Chali Nov 6-9, 2010

This trip was primarily for the distribution of the Proclaimer radios which have the recording of the Uduk New Testament in dramatized form. The recordings took place a year ago when we went there with two recording technicians from "Faith Comes by Hearing." This is the result of a year's worth of work.

Claire had received the radios in Nairobi and we flew in with them into Sudan. From our landing point we would take a tractor out to Chali. A photo diary in the picture section describes how the trip went.

Yabus BELC Graduation

Yabus was the site of much rejoicing of late. The fifth and final Basic Education Learning Center (BELC) that was started when we first re-entered Sudan in 2005 has graduated its students.
The community came out to celebrate the hard work and the achievement of the students.

In all 29 students completed the course which took them from primary 1 to 8. Among the people who came to encourage the students was one of the original teachers who went home to get married. Words of encouragement were also offered by one of the community leaders. I expounded on a passage from Nehemiah where the people of Israel were returning to a country they once knew that was now in ruin. The situation is much the same here in Sudan where many have fled into refugee camps and are now back in their country of origin.

As is custom in celebrations, there was of course much food: two whole cows and three goats along with copious amounts of kisra (soured sorghum cooked into thin crepe-like bread). It was a day to rejoice for those who had worked hard and earned their day!

Malakal and Rom

Malakal is situated on the Nile river in Upper Nile State. Hard to believe that at one time Moses would have been on the same river! We have a number of missionaries there engaged in language learning and cultural acquisition. There have also been some tremendous ministries where people have been coming to faith. There is also an English language ministry there which has been reaching out to people.

The base has also been supporting other projects like the one in Atar and for a project undertaken by Sudan Interior Aid (SIA), the development arm of the Sudan Interior Church. SIA has opened a clinic in the village of Rom. Some people seeking medical attention there have come as far as a four hour walk away. My current trip was to follow up on Crisis Management issues leading up to the April elections. I was able to lead the team in a risk assessment and in practical activities like preparing “grab and run” bags for when there may be a need to flee in a hurry.

After having spent a few days in Malakal, arrangements had been made for me to fly out to Yabus from Rom, a three hour drive North of Malakal. The area is populated by cattle herding groups. It is flat and stretches as far as the eye can see. Quite different from Yabus, located in the neighbouring state.

Second trip in 2010

On March 10th I left for my second trip to Sudan. It was 40 degrees Celsius when I arrived in Malakal to continue Crisis Management preparations. The day after I arrived, a colleague and I chartered a boat to visit Atar for the first time since the attacks took place late last year. Atar was the site where our compound was burnt down during tribal clashes. The missionaries continue to rest and recuperate from the incident.

My trip marked the first time we were to go back to assess the current situation. Providentially, we were met with many of the people who took part in helping us during the crisis. Many of the community leaders were there campaigning for the upcoming elections. I was able to speak with SIC church leaders in the area as well as our staff who are from Atar and most importantly the county commissioner who was instrumental in providing telecommunications (satellite phone) which helped our evacuation of the missionaries.

Again, as an outworking of God’s providence I was able to meet the Minister of Interior who had called me in Nairobi after the incident took place conveying his personal sympathies. He also sent a delegation of people to visit the missionaries who were recovering in Nairobi.

Do pray for us as we decide on the next steps for Atar. Do pray for missionaries who will be willing to serve in hard places. Pray for peace to prevail between different tribes and for the witness of the Gospel to change and transform the community. I would also like to thank many of you, on behalf of the missionaries, who have both been praying and have sent gifts to the “Relief and Contingency" account to assist in the situation. You have made a difference!

Newest addition to the team

The newest addition to the SIM Sudan team was not an individual coming from the US, Nigeria, North East India, Ethiopia, or Canada. They did not come on a plane but rather in a shipping container across the ocean! Moreover, it was put together carefully by the talented crew at AIM AIR (a branch of Africa Inland Mission). The newest member of our team is a new Cessna 206 plane!

We recently dedicated the plane to field service. It was a wonderful remind

er not only of the work but who we were going to serve. Ministry can be a very impersonal word at times. It is important to remember that each person is a soul. We are not just doing ministry but ferrying real people with names.

The flights allow us to be in areas that would otherwise be inaccessible by road. It allows missionaries to serve real people: those who are suffering from malaria; malnutrition; lack of education; lack of clean drinking water.

It also helps us to share the Word of God. In the past workdersused boats to reach far off places, today the airplane takes us further and further inland to some of the most amazing places in this world. There we meet with pastors and leaders of young churches and help in the rebuilding of Sudan as both church and nation!

Check out www.ngkilloren.com for a short video clip called “10 months in 3 minutes”!

What we do

For those of you who are curious as to what we do daily.

Claire:

• Process all paperwork for incoming team members and communicate with them before they get here, answering all their questions to the best of my ability
• On the Spiritual Life Conference committee and have a part in organizing the team conference in January
• Write manuals (bor-ing, yawn) but they have to be written to better help us all (we don’t have many so there are a few to do)
• Supervise the orientation process of new team members
• Process all ID cards for new team members
• Write new Personnel Request Forms when we realize we need more help in a certain ministry
• Sit on the Crisis Management Team
• Sit on SIM’s Area Council twice a year (I am the note taker)
• Do odd, personal logistics for people when they don’t know who to ask e.g.: “Claire, can you send me this book?”
• Book people into our Guesthouse and make sure everyone has a place to stay and a taxi to pick them up from the airport
• Write a monthly newsletter to the team introducing them to new team members who have arrived and also fill them in on helpful information
• Manage a Bible translation office project

Tohru:

• Work with project managers for the various Sudan projects (water, health, education, and other)
• Act as a board member for the SIC Secondary school
• Sit on the Crisis Management team
• SIM Sudan council member
• Act as liaison person for the Ethiopian, Nigerian who sends workers to Sudan
• Write new projects
• Donor relations/Publications

May this better shed light on how to pray for us! Thank you so much for your prayers!

By Prayer

What carries us through those tough weeks when things seem to just be going wrong? What we do at the beginning of the week may have something to do with it. What does an average week look like? The first thing we do at the beginning of the week is to pray.

I collect prayer requests that come from the field by phoning each base station using a satellite phone. We then announce the things that are going on and pray through each of them.

We also share a devotion from the Scriptures to encourage and challenge us. Though life on the mission field can be tough at times, we remind ourselves through the Word that the work that the Lord is doing through us is not in vain (2 Corinthians 15:58).

It’s important to remember that praying may be the most important thing we will do all week! Pray and watch the wonderful answers!