Spiritual Battles Face to Face

“Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? As it is written: ‘For your sake we face death all day long; we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.’ No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Romans 8:35-39

Spiritual warfare is something that we have learned more about in the time that we have lived in Zambia. This past Sunday we worshiped with Ukhose Preaching Point. After our time with them we found out that people in that village were calling us Satanists because there is no church in the boma (town). Tuesday, I was in the market I was at a shop when a madman approached me and began babbling at me from a distance. The next thing I knew, he threw an object at me and hit me in the face. I was shocked, embarrassed, and angered. I had to realize what was happening, this man is a madman and the Holy Spirit does not dwell within his soul and as a child of God, the Holy Spirit dwells within me. As I travelled home, I began to ponder and pray more and more about the spiritual battles that wage around each of us everyday.

• Please pray for Kendall and I to have discerning hearts when it comes to spiritual warfare.
• Pray that God would teach us more about how to love these people and share the light and hope of Jesus Christ with them.
• Pray for the madman in the market, Richard, we desperately want him to know Jesus, what an amazing testimony his life would be at the awe changing power Jesus has, if he came to Christ. Would you pray for him?!
• Pray for Ukhose Preaching Point that the members would be faithful despite the rumors being spread that we are Satanists.

*excerpt from our monthly prayer letter for the month of October*

Baby Steps at Ukhose

"That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked at and our hands have touched—this we proclaim concerning the Word of life. The life appeared; we have seen it and testify to it, and we proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and has appeared to us. We proclaim to you what we have seen and heard, so that you also may have fellowship with us. And our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ. We write this to make our joy complete. This is the message we have heard from him and declare to you: God is light; in him there is no darkness at all." 1 John 1:1-5

We arrived at the home of Mr. and Mrs. Daka at 10:15 and we were greeted with smiles and excitement. We moved to the grass roofed gazebo in front of their home and waited for the others to arrive before the "program" of Bible teaching was to begin. Five adults and 10 children crammed underneath the small gazebo, sang songs of worship and listened to the teaching of God's Word from 1 John 1:1-5.

One man prayed to receive Christ today!

We were very encouraged because the two men (David and Peter) and one lady (Mrs. Daka)who have been the most faithful really were excited and desiring even more to know more about Jesus. They asked Kendall to start teaching them on Thursdays at 2:00pm.

Please pray that this will be a fruitful time of teaching and prayer.

Pray for David and Peter, they seem to be growing in their understanding of God's Word and their willingness to know more about Jesus and how to follow Him. Pray that they would be obedient to God's calling on their lives if He calls them to be leaders of Ukhose.

Precious Time

We are so thankful for the blessing of a family vacation to Lake Malawi this past week! It was a great time of playing as a family and resting in the midst of the Lord's beautiful creation!

Kendall and I went snorkeling...the water was very cold but the fish were amazing!

Mazamba Baptist Church= 1 month old

The journey was 108 kilometers one way to reach the newest Baptist Church in the Zambue Association in Mozambique. A man by the name of Mr. Daka arrived in this village a month ago and began sharing Jesus Christ with the people there. Samson Lungu joined him for several days in teaching and encouraging the people. Praise the Lord for the two men who have sacrificed time with their family in order to share Jesus with a people that have never heard of Jesus. Praise the Lord for this new church! Kendall, Samson, and Harrison Phiri joined Mazamba Baptist today in order to encourage them and share God's Word through preaching and the gift of salvation in Jesus Christ.

Mazamba Baptist Church in Mozambique

Samson Lungu was with Kendall today. When it came time to offer an invitation to pray to receive Christ Samson looked the people in the eyes and said, "I am not going to pray with you to receive Jesus Christ until you remove the charms from yourself and your baby." There was one woman who was crippled and Kendall said she had no hesitation in removing her charms in order to live in the light of Jesus Christ, because light and darkness cannot live together.

Then the charms were burned. Pray that the women who removed the charms today would live in freedom and not find their peace, hope, and comfort in the darkness of evil. Pray for them to see the peace that comes from life in Jesus Christ.

