Project Dates & Costs
Butare, Rwanda (August 4-17) = $4,200
Mbarara, Uganda (August 18 - September 1) = $4,500
Back-to-Back in Rwanda and Uganda (August 4 - September 1) = $6,500

Project Application & Payment Schedule

RSVP deadline in now. Please let us know as quickly as possible if you plan to be part of this team.

March 15th - $2,000
May 15th - Balance Due

Need more information? Email Brent or John or call our office at 405.917.7000.

Brent Parsons, COO
John McCloy, Missions Associate

Thanks,
Brent

It has been another beautiful day here in Nairobi. I picked up the Vision Tour Participants tonight at the airport. Tomorrow morning we will leave the Hampton House and make our way to Mt. Meru University in Arusha, Tanzania. On Saturday afternoon we will begin registering an anticipated crowd of 250 National Pastors and approximately 50 ladies. Saturday night we will have the opportunity to give each of the men and women participating in this Leadership Development Institute a Bible, for some it will be the first Bible they have had in their own language, for others it will be the first complete Bible they have ever owned (many have a New Testament or just the Gospel of John). The teaching of our 20 core classes will begin on Monday morning.

In Him,
Brent

Thank you for your continued prayers. Everyone is feeling great.

Good night,
Brent

This afternoon we were in an area of taverns....we originally thought that it was a horrible place to have a meeting, but God moved, and almost 300 people came to Christ.

Praise the Lord, our Green team has seen over 2,100 people come to Christ. God is moving in Africa; it is amazing to see. Sunday is the last day that we are going to have open air meetings; Sunday night, we will have a graduation.

We give all the praise, honor, and glory to Him.

~ John

Jerry did trip over a rope and he hurt his knee a little.  He seems to be getting along just fine.

Thanks,

Brent

Wednesday night, we got back just in time to see the lights go off. After a couple failed attempts at getting the main generator running, we settled with running a small generator to power the PA system. It was a wonderful night of worship in the pitch black. A group of 5 pastors did the special music, I almost started crying when they broke into "HOLY, HOLY ARE YOU LORD GOD ALMIGHTY. WORTHY IS THE LAMB....." So powerful.

This morning we worked double time, speaking in two schools. (by the way, the EvangeCube is a wonderful ministry tool; if you haven't used it before, please start). We got back to the conference center a little late for lunch, and we ate with the pastors! Inshema, Ugali - there is different names for it, and I don't know how to spell any of them. Looked like mashed potatoes, tasted like ground corn. I ate all of mine! 

This afternoon, we went to a church, and joined the youth group for their service. Amber shared her testimony, and Jerry presented the EvangeCube. We have officially started calling him "EvangeMan". This evening, the lights went off for a while, and I started getting the generator fired up, but then we got power again, thank the Lord. Afterward, we went for pizza in Kitwe! Never tasted so good.

And now, I am back in the house where 7 of us guys are staying.....did I mention that I want sleep? I should really get some.

Today was the end of the conference, tomorrow begins open air meetings. Please pray for safety for all the team; for health; and stamina. This is a very small American team; there are only 4 Americans going with each group of 65 pastors. It is going to be busy, and I am looking forward to it.

~John
One of our Youth Team Members

I (Jerry) went with the youth today. This morning we visited a public school that had over 2,000 students in grades 1-9 in two small buildings. We spoke to only grades 7-9 that had about 350 students. Since they didn't have a large room in the school, we met in the school yard in the sun. Each of the 5 youth gave their testimonies and then I used the evangecube to present the plan of salvation. There were 150 of the children that prayed to receive Christ. We then had a great time singing with them and gave a soccer ball to the Head Master for the children to use. This afternoon we went to a small Teacher's College with 90 students. We did the same program with them and 2 of the students prayed to receive Christ. We also sang some songs with them and presented the school eight bibles. The total number of salvation decisions is now 281.

