Maybe I was making them too complicated.
So I'm giving myself 30mins and then I'm pressing 'Send' regardless!
HARVEST:
Our new church, Christian Life Ministries, has been performing the drama 'Heaven's Gates, Hell's Flames'. It's a series of short stories about the lives of different individuals and what happens to them on judgement day. Some go to heaven...some to hell. Powerful stuff!
Boarding the buses for the play
Today we took the entire Secondary School and perhaps more than 50 gave their lives to Christ...to the sound of much whooping and cheering from their supportive class mates.
Giving their lives to Christ!
What a day!
Give thanks for God's grace!
THE FUTURE:
Although I'm giving my accountant ulcers by rampantly reinvesting...we're so excited about next academic year. The teachers and students are getting ready for 28th June - the end of term. My management and admin teams and I are gearing up for the 9th September - the beginning of next year. We really want to start next year well.
The highlights include:
- new Primary classes
- new, experienced teachers from the UK
- all teachers are expected to return in September
- the secondary school will have a full-time pastoral team (led by Allie). We're going to start team teaching RE as a timetabled youth group and the team will be available throughout the week as school counsellors
- there will be a special needs team (again led by Allie). Allie and an experienced Learning Support Assistant from the UK, supported by some great classroom assistants, will help the students who are struggling academically and developmentally
- we will have a new Director of Studies in place to help the new Secondary Management team implement improvements to teaching standards and curriculum changes
- we hope to have enough teaching supplies
- we hope to raise the money for our new sports field
- we hope to raise money to complete our half built Secondary School admin block
- we will have a consistent salary and benefits policy in place across the whole school
- and I am praying for more UK teachers and gap students to fill up our staff room
As well as these day to day changes, there are some new strategic ideas that are floating around in my head.
I'd like to see we if we can offer some trade training to a few students next year...a great career opportunity.
There is also a new need becoming apparent for Teaching English as a Foreign Language (TEFL). I'd like to explore raising financing for a TEFL team to:
- offer high quality, low cost English language tuition in the evenings. There is a huge demand and I have an empty school in the evenings. Such an easy outreach opportunity
- help implement English in the Primary School that ARM runs in the very poor Jabe area of the city
- support The King's School students who are struggling with English
- develop an accelerated English programme to enable bright non-English speaking children to enrol in our school
- fulfil the consultancy requests from the Ministry of Education regarding the implementation of English in the Burundian curriculum
Exciting times ahead. Please do connect us with people who maybe interested in supporting the school and these initiatives both financially and practically.
Give thanks for the work God is doing at His school and pray that we may keep it centred on Him.
FAMILY:
Let's be clear...we have been and are very blessed.
Life here has some real positives:
- better weather
- very tight and supportive communities
- more family time
- less material and media clutter in our lives
There have been challenges...but with God's support they have been over come.
But there is a big period of change (again) for us this summer.
We're moving house...which is a source of anxiety...though it shouldn't have been and needn't be. God has provided us with a very large, cheap house. It needs a lot of the work and we had no furniture....until yesterday when we visited the house of a German missionary family who are moving back home. There was a lot going cheap...so hopefully we're nearly sorted with that.
Please pray as we visit the house tomorrow to asses the extent of the work needed on the house.
We're very excited about spending the summer in the UK....although it is with some sadness that we leave our expat friends for two months. And we have been warned that it can be a mixed experience...seeing friends and family vs culture shock vs rest from work vs living out of bags vs speaking engagements.
Our countdown chart
But we need a break. We're tired...happy, but tired. The guns, poverty, cholera, power cuts, malaria etc...grind you down.
Please pray for a restful and joyful summer.
Please also pray that we might find a car (with tow bar) to borrow over the summer.
And, as always, we're still trying to raise funds...we're nearly out! Please remember us in your giving.
Please pray for provision and trust in God's timing.
OTHER HIGHLIGHTS:
- our Housegroup is planning an end of year party...possibly involving pirate costumes
- we had a lovely weekend away 'up country'...a very peaceful guest house with large vegetable gardens...though it was weird driving even deeper into the heart of Africa
The rooms
- a UK charity has managed to get hold of a load of lab equipment for the science labs
- my lunch last week with Fliss was interrupted by a bright green snake which was either a Banana Snake (very harmless) or a Green Mamba (one of the most deadly)...Allie and Cass had angry hippos at theirs
- the Secondary School's library is now up and running....and is now my new office there. I prefer to work in there and hang out with the kids rather than shut myself away.
The new library
- the school took receipt of a gift of computers, desks and laptops from Samaritan's Feet allowing us to complete our second ICT lab...what a blessing!
Preparing for an interview about the new ICT suite
More soon.
God Bless,
Jeremy