Continue to lift up this new church to the Lord. Pray that the leaders will be faithful to the study of God's Word and preaching the truth of salvation to the people there.

Two Reasons To REJOICE!

"It is because of him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God—that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption. Therefore, as it is written: 'Let him who boasts boast in the Lord.'" 1 Corinthians 1:30-31

"I am a mother of 10 children. My husband and I have been married for many years. Several months ago, he found a girlfriend. I did not run after him, I just started praying everyday that my husband would come home to me and our 10 children. I prayed and prayed...one day, he came home with his luggage and begged for forgiveness and said that I was his wife, one and only. He has not left again. He then started drinking beer. I did not yell or complain, I prayed to God because I knew that HE would hear my prayers. Two weeks later, my husband stopped drinking beer and has not touched it since. He was smoking, I began praying and praying and he has stopped. I know that God hears my prayers. Ladies, we must pray to God when we need help because HE will answer if we believe in Him and call Him our Lord." - Amai Daka

I was so encouraged to hear her testimony because she was willing to stand up and proclaim the might that is found in prayer and in her salvation that is found in Jesus Christ ALONE!

When all of the women arrived at the meeting on Wednesday night, we began greeting each church. In the midst of "roll call" a woman stood up and said, "what about me?" My name is Mrs. Phiri, I am from Dziko Baptist Church. My ears perked up...I stood up and said, "WHAT?!" I looked at Zeria and she was as surprised as I was. Why were we surprised, you ask? Dziko Baptist is a brand new church that was planted in May. The Gila Valley Baptist Church Team and Zeria went to this village to encourage and strengthen this church. We were SO HAPPY that Mrs. Phiri CAME to the meeting! When I came home and told Kendall his response was, "REALLY?! That is AWESOME!"

Praise the Lord for these two testimonies and the many more that God uses to encourage us as missionaries, those who come and volunteer with us, and those who intercede for us in prayer! PRAISE THE LORD FOR THE GREAT THINGS HE HAS DONE!!!

Success In The Lord

76 women from 14 churches in the Nyimba District joined together for a weekend of teaching and fellowship with one another. The meeting was for pastors and leaders wives, and women in leadership positions in their church. Praise the Lord that these women found it important enough to travel many kilometers on foot to come to this meeting. During the weekend, Mrs. Josephine Tembo and Mrs. Mumba taught the women on the role of a leader using Esther as an example, loving and praying for their husbands, caring for their children by teaching them God's Word, and educating them on how to be effcient with time when holding meetings. God was so good and there is much fruit already coming from the things that they learned at this meeting. Please pray that they continue to grow in God's Word and in the things that they have heard and learned this weekend!

The women from Madalitso Baptist Church began walking at 10am and arrived at the meeting at 7pm. Amazing women. They arrived with huge smiles and a song on their tounges.

I was in the kitchen all weekend. The smoke from the open fires were brutal, but my friends are so strong and just dealt with it, but me, I am a wimp...still!

It takes 3 women to complete the nshima. Each meal we prepared 3 large pots to feed the women, and not a speck of nshima was left!

A teaching session.

Zeria cooking greens (what we call, rape, in Zambia). I praise the Lord for Zeria's heart of service. Not once over the weekend did she complain. She served with an open and happy heart! Praise the Lord for the things that He continues to teach her!

22 years, 1 year, and 2 weeks

"But you must remain faithful to the things you have been taught. You know they are true, for you know you can trust those who taught you. You have been taught the holy Scriptures from childhood, and they have given you the wisdom to receive the salvation that comes by trusting in Christ Jesus." 2 Timothy 3:14-15

I had the privilege of meeing Chilufiya in April 2009. Since that time, many difficult circumstances have come in her life. In July, she lost her 9 month old baby boy, Mwaba to pnemonia and malaria. Three days later, her husband's girlfriend began threatening her life. Last week, her divorce was finalized. She has been dealing with the police and magistrate court for over one month now. I cannot imagine the pain and suffering that she has experienced in the past few months.

