Bronke Jan 2020

“Then he said to me, ‘This is the word of the Lord to Zerubbabel: Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit, says the Lord of hosts’” (Zechariah 4:6).

Happy 2020! I hope you are having a wonderful start to the new year. I do not often make New Year’s resolutions, but my one goal is to make it to the field this year! For some time now, 2020 has felt far away. Now it is here! This summer I will be in Africa, perhaps grading papers and teaching English and literature, and certainly studying the Bible each day with others in a Rafiki Village. I am grateful to the Lord for this opportunity to know Him and depend upon Him more.

At times, when I think about the details of moving to another continent, starting a new job, and creating new relationships, I think: “Am I really doing this? Can I really do this?” It is in these egocentric moments that I think of Zechariah 4:6. It reminds me that God equips me. Without Him, I surely do not have the power to do much of anything. I recently read a book about the British missionary William Carey, one of the giants of the modern missionary movement. Zechariah 4:6 was a sort of motto among Carey and his friends. He did extraordinary things in India: create a theological school, preach the gospel, and translate the Bible into several Indian languages—but it was all done by God’s Spirit working through Carey, not the missionary’s strength alone. Join me as I pray to seek humility, trusting that the Lord will work through me in Africa.

2019 was a big year for Rafiki, and I would like to share with you a few highlights. First, Rafiki held a classical Christian education conference in Nairobi, Kenya. Over three hundred participants sat through sessions exploring the importance of a biblically-minded liberal arts education. Classical Christian education seeks to teach students to love truth, beauty, and goodness and recognize it in every core subject. Experts from the classical Christian field in the U.S. and African pastors and educators spoke about how solid education can transform Africa.

Rafiki staff and attendees from our Villages at the conference

Ravi Jain, a speaker at the conference, answering questions

Great things also happened in individuals’ lives across Rafiki’s ten Villages last year and at the start of the new year. Female soccer athletes at the Rafiki Village Tanzania were selected to compete in national tournaments. Their team beat two top-ranking Tanzanian teams, making them the top primary girls soccer team in Tanzania! In Malawi, teachers college students, like a student named Gift, have now begun their third and final year of the program. Upon graduation, they will be certified to teach in a Christian school. Specifically, Gift has been named a student leader in the program. He says, “It has been my passion to teach from childhood, so I am looking forward to enjoying teaching as my career.”

The students chosen to play on a national soccer team

Rafiki teachers college student Gift

The Rafiki Tanzania girls’ soccer experience and the quality training Gift receives in Rafiki’s teachers college are just two examples of the life-altering things that happen each day, month, and year at each of the ten Rafiki Villages across Africa. Of course, the greatest achievement every year is that hearts were molded as everyone in the Rafiki Villages studied God’s Word every day—not by might or power, but by God’s Spirit.

I want to thank you for your support and prayers. Your generosity continues to affirm God’s calling on my life. If you are looking for a New Year’s resolution, would you consider joining my support team and committing to praying or giving financially? If you have already given, would you consider pledging monthly? All donations are tax deductible.

To donate:

• Go to www.rafikifoundation.org.

• Select “Support a Missionary” from the drop-down menu in the upper right.

• Find my photo and enter the amount that you would like to give. (You can make a one-time donation or a recurring donation.) Thank you!

To donate by check:

• Send your check to the Rafiki Home Office at PO Box 1988, Eustis, FL 32727 with my name and missionary (#249) in the memo line.

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