February-March 2018 Prayer Letter
Printable Version (PDF)
Dear Prayer Supporters and Friends,
Happy New Year 2018 from the Shelby Family. This year has started off very busy, and there has been a lot that we have wanted to share with you. But we have been waiting for the development of these things to be fully understood before writing about them. We sent out an e-Prayer Letter in January; if you did not get it, please use this link to download it: http://bit.ly/November-January2018.
Politics: This year has started much like 2017 ended, with the Opposition party still not recognizing the results of the elections that were re-done in October. They have caused more protesting on the roads in areas where we have churches, but not in the Kisii region. At the end of January the Opposition party leader inaugurated himself as the “People’s President,” and has now called for fresh elections to take place in August this year. Please pray that the two parties can work through their disagreements peaceably and soon; so that peace would reign in the country, and also so that the work of the Lord can continue in all areas of the country.
Bible College: We have 15 new students this year, giving us a total of 47 students! God has given us 8 Pastors who are helping teach in the Bible College this year, and this is a blessing to see.
Funerals: Just since the beginning of the year we have had several funerals in some of our churches. James Ochieng was a deacon in our church in Kisii, and he passed away after being sick with tuberculosis for just a few weeks. There were nearly 1,000 people at his funeral and several hundred prayed during the invitation for God to save them. The mother of Pastor George Okoth (pastor of Bible Baptist Church of Rongo) passed away after a tragic car accident. Another lady in Rongo, that was in bad health for several months, also passed away. Just one week before she died, I was able to visit her with Pastor Okoth, and she gave her heart to the Lord. There is so little time to reach people, and we thank you for your prayers as we try to reach as many as possible before it is too late.
Orphans: We were able to purchase all of the children new uniforms to start the year, but we have not received pictures yet from all of the pastors. We will include those in the orphan letter that we send out to those that are supporting this ministry.
SMART Trip: Thank you to those of you who have sent money in order to help Abigail and Breanne prepare for their mission trip through BIMI this summer. Each of them have raised around 25% of the amount that is needed (total needed is $3,900) so far.
Building Projects: We have finished the fencing at our church and orphanage in Sidundo, and we have started the foundation work on our church in Rongo. We need to raise approximately $5,000 for building projects. The projects include the church building in Rongo, plus an extension to our church building in Kisii. The Kisii building extension will include baptistry rooms and a prophet’s chamber for visiting Kenyan Pastors and missionaries that this church supports in East Africa. We have a team scheduled to come at the end of the summer to finish these projects.
We are very thankful for your prayers for our family and ministries in Kenya!
For Souls in Kenya,
Luke and Tonya Shelby
Missionaries in Kenya
Showing posts with label Orphan Project. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Orphan Project. Show all posts
Monday, 5 March 2018
Tuesday, 27 June 2017
Orphan Ministry Update
Printable Version (PDF)
Orphan Ministry Update
Over the last year we have needed to re-evaluate our orphan ministry and upgrade some things according to the current needs of the children. We have finished most of the work on the fencing and are doing maintenance and repair on some of the buildings. We also needed to get new mattresses, blankets, and mosquito nets for all of the children. We have used $4,000 in Sidundo over the last year, and there are still several other things that we would like to do.
There are currently 17 children, and we are planning to invite other children in the community who we know need help. (Originally, we only accepted those who were in our church already). There were some issues in the community while we were gone on furlough, and we are working on resolving them. Some of the older orphans have finished school and are working now. We still have contact with several of them through their families, and we have helped a few of them get jobs. We are thankful that God is continuing to bless them. Please continue to pray for them.
We have tried in the past to help with school fees for the children once they get into high school, because education is not free at that level in Kenya. We were only able to help a couple of them at a time due to the lack of orphan ministry support. Most of the guardians are unable to support the orphans during high school; this causes the boys to look for work early, and the girls to get married early. This year we have five students who need help with school fees; depending on the grade level, it will cost between $250-$300 per year, per child. Uniforms, shoes, and books are an additional $100 per child. According to orphan ministry support that we have coming in monthly, and from special offerings, it will not be possible for us to do this. At this point, we can only help the children with some of their fees on as extra funds are available. The general cost for taking care of the children to cover their needs for food and lodging is $30 per month, per child. We have just recently reached an average of $500 per month coming in for the orphan ministry. Adding the school fees to the food and lodging, would make total cost for their needs to be $60 monthly per child. Right now in two locations (Sidundo and Kuresoi) we are helping 30 children.
If you would be willing to adopt a child for their school fees or uniforms, please contact us by email; and we will give you more information about the children and their needs. Thank you for your prayers for this ministry and your love and care for these children.
God bless you. Luke and Tonya Shelby
Orphan Ministry Update
Over the last year we have needed to re-evaluate our orphan ministry and upgrade some things according to the current needs of the children. We have finished most of the work on the fencing and are doing maintenance and repair on some of the buildings. We also needed to get new mattresses, blankets, and mosquito nets for all of the children. We have used $4,000 in Sidundo over the last year, and there are still several other things that we would like to do.
There are currently 17 children, and we are planning to invite other children in the community who we know need help. (Originally, we only accepted those who were in our church already). There were some issues in the community while we were gone on furlough, and we are working on resolving them. Some of the older orphans have finished school and are working now. We still have contact with several of them through their families, and we have helped a few of them get jobs. We are thankful that God is continuing to bless them. Please continue to pray for them.
We have tried in the past to help with school fees for the children once they get into high school, because education is not free at that level in Kenya. We were only able to help a couple of them at a time due to the lack of orphan ministry support. Most of the guardians are unable to support the orphans during high school; this causes the boys to look for work early, and the girls to get married early. This year we have five students who need help with school fees; depending on the grade level, it will cost between $250-$300 per year, per child. Uniforms, shoes, and books are an additional $100 per child. According to orphan ministry support that we have coming in monthly, and from special offerings, it will not be possible for us to do this. At this point, we can only help the children with some of their fees on as extra funds are available. The general cost for taking care of the children to cover their needs for food and lodging is $30 per month, per child. We have just recently reached an average of $500 per month coming in for the orphan ministry. Adding the school fees to the food and lodging, would make total cost for their needs to be $60 monthly per child. Right now in two locations (Sidundo and Kuresoi) we are helping 30 children.
If you would be willing to adopt a child for their school fees or uniforms, please contact us by email; and we will give you more information about the children and their needs. Thank you for your prayers for this ministry and your love and care for these children.
God bless you. Luke and Tonya Shelby
Thursday, 12 January 2017
Setting up a house in Siaya!
We made it to Siaya today. We were a day later than planned due to my health, but we made it! We drove both vehicles fully loaded down (& up
⬆️), in order to setup a 2nd house close to one of our village churches, Bible College branch, & our orphanage. We will begin spending part of each month here in Siaya & the other part in Kisii town (5 1/2 hours away). The house needs a LOT of cleaning! And that will begin tomorrow. It is cheaper for us to rent a house than pay for rooms at a guesthouse each time, so we are thankful for the house he Lord provided! There are mango trees galore, grave trees, banana trees, papaya trees, & avocado trees too! When we first saw the house we were like, well... it needs some work (a lot actually--there was no indoor plumbing--time!). But when we saw all the fruit trees, all we could think about was the blessing that food would be to the orphanage!!
⬆️), in order to setup a 2nd house close to one of our village churches, Bible College branch, & our orphanage. We will begin spending part of each month here in Siaya & the other part in Kisii town (5 1/2 hours away). The house needs a LOT of cleaning! And that will begin tomorrow. It is cheaper for us to rent a house than pay for rooms at a guesthouse each time, so we are thankful for the house he Lord provided! There are mango trees galore, grave trees, banana trees, papaya trees, & avocado trees too! When we first saw the house we were like, well... it needs some work (a lot actually--there was no indoor plumbing--time!). But when we saw all the fruit trees, all we could think about was the blessing that food would be to the orphanage!!
Thursday, 7 April 2016
April 2016 Prayer Letter
Printable Version (PDF)
April 2016
Prayer Supporters and Friends,
We thank you for praying for our ministries while we are here in the States on furlough. On Easter Sunday Five Adults walked the aisle and invited the Lord Jesus to LIVE in their hearts. Those are souls that are added to your account. AMEN!!
We covet your prayers for all of the changes that Abigail and Breanne will be facing in less than two months. They are doing well as they are almost finished with their first year in college. The Lord is teaching them so many things in the local ministries of our home church like bus routes, nursery, choir, and junior churches as well as some American figures of speech that are still a mystery to them most of the time.
