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August 26 Prayer RequestPrayer Partners, Thirty days and counting down till my return to Sudan and answering God’s call to the Nuba Mts. I would like to report to you that everything is right on my plan but it is not. But I am more confident than ever that everything is exactly as God has it planned. (Isaiah 55:8-9) I have greater peace in the preparation for, and the execution of this trip than anything I have ever done. I believe that is because I have truly turned it over to Jesus, maybe for the first time in my life. This trip is so far outside of my ability to plan, prepare and execute that it has to be God, it can not be me. I am just a tool in His hand, and a tool need not worry about how it is going to be used. The need for a prayer covering is greater than we have ever experienced. Glenda and I are asking everyone that we know to keep us in their prayers on a daily basis, beginning today the 26th of August through the 31st of October. The one thing I know, that I know, that I know is that God is calling me to the Nuba Mts. and I am very sure that this is the time. If you look at circumstances you probable would not see that. I have not been able to make contact with my primary traveling partner and contact in Uganda since June. He was suppose to make some arrangements, check on transportation schedules and costs to move to team from Yei to the Nuba Mts. I don’t know how we are going to get there but I know Jesus does.
Once again I have some specific prayer requests.
If you receive more than one copy of this prayer request I apologize. We are sending it out several ways and there might be some overlap. Please feel free to tell others of our prayer needs and ask them to pray for all of us to be dedicated servants of our Lord Jesus. In Christ’s love Bob and Glenda RiesAugust 05 Answering God's call In Oct. of 2007 God made it very clear to me that He was calling my wife and I to preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ not only in Sudan but in a very remote part of Sudan. For almost a year we have been working to that goal. In the June entry I listed some very important prayer requests,one of them was for God to supply the resources needed for this trip. I have had several people ask me about specific cost, so I am going to list the financal needs of this trip, which by the nature of the trip is higher than usual.
1) Airfare to Uganda $1800.00
2) Travel expenses Uganda to Sudan $250.00
3) Travel expenses from Yei to Juba
for the rest of team 5 people $500.00
4) Airfare from Juba to destination
for 5 people (4 pastors & guide) $2500.00
5) Food and housing for 5 people for 2weeks $1000.00
6) Money for Ministry $2000.00
Please be in prayer for all the needs listed in the June entery. May Jesus Christ continue to bless you. July 30 July 2008 Report Hi y'all. Yeah I know I wrote earlier this month but...I don't know, I just feel like getting this out now. As I mentioned in the last entry we did stay home. The Lord has blessed us tremendously during the time, but HE has also challenged us. We got to share during three services as well as eight individual get togethers. God continues to bring new brothers and sisters into our life. Then teaches us things thru their testimonies and stories. Even tho Bob says he hates yard sales he did a three day sale and God brought lots of people. One of the things Bob hates so much is the pricing of each item then having people argue with him. So he prevented that from happening by telling everyone that they could have anything for a donation that would go to sponsor our ministry in Sudan. Then he gave them information about Jesus Wept and Sudan for Christ. A couple of people said they would be interested in having us visit their church to talk about Sudan. We are praying God will open those doors for us. While we stayed home this month we were planning to do some traveling in August. But the contacts we made didn't develope. We are trusting that God has a reason for it working out this way. We praise God for answer to prayers and appreciate you interceding for us. Our ministry trips coming up is to Mexico in September, then Bob going to the Nuba Mountains in October, back to Mexico for the Big Feed in December and finally to Uganda in June '09. As always we are inviting you to come with us to the Big Feed the week between Christmas and New Years. But the Uganda trip will be the first time God has called us to lead a group to Africa. Tenative plans call for us leaving Monday June 1st and arriving back no later than June 12th. The cost, based on prices right now would be about $2500. If you are interested contact us for further information. July 02 June 2008 ReportWhen we got home from Africa we had just one week before we were traveling again. My family had a reunion in St. Louis but we spent the night with Bob's brother, Randy and went to church with them. Then we spent a few days in Springfield with my parents and helped them work in their basement. On our way to our planned ministry assignment we stopped in OK to visit with missionary friends Bart and Sherry Effinger. Since we have spoken at their church before Bart challenged Bob by giving him five minutes in the podium Sunday morning. He said it took eight, but it was the smoothest presentation I have ever heard Bob give. I wish it had been taped! After lunch we left for KS to meet with Lone Cherry Southern Baptist Church to go with them to camp. It was Bob's first time to camp as an adult and he was the Missionary speaker. Once again he did a great job presenting the info...the kids could relate but the adults weren't bored. Finally we get to Pryor OK and the home of missionary friends Jerry and Barbara Delacerda. They had introduced us to their pastor the last time we visited and were invited back for Bob to share his testimony. He was greatly encouraged by the Sunday evening attendance. We were told by many people that they were blessed by his testimony, but the Lord used them to bless us, also. God brought many people into our lives the whole two and a half weeks, and used each one to bless us in very special ways. By Monday morning, the last day of the month, we are worn out and ready for a long rest at home. So here we are and it looks like we will be staying in Millington for a month or so.
Confession time!!! I was supposed to send out the following letter as soon as we were back from Africa. But I always say "God made it work out this way for a reason."
