Dear friends,
We send you greetings in the name of our Lord Jesus.
Thank you for your prayers for us over these past months. We are so thankful that the rains have started. It's great to have relief from the intense heat.
David has been busy attending several board meetings during these past few weeks. Apart from teaching, he has also has been busy processing the data from the questionnaires he sent out as part of his dissertation research. Praise the Lord for the overwhelming response as over one thousand questionnaires were returned. The questions were asking about views of Christ. Please pray for David as he incorporates the findings of his research into the dissertation and gets it ready for submission in June.
We have one more week of teaching before the week of final exams at the end of the semester. We would value prayer for the Lord's help for the students and ourselves that we would finish well. Once the semester ends we have to concentrate on our marking which will keep us busy for a few weeks.
Thank you for praying about Internet access at the Seminary. We now have a faster connection which makes it easier to receive our emails and for students and staff to do research on line.
Praise the Lord for the large number of new books that have been added to the library and for the shelving bought to store them.
On Friday, 8th May, the seminary will host a seminar on Theological Education for our faculty and our sister institution in Jos (JETS). Our faculty travelled to Jos in March for the first part of the seminar. Pray that this would be a helpful time for all involved and strengthen links between these two seminaries.
Many thanks again for your prayers. Colossians 1:28.
God Bless,
Debbie and David
Monday, 4 May 2009
Friday, 27 March 2009
Prayer Letter
Dear Friends,
We send you greetings in the Name of Jesus our Lord.
Toyota Camry
We thank the Lord for the provision of a 2002 Toyota Camry. It was manufactured in the US and shipped to Africa. One of the great things about this car is the air conditioner. That makes the trips more comfortable especially during this hot season. It also has automatic transmission and cruise control which make driving easier (For those who helped: Phil. 4:19).
Changes
To improve security, SIM has built a wall around the two missionary houses on our side of the road. The wall gives us a little more privacy and stops chickens, goats and other creatures walking through our gardens in the dry season looking for things to eat.
Concerning administration at the seminary, I have not returned to the registry since I am still working on my dissertation. A Liberian colleague, Momolu Massaquoi, will continue as acting registrar for now. Debbie is helping in the library one morning per week. We praise the Lord the library has 18,000 books now. Though this means we have fewer administrative duties, we are kept busy teaching since our classes are large this semester.
Missions week
We had a good missions emphasis week at the seminary. The speaker was Stephen Baba, the director of the Evangelical Missionary Society (EMS). Before taking on that job two months ago, he was the pastor of a missionary-minded church in Abuja which fully supports 30 Nigerian missionaries with EMS. Our students who went to Chad late last year also gave a report of that trip and we thank the Lord that hundreds of people responded to the gospel. Pray for their walk with the Lord and that more of our students will be open to serving in missions once they complete their studies (Is. 52:7).
Prayer letter distribution
We want to thank Ian Strachan for being willing to help with the postal distribution of our prayer letter.
Thank you for your prayers.
David and Debbie Colvin
SIM-UK, Wetheringsett Manor, Wetheringsett, Stowmarket, Suffolk IP14 5QX
SIM-UK Irish Office, Unit 1, Ravenhill Business Park, Ravenhill Road, Belfast BT6 8AW
Monday, 9 March 2009
March Update
Dear Friends,
We send you greetings in the Name of our Lord Jesus.
Car
We thank the Lord we have a Toyota Camry. (See picture below.) It is a 2002 model and has automatic transmission and a great air-conditioner which we have been using every time we drive since it is 36C and 70% humidity some of these days. Perhaps we will have our first rain soon? We have not seen any rain since we arrived.
Mid-semester
Our mid-semester break comes up next week but we have interviews to conduct for prospective students and marking to do. It is really a break for the students not the teachers but it is a welcome change in routine for a few days.
Missions week
This week we have a series of meetings at the seminary about mission. The speaker is Stephen Baba who is the head of the EMS (Evangelical Missionary Society) – an indigenous missionary society. Only a few of our students are planning to become missionaries after their time of study and we hope these meetings will help some more catch a vision for evangelism. Debbie is speaking on prayer at the student prayer group this week also.
Internet access
The seminary has been getting internet access via satellite but the company we were with shares the same channel with so many other people, the speed is much too slow. Some web pages will not even connect. We have been trying to migrate to a different supplier but this is proving difficult. Pray it will happen, though, and soon. Thanks.