Please continue to pray for Tonya and her health. There are a few areas that have been understood since January, since she started seeing a natural doctor and getting chiropractic care along with her blood doctor. They are coming up with the same informal conclusion that she has Lupus, and they are working together and helping in several areas. Most of her levels have started improving since the change in her treatments, but there is still a ways to go.
Furlough is winding down, and we have purchased our tickets and will be leaving on May 31. I will be traveling in North Carolina and Virginia for the next three weeks. We will be in Arkansas through the month of May, as we get everything arranged for our girls before we return to the field. We will also be packing a crate and sending it before we go.
We have been able to raise $11,700 for building projects, and $2,500 for the vehicle that we had mentioned our last letter, but we are still needing to raise additional support. We are currently at 80% of our needed personal and ministry support. We have had several churches drop our support over our last term on the field due to finances and other things, and others have decreased the support they are sending. We must have additional support in order to continue to reach more people with the Gospel of salvation. These are the reasons why we need additional support.
1. Abigail (19) and Breanne (18) in Bible college
2. 5 churches that will start in the next year.
3. Opening 2 more Orphanages.
4. The need to add 10+ children every year in our Orphanages.
5. Starting 2 more branches of our Bible College over the next few years.
Please pray for these ministries to not be hindered, and that God will show Himself mighty through you and these opportunities that are wide open to reach souls for Christ.
For Souls in Kenya,
Luke and Tonya Shelby
April 2016
Prayer Supporters and Friends,
We thank you for praying for our ministries while we are here in the States on furlough. On Easter Sunday Five Adults walked the aisle and invited the Lord Jesus to LIVE in their hearts. Those are souls that are added to your account. AMEN!!
We covet your prayers for all of the changes that Abigail and Breanne will be facing in less than two months. They are doing well as they are almost finished with their first year in college. The Lord is teaching them so many things in the local ministries of our home church like bus routes, nursery, choir, and junior churches as well as some American figures of speech that are still a mystery to them most of the time.
Please continue to pray for Tonya and her health. There are a few areas that have been understood since January, since she started seeing a natural doctor and getting chiropractic care along with her blood doctor. They are coming up with the same informal conclusion that she has Lupus, and they are working together and helping in several areas. Most of her levels have started improving since the change in her treatments, but there is still a ways to go.
Furlough is winding down, and we have purchased our tickets and will be leaving on May 31. I will be traveling in North Carolina and Virginia for the next three weeks. We will be in Arkansas through the month of May, as we get everything arranged for our girls before we return to the field. We will also be packing a crate and sending it before we go.
We have been able to raise $11,700 for building projects, and $2,500 for the vehicle that we had mentioned our last letter, but we are still needing to raise additional support. We are currently at 80% of our needed personal and ministry support. We have had several churches drop our support over our last term on the field due to finances and other things, and others have decreased the support they are sending. We must have additional support in order to continue to reach more people with the Gospel of salvation. These are the reasons why we need additional support.
1. Abigail (19) and Breanne (18) in Bible college
2. 5 churches that will start in the next year.
3. Opening 2 more Orphanages.
4. The need to add 10+ children every year in our Orphanages.
5. Starting 2 more branches of our Bible College over the next few years.
Please pray for these ministries to not be hindered, and that God will show Himself mighty through you and these opportunities that are wide open to reach souls for Christ.
For Souls in Kenya,
Luke and Tonya Shelby
Wednesday, 2 December 2015
November - December 2015 Prayer Letter
Printable Version (PDF)
Dear Supporters and Friends, Nov./Dec. 2015 Merry Christmas from the Shelby Family. This time of the year has become special for all of us; especially this year, because of having the opportunity to see all of our family while we are on furlough. We pray that you would also have a Merry Christmas with your family during this holiday season. We thank the Lord for His goodness to us on the road and in meetings where we have seen His hand at work in the lives of individuals. He helped us raise the money that was needed for Abigail and Breanne to make a missions trip to Dominican Republic in January. Please continue to pray for them as they keep up with school, work, and church schedules. We have also received special offerings for our orphan program ($1,500), vehicle fund ($2,100), and building fund ($1,000). There are several other churches that have promised to be a part of these special needs before we go back to the field. God has also blessed in getting meetings in nearly 40 new churches that want to be part of our ministry and several of them have already taken us on for support. Please pray that God will bless as we present the ministry in these new churches and pray that God will save souls and call laborers into His Work. Tonya and I were able to visit Kenya in November for 2 weeks for our Bible College graduation. We went soul winning with them and had 16 precious souls saved in one day! THE HARVEST IS SO RIPE!!! Thirteen men and women graduated from the 3-year course. We had over 500 in attendance, and It was a great day! Thank you for your prayers and support for our family. Luke and Tonya Shelby
Dear Supporters and Friends, Nov./Dec. 2015 Merry Christmas from the Shelby Family. This time of the year has become special for all of us; especially this year, because of having the opportunity to see all of our family while we are on furlough. We pray that you would also have a Merry Christmas with your family during this holiday season. We thank the Lord for His goodness to us on the road and in meetings where we have seen His hand at work in the lives of individuals. He helped us raise the money that was needed for Abigail and Breanne to make a missions trip to Dominican Republic in January. Please continue to pray for them as they keep up with school, work, and church schedules. We have also received special offerings for our orphan program ($1,500), vehicle fund ($2,100), and building fund ($1,000). There are several other churches that have promised to be a part of these special needs before we go back to the field. God has also blessed in getting meetings in nearly 40 new churches that want to be part of our ministry and several of them have already taken us on for support. Please pray that God will bless as we present the ministry in these new churches and pray that God will save souls and call laborers into His Work. Tonya and I were able to visit Kenya in November for 2 weeks for our Bible College graduation. We went soul winning with them and had 16 precious souls saved in one day! THE HARVEST IS SO RIPE!!! Thirteen men and women graduated from the 3-year course. We had over 500 in attendance, and It was a great day! Thank you for your prayers and support for our family. Luke and Tonya Shelby
Wednesday, 14 October 2015
August - September 2015 Prayer Letter
Printable Version (PDF)
Dear Supporters and Friends, August - September 2015
Thank you for your prayers for our family and ministry in Kenya while we are on furlough. Thank you for praying for our traveling mercies. I am writing this letter on my flight to California where I will be in 11 churches over the next 3 weeks. At the end of the month we will be in a Mission’s Conference back in Arkansas before returning to visit Kenya for 2 1/2 weeks starting November 3rd. Please pray for us during that time.
Please continue to pray for Tonya’s health, since there have been a few meetings which she was not strong enough to be able to travel to due to the continuing issues with her blood deficiencies of iron, folate, and B-12. This has also caused problems for her in catching several viruses and having a relapse with malaria this past week, which is all due to her low or compromised immune system. Please pray with us that her doctors will have wisdom in helping her find the best treatment options possible while we are on furlough this year.
Please pray for Pastor George Okoth, who is overseeing our church in Rongo. He was attacked and beaten by thugs who broke into his house, which is on the church’s compound. They beat him pretty badly, and he had to stay in the hospital for a couple of days. Please pray for his full recovery and safety.
Three of our orphans (Japheth, Sherin, and Vivian) lost their grandmother (their closest guardian) this past month. As far as we know, she was not saved, but she was witnessed to and heard the Gospel several times. Please pray for the precious souls in Kenya who are dying without Christ! We will need to do more to help these three children, but we are not are exactly sure what will be decided by their distant relatives. Please keep them in your prayers.
We have been able to get in touch with most of our supporting churches, and we have scheduled meetings with a majority of you already. Unfortunately, we will not be able to visit all of you, so we are in the process of contacting each of you. If we are unable to visit you during this furlough, we will be sending you our 2015 DVD Presentation and updated Prayer Cards in the mail. We want to thank you so much for your ministry in our lives and in the lives of these People in Kenya. God bless each of you!
For Souls in Kenya,
Luke & Tonya Shelby
Friday, 2 January 2015
September-December 2014 Prayer Letter
Printable (PDF) Version
Dear Prayer Partners,
Happy New Year, 2015! We want to thank you for your prayers and support over this past year. God has enabled us to get so many things done this year. We are excited to be in our new building in Kisii. We have been using the new building since the first week in November, and we have already seen around 30 saved in services and during Youth Camp. We were able to host over 100 youth and counselors on the church compound for an entire week, because the church building is now able to be used. We also had one of our members plan a church wedding in December, and we had over 500 people attend; the building was bursting at the seams! It was great to see it full and to see the enjoyment of our members as they watched their church get filled to capacity. It shows what we will be capable of in the coming years, as we continue to build this church in Kisii.