We are writing this letter to you from Kampala, Uganda after having been in Africa for 29 days. This is our last full day in Uganda and then we will be traveling back to the US. The Lord has worked in miraculous ways while we have been here, and we want to share with you some of the many blessings we have received. 1st of all is that God worked out all the details of this trip from financing, to timing, to where and when we would preach or serve Him. We had little or no advanced plans of how we would be used. Several of the Sunday School classes at our home church (Crosspointe Baptist in Millington, TN.) colleted money or specific materials for this missions journey. The teenage girls class collected Footballs (Soccer). We would give them out where we would share about the love of Jesus. I always made sure that the children / young people knew that it was the love of Jesus, that the Message and the Soccer balls represented was the key point. Another class provided ink and photo paper so that prints could be given to people. We used this as a means to share Jesus and invite people to church on Sunday, they picked up their portraits after the service. That Sunday we had at least fifty visitors to the service. An extra blessing was that I got to teach and preach that Sunday at that church, the New Generation Tabernacle Church at Sudan for Christ. I could write a book on how God moved in preparing for this trip as well as during this missionary journey. In order to shorten the explanations I will summarize and ask you to contact me and I will explain in detail. We spent approximately 1 week in Uganda and 3 weeks in Sudan. During that time we spoke at 9 different locations, including 6 churches, 2 schools, 1 children’s home and I helped teach in the Sudan for Christ Bible School. All of which was beyond my ability, only through Jesus Christ was any of what was done possible. During these services we saw Jesus work in a powerful way, greater then 100 people ask Christ into their hearts. In Africa many times the only answer is prayer; no doctors, no food, no money for their children’s school. So we always take time to pray with people, to lift up their need to Jesus. God allowed us to work with at least 4 different ministries, 1) Sudan for Christ 2) Across Ministries 3) Kingdom Mission Ministries International in Uganda 4) Hisickles International Missions from Nigeria, I know that this experience blessed Glenda and I. I believe that we in turn blessed and supported those ministries. There are three young Sudanese that I have worked with in the past and God continues to draw us close together. The 1st is Tom a local pastor in Yei, he is married and has three boys, ages 11, 7, and 2 yrs old. The 2nd is a young high school student, Anthony 23yrs old, we have committed to pay for his schooling over the next two years and mentor via email over the internet. And the 3rd person’s name is Kuku Mahadi also a high school student 24 yrs old, a former Muslim who‘s family lives in the NUBA MTS. We have also committed to pay for his schooling over the next two years and will mentor him via the internet. The most amazing thing to happen to me since asking Jesus into my heart, started last Sept. when I felt Him calling me to minister in the NUBA MTS. I know He is calling me, even though it doesn’t make sense, at least to me. All I had was a calling, no plans. But on this trip God has put together His plan and His team. We are moving foreword with plans to go to the NUBA MTS in Oct. 2008.
There are many people that helped us (Glenda and I) make the trip to Africa in May, and we are forever grateful. Before this trip, I wasn’t absolutely sure that God was calling us to minister here. Maybe it was just a short term, Christian work (adventure). But now I am certain that God is calling us to work here, in a substantial and long term way.
So it is time to ask everyone we know and those that we haven’t met yet to Partner with what God is doing in Sudan and Uganda through Jesus Wept International. This includes daily prayer as well as a financial commitment. We are asking that you would pray and ask God if you are to partner with us (God, Glenda and I) in this work. If the answer is yes we are asking for a 12 month commitment of whatever amount God lays on your heart. We believe that God has opened the door for us, Jesus Wept Int’n, to bring others to minister in Uganda and Sudan. Our plan is for this huge step to take place in May 2009 with a ten day trip to Uganda to preach the Gospel, evangelize and minister to less fortunate.
Daily prayer needs
1) Continued peace in Sudan and Uganda.
2) That God will continue to use Sudan for Christ & Jesus Wept Int’n. to lift up the name of Jesus.
3) For Pastor Stanley, his wife Vicki and his children Debra and Daniel.
4) For Esther and her family, a great Christian lady and prayer warrior that works at Sudan for Christ, who has a very hard life.
5) For Pastor Tom and his family.
6) For Anthony and Kuku.
7) For Kuku’s safety and God’s protection, as a Muslim converted to Christianity his life will be in danger when he returns to Nuba Mts with us.
8) For Glenda and I that we will continue to seek God’s Face, listen to His voice and be obedient to His will.
9) That we will trust God to provide the people and resources to do the work He has called us to do.
