BUSH BEAT: June 2005

ONE LESS WITCH DOCTOR IN MOZ.

Last Sept., Radhika began witnessing to a female witch doctor living near our church. Fatima wanted to know more about Jesus, but the 3 times she entered our church, she had severe chest pains with a rapid heart beat. The demonic powers were panicking for sure as she hadn't received Jesus yet. When I returned from the USA in April, I asked why she had stopped coming to church, but no one knew. I tried to find her but she was out in the bush harvesting her fields. She returned the last week of April while Britt was here filming our latest work. I spoke to her on Friday, April 24th & she told me her story

She wanted to know more, but couldn't fight the chest pain to come to the church. Dominica, our Christian pre-school director, met with Fatima & I. We showed Fatima many scriptures showing Jesus' power to overcame demonic powers.

After 45 min., Pastor Augusto joined us, telling her the story of the poor man Lazarus in heaven & the rich man in hell. (Luke 16:19-31). I showed her a picture of the rich man burning in hell & her eyes were opened! She pointed at the photo in pure terror & yelled "I don't want to end up there!" She was shook! She went home saying she needed to think.
At dawn the next morning, she banged on Pastor Augusto's door demanding he pray with her to receive Jesus! When they prayed, the demons left her, & JOY RADIATED from her face! She came directly & asked for help to burn her witch hut.

Her sister, also a witch doctor, used that hut for her incantations, & was screaming curses at us! I just covered us in the blood of Jesus & no harm came to anyone there. The family elder told the sister to remove her things from the hut or have them burned. With much fuss, she finally did. The hut BURNED nicely, & our pastors finished the job by pushing in the walls. A few hours later, we baptized her in the local cow pond (only water around). Britt got it all on film.

She has now been trained to work as a cook for our workers & loves it. She always has a smile on her face, is being discipled almost daily by our pastors, & hasn't missed a Sunday in church.

She surprised me by bringing her injured daughter to me to ask for prayer to heal her. (instead of calling on satin for help). THIS IS A WOMAN WHO HAS SEEN THE DARK SIDE & CHOSEN LIGHT!

We believe her testimony will bring many more to Christ as the whole village is watching her to see if Jesus is real.

MORE FRUIT COMING FORTH FROM YOUR LOVE GIFTS

1. The son of the local muslim leader, Valentino, came to our church 3 weeks ago & asked to receive Jesus. He has worked as one of our guards & heard God's Word preached at our daily devotions for several weeks. This is an act of faith & courage, as those who walk away from Islam are usually threatened with bodily harm, yet no one has bothered him.
2. An 18 year old orphan boy raised by his aunt, & a family of four who are raising an orphan girl, both benefit from our orphan program. They all came to Christ after our pastors ministered to them during the prayer time at our Thursday food distribution. THey now attend our church.

ZAMBIA TRIP--A REAL EYE OPENER

Benson Matembo, our Zambian administrator, is doing a great job of running our orphan & community school program in Ndola, Zambia. He selected a Zambian board for Orphans Unlimited, Zambia (O.U.Z.) of very prominent Christians from the Ndola area. It was a JOY to get to know these Christian businessmen & woman who sincerely desire to help the OVC (orphaned & vulnerable children), in the Mine Masala area. (Over 5,000 registered OVC live in this area according to Social Services.) Mine Masala is the poorest of the poor in the Ndola area, & that is where our work has been concentrated since 2003.

When immigration asked me where I would be visiting, I told them Mine Masala, & THEY DIDN'T BELIEVE ME! Their response: "No visitor goes to Mine Masala!" Need I say more, since that is the Lord's mandate for Orphans Unlimited. "Go where no one else wants to go." The O.U.Z. board members informed me that no aid organization is working in this area, & that no one but O.U.Z. was helping the orphans. (My thought was, "helping 48 kids isn't even touching the problem").

Several months ago, the Lord revealed to me that O.U.Z. was to buy a farm big enough to house the orphans, a school, & a jobs training program for the older kids. I estimated 70-100 acres would do it. When I shared this with the board, they told me there are 70 acre farms (with water) available just 2-3 miles from Mine Masala.

Funds needed? about $100/acre ($7,000 for 70 acres). WHY so cheap? Because the Ndola economy collapsed when the copper mines closed.

After inspecting several farms in the area, the present corn crops reveal the soil to be productive & fertile.

Underground water is available (local wells prove it) and a small river runs on the border of many of the farms.

Here's what has been put into action with this visit:
1. THe local councilman controlling this farm area is helping us to locate someone with a farm for sale.
2. The City council is also trying to get O.U.Z. clear title to a large city lot, so we can build permanent classrooms for the multitude of kids attending our present temporary Christian Community School.

Stay tuned for further developments as they happen! The Lord is moving in a massive way to save the children.

The challenge is GREAT, & the rewards unending!

LOLA, A GREAT BLESSING, arrived May 14 for a 30 day visit.
Being a graduate in child psychology, she fell in love with our pre-school for 4-6 year olds. By the way, all the kids from our charter pre-school class in 2004 are doing GREAT in first grade!

BIG THANKS TO Judy, Heidi, Radhika, & Sarah, who put so much time into training the teachers. Your seeds not only sprouted, the fruit has ripened!

