Where God Guides, God Provides
A few months ago, the Lord started moving again toward us going to Congo this fall. There were, and still are, many things that needed to happen before this can be a reality. However, the Lord does not send without going before!
We are excited to report that we are now at 95% of our monthly support needs. We have also received gifts toward our Outfit and Passage. Please continue to pray with us that the remaining $265 per month will be provided, as well as the remaining needs for our O&P.
That being said: we believe He will provide and that we will be on the plane September 26th…heading toward Congo for our first full-term as missionaries.
Catching Up and Making Plans
We were privileged and blessed to spend a weekend with the Grings family (our field partners). It was so nice to sit face-to-face and tell of how the Lord has been working on both continents in such amazing ways. We were also able to discuss where we see the Lord leading in the future.
It was especially good for the kids to spend some time with them. Titus and Timothy Grings got along swimmingly and Titus is still talking about the discussions they had, things they did, and what they plan to do in Congo. (This is a big deal for Titus as it usually takes him a while to “bond”, and he and Timothy haven’t been able to spend a lot of time with each other.) All the kids spent time running around Camp Utibaca, building a bridge across a creek, playing with snakes, you know…camp stuff. It’s hard to believe the next time they will all be together is on the plane.
When we arrive in Kinshasa (the capitol of Congo) we will be staying with the Grings. They have a storage building/garage in their back yard that has been converted into an apartment. What a blessing! It will be nice to transition and adapt while being so close to the Grings, and the Ward’s live next door as well. We will live there until our container arrives and we have our long-term visas. Only the Lord knows how long this will take, but we are planning on 2-3 months. Once those are in place, we will start the move up to the Bible Institute in Dibaya-Lubwe. We are hoping to celebrate the birth of our Lord in our new home town!
French Practice
Another blessing at Camp Utibaca was getting to practice our French. As we were walking to our tent after dark Thursday night, we heard someone trying to set up a tent…in FRENCH. We soon realized that it was Patrick and Becky Weolongo Booto. We were able to help them set up the tent, and have a brief conversation that evening. For the next few days, we took every opportunity to use our French. What an amazing blessing it was to start practicing our “Congo French” and confirm that we actually did learn something!
Projects
A group at our home church is helping us spiral-bind some of the French materials we will be taking with us. Many of the books we purchased were bound by being folded and stapled together. This would not last very long in Congo as the staples would rust and the humidity would cause the books to come apart.
The packing and gathering continues. We have filled over 150 boxes and stacked them in the container. We still have a few things on our list that we are trying to collect. The Grings gave us some more ideas of “filler” items for the container (i.e. powder laundry soap, toilet paper, etc.). Please see our website for current lists and ideas.
Congo Update
Many of you have been praying for the chief of property in Dibaya (he is pictured in many of our presentations). He attended the seminars while we were there and continued to hear the Gospel as Dan Grings made trips to work on the property. We are excited to report that this last trip Dan made, the chief of property accepted the Lord and followed Him in believer’s baptism!
The projects on the property are advancing. It sounds like we did get the 100 meters on each side of the new airstrip to use as student garden space. The temporary missionary/guest house is under construction, which is where we will stay when we first arrive in Dibaya. Please continue to pray with us for the Lord to provide the funds for 3 more dorm buildings, the first classroom, and our permanent house.
Unashamed,
(Romans 1:16)
~The Clancy Clan
Sparky, Myndii, Martha, Titus, & Ruth
Time in Kinshasa