June 06 We Are HomeYes, we are home and I don't know where to begin. No there isn't anything wrong to report. I am just having trouble figuring out what to write about. Okay I'm ready! Saturday morning we got up with everything already packed and ready to be carried out. Esther said Bob could leave but she wanted me to stay, I told her I wanted to put her in my suitcase and take her with me. Pastor Stanley called to confirm the schedule for the flight from Yei to Kampala and was told it was going to be late. So instead of boarding the plane at 10 we wouldn't be leaving Sudan for Christ property until then. The distance is less than 10 miles but the time will take more than 30 min. After several final goodbyes and prayers, we get into the same Range Rover that picked us up but with a different driver. The plane was still another two hours late. Then we got in the air and the excitement mixed with a little sadness set in. I was really ready to come home but I have fallen in love with the people. God's people are so wonderful, it it hard for me to leave them behind. Anyway we got to Uganda and Pastor Nathaniel was faithfully waiting for us even tho his church was having an important meeting. Sunday morning we arrived at his church and was welcomed, so they didn't hold it against us. We really enjoyed the adult chior, I hope the pictures will give you a good impression of their efforts. Bob had the podium after the children gave a wonderful presentation in song. The rest of the Lord's day was spent in rest. Monday started off slow but picked up progessively when Bob and Pastor Nathaniel sat down and started discussing the details for the Nuba Mnt trip. Bob had so many loose ends and unknowns that God filled in thru Pastor Nathaniel that we went away from the meeting with such excitement you would have thought they were leaving next week. Then we went out for a late lunch at a very nice Korean restaurant. (pictures!) On the way home we stopped at a book store for a city map. Now I know my way around Kampala. Bob had mentioned to Pastor Nathaniel that he would like to go to the beach of Lake Victoria or someplace along the water. So on Tuesday we went to one of the outer suburbs to a very exclusive English resort. It was very beautiful - and expensive - and interesting. (more pictures) On the way back we stopped at an Ethiopian restaurant for another late lunch. Back at the hotel we had time to fellowship with the young lady that is the head staff member. She is a christian and is engaged to be married in August to a young pastor who is in England, so we didn't get to meet him. She plans to leave her job but will be in contact with us via internet. I finished the day off with repacking the suitcases, again. Even tho our flight wasn't leaving until 10:30 pm we planned to leave Kampala around noon. Pastor Nathaniel picked us up and we headed south toward the airport but took a few mile detour to the beach. We had another late lunch at a wonderful beachside establishment that specialized in fish - whole fish! (wait till you see this picture) After a nice long leisurely afternoon we stopped at another beachside area in Entebbe, just a few min from the airport. By this time I am ready to just get there, but Pastor Nathaniel has been a true blessing to us, so I kept my thoughts to myself and let him entertain us. At the airport we didn't have any delay with getting checked in or getting thru secruity. Bob had already put some thought into what these two long days was going to be like. He was going to sleep as much as possible on the flight to Amsterdam so he could stay wake till we got home. Well he managed that pretty well but I couldn't sleep but about 30 min. When we got to Amsterdam I was tired but still couldn't sleep more than a few min at a time. Bob was patient with me as we walked around, browsing thru the airport shops. Then we got checked in to our flight to Memphis and in comes a young mother with a 6 month old. I couldn't resist giving the baby some attention. I find out her husband is stationed with the Army in Germany and she is taking the baby home for the family to meet for the first time. We were able to help her get settled in to her seat and I told her if she needed any help or just wanted a break during the flight we were only ten rows back. I hoped I wouldn't be asleep if she needed me but figured she might make it fine. As it turned out she brought the baby to me a couple of times then I stopped to talk to her once when I was up walking around. At that time we were only half way and the baby hadn't slept. God had arranged for the seats across the isle from her to be empty so I spent the next two hours with the baby. I finally bored her to sleep and she slept about an hour and 15 min. Unfortunately the mom could get comfortable enough to sleep. After I went back to my seat I thought I might sleep but couldn't get comfortable enought to do more than just doze a few min. But I perked up and spent the last couple hundred miles looking out the window - the clouds finally broke and I could actually see the ground. And then we were on the ground and so close to home. It was time for the mixed feeling again - good to be home but my new friends were so far away. Okay that is enough. I will now get busy with the pictures. I hope you will enjoy them even tho they will be all bunched together. God's blessing to you all. May 30 Heading HomeWell we leave Sudan in about 12 hours. The last two days have been special. Thursday morning we rode motorbikes to the Children's Home. While there I shared my testimony. The kids range in age from 5 to 14 so I think they all understood. Anyway when the translator asked if anyone want to say the prayer all the hands went up. I let him lead them in prayer and I prayed that they were sincere and not just doing it because we asked them to. Since this is a christian organization I feel confident they will be encouraged to grow and lead a Christ centered life. Pastor Stanley has been out of town since Wednesday so I hope to have a chance to tell him about it in the morning before we leave. When we got back from the Children's Home we went out to lunch with the friend of the ministry that gave us a ride to the market the last week. He was in town for business and knew we were leaving soon. I look forward to telling you all about him when we get together. I had to iron one more time. Then the Bible study class finished up with Bob teaching the last lesson. It had rained right before class time so only about half the class showed up. They ended with a little refreshement and fellowship time. At about 4 this morning a storm blew in and Bob had to get up and close the shutters of the windows. While he was doing that I felt some drops of rain falling thru the mesquito net on me. So I pushed my mattress off on the floor and I crowded over on Bob's bed. We both tried real hard to go back to sleep but it didn't work. So he got up and did his quiet time and I took over his bed. By the time he finished the storm had calmed down and there wasn't anymore leaking so I pulled my dry mattress back up on the frame and gave Bob his bed back. We were both able to sleep for another couple of hours. This morning we didn't have anything planned so Bob walked around the school and took pictures of the kids. The principle, Vickie, gave Bob a list of books they need. After lunch we visited Across Ministry and shared the list with