Article submitted by Eric and Lyndsey D’Ericco, Field Coordinators in Ireland

After three months in the United States where Rachel (my daughter) never heard anyone conversing in Indonesian, her own Indonesian language skills were a bit rusty to say the least. (Her Indonesian language skills, that is. Her English had plenty of nearly non-stop practice.)  I was amused to hear her interact with the neighbor children who came over to play almost as soon as we pulled in the gate.  She would enthusiastically relate one story or another to her friends in rapid-fire English, blissfully unaware that they had absolutely no idea what she was talking about.

Aren’t you glad that God chose to “speak the same language” to us? The great Creator God of the universe did not merely talk AT us in ways that were completely unintelligible to us. Instead, Jesus came to live among us, experience what we experience, grieve over things that cause us grief, and laugh about things that bring us joy.  He came to us as a human being so that He could communicate to us how great the love of the Father actually is.  He spoke our language so we could understand Him.

Now Rachel will quickly get back the Indonesian language she has temporarily buried somewhere in her head.  I hear more of it coming out of her mouth every day.  Before long, she will once again be able to speak the language of the kids she plays with.  In the meantime, whenever I hear her speak English to someone who does not understand it, I am reminded of how Jesus stepped out of His comfort zone to speak to us in a way we could understand.  It also reminds me of how I need to “speak the heart language” of the people around me. Not merely the Indonesian or Balinese language.  It is important to get to truly KNOW the people I hope to share with so that when I do share, I do it in a way that they can relate to…in a way that the Holy Spirit can use to touch their hearts.

So I ask you…what language do YOU speak to those around you?

We’ve been back for a little over a week and we hear a lot of people say to us: “I admire you for doing such a great thing.”  Personally, hearing that makes me uncomfortable because we didn’t go to do something “admirable.”  Everyone of us on this team simply stood up and said, “Here am I.  Send me”  (see Isaiah 6).  To paraphrase my pastor’s sermon last week, we showed up when our brothers and sisters were in pain (see Job).  We just “walked across the room” and God did the rest.  We didn’t speak the language, yet we were able to be a comfort to those in need (we were involved in dozens of babies being born; we prayed with people as they or their infant lay dying), we improved God’s buildings (plumbing, concrete, electricity) and we experienced joy with our Haitian neighbors in the midst of their pain.  God uses the willing.

Thank you for praying for our family this month because during the 15th-23rd of February, I was out in the villages helping to record a New Testament in Nahuatl in SE Puebla state and dubbing a Jesus movie in Mazateco of Ixcatlan in the north of Oaxaca.

Usually, a Jesus movie dub takes about two weeks, but this time in only took 4 and a half days.  Wow, that’s fast!  I recorded from 8:00 in the morning until 7:00 at night every day, including Sunday. That’s because some readers were only available on Sunday. I usually rest on Sunday, but when I am out in the villages like this, I need to follow their schedule and they needed to record on Sunday.

There are more recording trips to make in the coming months and I could sure use some help. So, if someone is interested, I’ll teach you the ropes.  If you love the Lord Jesus, love Mexican food, love meeting exotic ethnic people groups, going four-wheeling on mountain roads that drop hundreds of feet with no guard rails, and want to learn to speak Spanish fluently, then start praying.  God may want you here! Email Missionary Ventures to sign up.

Last week a lot of things were happening. Lei Momie the one we asked you to pray for is doing great. They put stitches in her wounds yesterday and all is well. We hope that she will be home in the next couple of days. Praise the Lord! This has a great witness to her family and friends as God’s healing power has worked in her life. We know that this family is changing by the power of God.
Over the weekend we did get some rain, praise the Lord! As you can see the rain fell and filled our catchments up. We still need more rain here in the Marshalls, but this weekend was a great help. Keep believing with us for the natural rain as well as the supernatural rain to fall. The northern atolls are the driest and really need the rain. Thank you for agreeing with us.
Our hearts go out to those in Chile. As many of you know there was a massive earthquake that generated a tsunami. Praise the Lord it did not come here or any where else in the Pacific. We give God all of the glory for His protection.
Please keep us in your prayers over the next couple of weeks. I will be in Arkansas from the 11th to the 16th of March for a conference. I really appreciate your prayers as we go there to minister the Word of God. The wind generators are on the way and we are getting ready to finish installing phase one of that project. Continue to agree with us for the provision to accomplish the vision here in the Marshall Islands. Be blessed and thank you for all of your faithful prayers and support.

Would you please pray with us here in the Zambezi Valley!

The situation: Theuns Engelbrecht (Field Coordinator in Zambia) left early last Wednesday (3rd March) for Lusaka, Zambia in order to go and buy groceries and supplies for us after our three month absence from Longezia.  Karin (wife) and Daniel (son) remained at the base.  Since that time we’ve had continuous, heavy rain which has turned all our dirt roads into mini rivers – making it impassable due to the mud.  We just heard this morning that the bridge at Sinazeze has washed away.  This means we (Karin & Daniel) are effectively cut off from the outside world until it is repaired. Who knows when that will be (in 2008 it took the Government a week to rebuild it). Theuns is stuck in Lusaka until further notice!

