. Protect our precious one.

And if just the event isn't enough, she has no health insurance because she is no longer on ours and has no job that pays insurance. So, here we sit. Do we stick Ann on the plane or not?

It's all so daunting on so many levels. Our hearts are so heavy.

To end on a little better note, this morning we attended one of our churches where the National leaders had to come and explain to the congregation why they were removing their pastor from responsibilities for the church. I don't want to go into details on the problem but it is one we've faced with others in leadership this year and it just pains us deep in our hearts. The leaders handled it so graciously and then rapidly shifted the emphasis to the two precious men who have been leading the church as lay leaders for some time now and the baton was passed to them through pray as they were given a vote of confidence by leadership of the denomination in front of the congregation. The entire process was handled so graciously and made us so proud of our denominational leaders. One of them was exhausted emotionally afterwards and we (Dave) just sat together and talked about the difficulties of leadership and some of the challenges before us as a mission and a young fledging denomination. It was a precious time of heart-felt sharing and prayer.

I feel like we have been under some sort of attack for so long now and the attacks come from every possible place. Heartbreak, unwarranted criticism, and betrayal have had taken a heavy toll on us. This day continues as one of immense battle, heartbreak, and questioning. In many ways, our time here since returning last August has been one of heartbreak followed by heartbreak, followed by heartbreak. And yet, we know that He remains faithful; we know He called us here. My advice to anyone considering missionary service would be to be confident in the Call - as without it, the work is truly impossible, the emotional cost immense. But there is great peace being under the shadow of His wings and moments of amazing awe when we see His hand move for we can truly do nothing absent of Him.

In this morning's devotional time, I was studying King Hezekiah and trying to understand better why God looked upon him with such favor, describing him in 2 Kings 18 as "Hezekiah trusted in the LORD, the God of Israel. There was no one like him among all th kings of Judah, either before him or after him. He held fast to the LORD and did not cease to follow him....he was successful in whatever he undertook." In the account in 2 Chronicles, 29-31, we see a pattern: he took action to restore the nation before God, there was a time of consecration where the leaders and the people repented and returned to the Lord, and THEN, the Bible says that the "hand of God was on the people to give them unity of mind to carry out what the king and his officials had ordered, following the word of the Lord." That was followed by worship and a time of great blessing. And his life is summarized in 2 Chronicles 31: 20 and 21 as follows: He did what "was good and right and faithful before the Lord his God" and in everything that he undertook, "he sought his God and worked wholeheartedly - and so he prospered." Tremendous lesson in all of this.

He was resisted, maligned, and not everyone followed. But, there was great blessing that started with seeking God and working wholeheartedly - the same words God used to describe King David, who God loved.

May we be so faithful to trust God. Truly trust God.

Show your hand dear Lord, in our lives, on our precious daughter, in the fragile work that we do for we love you and seek to be obedient before you. We have laid our lives before you - please show your hand of mercy.

Dave & Ann

"In You, O LORD, I put my trust; Let me never be ashamed; Deliver me in Your righteousness." Ps 31:1

New Missionary Arrives

We are pleased to announce that Aimee Howarth has arrived as a new missionary joining our team here in Mozambique. She is coming to do women's ministry and has a real heart to move to northern Mozambique. We joined the Weils to meet her at the airport and unfortunately another Kodak camera has crashed and burned so I have no pictures! No more of that brand....We were all set to get a welcome picture but - no luck.

[late entry - However, I did get a picture when we took her around the next day! (late addition). Aimee is on the left next to Ann and our dear friend Kimberly is on the right in the snoopy shirt. Kimberly is staying with us a week while her parents, who work for another mission and are very close friends, minister in northern Mozambique at a conference.]

Aimee arrived for her two-year assignment with only two duffle bags and a carry on. Oh to be young again!

We had a wonderful time getting reacquainted at the Weils and will take her around with us some tomorrow. She is already asking about how soon she can do a survey trip to the north - as she feels strongly that is where she is to go. It is our hope that we can take her north and introduce her to the work and hopefully enable her move into what God has called her to do as quickly as possible. We are so glad she is here.

She has served here as a teacher at our school in the past, knows Portuguese, and has advanced training relative to missionary work. She has worked hard to prepare for her term here and we are excited to see what God has in store for her. Thank you Lord for this answer to prayer.

"It is good to praise the Lord..." Psalm 92:1

T-3 Preschool

The pre-school at T-3 has grown to it's current government limit of 40 students and we praise God for that increase from the eight or so we started with (earlier blog). However, the re-opening wasn't as complete as we had thought. As it turns out, the preschool was given a provisional license to carry them through to November, at which time they will be re-inspected. There was a list of things that they must do before that date. The list includes: new foam matts with covers for all the kids (the old matts no longer meet the requirements); upgrades to the outdoor kitchen that includes a sink, water line (they carry water now from the front of the church), countertops, and a storage area; a shade area next to the playground area; small chairs and tables; and a few other things. None of this is particular high dollar stuff but it will probably exceed what the pre-school can do between now and November with a limit of 40 students. The pre-school has purchased some of the chairs, but they are worried about the other things.

