Till I write again

Hello everyone,

Yes, I know it has been forever since I have written. And in truth this post does not really count. I have not been able to update the site because of my lack of getting to a place with Internet service. However, in December that will change. Yes, about the time of Christmas I will be able to write some true updates to this site; not to mention I will be adding many pictures. I will also update my facebook page and flickr accounts with material like this as well.

Adam

September update

Hello everyone,



It seems like an eternity passes between my various posts and I am sorry for it. I have update my flickr account with more pictures from Sudan, so if you are interested, you can go there and see them. Search for AdamLewis06 on flickr and you should find my photos. I am trying to get some descriptions on them so that you can get an idea of the places I have been out here.

A new chapter is opening up for me in Sudan in the town of Kajo Keji. I will be responsible for representing SP at the openings of the many churches which have and are being built out there. I am also going to be responsible for reports, picture taking and interviews at each site. If fortunate maybe one of my opening reports might find itself onto the SP website.

There is a lot of work going on with double the construction teams that were present in Maridi. I am looking forward to working with the other SP people out there including one or two ex-pats from the US, a Kenyan and Ugandan who will be on the base with me. The fellow from Uganda, named Henry, I believe will challenge me to quite a bit of soccer. I look forward to being able to get some good pictures of Kajo Keji to share with you all. I Should be able to get them up by the latest of mid December.

One nice thing about Kajo Keji is the different terrain. Whereas Maridi, Lainya and Rumbek were somewhat flat with a few hills around; Kajo Keji is set in rolling hills that come up from the Nile river. This allows for some very nice vistas. Another nice thing is that I will have a better view of the sunsets. In Maridi, we faced West and were at the base of a small hill with trees. The hill and the trees on it blocked out most of the sunsets you might have seen. Needless to say, this is not the case in Kajo Keji.



Adam


Prayer Requests

1. As I start a new position, pray that I would be able to do a good job and so benefit the work going on out here.

2. As I am at a new base pray for the relationships which will be formed.

A writer I will be!!!

Hello,

It seems like forever, when I was last able to update this site. I apologize. I have not had access to the internet where I could update in months. I am being reassigned a writer and am going to Kaju Keji to write reports on churches that are opening.

Adam

Surprise

Back to Maridi!

Happily, I will be finding myself returning to Maridi to help finish the work that I started there last October/November. My friends will be happy to see me return and I think the work should continue to go well. My main goal will be to supply the construction crews with any needs they may have in order to help them finish the churches we have been preparing.
I had a good time in Nairobi. I was able to meet with some friends who work for Mission Aviation Fellowship (MAF). I was also able to do a good amount of reading which I enjoy. I was happy to buy a soccer ball to practice and exercise with. There is a group who plays everyday at Maridi and so I will try to play with them from time to time. You can ask me how that went. I also bought some swimming goggles for when I go swimming. For me at least, it makes swimming more enjoyable.

As it is the rainy season, I would ask for your continued prayer of our efforts. The rain makes roads much more difficult to navigate. Please continue to pray for safety from the elements, etc. Recently there has been mounting tensions between the North and the South in Sudan making us concerned about the continuation of peace. Also, the LRA has not completely disappeared and could still prove a threat.
Those of us who are working throughout Souther Sudan have also been looking at developing some other projects for SP. Please pray for wisdom and guidance in this venture.
I really appreciate those of you who keep me and this ministry in their prayers. I believe they are an important part in the work here.

Adam

The work goes well

The work has gone very well in Sudan. Happily, about twenty-two churches are ready to be built at both of the SP bases I have been at recently. By Christmas all of these churches should be able to hold services within them about the meaning of Christmas.
Please continue to hold myself and the SP bases out here in your prayers.

Adam

Goodbye again to Maridi

My time in Maridi is almost over. I have had a blessed time here with former friends and the knowledge that a lot of good work has been accomplished. I will be heading out in less than a week to my R&R.
The work goes very well and the mobilization of churches here is just about done. Please pray for the construction crew to arrive shortly and be able to build the remaining churches here.

Fun Work

Hello,

One fun aspect of working in Maridi again is the often necessary use of ATV's. Our churches can be as far as 17-36 miles away or more. So, I am getting some good amounts of ATV driving, which at times, I admit can be pretty fun.
We are hoping for the construction crews to arrive soon and build the churches we have been mobilizing. The actual mobilization of the churches is nearing completion.