Two other bridges, towards Maamba town, have also been washed away. Crocodiles have been seen in some of the rivers – three people were attacked (praise God not fatally) last week when they tried to cross the river! We’ve heard of a number of houses collapsing due to floods. Children are unable to attend school – Sinazongwe School reported flooding inside their classrooms. The Lake is filling up at an alarming speed – this is not a threat to us because we are above the flood level, however it is quite fascinating to see this happening “right before our eyes”. What an incredible amount of water that must be pouring into the lake from the countries up north!

Please pray:

Quick repair of the bridge at Sinazeze (and the others on the Maamba road). For a break in the rain so that roads can dry out and (possibly) be repaired. That the current food supplies at Longezia (for Karin & Daniel & the animals!) will last until Theuns can get back home!!  (We certainly won’t starve, but we might have opportunity to turn out some “interesting” meals with what we’ve got!). For those people who have lost homes due to the floods. For us all to remain positive, good humoured and have “peace in the midst of the storm”!

Update (March 6):

Praise God, we’ve not had rain since yesterday afternoon and the sun is out today  – we’re so thankful!!  It is amazing how quickly the roads can dry out with just a bit of sunshine! Reports of damages to many, many mud-and-thatch houses are coming in. We’ve heard that the repairs on the bridge will start tomorrow (Monday – weather permitting).  It is, however, a huge job since the river is now twice a wide as before!!  It will probably take about 2 weeks before we can use it again.  However, as soon as the water receded enough, attempts will be made to create a temporary track for 4 x 4 vehicles to pass.

Meanwhile, people are already wading through the river, although it is still about thigh-deep in places with quite a strong current.  For a fee and some risk,  you can have things carried across.  We can expect a price hike in food prices of course, but right now people will gladly pay just so they can have essentials, like mealiemeel, again (the shops have run out of most of their stock).

Theuns drove to Lumuuno Mission Base (at Mbole) from Lusaka, with our provisions, on Saturday morning.  That evening he came down with malaria.  Praise God, he ALWAYS travels with malaria treatment, so he was able to start with it immediately!  This morning he is feeling better, but decided to go and stay over our friends in Kalomo. Once he has recovered he will drive down to Sinazeze, leave the vehicle there and see if he can wade across (and pay someone to help get our groceries across as well!) Karin will then meet him on the other side!

Please continue to pray for us!  As usual, the actual effect of this crises on the local people, will only be felt in a few days time.

Update (March 9):

Thank you for all your prayers! Theuns is safely back home at Longezia! With the food!

With clouds building up for more rain, we decided that it would be best for Theuns to come across the river as soon as possible.  So, yesterday afternoon (Monday, March 8), Theuns drove down to the bridge at Sinazeze where he parked the vehicle, and then waded through the river (at places it was about thigh high with quite a strong current) to the other side where Karin was waiting with her Land Rover.  At the same time the farm manager of the Zambeef Farm and his wife (our neighbours in Sinazongwe) also arrived from Livingstone.  They too, waded through and had all their supplies carried over by a team of their workers.  These guys also carried our things across!!  Their vehicle and ours are now being guarded by a Zambeef Security Guard at Sinazeze!  Praise God for this provision.

Theuns and Karin then drove back to Longezia – the dirt road is really, really bad in some places with deep mud holes and parts of the road simply carved away!  It will take a long time to fix this! Even our own, humble “back road” is now a 4 x 4 driver’s dream!

All the excitement and stress of yesterday was not really a good thing for Theuns. Today he was feeling very tired and exhausted – he still has some side effects of the malaria. Please continue to pray for his total recovery and restoration.

Looking at the way we’ve “started” the year we can only say:  “Praise the Lord! This WILL BE a fantastic year! Yeah something GOOD is going to HAPPEN, something GOOD is in STORE! The Kingdom of Darkness will be shaken in Jesus’s Name and Authority!”

As one of our ministries, we have the privilege of mininstering to the Indigenous people of Talamanca. They live in the Talamancan mountains, and are very isolated from the rest of the country. We can only make the trip by 4 wheel drive, and then, only in the dry season. They live off of the land. There is a church that has started there, but they lack training and Bibles. Last weekend we made the trip with boxes of Bibles to distribute to the people. We trained church leaders on Saturday afternoon and conducted an all night church service Saturday night, where we preached the Word. God moved mightily, with many souls coming into his kingdom. The people had walked up to 8 hours in the mountains to get to the service. We plan for this to be an ongoing ministry, as God directs. We are believing God for supporters to help us share the Love of Jesus with the Talamancans. We give God all of the Glory!  For more information about Talamanca and our ministry, see  www.reachinglatinamerica.com

Bob & Lorita Melton
Field Coordinators in Costa Rica

In 2007, MVI opened a nursing school for Auxiliary Nurses on the grounds of Vida y Esperanza, our clinic in Nebaj, Guatemala. This nursing school is the first to be legally approved and accredited by the Guatemalan government in the Ixil Triangle where MVI has been providing outreach and medical services for over 20 years. In addition we are the only government approved nursing school in the country that is Christian based. The exciting aspect of this school is that the students we are training speak Ixil, which is the local dialect, as well as Spanish and will be able to minister to patients in the local dialect. Since many of the people in the community speak Spanish as a second language, having trained nurses who speak Ixil will bring a much higher level of understanding and care for those who need medical and spiritual care.

