August update

Dear friends,

We send you greetings in the Name of Jesus.

Thank you for praying for health and safety in July. We had a great time in England visiting friends and enjoying their hospitality. The week at the Keswick conference was well worth attending. Charles Price was the main speaker in the morning meetings and we appreciated his accurate exposition and practical application of the book of Colossians. Keith and Kristyn Getty led most of the times of worship and we enjoyed that aspect of the conference also (check out www.gettymusic.com).

The weather for most of the trip was excellent and we were glad the car we were using had air conditioning! We have uploaded a few photos of the trip with captions (see links section of this blog) but no photos of the conference since no one was allowed to take photos during the meetings. (No doubt Keswick Ministries will add some more to their own web page: www.keswickministries.org)

August offers several opportunities to take Sunday services (10, 24 & 31) and we would appreciate your prayer for those times. I (David) will start work on the dissertation this month and hope to have most, if not all, of the work completed by the end of the year. I plan to study African views of Christology (the doctrine of Christ). A number of African theologians have addressed the subject in recent years and it would be helpful in my teaching to see what can be learned from these authors.

My Dad is supposed to be returning home from hospital soon. He has recovered from the stroke to some extent but still has difficulty walking and has only limited use of his right hand. Please keep on praying for him.

The new semester will be starting at Kagoro Seminary this month. Pray for the teachers and students. We heard from Sarah Yoo that work has started on a new student accommodation block so we praise the Lord for that development.

Thank you for your prayerful interest in our lives.

In Christ,

David and Debbie

July Update

Dear friends,

Greetings from us both.

Many thanks for your prayers over the past month. We really enjoyed our break in Prague and the fact that the sun was out most of the time made it special! You can check out some of our photos and captions on the ‘links’ section of this blog.

Praise the Lord that David completed his essays for the Masters’ last Friday which just leaves the dissertation. He is now recovering from a throat infection so please pray for restoration of health and strength. Thanks. Unfortunately, he had to cancel a speaking engagement at Dungannon Baptist on 6^th July, but hopes he will have another opportunity to be there later in the year.

The month of July looks like it will be quite busy. A friend of ours from Kilkenny is coming to visit for the week 14^th-21^st. She has been off work for several years due to a complex health problem. Pray she will enjoy the time with us and that we would be an encouragement to her. On 22^nd July we will travel to England to renew fellowship with some friends, visit SIM HQ in Suffolk, and attend the last week of the Keswick Convention (26^th July-1^st August). This will mean a lot of driving so please pray for protection on the unfamiliar and very busy roads. Pray too that we would benefit from the messages and worship at Keswick. We are thankful for the bursaries made available to missionaries to cover the cost of accommodation.

Thank you for praying for David’s dad. He is making slow progress but has come a long way during almost three months of being in hospital. Please pray with us for further improvement so he can return home.

Thanks for praying for the ‘matching gifts’ opportunity for the Seminary at Kagoro. Dennis Shelly says the portion that had to be raised through the Seminary has come in and the matching gift should be raised this month.

In Christ,

Debbie and David

Update on 3 to 1 matching gifts challenge

Dear Friends,

Just a quick update on the fund raising for the Seminary at Kagoro. Praise the Lord the required amount has been raised according to Dennis Shelly. Thank you for praying and/or giving.

In Christ,

David and Debbie

David and Debbie in Prague's Old Town Square

Here is a link to some other photos: http://picasaweb.google.com/davidanddebbiecolvin/PragueTrip

June update

Dear Friends,

We send you greetings in the Name of Jesus our Lord.

Many thanks for your prayers for Debbie as she completed her course. See a photo of Debbie, her fellow graduates, and Graham Cheesman who runs the course below.

I have one more essay to submit, ideally by 20^th June, so pray I can get that in on time. I thought I would have had more time to work on it but it needs to be back so it can be marked and, hopefully, I then get permission to proceed with the dissertation.

As far as meetings go, Debbie has a meeting to take on 14^th and I will be preaching on 15^th and 22^nd (D.V.).

My Dad is making slow progress after the stroke he had seven weeks ago and he is still in hospital. Thank you for your prayers and keep on praying for his recovery.

Our colleague, Dennis Shelly, sent us an email about a ‘matching gifts’ opportunity for the development of the facilities at Kagoro Seminary. (See more about that below).

Debbie and I are taking a ‘city break’ to Prague for three days next week so we are looking forward to that. (Hope I can put aside essay writing and sermon preparation for those days!)

Thanks again for your partnership in the Gospel,

David and Debbie

Debbie's graduation

Debbie's Postgraduate Certificate in Theological Education graduation. Dr Graham Cheesman, who runs the course, is in the front row, second from the left. Other graduates are from Burundi, Romania, India, Kenya, Malawi, and Slovakia.

Matching gifts opportunity

Dear Friends,

We would like to make you aware of an opportunity to help the ECWA Seminary at Kagoro. Our SIM colleague Dennis Shelly, who is teaching there, has set up a project with SIM to raise funds for the development of the seminary's library and computer facilities. He writes:

"Greetings in Christ from the ECWA Theological Seminary, Kagoro. Thank you for your prayers and support as we move into the last month of our January to May, 2008, semester. It has been a good semester of teaching, studies, and outreach...
We write to share one most encouraging opportunity that has just come before our Seminary. We've been seeking assistance to strengthen our Seminary's library and technology sections with more computers and resources for our Old and New Testament departments, along with our Missions department.
One group of Christian friends has just responded with a '3 to 1 challenge' to us. This means that if we can find Christian friends, churches, and groups from Nigeria and overseas who will promptly help us to raise cash up to $15,000 (fifteen thousand dollars), this Christian group would give us a matching gift of $45,000 (forty-five thousand dollars). We've heard of 2 to 1 challenges, but this '3 to 1 challenge' is even better."

Debbie and I have sent a gift to this fund and invite you to consider helping. In a recent email, Dennis wrote they have about $6,000 either already given or promised. Gifts should be made through any SIM office (see links) for the Nigeria project number 85600 and marked: 'Matching Lib. & Res. Gift.'

Yours in Christ,

David