Special Prayer for – Otto & April Habeger

[Larry Whitehead]

Special Prayer – Gram from the First Presbyterian Church of Redding

Serving Christ & Community since November 17, 1878

 147 Years in Redding, California

 

 In a world filled with chaos,

we pray because prayer is the antidote to anxiety

 There simply is no greater work, no greater calling,

 no greater ministry than that of intercessory prayer.

  

 

May 26, 2026, (2026-26)

Requested by – Church Office, Lana Hill

For – Otto & April Habeger

Special Prayer for – See messages from Otto below:

From: Otto Habeger <otto_h...@sil.org>
Sent: Monday, May 25, 2026 10:39 AM
To: Otto Habeger <otto_h...@sil.org>
Subject: Re: Habeger Prayer Update

 

Dear Prayer Partners,

You may have been seeing in the news about the Ebola outbreak in Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) with some cases being confirmed in Uganda as well. We want to reassure you that we are safe and aware and are keeping a close eye on the developing situation. Currently, there have been no confirmed cases in South Sudan, and we pray that it will be contained and not continue to spread.

The US has put travel restrictions on anyone traveling from DRC, Uganda and South Sudan. This does not mean that we cannot return to the US, but that we can only fly into specific airports in order to undergo a health screening. 

In the meantime, we continue to live and work as normal and precautions are being put in place to minimize risk of transmission of the virus.

Please do continue to pray for us for God's protection and for wisdom for us and our administration. Pray for all those effected by this outbreak. Pray that they will be able to contain the outbreak and that the virus will not continue to spread to other communities. Pray also for those who are trying to minister to those most effected. Lastly, please also pray for our travel plans to come for Home Assignment in July.

Thank you for your prayers and concern. 

 In His Service,

Otto & April Habeger

Juba, South Sudan

 

---

From: Otto Habeger <otto_h...@sil.org>
Sent: Monday, April 27, 2026 6:35 PM
Subject: Habeger Prayer Update

 Dear Praying Partners,

My goal has been to update you every month so that you can know specifically how to be praying for us. We so appreciate your prayers and encouragement and have realized recently just how much your partnership means to us. However, recently, things have been so hectic that we have not met that goal and have let much more time pass without updating you. We are so thankful that you continue to pray anyway and that the Lord hears and knows our needs before we even ask. Nevertheless, I do hope to improve and communicate more often. 

Since this update is longer than usual, I will start with the prayer requests and praises and then give more details in the update below. 

Please praise God with us for...

• God's strength and for giving us good health in the midst of a very busy season.
• For a new teacher and an administrative volunteer to help at the school (Juba Christian Academy).
• For safety and security, even in the midst of tensions in the country as well as around the world.
• For a visit from our oldest daughter and her family so we could enjoy vacation together in Kenya.
• For 50 years of SIL (the sister organization we work with overseas) in Sudan/South Sudan and for all God has done over the years.

Please pray for ...

• Continued strength, energy and health as the next few months will be VERY busy.
• For God's provision for the work here in South Sudan, both at SIL and also at Juba Christian Academy (JCA), where April works half-time, for more workers and finances for the work to be able to continue well.
• For the upcoming 50-year celebration for SIL in the country - events will be held on May 2 and 9, as well as staff celebrations later in the month.
• For security and peace in South Sudan.
• For plans for our upcoming home assignment (furlough).

 

Busy Times

As with all work, there are times of a steady flow and times when the work seems to come all at once.  Lately, it seems we have been juggling several things at once and there often don't seem like enough hours in the day. Otto, along with the maintenance team, was able to get some projects done while there were not as many people on the compound after Christmas, and especially to do some repairs before the rainy season hits.

April started teaching the new school term with a shortage of staff at Juba Christian Academy (JCA) as the teaching assistant returned part time after maternity leave, a part-time teacher went on maternity leave, and our cleaning lady was also out on maternity leave. Praise God for 3 healthy baby girls born to our staff. Later in the term our bus driver's wife also had a baby girl. It must be the year for baby girls at JCA - future students! At the same time, God provided some new staff members. One is the wife of a MAF (Mission Aviation Fellowship) pilot from the Netherlands. She will be serving as a teacher at JCA. The second is a volunteer who came with AIM (Africa Inland Mission) specifically to help with administration for a year so that April can focus on teaching and leading the education team. It was great to welcome both of them in January, but it also meant helping to orient them and bringing them into the JCA family. While it was a hectic time, God continued to provide through extra volunteers from parents as well as others who gave generously of their time to help keep the school going.

