Picturing Akot

I trust these pictures will help you pray for Akot. If you are interested in joining the Mango Ministry Team and taking a virtual prayer walk through Akot but do not receive my email updates send me a note (joy.phillips@wgm.org) and I will send you a map and some suggestions of what you can pray for.

Shalom,

joy

This is the Baptist Mission compound where food distributions are taking place

My favorite restaurant in Akot . . . OK, the only restaurant in Akot

Try that in 100+ degree heat!

The women and girls journey home after a trip to the well

A typical hut, called a tukel, in Sudan

Sorghum, still on the stalk to dry, when ground is the

staple food ~ many family's harvests were looted or burned

Mango Ministry staff talk to leaders in the center of town

The Akot airstrip with a Cessna 206 coming in

The Akot Medical Mission with Dr. Clarke McIntosh on right

Akot Primary School with the Principal on left and a few students

School buildings were constructed during the British colonial period

The Episcopal Church of Sudan in Akot: the church before this was destroyed during the war and Samaritan's Purse reconstructed this church for the people of Akot

Pray for peaceful elections in April

I'll be there . . . .

This past weekend I enjoyed de-decorating from the holidays to some radio tunes. I couldn’t help but enjoy a blast from the past when Michael Jackson crooned, “I’ll be there.”

This week my mind is racing with thoughts of Sudan. The news isn’t great. The two sites we are partnering at have both experienced violence in the few short weeks of 2010. Civilian populations have run into the bush seeking safety from armed neighboring tribes and/or the army. Hospital attendance is low and not for the reasons we’d all like to see. (Prevention is better than cure!)

My mind is bombarded with wondering anew what it looks like when the Kingdom of God is painfully being molded from chaos and suffering. I keep asking myself, "What does the Kingdom in conflict situations look like? How is the Kingdom expressed to people who are dying, running for their lives, hungry, hurt, emotionally traumatized and not just once, but again and again and again?"

My heroic thoughts tend to answer that question with Michael Jackson – I’ll be there. I will help bind up your wounds, I will feed you, I will tell you stories of Jesus love. Yes I will. I’ll be there.

I will if the UN security report says I can travel.

I will if a week goes by without gunfire in town.

I will if the soldiers don’t harass me.

I will if everything goes according to my plan.

I will if I don’t have to miss any meals.

I will if you promise I won’t get hurt.

Obviously those are tenuous I will's!

To be honest I have many questions. I don’t know exactly how WGM can best help. I don’t know when it will be time to stay and time to pull out. I’d be a lot more comfortable if it were just me in Sudan. But it’s Mercy’s father and Rebecca’s husband, and it’s Faith and Stephen who are there. They are the ones putting it on the line.

From the time the Mango Ministry team set foot in Akot we have had a friend in Pastor Mark (on left - not his real name). He’s a good English speaker and has helped us learn about his part of the world. Our team highly values his friendship.

He’s a young man in his twenties and along with Pastoring a church on Sundays he’s enrolled in a High School about 10 km away. It’s a Boarding School so he resides there during the week, away from his family. During the war the option of going to school wasn’t there. Since the signing of the Peace Agreement 5 years ago schools have reopened and there are many older students completing their education now.

Saturday Reuben and Joseah returned to Akot. Sunday they attended Pastor Mark’s church, only he wasn’t there. Actually no one was there to lead. It ended up being a very short service due more to the presence of many soldiers than anything else.

This week Pr. Mark shared his story with our team. To begin with his home was burnt during the violence that struck Akot town over New Years and he lost everything. The Sunday before last he tried going to his Church but was attacked. He narrowly escaped, leaving his bicycle behind (the bicycle that he uses to get to and from school), before the Army Commander arrived and brought order to the situation.

The men sat and listened and prayed with Pr. Mark and shared a few pieces of clothing. Listening, praying, giving: this is a glimpse of what it looks like when the Kingdom of God is being molded from chaos and suffering.

Please be in prayer for me and the Mango Ministry Team. We need God's direction to know how He wants to use us in the midst of the chaos. How is God calling you to bring beauty from the ashes of this world’s heartache to someone in your world?

“Jesus, the news indicates that Sudan is in for a tough year. It will get harder and less safe. I pray for your divine grace to cover Mango Ministries. Keep us in Your perfect will. May we not let go of your hand as we walk boldly into the future, as we participate in the building of Your Kingdom, on earth, as it is in Heaven.”

