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I know we’re quite a few days late, but Happy New Year! Since we’ve entered a new year, I wanted to take a moment and reflect on some of the exciting things that happened over 2021. It’s exciting to look back over last year and see all the things that happened and how God worked in Zambia through our ministry.
For the majority of the spring, the school was off and on due to Covid restrictions from the government. But in May the school schedule finally leveled out and school was allowed to run as normal, allowing the children to continue learning.
At the end of May...
...we took over a group on a mission trip. We spent a little over four weeks in Zambia, teaching at the school, getting footage of the ministry and ministering to the children. It was an amazing experience and we feel like God really blessed the trip. If you want to watch some videos from the trip, you can check them out here.
At the beginning of June, we took all the teachers at the school along with our mission team on a retreat to Kasama, Zambia. We spent a few days at a nice guesthouse and visited a waterfall. It was a time to relax and get refreshed for the work ahead, as well as for us Americans to get to know the teachers more and develop relationships with them.
Meanwhile, at the Farm...
We were able to get a well dug! The Farm is another branch of Reaching the Heart of Zambia many of you might not know about, but one of its goals is to create sustainability for the ministry over time. By digging this well, the Farm now has ready access to water, which will help immensely with growing produce. Along with the well dug at the Farm, we were able to get a few solar panels put up so that the water from the well can be hosed onto nearby gardeners. Though not enough power for the entire farm, it is a small blessing and we are thankful for it.
August was an exciting month!
In August, our head teacher, Charles, was elected as a leader in the community. It’s such an amazing opportunity for him and we’re excited to see him ministering to the community in a different way.
We also employed a security guard at the school during the nights to keep off thieves who were trying to steal things from and vandalism the property. This has opened up an opportunity to get different playground equipment for outside the school, which we are SUPER excited about!
At the end of August, our soccer team from the soccer ministry at the school finished second in the district soccer competition. We are so proud of them and will be sharing more about the soccer ministry in future newsletters.
At the school...
...studies continued very steadily over the fall and winter months, only stopping for a few breaks due to the end of semesters. One of the programs that made a lot of progress there is a purity study called Cherish. So far, we have graduated 40 girls from this program and are continuing to teach young girls and women about staying pure.
A more recent development at the Farm is that they have begun to construct a pig house (pictured below), where they hope to raise, butcher and sell pigs in the future. They have also just planted two and a half acres with potatoes, and filled the little garden near the well with onions and egg plants.
We are so thankful for how the Lord has worked through this ministry during 2021. There’s one last thing I wanted to share with you and it's about a very special change in the hearts of men and women who have been apart of our home Bible studies. Honestly, in a spiritual sense, it surpasses all the physical things we have accomplished this year, good as they were. This year, we have been able to lead 56 people to the Lord and we’re so excited and thankful for how He has worked in their hearts. Praise God!! I realize this is a long email, but if you have read this far, thank you. It's so important to reflect and be thankful and we have so much to be thankful for. God has truly done some wonderful things in Zambia. Before I end this newsletter, I wanted to take a moment and tell you of some ways you can be praying for the team in Zambia. You're prayers mean so much to us so I wanted to make sure and include a few specifics.
Pray that the team stays in good health and that they stay focused on the work God has given them
Pray for a new vehicle, as the truck they currently have is breaking down consistently and is becoming dangerous to drive and
Pray for a good harvest
Thank you so much for your support of our ministry. We're so excited to see what's in store for 2022! God bless you!
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