them. Their ministry has publishing at another location so we were able to get a few samples of their material for Vickie. She seemed interested. The rest of the afternoon was spent in the room repacking. We had gotten all the things separated that Bob wants to leave here in storage and that left half our suitcases empty. It will be great not having so many things to keep track of. Okay, this really wraps up my effort to share with you. It has been a challenge for me and I will be interested to get feed back from all of you. As I said in the last entry we probably won't have reliable internet service in Uganda so I will tell you all about the last leg of the trip from home. I am glad God has allowed me to make this trip and used me. I really do pray His blessings on all of you. May 28 Next to the LastThe way I have this figured, there will probably only be time to do one more entry before we leave Yei. The internet was less reliable in Uganda, so I probably won't be able to add anything until we get home. We get in late on the 4th of June. I only have yesterday and today to tell you about. Esther wanted to take me to the supermarket yesterday. She said it would be a long walk. I promised her I would keep going, I didn't know how fast but I wouldn't quit on her. Well we first stopped at the Catholic Hospital which is where Bob visited in October. But she took me to the TB ward. After a short greeting from part of the staff Esther told me to talk to them. I told them why Bob and I are here then I encouraged them to do their work as it says in Ephesians 6:7. Then I told them I did what they are doing for 27 years and understand about working all day then going home and working there. We finished in a circle to pray. Esther wanted me to take pictures and they said it was okay then wanted me to go into two of the wings. There were patients in less than half the bed, mostly dressed. The nurses wanted me to take pictures of the patients. Well after getting each persons permission, I did and then showed them the picture on the digital screen. They all really liked that. At that point I shook hands with them and moved on. One of the first things I noticed was there were both male and female in each ward. No real evidence of separating them or providing privacy. As we were leaving the building there were some men sitting beside one of the wings we didn't go into. They said something to Esther and she stopped me and told me to take a picture of them. I did and then showed them the results and she said something to them and took my arm to move me in the direction of leaving. I asked but she didn't tell me what they said. I didn't sense any trouble but I trusted her. Okay now we get off the compound and she tells me we are going to the river. I say fine. What else could I say. I had already started drinking my bottled water that I brought but wasn't sure where I was going to get some more. With a silent prayer I followed her into a residential area that wound around to the river. Got pics and she is becoming aware of how slow and sweaty I am so she announces "now we go to market". The way out of the neighborhood was different and took some very narrow paths, but we ended up at the opposite end of where we were Saturday. Being the wise woman she is we stopped right away and got me some cool water, then off to gather her purchase. Now I have no sense of what time it is and there aren't any clocks around. But the sun is high and I am feeling the last of my breakfast fading. So when she says we are going to take the motorbikes home I didn't argue. It did occur to me that she referred to the place we were going to go to as the supermarket, but it was the same market as Sat. I figured it didn't matter, I was just glad that I was almost to my room where I could cool off. Well almost, Bob had left and had locked the door. I will survive, just let me sit in the shade and pull off my shoes. Sure enough I was doing fine 15 min. later when he showed up. After a short nap I had lunch then started ironing. I worked up another sweat but told myself I would only have to do it one more time. This morning Bob started breakfast before he woke me up because he was going with two of the young men to their school. They had gotten permission for Bob to speak and he had soccer balls to give to the school. Bob said it was quite a walk and he was told by the administrator that only about a third of the students had returned after the holiday. They estimated between 3 and 400. Then they had approximately 50 decisions at the end. The guys from the ministry were really excited. Anyway while Bob did that this morning I started a small wash so that we will have enough clean clothes to get us home. {I remember how much I appreciated my W/D when we first got back from WOTC, that appreciation is taking on a new dimension} Lastly I started repacking and organizing. Bob got a storage box and is planning to leave as much here as we can. Then we need to make a detailed invetory and a copy. So I will be working on that - on and off - up to Saturday morning probably. Okay I am finished. God bless you. May 26 Happy Memorial DayBob and I were trying to figure out when the holiday was. It is today. So that means that those of you that get your emails at work will have two entries to read. We missed Mother's Day. I love you Mom, every day. Let's see, I left off on Saturday. Well I finally got to go to the market with Esther, our house keeper. It was similiar to the market places we have been only bigger. I took the camera even tho Bob had warned me that I could get into trouble. But he agreed that he trusted Esther to take care of me. To start off we walked out of the ministry gate and it started to rain on us. But God sent a ministry friend along who was on his way to the market to sell his vegetables so he gave us a ride. It stopped raining before we got there so no problem. Within 5 minutes of getting there Esther introduces me to her friend who is a vender and then tells me to take a picture of her with her produce. I asked the lady who was sitting beside her if it was okay, just in case she was in the pic also. Okay with everyone. Then I had to show it to everyone. To keep this short - as promised - I will just say we went thru that three more times without any objections. When she finished the shopping our friend obviously wasn't able to take us home so she hired a friend who has a motorbike to deliver the groceries to the ministry. And we started to walk home. It wasn't bad but I hadn't done much walking since we have been here. Esther took pity on me and walked slow. She pointed out different interesting things but I couldn't take pictures because we were on the street. Needless to say when we got back I went to my room to cool off and rest and promptly fell asleep. She went straight to work on lunch. An hour later Bob woke me up to see if I wanted to eat and Esther had started working on the laundry. She is an extremely hard worker and has patience with me. The afternoon was when I wrote the last entry. Bob was taking pictures and printing them to have them ready to give out after church tomorrow. Sunday we had eggs for the first time. Now I only miss having milk. Bob is preaching this morning. The songs and testimonies and everything that lead up to his time was the same theme as his sermon...is that God or what? I have mentioned that it is the rainy season a couple of times and