01 May Beyond Boston: Eternal Issues in Dagestan and Chechnya

Jeff Bleijerveld, Director of Global Ministries

In the aftermath of the Boston Marathon bombings, we have been hearing about brothers Dzhokhar and Tamerlan Tsarnaev and their connection to Dagestan and Chechnya. Apart from being places we have heard little about, what we are learning is that they are centers of Islam with radicalized pockets under pressure to conform to the dictates of Russia.

What we don’t hear in the news is that praying groups have “taken into their hearts” (persistently and long-term) 31 of the 34 unreached peoples of Dagestan and the 11 unreached peoples between Chechnya and Adygheya. Among them are groups of evangelicals from Russia who have mobilized their people to live in the Caucuses and share with them the Jesus of the Bible–not the Western Jesus, not the Russian Jesus, but the Jesus who came to set Chechens free.

According to Mission Frontiers, 13 of 45 language groups are legitimately engaged with various phases of intentional, cross-cultural efforts toward disciple-making movements. Fruit comes from “work produced by faith, labor prompted by love, and endurance inspired by hope in our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Thessalonians 1:3).

Still, 32 unreached peoples in Dagestan, Chechnya, and Ingushetia remain painfully isolated from God’s blessings of messengers, the message, and [Christ-focused] communities.

While the CIA and other international intelligence agencies go about their work of trying to make the world a safer place, God is at work transforming nations and peoples in ways no human effort could ever imagine.

As you listen to the news, don’t forget to pray.

25 Apr Update on the Dave and Cathie Datema Family

Participants in the Ekballo Fast.

Dave and Cathie Datema serve with the US Center for World Mission in Pasadena, Calif. Dave is general director of Frontier Mission Fellowship, an umbrella organization for the US Center and other organizations.

Dave participated in a 40-day “Ekballo Fast,” March 1 – April 9, to launch the Antioch House of Prayer. “Ekballo” is the Greek word meaning “thrust out” that Jesus used when instructing his disciples to pray that the Lord of the harvest would “ekballo” laborers into the harvest field.

Dave Datema preaching on the final day of the fast.

Dave writes, “The fast was used to launch the house of prayer that will increasingly attract, nurture, and train young people to pray for unreached peoples and even go as missionaries. This is a collaborative effort and so far has been a big success. I loved the intense worship and prayer times and lost 20 pounds to boot! The Antioch House of Prayer is led by Lou Engle and another couple that facilitate things. They also have 5 dynamic young couples who will be the senior leaders and mentors to the many young people that will come for internships in the weeks and months ahead. We believe that many changes took place among unreached peoples as a result of our prayers during the fast, and we are trusting that God will use this house of prayer to continue to break strongholds for Kingdom advance. Coincidentally, April 9 is my birthday!”

Dave Datema preaching on the 40th day of the Ekballo Fast.

Financial support has become a concern for Dave and Cathie Datema, as it is with many other missionaries. They write: “We are in a financial pinch these days. When we arrived in Pasadena in 1999, we had only two children. Thirteen years later and without the usual furloughs that missionaries use to increase support, the added expense of a larger family with children involved in various activities, as well as increased rent and health insurance costs, has made its presence felt. If you are not presently on our support team as a donor and God has blessed you, we are in real need of additional funds (see info below). Dave is now giving serious attention to raising up new donors for our ministry here. Please pray for these efforts. Meanwhile, for those of you who are part of our team, THANK YOU for your generosity!

The Datema family.

Some general updates about the family:

• Cuyler continues to have occasional seizures, which we are able to stop with medication. He has monthly grand mal seizures. We continue to trust God to fulfill his purposes for Cuyler, for His glory.
• Callie is training to compete in Irish Dance on a team of 8 girls in the North American Championship in early July in Anaheim, Calif. Her team began special conditioning at a CATZ athletic training facility on Monday nights, to continue for 10 weeks.
• Jill was awarded the “gratefulness” character award at school this month. She is practicing to be on the girls flag football team.
• Cathie joined 24 ladies on a retreat in Big Bear, Calif., with other women from our organization. Our speaker helped us to consider spending more time practicing the discipline of silence while listening to God.