Alongside her work at the school, April also continued her Human Resources (HR) work at SIL while the director was on her home assignment in the US. In February, HR leaders in SIL across Africa gathered for HR Together, a conference held in Nairobi, Kenya. This was an important time to gather, pray, encourage, learn, share ideas, and refresh our vision for HR work within SIL. It was a good time to remind us that we work together in community with so many others. Towards the end of our week together, we were instructed to write down our "Big Asks" that we are asking God to work in the situation - both personal and in our work. We then put them on sticky notes on a board and gathered around it to pray together for these things. We then sang together "It is Well with my Soul" as we committed those things to God knowing that He will work out what is best in each situation. By the way, the meetings and our worship times were in both English and French as we joined both Anglophone (English speaking) and Francophone (French speaking) areas of Africa. 

Celebrating a 50-year Milestone!

No, we have not been married for 50 years! SIL was first registered in the southern area of what was then the country of Sudan in 1976, so this year marks 50 years of work in this area. During this time, the southern part of Sudan became the new country of South Sudan. We are preparing to celebrate this milestone to share all that God has accomplished here, but also to look to the future and spread the vision for Bible Translation and Language Development in South Sudan. April is heading up the committee who is planning for the celebration which is coming up in May. We will be starting on May 2 with a public event called "Dance for the Bibleless" as a fundraiser and also to raise awareness that many people still do not have a Bible in their own language. The second event will be a Celebration Service where we will invite former members, all staff, partnering organizations, church and government leaders and others to come and join in a celebration of all that God has done over the last 50 years and to look forward to what He will do in the future. Please pray that all the details will come together over the next couple of weeks and that God will be glorified through these celebrations. Pray also that God will bring people together to celebrate. Pray for God's provision for the finances needed for these events. 

Ongoing Prayers for Peace and Security

With all that is going on in the world, we are reminded again that God is still in control and that we need to continually pray for peace and security where God has placed us.

"And work for the peace and prosperity of the city where I sent you into exile. Pray to the Lord for it, for its welfare will determine your welfare.” Jeremiah 29:7

Of course, this doesn't only apply to where you live (and we are not here in exile), but please continue to pray for peace and security for South Sudan as God puts on your heart. Tensions here continue to be high as there is the ongoing trial of the former first vice president as well as many political and economic pressures that continue to bring stress and suffering to so many people here. We have the hope in the Lord that so many still need to know. 

Family Update

After our last update, one friend wrote back and asked where our update is about our girls and their families, so we definitely need to include that here, especially as we have great news to share.

Our 7th grandchild, Tiyana Ayiko Daniels was born March 8, 2026 in Florida to Cathy and David Daniels. She joins Adalyn (age 8), Elayah (age 6), and Luke (age 3). We praise God that both mom and baby are healthy and doing well. 

We also had a visit from our oldest daughter, Angela and her husband, Johan, and their son, Kyan. They came to Kenya so that we could have a vacation together while they showed their son some of their favorite Kenyan places and experiences. It was fun to be together and share some of their childhood memories with the next generation.

      

Home Assignment (Furlough) is Coming!

As we said goodbye to Angela and her family, we were able to say, "See you in a few months!" as our furlough time is quickly coming up. It is hard to believe it has been more than 2 years since our last furlough. With air travel being so disrupted in the last couple of months, it took us a while to work out our flights, but we now have a ticket to arrive on July 24, 2026. We will start our furlough in North Carolina, and we are praying that we will be able to get together with all 4 of our daughters and their families. Last time, we were not able to all be together, so we are hoping it can happen this time. Now that our daughters live in North Carolina, Florida, Tennessee and Oregon, and we also have partnering churches clustered in northern California, and Texas, it is getting harder to plan all the travel. We hope to have more details of our travel schedule soon so that we can hopefully meet up with many of you while we are in the US. 

Thank you again for all your prayers, support, and encouragement. In the midst of all the busyness and chaos, and even with our lack of communication, your prayers have kept us going. Thank you.

 In His Service,

Otto & April Habeger

 

Serving Wycliffe Bible Translators in Juba, South Sudan

 

Contact Information: (mailing address – e-mail is preferred)
Otto & April Habeger
P.O. Box 44456
Nairobi, Kenya 00100
*mail is not available in South Sudan, so it is hand-carried when people travel. E-mail is the best contact.
 
Phone numbers (also used for WhatsApp):  Otto +211924555970, April +211924888520
 
e-mail:  otto_h...@sil.org
 
Financial Contributions:
Wycliffe Bible Translators
P.O. Box 628200
Orlando, FL  32862-8200
Wycliffe accepts tax-deductible contributions. Please include a separate note with your check, indicating “Preference for the Wycliffe ministry of Otto & April Habeger , Account # 232901.”  OR Give On-line: http://www.wycliffe.org/Partnership.aspx?mid=65B19F