Dear Supporters, Family and Friends,
Last Sunday, we spent an hour and a half pouring out our “heart and soul” to write the report. After pressing the “SEND” button, my wonderful report disappeared because the laptop was not connected to the internet. Since we were just about “brain-dead” at that point we did not re-write.
Okay, we are “connected” now so where do we start? Jimmy’s father, J.W. Gee, and nephew, Steven Akin, arrived a week ago Friday and have been busy ever since. To date, Steven has conducted 14 Bible studies (resulting in 4 baptisms) and has preached twice. Tanzanians are amazed that a 17-year-old young man can proclaim God’s Word in such an excellent way. I knew he would do a good job but even I was “surprised” at how comfortable he is speaking before others and how well he can deliver a sermon. Steven, a recent high school graduate, has plans to attend UT at Chattanooga (majoring in Biology and Spanish) then on to medical school and preaching school (is interested in medical missions).
If you know Jimmy’s father, you know what a hard worker he is…even at age 68. This is another thing Tanzanians are “amazed” at…that an “mzee” (an old man…sorry J.W.) has the strength to dig up the ground and lay 100 feet of pipe at our house. In the Maasai tribe, most men stop working at age 25! Their wives and children do the work.
Jimmy continues his weekly studies “grounding” Lembris and Rosemary in the truth. Please pray for Lembris’ sister (Helen) who is suffering complications after a c-section. We believe she will be very open to a study and have visited her 3 times (once in hospital). We would have already studied with her but time has been a factor for both Trina and her translator (she picked up two other studies this past week). Helen is in a lot of pain right now and can’t concentrate on anything for long. She is in a third hospital and we hope this one will find and treat her problem.
Trina’s new studies are the daughters of a faithful Christian named “Momma Michael.” Oenita (misspelled but close) is 24 years old and Bertha is about 18. Both seem very interested. The study (Seeking God) went very well although there were some interruptions. Trina gave out chewing gum to persuade eight neighborhood children to stay outside.
A very sweet friend of Heather’s, Hope Walker, sent a care package with J.W. and Steven. It contained lots of goodies including jump ropes, play-dough, school supplies (pencils, pens, colored pencils), candy, etc. Also, Jimmy’s mom and the Akin family sent a lot of food items, gifts and enough candy for our dentist to be able to retire (ha/ha). We thank you all for your generosity and kindness. A happy birthday to Trina’s sweet Mother who turned…another year older…(scared you for a minute didn’t we, mother?) on May 23rd.
Trina and her translator visited Agness, a new Christian with a newborn, to encourage her to attend church services. An “old wives’ tale” from the Maasai culture says this: If a Maasai person with bad eyes looks at your young baby (less than 3 months old) then your baby will become sick. Agness is trying to keep her baby well by following the tradition of staying at home 3 months after giving birth. The peer pressure here is great but we are gently trying to encourage her to “seek to please God rather than men.” Agness is interested in learning more and may study with visitor Penny Cabler (who arrived last night).
Thanking you for your support!
The Jimmy Gee family