it was evident today. We started out cloudy and it cleared up and was sunny. Then it clouded up and poured. Bob had set up his camera on the tripod just about two foot out from the church roof. I was assigned the job of starting the video camera when he was getting ready to preach. I videoed about 3 min. and decided I didn't like the angle so moved the camera to the middle isle and about 3 min. later is when it rained. Again, is that God taking care of all the details? Since is was so cloudy the turn out was about half of what we hoped but still a lot of the teenagers came to get their printed pic and so we still had a full house. At the end of the service dozens of people gathered round Bob and wanted their pic taken and printed. He had to tell them that he would take their pic but wouldn't be able to print it this time. He thinks he will be able to accomadate more next time. So after lunch things got really quiet around here. It was a lazy Sunday afternoon just like at home. That gets us up to this morning, Monday, Memorial Day. We had been told the ministry truck would go out to the children's home and bring back more bricks but that changed this morning. Pastor Stanley offered to arrange motorbikes again but I begged off. That worked but Bob warned me that it looks like that may be our transportation if we go out one more time before we leave. I am preparing myself! As that gets worked out Bob asks if I want to go to the market with Esther again. Without much debating I say no. Today is the first day of school for the Sudan for Christ Christian School. I think I mentioned they had been on a month long holiday. During one of our early conversations we were told that the school had 400 plus students. But only half of them came today. They expect the other half tomorrow. I still don't see how they are going to handle that many. Anyway the school only has half day classes. So the kids left before our lunch. The afternoon had its own excitement. The gas powered lawn mower that came in the shipping container was brought out and strarted up. The young man that was assigned the job had never operated a mower before so Bob coached him and demonstrated and walked the areas to pick up. This will be a great blessing for the ministry as long as it is taken care of. We take for granted the machine, riding or pushed, that we use or hire someone to use on our yards. The maintenance and repairs are another thing we take for granted. That will not be the case here in Yei. Then to prove Bob right about getting busy at the end of our stay, we were invited to meet one of our translators family this evening. He lives close, less than a mile. So we only spent about 45 min actually visiting. Then the walk back took a different route and it ended up being a mile back. It looks like I will be getting all my exercise the last week. So I guess that is all. I didn't manage to keep this short did I? Bob says that will prepare all of you for all my talking when we get together. We are praying God continues to bless you all. May 24 Still in SudanWell it is Friday evening and we have just one week left in Sudan then another four days in Uganda. Bob has warned me that things get real busy the last few days. So I am going to try to keep this updated. Maybe I will be able to make shorter entries more often. We'll see. Wednesday Bob spent the morning at Across again to finish checking out their excess monitors. I felt okay but stayed in the room and claimed the promise that everyones prayers were being answered about my stomach bug. I did a few things then would rest. At one point the resting didn't help so I laid down. Next thing I knew Bob was moving around the room. I had fallen asleep but felt better - again. I ate a few bites for lunch and tolerated it well. Bob started a photo project where he takes portait type pictures and is going to make 3X5 prints to give out. With him in and out of the room doing the pictures and then teaching the evening Bible study, I managed to do some ironing. Thursday I could honestly say that I was over the stomach bug, but am eating at least half the amounts I normally do. Wow, do you think I might loose some weight after all? We walked to the internet cafe to see if the pictures would upload better to the webpage. We managed to get two...oh well. Bob took more pictures of people, mostly teenagers, and telling them he will print it and they can pick it up on Sunday after church. Bob is hoping the kids will tell their parents and they will come to have their pictures taken also. Hence encouraging them to be here for the service. Pastor Stanley thinks it is a great idea. In the evening the Bible study class is still going on and Bob taught the ending of his lesson from Wednesday. I was interrupted soon after I started this, then we didn't have signal when I tried to get back to it. Now it is Saturday afternoon. So I am going to finish off Friday and get it posted. Bob had talked to Pastor Stanley about us getting back out to the children's home this week but it just never worked out for everyone. Bob got the okay for us to go out on our own. He talked with one of the young men who translates for us and he was able to go with us to make sure we found it. As we were getting ready to leave after lunch, another translator showed up and went with us. They rode on a motorbike together and hired two more for Bob and I. Oh no, not another bike ride!!! That will be a story I share with you in person. While we were there Bob took pictures of all the kids, brothers and sisters together, or individuals. Both the translators that went with us worked on getting the kids information, names & age. I got to give them hugs whenever they would let me get close. The kids had their lunch while we were there, and I was tempted to ask for a sample. But decided I would be taking a chance I would probably regret. So the worker that had been helping us with the pictures told me that they are serving the food that came in the shipping container, beans and bread. The bread looked more like a huge block of soft white cheese. But I realized they don't have an oven to bake it like we would. So I am sure they are doing the best with what they have to work with. Again, more details when we get together. Okay guess what? I still have to ride a motorbike back! Yeah I know I survived, but am sore today. Well the rest of the day was uneventful which is fine. So now I am going to try to get some pictures for you to see. Thanks for all your prayers. I hope it is evident God is answering them. God bless you all. May 20 4th GreetingsHere I go again. I trully hope you are blessed by reading these entries. But we will have more details when we get with you. Today is Tuesday and since the last entry I have gotten a stomach bug. I am taking the medicine we brought for it but recovery is slow. I hate being sick when none of my favorite people are around to pamper me. So far Bob is strong as ever. Saturday we went to the Across Ministry to have lunch with a couple of Australian missionaries. Their director was there also and he invited us to the Across facility where he lives in the capital city of Southern Sudan. The host couple asked Bob about checking out some computer monitors they have accumulated. God is keeping Bob's schedule interesting. In the late afternoon we watched the choir practice. That was interesting since they dance as much as they sing. Sunday we went to a