April 2007

Nehemiah Teams Filipino: Orientations started the first week of April for national Nehemiah Teams. Through the efforts of local churches and associations, teams are being sent to 5 different unreached or hard-to-reach people groups in 8 areas of the Philippines. Although we are providing training materials and helping with the leader training, these local entities have done all the planning & mobilizing/recruiting for their own teams. Jess will be on the road most of this month attending the various orientation sessions.

• Pray as team members are trained that their ministries will be fruitful... bringing forth a harvest for the Kingdom!
• Pray for the team members to be open to the Lord working in their own lives as He stretches them through this ministry.

Nehemiah Teams American: On the heels of Nehemiah Teams Filipino is the arrival of the American teams. Students are again answering His call to work among the unreached and hard-to-reach of the Philippines. This year's evangelism teams will be ministering on the islands of Dinagat, Siquijor, and Camotes, and among the Waray-Waray on the island of Samar. The fifth team will be working with Habitat for Humanity in a rural area of the southern Philippines. We're excited about this new partnership!

There are still positions open if you're interested... or know someone who might be! We really need another media team person. This member travels with an evangelism team and reports on the team's ministry through photojournalism and maintaining the team's "blog." For more information about any of the teams, contact us directly or the Collegiate Department of the International Mission Board. More info can also be seen on our website (www.nehemiahteams.com) or at http://www.thetask.org/

• Pray for the students as they prepare physically and spiritually for their summer of ministry.
• As parents see the commitment their students are making, pray for the Lord to work in their lives... helping them to truly dedicate their children (and their ministries) to the Lord.

Nehemiah Teams Korean: We are in the beginning stages of developing Nehemiah Teams Korea in partnership with the Korean Baptist Convention. The first Korean student team will arrive in the Philippines mid-July. It's been exciting to see this partnership develop and we are already planning for summer 2008 teams.

• Pray for the Korean team members as they prepare for this cross-cultural mission experience.
• Pray that the developing partnership with the Korean Baptist Convention will provide an avenue for many Korean young people to be involved in missions.

Other volunteer Opportunities

Waray Free Medical Clinics July 14-21, 2007
"Waray waray" means "nothing"... in northeastern Samar live a people with nothing. No real purpose, no real life, no real hope. In partnership with the riverboat Nehemiah Team you will be traveling as far as 4 hours to remote villages. You have "something" to tell!! As a medical team, you will be building relational bridges as you meet physical needs. You will join the team in witnessing through drama, sports, and 1-on-1 witnessing with the goal of establishing house churches among this unreached people group. The team will conduct free medical clinics in rural, remote villages where medical care is limited. Team members with no medical knowledge will be involved in personal evangelism through witnessing one-on-one, sharing personal testimony, or other areas of giftedness. This is a great opportunity to share God's love with those in need of both physical and spiritual healing! If you're interested in joining this team, you can contact us or Tammy Story (tkbstory@mindspring.com)

Camp Construction Project September 15-22, 2007

Be a part in training nationals for evangelism & discipleship. Partner with national believers in the on-going construction of a camp/training facility. Various skills are needed: basic carpentry skills, concrete block building, electrical & plumbing work, as well as a heart to be a blessing! For more information on this team, contact us or Doris Elliott (doris@fbcfp.org)

April 2007 Kids Korner

Upon our return in January from stateside assignment, we moved from Butuan City to Davao City. Our thanks to many of you who prayed specifically for our kids during this time... it seems to have been a smooth transition!

Wendy & the girls attended our annual home schooling meeting in February. The girls both participated in standardized testing and came through with flying colors... that's affirmation for a home schooling mom! They were also involved in mission projects. The older group (Krysten) did some landscaping at a local elementary school while the younger group (Betsy) held a half-day backyard Bible club for some local Filipino children. They both had a great time!

At the meeting the older students were also encouraged to prepare an oral presentation to share with the group. Using what Krysten had learned while in the US this past fall, she did a great job highlighting basic techniques vital to good singing. (see picture)

Krysten has found her niche in ministry through volunteering weekly at a local orphanage. The hours spent holding & feeding babies, playing with toddlers, and helping in the kitchen are highlights of her week! Over the Easter weekend we even brought a baby home with us. As a family we enjoyed lovin' on this little one and look forward to the next time!

Our son David is once again living at our organization's dorm in Manila while attending 10th grade at Faith Academy. Having been in Alabama for the first semester, he quickly got back into the flow of things when we returned to the Philippines. It was great to have him home for a week in March during his spring break (see picture)... we'd gotten used to having him around again after being in the US! He's enjoyed being a referee for Faith Academy's elementary basketball league these past couple months... gave him an opportunity to use his basketball knowledge while earning a little extra spending money! He's continued studying piano and is preparing for an end of the year recital in May.

First grade is almost over for Besty. She has had a great year and learned so many new things! Her main job these days is feeding our puppy, "Bravo." She has also enjoyed being involved in activities at Faith Academy Davao... playing soccer (see right) and going on a field trip to a banana plantation! (see left) The remainder of her days are spent jumping on the trampoline, riding her bike & scooter, and playing with friends... life is really good when you're 6 years old!