In Christ,
David and Debbie
We send you greetings in the Name of our Lord Jesus.
Car
We thank the Lord we have a Toyota Camry. (See picture below.) It is a 2002 model and has automatic transmission and a great air-conditioner which we have been using every time we drive since it is 36C and 70% humidity some of these days. Perhaps we will have our first rain soon? We have not seen any rain since we arrived.
Mid-semester
Our mid-semester break comes up next week but we have interviews to conduct for prospective students and marking to do. It is really a break for the students not the teachers but it is a welcome change in routine for a few days.
Missions week
This week we have a series of meetings at the seminary about mission. The speaker is Stephen Baba who is the head of the EMS (Evangelical Missionary Society) – an indigenous missionary society. Only a few of our students are planning to become missionaries after their time of study and we hope these meetings will help some more catch a vision for evangelism. Debbie is speaking on prayer at the student prayer group this week also.
Internet access
The seminary has been getting internet access via satellite but the company we were with shares the same channel with so many other people, the speed is much too slow. Some web pages will not even connect. We have been trying to migrate to a different supplier but this is proving difficult. Pray it will happen, though, and soon. Thanks.
In Christ,
David and Debbie
Friday, 6 March 2009
Our Toyota Camry
Dear Friends, Here is a picture of our Toyota Camry. It is a 2002 model with automatic transmission and air conditioning. Thank the Lord for this provision.
Monday, 2 February 2009
February Update
Dear Friends,
We send you warm greetings from Kagoro in the name of our Lord. Hopefully you won’t be too envious of the hot temperatures we’re experiencing. It’s good to see the sun again but it’s quite an adjustment to try and function in the heat. I suppose it forces us to slow down!
We have certainly been aware of your prayers as we prepared to leave the country, as we travelled and in this process of transition to life and ministry in Kagoro.
The Thursday before we travelled, David had to go to London to get our visas as it was obvious they would not have been granted on time otherwise. Extra copies of certain documents were needed and one page was missing from another document. David really saw the Lord at work to meet these needs and was able to collect the visas on Friday afternoon. Praise the Lord. We thank the Lord too that the expenses of the trip were covered by a generous gift.
Our return journey was surprisingly hassle-free. Again, we were very aware of the effect of much prayer on our behalf. In Dublin we didn’t have to wait for our scheduled flight. We were able to go straight from the check-in desk, through security and onto the plane because they wanted to fill up the empty seats! A new experience! We were on the runway waiting for take-off longer than we were in the airport! We got to see the new Terminal 5 at Heathrow and are happy to report that we had no problems with our luggage. It was good to see it again when we arrived in Abuja.
Our home in Kagoro is now surrounded by a wall and a strong gate. Apart from being more secure this reduces the amount of chickens and goats going through the compound. All the outer doors of the house are now metal and some other needed repairs were done to some windows before we returned.
We received a warm welcome from our colleagues, neighbours and students. The Shellys very kindly made sure we were fed for two days before we made a quick trip to Jos to stock up on food items we can’t buy locally. It took about a week to unpack enough to get the house up and running. We’ll unpack the rest gradually! It has been a joy to get to know Dennis and Coletta Shelly and we praise the Lord for all they contribute to the life of the seminary.
We thank the Lord that another significant gift came in towards buying a replacement car. Second-hand cars are much more expensive here than in the UK so pray we will know which one to buy.
Classes began last Monday although I (Debbie) didn’t do much apart from the introductions and giving of assignments as I was too exhausted. Please pray for David as he has been given a new course to teach at very short notice. The ‘Third World Theologies’ course overlaps with his recent studies but it is still a lot of work. Thankfully, another teacher who has taught the course has given him a set of notes which is a great help. I am teaching two courses which so far have almost sixty students each and one course which should have about ten. Please pray for stamina for us and the students during this hot season of the year.
We are now connected to two local mobile phone networks and our numbers (with international dialling codes added) are as follows: Debbie +2347069258996 and David +2348089522246. David’s receives texts but mine doesn’t for some reason.
Thank you once again for your faithful prayers.
Yours in Christ,
Debbie and David
We send you warm greetings from Kagoro in the name of our Lord. Hopefully you won’t be too envious of the hot temperatures we’re experiencing. It’s good to see the sun again but it’s quite an adjustment to try and function in the heat. I suppose it forces us to slow down!