church, by motorbike, that Bob spoke at six months ago so he was challenged to present a message other than his favorite Is. 55:8-9 with his testimony. He spoke from Acts 16 about Paul and Silas being in God's will even tho they were in jail. And how our life struggles just might be a tool HE is using to further the Kingdom. It was recieved very well - I will try to get those pictures uploaded. The best part of the day was the ride home after church. It started to rain! The driver that Bob was riding with thought he could out run it. Our translator's driver wanted to follow but was told to stay with the bike that I was on. My driver was following the instructions they gave him about being careful with me so the poor guy was getting drenched. I dropped my head to try to keep the rain from saturating my scarf and getting my hearing aids wet. At some point he decided to stop and take cover. I was glad but also a little concerned. As it turns out the translators driver did the same thing and so I was with someone I felt comfortable with. Just as we got undercover the sky opened up and dropped buckets. After about 20 min. the rain had almost stopped so way we went again. By the time we got to the gate of Sudan for Christ Bob was ready with the camera. So we see if that picture comes thru also. After lunch and a short nap we had time with the ministry director, Stanley and his wife Vickie, who is the christian school principal. Bob gave her some teaching aids that is actually for the lower grades so we asked what she needed for the upper grades. She said readers. The kids come back to school on Monday after a three week holiday. Vickie says there are 445 students and 12 teachers - can you imagine? What I am waiting to see is where they conduct those classes. The building that Bob helped finish six months ago only has five room. I can't wait to witness this. Monday was a relatively slow day. We didn't go anywhere but there were people coming and going. One of the Bible study students came in to talk to Bob. She shared with him about her daughter that went away to college that a relative was financing. She didn't say why but the financing stopped and the daughter isn't able to finish her last year. Bob thinks that she wanted him to give her money for her daughter's schooling. Instead he prayed for her and felt that she was disappointed. But she came back for the Bible study class at 5:00. Now in God's infinite wisdom today Bob went to Across ministry to work on the computer monitors and had a chance to share with the missionaries about both the needs we had just heard about the last two days. As it turns out Across has a literature printing ministry that may be able to provide the readers. And they also have some openings for local employment. So Bob was looking forward to sharing that with his student. It really encourages him when he is able to be a tool that God uses to meet HIS children's needs. Okay, this is current to the time we are at now. I just pray the pictures are there for you also. God bless you. May 17 3rd Greetings from SudanGood Saturday morning to you. The morning is just about to start for you and is almost over for us. As you have probably noticed I am not accomplishing my promise to post pictures. But as I already said I will keep trying, so you may be surprised with bunches one time when you check. Let me see if I can pick up where I left off. One thing I didn't mention was that on Monday evening the ministry started a Bible study class to run two hours for thirteen lessons (M-F). Bob is co-teaching so is sitting in all the classes. He is really enjoying it. Wednesday we were told as we were eating our breakfast at 7:45 that everyone was ready to go to the Children's Home. Okay...we are dressed but...grab the soccer ball and frissbee...couple of bottles of water...hats...oops, run to the out house...what else? Well it doesn't matter we can take it next time we go out there. About nine of us pile in the ministry's only reliable transportation - a dump truck - and away we go. They are going to bring back bricks. The children excitedly gathered in the central building which serves as their dinning room but with only one table for serving. After a few minutes of stares and shy hand shakes Bob gave them the soccer ball, oh no we were supposed to bring one for the girls also! They worked it out with the boys playing soccer and some of the girls throwing the frisbee. Everyone had fun. Bro. Stanley showed us the two buildings that are dorms, hopefully the picture will come thru. As we are doing this the other guys are loading the bricks and are ready to bring them back, so we take chairs out under one of the few trees and start giving the kids some individual time. Very few of them understand English, but they all love getting their pictures taken and looking at them on the digital screen. While we were playing with the kids and the truck and half of the workers were gone the other half of workers were preparing a foundation for the shipping container that was on its way. The guys are carrying these logs about the distance of a football field! Anyway, I am sitting there praying that the clothes that were promised,do come because...I am just praying! Before we know it the truck is back, has its next load of brick and is ready to take us back to town. Right away Bob gets the girls soccer ball and gives it to the driver. Thursday was the day I was dreading. I got the laundry back but everything had to be ironed. There are no dryers or clothes lines here. The wet things are hung over the few fences you can get to or laid in the grass. The problem is there is this unique fly that lays its eggs on the wet clothes and in order not to have skin problems when the eggs hatch everything must be ironed. I hate ironing but am doing it! Friday was supposed to be different because it was the Sudaneese Independence Day. The school next door had class but about 10:00 the whole student body marched up to Freedom Square, the town square. The students sang and chanted and played some instuments as they went by and needless to say we didn't understand what all the comotion was about until it was to late to get the camera. A couple of the ministry staff that serves as translators planned to go with us up there when they finished their work. As the afternoon wore on and the wind stopped blowing the entertainment officals decided to have a break till it cooled off. That would have been just an little before the Bible study class was supposed to start. So Bob sent his camera with a couple of the guys, and got pictures anyway. Okay that is all I am going to write, now comes the hard part...trying to up load the pictures. Yes I have prayed about it but for some reason the Lord keeps challenging us with it. God bless and keep praying. May 15 2nd Grettings from SudanPraise the Lord God Almighty. It occurred to me after I finished the first entry that I hadn't mentioned anything about jet lag. Bob doesn't admit it but he is still struggling with his sleep. But all of you know me - I am sleeping well and is actually getting up sometimes just before sunrise or a few min. after. I know it is hard to believe! It is really interesting to notice the British influence in both Uganda and Sudan - money is refered to as shillings (Ug) and pounds (Sud). They drive on the opposite side of the road in Ug and the accents are very British. Here in Yei the traffic is mostly