Pastor’s Graduation!

On October 6th, we celebrated the day we have eagerly anticipated for the past three years. With over 500 celebrants in attendance including officials from local, county and state government, our pastors graduated. We were honored by the Deputy Governor of Warrap State to have as the key note speaker. The graduation marked the culmination of three years of intensive bible training. Attired in festive marron gowns, these 12 disciples of Jesus Christ, received diplomas and special gifts from the visiting dignitaries. The name of Jesus was clearly proclaimed throughout the two hour program. The event included worship led by the Don Bosco band and the IDAT choir. Greetings and words of encouragement were given by various government and church leaders. We concluded the day hosting a dinner for the pastors, officials and members of the community.

“All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations.” – Matt 28:18-19

Board Visit to Tonj!

We were blessed to have two of our Board members visit Tonj to join us for the pastors’ graduation. Ted Miyake, Jim Ennis and his wife Dena were used of the Lord to encourage the staff and community during their ten day stay at the IDAT compound. God used this time to connect names and faces throughout the entire IDAT organization. The time together was a beautiful picture of the Body of Christ functioning as one for the glory of Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

“From whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love.” – Eph 4:16

Prayer Walk San Diego!

Our annual prayer walk was held Saturday September 22nd at Horizon Christian Fellowship. This year Suzy and Hannah were able to come to the United States to participate. God has continued to extend His hand of blessing as the ministry expands the level of vital services given to the community. Our basic monthly operating budget has increased to $25,000 to cover the operation of the clinic and the compound, support for the Kuj family and our U.S. stateside support. We now employee over 50 local staff in support of our 24/7 clinic operations. Our five acre compound has become a magnet to the community and surrounding territories as we show the love of Christ in serving the Lord.

Leadership Development!

While visiting Tonj for the pastors’ graduation, our Board recognized the godly potential of certain members of our staff. Lack of development and leadership training is a tremendous area of need in South Sudan and Tonj. The Board has recommended that we increase our level of funding to ensure that we have an adequate budget for the development of tomorrow’s leaders. Our recognition of these candidates is based on evidence of a clear calling and commitment to serve the Lord Jesus.

Prayer Requests!

• For the Kuj family as they host teams coming to Tonj through Christmas.
• For the Lord’s blessing on the graduated pastors as they go to serve their flock.
• For God’s comfort for Ayok, a young girl suffering from bone cancer.

Suzy Prayer Walks in the USA!

Suzy is looking forward to seeing many of you at this year’s prayer walk fundraiser on September 22nd in CA. Our goal is to raise funds so In Deed and Truth Ministries can continue to reach out to over 50,000 Sudanese in the Tonj area of South Sudan through our expanding medical clinic, outreach programs, Jesus film, three churches, 15 pastors and the Community Health Evangelists. If you feel led to help us with the increasing costs of running these programs and ministering to the Tonj community please visit our website for walker and sponsor information. If you cannot attend please consider sponsoring Suzy to walk or giving a special donation marked ‘Prayer Walk.’

Suzy is only in San Diego for 6 days, so this prayer walk day has been set aside for her to visit, reconnect, share and pray with those who have supported us so faithfully over the last 13 years and for those who want to learn more about what we have been called to do in South Sudan. Suzy will be available before, during and after the walk for fun and fellowship. This year’s walk is at Horizon North County Church starting at 10 am with lunch provided. Please go to our website and register or call Jeamette Lock for more information.

Embrace Infant Warmer!

Embrace Infant Warmers were introduced to us through a friend. These baby sized sleeping bags havebeen tested throughout India and some other countries to reduce infant mortality, which South Sudan has one of the highest rates. The device works like a traditional incubator, regulating the baby’s body temperature but at a fraction of the cost to buy and even to operate. It can work with or without electricity, has no moving parts, is portable and safe to use. Due to the high number of babies we deliver and treat in a high risk area of infant mortality our clinic was one chosen by Embrace to begin using this device in Africa.

Embrace donated two infant baby warmers to our medical clinic and even traveled to Kenya where we were able to connect and collect them. We will keep you posted on how these simple devices are saving lives. To learn more about Embrace please visit their website.

Box of Blessings!

Box of Blessings was set up to help support the Kuj family as missionaries in a very remote and challenging location. The boxes are filled with special gifts and items for the family and sent with visitors to their location. We have several boxes ready to be filled and sent. If you would like to personally bless them and can help purchase items or donate so we can purchase on your behalf please contact Jeamette Lock for the family’s wish list.

Tonj Olympic Games!

While the Olympics were going on in London, we started our own Kids Games Olympic style for the kids in Tonj and the surrounding areas. As you can see from the photo not as flashy as the Olympics but these children had fun playing, and heard the gospel with open hearts. Two of our medical staff, Gabriel and Emmanuel, together with Donato, Pastor Santino and our compound manager Albino, formed a team to go from village to village conducting kids games.

