June, 2010 “...Being enriched in everything to all bountifulness, which causes through us thanksgiving to God. For the administration of this service not only supplies the want of the saints, but is abundant also by many thanksgivings unto God...” – 2 Corinthians 9:11-12
Dear Friends... Although the school has been empty of students for a month, production at the Woodshop has been in full swing with orders coming in and Chris managing the new production lines and servicing machinery – it is a whole new learning curve for us and we’re thrilled to have completed our first three months of open business! Having the business is a fantastic blessing, but as with a child it is very demanding and jealous of our attention elsewhere! This is one of the many reasons why we are so glad to be a part of the Afrika Wa Yesu Team – where we cannot go they go in our stead. This is especially true of the last month, where an Afrika Wa Yesu conference was held in Cuamba, a town some 10 hours drive away where an Afrika Wa Yesu church has been established. The entire body was ministered to over a period of three weeks, with a team of ten holding leader’s training seminars, women’s meetings, men’s meetings, couples meetings, youth rallies, children’s ministry, evangelism, and meeting with the Vocational Centre Alumni in the body. The vision of the Vocational Centre is to equip men with the ability to provide for themselves, their families, their church and their
community. They will testify of the Lord Jesus Christ through their work ethics, the way in which they care for their families, and extend the kingdom of God through tithing to their church. What a joy to see this beginning to be fulfilled. This is our fourth year here in Mozambique, and as we go on we are able to Praise God for what has happened here, at the same time looking to the future and seeing where we can adapt and improve in order to operate more effectively for the Kingdom! This is why these follow up sessions are so important. They provide the men with a measure of accountability, knowing that we will be visiting them to see what they are doing. They enable encouragement for them, an opportunity for them to ask questions and for advice. We are able to revise business skills with them, and in so doing see what we need to place more emphasis on in the school, and what needs to be added to the curriculum.
Dora and Nelson conducting business revision with the alumni in the Cuamba Wa Yesu church
Follow Up Testimonies Dora Felix, a young Brazilian lady working with the Vocational Centre, and Nelson Gomes, a young Mozambican man who is our teacher-in-training, represented the Vocational Centre during this conference in Cuamba, among other forms of ministry. They brought back a good report of four of the men who we’ve had attend the school from the area. The first is Wakala. He is living a good life, and is the leader of Cuamba Wa Yesu, the church in Cuamba. He has been working in woodwork, as well as some other small enterprise opportunities.. This is fantastic as we tell students that if they cannot do carpentry, they need to be involved in some form of business, utilising their training in this aspect. He plans to be married this year and then spend more time working in carpentry, among his duties as leader of the Church. Belito has been busy working in the fields growing crops. He is not doing carpentry right now, but he has applied to a government organisation to receive a large loan and a contract to supply chairs and tables to schools and churches. There is a lot of potential in this kind of arrangement, but it is also a big responsibility and a lot could go wrong.
Please pray for him to have the courage to conduct his business God’s way, and for blessings to be on him as he works. Florentino is not working because of a lack of money to start the business. He had some trouble in his house and spent the money he had. His family left Cuamba and he is by himself. He needs to fix up his house and buy household items. Miguelito was working in carpentry after he returned from the school, but at the beginning of the year he was robbed and almost all his tools are gone. It seems that he was doing very well before that happened. Dora went to his house and saw his workshop. After being robbed he found a job and worked for a month to get some money to start replacing the tools, but he hasn’t been paid yet. When we heard that he had been robbed we were able to send some new tools as a gift for him to get him back on his feet. Apart from Miguelito, they have their tools, and some of them, like Wakala, have bought other tools, adding to their set. None of them had bank accounts at the time, but Wakala has since opened one, enabling him to expand in matters of both church and business. A student of ours from Macomia, Lourenço Baicon, was also robbed and had his tools stolen from him. He is involved in the Afrika Wa Yesu church in Macomia, helping the Evangelists in the area, and he is attending school.
Nelson presenting Miguelito with his new tools
Two students from Ribaue, about three hours drive away, have formed a co-op and are working very well together. They are Jose and Jose, one of who is the leader of the Afrika Wa Yesu church in Ribaue. They journey out into the bush to cut their own wood, transport it home and process it. This is absolutely fantastic,
because they are helping each other and also holding each other accountable. An ideal arrangement for them to come to. Praise God. Closer to home, in an area called Nacoto where there is an Afrika Wa Yesu church, Juma Manoteca is working from his home and attending the church with his family. What joy to see the Vocational Vision come alive. What we see happening in the field are difficulties which our men encounter eery day, and it is our responsibility to help prepare them for life outside of the school. The hardships they will face are realities, and we need to equip them with plans and ideas of how to stand firm in the face of adversity.
We will be expanding our follow-up program to include a few days in each area, meeting with alumni. It would be like a mini-conference, covering topics as follows: 1. Encouraging Co-ops There is strength in numbers and there are often more than one alumni in each area. We encourage them to work together. 2. Enable loans We need to educate them about what is available for them in the form of business loans. 3. Business Revision and Tactical Support Going over the basic ‘how to’ of business management and providing question and answer time is crucial. The men need to know they have someone they can turn to for advice when they are stuck. 4. New Carpentry Ideas It would be great to be able to expand their knowledge of techniques with a new joint or a simplified work method.
Juma outside his home with a door he has made to sell
We’ll also be adding to our business theory course with lots of practical book-keeping exercises, developing more thorough and step-by-step business plans, educating the students on the loan opportunities available to them through the government, and the importance of forming alumni coops. We are excited at what God is doing and continues to do, we are reaching to new levels and heights for His Glory and it is an honour to do so. Thank you so much for enabling us to be on the mission field through your support and prayers, and in so doing empowering the men of Mozambique to lift up a standard for themselves, their families, the communities and their churches. God bless you. Together for His Glory,
Chris and Deborah and all at Afrika Wa Yesu Vocational Centre