We were helped a great deal by Bro. Phillip Smith and his CLAIM Team with BIMI, who came for just two weeks. They helped us get the building enclosed, so we could have the first service in the Church on November 2 before they left. They were a great blessing to us and to the church members here. It is amazing to see all the work that they accomplished while they were here. People were stopping by everyday, because we are on the main road, amazed at the progress; and we were able to witness to them. It was a great testimony for the church. The Team helped us finish up a lot of the work that we had started in March this year, and it was wonderful to be able to get into the building before the end of this year. It is such a great blessing. Thank you for all the help that you have been, both through prayer and finances, to make this project a possibility. It has been such a blessing to our family and the church here.
We still have more work to do, and we will resume work in January. The Calvary Baptist Church members here have raised over $5,000 that has been used in this project, and they have committed to continue to raise funds to help do the finishing work. We have been able to help with nearly $12,000 from your offerings and our regular support. The finishing work that needs to be done will be close to $3,000. Please pray for the funds to finish the baptistry, sidewalk, doors, windows, vents, flooring, lights, gutters, plastering the walls, painting, and some other things I am sure I have left out of this list.
Besides the building project, it has continued to be busy in other areas of the ministry as well. We have finished the girls dorm building at the orphanage in Sidundo, and we are ready to bring in the girls who are ready to start living there starting on January 5, 2015. We are excited about this, and we have been eager to get this stared. We will be meeting with their guardians and their caretakers to work out the details over this holiday break. Thank you for your prayers and support for this project. God is blessing the children, and they are growing both physically and spiritually.
We have planted corn in Sidundo, that will be harvested in January. This harvest will help with the expenses of the running of the orphanage during the time that we are on furlough. Pray that it will be a bountiful harvest, that it will meet the needs, and that is will even go beyond to help others as well who are not able to stay at the orphanage at this time. God has given us nearly 20 dedicated men and women at this church and orphanage in Sidundo, Siaya, who are helping to take care of the children on a rotating basis. As they are being led by Pastor Joseph and other men, they are helping these children with valuable lessons in life from the Word of God on a daily basis. Lessons that will be more beneficial than all of the material things that we can give them.
This year we have also been able to help a few of the orphans in paying for their school tuition, books, and uniforms; but there are so many more who need help in this area. We need more support for the Orphan Ministry. We have been able to help a few young men with work and with starting their first semester of university. And we are looking forward to seeing what the Lord is going to do in the lives of these young people!
A lot of times the work seems overwhelming, and it does not seem like there is an end; but if we can influence even a few with the goodness of God, it will make a huge difference in their lives. And it will go a long way in the ministry of the church, as they give their lives to the Lord to Preach the Gospel. I know that we are in the beginning stages of this ministry, but our prayer for these young people is to change Kenya through the preaching of God's Word.
God has enabled us, through the South Nyanza Baptist College, to have another 12 men and women graduate in 2014, between our two branches in Sidundo and Kisii. Please pray for these graduates, as several of them have made it known that they are called to preach; and they are looking for areas where they can start new churches out of their home churches. The majority of the students that graduated were from Sidundo (about 5 hours from Kisii), so we went with the whole student body and teachers from Kisii to hold the graduation at the Sidundo branch at the end of November. It was a great day! And it was something that had never been done in that village by any church or college. Also for many of these families there had never been anyone in their family who had graduated from college until now. It was a great testimony to the Gospel and the work of the Calvary Baptist Church in Sidundo.
Please pray for the area around Sidundo. There are three other villages and markets that are being looked at for starting preaching points and Bible Studies by our graduates in the near future.
We are finalizing our plans to begin furlough the end of April. We have already started booking meetings toward the end of May; just after the high school graduation of our second daughter, Breanne. We have several that have already contacted us about setting up meetings and some of the dates are filling up. If you have not yet contacted us by email, please do so: mail@shelbysinkenya.org. Please pray with us that the Lord will open doors to get into some new churches during this furlough, since we need to raise our support level to help with the constantly changing economy and the growth of the ministry that the Lord has entrusted to us.
Thank you so much for your support, prayer, special offerings, and love that you have shown to our family in 2014. It is greatly appreciated, and we will always be thankful for your goodness and your faithfulness to our ministry here in Kenya.
Serving Him in Kenya,
Luke and Tonya Shelby
Your Missionaries to Kenya
Dear Prayer Partners,
Happy New Year, 2015! We want to thank you for your prayers and support over this past year. God has enabled us to get so many things done this year. We are excited to be in our new building in Kisii. We have been using the new building since the first week in November, and we have already seen around 30 saved in services and during Youth Camp. We were able to host over 100 youth and counselors on the church compound for an entire week, because the church building is now able to be used. We also had one of our members plan a church wedding in December, and we had over 500 people attend; the building was bursting at the seams! It was great to see it full and to see the enjoyment of our members as they watched their church get filled to capacity. It shows what we will be capable of in the coming years, as we continue to build this church in Kisii.
We were helped a great deal by Bro. Phillip Smith and his CLAIM Team with BIMI, who came for just two weeks. They helped us get the building enclosed, so we could have the first service in the Church on November 2 before they left. They were a great blessing to us and to the church members here. It is amazing to see all the work that they accomplished while they were here. People were stopping by everyday, because we are on the main road, amazed at the progress; and we were able to witness to them. It was a great testimony for the church. The Team helped us finish up a lot of the work that we had started in March this year, and it was wonderful to be able to get into the building before the end of this year. It is such a great blessing. Thank you for all the help that you have been, both through prayer and finances, to make this project a possibility. It has been such a blessing to our family and the church here.
We still have more work to do, and we will resume work in January. The Calvary Baptist Church members here have raised over $5,000 that has been used in this project, and they have committed to continue to raise funds to help do the finishing work. We have been able to help with nearly $12,000 from your offerings and our regular support. The finishing work that needs to be done will be close to $3,000. Please pray for the funds to finish the baptistry, sidewalk, doors, windows, vents, flooring, lights, gutters, plastering the walls, painting, and some other things I am sure I have left out of this list.
Besides the building project, it has continued to be busy in other areas of the ministry as well. We have finished the girls dorm building at the orphanage in Sidundo, and we are ready to bring in the girls who are ready to start living there starting on January 5, 2015. We are excited about this, and we have been eager to get this stared. We will be meeting with their guardians and their caretakers to work out the details over this holiday break. Thank you for your prayers and support for this project. God is blessing the children, and they are growing both physically and spiritually.
We have planted corn in Sidundo, that will be harvested in January. This harvest will help with the expenses of the running of the orphanage during the time that we are on furlough. Pray that it will be a bountiful harvest, that it will meet the needs, and that is will even go beyond to help others as well who are not able to stay at the orphanage at this time. God has given us nearly 20 dedicated men and women at this church and orphanage in Sidundo, Siaya, who are helping to take care of the children on a rotating basis. As they are being led by Pastor Joseph and other men, they are helping these children with valuable lessons in life from the Word of God on a daily basis. Lessons that will be more beneficial than all of the material things that we can give them.
This year we have also been able to help a few of the orphans in paying for their school tuition, books, and uniforms; but there are so many more who need help in this area. We need more support for the Orphan Ministry. We have been able to help a few young men with work and with starting their first semester of university. And we are looking forward to seeing what the Lord is going to do in the lives of these young people!
A lot of times the work seems overwhelming, and it does not seem like there is an end; but if we can influence even a few with the goodness of God, it will make a huge difference in their lives. And it will go a long way in the ministry of the church, as they give their lives to the Lord to Preach the Gospel. I know that we are in the beginning stages of this ministry, but our prayer for these young people is to change Kenya through the preaching of God's Word.
God has enabled us, through the South Nyanza Baptist College, to have another 12 men and women graduate in 2014, between our two branches in Sidundo and Kisii. Please pray for these graduates, as several of them have made it known that they are called to preach; and they are looking for areas where they can start new churches out of their home churches. The majority of the students that graduated were from Sidundo (about 5 hours from Kisii), so we went with the whole student body and teachers from Kisii to hold the graduation at the Sidundo branch at the end of November. It was a great day! And it was something that had never been done in that village by any church or college. Also for many of these families there had never been anyone in their family who had graduated from college until now. It was a great testimony to the Gospel and the work of the Calvary Baptist Church in Sidundo.