To date, we have graduated two classes, and the third class will graduate at the end of this year. Each year, we have accepted 55 students. The majority of our students are able to afford the tuition, books and uniforms, but there are a few students who have struggled to be able to afford the cost of school. We have provided tuition for a number of needy students who have gone on to graduate and become productive members of the medical community. The investments we have made in these students lives have definitely been a benefit to the community. I have just returned from Nebaj, and while I was there it was brought to my attention that a young man who is near the top of his class has been struggling financially and was several months behind in his tuition. The nursing school director asked if there were funds available to help this student. In the past, we had a small fund to draw from, but presently that fund is empty. It was difficult not to be able to meet that need immediately for him, and I began to think about how to establish a fund that would be a constant source of funds for needy students that would renew itself without being dependent on money being sent from outside of Guatemala to replenish it. After all, this student was not asking for a handout. He just needed some temporary help.

To date our students have been hard working and proud of the education they are receiving. I think the establishment of this fund would challenge them to take pride in their ability to help other students coming after them. We will be asking the present class and those who have already graduated to contribute toward the seed money for this fund, and are asking each of you also to consider helping us set up this fund.

Many of you have visited Nebaj over the years and know the need in the community. By helping us establish this fund you will be investing in the medical and spiritual future of the community of Nebaj and in the lives of many students in the years to come. Can we count on you?

Victory Medical Team: This was Victory’s second time back. What a wonderful team to work with. They, like most teams want to make a difference in the lives of the people here. Their first visit was to the local hospital. They wanted to learn how illness was handled in Nicaragua. There are some diseases that aren’t seen that often in Canada so it was good to see how it is done here. They were able to see how the doctors work here with very little support.

This team worked very hard and even worked on both Saturdays. I thought that they were trying to kill me but the time was well spent. The doctors were willing to make a few home visits to people too weak to get to the clinic. They also found a child who needed to have an echocardiogram and a man who needs a colonoscopy.

One surprise event was when my friend Lenin arrived at the hotel with his very pregnant wife. She had an ultrasound that was done and the Canadian doctor said that there was a need to do a C-section soon. They were able to go to the hospital and get the section. They now have a beautiful baby girl named Briana Nicole.

School Construction: For a couple years MVI and a group from Canada have been helping a Christian school at the Baptist church. They have been constructing 6 new classrooms with the desire to redo several other rooms that are falling apart. With the 2 groups working together they were able to finish the second floor on part of the school giving 3 more classrooms.

First Christian Church (Gift Bag Team): Every year this church makes gift bags for the children of the feeding centers and children from other communities where we are working. They come and make the children’s Christmas a little brighter. Most of these children don’t receive presents for Christmas.

The children in each community acted different when they received their gifts. Everyone was so pleased to receive something. In one village the children hid their bags and didn’t open them. They didn’t want to let others see what they had received. Other children just looked inside the bags and later opened them and started to play with the contents.

The team also did some work at the clinic. They painted the gate and some of the bars on the wall. They even helped with organizing contents from a container that had arrived.

Projects Started by Teams: An update on several different projects that were started by teams.

• Water filters: This project is such a huge success. One of my doctor friends told me that he had a man and his son in his office the other day. The doctor asked if his son had diarrhea. The guy said that since the Canadian’s put in the water filters they have had no problems with diarrhea or stomach pain.
• Sewing Project in Trentino: The women have been sewing up a storm. Another team was with them in January and taught them how to make a blouse and pillow cases. The women have a higher self-esteem because they can make clothes for their families. They want to get so that they can sell what they make.
• Selling of clothes: The lady in the mountain is still selling clothes and making money to support her family. The other part of the money that she makes goes toward the school in the community. We were able to buy much needed materials for the school.

A church in a community near my house is enlarging their building. They have never asked me for help. In talking to the pastor he was interested in selling clothes also to raise money for construction material. What a great way for people to get quality clothes at a reduced price and also to help build their church.

The team also visited the local hospital to learn about Nicaraguan medicine. In return they provided 4 different workshops for the local doctors to learn about changes in medicine.

I am hoping that this program can continue with the college. It provides valuable experience for the students and valuable information for the doctors here.

Harborside Medical Team: What a pleasure to work with Christian doctors. The doctors from my church have such a love for the people here in Nicaragua.

The team visited a church last year that was 4 hours from Matagalpa. This year they wanted to return to the church but wanted to stay all night so that they could see more people. We left in the morning and after a flat tire we arrived around 11. We worked all afternoon. In the evening the pastor had a time of singing and devotional then the team showed the Jesus movie outside with the screen on the church door. This was a HUGE hit. There were about 200 people. They were glued to the screen and loved the movie. During the night we heard roosters, dogs, monkeys and people snoring. Needless to say we didn’t get much sleep, but that didn’t stop the team. Throughout the week they were able to help and pray for many people.