~joy

Isaiah 61

Change of plans

“The best laid plans of mice and men often go awry.” Robert Burns

Sudan is unpredictable and last week we got a clearer idea of what that means. Over the New Years weekend fighting broke out in Akot between the army and civilians leaving 16 people dead and part of the town in flames. On two separate occasions the locals fled into the bush leaving a ghost town behind.

What does this mean for the Cataract Clinic plans? It means that what appeared like the ‘best laid plans’ for travel, getting supplies on site, ministry plan, preparation of Tenwek team, etc. have been set aside while the dust and embers settle in Akot.

Pray for God’s timing in the rescheduling of the clinic, hopefully before the end of March. Pray for the ability to move around the community as Reuben and Joseah return to Akot next week. As people’s minds are focused on the recent conflict and upcoming elections in April pray that we’ll know where to focus our energies to encourage and not compete for people’s energy. Above all, please pray with us for true reconciliation between the warring parties and with God. These people need to see Jesus: the army, the cattle herders, the leaders, the shopkeepers, the youth, the impoverished subsistence farmers, and even those of us who have gone to Akot to help. I need to see Jesus clearly too!

Plans are moving forward to send Faith Shingledecker (veteran lab technologist from Tenwek) and Stephen Leimgruber (volunteer nurse at Tenwek) to Memorial Christian Hospital in Werkok next week. Let’s pray that God uses Faith and Stephen to meet crucial needs in the provision of compassionate health care and that they will be an encouragement to the community and other team members.

I said to the man who stood at the gate of the year: “Give me a light, that I may tread safely into the unknown.” And he replied, “Go out into the darkness and put your hand into the hand of God. That shall be to you better than light and safer than a known way.” Marie Louise Haskins

Thank you for standing with the Mango Ministry Team as we venture into the dark, our hands safely in God’s grip.

Shalom,

joy

Great Expectations for 2010

Happy New Year!

December has flown by. My time has been filled with good-byes to good friends, hosting my sister, Linda, including some sight-seeing, mission meetings, lots of cooking, and spending time with friends and colleagues. I hope you felt God’s blessings this past month as much as I did.

My sister does a lot of leg-work for Mango Ministries in the U.S. and enjoyed a meal with Reuben and Joseah when they arrived from Sudan for their breaks. They are doing well and enjoying the chance to be with family and friends at Tenwek. They are also eager to return to Akot next week. Pray for us as we plan for 2010 on January 4^th and 5^th.

Preparations continue for the Tenwek Eye Safari to Akot, only 9 days away. Please pray for:

* Processing of paperwork for medical supplies going to Akot

* The safe and timely arrival of a second operating microscope, scheduled to arrive on January 6th

* The Akot community’s acceptance of eye surgery. We're thankful several patients have registered and are trusting that after one or two patients have been given the gift of sight many more will come seeking help

* Uncomplicated and safe travel for the team: by road to Nairobi on January 8th, and flying from Nairobi to Akot on the 9th then reversing the process on January 15th and 16th.

* A peaceful community (no fighting) before and during this outreach

* Hearts that are open to hearing about Jesus

Dr. Roberts requests prayer for the team on Youtube. (sorry for the noise interference!)

We're excited to have 2 volunteers from Tenwek Hospital going to Memorial Christian Hospital in Werkok on January 14th. Faith Shingledecker will assist in setting up a lab for the hospital (pictured with Dr. Ajak) and Stephen Leimgruber will assist with nursing care.

Jonny Adkins is finishing up work on the Coppedge dvd (Mango Ministry teammates) who are starting their Homeland Ministry Assignment in January and he will soon start the editing process for the Mango Ministry dvd. Pray for inspiration and creativity for Jonny as he works.

There are a limited number of Mango Ministry 2010 calendars available. If you’d like any send me an email that includes your postal address and I’ll send details for payment. Still only $12.

I visited my favorite mall several times this month after dark and I was impressed with how much the decorations reminded me of Las Vegas. They’re bright and beautiful, I think.

Actually it’s overwhelming and anything but subtle. Very different from the first Christmas. With the coming of the fall rains I’ve been impressed with the natural beauty found here in Kenya. Spectacular masses of colors found in bougainvillea to the same vibrant colors on a fish only one inch long found while wading in the Indian Ocean. Stars seen unencumbered by city lights are better than any light display made by man. God’s decorations are incredible. As with many things in life I find I want to help God with the decorating. My prayer for 2010 is that I will let God be the designer of Mango Ministries as His creations are best. Knowing that His creations are better than mine ~ I have great expectations for what He will do to bring transformation to the people of South Sudan in this new year.