Please pray for the area around Sidundo. There are three other villages and markets that are being looked at for starting preaching points and Bible Studies by our graduates in the near future.
We are finalizing our plans to begin furlough the end of April. We have already started booking meetings toward the end of May; just after the high school graduation of our second daughter, Breanne. We have several that have already contacted us about setting up meetings and some of the dates are filling up. If you have not yet contacted us by email, please do so: mail@shelbysinkenya.org. Please pray with us that the Lord will open doors to get into some new churches during this furlough, since we need to raise our support level to help with the constantly changing economy and the growth of the ministry that the Lord has entrusted to us.
Thank you so much for your support, prayer, special offerings, and love that you have shown to our family in 2014. It is greatly appreciated, and we will always be thankful for your goodness and your faithfulness to our ministry here in Kenya.
Serving Him in Kenya,
Luke and Tonya Shelby
Your Missionaries to Kenya
Tuesday, 16 September 2014
June-August 2014 Prayer Letter
Printable Version (PDF)
Dear Supporters and Praying Friends, June - August 2014
It has been a busy few months since we wrote, and a lot has taken place. In July, while traveling home from our church in Sidundo (where we baptized 13), I had a serious problem with our vehicle. The engine threw a rod, which blew out a large hole in the block, so I had to get towed back to Kisii Town (should have been about 3 hours from where I broke down), and it took about 12 hours! We did get it running again by patching the engine, and it has not had any problem. We thank all of you who pray for us faithfully, because we never know when something will happen that we will need urgent prayers. We know that God hears your prayers. Thank you again for your prayers.
Also in August, Tonya held our 7th Annual Ladies' Conference at our church in Kisii Town. There were 45 ladies from 15 different churches in our area that were able to attend! Their theme this year was, "Draw Me Closer, Lord;" and all the lessons were about prayer. They had one lady get saved during the week! They spent many hours in prayer, studying the Bible, and memorizing Scripture during the 4 day Conference. By Friday, those ladies had said over 3,000 verses! Tonya has also started teaching the ladies in our Bible College, helping them with issues that will help them to be better Christian Women. She will be teaching things like: how to dress, how to present themselves, and how to do other things that are so common and often taken for granted in the United States; but these things are very needed and useful to these first generation Christian ladies.
Please pray for the following projects:
1. The ongoing building project at Calvary Baptist Church in Kisii town.
2. Orphanage project building in Sidundo is scheduled to be finished soon.
3. Church building in Rongo that will begin before the end of the year.
Again, we want to say thank you for your faithful prayers and support for our family and ministries in Kenya. The lives and ministries of your missionaries are all in the hands of the "…The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man…" Thank you for praying for us and holding us up before the Lord!
Serving Him in Kenya,
Luke and Tonya Shelby
Your Missionaries in Kenya
Dear Supporters and Praying Friends, June - August 2014
It has been a busy few months since we wrote, and a lot has taken place. In July, while traveling home from our church in Sidundo (where we baptized 13), I had a serious problem with our vehicle. The engine threw a rod, which blew out a large hole in the block, so I had to get towed back to Kisii Town (should have been about 3 hours from where I broke down), and it took about 12 hours! We did get it running again by patching the engine, and it has not had any problem. We thank all of you who pray for us faithfully, because we never know when something will happen that we will need urgent prayers. We know that God hears your prayers. Thank you again for your prayers.
Also in August, Tonya held our 7th Annual Ladies' Conference at our church in Kisii Town. There were 45 ladies from 15 different churches in our area that were able to attend! Their theme this year was, "Draw Me Closer, Lord;" and all the lessons were about prayer. They had one lady get saved during the week! They spent many hours in prayer, studying the Bible, and memorizing Scripture during the 4 day Conference. By Friday, those ladies had said over 3,000 verses! Tonya has also started teaching the ladies in our Bible College, helping them with issues that will help them to be better Christian Women. She will be teaching things like: how to dress, how to present themselves, and how to do other things that are so common and often taken for granted in the United States; but these things are very needed and useful to these first generation Christian ladies.
Please pray for the following projects:
1. The ongoing building project at Calvary Baptist Church in Kisii town.
2. Orphanage project building in Sidundo is scheduled to be finished soon.
3. Church building in Rongo that will begin before the end of the year.
Again, we want to say thank you for your faithful prayers and support for our family and ministries in Kenya. The lives and ministries of your missionaries are all in the hands of the "…The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man…" Thank you for praying for us and holding us up before the Lord!
Serving Him in Kenya,
Luke and Tonya Shelby
Your Missionaries in Kenya
Thursday, 21 November 2013
August - November 2013 Prayer Letter
Printable Version (PDF)
Dear Prayer Partners and Supporters,
We thank you for your prayers for Tonya as she was in the USA getting more treatments and B-12 shots, in October, to use here. She should have enough to get her through until May of next year, when she is scheduled for another round of tests.
We are finishing the year for the our Bible College, and on November 30th we will have a graduation for two students. First, is George; he is not married, and he is 22 years old. Second, is Christopher; he is a grandfather getting close to 65 years old. He only knows the year he was born, because it was before they started keeping track of birthdays. George is helping me with visitation at our church in Rongo, since the previous assistant Pastor of the church passed away in August.
The Lord is continuing to bless in Kisii, and we are getting ready to start the work on the new church building. The church has nearly raised the equivalent of $3,000, which is half of their commitment to this project. We are getting the blueprints drawn up, and all the legal paperwork finished; so that we can start building in January. We have planned the last fund raising for the year on December 1st, along with a ground breaking service. We have invited our other pastors to take part in this, so that they can see the importance of this special day. We currently have $900 that has come in, and an additional $2,000 has already been promised. So we need to raise $3,100 by January, so that we will be able to begin the work. We have chosen January to start the work, because it is the longest dry season with no rain. The dry time will only last for about 4-6 weeks, so we have to get as much done in that time as possible. Please help us to raise the remaining amount.
In October, we held our first Mission's Conference for our church in Kisii. It went very well, and they committed over $100 each month to be sent to missionaries that are Kenyan nationals who are working in the Congo, Burundi, Tanzania, and one that is going to Sudan. We also do a simple commitment card to write down what they expect to give as a tithe, and the total commitments that they gave were tripled from last year to almost $500 a month promised. This has been really amazing to see, we have never seen this kind of giving by any church in Kenya (even in Nairobi) for the size membership that we have. We have about 15 families in this church. They have given lots of testimonies of how the Lord has blessed them through their giving through this past year, and these testimonies have been an encouragement to others.
We received an offering of $3,100 from Sackville Independent Baptist Church in Canada. This offering is for some of the finishing work for the Orphanage in Sidundo. We have purchased beds, we are finishing the toilet block, and we are getting electricity onto the property. Please pray that we can get as much work done as possible through the month of December, so that we can move around 20 girls into their dorm room by January!
Thank you for your prayers and support for our family and ministries.
Serving Him in Kenya,
Luke and Tonya Shelby
Missionaries in Kenya
Dear Prayer Partners and Supporters,
We thank you for your prayers for Tonya as she was in the USA getting more treatments and B-12 shots, in October, to use here. She should have enough to get her through until May of next year, when she is scheduled for another round of tests.
We are finishing the year for the our Bible College, and on November 30th we will have a graduation for two students. First, is George; he is not married, and he is 22 years old. Second, is Christopher; he is a grandfather getting close to 65 years old. He only knows the year he was born, because it was before they started keeping track of birthdays. George is helping me with visitation at our church in Rongo, since the previous assistant Pastor of the church passed away in August.
The Lord is continuing to bless in Kisii, and we are getting ready to start the work on the new church building. The church has nearly raised the equivalent of $3,000, which is half of their commitment to this project. We are getting the blueprints drawn up, and all the legal paperwork finished; so that we can start building in January. We have planned the last fund raising for the year on December 1st, along with a ground breaking service. We have invited our other pastors to take part in this, so that they can see the importance of this special day. We currently have $900 that has come in, and an additional $2,000 has already been promised. So we need to raise $3,100 by January, so that we will be able to begin the work. We have chosen January to start the work, because it is the longest dry season with no rain. The dry time will only last for about 4-6 weeks, so we have to get as much done in that time as possible. Please help us to raise the remaining amount.