Adam

Catching Up

Hello from Maridi,

Yes, I am back. Sorry to not have updated for a while. I have not had access to he internet. However, I will have such access a little bit now and hopefully will be able to put up a few updates.
I spent the last two and a half months in Rumbek, where I had a good time with the team there as we mobilized churches.

Prayer requests

Pray for peace. Recent cattle camp wars, airplane crashes and some census trouble have helped cause some trouble, so pray for peace.
Pray for saftey as we mobilize and build churches. In the last month or so, a few mines were found in places you might have thought safe. So continue to pray for saftey.
Pray for God's blessing on the work. Pray for the witness we ex-pats have on our workers and on the church.

A quick Break

Hello all,

White sands, palm trees and a warm ocean. Descriptive words for where I was the last six days. I just returned from Zanzabar in Tansania. Zanzabar is an island founded on coral that sits on the coast of Tansania. Every once in a while we are given a break and on this particular one, I choose to visit the beaches of Zanzabar.
During this time I stayed in Rock Town and on the North Coast. While in Rock Town I went swimming with Dolphins and visited a rather new national park. At the national park, there resides the Calibus Monkeys, which are an endagered species. These little monkeys are not afraid of humans. At one point I was surrounded by a whole troop of monkeys, about 13. They would walk right by my feet and eat leaves and lounge within my arms reach. It was fun to watch the babies jump around and climb on their mothers.
I also visited a spice planatation, where we walked amongst the various trees, bushes and grases that produce a rich harvest of spice.
On the North Coast, I swam in the clear seas, and lounged on the beaches reading some books I brought along.
In Rock Town I stayed at the Annex of the Garden. On the North Coast I stayed at Jombu Brothers and Paradise hotels. Lodging is fairly inexpensive. I paid around $15-$20 a night for one person.
Now it is back to Sudan, where there is a lot of work waiting to be done. I look forward to updating you on the work we are doing there in the future.

Adam

Goodbye for the Present

Goodbye my friends,

The last several weeks have brought a deluge of changes to life and our program. SP is making some changes to the churches it makes in order to be more effective, with hopes of building a larger number of churches. Besides that, recent events in surrounding countries have resulted in multiple groups of LRA traveling around Southern Sudan. This caused the UN to raise almost the entire South to a level III status. This makes the region basically a no go zone and requires any ngo traveling in it to have an armed escort.
As for my own sub-base. I and my partner were quite safe in our town, though we ended up being stuck there for about a week and a half before being escorted out of the region by armed policemen. The future is rather hazy at this point, though my partner and I will possibly help out another sub-base till our own clears up again.
During our time of lock down, those in the compound were able to have some good conversation with each other. I helped build our bamboo fence by splitting bamboo, nailing it too teak poles, etc. I also painted a checkerboard on our dinning table and enjoyed teaching some of the guys how to play.
As we left, my partner and I gathered the workers together and gave one final explanation of what was going on. We then ended with a prayers and headed out. I am sorry to leave our base, the work was going well. We will return, hopefully soon.


Adam Lewis




Prayers requests

1. Please pray for the situation with the LRA, and possibly some other military groups, to end.
2. Please pray for our churches we are working with, that they will be safe as well and that they will not be too discouraged by these events.
3. Pray for wisdom of our leaders, that they will know what to do in the coming weeks.