During her stay, Lola organized a girl's soccer team, taught English to our teens, helps with the administration of the mission, & told illustrated Bible Stories in the Sunday school. She hopes to come back next year for a longer stay.

WORLD ORPHANS OF COLORADO SPRINGS

Director Bob Roosen of World Orphans contacted me in late April, as they wanted to finance the construction of an orphan house in Mozambique. Their objective is to house as many as they can in dorms for the least amount of funds.

Orphan dorms are not allowed in Moz., but by a miracle, Social Services finally approved a 20 bed house for orphan boys, ages 13-18. This is a real break through since 6 children was the most they ever allowed in one house.

The house will be built on church land where Pastor Luis (in charge of teen discipleship) & his family live. Luis has done a great job of "fathering" these boys for over 6 months. We now have 17 in this age group, & our largest house only holds 10 boys if they live like sardines in bunk beds. The boys are very excited. The money is in the bank, & construction begins July 4th as the 1,200 cement bricks & other materials are now ready to go.

130 TONS OF FOOD BEING PRAYED IN

(this year's harvest has been poor throughout the county)

What does it take to feed 500+ Moz. kids for a year?

Answer: 80 tons of corn ($14,300), 30 tons (3 types) dried beans ($6,050), 1.5 tons of unhulled peanuts ($700), 7 tons of unhulled rice ($2,500), & 1 ton of sorghum (so far not available at all but is used for making baby food).

ALL THE FOOD must be bought quickly at harvest in June, before it is bought by others for export. Our 25 man crew tackled this dusty job as over 23 tons of corn rolled in the first week. Our guys can process an average of 6-8 tons per day.

AMAZING FACTS: We asked God to provide what we needed for the kids, & this is what happened June 17 to 23rd.

1. 37 TONS of Corn was transported from deep in the bush by a non Christian businessman in his own 2 ton truck for 8 CENTS/lb. Locals have provided us with 8 tons of corn transported on their heads!
2. Beans: almost impossible to find, yet many locals from different areas, carried it to us ON THEIR HEADS 40 lbs. at a time, totalling 3 tons over 10 days. Then a local man tells us he has 10 tons for sale at (10 cents/lb.) that he will bring to us from deep in the bush. Next, the Balama Agricultural Coop Coordinator raced up on his motor bike. He says there is a village Coop who can organize 3-4 tons of beans for us & they will provide the transport. Do we want it?
3. A uncle of our Pastor Eugenio, 35 miles away, is buying rice for us, straight from the fields in the ONLY PLACE THAT HAD A HARVEST in a 2 county area. He hopes there will be at least 4 tons. Much needed for our baby food for the malnourished.
4. Peanuts: VERY scarce, yet the locals are bringing it in on their heads, 1 sack at a time. Most of these farmers say they only have less than 50 lbs. to sell due to the poor harvest. Peanuts is the vital protein in our food for the malnourished babies.

GOD HAS MADE A WAY & IT WILL BE INTERESTING TO SEE HOW THE BALANCE OF THE FOOD SHOWS UP.

NEW PROGRAM DIRECTOR HAS ARRIVED!

This position requires the following: a mature Christian who can speak & write Portuguese, English, & Makua.

Computer literate, can compose government documents, experience in organizing & training locals to carry out the orphan, nutritional, & agricultural projects, & is bright enough to handle the many challenges this job will incur.

Ali, educated in Zimbabwe, fits all this & more! Wycliff Bible Translators began Ali's training in 1996, & he worked with them until this year when they no longer needed his help. His references from 2 of their leaders in the areas of integrity, responsibility, ability to organize, & work skills were awesome. Ali has organized several Bible Schools, preaches & teaches in all 3 languages mentioned, is computer literate, & has experience in organizing village projects. He has been a TREMENDOUS HELP to me in the last 2 months writing all the difficult documents required to clear the way for several new programs to begin. I am convinced the Lord has sent him to help reduce my stressful work load, & to provide the strong leader we need to expand our main programs. He is a powerful spokesman & the people truly respect him.

PROBLEM: The European church who promised to sponsor him for $500/month has BACKED OUT OF THEIR PLEDGE.

He has a wife & 3 children. A Swedish missionary has given him a nice tin roofed home in Balama, as he must move from 30 miles away in order to work with us. He is willing to move his family, & give a long term commitment if he can get sponsorship.

SOLUTION: Find missionary support totaling $500/month.

Those willing to help Ali to help us in Balama should:
1. Send your tax deductible gift made to Orphans Unlimited at the address below.
2. Write a note to send with your gift stating how much you want to pledge monthly for Ali & his family. The IRS doesn't allow personal names on checks written for tax deductions.
TOGETHER, WE CAN MOVE MOUNTAINS TO HELP THE ORPHANS.

ORPHANS UNLIMITED OFFICE HAS MOVED, due to Karen's husband being transferred. Karen Brooks is the O.U. Secretary.

The Wharton, TX address is still active till the end of the year, so your gift envelopes can still be used.

Every sponsor will receive new envelopes in January with their O.U. gift statement for the IRS.

LOVE, HUGS, & MUCH THANKS from BUSH BUNNY BRENDA, & THE O.U. STAFF IN MOZ. & ZAMBIA.

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