24 Apr VBS Project for 2013

The Global Ministries Vacation Bible School Project for 2013 focuses on two areas of ministry in Jamaica.

Brumalia High School. This school is located on the campus of Regent College of the Caribbean in Mandeville. Most of the student have had problems in their lives—difficult home situations, trouble with the law–and other schools asked them to leave. For some, Brumalia is their last resort.

At Brumalia, they are taught basic subjects and also learn a trade, such as plumbing, welding, or agriculture. To become certified in their trade, they must take a written examination. Most of the student lacks good reading skills, so they struggle with the exam. Most read at perhaps the equivalent of a second or third grade level. They pass the hands-on part of the exam, but not the written.

We want to help with their reading skills. Funds raised through the VBS project will enable Brumalia to buy and teach a reading program to the students.

Children’s Literature. We will partner with Jamaica Conference to provide VBS and Sunday school materials for children. Most of the churches can’t afford to buy materials. So they either do without, or they use the same materials they’ve been using for up to 20 years. Sometimes the materials are so old that they can’t even be photocopied without falling apart.

We want to provide materials to help in the Christian education of children in our Jamaican churches.

Here’s what your VBS can do.

1. Encourage your children to give to both of these projects.

2. Donate any new or gently used VBS and Sunday school materials your church may have. Send them to the Global Ministries office in Huntington, Ind. We will then ship them to Jamaica. (Materials can be given at any time throughout the year.)

For photos, more information concerning these two projects, and ideas for introducing the projects to your children, please go to the Global Ministries website. You’ll also be able to download a PDF version of the poster on the right.

24 Apr Roger Reeck Undergoes Surgery

Roger Reeck, a Global Ministries endorsed staff in Honduras, underwent surgery on Wednesday morning, April 24, on his left ankle. Roger and his wife, Marilyn, serve with Wycliffe Bible Translators.

Twelve years ago Roger fractured his left ankle, and pins and other hardware were inserted. But of late, he has suffered a lot of pain. Xrays now show that two pins on the inner side of the ankle were out of place and almost protruding through the skin.

Last week Roger visited the American surgeon at a mission hospital where his daughter Chrysti works, with the plan that the two pins be removed. But after the doctor consulted with others, he decided that all of the metal–the plate, screws and the pins–should be removed.

This surgery happened Wednesday morning, April 24. Marilyn reported: “The operation went well, lasting around three hours. All the metal was successfully removed from the ankle area. One of the screws was difficult to find because it was embedded in a bone. These screws were putting pressure on a tendon sheath and a nerve. The doctors are hopeful that this will relieve a lot of the pain. Since the operation happened at a mission hospital, there were no costs involved and an extra bonus was that our daughter Chrysti assisted.”

Roger will stay with Chrysti for a while before moving back back to his home in La Ceiba.

Roger had planned to travel to Columbia on Wednesday to spend a few days checking a Bible translation for a group there, and then meet up with Marilyn in Venezuela, where she was leading a Multiplication One Story workshop. Roger’s travel plans were of course cancelled. Marilyn postponed her trip for a few days, but will soon head to Venezuela for the workshop. While she is gone, Chrysti will be able to periodically check on Roger in La Ceiba.

16 Apr Workers Needed in July for Jamaica Camp Building

The new dormitory at Malvern Camp, though unfinished, was used during Jamaica National Conference this spring.

Dwight and Patti Kuntz will return to Jamaica on July 2 and would like to take a small work team with them specifically to do some finishing work on the first floor of the dormitory building at Malvern. They need a team of 5-6 people for the week of July 2 – 9. The work will include tiling floors, installing fixtures in bathrooms, and other work.

Though the building is not yet completed, it was used to house pastors at the annual conference in March of this year. The photo above shows the project as it stands now.

14 Apr Observing a Surgery at Mattru Hospital

Dr. Martin Salia performing hernia surgery on a young boy.

In the surgery room.

Jeff Bleijerveld, Director of Global Ministries

While at Mattru Hospital during my visit to Sierra Leone in February 2013, I was given permission to observe a surgery. They gave me a surgical gown to wear, and set up a chair in case I needed to sit down.