We have certainly been aware of your prayers as we prepared to leave the country, as we travelled and in this process of transition to life and ministry in Kagoro.
The Thursday before we travelled, David had to go to London to get our visas as it was obvious they would not have been granted on time otherwise. Extra copies of certain documents were needed and one page was missing from another document. David really saw the Lord at work to meet these needs and was able to collect the visas on Friday afternoon. Praise the Lord. We thank the Lord too that the expenses of the trip were covered by a generous gift.
Our return journey was surprisingly hassle-free. Again, we were very aware of the effect of much prayer on our behalf. In Dublin we didn’t have to wait for our scheduled flight. We were able to go straight from the check-in desk, through security and onto the plane because they wanted to fill up the empty seats! A new experience! We were on the runway waiting for take-off longer than we were in the airport! We got to see the new Terminal 5 at Heathrow and are happy to report that we had no problems with our luggage. It was good to see it again when we arrived in Abuja.
Our home in Kagoro is now surrounded by a wall and a strong gate. Apart from being more secure this reduces the amount of chickens and goats going through the compound. All the outer doors of the house are now metal and some other needed repairs were done to some windows before we returned.
We received a warm welcome from our colleagues, neighbours and students. The Shellys very kindly made sure we were fed for two days before we made a quick trip to Jos to stock up on food items we can’t buy locally. It took about a week to unpack enough to get the house up and running. We’ll unpack the rest gradually! It has been a joy to get to know Dennis and Coletta Shelly and we praise the Lord for all they contribute to the life of the seminary.
We thank the Lord that another significant gift came in towards buying a replacement car. Second-hand cars are much more expensive here than in the UK so pray we will know which one to buy.
Classes began last Monday although I (Debbie) didn’t do much apart from the introductions and giving of assignments as I was too exhausted. Please pray for David as he has been given a new course to teach at very short notice. The ‘Third World Theologies’ course overlaps with his recent studies but it is still a lot of work. Thankfully, another teacher who has taught the course has given him a set of notes which is a great help. I am teaching two courses which so far have almost sixty students each and one course which should have about ten. Please pray for stamina for us and the students during this hot season of the year.
We are now connected to two local mobile phone networks and our numbers (with international dialling codes added) are as follows: Debbie +2347069258996 and David +2348089522246. David’s receives texts but mine doesn’t for some reason.
Thank you once again for your faithful prayers.
Yours in Christ,
Debbie and David
Saturday, 24 January 2009
Back at Kagoro
Dear friends,
We arrived safely back at Kagoro on Tuesday 20th. Thank you for your prayers. I had to go to London to get our visas processed and, thankfully, they were ready on Friday 16th Jan.
There have been a few changes at Kagoro. SIM has built a wall around the compound and strengthened the security of the house. We appreciate this concern and acknowledge that no matter how strong our security measures are, our security depends ultimately on our Lord. A few things around our home have broken while we were away and we are in the process of getting them repaired.
The new semester starts on Monday 26th. This is later than normal since exams for the last semester had to be shifted to January. This means we have arrived back in time to start teaching. Debbie will be teaching three subjects and they are ones she has taught before. I have been assigned two courses I have taught before and one new course. It will be good to be teaching again and we look forward to engaging in that ministry. The new course will mean extra work for me but a colleage here has taught the course before and lent me his notes which I can use to structure my version of the course. Some of the things I have been studying recently will plug into this course.
Unfortunately, I was unable to complete my dissertation before leaving the UK so I will still be working on that but it looks like the provost understands the situation and will not put me back in the registrar's position since that would be quite time consuming.
Thank you for your prayers as we settle back into life here.
In Christ,
David and Debbie
We arrived safely back at Kagoro on Tuesday 20th. Thank you for your prayers. I had to go to London to get our visas processed and, thankfully, they were ready on Friday 16th Jan.
There have been a few changes at Kagoro. SIM has built a wall around the compound and strengthened the security of the house. We appreciate this concern and acknowledge that no matter how strong our security measures are, our security depends ultimately on our Lord. A few things around our home have broken while we were away and we are in the process of getting them repaired.
The new semester starts on Monday 26th. This is later than normal since exams for the last semester had to be shifted to January. This means we have arrived back in time to start teaching. Debbie will be teaching three subjects and they are ones she has taught before. I have been assigned two courses I have taught before and one new course. It will be good to be teaching again and we look forward to engaging in that ministry. The new course will mean extra work for me but a colleage here has taught the course before and lent me his notes which I can use to structure my version of the course. Some of the things I have been studying recently will plug into this course.
