PDF Version: Anderson_WEEKLY_170624.pdf Anyone trying to track Verlin's location through his cell phone coordinates late this week would have been sadly misled. On Wednesday, while continuing to mark fields for the CHE agricultural project, he lost his phone in the thick brush. We praise God for lock functions that protect private information and preserve the Orange Money deposits that we use to pay bills! He has already recuperated the funds on a new cell phone, and it looks like most of his contacts are retrievable thanks to Google (if only the Internet would stay on long enough to verify!). He also made some progress preparing materials for the university CHE training and for promoting the Million Village Challenge meeting in September. We both spent hours giving private counsel, as well as Verlin preaching, Debbie leading Bible study, and hosting the weekly coaching meeting. The coordinates of several hundred people will converge here in Bondoukou on August 21-26 for the Ivorian Free Will Baptist (FWB) National Assembly. Debbie and Koffi spent days this week cleaning more storage areas and arranging belongings so that we will have extra space to offer hospitality. Lodging is always an issue during convention week.
Our worker Koffi, his wife, and preschool son have new coordinates to call home! After over a year of unexpected delays, they thankfully have moved right next door to us, a better living situation for them and better security for our property. When we travel together, or when Verlin is gone, Koffi can easily hear our dogs bark or Debbie's cry for help, should there be intruders or other problems. This wonderful couple has suffered some great personal loss in the past four months. Pray for comfort and strength to sustain them.
Prayer and Praise:
One ministry outreach has encountered a conflict influenced by the village's multi-ethnic population. We and believers involved have fasted and prayed, trusting the Lord to provide a righteous solution. Ask Him for exceptional wisdom, boldness in confrontation, and a lasting resolution to the problem.
Pray for the two FWB churches in Bondoukou that are responsible to lead the local preparations for the National Convention in August. It is much work for a small group of people. Pray for special speaker Robert Bryan (a FWB missionary in France) as he prepares the sermons.
Your partners in the Gospel, Verlin and Debbie
Christian Health Service Corps (CHSC) is a mission of dedicated medical professionals who participate in the CHE Global Network. Together, in a loose affiliation of individuals, churches, denominational and nondenominational agencies, we share God's Light and Truth through Community Health Evangelism (CHE). Verlin and Debbie accept donor partners to contribute as led to maintain support as we resume residential ministry to expand CHE ministries in Cote d'Ivoire under the auspices of CHSC & Ivorian partners. Tax deductible contributions by check are to be made payable to the CHSC with Andersons #0118 written on the memo line. Mail to CHSC - PO Box 132 - Fruitvale, TX 75127. Give online via the CHSC @ www.che4a.org (3% fee) or TDF (0% fee).timelapse-disadvantage
PDF Version: Anderson_WEEKLY_170617.pdf The African scourge of malaria hit us both earlier this week as we were busy with appointments and errands in Abidjan. By the Lord’s grace, we treated ourselves promptly and were able to accomplish the urgent and most important tasks, arriving home in Bondoukou safely on Wednesday night. Verlin’s meeting with the university team champion and his coordinator about the September CHE trainings was positive and productive. Committee members of one CHE program started by their team will participate this year. Verlin’s visa for Benin was granted in one day, and we had a wonderful answer to prayer for help with an upcoming DMM training.
On Thursday, Verlin and M. staked one more line segment of nineteen and planned the intended progress in the fields with village leaders; Debbie prepped and led the Discovery Bible Study for ladies. We are thankful for His strength to press on even when we do not feel our best physically. On our trip home from Abidjan, we were blessed to hear the testimony of a CHE trainer that our family mentored in his life of faith with Jesus. Late last month, his backpack with his computer was stolen as he traveled. The Lord had prepared him so that he could replace the computer before his job performance was affected. He shared how such a loss would have overwhelmed him earlier in his Christian walk, causing him to wonder if God was punishing him. Now, although it was a frustrating burden, he recovered quickly and carried on calmly. He expressed great thanks for our financial counsel and example that helped him navigate this situation, choosing to be thankful for the Lord’s provision and looking for lessons to improve his life. What a joy to see his maturing confidence in God and his growing capacity to witness to others the change that Jesus brings. A newly arrived missionary expressed that he really ‘connected’ with participants in a CHE training.
