The Russell Report Update
Emmanuel–God with us. What a gift we received that first Christmas as Mary held the newborn Messiah and Coming King. And, the joy we have in knowing that He is still with us to this day. We find it very hard to imagine how life would be these days without the presence of Christ in our lives. How can we repay Him for all His provisions and loving care? What gifts can we give to the One Who gave up the splendors of heaven to be born in a lowly stable, to live a sinless life, and then freely gave that life up on the cruel cross of Calvary for our salvation? Worship? Awe-struck wonder? Perhaps, the greatest Christmas present we could give Christ would be our belief in Him, and the gift of our lives in honor of all that He did and does for us.
Here in Masai Mara, we have also been given a great gift of ministry, and are so thankful for the opportunities the Lord has given us to make His wonders known. His name, Emmanuel, has been proclaimed in wonderful ways this year:
After fifteen years of living in an 800 square foot tin house, we have finally moved into our permanent stone house and are enjoying the extra room and having more than one bathroom in the house. And for those of you who may come out to visit...you don’t have to sleep on top of a container anymore.
We have also been blessed with the opening of our latest avenue of ministry, the Emunyani Learning Center (ELC), housing an 1100+ volume Library, Computer Center, and Audio/Video Center. Equipping students of all ages, ELC is quickly becoming a focal point of the ministry as it gives out the gospel on a daily basis. Sign-up to become an ELC Facebook Friend at:
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Emunyani-Learning-Center/111646852201688?v=wall.
A huge blessing this past year has also been to see the growth in the lives of our church people and their own involvement in ministry. New believers are being discipled and are faithfully attending Baptism Classes, our Weekend in the Word studies for students, Night in the Word studies for adults, a new lower primary age Sunday School class and teachers. Other activities have included a seminar on Female Genital Mutilation (FGM), Parenting on Purpose Training, Family Fun Night, Community Cleanup Day, Primary School Hike, New Year’s Day Games, Mother/Daughter Fellowship, etc.
One of the things that we have learned in this ministry and in our walk with Christ is that blessings always follow obedience. But, we have also known that the road of obedience is often curbed with trials. We have bounced off those curbs a time or two in the past twelve months, but God has been faithful in giving us wisdom to endure and to rely on Him for our daily strength. God has kept his promise and has been with us moment by moment, to His glory.
Thank you for your ongoing sacrificial support of this ministry and for all your prayers. May Emmanuel be with you, as you continue to abide in Him. If you would like to pray with us, please pray for the following:
Wisdom from God in directing this ministry for His glory.
Salvation of many more Maasai and the continuing spiritual growth of our believers.
Issues over the church property with the local Land Committee are still lingering, even though we now possess a Title Deed. Please ask for God’s will to be done.
Pray for us as we travel back to Canada and the U.S. for the birth of our fourth grandchild (Jay and Cristen), to meet our new son-in-law (Carli’s husband), and Caylin’s graduation from Liberty University.
Pray for Tari as she enters her second week of healing from her Arthroscopic Knee Surgery.
Shayne and Tari Russell
The Russell Report Update
FGM Seminar
One of the most needed and yet, horrific things we have ever done! Hosting our first Seminar on Female Genital Mutilation, our church women and men banded together to present the facts of this barbaric practice that is destroying the Maasai people. As a rite of passage for young Maasai girls, FGM is profligate in our community and is destroying young lives at the time that they are just getting started. Session One covered the Biblical reasons why FGM is wrong. As a Pastor, Job Learamo, spoke from the Bible and his experience of having to protect his own daughters from the destructive practice. Session Two brought the separated men’s and women’s groups to a stark reality to the physical consequences of FGM. Lydia Learamo, Job’s wife, is a Registered Nurse in Kenya and has dealt with the ramifications of FGM throughout her medical career among their own Samburu tribe in Northern Kenya. As some Maasai elders sat under a tree, to close out the Seminar, one young father of a small baby girl frankly said, “We’ve heard the facts now, we know what the truth is, we can’t let this happen to our own girls”. We pray that his words are fulfilled, but we also know the intense pressure realized when one decides to stand against his own family and culture.
Family Fun Night
Only animals go out at night. That’s the common belief around these parts because out of all those that occasionally break that rule, some don’t return home. That is the main reason we don’t have evening services at our church. Huh, good reason! Well, we recently broke that rule and hosted our first Family Fun Night, inviting all of our church families to an evening of good, clean fun. As darkness fell outside and we illuminated the church building inside, everyone arrived in anticipation, and their hope was not deferred. We absolutely had a blast together, as the men were challenged to eat a handful of crackers and then whistle like a Maasai calling his cattle. The women were challenged with their first experience of playing Musical Chairs and their cutthroat competitiveness soon became obvious. The children were also entertained in a host of new experiences as they played Foosball, Ping-Pong, and Twister. The next day, the only complaint we heard was that people’s sides were still hurting from laughing so hard. Every church has it’s Fellowships. We had ours and it was a great time. And, don’t worry! We took everyone home afterward in our trucks. But, that is another story.
Parenting on Purpose
The challenges of parenting are not particular to any people or culture. We all have the desire to have our families in order and to raise children that honor the Lord. Sometimes, that pressure on us as parents is overwhelming not to mention the pressure we place on our children to perform. The Maasai feel the same pressure. The video series, Parenting on Purpose 101 by Dr. Bob Barnes of Sheridan House Ministries is one of the most clear, simple, and practical helps that I am aware of to meet this need. Spanning eight weeks, our church and home was opened to those in our community that needed a little extra help in parenting. Although, the videos in English were a challenge, Jon Johnson and I made sure that people left with an understanding as we re-taught the lessons in Swahili and the Maa language. And, a laugh or a cry knows no language, as we sat with a cup of tea in our hands and talked about the challenges of raising our kids for Christ.
Shayne and Tari Russell