In October, we held our first Mission's Conference for our church in Kisii. It went very well, and they committed over $100 each month to be sent to missionaries that are Kenyan nationals who are working in the Congo, Burundi, Tanzania, and one that is going to Sudan. We also do a simple commitment card to write down what they expect to give as a tithe, and the total commitments that they gave were tripled from last year to almost $500 a month promised. This has been really amazing to see, we have never seen this kind of giving by any church in Kenya (even in Nairobi) for the size membership that we have. We have about 15 families in this church. They have given lots of testimonies of how the Lord has blessed them through their giving through this past year, and these testimonies have been an encouragement to others.
We received an offering of $3,100 from Sackville Independent Baptist Church in Canada. This offering is for some of the finishing work for the Orphanage in Sidundo. We have purchased beds, we are finishing the toilet block, and we are getting electricity onto the property. Please pray that we can get as much work done as possible through the month of December, so that we can move around 20 girls into their dorm room by January!
Thank you for your prayers and support for our family and ministries.
Serving Him in Kenya,
Luke and Tonya Shelby
Missionaries in Kenya
Thursday, 18 July 2013
July 2013 Prayer Letter
Printable Version (PDF)
Dear Supporters, Praying Friends and Family,
Greetings from Kenya! Thank you for your faithful prayers and support for our family and ministry in Kenya. We had a good time visiting with other missionaries for the 4th of July. God bless America!!!
Orphan Ministry:
We are currently using much more money to help meet the needs of the children than we have coming in. We have received gifts and one time offering gifts for the orphan ministry, but it is not enough to take care of the feeding program that we have in two different locations for over 50 children. There are 13 boys between the ages of 8-17 that we are taking care of at our orphanage in the village of Sidundo. Currently, we are using over $500 monthly for the basic feeding program and for the running of the orphanage; and we have paid almost $300 in school fees for a few of the older children, that we have been able to help during the first half of this year. At this time, we have less than $200 coming in on a monthly basis for this ministry, and this is causing us to cut back in some of our other ministry areas. Please pray with us that the Lord will send in the needed funds for this ministry.
Visiting Some of Our Churches:
We were able to visit some of our churches in April and May. We have one church in the village of Nyarenda that has a preaching point about an hours walk from the church, and several people are coming from all that way every week. We are planning to open a new church there in a few months. The rains have caused flooding through most areas of the country and in low lying areas next to rivers as they flow into Lake Victoria. Here is a picture of our church in the village of Sidundo. They had to meet under a nearby tree for three weeks before the water subsided. But the church continued well with an average attendance between 80-90.
Faith Baptist Church in the village of Erandi is also doing well; but we are praying for the men to be faithful, and to help Pastor Livinacs in leading the church so that it can grow. We will be planning a meeting to encourage this church soon. Please continue to pray for each of the churches under our ministry.
Calvary Baptist Church in Kisii has been doing very well with their giving (this is an area where 90% of the people are making under $50 per month). Since January, the offerings have been averaging over $250 per month. They have begun raising money to build a church building of 50ft. by 35ft. It will seat 200 people, and the existing building will be divided up into Sunday school classrooms. The total cost of the project will be $12,000. We have agreed to share the costs of this project with the church; sister churches and Calvary Baptist Church will work together to raise half of it, and then we would provide the remaining half. The church has raised $1,100 already towards this project, and they are trying to raise the rest of their part through the course of this year. We need your help to raise the remaining amount of $6,000 by the end of the year. We would like to be able to begin construction in early 2014.
Serving Him in Kenya,
Luke & Tonya Shelby
Dear Supporters, Praying Friends and Family,
Greetings from Kenya! Thank you for your faithful prayers and support for our family and ministry in Kenya. We had a good time visiting with other missionaries for the 4th of July. God bless America!!!
Orphan Ministry:
We are currently using much more money to help meet the needs of the children than we have coming in. We have received gifts and one time offering gifts for the orphan ministry, but it is not enough to take care of the feeding program that we have in two different locations for over 50 children. There are 13 boys between the ages of 8-17 that we are taking care of at our orphanage in the village of Sidundo. Currently, we are using over $500 monthly for the basic feeding program and for the running of the orphanage; and we have paid almost $300 in school fees for a few of the older children, that we have been able to help during the first half of this year. At this time, we have less than $200 coming in on a monthly basis for this ministry, and this is causing us to cut back in some of our other ministry areas. Please pray with us that the Lord will send in the needed funds for this ministry.
Visiting Some of Our Churches:
We were able to visit some of our churches in April and May. We have one church in the village of Nyarenda that has a preaching point about an hours walk from the church, and several people are coming from all that way every week. We are planning to open a new church there in a few months. The rains have caused flooding through most areas of the country and in low lying areas next to rivers as they flow into Lake Victoria. Here is a picture of our church in the village of Sidundo. They had to meet under a nearby tree for three weeks before the water subsided. But the church continued well with an average attendance between 80-90.
Faith Baptist Church in the village of Erandi is also doing well; but we are praying for the men to be faithful, and to help Pastor Livinacs in leading the church so that it can grow. We will be planning a meeting to encourage this church soon. Please continue to pray for each of the churches under our ministry.
Calvary Baptist Church in Kisii has been doing very well with their giving (this is an area where 90% of the people are making under $50 per month). Since January, the offerings have been averaging over $250 per month. They have begun raising money to build a church building of 50ft. by 35ft. It will seat 200 people, and the existing building will be divided up into Sunday school classrooms. The total cost of the project will be $12,000. We have agreed to share the costs of this project with the church; sister churches and Calvary Baptist Church will work together to raise half of it, and then we would provide the remaining half. The church has raised $1,100 already towards this project, and they are trying to raise the rest of their part through the course of this year. We need your help to raise the remaining amount of $6,000 by the end of the year. We would like to be able to begin construction in early 2014.
Serving Him in Kenya,
Luke & Tonya Shelby
Monday, 10 June 2013
April-June 2013 Prayer Letter
Printable Version (PDF)
Dear Supporters, Praying Friends and Family,
Greetings from Kisii, Kenya. It has been a very busy few months, with a lot of traveling and tight scheduling. Thank you for your prayers! I have had a few bouts with Malaria since the beginning of the year, but we have been able to catch it early enough so it only lasts about a day or two. It has been nothing like it was last year. Tonya has been doing better as well, and she just finished her follow-up trip to the States this month. She was able to get her blood work done and pick up the supplies she needs for her B-12 shots and other supplements. Her tests came back with good results. Her B-12 levels were 4 points into the normal range for the first time in several years! Her doctor is still concerned with her ferritin level (stored iron in the body); it is still within the normal range, but has dropped to 1/2 of what it was six months ago. Her doctor wants her to definitely return to the States again in six months, and he says we should be prepared for her to have either an iron infusion or blood transfusion at that time if her ferritin level continues to drop at this rate. We are, of course, trying to add iron with diet as much as possible; and we are praying that the Lord will continue to strengthen her and her blood in the coming months.
Men's Conference:
We held our first Men's Conference in March, where we taught on fatherhood, leadership, relationships, and serving The Lord as laymen. This is the first time that we have done this without the emphasis being towards pastors only. We had over 30 men from 8 different churches present for the sessions for the three day conference. Many of these men accepted the challenge that was presented to them, and they chose to sign a resolution along with their wives before the church; they decided before their church family to take up the responsibility that God has given them to be godly leaders in their homes. We praise the Lord for the changes He is bringing about in each of these families!
South Nyanza Baptist College:
Both of our Bible College branches are doing well, and we opened this year with 16 new students and some new pastors that have joined with us for fellowship and training. Our four teachers, who are national pastors, are assisting me and taking on more leadership roles in the college; and it is a blessing to see these men continue to mature in the Lord. This will open more opportunities to add an additional Pastoral class that we have not been able to finalize because of past schedule conflicts. Please pray for: classes, new students, and the challenges of opening new branches.
Serving Him in Kenya,
Luke & Tonya Shelby
Men's Conference 2013
South Nyanza Baptist College - Kisii Branch 2013
Dear Supporters, Praying Friends and Family,
Greetings from Kisii, Kenya. It has been a very busy few months, with a lot of traveling and tight scheduling. Thank you for your prayers! I have had a few bouts with Malaria since the beginning of the year, but we have been able to catch it early enough so it only lasts about a day or two. It has been nothing like it was last year. Tonya has been doing better as well, and she just finished her follow-up trip to the States this month. She was able to get her blood work done and pick up the supplies she needs for her B-12 shots and other supplements. Her tests came back with good results. Her B-12 levels were 4 points into the normal range for the first time in several years! Her doctor is still concerned with her ferritin level (stored iron in the body); it is still within the normal range, but has dropped to 1/2 of what it was six months ago. Her doctor wants her to definitely return to the States again in six months, and he says we should be prepared for her to have either an iron infusion or blood transfusion at that time if her ferritin level continues to drop at this rate. We are, of course, trying to add iron with diet as much as possible; and we are praying that the Lord will continue to strengthen her and her blood in the coming months.