Their main objective was to encourage the kids that they are important in the society, and especially precious to the Lord Jesus, no matter where they come from or family background. Many of them think that they are less important than others because they do not have nice clothes and shoes. This makes them not to attend Sunday school. The games created a good relationship with the coaches who showed Jesus’ love and care for them. They were taught to respect each other, their parents, to have discipline and work hard in school (though only a few of them go to school) and to trust in the Lord Jesus.

Prayer Requests!

• For the Kuj family as they spend time apart, safe travels for Suzy.
• For the Lord’s blessing on the prayer walk, good weather.
• Upcoming Pastor’s graduation on October 6th.

Testimony of CHE Training!

Missionaries, John and Beth, from World Gospel Mission Uganda returned to Tonj for the 2^nd C.H.E (Community Health Evangelism) training session. Twenty-one leaders from seven counties across three states in South Sudan came together as we hosted this life changing workshop.

We all were amazed how eager and hungry these leaders are as they contribute with passion in every part of the training, which focused on equipping the CHE teams for the next stage, implementing CHE programs into the community.

CHE covered several things, mainly prevention of diseases, best methods of communication, learning to identify and use simple available resources to meet needs, and sharing the gospel. The tasks the groups accomplished after the first CHE training back in April proves that CHE is working in the community and transformation can be achieved. Despite South Sudan’s dire situation, we heard stories of inspiration. One CHE encouraged their whole village to clean up the trash and they did! The team took the initiative and backed it with reasons of hygiene and dignity and presented it to the leaders of the village which gained the community support. The CHE team themselves were surprised and encouraged by the result. Other teams did equally well and we were told this was the best CHE training done in East Africa. Thanks for praying, CHE # 3 will be in October.

Medevac for Cancer Patient

Four weeks ago 12 year old Rebecca Ayak was brought to our clinic with a very swollen right forearm and suffering a lot of pain. She was diagnosed a year earlier in Juba with a tumor and referred for treatment to Uganda but the family went back to the village due to lack of money. Clinical officer Dennis and visiting missionary Dr. Rossi, both felt Ayak’s only hope was to medevac her to a Kenyan hospital. We do keep a running Medevac Fund for situations that arise unexpectedly like this as the costs can quickly accumulate. We always believe Jesus is our guide and brings such patients to us so we can help them without hesitation. Through our relationship with Tenwek Mission Hospital, Sabet made arrangements for her medevac and along with her brother traveled to Kenya with her. X-rays confirmed it was bone cancer and she was taken to surgery right away. Unfortunately, her arm was amputated.

Ayak has shown remarkable courage and the battle is not yet over. She really needs your prayers for a full healing and recovery. Some spots were seen on her lungs and doctors suspect the cancer has spread. We have to wait for her arm to heal so she can get more tests done and possibly get chemotherapy. Had she received treatment last year she may have not lost her arm and needed further treatments. She is in a foreign land for an unknown length of time. If you can help us financially to cover her medical bills and accommodation please go to the donate page on our website and give a gift under Medical Evacuations. Alternatively you can send a check to our support address and memo ‘medevac’. These funds will be used to pay all her medical expenses, flights and food/accommodation needs in Kenya. For updates on her condition please visit our blog. On behalf of Ayak and many others who have been helped and lives have been saved we are very grateful for your continuous support and prayers.

Meet Gabriel!

In Deed and Truth Ministries is about transforming the lives of those the Lord places in our path, whether it’s a staff member, church member or patient. One of our community health workers in the medical clinic has shown incredible spiritual growth and transformation despite his difficult living conditions and lack of opportunity. Gabriel is 22 years old and worked at night in the clinic while trying to complete his final year of high school. He’s the only working male in his family and so all the money he earns goes to his family. His father died and his uncle controlled him, many times not letting him go to school or work so he could farm the land. He is one of the most reliable staff working with integrity and maturity, handling patient cases with outstanding care and sensitivity. He graduated high school with exceptional exam results, coming second in the whole of Tonj County. He loves soccer and joined in to several soccer outreaches and now leads kids games in several villages. Sam, our clinic chaplain, has been spiritually building Gabriel up to be a Godly leader and man in this community. Pray for him, his desire is to be a doctor and we are praying how we can be a part of that dream for him.

“and be renewed in the spirit of your mind” – Ephesians 4:23

Happy 1st Birthday ROSS!

One year ago on July 9th we joined our brothers and sisters of South Sudan in celebration and witnessed first hand an historic occasion as the ROSS or Republic of South Sudan gained independence from North Sudan and became her own nation.

Since then the border areas to the North have suffered a lot of conflict with many losing lives, homes and mostly the peace they had enjoyed since the end of the civil war in 2005. It’s hard to describe to people who have never lived in a war zone but there is constant fear, anxiety and uncertainty because life is fragile and might not be the same tomorrow as it is today. Please pray for our country which has come a long way since the days of war but still has far to go to. The people have suffered so much and continue to live without stability, healthcare, education and a purpose in life. Pray In Deed and Truth would be effective in making a difference.

Church Plant!