working trucks and motor bikes and they drive where there isn't a huge pot hole. The accents aren't quite as hard for me to understand here, in Ug I couldn't understand anything from anyone. Bob is extremely patient with me wanting him to repeat. The first entry I brought you up to our arrival to Yei airport now I will pick up at our arrival at the Sudan for Christ property. From Bob's pictures of his last trip I had the impression we would be on the edge of the town and the bush. I was wrong, we are on a main road - in an area with fewer pot holes so the traffic is kind of fast. There is a public school immediately to the west of us so there are lots of kids going by. As soon as we got here the kids that Bob got the picture of at the fence, came running to meet him with a couple of extras. (The barb-wire has been stretched so they can get thru real easy) They didn't take to me very well at that time. I think I need to get someone to interpet for me to tell them who I am and about my hearing problem. Bob says there are more people involved with the ministry so there is almost always lots of people coming and going. The housekeeper, Esther, that took such good care of Bob last time was the next person we met. She remembered Bob telling her about my hearing and is willing to slow down and repeat for me. At first she was not inclined to allow me to help her, but in the pictures you will see her letting me work in the kitchen with her. Actually the term kitchen doesn't describe the meager enviroment she has to work with. But the food she prepares and serves us is very good. She is a true blessing not only to us but to the whole Sudan for Christ ministry. Esther made a special effort for us by moving two beds together and getting a mesquito net that enclosed both. (see picture) After settling in a little and having lunch we walked the quarter mile to the other ministry Bob has talked so much about, Across. During the short visit we were invited back next Sat. for a lunch visit. That about covers all the interesting things of our day of arrival. Sunday morning church service was here. The church name is New Generations Tabernacle. (picture) The breeze was wonderful thru the whole service but the glare off the tin roof of the other building gave us a problem with pictures. When they recognized first-time visitors it sounded like an international roll call, Kenyans, Ugandans, Australians, British and Americans. The pastor and ministry director, Brother Stanley, gave a report of his trip from last week and it is evident that the Lord is using Sudan for Christ to be a blessing to others - individuals and churches. The main reason for the trip was to make arrangements for a shipping container to be delivered. The contents will be equivalent to many birthdays and Christmases all rolled into one. There will be food from Feed The Hungry, a church in Indiana is sending clothes and tools, and I can't remember all the other things. I'm just a visitor and I am excited about it getting here. Monday we found out we would be going to the children's home - not orphanage - on Wednesday. So we laid arround and went for a walk and did almost nothing. Esther told me that we wouldn't be able to do laundry until it rained - it is between the dry season and the rainy season. So I went arround praying it would rain. It had been exactly one week since we left home and our supply of clothes was getting low. As always the Lord answered my prayers. So Tuesday I helped with the laundry. (picture) This is getting really long and there is things I want to tell you but can't bring myself to make it longer. So I will close this and try to get the pictures to upload. I pray God is blessing you as much as He is us. May 12 Greetings From SudanI will try to get this done fast and clear. MSN isn't being very reliable here so far. Bob says I am not being patient enough. I have to remind myself that it is okay, and you all will understand. The flights up to Amsterdam were uneventful. In Amsterdam we had lunch at 8:30 local time at McDonalds and it cost $21. Yep! see the picture That is one large drink and fries and two sandwiches. Oh yeah they charged extra for the two ketchup. Then we got to our gate and weren't allowed to get in to the seats without going thru secruity - but - there were NO security personel around. Now we have both slept maybe two hours in the last 30 so our excitment level has dropped off the chart. Bob was just letting things happen because he had experienced this before but failed to warn me. I have to admit I whined for the 90 min. stand in the hall. But I repented and prayed for strength and promptly fell asleep on the plane. When we got to Kampala, Uganda things went quick and smoothly. We had to spend 4 nights in Uganda because the Sudan visa office couldn't process our visa appl. in time for us to leave early Thurs. morning. But God meant that for good - Bob got to speak three times! {pictures} Anyway, we had a great fellowship-building time with the pastor Oscar Brooks introduced Bob to the first trip. And he introduced us to another pastor whose church we visited Wed.-Fri. night. Then Sat. morning God challenged us by having our ride be late to pick us up to go to the airport. The traffic had been quite a challenge each day so Bob was planning extra time in. But God showed off and allowed us to be 35 min. late to check in and then still had to wait both in the terminal and in the plane before take off. The flight to Yei was as expected - small propeller plane.{picture} And we landed on the dirt runway. And just like Bob had said the road was very rough from the airport to Sudan for Christ compound. We were blessed by a friend of the local pastor that met us with a ride in his Land Rover. Bob admitted is was more than he had expected. So here we are! I am going to quit here. so much for being fast - but hope this has been relatively clear. God's blessing to you all. April 25 Kansas Trip, April 2008 On April 6th Bob and I left Millington to start another 2000 mile trip. Our first stop was in Springfield, MO, to visit family for the first time in 6 months...so much for living closer! We also got to visit with a friend from our home church that relocated there a year before we moved to Texas. During the next five days we visited four missionary couples in MO and OK that we have worked with thru WOTC. Like us, the Lord has expanded their ministries to many area around the world. Besides getting an unexpected opportunity to speak in a church, the Lord used one couple to introduce us to a pastor who is very interested in missions. After a brief introduction we had the privilege of helping to pitch the tent for their upcoming revival. (see pictures) I personally received blessings during these visits because God allowed me to get some much need clothing to wear in Sudan. At this point we went on to the original destination of the trip, Kansas. God provided three appointments for Bob to speak about Sudan and Jesus Wept International thru the pastor that lived in our house as a seminary student. The first of the three was the church that we spoke in before Bob's two month Africa trip last year. So he gave them a report and update. The other two was an introduction. God is showing us that there are so many people out there that HE is preparing, and HE wants us to share with them how HE worked in our life. To hear the responses from strangers is so encouraging.