Men's Conference:
We held our first Men's Conference in March, where we taught on fatherhood, leadership, relationships, and serving The Lord as laymen. This is the first time that we have done this without the emphasis being towards pastors only. We had over 30 men from 8 different churches present for the sessions for the three day conference. Many of these men accepted the challenge that was presented to them, and they chose to sign a resolution along with their wives before the church; they decided before their church family to take up the responsibility that God has given them to be godly leaders in their homes. We praise the Lord for the changes He is bringing about in each of these families!
South Nyanza Baptist College:
Both of our Bible College branches are doing well, and we opened this year with 16 new students and some new pastors that have joined with us for fellowship and training. Our four teachers, who are national pastors, are assisting me and taking on more leadership roles in the college; and it is a blessing to see these men continue to mature in the Lord. This will open more opportunities to add an additional Pastoral class that we have not been able to finalize because of past schedule conflicts. Please pray for: classes, new students, and the challenges of opening new branches.
Serving Him in Kenya,
Luke & Tonya Shelby
Men's Conference 2013
South Nyanza Baptist College - Kisii Branch 2013
Friday, 1 February 2013
January - February 2013 Prayer Letter
Printable Version (PDF)
Dear Supporters and Friends,
Thank you again for your prayers and special offerings for Tonya as she went to the States for some blood tests on her iron and B-12 levels. She is doing better with less headaches and more energy. She is taking B-12 injections twice a week, and it is helping. They do cause some nausea, but she is coping with it. The doctor wants her to return every six months to be tested; to see if the B-12 shots are improving her blood development, and to see if the shots need to be reduced or increased. It is hard to get the injections here; and when we have gotten them, they are very expensive, and they have lost their potency due to sitting on the shelf in this tropical heat. So she will be getting a new batch of injections on each of her trips State side, as well. Please pray for her next trip, which will only be for two weeks this time, at the end of May.
We opened the year with 11 new students in January, and we are expecting a few more to start in February. They were late due to sickness and schedule conflicts. Please continue to pray for all of our ministries to continue to grow, and for the local churches to help support their local ministries.
Orphan Ministry Update:
We were able to visit all 52 children, whom we are helping through our feeding program at two locations Sidundo and Kuresoi, with a Christmas package of food and toys. They were really surprised! And it was such a blessing to see all those smiling faces, who have gone through so much in their short lives. Also please pray for the upcoming elections to be peaceful on March 4, because during the 2007 elections is when a lot of these children lost their parents.
During the last week of January, we were able to invite 13 boys to start staying at our first orphanage and to start taking care of their full needs. We do not have permanent parents at this time, but we are praying for a couple who will see the desire to help in this ministry. We have about 10 men and women, from Calvary Baptist Church in Sidundo Village, who are sharing the jobs of cooking, cleaning, and sleeping with the boys. We have done medical checkups on all the boys; over half had to be treated for malaria, and most of them had skin problems that have to be cared for.
Special Request: We are always seeking ways to save money and to be good stewards of the financial resources that the Lord has given us, and this has brought us to this special request. Please let us know, either by regular mail (Luke and Tonya Shelby, P.O. Box 9215, Chattanooga, TN 37412) or by e-mail (mail@shelbysinkenya.org), what your preferred method is to receive our Prayer Letter. If we do not hear from you, we will assume that you prefer to receive our letters by regular mail; and if we already have your e-mail address, then you will continue to receive it both ways. If you prefer to receive all of our updates by e-mail only, then we must hear from you; please include your preferred e-mail contact information, so that you are able to receive our letters in a timely manner. We want to thank you in advance for your help in this matter.
For Souls in Kenya,
Luke & Tonya Shelby
Dear Supporters and Friends,
Thank you again for your prayers and special offerings for Tonya as she went to the States for some blood tests on her iron and B-12 levels. She is doing better with less headaches and more energy. She is taking B-12 injections twice a week, and it is helping. They do cause some nausea, but she is coping with it. The doctor wants her to return every six months to be tested; to see if the B-12 shots are improving her blood development, and to see if the shots need to be reduced or increased. It is hard to get the injections here; and when we have gotten them, they are very expensive, and they have lost their potency due to sitting on the shelf in this tropical heat. So she will be getting a new batch of injections on each of her trips State side, as well. Please pray for her next trip, which will only be for two weeks this time, at the end of May.
We opened the year with 11 new students in January, and we are expecting a few more to start in February. They were late due to sickness and schedule conflicts. Please continue to pray for all of our ministries to continue to grow, and for the local churches to help support their local ministries.
Orphan Ministry Update:
We were able to visit all 52 children, whom we are helping through our feeding program at two locations Sidundo and Kuresoi, with a Christmas package of food and toys. They were really surprised! And it was such a blessing to see all those smiling faces, who have gone through so much in their short lives. Also please pray for the upcoming elections to be peaceful on March 4, because during the 2007 elections is when a lot of these children lost their parents.
During the last week of January, we were able to invite 13 boys to start staying at our first orphanage and to start taking care of their full needs. We do not have permanent parents at this time, but we are praying for a couple who will see the desire to help in this ministry. We have about 10 men and women, from Calvary Baptist Church in Sidundo Village, who are sharing the jobs of cooking, cleaning, and sleeping with the boys. We have done medical checkups on all the boys; over half had to be treated for malaria, and most of them had skin problems that have to be cared for.
Special Request: We are always seeking ways to save money and to be good stewards of the financial resources that the Lord has given us, and this has brought us to this special request. Please let us know, either by regular mail (Luke and Tonya Shelby, P.O. Box 9215, Chattanooga, TN 37412) or by e-mail (mail@shelbysinkenya.org), what your preferred method is to receive our Prayer Letter. If we do not hear from you, we will assume that you prefer to receive our letters by regular mail; and if we already have your e-mail address, then you will continue to receive it both ways. If you prefer to receive all of our updates by e-mail only, then we must hear from you; please include your preferred e-mail contact information, so that you are able to receive our letters in a timely manner. We want to thank you in advance for your help in this matter.
For Souls in Kenya,
Luke & Tonya Shelby
Thursday, 1 November 2012
October 2012 Prayer Letter
Dear Supporters and Friends, October 2012
We want to thank you for your prayers and support for our family, and our ministries that God is continuing to bless. Over the last few months it has been very busy, and it has been difficult to get a letter out. Electricity and internet have also been a problem in trying to get a letter out. I know that it has worried some about the lateness of our letter; so we have tried to give you a few of the highlights, and we will fill in on other details later. I know that this is a long letter, but please pray for God’s continued guidance in these areas of our ministry as well as for our family.
Orphan Ministry Update:
We are now feeding over 40 children on a daily basis in two of our village churches (Kuresoi and Sidundo); and at the Orphan Home Project in Sidundo, the buildings now have windows, doors, and locks on one dorm building and the kitchen/dining room. In May, we also discovered that there was already a well dug on the property more than 20 or 30 years ago. So we re-dug it; and the water supply is enough for the college classes and even for the orphans, once we are ready to start housing them on the property. Our plan is to start with 10 boys and to work through the things that will be needed to take care of them. We will be meeting shortly with the guardians of these boys, whom we think would be the most needy, to prepare for the boys beginning in January. Please pray that the necessary funds will come in on a monthly basis to care for this ministry.
Current orphan support: At this time, less than $100 per month is coming in specifically for the orphan ministry. We are currently using close to $350 on a monthly basis for just our feeding program. We have received a few large offerings throughout the year that has enabled us to continue working on the project buildings in Sidundo a little each month, as we continue to help the children in our feeding program. Our plan, for housing ten boys, will need more funding by January. Please try to help on a monthly basis, as we try to move forward in the goal helping these precious children in our village churches. We are praying that the Lord will enable us to visit each of these 40 children individually in the coming weeks, in order to give them a Christmas package filled with food and many other needed items.
Bible College, Graduation, & New Students for 2013:
We are finishing up the 2012 year of classes, and we will be having 5 graduates, who finish the three-year course, this year. Graduation will be on December 1st. There are already 10 new students signed up to begin classes in January 2013, and we have several more appointments to interview others as well. Classes have continued to go well throughout the year in Sidundo and in Kisii. We thank God for the faithful pastors who are helping to teach and train others. There are several churches also who have not had students in our college this year; and before classes start in January, I will be meeting with them to encourage them in training up men and ladies to serve the Lord.
