December 14, 2009
Friends in High Places
It's good to have friends in "high" places. This past week our friend Greg, the MAF pilot, was in town after taking our teammates up to Guéréda for a few days. I planned to take him out for coffee when he called saying there was an emergency medical evacuation needed from Guéréda (not our teammates). He invited me to ride shotgun and let me fly the plane! - even starting the descent. Previously we visited Guéréda after a 6 hour grueling bush taxi ride but the flight only took 35 minutes so I was back in Abéché before lunch.
Teammates in Guéréda
Thank you for praying for our teammates, Dave & Rachael, during their recent trip to Guéréda. They were able to meet with the leading government official and the new Sultan, both of whom were supportive and invited them to be in the town. This is a major blessing and we would appreciate your continued prayers for them as they pray about the best course of action to continue learning the tribal language.
Preparing & Packing
We are slowly packing up our belongings as we prepare for our return to America on January 13, 2010. We will leave Abéché on January 1st and possible extend our 2-day journey into 3 days so we can visit some friends in another town. Please pray for good closure and opportunities during these final weeks.
Thank you for your continued prayers and support as this transition is accumulating some additional expenses.
For His Name's Sake,
Stephen & Kirsten McKenzie
December 6,2009
Ministry Update
Thank you for your continued prayers as our work in Chad continues to move forward. As we prepare for our return to America for Home Assignment God continues opening doors for our team. Dave and I hope to visit Bahai in two weeks to distribute 30 pull tricycles to the handicapped and refugees injured in the Darfur crisis. As well, our teammates will visit Guéréda this coming week. Please pray for safe travel and favor in the community as this is the hometown of the T@ma people.
Personal Update
Thank you for praying with us about attending a special meeting in Dubai. God used your prayers to give us direction and lead us in a way we were not fully expecting. I will not be attending these meetings but because of the timing for our visas in Chad we have moved our departure date up a few weeks. Rather than extending our yearly visas just prior to our departure we will leave 10 minutes before our current visas expire in January. This gives us a greater flexibility both now and in the future. Our expected arrival home is January 13, 2010 instead of February 4th.
We are excited about our time in America and continue to pray with hopeful expectation that God will do something amazing among the T@ma. Thank you for joining with us on this journey.
For His Name's Sake,
Stephen & Kirsten McKenzie
November 30, 2009
Ministry Update
Please continue to pray for Scott as my SMS conversation with him continues. His personality makes it difficult to understand his heart and true beliefs and we pray that God will shine through any barrier that might hinder him seeing the beauty of Jesus.
Please also pray for wisdom and discernment for us as we decide if I (Steve) should attend a very important meeting in Dubai the beginning of January. The timing is difficult for our family but these discussions in Dubai will potentially impact how our organization works in the region and as team leader I want to serve our team well in these discussions.
Please also pray for our teammate Dave as he prepares to meet with the governor of the Wadi Fira department concerning the possibility of drilling wells in Biltine and 25 bore holes in his department. This is an exciting opportunity after a providential meeting while I was traveling to Lebanon. Our team is partnering with a Christian NGO called International Aide Services (IAS) that will open the door into many villages with direct opportunities to initiate church plants throughout the region.
Thank you for your continued support and prayers. We are grateful for the sacrifices you make that allow us to work among the unreached.
For His Name's Sake,
Stephen & Kirsten McKenzie
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