Another celebration of birth is our second church plant this year in the small village of Maloney that we have been serving with weekly medical outreaches for the past 2 years. Two pastors currently in our Discipleship training school made it their mission to plant the church and are currently living in this remote village. Their hearts were stirred through Simply the Story training and Community health Evangelism training, and they passionately wanted to bring God’s Word to the Maloney people. They approached the village chief to allow them to meet under a tree every Sunday. The chief who is not a Christian, listened to their request and asked what kind of church. Pastors Joseph and Santino explained they were sent from our Bible school and this type of a church is more like a protestant church, so he called both pastors in front of a crowd to present their request. The Chief followed their request with a speech on how God has been good this year to their village, from a school being built by UNICEF to Australian NGO ‘Kingdom Assignment Sudan’ building a clinic and helping us to keep a Community Health Worker on staff in Maloney. He was excited at the thought of God giving them a church and acknowledged God had blessed them. He left the meeting with the pastors and immediately walked them to a piece of land they could have for their church. It was a miracle and turned into a celebration in keeping with Dinka culture, they were gifted a goat and officially welcomed to the community to begin the work of the church.

The first Sunday they met under a tree and had 15 people and that number has already grown in a month to 40. There has been some spiritual warfare and opposition so we are asking you to pray for this baby church to grow strong and be a light in this community. Pray Joseph and Santino would not get discouraged while leading this amazing work for the Lord Jesus.

Hilary Returns from Tenwek!

Hilary Langat volunteered with us for the second time from Tenwek Mission Hospital in Kenya. This allows us to give our Kenyan staff a break without reducing the service to the community. Hilary was blessed to see how much the outreach to Maloney has grown since his last visit a year ago. One lady from Maloney was transported back to our clinic with the ambulance due to severe malaria. Her condition was serious but after Hilary prayed with her, she asked Jesus to be her Lord and Savior. After that her condition rapidly improved and she went home.

“Do all things without complaining and disputing, that you may become blameless and harmless, children of God without fault in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world, holding fast the word of life, so that I may rejoice in the day of Christ that I have not run in vain or labored in vain.” – Philippians 2:14-16

Prayer Requests!

• For more volunteers to bring the gospel to South Sudan.
• For God to spiritually grow the community of Maloney specifically.
• For 2nd CHE training this month to stir hearts for the Lord’s harvest.

News from the Field Staff!

Our vision is to integrate our Christian beliefs into our medical ministry. We do this by creating an atmosphere of compassion, peace and acceptance of every patient and showing the love of Christ through excellence in health care that leads to evangelism and ministry opportunities.

Samuel Ngugi is a Kenyan serving In Deed and Truth Ministries as our clinic chaplain in Southern Sudan. He is responsible for ensuring every patient is valued and given the chance to receive prayer and the Lord Jesus as their personal Savior. First thing in the morning he arranges a testimony message to the waiting patients. Most days that is over 100 people who sit patiently coming to see the doctor. Tracts are handed out in Dinka for those that can read. Many inquire what the tract is about and want to know more about Jesus.

As the patients are seen by the doctor or nurse each patient is asked about their spiritual well-being together with their physical complaints. If they are wearing charms from a witchdoctor they are encouraged to go for prayer and counsel with the chaplain, Sabet or Albino.

When a patient isn’t open to further counsel then we immediately ask if we can pray for them before they leave. This is a special time between the doctor or nurse and the patient. It may be the only time they hear about Jesus.

Sam speaks fondly about his role in the spiritual care of our patients. He says, “It is great to witness to the Sudanese, they are so receptive to the gospel. I’m excited to see mother’s declare they will never put their trust in witchdoctors again and remove the ‘protective’ charms from around the children’s necks. Many times this is done at risk of being beaten by their husbands who purchased the charms from the witchdoctors.”

In an average day we see over 100 patients and more than half of those will ask for prayer from the chaplain and nearly all of those will ask Jesus to be their Savior. That is 150-200 people each week. The pastors in our discipleship program will also help out with counsel and sharing when they can. Witchcraft plays a huge part in this communities foundational beliefs and the lack of churches is a challenge in the villages.

As most of our patients come from far outside Tonj they cannot attend our church due to the distance. We have planted one church in an outside village and now two of our pastors have planted a church in a second village. The chief of the village allocated them land to build a church and told the villagers it was for the church’s exclusive use and he has given it to the church “forever.” Their first Sunday more than 15 people attended. Pastor Joseph went to look for a drum so they can bang it loudly before church notifying the people that church has begun. Hallelujah!

“Therefore, if anyone [is] in Christ, [he is] a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.” – 2 Corinthians 5:17

Prayer Requests!

• Specifically for the patients and their spiritual and physical concerns and wisdom for us as we minister to them.
• For God to give us opportunities for evangelism in the surrounding villages.
• Continued spiritual growth and unity of our staff.
• For the organization of our upcoming prayer walk in September.
• For the planning and arrangements for the Pastor’s Graduation Ceremony scheduled for October 6th.
• For Sabet as he spends 2 more weeks in Juba with Agum working on adoption papers. The court wants to give us a letter and we need a certificate of adoption. Please pray that specific certificate would be granted to us. We are not sure it even exists in the system but we serve a God who is ABLE to do exceedingly abundantly more than we ask or think possible!