Blessings of God

Dear Prayer Partners,

Ladies Bible Study: The first week of September saw the beginning of a monthly ladies Bible study going through the teachings about the “Mke Mwema” (good wife) as found in Proverbs 31.  The ladies of the church truly enjoyed and appreciated the opportunity to fellowship together and learn from the Word of God.  Please pray that this will help increase the spirit of unity and commitment among our ladies and enable us to reach out with the Word of God to other ladies in our community.

Building Project:  Since the very beginning, we have been saving the vast majority of our weekly offerings with the hopes that one day we could build.  By September we had saved enough and were able to  c0mplete the first phase of our building project.  Although this may sound backwards, we started with the support pillars, roof trusses, and the roofing.  Phase two includes the foundation, doors, and walls.  We were so thankful to see the joyful spirit of all who volunteered their time and abilities.  Some went to the stream to fetch water for mixing the cement.  Others dug holes, others were busy bolting and hammering on roofing, and still others brought food and water for the hungry workers.  By God’s grace, we were able to finish phase one in just one week’s time.  Please continue to pray with us as we ask God to enable us to build without outside help so we can learn to depend on the Lord.

Pizza, English, and Discipleship: Many of our young men have realized the importance of learning English in order to get a good job as well as to be able to read the best Bible commentaries.  Although they all learn English in school, very few can actually read or speak English well.  For several months now, we have invited several youth to our home on Fridays for homemade pizza and English lessons.  Initially they were unsure about pizza, but now they compete to see who can eat the most.  After pizza, they practice reading Bible passages, learning pronounciation and vocabulary, then Nicole teaches a grammar lesson and does drills.  Please pray for these young men that God will prepare them for His service.

Leaning on the Everlasting Arms,

Aaron and Nicole Shipe

Making Disciples

Dear Prayer Partners,

Make disciples . . .
These past months have been very busy and exciting for us as a church. We were able to see the mother of two of our young men make a profession of faith in Christ and begin discipleship lessons. We had been praying for her (Mama Urasa) in our church for several months and to see the Lord answer our prayers was a great thrill. Also, one young man named Kopriano, who had been attending our church off and on for nearly a year, repented of his sins and trusted in Christ as his Savior. Now begins the difficult process of discipleship. Please pray for them as well as two others, Brenda and Karolina, that they become mature and grounded in their faith.
Baptizing them . . .
Just three weeks ago we had the privilege of baptizing four young people. Jared (whom we mentioned in the last prayer letter), Jackson (his younger brother of 17), Herman (a 17 year-old orphan), and Jessica (who accepted Christ on Christmas day last year). Please continue to pray for Saidi and Gupta. Saidi has been given permission by his Muslim father to be baptized, but Gupta still awaits permission. Lord willing they will be baptized later this month.
Teaching them . . .
We also had the privilege of having Pastor Chris Luppino from Chapel Baptist Church in Claremont, Florida, teach a week-long leadership seminar on the doctrine of the church. His straight-forward Biblical approach to the doctrine of the church was much needed to help these men stand for the truth of God’s Word. It also provided me an opportunity to translate a sermon “live” from English to Swahili for the first time. Just one year ago I wouldn’t have been able to do that, but God’s grace is sufficient for the challenge at hand. Thank you for your prayers for our Swahili. We covet your continued prayers for this matter.

Dependent upon and thankful for your prayers,

Aaron and Nicole Shipe

P.S. We plan to be home for furlough from January-June of 2014. If you would like us to visit your church please contact us at the e-mail listed below.

Preparing to Build

Dear Prayer Partners,

The building project:
Although we are thankful for the building God has allowed us to meet in as a church, we have to admit that its life span is quickly nearing an end. Therefore, for the last two years we have been saving money and seeking the official deed to the property. We thank God that as of last week, the deed to the property is officially in our hands! Also, we have saved up nearly 1.2 million shillings ($738). Although we are truly thankful for the many offers of financial support, we are seeking to build without any financial support from outside of our own small body of believers. We desire to establish a pattern for church planting that is reproduceable and therefore, independent of outside funds. This has slowed down the process of building, but also has enabled us to build a sense of community within the church as they come together and volunteer their time, energies, and abilities to clearing the land, developing a blueprint, making bricks, etc. Please continue to pray for us to have wisdom to use our limited resources as prudently as possible.
You can’t inherit Salvation:
Since our very first service, one young man(Jared, aged 19) has attended our church faithfully with his parents, but he himself had never repented of his sins and trusted in Christ as his Savior. Although I and others had shared the Gospel with him numerous times, and his parents are wonderful godly Christians, he always refused saying he wasn’t ready. That is until last month, when he agreed to meet me privately in our old termite-eaten church building. There he bowed his head and with tears in his eyes, he confessed his sin to the Lord and asked for forgiveness through the blood of Christ. The following Sunday at the end of the service, he stood and testified to the church that he was now a follower of Christ. Please pray for Jared and several others (Jackson, Jessica, Saidi, and Michael) who we hope to baptize in three weeks.

Dependent upon and thankful for your prayers,

Aaron and Nicole Shipe

P.S. We plan to be home for furlough from January-June of 2014. If you would like us to visit your church please contact us at the e-mail listed below.