They haven't formally asked us for help as the culture typically seems to wait until the very last minute (like the day before the inspection) and then tries to give us the problem. But, we were just advised about the provisional license limitations so I feel quite excited that we are now looking ahead and investigating options. That is progress! For example, they have found a relatively cheap place to get the foam matts prepared for about $5 USD each. But, here - $200 (40 X 5) is more than a typical month's salary and quite a large amount. Cement is about $9 USD a sack for the kitchen upgrades and we need 10 or so bags, a sink with block and the like are another couple of hundred dollars. The shade cover will be posts in the ground with a fabric cover over the top - a common structure in this land of intense sun, which can be done for another couple of hundred dollars.

So, progress continues but we continue to need a wee bit more cash to end this project once and for all. The pre-school is paying what they can, but I think we're going to need to come in with several hundred dollars to push them over the top. Got a few dollars burning a hole in your pocket? If we can get the government off our backs, the pre-school is self-sustaining and pays its own way, providing jobs for four people, a wonderful learning environment for the children, and evangelism opportunities for the family. Project 403320

OMS International
Project 403320 (T-3)
PO Box 1648
Monument
CO 80132-1648

Thank you so much to everyone who has already so generously helped us with the T-3 upgrades - the project is not in the red any longer thanks to our wonderfully generous support base. Thank you for helping us reach the nations for Christ. Thanks for making a difference!

Dave & Ann

"Even a child is known by his actions, by whether his conduct is pure and right." Pr 20:11

Church Register - Statistics

One of our administrative tasks is assembling the Mozambique church register for the "Into Africa Project" (see link on the side). Eventually this form will find its way on to the Into-Africa web-site.

The form keeps changing a little but we love the accountability that it brings and how it puts so much information at our fingertips. However, it is also a great encouragement as often we seem to get all bogged down in the problems that come our way and we miss the bigger picture of God's hand moving across this beautiful country - fortunately we serve a Creator who doesn't get bogged down on such things! The form has proven to be a tremendous challege for us getting the information. We linear Western-thinking folks understand forms like this but they are foreign (truly!) here and a real challenge to get filled out and ensure reliable data. And, it compounds with the literacy issues we have in more remote areas, although most people seem to understand numbers! Photo is of a rural church in Zambezia - that's our car in the background.

From our most recent report we have 97 churches that have resulted from the Village Church Planting (VCP) program here in Mozambique. This doesn't include the eight or so other churches we work with around Maptuo that are not included on this report. Most of these 97 churches are small village churches but they represent over 3600 members country wide. That is Good News!

"...Proclaim the good news of His salvation from day to day!" Ps 96:2

Segunda filha has parted

Our second daughter and her husband were with us for 10 days and it was probably 10 of the fastest days ever in my life. It seemed they had just arrived and then it was time to go. We enjoyed a long fourth-of-July weekend with them (no fireworks - :-( ). I'm not sure they really have any idea of how much they rejuvanated us just being here. It's always such a privilege to show people what God is doing in Mozambique and family is now exception. We always introduced Sarah as our segunda filha, (second daughter) and the name stuck and for the entire visit, her husband David started calling her "segunda filha", and so we started doing it also, and that became her name for 10-days.

On the fourth of July we woke to Sarah and David singing "America the Beautiful" at the top of their lungs, moving on to "Proud to be an American" - they wanted to be sure we knew it was the fourth of July! We laughed together. David is a bit of a cut-up and we truly enjoyed the time of lightness and laughter.

When we took them to the airport to leave, I (Dave) dropped them off out front and they went in to begin the process of wrapping the luggage in plastic, checking in, and the like. I'm double parked out front and go to start the car and turn the key and hear some clicks and nothing happens. I tried it again and again - but nothing. Everything lights up so I'm pretty sure the battery is fine. I round up a few guys to push me off (for a fee of course!) and we get it going and I run to the parking lot, praying, "Lord, we just spent alot of money on repairs for this car, we need a little break here!" I stop in the parking lot and check - still just clicking sounds. I parked in a position to make an easy push start again.

We visited in the airport until the last possible moment and we have many tears as they part but they are truthfully excited to be headed home as they have been away all summer between their ministry time in Lebanon and their time here with us. We all prayed together before they left and David also specifically prayed that the car problem would be minor.

We exited, arranged another push-start, and went home. The drive back I keep rolling through options in my mind - hoping it isn't the starter. When we get back, I open the hood and have Ann try to start it, running down the clicking sound, and finally find a relay that is related to the starter. Ann can only hear me say "try again" as I check different things and to her it looks like I'm just waving my hands over parts of the engine. But, I'm taping these silly relay switches - and voila, I tap one and boom - it starts. We try again, and no start - tap - and it starts. Now that is encouraging. So, it is off to Toyota and we buy the last relay of this type in Mozambique. Thank you Lord! So for 2000 mtn, we're back in business. It's a lot (26 mtn/$) for a little switchy thing, but I'm so thankful to have it fixed and it truly was simple. We are often in places where a push start is out-of-the question because of the deep sand.

Then, we looked at the mountain of administration staring us in the face, and get started. The phone starts ringing, the appointments begin, and we are running at 110% again. It was a nice break that God knew we needed.

They are now safely home with luggage - and we are thankful for that answer to prayer as well.

Have a great week. Thank you for standing with us. It is truly a privilege to represent you here in Mozambique.

Dave & Ann

"You will make your prayer to Him, he will hear you..." Job 22:27 )