The great inferno of Rome

News from the Kariukis August 2004

Serving with Youth With A Mission

BP 166, Sarh, CHAD E-mail: thekariukis@yahoo.com

www.ywamconnect.com/sites/kariuki

From the School of Biblical Studies…..

Imagine you are in Rome in the year 64 AD. The great inferno of Rome is still smoldering, and much of the city has been destroyed…. rumors are already spreading that the fire was set by Christians, and you fear that the persecution which has already begun is going to intensify. You are a Christian who has just witnessed the crucifixion of Peter. In your hands you have a copy of the Gospel of Mark, a “seditious” document proclaiming the Lordship of Jesus in an empire where Caesar demands (at the penalty of death) the sole title “Lord.” How are you going to read the Gospel of Mark and what will it mean to you? This book written for suffering Christians has much in it for us today – read it again and ask God to reveal His truths in light of the context of Mark.

The school of Biblical Studies (Core course) began July 11^th and has nine students from Chad, Cameroon, Nigeria and USA. Moses is leading the school, assisted by Moses Ndjoumo from Cameroon. Please pray for the Moses’s as they lead the school, and also Annie from Cameroon who will be joining us as staff shortly. Several of our long term staff are doing this school and we are thrilled to have this opportunity to see God establish a biblical foundation for our staff.

The Discipleship Training School graduated on July 2^nd, and 13 proud students stood before their friends and families, celebrating what God has done in their lives during DTS. We are especially excited to see the body of Christ beginning to understand their call to missions, in going and in supporting those who go.

La grande voyage….

It all sounds so much more elegant in French, much more than “The Big Trip” doesn’t it? J Well, say it in French or in English, we had an amazing time on our trip to Cameroon in June. We went to accompany a DTS outreach team as well as spend some time with Cameroonian YWAMers and share about what God is doing in Chad. We had good times of fellowship and were able to recruit three staff members (2 for the SBSCC) and one student! We shared with the DTS in Yaounde (the capital) and in Douala as well. Moses taught in the School of Biblical Studies and we spent some quality time getting to know the YWAMers there. Our team had a great time working with a Cameroonian YWAM team who were planting a church in a village just outside of Yaounde.

Other vital stats from our trip:

ONE camel who ALMOST got hit head on, it stepped right out in front of us on a dark night…thank God we had recently changed our brakes and we came to a screeching halt barely missing the camel!

5200 km (3000 miles) to get there and back: Cameroon is the neighbouring country, but the direct route is basically impassable in the rainy season, and we needed to go through N’Djamena to get visas. More than half of those miles were on dirt roads.

Six – number of people who fit on a motorcycle in Cameroon – that was two adults and four kids – second runner up was five adults!

Happenings….

In Chad:

· The Darfur crisis, which is in the news worldwide, is about 700 km (400 miles) from us. You probably know more about it than we do, as our access to news here (from within and outside of Chad!) is very limited. At this point it has only affected us in that goods normally imported from Sudan are no longer available. Please pray for the Sudanese people and for peace in Sudan.

In Sarh:

· We have a new development in Sarh – a cell phone tower is going up about 100 meters down the street from us – we will have the best reception in town! We’re looking forward to communication being a bit easier, and hope that cell phone service starts SOON!

· It’s raining and raining, and Sarh has become very green….we’re enjoying thundershowers and weather that’s not SO hot. J As well as lots of mud and new potholes on the roads! OUCH! Not soo good on our ‘shock absorbers’.

Our family:

· Joshua is now two years old and a very active little boy. He’s now learning how to use the toilet and Mommy’s looking forward to saying goodbye to diapers!

· We’re looking forward to a visit from family – Jo’s brother Tim is coming to Chad in September and will come to Kenya with us for a few weeks as well. There’s also a possibility that Mama Groff will be coming sometime… It will be great to share our world with them for several weeks.

Our plans for the rest of the year include more travelling – after the Discipleship Training School and School of Biblical Studies Core Course back to back, we are going to be very ready for a bit of a break! We plan to travel to Kenya in October to have some rest, touch base with family and supporters there. While there we will also share about Chad with YWAM bases and churches in East Africa. We are also hoping to adopt a baby while in Kenya. We plan to be based in Kenya for a few months, although Moses is hoping to be able to come back to Chad for a few weeks in November or December to work on DTS plans with our staff for February 2005.

Please pray for us specifically as we are facing a lot of challenges for the rest of this year:

· Extra strength and grace especially for Moses, leading the SBSCC, with very few staff

· Safe travels and good health for Tim who is coming to visit us

· Please pray with us that the Lord would guide us through the adoption process.

· Financial provision for our tickets to Kenya ($4000) and adopting ($1500) as well as for some appliances – we are moving out of our furnished house when we leave and will be moving into an unfurnished one on our return – we need to buy our own stove and refrigerator. If you’d like to contribute specifically to any of these needs, our support info is below, just send a note along with it stating what you would like your support designated for.

Love,

Moses, JoAnna and Joshua

P.S. Check out our website for the latest photos and news – www.ywamconnect.com/sites/kariuki

To receive prayer updates, send a blank e-mail to: kariukiprayerpartners-subscribe@yahoogroups.com

Financial support can be sent to:

· IN EUROPE: Moses N. Kariuki, Account no. 938.60.54, Banque Cantonale Vaudoise, Chemin des Croisettes 12, 1066 Epalinges. Switzerland SWIFT: BCVLCH2L, Clearing 767, CCP: 10-725-4b

· IN KENYA: Moses N. Kariuki, A/C No. 5108023009, Commercial Bank of Africa, Standard & Wabera Streets, PO Box 30437, Nairobi, SWIFT: CBAFKENX

· IN USA: YWAM, PO Box YWAM, Cimarron, CO 81220. Checks should be payable to YWAM, with a separate note saying it is support for the Kariukis.