During all of these circumstances Zeria and I were praying for an opportunity to share Jesus Christ with Chilufiya. Days would pass and we would pray. One Saturday, Chilufiya said that she wanted to come to my house if I was having a Bible Study, and I was with some other women in Nyimba. Zeria and I both knew that Chilufiya was without Jesus and we prayed that through this Bible Study, the Holy Spirit would touch her heart and she would come to Jesus.

Zeria shared the plan of salvation and the Good News during our Bible Study. After the meeting was over, Zeria was able to talk to Chilufiya about what she had heard. She admitted that she had never heard the story of salvation. She then told Zeria that she thought that we lived on earth, then we died, and after we died then we could come to know Jesus as our Savior before judgment. She didnt know that we must know Jesus now and turn to Him and walk with Him day by day. Zeria talked with her some more, then she prayed for Chilufiya and as Zeria prayed for her Chilufiya began to weep and cry out to God for help and to save her. PRAISE THE LORD!

Chilufiya now KNOWS that God will be with her and protect her and guide her day after day. She is claiming that promise each day as she still faces many uphill battles in her life.

On Sunday, the 22-year old (me), the 1-year old (Zeria), and the 2 week old (Chilufiya) began to study God's Word together in my backyard. We are studying a book called "Continuing New Life in Jesus Christ". Sunday was an easy lesson but very good about sharing Christ with others now that you know Jesus. Monday, we began our study on the Holy Spirit. It was a difficult study for them because of the big words like "glory" "testify" and "counselor", but God spoke through me to teach them the meaning of these words in order that they may truly understand.(I kinda felt like Philip with the Ethiopian Eunuch explaining word for word the Scripture that we read together...Acts 9:27-40) We are meeting again today (Tuesday) to continue our study of the Holy Spirit. We will finish our study with Prayer and Growing in Maturity. Please pray for us as we study God's Word together. It is so exciting to look at Chilufiya's life now compared to the first day that I met her in April. Pray that she will continue to grow in Jesus Christ and desire to know Him more and more! Praise the Lord for Zeria and her love for Chilufiya to share the love and Good News of Jesus Christ with her! Pray for Chilufiya as she prepares to move to Chipata with her two teenage children, Ruthie and Masiye.

Utilizing the Gift

"Now these are the gifts Christ gave to the church: the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, and the pastors and teachers. Their responsibility is to equip God’s people to do his work and build up the church, the body of Christ. This will continue until we all come to such unity in our faith and knowledge of God’s Son that we will be mature in the Lord, measuring up to the full and complete standard of Christ." Ephesians 4:11-13

Several pastors in Nyimba have been meeting with Kendall at our home to learn more about their role as pastor and the role of the church. It is a great time of teaching and fellowship for these men to gather together each month. About a year ago, we began asking our prayer partners to intercede with us for these men that they would actually want to come to the times of teaching that Kendall was offering them. PRAISE THE LORD that He answered our prayer and moved in their hearts to desire to know more! Please continue to pray for these men, some of them are facing some difficult circumstances in their homes and in their churches.

From left to right: Benjamin Phiri (Chisomo Baptist), Gordon Phiri (Chansanje Baptist), (purple shirt) Lazarus Phiri (Kapulu Baptist), (next to Kendall in the back) Samson Lungu (New Jerusalem Baptist), Gideon Tembo (Madalitso, Golgotha Baptist), Pastor Benson (Chiyanjano Baptist)

Samson Lungu is one of Kendall's best friends. He has been ministering with Kendall since the first day that we arrived in Nyimba. He is a man of God and loves to share Christ with people in Nyimba and Mozambique. After his harvest, he took the money from his crop and bought a motorbike. Samson has used his motorbike as a ministry to the people in his village and others in Nyimba. He transports sick people to the hospital and transports goods to and from his village. Just this past week he returned home from spending two weeks in Mozambique where he went to some very remote places (that are considered to be a part of our ministry area) to survey the villages and preach. At one location, 72 people prayed to receive Christ and another location 73 people prayed. At this location, Samson was able to plant a church there. This Sunday, Kendall will travel to that village to preach and encourage them. Praise the Lord for Samson and his dedication to sharing the love of Jesus Christ with those who live near him and far away.