Calvary Baptist Sidundo:
Continue to pray for Calvary Baptist Church in Sidundo as they still do not have a pastor. We are working with about 5 men who are called to preach, and they are doing very well in different areas. They are alternating the teaching in Sunday school, Bible Study, and the Preaching services. Visitation is going well as the twelve students divide themselves 3 by 3; and the average attendance is running between 80-90, and several are being saved nearly every week.
A Busy August:
August was a full month for us. We had a week of VBS at Calvary Baptist Church in Kisii Town. And our Fifth Annual Ladies’ Conference was the last full week of the month. We had 38 ladies this year, and they came to Kisii from 8 of our churches for a week of refreshment and encouragement. Our ladies from Calvary Baptist Church in Kisii did a lot of the teaching for this meeting, and it was a blessing to see their growth and willingness to teach others. It was a wonderful week! Please pray for Tonya as she continues to minister to the ladies in all of our churches, and pray for the Lord to continue to give us faithful ladies that are willing to serve Him in their own local churches and communities.
Tonya’s Medical Furlough & Update:
We want to thank every church and individual family that has been praying for Tonya’s health throughout this year. And we want to say thank you to each and every one of you who have helped with the expenses of her medical furlough. Tonya is currently in the USA receiving medical care due to some drastic drops in her blood levels. The doctors have been keeping a close eye on her blood for the past year; and after her last labs, they determined that she must return to the USA for further testing and treatment. After returning to the USA, the doctors have ruled out the need for a full transfusion, but have diagnosed her with an extreme B-12 and Folate deficiency. We have learned that these deficiencies are actually more dangerous than the Iron deficiency that we have been watching over the past few years. She is improving slowly, and she is scheduled to return to Kenya on November 26th. Please continue to keep our family in your prayers.
Luke’s Malaria/ Typhoid Update:
I know that we wrote about this, and many have seen the news on Facebook; and we thank you for your prayers. For those who have not heard anything, I had a bout with malaria starting in June, then again in July where after several courses of treatment; I started feeling better. It took two weeks to get some relief, I lost a lot of weight, and for several days I did not even know what was going on. That was the worst part of it. Then I was sick again in August, I took another round of treatment for about a week. Then again in September with a bit different symptoms of being a bit sluggish during the day and severe chills every evening for about two hours and uncontrollable shaking again for about a week. I was then advised by some of our Kenyan friends to get checked for Typhoid as well as malaria. After being checked by a doctor, we were told that I had both malaria and typhoid; so I took the medicine for both, and I am feeling quite a bit better. The symptoms have not come back yet this month (October). We thank you so much for your prayers during this time. We praise the Lord for His healing and protection.
For Souls in Kenya,
Luke & Tonya Shelby
We want to thank you for your prayers and support for our family, and our ministries that God is continuing to bless. Over the last few months it has been very busy, and it has been difficult to get a letter out. Electricity and internet have also been a problem in trying to get a letter out. I know that it has worried some about the lateness of our letter; so we have tried to give you a few of the highlights, and we will fill in on other details later. I know that this is a long letter, but please pray for God’s continued guidance in these areas of our ministry as well as for our family.
Orphan Ministry Update:
We are now feeding over 40 children on a daily basis in two of our village churches (Kuresoi and Sidundo); and at the Orphan Home Project in Sidundo, the buildings now have windows, doors, and locks on one dorm building and the kitchen/dining room. In May, we also discovered that there was already a well dug on the property more than 20 or 30 years ago. So we re-dug it; and the water supply is enough for the college classes and even for the orphans, once we are ready to start housing them on the property. Our plan is to start with 10 boys and to work through the things that will be needed to take care of them. We will be meeting shortly with the guardians of these boys, whom we think would be the most needy, to prepare for the boys beginning in January. Please pray that the necessary funds will come in on a monthly basis to care for this ministry.
Current orphan support: At this time, less than $100 per month is coming in specifically for the orphan ministry. We are currently using close to $350 on a monthly basis for just our feeding program. We have received a few large offerings throughout the year that has enabled us to continue working on the project buildings in Sidundo a little each month, as we continue to help the children in our feeding program. Our plan, for housing ten boys, will need more funding by January. Please try to help on a monthly basis, as we try to move forward in the goal helping these precious children in our village churches. We are praying that the Lord will enable us to visit each of these 40 children individually in the coming weeks, in order to give them a Christmas package filled with food and many other needed items.
Bible College, Graduation, & New Students for 2013:
We are finishing up the 2012 year of classes, and we will be having 5 graduates, who finish the three-year course, this year. Graduation will be on December 1st. There are already 10 new students signed up to begin classes in January 2013, and we have several more appointments to interview others as well. Classes have continued to go well throughout the year in Sidundo and in Kisii. We thank God for the faithful pastors who are helping to teach and train others. There are several churches also who have not had students in our college this year; and before classes start in January, I will be meeting with them to encourage them in training up men and ladies to serve the Lord.
Calvary Baptist Sidundo:
Continue to pray for Calvary Baptist Church in Sidundo as they still do not have a pastor. We are working with about 5 men who are called to preach, and they are doing very well in different areas. They are alternating the teaching in Sunday school, Bible Study, and the Preaching services. Visitation is going well as the twelve students divide themselves 3 by 3; and the average attendance is running between 80-90, and several are being saved nearly every week.
A Busy August:
August was a full month for us. We had a week of VBS at Calvary Baptist Church in Kisii Town. And our Fifth Annual Ladies’ Conference was the last full week of the month. We had 38 ladies this year, and they came to Kisii from 8 of our churches for a week of refreshment and encouragement. Our ladies from Calvary Baptist Church in Kisii did a lot of the teaching for this meeting, and it was a blessing to see their growth and willingness to teach others. It was a wonderful week! Please pray for Tonya as she continues to minister to the ladies in all of our churches, and pray for the Lord to continue to give us faithful ladies that are willing to serve Him in their own local churches and communities.
Tonya’s Medical Furlough & Update:
We want to thank every church and individual family that has been praying for Tonya’s health throughout this year. And we want to say thank you to each and every one of you who have helped with the expenses of her medical furlough. Tonya is currently in the USA receiving medical care due to some drastic drops in her blood levels. The doctors have been keeping a close eye on her blood for the past year; and after her last labs, they determined that she must return to the USA for further testing and treatment. After returning to the USA, the doctors have ruled out the need for a full transfusion, but have diagnosed her with an extreme B-12 and Folate deficiency. We have learned that these deficiencies are actually more dangerous than the Iron deficiency that we have been watching over the past few years. She is improving slowly, and she is scheduled to return to Kenya on November 26th. Please continue to keep our family in your prayers.
Luke’s Malaria/ Typhoid Update:
I know that we wrote about this, and many have seen the news on Facebook; and we thank you for your prayers. For those who have not heard anything, I had a bout with malaria starting in June, then again in July where after several courses of treatment; I started feeling better. It took two weeks to get some relief, I lost a lot of weight, and for several days I did not even know what was going on. That was the worst part of it. Then I was sick again in August, I took another round of treatment for about a week. Then again in September with a bit different symptoms of being a bit sluggish during the day and severe chills every evening for about two hours and uncontrollable shaking again for about a week. I was then advised by some of our Kenyan friends to get checked for Typhoid as well as malaria. After being checked by a doctor, we were told that I had both malaria and typhoid; so I took the medicine for both, and I am feeling quite a bit better. The symptoms have not come back yet this month (October). We thank you so much for your prayers during this time. We praise the Lord for His healing and protection.
For Souls in Kenya,
Luke & Tonya Shelby
Wednesday, 20 June 2012
April-June 2012 Prayer Letter
Dear Supporters and Friends, April - June 2012
We have finished moving into a newer house in Kisii on the other side of town. After praying for about a year and looking slowly in other parts of town, the Lord opened a door for us to move to a quieter part of town. The owners are one of the first families that we met when we first came to Kisii, almost 12 years ago. They are also doing a lot of fixing up and accommodating things that we need in the house as we are still moving in. Electric, water, phone, security and other essentials are definitely more stable; and that definitely makes life easier in Africa when they are.