But our trip was not over and the Lord still had more contacts for us. On the way to visit family in the St. Louis area, before going home, we stopped to visit another old friend. He asked if we would speak to a friend of his that is feeling lead to ministry work and needs some encouragement. We have plans to go thru that area in late June. Our next unexpected development was at a 10 yr old niece's Wednesday Bible class. She had been telling the class about us and asked if we could visit the class with her. We were extremely honored that the teacher gave Bob the whole hour. As all of you know, Bob didn't have any trouble filling the time. (see pictures)
Now we are back in Millington and repacking the suitcases for the trip to Sudan. We leave May 5th and return June 6th. It is so amazing to watch Bob remain calm and continue to wait on the Lord. There are so many things that he would normally worry about. As recent as during our Kansas trip, he was "stressed" and called a faithful prayer warrior. The evidence of another prayer answered is sitting across the room from me. At this point I ask you to pray for us. Bob came home with a cough - sounds like bronchitis to me - but he won't go to the doctor. We already have the immunizations that the health department recommended. And we have the malaria prescription. We are trusting the Holy Spirit to direct your prayers for us. All that is left is to remind you to look at the pictures. God bless you. March 30 More of God's BlessingsOur good Lord blessed us with a safe and enjoyable trip from March 7th to the 21st. The primary reason for the trip was to speak about Sudan. God opened the door for three confirmed meetings but we felt HE would present more opportunities along the way. We visited our son and daughter in law and grandchildren in Port St Lucie, FL. (We got lots of great pictures but haven't located half of them since we got home) Our first appointment was to speak with our son's pastor. We also had a very enjoyable visit with a couple from our Military days who are now in Lake Worth, FL. As we were leaving the sunshine state we stopped and visited a friend who is now the pastor of a church in Ocala, FL. (Their family went on a mission trip with us in the early days to WOTC) Then we arrived in Beaufort, SC. Again we were blessed by a couple from our Military days who chose to retire there. All three sets of friends graciously listened to us tell about Jesus Wept International and Sudan. Our next confirmed appointment was in Robbin, NC. Actually we spoke twice on the same night at the church where a former coworker from WOTC is starting a hispanic church thru a local congregation. Both groups were very interested and the local pastor invited us back. Now our last stop was of a different nature. Another pastor friend has started a new church in the Atlanta area and Bob is doing some video/photography projects for him. As the examples we have observed over the years of ministries helping each other to further the kingdom of our Lord, it is our pleasure to use the equipment we have to do this kind of work. (please see the pictures of our trip) God' Blessings to You All
March 07 The Go Ahead from GodDuring my quiet time on Sunday morning, Mar. 3rd, God gave me the go ahead with the next step back to Sudan and later to the Nuba Mts. The last three months have been a blessing and a struggle with moving back to Millington, going to our home church, sharing with many, many people at Crosspointe and beyond about how God is working in our lives, the needs of the people of Sudan, and how everyone can be involved. It has been very hard for me to wait on God’s perfect timing.
Glenda and I will be traveling most of the next three months. 1st from March 7th to the 20th we will travel to FL, GA, SC, and NC to share about the needs of the People of Southern Sudan. Then from April 3rd to the 20th we will travel to KS through MO and OK speaking in churches, with friends and anyone that will listen about what God is doing in our lives and how they can be part of what He is doing in Sudan. We are believing that God will provide so we will leave for, at least 4 weeks in Sudan, the 1st week of May.
What we are asking you to do is partner with Glenda and I (Jesus Wept International), to pray for us on a consistent/daily basis and to financially support God’s work in Sudan.
Please, Please pray about what God would have you do. The need is great and time is short for the people of Sudan. In Christ Love
Bob & Glenda Ries February 20 God continues to work in our livesWell our first full month home has proven to be an adjustment. The Lord has allowed Bob to speak many time to small groups and individuals. HE has also showed Bob two local ministries to work with that fills his free time. The first is Union Missions which Bob worked with before we went to WOTC. There isn't anyone still there that remembers him but they have welcomed him back. The second is Impact Ministries which operates a lot like WOTC. Instead of a warehouse, Impact works out of a thrift store and has limited room for storage. It is amazing how fast the donations are moved in and then back out. The Lord also keeps connecting us with people who have connections with Sudanese in the area. We are looking forward to how God will use these new acquaintances.
The biggest highlight for these last few weeks for me is that God has brought me closer to where HE wants me thru baptism. As a lot of you know I am a strong believer in praying specificly. A few years ago I prayed God would show me what was missing in my life that was affecting my relationship with HIM. HE showed me that I did not have a memory of my own personal baptism. My testimony is that I heard a sermon on what Heaven would be like and I decided as an 8 year old that I would do whatever I needed to, to be sure I went to Heaven. Now I remember that very clearly but won't take up time and space to give other details I remember. So when I started searching, all I could remember was from the aspect of an obsever. I asked my parents and they said I was baptized at the same time as my two older sisters in a creek in Pocahontas AR. I accepted that for a while but God kept bringing to my conscious that it was not my memory. I prayed about it some more and was convinced I was supposed to go ahead and do it. So as you will see in the pictures, Bob - my husband - baptized me on January 20, 2008. Now I need to go back to my prayer closet and pray specificly, again, for God to reveal to me anything else in my life HE wants taken care of. I would like to challenge YOU to seek HIM to reveal to YOU what HE sees that isn't beneficial to YOUR life.
AS we wait for God to provide the details for our trip to Sudan, we are planning a few road trips. We are praying HE will open the doors for us to speak about Jesus Wept International and Africa along the way. We wil be making contact with friends and relatives that we haven't seen in a while. But as always we have confidence HE will be in total control. God bless you. |
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