All of the pastors have a bike, our yard is like the bike parking lot when they all come to our house! I just thought that this was a unique picture because they all came to learn more about God's Word and now they are being sent out to live and teach what they have learned with their churches and family.

Sidelined

Football is a sport that Kendall and I both REALLY love! Kendall loved playing in high school, intramurals, and was blessed to coach when we were teaching school. I loved watching games with my Daddy growing up and would call my Gramma when I was in college to cheer on the Auburn Tigers with her! I love everything about a Friday night football game and I love the energy of an SEC football game! Nothing like it in the world.

The worst thing for a football player, even a coach is to be sidelined before a big game or during a winning streak.

Our family felt like the sidelined from our "game plan" of reaching the Nsenga for Jesus.

God has been doing amazing things in the Nsenga people of Nyimba and Mozambique lately.

Last Monday, our kids began to get sick and for the week, Kendall and I were doctor and nurse to three sickly children. The entire time it was difficult to find joy in the midst of sickness, but we see now that God was blessing us with that time of study, preparation, and rest.

TEAM HELGREN UPDATE

Mozambique- God continues to encourage Kendall each Friday that he goes to Mozambique. Continue to pray for these villages and the new believers there: Chimbowe, Kasenga, Meze. Pray for the leaders of these churches to continue to be passionate about learning God's Word and sharing Christ among their villages.

Samson Lungu just returned home from spending two weeks sharing Christ in more remote places in Mozambique. His time there was very fruitful, at two separate meetings 72 and 73 people prayed to received Christ! There is a new church plant past Zambue before our furthest location in our area, Meze. Praise the Lord for His blessings on Samson's travel! Kendall will journey to this new church to preach on Sunday!

Ukhose Village in Nyimba- God is doing some great things in Ukhose! Today, Kendall preached at this preaching point for the first time on a Sunday. Paul and Jumbe went with him and led the singing and prayers during the worship service! Praise the Lord for the 14 adults and 11 children who came to worship today and for the 10 that prayed to receive Christ! Pray for David, he is the announcer in the village and is really passionate about starting a Baptist church there! Continue to intercede for us as Kendall seeks the Lord's wisdom and guidance for this village.

Women's Leadership Meeting- Please be in prayer for the Nyimba Women's Leadership Meeting this Wednesday-Saturday at Nyimba Central. The theme of the meeting is "Becoming a Titus 2 Woman". Pray that women will come and that their hearts will be open and sensitive to God's Word. Praise the Lord for the Nyimba Central congregation coming together to prepare the church for this meeting.

How Passionate Are You? Really.

"Therefore as you have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, having been firmly rooted and now being built up in Him and established in your faith, just as you were instructed, and overflowing with gratitude." Colossians 2:6-7

Our fellow missionary in the Eastern Province and friend, Van Thompson, shared this story with us, I felt it was important to share.

The Manenekela Bible School is about 200 kilometers (125 miles) from the capital city of Lusaka. The Bible School is held at a school at Mpanshya. Our meeting started on Monday, 10^th of August and finished on Saturday the 15^th of August. Most of the trip from Lusaka is on a paved road – and then you turn and go down a dirt road for about 6 – 10 kilometers.