Trip Report 3

What? Who is just behind that hill? About a week ago, I had a bit of an adventure. Comming back from our headquarters to my sub-base I happened to find out that a group of Ugandan rebels were about two miles away. Later I found they probably were closer. The group in question was apart of the LRA or Lords Resistance Army. Needless to say, I reported the groups wherabouts to our headquarters and made my way quickly back to our sub-base. On the way, I met the chief of our local town comming out with some armed men to check on the report. We filled him in on what we had heard and kept going. Later on a troop of soldiers were despatched to make sure the LRA group left the area. I and my small team remained at our base till everthing was clear and we recieved reports from the authorities that all was ok. However, the incident kept us on our toes and reminded me of the dangers that are still very real here.
Also, recently a mine went off right on a hill in the town I live in. This reminds me of the very real danger of mines around this area. During the war, the area I work in was heavily mined. I pass deminning crews every day as I go visit the churches we work with.
As peace lasts longer, the united front against the North starts to get tested from the factions within. Old disputes and rivalries are rekindled and I have seen the effects of some of this in my travels here. Also, difficulties from the outside remain. The LRA for instance. Also, the trouble in Kenya has shown the dependance the South has on Uganda, which is dependent on Kenya. South Sudan felt the effects of the Kenyan trouble through increased prices on imports like petrol and diesel; which in turn sent up the price of some of the imported products. Fortunatley, this impact does not seem to be very long lasting. There is much that needs to be done in South Sudan and many outside companies are hesitant to come in because of fear the fighting will resume. According to some church officials I have met, many buisnesses are waiting for the 2011 referendum, to see if war returns. This is the point at which the south will vote to remain or remove themselves from Sudan, thus becoming a seperate country. Many here fear that such a vote will never be allowed to happen.
In our compound, we are replacing our fence. Part of it had fallen down last December, but we are making good progress on replacing it. I also have several other projects I would like to do in the comming weeks in Lainya. One of which would be to build a ladder up the side of our shower to the crest tanks that sit on top. The ladder would be about twenty five to thirty feet tall. I am also looking at building a small room on the side of our house for visitors when they come.
The work goes well, the churches are seeing a lot of volunteers comming out to help collect resources and build the blocks for the church. We have construction crews comming out now to start building the eight churches that are ready. When the construction crews come again, we should have even more churches ready to build then this time.
My friends, I thank you for your prayer support of the ministry out here. The work is a real encouragment to the people here. I have been told so many times, by pastors and congregations, to thank the people supporting this ministry. Since your prayers support this ministry, let me pass their thanks to you.
May the Lord who is perfect in all he does, guide you, encourage you and bless you this day.

Adam Lewis

Prayer requests
1. Continue praying for safety, as we are reminded about the dangers in this country from Landmines, rebels, drunk soldiers, etc.
2. Continue to pray for the spiritual development of the workers at my sub-base. Also pray for my and the other SP personel's spiritual development.
3. Pray that all the churches find the volunteers they need to finish the work set before them.

Round Two

Wow, I caught a little air on that last bump. As I returned to my sub base, I reflected on what I was doing. The wind was rushing through my hair and blowing on my face. I was zipping over a uneven and pothole filled road on a four wheeler or ATV. I had been stuck away from my base for a few days so the stubble of a new beard was on its way in. "I kind of fit the tough dude missionary look right now," I thought. Admittedly, it was kind of fun to make the two and a half hour ride over that broken down road.
Work is back in full swing here in Sudan. The churches in my area are hard at work gathering resources and clearing roads for those resources to be brought to the church sites. The trouble in Kenya has affected us out here in Sudan. Kenya supplies resources including oil to a host of countries around it and that oil makes its way to Sudan. Because of the trouble in Kenya, oil has had trouble making its way to Uganda and consequently, to Sudan. Availability of Petrol and Diesel fuels disappeared and I was worried that our operations might have to halt. Happily, that has not happened yet and my team was able to get some fuel.
Over the next several months our hope is to finish preparing the twelve churches we are currently working on, not to mention the seven or so that are ready to be built at the moment. We also are starting to look at where our next group of churches will be located. My partner, will be with me for another two and half months before he heads back to the US; at which point I should be getting a new partner.
As it is a new year, almost all the workers contracts will have to be renewed. As our work locations change, so will the needs of our workforce. These last few days have been filled with decisions on how many people we need as workers and in what capacity they can be most effective.
Every morning, we have a devotional lead by either myself or one of my Sudanese or Ugandan workers in leadership roles. These devotionals seem to be going well and are a good time for our workers to pray for each other.
Thank you all for your prayer support of the ministry out here. It is going well. As this ministry continues to grow in its scope, prayer, I think is one of the most important foundations we can build upon.

May the Lord bless you this day,



Adam



Prayer requests

Pray that our project will continue to get all the materials it needs to continue functioning. Fuel is still a concern here.
Pray for wisdom in our decisions on our workforce. There are still some positions we have to decide if we are going to fill or not.
Continue to pray for peace in Sudan so that the work can continue.
Continue to pray for safety as we work and travel.
Pray that the influence of the US staff, myself and Billy, will be a positive one spiritually to the Sudanese. Pray that we can build up our workers and make them stronger believers.

Happy New Year

Happy new year. Hello to all who are following me. I am now back in Sudan looking forward to another year of building churches. As we head into this year, please continue to pray for peace in Sudan and for God's blessing on this ministry and in the churches we are working with. May God bless you through this next year, so that you grow in faith, knowledge and wisdome.

Adam Lewis