American Sudan Workers Meet to Finalize Plans
Four of the U. S. workers and their families gathered in Mt. Juliet, Tenn., over the June 10-12 weekend. They came together to get better acquainted and to prepare and coordinate some in-depth plans for the soon-to-open South Sudan Bible school, which is the name we will be calling the new preacher training school.
Attending the conference were Mike Roman from Norfolk, Va., (construction coordinator); Dick and Suzi Stephens of Indianapolis, Ind., (coordinating the clinic equipment and medicines); Jeremy Thompson of Era, Texas, (the academic dean of the school); DeWayne Griffin, (Mt. Juliet church elder); and Don Humphrey, also of Mt. Juliet, Tenn., (project director).
These people planned and prayed together, ate together, and worshipped with the sponsoring Mt. Juliet, Tenn., congregation. We have an extremely qualified and congenial team in place, and the meetings were very productive. Please pray for each of these people and their important areas of work!
The Roofs are On!
Onyanga Alfred, a Sudanese Christian and our on-site building contractor, recently e-mailed that the roofs on the church building and the clinic have been completed. He writes that by the middle of June, all the buildings should be roofed and the bricks plastered attractively inside and out.
Because of lack of communication abilities, we do not have current pictures yet. However, you can see the impressive brick walls in the accompanying photo. Remember that all the buildings have to be constructed by hand with no power machinery and with bricks made locally by the people of Pajok.
This is exciting news! The long-anticipated buildings for the school campus are nearing completion. With God's continued blessing, the plan that classes for the training of preachers can begin in January, 2012, is looking certain.
This has been a dream of American and Sudanese Christians for many years. Many of you who receive this newsletter have contributed very generously to this work, and now, praise God, it is becoming a reality!
Our Building Goal is Almost Reached!
Through the generosity of so many, we are now only $4,000 short of reaching the goal of completely finishing and paying for the initial buildings needed to start classes in January of 2012.
More buildings will be needed as the school expands. But this is a tremendous start and means we can begin training preachers to go out with the Gospel into the receptive new nation of South Sudan.
Thanks to all of you who are making this possible! God, through you His servants, is blessing this work abundantly!
Another New Congregation Begins
Sudanese minister Isaya Jackson reports that the Lord has blessed them with another new congregation in South Sudan. Former refugees from Uganda make up the new membership.
Isaya reports that about 25 adults and 10 children are now meeting in the South Sudanese town of Ayali. The area has a great potential to grow population wise as it is very rich farmland.
As Independence Day Approaches...
With South Sudan due on July 9 to become the newest nation in the world, the army of north Sudan has recently shelled the bitterly-contested Abyei border region. According to the UN, around 113,000 were forced to flee to the south.
Although our South Sudan Bible School site in Pajok is far to the south of radical Khartoum in the north and has seen no problems whatsoever, we need to pray for the safety and wisdom of the people of South Sudan as they tackle the tremendous task of creating a new nation under difficult conditions.
An Inside Look at Conditions in South Sudan...
- Only 5 percent of births are attended by a skilled health worker.
- 1 in 6 women dies in pregnancy.
- 1 in 6 children in South Sudan dies before turning a year old.
- 90 percent of the 10 million South Sudanese live on less than $1 a day
- The majority of schools in South Sudan consist of little more than a chalkboard under a tree.
- Only about 6 percent of the teachers in South Sudanese schools are said to be qualified or trained.
- Barely 1/4 of girls attend primary school.
- 85 percent of southern Sudanese cannot read or write
- South Sudan is the size of France and England combined, but only about 40 km, less than 25 miles, of paved roads exist in the entire country!
The Sudan Project Printing donated by friends of The Sudan Project June 2011