Thank you for your interest, encouragement, prayers, and financial support that is transforming lives in South Sudan as we minister together.

Expectantly,

Joy

In the Dark

Literally thousands of people in Sudan are living in the dark because they live with cataracts. The most basic health care is not available to many, much less surgical eye care. That’s why Mango Ministries has arranged for the Tenwek Hospital Eye Team to take a safari to Sudan in early January to help people see. Drs. Ben Roberts and John Cropsey and 6 Tenwek staff will fly to Akot to take the same message that has always been Tenwek’s moto to Sudan. That is, “We treat ~ Jesus Heals.” Reuben and Joseah are meeting this week with the hospital staff and local pastors to prepare for the spiritual side of this outreach.

In an animistic culture people think differently than we do in the West. Sudanese are raised with an Animistic Worldview. We have very scientific reasons for why things happen which is called the Western Worldview. We accept that most cataracts are a sign of aging which causes degenerative changes in the eye. An animist will have a different set of reasons for what causes poor vision. Cause and effect to an animist is not based on science so much as on the spirit world. As we talk about Jesus to the patients and their families let’s pray that they will ‘see’ that any power that is preventing them from seeing is not nearly as powerful as that of Jesus.

I’m somehow in the dark too. Advertisements have recently gone out into the community about the cataract clinic. I thought there would immediately be a long line of cane wielding people lined up at the front door. As excited as people seem when they hear the news no one has registered yet! Is it the registration fee? This is a small fee being charged that is a step at moving away from the post-war hand out mentality towards cost-sharing which is a more sustainable model for health care in the future. Are people afraid of surgery? Will it just take one bold person to register and then others will follow? Right now we don’t know what the barrier is. Reuben wrote that the answer is to pray and I told him I’d let you know. Please pray with us that what ever is keeping people from registering will be overcome, whether it be money, fear, stigma, etc. Our goal is for many people to come and receive their physical sight but also spiritual sight too.

That’s our goal based on a Biblical Worldview! Now we need to commit it to the Lord and see how He is going to turn the darkness to light. That’s His job. Our job is to pray.

“You O Lord, keep my lamp burning; my God turns my darkness into light.” Psalm 18:28

Following His star,

joy

* Pictures are from past Tenwek cataract clinics held in Tanzania

** A gift of $200 will enable one Sudanese to see the light. Go to "Donate to Joy's ministry" in the right-hand column to give a gift today.

The Journey continues through October and November

The past five weeks have been busy ones and I’m thoroughly enjoying the chance to sleep in my own bed this week and clean up my desk.  Here’s a glimpse of what I've been doing over the past month or so. 

• Cush Consultation ~ this is an annual conference for people in ministry in South Sudan.  It was good to meet contacts made in years past and be challenged in new ways.  As always the time spent networking and being challenged was helpful. 
• Kampala International University ~ A two and a half week safari (this is what we call a trip in Africa, it does not mean we were stalking lions) began with a stop in Kampala.  In Uganda WGM works with university students ~ some who come from Sudan.  Our team was able to meet with a dozen students and we discussed their concerns for Sudan.  We learned that MANY Sudanese live in Uganda and Kenya and this may be an avenue for future ministry.  I was elated to see my former Lui Hospital colleague, Anna Yawa, who is now a student at KIU.  
  
• Storying Conference in Arua, Northern Uganda ~ our next stop was attending a conference with about 75 other participants from all over Uganda and Kenya.  We learned the technique of preparing and telling stories from the Bible, looking for treasures, and how to ask insightful questions. Reuben and Joseah paid particularly close attention because the next week they would be small group leaders when our colleague Billy Coppedge was to teach a similar seminar in Sudan.  
• Transitioning to Akot ~ Before flying up to Akot we spent a relaxing weekend with the team in Arua that included a shopping spree into the market to buy mattresses, fruit, rice and beans, water purification tablets, a broom, among many other things!  Not knowing how many would show up for the conference we were thrilled that 21+ out of the 30 who were invited showed up.  It was a learning experience not only for the participants but also for us.  The average educational level of the pastors was fourth grade. 
• Sunday Sermon ~ it was encouraging then that when we arrived under the tree where one church service was being held the pastor, who had attended the seminar, was telling a Bible story and the congregation were acting it out!   
• Team meeting ~ After the seminar Billy's family joined us for a few days and we were able to sit together and plan for 2010.  
• Board meeting ~ Then after a few days at home in Nairobi, with enough time to produce pages of reports and proposals, the Sudan Board had a successful meeting.  

