December 2019 Teach Us To Pray Newsletter
I am excited about what God has done in Fiji and in the area of Huejotzintgo, Mexico (where we have our newly completed center).
The training in Lawaki seems to be going well. There are 3 very active ladies in the group who regularly check on the bees and report back to Chuck, our beekeeper/trainer. We had more training on Wednesday 7th November that went very well. The hives are looking strong, but are producing less honey this season. We'll be able to split the village hives very soon. The government of Fiji recently gave out some small grants for micro enterprise development and many have elected to spend their funds on building beekeeping projects. The men are interested in getting into it also and are offering to build boxes for the women in exchange for colonies of bees. The men are also requesting Chuck to run a hive building workshop again so that they build their hives to exact standard dimensions.
We've been able to deliver 3 sets of training to other groups also. One was to a group of returning seasonal workers (fruit pickers who went to Australia) who wanted to spend some of the money they earned overseas in starting with bees. Another training was for a large group of interested beginners and the last training (8th and 9th Nov) was for a group of more experienced beekeepers who wanted to learn about Queen breeding. Chuck is currently partnering with Saimone Tunaqase, a Fijian beekeeper who has a passion to teach beekeeping. He is fluent in Hindi, Fijian and English and very knowledgeable about beekeeping. He’s a humble man and Chuck enjoyd working with him.
We continue to ask participants to pay a small fee for the training, and that seems to serve us very well. Funds received from participants rarely meet the cost of the training completely, especially if the group is small (under 15) and Chuck insists on paying our trainers reasonably well for their time, but so far we're making ends meet TUtP has provided the initial bees and most of the suits and other equipment that allowed our projects to start. We cannot provide all the funds needed. We'll need to look at soliciting funds from government or NGOs to supplement the cost of the training in future.
Unfortunately, Fiji has finally got her first Varroa mites appearing in hives in Suva. None in Vanua Levu yet thankfully. We'll desperately need training in Varroa control soon. These mites are a scourge that must be controlled.
Much of our training is among Hindu farmers. We openly share the love of Jesus Christ with them and some have been quite receptive. In addition we provide Bible training for the women in our Lawaki project. We are also providing them with coaching in small business management. As this project succeeds these women will be better able to provide for the needs of their families. As the women succeed, the men of the village are being challenged to become more financially productive.
My daughter, Rachel, and son-in-law Abraham are currently visiting until the 28th with our grandkids, Abish and Lani. Back in Huejotzingo, they work with families, taking weekly Bible studies to their homes. Typically, Abraham leads Bible studies for the adults while Rachel teaches the children. They also teach English once a week. Abraham gives math tutoring on Tuesdays, and Rachel does a craft or dessert with pre-teen or teen girls in the hour before. In addition, Abraham preaches about once a month in their church, Dios es Amor, and the whole family participated in the church Christmas pageant.
On Thursdays, Rachel teaches elementary art at Puebla Christian School. Abraham is Abish’s homeschool teacher on Mondays and Fridays, providing all the kindergarten subject matter in Spanish, while Rachel teaches Tuesdays and Wednesdays in English. Starting in January, Abish will begin first grade, using the Sonlight curriculum.
They hope to begin a school program for kids in their neighborhood of San Miguel and also to expand Bible studies in their neighborhood. The school and multipurpose rooms are almost complete in the entrance to the Teach Us to Pray compound. The TUtP Center is virtually all done. A few security bars for upstairs windows and the roof door have been manufactured but not yet installed. Hopefully that will be done within a very few weeks.
Most of those Abraham and Rachel reach have no contact with any church or are nominal Catholics. Our hope is to see small home churches develop out of the Bible studies they teach. This is very hard ground to work in. Huejotzingo is one of the most spiritually dark places I’ve seen in my travels around the globe.
We so very much appreciate your prayers and support. May Jesus enrich your lives abundantly this coming year.