January 2017 Maynard’s Mission Report
Horton Chapel Church of Christ

Farming:

This month much has been done on the farm. All glory to God. In Tanzania what should take one day, usually takes a week, and this month we are sending our thanks up to God for all that has been accomplished. A lot of that is thanks to Anna’s father, Rodney Edwards, who has shown us how to prepare our fields for planting. Here, the ground has been overgrazed and has a hard pan on top. The locals use the wrong tool to till and as a result the ground is like cement. Rodney has helped us with ours and, honestly, the pictures say it all. The ground here typically floods and water is not absorbed into the ground. Yes, it is that hard. It floods many crops and is one of the reasons we do the raised beds. In the pictures below you can see the ground that we have not prepared to plant and how the water is standing. Then, look at the photo of the land that is ready to plant. The water has absorbed just like we need! Also, thanks to our new tractor and Rodney’s help we have around 6 acres ready to plant this year! We are thankful. Rodney has been showing all of us, but especially Agustine, how to use the tractor and all of the attachments. He has also taught everyone how to maintain the tractor for longevity.

As we have mentioned, we are very dry this year. The short rains did not come. This week we have received a good amount of rain and are rejoicing. Please pray that our long rains come at the end of Feb and our crop will be successful.

We are happy to report that Annie, one of the milk cows we added last year, had a healthy baby girl this week! Please remember Justin in your prayers as he has injured his ribs. While it is very painful, to make light of the injury, we gave the new calf the name Eve. Thank you Jay Galloway for the suggestion and lots of laughs.

I am also including some before and after dry photos of the land (before the rain) to show the huge difference the tractor and Rodney have made.

Evangelism:

This month Anna, Susan, and Anna’s mother, Ebeth, along with the local women hosted a women’s seminar for the Arusha Region at the Andrew Connelly School of Preaching. The theme was spiritual growth. Agness Kambarage gave an opening lesson on prayer and the impact it has on our family and our spiritual growth. Keeping with the theme, Ebeth gave a wonderful lesson, after tea time, on Bible study. After a wonderful lunch, Susan Storks gave a lesson on not letting your culture override your Christianity (a much needed lesson in any country). Anna ended the seminar with a lesson on community. She talked to the women about being an example to their neighbors, and about using one another (in the Church) to grow spiritually. Over 100 women were in attendance and they are already asking for more seminars. The church in Kenya has also requested a women’ s seminar for their local congregations in 2018.

Susan, Anna and Ebeth studied with many different women this month. Four were baptized. Two of the four are attending the Kisongo church with us. Please pray for the other two. The other two have been forbidden by their husbands to attend the Lord’s Church. One of the young ladies who was studying with this same group was moved away from Kisongo by her cousin because she wanted to be baptized. Please pray for these women. Anna, Paulina, and Fillness are going back later this week to encourage these women and continue studying.

Next month is planting season and more babies are due to be born on the farm. We are looking forward to sharing it all with y’all. Please keep Justin’s healing in your prayers. Also, please pray for our dear friends, Cy and Stephanie Stafford. Without them this work would not be possible. Cy has done so much for the Kingdom of God in Tanzania and all over the world. We know that all things are in His hands and we are praying for comfort and peace.

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