Prayer and Praise:
We thank the Lord for our two wonderful fathers, Earl Anderson (now in heaven) and Eddie Payne. The love, confidence in the Lord, and secure home environments they provided have fortified and stabilized every day of our lives. How blessed we are by their examples!
Pray the Lord saves a neighbor who attends the Discovery Bible Study at our house. She lives in an abusive home environment due to alcohol and interventions to date have been ineffective.
Ask the Lord to reveal the wisdom needed in the agricultural project we wrote about last week. There is much the local villagers have to process. Pray that their exposure to new foods that provide balanced nutrition, farming methods that increase sustainability and profitability, and crops for both local consumption and export continues to multiply witnessing opportunities. Already, one surrounding village wants to start a DMM study.
Your partners in the Gospel, Verlin and Debbie
Christian Health Service Corps (CHSC) is a mission of dedicated medical professionals who participate in the CHE Global Network. Together, in a loose affiliation of individuals, churches, denominational and nondenominational agencies, we share God's Light and Truth through Community Health Evangelism (CHE). Verlin and Debbie accept donor partners to contribute as led to maintain support as we resume residential ministry to expand CHE ministries in Cote d'Ivoire under the auspices of CHSC & Ivorian partners. Tax deductible contributions by check are to be made payable to the CHSC with Andersons #0118 written on the memo line. Mail to CHSC - PO Box 132 - Fruitvale, TX 75127. Give online via the CHSC @ www.che4a.org (3% fee) or TDF (0% fee).timelapse-disadvantage
PDF Version: Anderson_WEEKLY_170610.pdf Ivorians are amazed to see a white man work in fields for 5 to 7 hours in a day. Verlin gets many greetings as he goes weekly with M. to develop an agricultural project, a demonstration site where people will learn and practice skills of Godly obedience. The Lord placed on M.'s heart to offer 30 hectares (one ha. = 2.47 acres) of his family's land for this farming endeavor. It will take several years to fully accomplish the following goals: a moringa grove to improve the nutrition of people in our region and fund CHE projects; a F.A.I.T.H (Food Always In The Home) garden to show families how to grow produce in a small space that provides balanced nutrition; a Farming God's Way field to demonstrate the method that has dramatically increased yields of staple foods in other African countries; and two other crops for export that we can discuss later as project details are finalized. The YouTube video link of this photo provides a 3-minute testimony of others using Farming God's Way. Though we have no connection with their ministry, our projects use the identical methods. We know from experience (see Mandate to Move or Pillars of CHE) that it brings a similar sense of hope and purpose. Even more inspiring is the detailed video overview prepared by the Farming God's Way organization. If you can spare 17 minutes, you will see how God's hand is at work to change oppressive human dependencies to voluntary interdependence on Him. Agricultural improvements are just one part of the Community Health Evangelism (CHE) ministries we encourage to multiply in Cote d'Ivoire. Every pagan, Muslim, and Christian wants his or her crop production to be bountiful. Many local farmers become very discouraged since they do not know that God has already spoken to their need. By taking time to help people develop their assets, we open doors to share the Gospel from a Biblical approach of obedience, and God gets all the glory for the success. This past Wednesday, one of our CHE trainers who pastors in a rural area came to visit. He testified that Ivorians are tired of subsistence farmers in other African nations, like Burkina Faso to the north, being more successful than they are--especially since Cote d'Ivoire's land is richer! He is glad the Farming God's Way method, which is used in Burkina Faso, will be on display locally. He includes agricultural improvements in the villages where his local flock is learning to plant churches.
Prayer and Praise:
Pray for flourishing participation at the demonstration site now being plotted on the land.
