July-August 2020 Prayer Letter & Covid-19 Updates

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Dear Prayer Supporters and Friends,                                                                   July-August 2020

 

Greetings from Kenya!  We pray that this letter finds each of you doing well.  We know that there have been a lot of changes in the way all of us have needed to proceed with life in the midst of a world living with Covid-19.  But we are so thankful for the Lord’s watch care and provision during these months. 

Here in Kenya, churches have begun re-opening, although with many restrictions in place: only ages 13-58 only are able to attend, services can only be an hour long, and there must be 6 feet between each person..   So even some of our older Pastors are unable to attend their own church and have left the re-opening to some younger men they have trained to lead the services.  And our ladies who are caring for smaller children cannot attend yet. Basically one person from each family is attending the service, and they are relaying the message to the rest of the family.  The size of the building dictates how many you can have for the service.  With some of the churches having small buildings, they have opted to bring the chairs outside and meet under trees.  This is how many of our churches began in the first place, and we are thankful for the faithful members of all the churches being willing to meet outdoors so that church services can resume.

Concerning our Bible College, we had already been working on a plan for each church to train its own people; but due to Covid-19 and its restrictions, we will go ahead shift everything to the authority of the local trained Pastor to lead the Bible College in his church this year instead of in the future. This will help the Pastors to be able to train more of their own people.  He will train them 4 hours spread throughout each week (due to the restrictions on gathering together), and they will not have to travel away from home.  This will set up 8 satellite branches of our Bible College which will accommodate all of the current students, and it could easily expand to more churches by the beginning of the 2021 school year.  All of the Pastors are on board with this plan, and we are excited about getting things going again.  Please pray that it will be possible to implement this plan fully, and that we will not have any issues with the virus or  other hindrances.

We were even able to get our 3 year work permit renewed during Covid-19 lockdown!  That in itself is a miracle, and thank each of you who has been praying with us concerning this.  

We are expecting our shipping container the middle of August.  The Matthew Rose family and Erica Bohman are also planning to arrive this month to begin their first terms on the field, since the Kenya is also re-opening its borders and allowing international flights to begin this month.  

Our second daughter, Breanne, and Jeremy Martin got engaged on July 10th, and they will be planning to have their wedding in the Fall, or whenever we can travel back to the States once Covid-19 lockdowns ease.  We are waiting for Kenya to open up for international flights in the next few days.  Their goal wedding date is October 24, 2020, and updates will be available at https://www.theknot.com/jeremyandbreanne  Please be in prayer for their preparations and for the needed travel arrangements on our side of the world!  We also want to say that we recommend him to your church for monthly support, if it is possible for your church to have him come to present his ministry to your church either in person or virtually.  He has a presentation on his Facebook page (Jeremy Martin) that you can view, and you can contact him at +1 (615) 318-3621 or mongoliaforchrist@gmail.com  Thank you for considering him as your next missionary.

For Souls in Kenya,

Luke & Tonya Shelby

Missionaries in Kenya

Breanne & Jeremy are Engaged!

Our daughter, Breanne, and Jeremy Martin got engaged on July 10th, and they will be planning to have their wedding in the Fall, or whenever we can travel back to the States once Covid-19 lockdowns ease.  We are waiting for Kenya to open up for international flights in the next few days.  Their goal wedding date is October 24, 2020, and updates will be available at https://www.theknot.com/jeremyandbreanne.  Please be in prayer for their preparations and for the needed travel arrangements on our side of the world!

Here is their story and how it all happened so quickly:

At our home church’s Mission’s Camp meeting in June of 2019, I noticed Jeremy, a young, single man, on deputation to Mongolia, that visited our church.  He had a very good vision for what he wanted to do with his life and ministry.  I took his prayer card and started praying for God’s will for our daughter, Breanne, and for God’s timing in all that needed to happen to show us if it would or would not be God’s will for the two of them to get to know each other.  

Breanne surrendered to the missions as a teenager; then after Bible College, and after a couple years of teaching she was not satisfied with staying in the USA.  She had been praying about what God wanted her to be doing in missions and waiting to see what doors God would open for her.  While on furlough in 2019, we met a missionary to China who tentatively invited her come for the 2020 school year, and she was willing but still praying about the opportunity and waiting for the door to open up for more conversation.

We returned to Kenya in January; but before we left I talked with Breanne about Jeremy, and I showed her the prayer card.  I asked her if she thought it was a good idea for me to call him and see how he is doing.  She did not want me to.  I tried talking about it several times, and she was not ready to talk about any guys yet.

At the end of January, the missionary to China started contacting us and wanted to meet with Breanne to go over several of the details.  We talked extensively on the phone with them and everything was arranged that she would be moving there at the end of July to start preparing to teach at their school.

In February, our sending church was holding their annual Mission’s Conference, where Jeremy was invited back as one of the missionaries being considered for support.  Since I already knew that he was coming, I mentioned it to our pastor and our other kids in the States.  They all helped the two of them start talking.  After this first week of getting to know one another, Jeremy called to talk with us and let us know his intentions, if the Lord continued to lead him and Breanne together.  During this conversation, Jeremy made it clear that he wanted to be in Mongolia in the summer of 2021 and that he was interested in a serious relationship.

Then the Corona virus started happening around the world.  Breanne’s open door to China was looking like it may close; Jeremy came back to Arkansas, “got stuck,” and could not go back to North Carolina due to quarantine requirements; so they were able to continue to get to know each other in a most precious way before he was able to head back on the road with his meetings.

Many of Jeremy’s plans for his spring and summer meetings were cancelled due to Covid-19, but he stayed busy helping at his home church in North Carolina and back in Arkansas helping care for my Dad, and getting to know Breanne.  We all had planned to meet in Arkansas at the end of May, while we were supposed to be in the USA for our oldest daughter’s wedding; but once again, Covid-19 restrictions altered our plans (but not God’s!).  Jeremy arrived in Arkansas the last week of May, but we could not travel from Kenya.  At about this time my Dad’s health began to take a turn for the worse.  He was at home, but required 24 hour care.  My Mom, my brothers, all of our grown children, a few people from our sending church, and Jeremy all pitched in caring for my Dad in his final weeks.  By the time the wedding, caring for my Dad, and his funeral had passed, Jeremy and Breanne had nearly 2 1/2 months together getting to know one another better.

We have been able to talk to his parents and pastor over the phone and via emails.  Breanne has met his family in Tennessee, his church family in North Carolina, as well as Mrs. Cofer, the wife of the missionary Jeremy has been working with in Mongolia.

Since they got engaged on the 10^th of this month, they have been doing everything that they can to start preparing for their wedding, for beginning life together while on deputation, and for getting to their mission field of Mongolia.  Their goal date for the weeding is October 24, 2020.  Please be in prayer for their preparations and for the needed travel arrangements on our side of the world!

We have been so amazed about how these two have met, and how the Lord has been in total control of each of the steps that they have taken in their relationship together.  I am impressed by Jeremy Martin, because of his communication with me about even the smallest details.  

I recommend him to your church for monthly support, if it is possible for your church to have him come to present his ministry to your church either in person or virtually.  He has a presentation on his Facebook page (Mission Mongolia) that you can view, and you can contact him at +1 (615) 318-3621 or mongoliaforchrist@gmail.com  Thank you for considering him as your next missionary.