23 Years

Dear Loved Ones,

Twenty-three years ago this past Friday, we stepped off the plane for the first time in Africa. That first night was something else. We stayed in a house behind a brewery and were scared to death. I remember hearing Steve cry and say, “What have we done?” What we had done was to follow God and He has lead us all the way. There have been many other scary nights and hard times, but the wonderful memories outweigh the bad.

Though we have spent most of our lives away from our families, God has given us a home here in Africa. Steve says our hearts are shaped like the continent now. We thank God for our families who are the real heroes of missions.

God has provided for us all the way. Many of you have been with us since that first year, you have experienced our joys and sorrows and faithfully prayed us through. How we thank God for you. Every soul, every victory, every seed sown is written to your account as well as to ours. We can never say thank you enough. We thank Him for such faithfulness.

We have a big challenge ahead of us this year. God has opened the doors for a new property and that will mean new and more extensive ministry here in Gaborore. We need your prayers for wisdom, and to have the understanding of what is that key to reaching the Batswana for Christ.

God bless,

Steve, Pam, Derek and Devin

Green Trees and a Permanent Meeting Space

Dear Loved Ones,

Thank you for praying for Steve and Devin, they have returned to a GREEN Botswana. Derek is real tired of hearing us say, “wow! It’s so GREEN!” but in all our time in Botswana we have not seen the trees so full and the grass so green in this desert. We are thankful for the rains. It is also great not to have such high temperatures yet, but this afternoon we noted 107º on the thermometer.

Our youth were challenged today to begin to study the Bible on their own, not just reading it, but studying it using II Timothy 3:16 as a model. Most of our youth right now are 20+ and we are excited to see them take on servanthood roles in our church. On Sunday mornings, everywhere we look, there is a young adult serving. We are about to face a big challenge and we believe they are ready for it.

This morning, Steve announced to everyone that though it is not 100% finalized yet, God has provided our church with a permanent meeting place of our own. We are not sure of the actual date we can move in because it needs some renovation, but we are excited about the opportunities it means for us. The location is in the middle of a middle-class neighborhood which borders a very large village area. It is right in the center of Gaborone. It provides us with an immediate meeting place AND space to grow.

We will let you know more details as they become finalized. We appreciate your prayers as this is a big step up for our group of young believers. When we look at the size of the task we often think of Gideon’s army, but since we know the end of that story, we are walking forward in faith!

Reaching the Unreached,

Steve,Pam, Derek and Devin Workman