As we were nearing the end of the journey (about 2 or 3 kilometers from the school), the local coordinator/teacher (who was in the truck with me) said that the group of four men who we were approaching on the road were our fellow students. All of them were carrying something – the one had a home-made cage with five chickens in it on the top of his head, another had half a bag of maize, and another had a sleeping mat. Of course all of them had their “personal” belongings – a single change of clothes mainly – for the week of Bible School. I had room in the truck for their “katundu”(luggage) – but I was already filled up with passengers. After loading their “katundu,” and telling them that they would find us at the meeting place, we started back on the journey. As we were travelling, the local coordinator mentioned to me that these men had a lot of dedication in coming to BBS. Since that is a rare compliment, I asked him what he meant. He said that the four of them had arranged to travel together and that the closest of the four in that group was travelling 65 kilometers one way. He then added that the man with the five chickens had travelled the longest, including the crossing of a river, and that his journey was at least 110 kilometers one way. I was really touched, inspired and convicted. I sometimes complain about the long distances that I travel – and yet it is in a nice air conditioned vehicle listening to the CD player. Here were four men who travelled by foot for at least 40 miles – and one of them with five chickens on his head for around 70 miles – and they have nothing but enthusiasm and excitement for a week’s worth of training sessions. From Lusaka I was at the meeting place within a couple of hours, and these guys had been walking for two to three days. And I wondered, do I have that kind of passion for the things of the Lord?

"For this reason we also constantly thank God that when you received the Word of God which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men, but for what it really is, the word of God, which also performs its work in you who believe."

1 Thessalonians 2:13

What are your thoughts right now? What is God convicting you of in light of the dedication and sacrifices that these men made in order to attend a Bible School to study and learn more about God’s Word?

How much do we sacrifice or invest in order to study God's Word? To KNOW Him fully? To show our dedication to the spreading of His Word to those around us that we call friends.

Many times we get so wrapped up in the lights and the shows of worship that we forget about the purity and the beauty of God's Word alone. How dedicated are we to knowing God's Word that is pure and holy and without fault? How much time do we spend sharing Christ or discussing what God is teaching us with our friends and neighbors? All of these questions are things that God has really reamed me on lately, but what about you? I pray that God will challenge you and encourage you to grow and know Him more.

The next time it is too rainy or cold or hot to attend church on Sunday or any other day of the week. Think about the men of that walked in order to learn more about their "walk" with the Lord.

I felt that this story needed to be shared to challenge us, the body of Christ, to evaluate our priorities and our dedication to God’s Word. You say that you are a believer, Christian, follower of God...but what have you done lately to demonstrate that “passion”?

Beginnings and Blessings

*This blog is long. Please forgive the length, but God is really doing some awesome things in Mozambique and I can’t seem to consolidate anything because it is so good! If you are a strong believer, or one who doesn’t know Jesus Christ, I pray that this post is an encouragement and a blessing. I have included a great amount of Scripture. In your time with the Lord, I pray that you would reread these passages, even if they are familiar to you, and allow the Holy Spirit to speak to your heart.*

Eight men packed their bags, left their families for two nights in order to minister to the Nsenga of Mozambique. They were not sure how many people would be there but they prepared their hearts for weeks in advance for all that God was going to do in and through them at Chinsawa Village. They arrived at dusk on Friday, August 29th. Seven Zambians and Kendall prepared their tents and set up camp in time to enjoy a warm meal and a short time of worship with those in attendance.

During the weekend, there were approximately 120-150 people in attendance, from 9 churches in northern Mozambique and the Zambue District. Three of the churches are brand new and this was the first time for them to all be gathered together for worship and fellowship! Kendall was so encouraged by the love and excitement that each person had for God’s Word and for the simple fact that seven Zambian men and a white man took the time to come and share with them and fellowship with them. Kendall was so excited to see that the headman of Chimbowe Village, and his friend came to the meeting. (Chimbowe Village is the newest place that Kendall has been sharing Christ, this village had never heard about Jesus Christ until Kendall went to them. The headman was one of the first people to pray to receive Christ!) Both of the men are in their early to mid 20s and came to the meeting, what an awesome blessing from the Father that these two men are serious about their relationship with Jesus Christ and desiring to learn and know more about the Christian faith!

