Pictures From Recent Conference

It's been a while since I've posted pictures. Here are a couple from our Scripture Union Conference in December 2009.

Below are some South Sudan youths at the conference. The conference took place at the YTTC Campus in Yei.




Joyfull Worship and Praise celebration of Youths and Others



More photos soon!

Danger on Our Doorsteps

I'm safely back in Nairobi, having been evacuated from Pibor, S. Sudan this past Wednesday, February 11th after the Murle town of Lekwangole, only thirty miles from us, was attacked and captured by Nuer cattle raiders: men and women were killed, girls were kidnapped, and the property of the 2 NGO's one the ground was destroyed.

While I don't believe I was in imminent danger, most of our Murle brothers and sisters felt differently. For on Monday, March 9th, the morning planned for closing the training, Lucy and I were the only two women to be seen: all the others, even the elderly, had ran to the bush for safely. All the men we saw passing our compound had either long sticks, spears or guns. As the teachers trickled into the compound to greet us, one of them said reassuredly: "Don't worry madam; I shall protect you." He spoke as a fearless warrior to be sure, but in reality, everyone was intensely concerned whether the raiders would come to Pibor or would they seek out the cattle camps where the balance of the cattle were located?

With all of our cooks hiding in the bush, we postponed the elaborate closing we'd intended and instead, held a prayer meeting under the big tree that provided us with the shade we so needed to conduct our classes from after 11:00am to 5:15. Five teachers, Lucy and I prayed.

They had just learned the song, "My God is so big, so strong and so mighty, there is nothing my God cannot do." They'd sing it throughout the day; thus, it was no surprise that as I stood top pray, it was these words the Holy Spirit brought to my heart. As I spoke, sang them, I also acted out the words. The teachers, some armed with their sticks looked at me, smiled and began to talk/sing the words of this little song; they began to act out the words too, and as we sang together our one our child-like confession of faith in Almighty Jehovah to keep us, we all felt the atmosphere of fear that was hovering over us lifted. As we sang and concluded in prayer, we knew deeply that our God was indeed so big, so strong and so mighty, there was nothing that He could not do, including keeping each of us and our family members safe from the attacking Nuer cattle raiders.

On Tuesday morning, they all returned and we held a more subdued, but no less elated completion, where upon receiving their participation certificate, each teacher held it high above his head, while the seated others shouted their approval. When we traveled later that afternoon to the airstrip to be picked by the AIM flight that would evacuate us, many of them were there to see us off…

As ever, I can't thank you enough for continuing in prayer for us in Southern Sudan, that come what may, the peace of our Lord Jesus would reign in our hearts into all of our relationships, that His kingdom may come on earth in S. Sudan as it is in heaven, amen

In the Body of Christ, Ingrid

Update on My Return Home

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

It was over a month ago that I wrote asking you to please be in prayer with me, for my dad and family, as I'd just learned that he'd been diagnosed with advanced bone cancer…At the time, I wasn't even sure I'd arrived home in time to see him alive…

Thanks to all of your prayers, I arrived safely in Oakland, California in early November, and will most likely be here until mid-January, 2009. I had been planning to be in Oakland this Christmas anyhow, from Dec. 22nd - Jan. 15th, so that I could be here to celebrate mom's 80th birthday on January 12th. ' Dad's illness just brought me back a little earlier…

Thanks to all of your prayers, dad is making a valiant and most grace-full fight for his life. So far, he's had two "successful" operations to repair his left shoulder and right hip bones that had fractured because they'd become so fragile… And just this past week, he's begun radiation therapy, to last three weeks, till around the 7th of January. His has a large tumor on his spine, and on his hip and shoulder and in his skull…

YET, he keeps insisting he "feels" no cancer in him, and he "feels" no death in himself! His attitude is miraculously upbeat with everyone he meets! It is as if he's becoming a "new man" right before our eyes! Surely, this could only be so because of the work of the Holy Spirit of our Lord Jesus in his heart, amen!

My mom has also not been well (congestive heart failure), and for awhile when dad's condition had seemed to deteriorate, hers had also taken a turn for the worse; indeed, she told us clearly that if he died, she did not want to live, and that she's never wanted to be the one to have bury him…

I cannot thank you sufficiently for praying for us…I know it is because of your prayers that both mom and dad are struggling to live and be here on this side of the river of life, for just little while longer…My prayer requests at this time are as follows:

• A truly lovingly gracious heart towards my parents and family…
• For me to be a true blessing (in words and in deeds, equally) to my sisters as they most stand in need of salvation and in other ways in their troubled lives…
• For the surpassing peace of our dear Lord Jesus to saturate my parent's hearts at this time…
• For dad to have a healing/positive response to the radiation therapy that has begun…
• For all to go smoothly and affordably with the funeral/cemetery arrangements we are seeking to put in place for both mom and dad…
• For my sisters, brothers, nieces, nephews to be at peace and rise to the occasion gracefully, whatever the occasion may be, and may they come wholly to Christ during this time…
• For me, much energy and strength and deeply abounding health to keep up this amazing pace physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually…
• And for wisdom and clear leading regarding my travel plans to return to Nairobi/Southern Sudan in January…

Thank you all so very much for your loving support at this time…

May you each enjoy the deep joy of Immanuel this Christmas, and I pray much more of His presence with you now, and in the coming New Year 2009, amen.

In the Great Love of our Lord Jesus, Ingrid