Unfortunately, I was unable to complete my dissertation before leaving the UK so I will still be working on that but it looks like the provost understands the situation and will not put me back in the registrar's position since that would be quite time consuming.
Thank you for your prayers as we settle back into life here.
In Christ,
David and Debbie
Friday, 2 January 2009
January update
Dear Friends
We send you greetings in the Name of Jesus and wish you a happy new year!
Thank you for praying for our farewell service at Ballynahinch Congregational Church. The meeting was well attended and thank you also if you were one of the people who was able to be there. The church forwarded a substantial gift to SIM to help us buy a replacement car and we thank them for this practical concern. (Our 21-year old Toyota Corolla at Kagoro is almost a ‘classic car’ and good spares are hard to find.)
I am preaching in both services at Coagh Baptist Church on 4th January so pray they go well (texts Psalm 95 & John 11).
We don’t have our visas yet so keep on praying they will be processed on time. We received a call from London and have posted some more documents to the High Commission. We hope to leave N. Ireland on 19th and arrive at Kagoro on 20th January. As I am sure you can imagine, there are lots of things to do before we leave. There will also be many things to do right after we arrive and the new semester will already have started at the seminary.
I am still working on my dissertation. I have received helpful feedback from my advisor which I will work on in coming days. It looks like I will not be able to finish the dissertation before I leave which is unfortunate but hopefully the bulk of the work is done.
Thank you for praying for the situation in Jos. It sounds like things are calm now. Pray for all those bereaved and for peace in that city. (More information can be found if you follow the links.)
Thank you again for your interest in the work at Kagoro. We look forward to being back there though it is always hard to leave family and friends, especially my father who still has limited mobility after his stroke in April.
As members of SIM we are supposed to produce an official prayer letter four times a year. Normally we manage three. We thank the Lord that people in our supporting churches photocopy and make these available to church members each time. We are, however, looking for someone to help us distribute the ones that are posted (approx 140). We thank Lyn at the SIM office for helping in this regard but we feel it is time to relieve her of that work. Anyone who would like to help should have a computer, some knowledge of word processing, and an email address. We will pay for the expenses involved. If someone reading this would be interested in helping with this task, please contact us using davidcolvi@aol.com. Thanks.
Yours in Christ,
David and Debbie
We send you greetings in the Name of Jesus and wish you a happy new year!
Thank you for praying for our farewell service at Ballynahinch Congregational Church. The meeting was well attended and thank you also if you were one of the people who was able to be there. The church forwarded a substantial gift to SIM to help us buy a replacement car and we thank them for this practical concern. (Our 21-year old Toyota Corolla at Kagoro is almost a ‘classic car’ and good spares are hard to find.)
I am preaching in both services at Coagh Baptist Church on 4th January so pray they go well (texts Psalm 95 & John 11).
We don’t have our visas yet so keep on praying they will be processed on time. We received a call from London and have posted some more documents to the High Commission. We hope to leave N. Ireland on 19th and arrive at Kagoro on 20th January. As I am sure you can imagine, there are lots of things to do before we leave. There will also be many things to do right after we arrive and the new semester will already have started at the seminary.
I am still working on my dissertation. I have received helpful feedback from my advisor which I will work on in coming days. It looks like I will not be able to finish the dissertation before I leave which is unfortunate but hopefully the bulk of the work is done.
Thank you for praying for the situation in Jos. It sounds like things are calm now. Pray for all those bereaved and for peace in that city. (More information can be found if you follow the links.)
Thank you again for your interest in the work at Kagoro. We look forward to being back there though it is always hard to leave family and friends, especially my father who still has limited mobility after his stroke in April.
As members of SIM we are supposed to produce an official prayer letter four times a year. Normally we manage three. We thank the Lord that people in our supporting churches photocopy and make these available to church members each time. We are, however, looking for someone to help us distribute the ones that are posted (approx 140). We thank Lyn at the SIM office for helping in this regard but we feel it is time to relieve her of that work. Anyone who would like to help should have a computer, some knowledge of word processing, and an email address. We will pay for the expenses involved. If someone reading this would be interested in helping with this task, please contact us using davidcolvi@aol.com. Thanks.
Yours in Christ,
David and Debbie
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