Farrand Feb 2019
“I thank my God in all my remembrance of you, always in every prayer of mine for you all making my prayer with joy, because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now”
(Philippians 1:3-5).
Your prayers for us
We have felt your prayers for us from the very smooth transition we experienced from North Carolina to Zambia, to this very day as we start our second month here in Africa. Our transit was like clock-work as we sensed God going before us every step. The team here of Village Administrator Irene, Rafiki School Headmistress Rose, and resident IT masters Tom and Lusubilo at the Rafiki Village greeted us with great joy and supportive fellowship. Our housing was all set up for us so that within one day we were like permanent residents. We have just what we need for every occasion. Thank you for being part of our coming to this beautiful land and welcoming culture with your prayers and encouraging communication.
Our beautiful campus
Incredible support from short-term missionaries
Bill Wood from Georgia, and Sarah Khoo from Singapore have been such a blessing to us. Bill was immeasurably helpful in getting Richard acclimated, oriented, and comfortable in the role of RICE Dean (Rafiki Institute of Classical Education), our teacher training college. Sarah has helped us at RICE, as well as assisting the Rafiki School (grades pre-k through eleventh grade) in all sorts of supporting encouragement. And God provided two weeks prior to school starting January 14 for us to become familiar with the courses our students would be taking, the daily schedule we would follow, and the preparation for starting a new term at new grade levels.
Beautiful campus for our Rafiki Village
Our location is approximately one and a half hours drive from the Zambian capital city of Lusaka. We are so fortunate to live in a park-like setting of dozens of acres of vibrant grass and beautiful shade trees with blooming flowers. The Rafiki Village houses a lot of people and activity: orphans and their Rafiki “mamas” are housed on the campus; day students from pre-k through eleventh grade are taught here; the RICE college has forty-two students; and, there is a large cadre of support staff and workers who keep the whole Village running smoothly and beautifully.
The RICE building
Our current status
We are becoming Zambians! We go into our local village for Reformed Baptist church on Sundays; we have shopped in the most modern grocery stores nearby; Karen has become an expert cook blending American and local sourced food; and, we now have a month of RICE Dean experience with our forty-two college students. We have learned to grade exams every week, examine and critique papers and homework assignments, and challenge students to be the very best they can be. Richard struggles through helping students with Algebra, and Karen encourages our students as they write their very first poem! Richard loves the opportunity to bring the Bible alive every morning for our devotion time. Our students’ singing is amazing—they are so committed to praise God with their words in the hymns with heartfelt emotion and dedication. Their attentiveness and application through our studies in First and Second Thessalonians is truly inspiring. And as I write this, we are hosting a volleyball tournament with our RICE students (aged twenty-three to thirty-four) being challenged by the Rafiki senior secondary tenth and eleventh graders. We lost!
Karen, Richard, and our RICE students
Answered prayers for our students
Life is not easy for our students. They are offered free education, instruction, and resource material; however, they must provide for their own nearby housing and food. For many, an entire family has sacrificed so much so that the student can attend our classes, which are year-round and are quite challenging, but God has answered incredible prayers for them. Abigail texted us first thing one morning that she would not be able to come to school that day because she was “beat up by a cow,” and prayers went out. She came back to school the next day in some pain but she passed the exam she missed with a perfect score of one hundred. Gracious checked herself out of the hospital one Friday to come to school so she would not miss the first day of teaching practicum. She had an I.V. port in her arm for fluids because of severe dehydration. We sent her back to the hospital, and Karen took notes for what she missed. She showed up first thing Monday morning after much prayer that weekend and she was amazingly strong. Thank you all for your mighty prayers, and we praise our powerful God!
Please pray for us
Pray for our students and their ability to stay healthy, recover rapidly when facing illness, provide for their children and families, and especially for their continued commitment to do so well in their courses (each student is taking as many as six courses each day!). Pray for our health and ability to keep up with the academic and rigorous schedule of school (up at 5:30 a.m. and back home at 5 p.m.). Pray for all of us to be encouraged in the Bible as together we study what God has for us every day in both words and in application.
If you would like more up-to-date prayer requests, please contact our prayer captain Bob Bourgeois (bob@computerbobs.net) to be added to his weekly prayer updates. And please know that we are in prayer for you back home, as you pray for us.
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