~Jerry

As we were making the 7-hour bus trip from Lusaka to the New Life Center in Kitwe today, we stopped at a roadside stand to buy some vegetables for dinner. When we started to leave the bus stopped on the side of the road due to a battery failure. While we were waiting for the driver to find a battery, I saw two curious boys coming down the road toward us. I just happened to have an evangecube in my backpack and retrieved it. The boys listened very intently as the plan of salvation was presented to them using the evangecube. Both of them prayed the sinner's prayer inviting Jesus into their hearts right there on the side of a busy highway. After giving them some tracts and candy, we showed them a local Church nearby and encouraged them to go visit with the Pastor and tell him that had accepted Jesus in their hearts, Our bus breakdown turned into a divine appointment for the two boys. Please pray for Matthew and George as they begin their new walk with their Savior.
~Jerry 

The morning is off to a great start with Jeannie singing and Marty preaching. Registration has just closed at 202. Today Jess, Jerry, Jim, Bill, and Blake are teaching. We know that God is going to move in and among us today. Our young people, along with Wayne, will be going to a school this morning and a church this afternoon.
~Brent

Today was all business, details, and planning. There was a lot to accomplish. Negotiation of the price for all of the vehicles for our Open Air Meetings (4 Buses, 4 Vans, 4 Pick-ups); procurement of additional mattresses for the national pastors that will be arriving Sunday night June 13th; finalization of the preaching points for the Open Air Meetings; and collation of the Leadership Development Institute Notebook. All of this work done with the prayer and hope that 300 faithful men will be trained, and that there will be a great harvest of souls. It was all mundane and monotonous until…

Until, at a late lunch with two of our outstanding leaders in Zambia – Fraywell Chipeta and Edenson Sikatali – we met a teenage boy, Matthews Chibwe. Where I was seated, I could not see all that was going on, but Edenson was watching Matthews. Matthews was standing outside the fenced area where we were seated. Apparently every time someone left their table, Matthews would hustle to the table to devour any scraps that were left. Edenson decided to draw my attention to this – as I turned around I made eye contact with Matthews who was trying to get the last drops of soda from an empty Pepsi can. At that moment Fraywell motioned for the boy to come to our table. Reluctantly, no doubt because of fear, Matthews made his way to our table. We quickly put some food before him and ordered him something to drink.

Reaching Souls International is strong because of the faithfulness to our focus on evangelism, but please do not believe for one moment that our National Missionaries are not daily engaged in humanitarian work. These men, Fraywell and Edenson, ministered to the physical need that of Matthews. I began to engage Matthews in a discussion of his life. Understand that he was unique, there are people begging on almost every corner. Matthews was not begging; he was simply looking for a way to survive. As I listened, he told the story of his mother’s death while he was a very young child. His father who trims bushes barely makes enough to survive, so Matthews has been sent to live with his grandmother. Matthews is by all practical definitions a street boy. A boy left to fend for himself in a very ungiving and unforgiving society.

Matthews is 13. 13. He should be shooting hoops, playing a Wii, swimming, enjoying a snow cone – but not trying to beat the birds to the crumbs.

At the age of 13, on June 8, 2010, Matthews not only had his physical needs meet by some caring missionaries. Matthews heard the Gospel message. Matthews learned of a God who provides not only for this day’s needs, but for his eternal need. Today, Matthews made the personal decision to receive Jesus Christ as his personal Lord and Savior! Matthews Chibwe is my brother. Matthews now knows he will never be alone. A church has been identified for Matthews and Matthews has agreed to follow through with his decision by making it public.

I am grateful that this world is not my home. This world does not afford to everyone the luxuries that many of us take for granted. I am grateful that I will spend all eternity praising my Savior shoulder to shoulder with people like Matthews Chibwe.

Humbly His,
Brent

For now, please pray for final details to come together, traveling safety and for the hearts of the team members and pastors to be open to what God has for them during this time.