January 2012 Report
James Taylor
January 2012
“Our vision is to be a ministry of eternal significance that impacts the cause of Christ through the advancement and multiplication of His churches.”
Free at Last
In November we crossed a major mile stone by completing our first six months of Language. This was the intensive class room part of our learning and the class room and homework ate up most of our time.
Although we have a long way to go, we will have some more free time to change our focus a little bit. We look forward to using what we have learned more in the field as God opens door for us to continue to grow and learn.
We Thank the Lord for our Language instructor, Gertrude. She has been a great teacher and a wonderful friend. We now spend three days a week with her (one for continued learning and two doing translation work).
Visiting the Churches
We visited five different churches this month and one Bible Study location. Right now these visits are still the best way for me to mentor the men and it opens great doors to us in language and culture.
The highlight was our visit to Sita, which is a new Bible study location. We had an outreach there and seven people prayed to receive Christ as their savior. The final Sunday we visited Magangani where two were baptized.
I also made additional visits to some of the locations this month just to visit with the pastor or to help with projects they have going on in their churches. These are really good teachable moments.
Landmark Baptist Bible Institute Pwani
We continue to provide seminary training for the men, The sessions are taught by Brother Lynn Raburn and various guest speakers he had during his time here on DVD.
The Bourlands Need a Vehicle
When we first came on the field, we shared vehicles with the Taylors, knowing that it was only about six months until their furlough and then they would be in the states for several months. This allowed us to not be concerned with this need our first year on the field. The Taylors will be returning in late June and we need to raise the funds for a vehicle prior to their return. We will need about $15,000 to get an appropriate vehicle.
Coast to Coast
(Taylor Family)
Our family continues to travel the US to say thank you and share about all that the Lord has done and is doing on the coast of Kenya. This month we have literally gone coast to coast! WE have been from Maine to California! We have been so blessed by the churches and their support. I believe our furlough time is reconnecting the ministry with the supporting churches and raising our prayer support. We have been amazed at how many truly have been taking the journey with us via reports and updates. It means so much to know that people are praying for our families and for God to move as we labor. Although furlough has been busy and the miles are adding up nothing replaces the personal, face to face, connection with our support team. East Kenya Missions is indeed a team effort from the ground team to the support team. Together we are changing eternity to the Glory of God!
James Taylor PO Box 811 Malindi, Kenya 80200
Phone 011-254-713289014 missiona...@gmail.com
Scott Bourland PO Box 5906 Malindi, Kenya 80200
Phone 011-719661243 missionar...@gmail.com
MAMBO YA JAMii
Taylors
Many may dream of seeing the US from coast to coast, but I would venture to say that none would dare do it in a month. Anyone who knows my husband knows that when his mind is set to something and once the ball starts rolling there’s no stopping. I don’t say that as a negative just so that you understand the pace of life we live sometimes. So the ball started rolling in Somerset, Kentucky. We rolled to New Jersey, New York, Massachusetts, then Maine to see James’ Dad. Next to Maryland, where Sarah fell under the DC Marc train causing us all a big scare, then to West Virginia where we saw our good friends and former missionaries to Kenya The Halls. We passed back through Indiana having dinner with my parents and immediately on to Kansas for a one night visit with the Rights. In Colorado we had fun sledding with Brother Sanders and visiting his family and the Stringers. We had a wonderful visit with the Bakers in New Mexico, passed through Arizona for James to run a marathon, then on to Nevada and California. Whew! It has most definitely been a very intense trip, but God gave us some awesome kids who travel very well. They have rolled with the curves, bumps, and turns all along the way. We have taken advantage of the sights along the way as well. We have seen the Statue of Liberty, Plymouth Rock, Washington D.C., Rocky Mountains, The Grand Canyon, The Petrified Forest and Painted Desert, The Hoover Dam, The lights of Las Vegas, and The Sequoias. I’m sure I missed something there, but you get the picture. We have also tried to get back on schedule with home school, getting in 5 days a week. And before some of you start thinking I must be a super mom, please don’t, because I have faced some struggles along the way. My biggest enemy is myself, and sometimes my attitude gets the best of me. Thankfully I have a very understanding husband, who lets me cry and get my frustration out and then we keep on rolling. And did I mention that I have awesome kids! God really has blessed us with some flexible and fun kids. Thanks for reading and praying!
Bourlands
We arrived in Mombasa on the 31st of December. Scott nor I even realized it was New Year's Eve until we started noticing all the signs for celebrations on the beach. You sort of lose track of what day it is when you have that long of a flight. We drove home to Malindi and forced ourselves to stay awake until 10 pm, only to try to get back on schedule, and then yes, I am sad to say, we rang in the New Year only in our dreams!
Pray for the translation work, I have
completed my first children's book and have begun Sunday School
lessons on Creation. The book is a book that I have written and illustrated
myself. I am waiting to get it back from Gertrude after the final proofing has
been done, and then I will begin taking it with me everywhere I go. It is a
story of a little African boy who is trying to find where God lives. It is full
of silly encounters with talking animals and trees, but ends with the little
boy receiving Jesus as his personal Savior. It has a very clear presentation of
the gospel and I am praying that I will be able to see many children come to
know the Lord as their Savior through the reading of this book. Gertrude was so
excited about it, she has already beaten me to the punch, she used it last week
to teach her Sunday School class. She teaches the
older youth and teens, and
she said they loved it and it opened up a very good time of discussion about salvation. Scott has already been contacted by someone wanting a copy so they can use it on a mission trip their youth group will be taking this summer. Please pray with me that the Lord will provide some better equipment to print the books and Sunday School materials that I will be translating. I would love to see the books in all of the orphanages here on the coast someday! I also talked to one of our pastors a little bit today about translating the books and S.S. materials into Giriama. What a vision I believe the Lord has for this part of my ministry. I am so excited to be used by HIM.
Special prayer request for Kelli and Caleb as they both are struggling with some major health issues right now. Keep praying for Joshua, as many of you know, he has not been serving the Lord, but praise God, he has returned to the Lord and is seeking His direction again for his life. This Momma can sleep a little easier now! Also pray for Leah, our oldest granddaughter, as she is getting old enough to start to understand Salvation and ask a few questions. What a great day of rejoicing it will be when she and all of our grandchildren accept Jesus!
Thank you all for your prayers and support, we couldn't do this without you!