Kendall had the awesome opportunity of teaching six different times during the meeting. As the meeting drew closer, Kendall really was seeking the Lord’s guidance as what God wanted to teach them through Kendall. I will not forget the morning that Kendall came into the kitchen from his office and said, “I know what I am going to teach in Mozambique! Who are you worshipping? That is the focus of my teaching.” He had been reading from 1 Kings 18 and the story of Elijah. As Kendall studied, he realized that one of the traditions that the Nsenga practice is putting charms with herbs and human blood in their fields to bring “good luck” or good crops. They will sing and dance and plant this charm in their fields. Basically worshipping this charm in order to have good crops. When Kendall began researching the prophets of Baal and what Baal stood for he was astonished! The people worshipped Baal because he was the god of the crops, what the Nsenga people are doing is identical to what the prophets of Baal were doing by worshipping this god of the crops. Amazing how God’s Word is still alive and true today!

He also taught from Mark 10:17-31, the Rich Young Ruler. The focus of this teaching was that good works will not bring eternal life and that we must be willing to give up everything in order to fulfill the calling that God has placed on our lives. When we are truly following the Lord, we are blessed by our obedience to the Father.

During a time of teaching, he educated the churches on the role of a deacon and a pastor in the church. There are many young churches in Mozambique and they have not been taught the jobs and roles of these leadership positions from Scripture so it was a good time of teaching. Another teaching segment, Kendall attacked the issue of adultery, fornication, and pure marriages among the Nsenga. Recently, we have learned that the majority of couples that are engaged to be married sleep together before they are married. After several children and years of living together, they then ask the pastor to pray for their “marriage” and bless them. Needless to say, there is a great deal of explaining and clarification that needed to take place in order to teach what God’s Word says about marriage and sexual sin.

On Saturday night, before the Jesus Film, Kendall shared the Creation story. He shared the story of Adam and Eve and how sin entered the earth. He emphasized that sin has been on earth since then and because of our sinfulness we NEED a Savior. Then he invited them to see the Savior in the Jesus Film.

Sunday morning, Kendall really felt like the Lord was leading him to share about Faith, Hope, and Love. Three parts of the foundation of Christianity, Kendall said that the Spirit was truly moving among the people that were in attendance at this meeting. Many of them had tears in their eyes and were moved by the presence of the Holy Spirit upon hearing these precious words from God’s pure and Holy Word. Faith- John 1:1, 1:14, 3:16, Kendall taught the principle of Romans 5:8, that He (Jesus) died and rose again! Our love, where does it come from? 1 Corinthians 13:13, 1 John 4:7-11. Our love is that God sent His ONLY son for us and that sacrifice showed us how to love. What is our Hope? 1 Timothy 1:1, our hope is Christ!, Acts 24:15, Revelation 22:12-17, our hope as Christians and followers of Jesus Christ is that WE will rise again as He arose again! When the crowd heard these words, they were overcome with awe and joy at the love of their King and Creator!

After worship on Sunday, before his departure, Kendall encouraged and challenged the churches with Psalm 121

I will lift up my eyes to the mountains;
From where shall my help come?
My help comes from the LORD,
Who made heaven and earth.
He will not allow your foot to slip;
He who keeps you will not slumber.
Behold, He who keeps Israel
Will neither slumber nor sleep.
The LORD is your keeper;
The LORD is your shade on your right hand.
The sun will not smite you by day,
Nor the moon by night.
The LORD will protect you from all evil;
He will keep your soul.
The LORD will guard your going out and your coming in
From this time forth and forever.

Approximately 35 people came to Christ during the weekend of meetings and many people were encouraged through the reading of God’s Word! This meeting was tiring for Kendall but his heart was full because of the relationships that have been built in Mozambique! Praise the Lord for HIS GOODNESS!!! Pray for the discipleship of these new believers and the awesome leaders that God has placed in Mozambique! Pray protection from the evil one, over the believers of the Zambue area of Mozambique.

And another welcomed surprise!!

Just another amazing blessing from our Father...I (Joy) FINALLY got to meet Kendall's dear friend, Leonard Banda! Leonard was the first man in Mozambique to receive Christ and has become an amazing missionary among his neighbors and the Nsenga of Mozambique! Won't Heaven be amazing when ALL of us will worship our Father together?! I love how God blesses us with His children!