Recently we had mentioned about Tonya, her problem with her iron levels, and the possibility of her going back to the States for a blood infusion or transfusion. Three families from some of our supporting churches mentioned a family member who had the same symptoms, and they were told to begin a totally Gluten free diet. They saw results very quickly, so Tonya has tried that. She is feeling much better, although there has not been any significant change in her blood work. We have been told that it could take some time to see these changes. The big challenge is getting the ingredients to mix her own flours, making pasta, and many other things that are not ready made for the gluten free diet here. Please continue to keep her in your prayers.
An Orphan Feeding Program has begun in two locations, as the Lord has provided funds to do this. In Kuresoi it is a full time program; and in Sidundo it is still just part time, during the week that I am having Bible College classes there each month. In Kuresoi, it assists the children, as they usually have to walk all the way home from school to eat lunch, now they are being fed at the Pastor’s house on school days. And now there is better contact with each of them to know their day-to-day needs. In Sidundo, other difficulties have arisen concerning leadership of the church, and knowing the way forward for the children who will need to be cared for more in the orphanage. We are getting to know the children, and we are also seeing some of final details being resolved to get closer to accommodating the children in our first Orphan Home. Please continue to pray for Calvary Baptist Church in Sidundo. We are training the 13 College students, who are now leading the church in different areas of ministry including the preparations for the orphanage. Pastor Charles is no longer in the church due to discipline problems. God is blessing though and raising up new leadership in the church. Souls are being saved, and we just baptized 12 last Sunday.
We have also finished the building extension project in Kisii, and we have been using it for almost two months. There are small things that need to be finished, but it is a blessing not to be cramped with space. The Lord is continuing to bless in the local leadership of this church in handling the day-to-day issues with me being away part of the time.
Thank you for your prayers and support for our ministries.
For Souls in Kenya,
Luke & Tonya Shelby
We have finished moving into a newer house in Kisii on the other side of town. After praying for about a year and looking slowly in other parts of town, the Lord opened a door for us to move to a quieter part of town. The owners are one of the first families that we met when we first came to Kisii, almost 12 years ago. They are also doing a lot of fixing up and accommodating things that we need in the house as we are still moving in. Electric, water, phone, security and other essentials are definitely more stable; and that definitely makes life easier in Africa when they are.
Recently we had mentioned about Tonya, her problem with her iron levels, and the possibility of her going back to the States for a blood infusion or transfusion. Three families from some of our supporting churches mentioned a family member who had the same symptoms, and they were told to begin a totally Gluten free diet. They saw results very quickly, so Tonya has tried that. She is feeling much better, although there has not been any significant change in her blood work. We have been told that it could take some time to see these changes. The big challenge is getting the ingredients to mix her own flours, making pasta, and many other things that are not ready made for the gluten free diet here. Please continue to keep her in your prayers.
An Orphan Feeding Program has begun in two locations, as the Lord has provided funds to do this. In Kuresoi it is a full time program; and in Sidundo it is still just part time, during the week that I am having Bible College classes there each month. In Kuresoi, it assists the children, as they usually have to walk all the way home from school to eat lunch, now they are being fed at the Pastor’s house on school days. And now there is better contact with each of them to know their day-to-day needs. In Sidundo, other difficulties have arisen concerning leadership of the church, and knowing the way forward for the children who will need to be cared for more in the orphanage. We are getting to know the children, and we are also seeing some of final details being resolved to get closer to accommodating the children in our first Orphan Home. Please continue to pray for Calvary Baptist Church in Sidundo. We are training the 13 College students, who are now leading the church in different areas of ministry including the preparations for the orphanage. Pastor Charles is no longer in the church due to discipline problems. God is blessing though and raising up new leadership in the church. Souls are being saved, and we just baptized 12 last Sunday.
We have also finished the building extension project in Kisii, and we have been using it for almost two months. There are small things that need to be finished, but it is a blessing not to be cramped with space. The Lord is continuing to bless in the local leadership of this church in handling the day-to-day issues with me being away part of the time.
Thank you for your prayers and support for our ministries.
For Souls in Kenya,
Luke & Tonya Shelby
Tuesday, 27 September 2011
Orphan Project - Day #12
Group #1 of the CLAIM Team flew out @ around 8 AM today, the kids & I drove to Nairobi to be with Luke a few days & to get some rest before heading back to Kisii, & group #2 is on their way to the airport right now. Their flight is scheduled to leave close to 11 PM.
Monday, 26 September 2011
Orphan Project - Day #11
The CLAIM Team headed to Nairobi & Miss Katie, our children & I headed home to Kisii this morning. We made it to Kisii without any trouble. Luke & the Team were broke down on the side of the road for a little while, but they got everything back up & running. They should be getting into Nairobi right about now. Please pray for them & all of their flights tomorrow. What a wonderful group of people! We thank the Lord for allowing us to get to know them & work alongside them for this short time.
Sunday, 25 September 2011
Orphan Project - Day #10
Please pray. We have 2 Team members who are very sick today. I just took one of them back to the guesthouse to rest. The church was already full when I left. And there were so many children that I was not able to get a count. But I will be sure to try to post more this afternoon once church is over. Thank you for your prayers!
Our last services today with the Team here @ Sidundo. Not sure of the total count, but I know there were 175 kids! 4 adults were saved also. 1 of them was a young man named Henry. Some of the Team has been witnessing to him since the 1st day, but he said he just wasn't ready. Well today he finally took that step! He is now 1 of our brothers in Christ! It was amazing to see the change in his countenance afterward! Praise the Lord!
The 2 Team members who were sick are feeling much better. I believe everyone is mostly packed & ready for the trip to Nairobi tomorrow. They will be on the road by 7 AM, so please keep them in your prayers over the next few days as they make their way to their homes. The children & I & Miss Katie will head back to Kisii tomorrow too; after we go through the houses & make sure that everything is packed up.
Our last services today with the Team here @ Sidundo. Not sure of the total count, but I know there were 175 kids! 4 adults were saved also. 1 of them was a young man named Henry. Some of the Team has been witnessing to him since the 1st day, but he said he just wasn't ready. Well today he finally took that step! He is now 1 of our brothers in Christ! It was amazing to see the change in his countenance afterward! Praise the Lord!
The 2 Team members who were sick are feeling much better. I believe everyone is mostly packed & ready for the trip to Nairobi tomorrow. They will be on the road by 7 AM, so please keep them in your prayers over the next few days as they make their way to their homes. The children & I & Miss Katie will head back to Kisii tomorrow too; after we go through the houses & make sure that everything is packed up.
Saturday, 24 September 2011
Orphan Project - Day #9
The roofs are on all the buildings! The trees are all planted! The Jesus Film was able to be shown in full tonight to around 368 people! We praise the Lord for His goodness. And we thank you for your prayers. The Team was able to meet the orphans that will be living in the home they built & they were able to take pictures & give out gifts to each of them. What a blessing the CLAIM Team has been to our family & the village if Sidundo!
We are looking forward to a great day of services tomorrow!! Please be in prayer for each person that will be teaching, preaching, or helping out in some way during Sunday school, church, & junior church.
We are looking forward to a great day of services tomorrow!! Please be in prayer for each person that will be teaching, preaching, or helping out in some way during Sunday school, church, & junior church.
Friday, 23 September 2011
Orphan Project - Day #8
Wow, where has the tome gone? The project is almost complete (just need the metal roofing sheets-please pray that we are able to get them), 400 trees have been planted & watered, VBS went very well (around 160 kids/175 with the adults & workers included), tomorrow we will make a couple of special visits, we will have a time to sit down & get to meet all the orphans, & we will be showing the Jesus Film one more time! A lot has been accomplished, but we are not done yet. Please keep us in your prayers!
Thursday, 22 September 2011
Orphan Project - Day #7
We were able to water all of the trees that we planted (that takes a while when they are on the perimeter of a 5 acre plot)! The Girls' dorm is almost finished; I believe they have just a couple of more rows of bricks. The trusses are all finished & ready to go up. Please pray that we are able to get the metal roof sheets tomorrow (the hardware stores are giving us a hard time getting the supply we need).
We had our first night of VBS! Bro. Dan taught on Jonah & the whale, & Miss Stefanie taught about the 3 Hebrew children. We had 106 on our first night (the normal teacher said that we would only have around 60)!! Almost all of them said that they would bring a friend tomorrow night!
We had our first night of VBS! Bro. Dan taught on Jonah & the whale, & Miss Stefanie taught about the 3 Hebrew children. We had 106 on our first night (the normal teacher said that we would only have around 60)!! Almost all of them said that they would bring a friend tomorrow night!
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