The surgeon was Dr. Martin Salia, a Sierra Leonean doctor who comes from a United Brethren background. He works at a hospital in Freetown, the capital city, but came to Mattru for strategic planning meetings about the future of Mattru Hospital.

He was assisted by Mr. French, another Sierra Leonean. Mr. French is just a handyman, not a medical doctor, but seems to be quite skilled at surgery. Before the civil war, he assisted Dr. Ron Baker in numerous surgeries, and he continued his involvement in surgeries during and after the civil war.

They told me they would be doing hernia surgeries. I learned that hernia surgery is the most frequent surgery performed at Mattru. I asked about it, and was told that there seems to be a genetic weakness for hernias among the Mende people.

I expected the patient to be an adult, but it turned out to be a little boy, just a year old, who was screaming his head off. He had a hernia the size of a softball. The little guy was from a village, and was terrified; he’d probably never been out of his mother’s sight. Now he was being brought into this operating room with bright lights and strange people wearing masks—all new to him.

Then, when they laid him on the table, he saw me, a white guy with blue eyes. He may have never seen a white person before. That did it. Quickly, the anesthesiologist said, “Let’s put him under ASAP.” They did.

The surgery was quite amazing thing to watch. All of the staff were Sierra Leoneans. Christian worship music played in the background. Before any incision was made, everybody stopped what they were doing and gathered around while Dr. Salia led them in prayer.

Also in the room were five student nurses. They assisted to a small degree, but mainly just watched. I was told that student nurses regularly attend surgeries. They brought a chair or me, in case I became lightheaded and needed to sit down, but student nurses ended up using it.

The surgery went well. They said the boy would be running around the village within a couple of days.

12 Apr Sierra Leone: a Major Outreach to a Muslim Group

Jeff Bleijerveld (left) and Bishop Phil Whipple (second from left) with Sierra Leone leaders and workers.

Jeff Bleijerveld, Director of Global Ministries

During the coming weeks, Sierra Leone National Conference will conduct a month of outreach into the Pujehun Region and Liberia. This is primarily a Sunni Muslim area. The outreach will be led by Rev. Peter Kainwo, the conference director of Evangelism and Church Planting.

The outreach will include 16 days of Jesus Film presentations, plus community visitation among six communities of the Vai People.

In preparation, Sierra Leone Conference will conduct two days of training with 19 participants in soul winning, discipleship, and household evangelism. There will also be two days of follow-up and fact-finding for future outreach in Liberia.

Those participating are United Brethren members who have relocated their families to this border region in order to participate in planting new churches. Bishop Phil Whipple, Donna Hollopeter, and I had the opportunity to spend time with this amazing group of pioneer evangelists this past February.

11 Apr Getting Acquainted with Dr. Martin Salia

Jeff Bleijerveld, Director of Global Ministries

In February, I visited Sierra Leone to participate in strategic planning regarding Mattru Hospital. Also participating in those meetings was Dr. Martin Salia (right), a very skilled surgeon who works at a hospital in Freetown.

Martin comes from a United Brethren background. In the 1990s, Sierra Leone Conference sent Martin to Burkina Faso to participate in extensive training designed for producing medical missionaries. Every student was set up with a mentor. Martin was mentored by a missionary doctor with years of experience. The idea was not just developing Martin into a good surgeon, but into a follower of Christ.

The Sierra Leone Conference helped support Martin with this training, with the understanding that he would return to work at Mattru Hospital. But then the civil war occurred, and the hospital fell into chaos and disrepair. While decisions were being processed about whether or not to take him on at Mattru Hospital, Martin landed a job at the Kissie Hospital in Freetown.

Working at the same hospital is Dr. Dennis Marke, who previously worked at Mattru Hospital. Both Dr. Marke and Dr. Salia made tremendous contributions to the strategic planning, since they understand what makes an effective missions hospital.

03 Apr Teaching Position with Global Ministries

Global Ministries is looking for someone to teach elementary school children in a creative access country during the coming school year. If you have teaching experience and/or a TESOL degree, we invite you to join God’s work in this way. This paid teaching position with housing is available for at least one year. If interested, contact Frank Y in Global Ministries.