Some news and prayer letters recently received into the SAMS office:
Sue has been undergoing some tests at Sabadell hospital after feeling quite unwell over the last couple of months. These tests have now shown that Sue has cancer of the pancreas, which was unexpected and has come as quite a shock. The cancer is inoperable and the prognosis is that she will live for about a year. The hospital in Spain began chemotherapy last week and for the time being Sue plans to stay there. Please pray for Sue as she deals with the news and begins treatment, and has to think about practical considerations. Sue has sent me a text message since receiving this news; “He still reigns and is, and will be, faithful.”
Some news and prayer letters recently received into the SAMS office:
Mission isn’t an exclusive calling for the few, it’s for everyone. Mission is at the heart of Christian discipleship. It involves and demands all of us as we are called to love the Lord our God with all our heart, soul, mind and strength. Something significant emerges when we grasp the fact that mission must be modelled through servanthood. Remember, authentic mission depends on the miracle of God’s participation.
“Christian mission is about being inside out and upside down! It is about change and transformation. It turns individuals and communities inside out. It is about people in every nation discovering and living by the upside down values and priorities of God’s Kingdom.”
Bishop Ken Clarke (SAMS Mission Director)
Some news and prayer letters recently received into the SAMS office:
Zeballos Cue
Regina at ZC not stopped smiling for 2 weeks now! Five women meeting on a Sat p.m. (Emilia, Cornelia her d-i-l, Deolinda, Regina and Mirta – can’t always come because has twin boys aged 12 and an older one. Husband Ramon works in wood yard.). In the first week, E, C and D had made 5 different variations of the Judit bag, some smaller according to the cloth they had. All three decided to give their own first bags as an offering for the building fund. When I followed up with the cards with Jude’s scripture Matt 25.21 about the talents, both of us were amazed – that’s what they had done without knowing it! They have made all the placemats – the one you see was the last and are planning how to make bags with other cloth they have. I took the photos in the school shop were Regina works. I can take her stuff on Weds when Luis comes to pick her up on his motorbike. She `s taken back the two Janomes on this.
San Andres
Marta,Teresa and Juana with their own bags
San Andres also gone mad about bags. Everyone made about 4 each with any cloth they could get hold off – this is a first. Teresa`s daughter has made some with lace on I was overjoyed to see this, I`ve got bags and bags of lace. Both SA and ZC are
selling the bags for around 30.000 which is a good price. All three people at SA got orders for more, also at ZC. Two great things had happened when I re-met this club. Club been given a good Singer from an ex missionary and Marta been given a good machine for home by Sharon – so all feeling really good.
Not many people have finished their skirts but this is okay. Better that they practice on the bags and then return with more confidence to the skirt. In their minds this a tall order and they lack the time to concentrate on the zip. I’m sure we’ll get an opportunity to go back to this. Miriam, the lady Jude helped with the zip, has finished hers. Marie, an older lady with a machine that she fought with through not knowing it, is now making miles of sheets for her home and completely happy. Everyone has come a long way. Most are now happy on modern machines. Juana, who had never really sewed with an electric or any machine is now making bags on a Janome at the club. She was given a 1946 treadle converted to electric which is okay but heavy going. Today I took her the Lervia from SL – a modern machine which sews beautifully but the bobbin winder has packed up. We discovered she can wind the bobbins on 1946 and sew on the Lervia! David O has been saying for a while that the way forward could be machines at home (as reinforcers for those at the club) and this year that looks as if it is the way forward.
Breakthrough in self-sustaining/donation scheme
For ages been wondering how to handle cloth donations with clubs making things to raise money for church ministries where the participants themselves are poor and not making ends meet. In SA it’s been unclear for a long time and caused personal difficulties. Yesterday we hit on a scheme – a cloth bank. We can provide some cloth of certain types for the clubs to make what they can make to sell for their ministries and other cloth (prob for bags) at a reduced price for the participants to buy to make bags at home, now that most have machines at home. Teresa`s daughter (SA) knows a good shop in Petirossi which sells good bag material cheaply. Sally, Teresa and I hope soon to make a round trip to visit this shop, the Pilar off cuts place and a great place further away which has a brilliant wool selection because we all want to knit more and wool or similar is not common here. It will be great to go with others because more heads are better than one any day.
Chaco, Rio Verde
Jeny and Sue McCaul launched sewing with 2-3 women, 2 Paraguayan and one Indian, and Marie (now more confident on her own machine) and Ed will talk to them about how to take this forward. All things worked together for good here, in spite of, and in the long run as we’ve seen with the two clubs above, the tough bit about turning women away this time. Their time will come and it will bring blessing and growth for them as it has for the two clubs above.
Caroline’s Wycliffe Skirt
When I’d finished my skirt and it was all perfect according to Wycliffe rules, I couldn’t work out why I didn’t really like it. Then I saw a photo of the model Twiggy in a short skirt and jacket and got my answer. I’ve got legs (below the knee a bit) and I can do a Twiggy with them, if I have a good pair of skirt shoes (taking a leaf out of Christine`s book) .- so, another middle of the night job, I pinned up inches of the hem till it was the Twiggy height and hey presto, it looked better. I just have to take it in at the sides a bit and then re-draw my Wycliffe pattern and then I can go off for eternity making Twiggy skirts.
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Thank you all of you so much for all the support and encouragement and effort and sacrifice you gave to make all this possible. Sally B is hugely encouraged, the long run up (Moira – you’ve been part of this) has led to this and we couldn’t have skipped any of that – that’s the Lord’s way and training.
God bless and lots of love, Caroline
Pray for everyone involved and especially the engineers in Chile have begun drilling the rescue shaft through which they hope to eventually free the 33 men trapped in a collapsed mine. The miners have been stuck 2,300ft underground for the past three weeks.
Pray for Bishop Peter and Sally Bartlett as they pastor a church in Paraguay and help leaders and potential leaders to mature in faith. Pray for all who teach God’s Word, that they themselves may be teachable, and for each member of the church to understand the spiritual battle they are engaged in and to use the spiritual resources God has given.
Pray for Teodosio Rivas and assistant Donald Brooks, working together in the diocesan administration, for wisdom in the setting of priorities. Teo is also Provincial treasurer for the Southern Cone. Thank God for gifting him to serve the church in this way.
Lift to the Lord the two schools, St Andrew’s and the Annexe: head teachers, staff, pupils and parents. Pray for good relationships between parents and teachers, and for parents to learn new parenting skills through special classes. Pray that high academic standards and clear Christian teaching may be maintained.
Pray for the work of Gloria and Ana as they lead FEISA, that they will be granted the Holy Spirit’s anointing as they head up the training of teachers for early years. Thank God for Ruth Maidana’s secretarial help, which has speeded up documentation on the academic side.
Ronald and Nicky Irene praise God for his faithfulness and provision. Pray for Ronald in his role as chaplain in St Andrew’s School, helping with Sunday services and also studying, for wisdom and discernment and good time management. Remember Nicky as she teaches and their family, all pupils in St Andrew’s.