•  *  One of the fun aspects of having spent a considerable amount of time on the mission field is that missionary kids grow up and sometimes come back to work with us.  Jonny Adkins joined us to film what we're doing. Please pray as he plows through hours of great footage so he can bring the needs of the Sudanese and vision of Mango Ministry alive.  Watch for a late winter dvd release!
  

As I read back through this I am thinking, "Wow, what a great trip."  And it was a good trip and we saw God at work.  But it was also a hard trip.  Working in Sudan is not easy and everything seems hard.  Not just the logistics of it, although that is certainly true.  But relationships are hard.  Communication is hard.  The heat and lack of variety in the diet is hard.  Things are just hard.  Spiritual warfare is evident.  Reuben was very sick for about a week during the trip and he recovered only to be held at gunpoint two weeks later.  No physical harm was done but Sudan takes an emotional toll on all of us.  

I am so thankful for those of you who are praying for us.  We couldn't do this without you! Thank you for your notes to Reuben and Joseah.  They have been encouraged by the family of God.  

Hanging out in a village during the Sudan seminar reminded me of how comfortable our lives are, how much we focus on eating and food, and how much we take for granted.  

This Thanksgiving season I pray that my heart and yours will break for the people of South Sudan.  

Grateful for His many blessings,

joy

High 'lights' from my week in Sudan

• Virtual Team:  It was good to connect face to face again with part of my virtual team.  Reuben and Joseah are doing well.  I was happy to see they are really getting into the culture, learning the language and becoming real cow lovers.  They are both in Kenya now reconnecting with their families for a short break. 
  
• Freshly baked date bread: After 3 days of trying, frustrated by clouds and rain, a very nice date bread was produced in the solar oven we took up to Akot.  Dates are grown in north Sudan and are available in the larger markets.
  
• New friends:  We were able to meet and share with other missionaries about their work with the Dinka.  We learned about valuable contacts and cultural nuances and made new friends. 
  
• Project visits:  It was encouraging to visit a project that empowers women called, Women for Women. We were able to purchase some produce they had grown that we enjoyed for several dinners.  Thanks to Dr. Clarke, who hails from the south, for the fried okra!       See the Youtube video of the women dancing for us!  
•  Kudos:  The Mango Ministry Team was called together by a respected hospital staff member one day.  He told us that he hears everything that goes on in that community and what he hears about us is good! The community appreciates our interest in learning about them and visiting with them. 
  
• Training Opportunities: We were able to arrange for a training October 21st – 24th.  Thirty pastors are invited to join us at Dhiakwei (pictured) – a church training center.  Our colleague, Billy Coppedge, will facilitate a 4 day training on teaching the Bible through story telling.  Participants have agreed to bring their own food although it’s not the season for plenty of food.  Pray for God’s provision in food and understanding.  Also pray that our translators will be right on and in sync with Billy and the small group leaders. 
  
• Stories:  During hospital staff devotions I’ve tried to share a bit of my personal story and walk with Jesus with the staff.  I asked last week if several would share their stories with the group and several shared.  God is at work in the lives of the Sudanese!  I pray that we will be able to hear many more stories from the people of Akot.  Our goal is to have the Jesus story intersect with their story so that each day their story reflects more of God’s kingdom. 

Prayer focus

• Pray as we develop a script and shoot video later this month to help share our passion of bringing the Kingdom of Heaven to the Sudanese.  
  
• While in Sudan this month the Mango Ministry Team will be developing our goals and budgets for 2010.  Pray that we’ll have God’s guidance and open ears to hear the hearts of the Sudanese.
  
• We’re processing several volunteers who are interested in serving in our partnering hospitals and with our community team next year.  Pray for our future team members.  Also remember Memorial Christian Hospital in Werkok and the Akot Medical Mission in your prayers as they provide incredibly valuable services in a complicated environment. 
  
• Pray for our team as we attend a seminar on Bible Storying in Uganda and then as Billy Coppedge leads the same seminar a week later in Sudan.  This is similar to the missionary surgeon’s moto – see one, do one, teach one!
  

Thank you for helping us power these 'lights' in Sudan through your prayers and sharing of financial resources.

Shalom,  Joy