Greetings in Jesus name. Thank you for your enduring partnership. As usual, God has through you and few others move us to higher heights in our quiet labour in the kingdom. What a great delight to share with you briefly on God’s faithfulness to us in the past few months on our efforts to enthrone Jesus as lord in the dark places of the world in answers to your prayers and selfless sacrificial supports.
This month we join the Hymn Writer, Charles Hutchinson Gabriel to sing this song:
I'm pressing on the upward way,
New heights I'm gaining every day;
Still praying as I onward bound,
"Lord, plant my feet on higher ground."
Lord, lift me up, and let me stand
By faith on Canaan's tableland;
A higher plane than I have found,
Lord, plant my feet on higher ground.
Crisis update
This year began with serious crisis across Plateau state where we our headquarters is located. This compelled us to suspend some of our key programmes like the Leadership Empowerment Conference/ Advanced school of ministry and 16th African mission summit. It was a very difficult decision but in the interest of the over 200 delegates expected from across 15 African nations. It was equally difficult convincing our invited delegates on this but it was the best decision in the face of the reality on ground. We are grateful to God that peace has return and active ministry work has since commenced. A mid-year Missionary Convocation is scheduled to hold on July 1-7, 2011. It will hold alongside the Network of African Mission Leaders Consultation.
Structural development
We focused on developing structures on our various mission fields to make the work less cumbersome and more productive for our pioneer missionaries. Some of the projects embarked on in the last few months include:
1. The completion of the church building at Bolu. The church was fully floored, plastered (both inside and outside) and now being fully put to use.
2. The new church building at samunaka was also perfectly completed. The gap roof, plastering, flooring were all perfectly done.
3. The church building at Kuble was built to a useable level-raised from the foundation and roofed.
4. Instead of flooring the Kuble church, we digressed to start a mission house where the missionary and his family could live in. the hut where they stay was licking profusely and they need to relocate.
5. The mission house at Ahole, Niger Republic was completely reroofed from grass to zinc.
6. A two-bedroom flat we started at Dir field in April is already being roofed.
More Tools
After almost twenty years of praying for a very sound bus to facilitate our movement and increase our speed, God blessed us with two buses. This is an indication that God is deeply concerned about us and no soldier as usual goes to battle at his expense. The bus models are:1. Toyota Hiace ~ Homer edition
2. Toyota Liteace
More Souls
God is granting us breakthrough in the area of soul winning which is our primary call. At our Niger Republic field, the missionaries reported that the founder of one of the most antagonistic Islamic groups in the area was one of those who gave their lives to Christ in the period under review. Most of the converts were drawn to Christ through our medical work in the area. They were also healed of their ailments. Some of them people passed unto glory shortly after their conversion. They covet prayers for the converts as persecution is inevitable.
Several others embraced Christ at Lambo, Kuble and Samunaka, Kamberi field. At our Dukawa field, we also had several backsliders that were restored. Our missionaries in Chad and in Cameroon reported that they had several outreaches and evangelistic campaigns with groups visiting from Nigeria where the seed of the gospel were sown in several lives. We also had a crusade put together by Royal House in Nigeria’s Niger Delta area where we served as main speaker. Many lives surrendered to Christ. Pray along with us that these precious souls will be truly disciplined and Christ will be genuinely formed in them.
Missions Mobilisation
The only way to engage the body of Christ to get much more involved in enthroning Jesus as Lord where he is not known is to open the eyes of the church to see their God given mandate in light of the volume of the unfinished work of missions. God opened several doors across the nation especially in mission conferences and rallies where many volunteered to get involved in mission work. The most recent was the Higher Ground International Conference where over 100 persons responded to God’s call to become missionaries and some to support missionary work in prayers and in funds. Our schedule at the Niger Delta University in collaboration with TMC was rescheduled due to the election. We had the Benue State Missions Summit at Otukpo and a regional summit comprising the Igala, Bassa and Idomas Missions Summit at the Kogi State University. This month, we will be holding the Port Harcourt Mission Conference being put together by Rev. Newton Eretinghe and his team and the Aba Mission Conference being put together by the Assemblies of God Churches at Abia State. Pray that the fruit of all these mission mobilisation will abide in Jesus name.
Foreign Missions
After over one year of brainstorming, preparation and prayers, the Advanced Church Leadership course in South Africa kicked off early this month. We are collaborating with the host, Missions Exposures and Training (MET) in organising it. The International Director will be teaching two separate subjects towards the end of the course. Securing visa for Godwin Ogwuche to resume work at Riberaipreto at Brazil has being a very difficult task. The International Director will be in Brazil in July and August for his annual evangelistic crusades and missions mobilisation across 17cities. Pray along with us for the prompt issuance of his visa. Pray also for strength, wisdom and grace for our Brazilian host, Rev. Douglas Martins and the over 20churches we are working with as a team.
On a Sad Note
Our missionary at Bum, Zullawa field, Ladi Ekpa lost her only son after brief illness. Pray that God will comfort her.
Prayer Needs
Remember all our missionaries in your prayers. The activities of Talibans in Bauchi State of Nigeria is on the increase. Many persons have being killed and scores of houses burnt. The local pastors and missionaries are the main targets and some are already victims. God has in the face of all these calamities spared us of sorrow as none of our missionaries and converts had fallen victim. Benjamin and Esther Itodo are serving in Zull. Matthew Ganu and Musa Magaji are serving in Dir. Moustapha and Josephine Oumarou are serving in Bolu while Ladi Ekpa is toiling for the God of harvest in Bum. Bring all these missionaries in Bauchi State and their converts under the cover of the blood of Jesus.
In Niger State, we have constant cases of persons using demonic means to render some persons impotent. We have had cases of several persons losing their manhood in the market square generating fear and tension in the land. We have Barnabas Haruna and his wife, Fatima working in Kubule, Yohanna and Rahila Musa working in Lambu, Sunday Musa in Samunaka and Nuhu Karabana working among the Dukawas all in Niger State. They all covet your prayers for divine protection.
Special Needs
In addition to praying for God to protect our missionaries and converts on the fields, we are trusting God for funds to sustain our mission training program. We have no fewer than seven candidates on standby to resume. There are five others in session who resumed by faith without adequate fund to meet up their training need and are really struggling. Pray also for fund for us to complete some of the projects on the fields that are yet to be completed like the mission house at Tasha-Durumi and the flooring/plastering of the church. Four of our motorcycles need to be replaced urgently and the kids at our Unreached Children home are really underfunded. We are in a new term and are trusting God for fund for their school fees. We need more fund for foodstuff following the current inflation.
To Sum up
We still do not have adequate words to convey our deepest appreciation for you consistent partnership. We need you now more than ever as we trust God to move to higher height this year. We are committed to praying for you also. God bless you richly.
In His Grip,
for: Grace Foundation Inland Missions
Andrew Abah
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