Pray for our safe travels to and from Abidjan this week. Ask for good meetings with the CHE university team on Monday, with church leaders on Tuesday, and no hassles for Verlin as he works to get his visa for Benin to attend a CHE conference there in July.
Your partners in the Gospel, Verlin and Debbie
Christian Health Service Corps (CHSC) is a mission of dedicated medical professionals who participate in the CHE Global Network. Together, in a loose affiliation of individuals, churches, denominational and nondenominational agencies, we share God's Light and Truth through Community Health Evangelism (CHE). Verlin and Debbie accept donor partners to contribute as led to maintain support as we resume residential ministry to expand CHE ministries in Cote d'Ivoire under the auspices of CHSC & Ivorian partners. Tax deductible contributions by check are to be made payable to the CHSC with Andersons #0118 written on the memo line. Mail to CHSC - PO Box 132 - Fruitvale, TX 75127. Give online via the CHSC @ www.che4a.org (3% fee) or TDF (0% fee).
Tens of thousands of people in our town of Bondoukou are Muslims. They are 8 days into their holy month of Ramadan, a lunar calendar dated event than began May 26th this year. It is a time of fasting all day and feasting after sunset; a time when they believe themselves to be seeking God in a more focused way. Many Christians take the same 30 days to spend extra time praying for Muslims worldwide. Jerry Rankin of the Zwemer Center for Muslim Studies explains one reason why. "Testimonies are abundant of those who have dreams and visions of Jesus appearing to them and saying, 'Follow Me.' Others will be impressed to find someone with 'the book' that tells the way to eternal life. None of these revelations are sufficient for salvation, but they break down the barriers in their heart, they lead to an inquisitiveness to find out who Jesus is or to know what the Bible says."
Debbie hosted a women's Discovery Bible Study this past Thursday for the first time. The aim is to set the pattern for training ladies to hold similar studies all over town with their neighbors. Seven ladies attended. All came and shared from different life experiences. One is a neighbor with a serious problem in her family. Another is the only Christian in a courtyard of Muslims. A third is a widow who recently became a disciple of Jesus. One is the wife of a man learning to lead Discovery Bible Studies with Verlin. The other three sisters-in-Christ are from two local churches who are exploring what it means to have a Bible study like this. Pray that these dear women seize a vision that the Lord can use them to share the Gospel beyond their families, yet through their hearth and home. When we forgot to get photos during the study, Verlin snapped this shot just after the ladies left! At least you can see the setup of the living room when we meet there and not under the courtyard's mango tree.
Prayer and Praise:
Pray that the Lord prepare local Muslims' hearts during this month of Ramadan to seek God's Way with us. Debbie prayed with a Muslim lady during the week, asking the Lord to provide her daughter with a job. Verlin prayed with a village imam that the eternal path of justice be found by all. We trust to see sharing opportunities increase with our neighbors.
Ask that the women's DMM Bible study multiply the fruitful witnesses in local churches.
Verlin and a DMM partner began setting apart land in a nearby village for moringa production. Pray the project will increase the number of people blessed with better health in witness to Christ, while opening yet other doors of spiritual ministry in the community.
Christian Health Service Corps (CHSC) is a mission of dedicated medical professionals who participate in the CHE Global Network. Together, in a loose affiliation of individuals, churches, denominational and nondenominational agencies, we share God's Light and Truth through Community Health Evangelism (CHE). Verlin and Debbie accept donor partners to contribute as led to maintain support as we resume residential ministry to expand CHE ministries in Cote d'Ivoire under the auspices of CHSC & Ivorian partners. Tax deductible contributions by check are to be made payable to the CHSC with Andersons #0118 written on the memo line. Mail to CHSC - PO Box 132 - Fruitvale, TX 75127. Give online via the CHSC @ www.che4a.org (3% fee) or TDF (0% fee).
also a brand of bottled water in Côte d'Ivoire where we serve
The Anderson Family
Verlin and Debbie Anderson serve as missionaries in Cote d'Ivoire, West Africa, under the umbrella of the Christian Health Service Corps (Click photo for mission profiles)
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