Dear praying friends,
We are ever thankful to our Heavenly Father, for each one of you who faithfully prays for the work of the gospel here in Kigoma, Tanzania. We know that God is working, often in ways we cannot see. It will be an awesome thing to get to see one day all that God was doing “behind the scenes.”
Disciples of Jesus School
By the grace of God we were able to relocate the school to our new (albeit unfinished) campus. 👏👏 We are currently using all 4 rooms of the Office Block for the school’s operation. One for a classroom, 1 for a dormitory, 1 for a teacher’s bedroom and 1 for our “Dorm dad / spiritual leader” who lives on site. We praise God for the 5 students who are growing in their faith and practice. Please pray for God’s provision for the continuing development of the new property.
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| Luke finished the 1st term at the end of March, in the old classroom. |
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| Ahadi teaches the first class of the 2nd term in the new classroom! |
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| Students playing volleyball after class on the new school property |
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| The staff/chai room is temporarily used as the dorm. It's a tight fit for 3 bunk beds! |
Elder’s seminar and conference
We are preparing to host 50 - 60 elders from the village churches for 2 days of teaching and 3 days of meetings (May 11-15). Please pray for the 3 teachers who will be teaching about Spiritual Leadership. Pray for the many who will be traveling and for encouragement and unity in the progress of the work of the gospel in our 3 Western regions of Tanzania.
Family
Our oldest daughter, Esther, has finished her first year of Nursing at Cedarville University.🥳 Over the summer she will be working as a nurse’s assistant at a summer camp in Ohio. We enjoyed having Emily back from boarding school for almost a month for her Easter break. She recently returned to finish her 10th grade year at Rift Valley Academy (RVA). Miss Paula, who has been teaching Aaron and Michael for the past 3 years has returned to the US. We appreciate the help she has been and will miss her. Gina is trying to finish a couple last subjects with them, as well as finish first grade with William. Pray for each of our children to grow in grace and in the knowledge of our Savior Jesus Christ.
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| Saying goodbye to Miss Paula. 😢 |
Other Ministries
There are other ministries we are involved in which we don’t often mention. I only mention them so that you can be praying for us; that we would be filled with wisdom, patience, joy and love in all that we do.
- Luke is involved with teaching and planning for the Gungu church youth group (in Kigoma town).
- We purchase Bibles and Christian books (all in Swahili) to sell at a discount price (not for profit) to those in need. Right now we are getting a book display ready for the upcoming elder’s conference.
- We also provide donated reading glasses free of charge to many elderly believers who cannot read their Bibles anymore due to poor eyesight.
- We assist many churches in the villages with building projects such as building chapels, and church houses (like a parsonage).
- We assist national, Tanzanian missionaries who are ministering in remote areas.
- We assist the poor with medical, educational, food and other needs.
On top of that we have government paperwork, car repairs, general maintenance, and the needs of daily life.
An example of an "extra" project:
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| Last week, Luke (with help from the boys) successfully repaired our broken washing machine! |
Thank you for partnering with us in prayer. We serve the greatest of all Masters. He is our Sovereign Conquering King, our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him belongs all the glory.
Blessings in His name,
Luke and Gina Johnson