November 2006

Just the beginning...
It really was a wild summer for the Dolores Nehemiah Team. God brought them through some intense storms... and really tested their faith. They were ready to follow God, even when the plans didn't make sense. Every aspect of them was stretched... physically, emotionally, and spiritually. But everyone stuck it out and continued in their tasks. 19 villages were reached... 114 Bible studies took place... and over 180 people indicated a decision for Christ. The Dolores team had a unique bond that enabled them to do quality house to house ministry and perform their presentation every other day. There is no doubt that God handpicked every team member to be a part of this summer... and each was a vital piece.

The verse, "I consider my life worth nothing to me, if only I may finish the race and complete the task the Lord God has given me, the task of testifying to the gospel of God's grace..." pretty much sums up the hearts of the Dolores team members. The team united as one, under God, worked extremely hard, and had a blast doing it!

One day, some of the team members were hiking far to reach some remote homes. When they came upon a house across the river that was unreachable, Cecil yelled across the water and invited them to come to the group's presentation the next day. A women came into the main village later on, saying she heard a yelled invitation. The woman participated in a Bible study, and received Christ that day.

Now that the team has completed their tasks, the real work is just beginning. The next step is intense prayer. So many people were touched along the Dolores River and they need spiritual support. Pray that others may follow the Dolores Nehemiah Team and help reap the seeds planted. Pray for future messengers to come to the Dolores River and help disciple the people who have made decisions to follow Christ. Pray for encouragement and understanding for those who made this choice to obey God despite social pressures.

Let all our work be for His glory...

-Emily Nash
Dolores Media Team

Future Nehemiah Teams members training
Sheets of plastic with duct tape + a curved row of folding chairs + a 4 foot wall + 20 boys ages 6 to 11 = future Nehemiah Team members in training!
The sheets of plastic turned into "tents" held down by "stakes" of duct tape... the folding chairs turned into a "commando crawl"... and the 4 foot wall stirred up images of a 12 foot wall in a field in the southern Philippines... at the end of their "orientation," the boys received their official future Nehemiah Teams member ID card.

It's been awesome to speak to many college students about being a part of Nehemiah Teams. But an even greater privilege was for us to conduct a mini-orientation for a group of RA's. In a one-hour session, these 20 boys...

• set up their tents,
• participated in a short Adventure Recreation course (spider web, commando crawl, & "wall")
• had a short culture & language session... learning to say important words like: yes, no, and Jesus Christ, and
• learned a way to share the Gospel by distributing tracts with the help of an interpreter.

Kids Korner
Youth group activities, soccer games, choir, birthday parties, music lessons, fall festivals & costumes, high school football games... whew! The days are full and fun!

• Krysten's soccer team had a great season, finishing up with only one loss and capturing first place for their age division... Yeah! She was also honored to be chosen as a member of the All-Star team. Yeah again!! For Halloween, she showed her international bent as she dressed up as a Hindu Indian girl. Pray as Krysten celebrates her twelfth birthday this month... that she will continue to strive after God's heart.
• It's great to be a Fort Payne Wildcat!!! This is the common cheer of David & his friends these days as FPHS had an undefeated football season and is headed for the state play-offs. David has enjoyed cheering them on to victory as he attends the games each week. He showed his Halloween spirit as he dressed up as one of the Three Musketeers for the church Fall Festival... complete with a long blonde wig... pretty tough looking! (see picture below) This weekend he will be participating in Youth Cue, a youth choir festival at Carson Newman College. Pray that David will finish well in his classes for this term and for his preparation to return to Faith Academy in January.
• Two newspaper photos in one month... that's our Betsy! While dressed as "Dorothy" from Wizard of Oz, the local photographer captured her picture while exercising in PE one day. The honor of being chosen as the monthly class "Good Citizen" was the occasion for the second photo. She thoroughly enjoyed the October holidays at her school's Fall Festival and an evening of games, inflatable play things, candy, & pony rides while attending a "Trunk or Treat" with her cousin Tyler and her grandfather. This weekend brings another exciting event as Betsy & Krysten are members of the wedding party of co-worker Jim Walker. Pray that Betsy will continue to be open to learning about the Lord and having a relationship with Him.

Hope to see you soon!
As our time in the US draws quickly to a close, we look forward to our final opportunities to share with many of you. We'd love to see you while we're in your part of the country. Below is our schedule for November & December:
November
1 University of Colorado Christian Challenge, Boulder, CO
2 Western State College Christian Challenge, Gunnison, CO
3 Mesa State College Christian Challenge, Grand Junction, CO
5 North Side Baptist Church, Greenwood, SC (all AM services)
6 Louisiana Tech BSU Missions Banquet (7 PM)
8 Wayland Baptist University Chapel Service, Lubbock, TX
11 Wedding of Jim & Siony Walker!!! Yeah!!!
12 Minvale Baptist Church, Ft. Payne, AL (6 PM)
14 Global Christian Fellowship, Samford University, Birmingham, AL (5 PM)
19 FBC, Piedmont, AL (AM service)
21 South Highland Baptist Church Missions Banquet, Little Rock, AR
29 FBC Youth, Ft. Payne, AL
December
2 Hike 4 Missions, FBC RA's, Ft. Payne, AL
3 Nazareth Baptist Church, Rainsville, AL (AM service)
6 FBC Youth, Ft. Payne, AL
13 FBC GA's, Ft. Payne, AL

Summer 2007 Student Teams
June 7 - August 1, 2007

• Agusan Ag/Low Elements Team (IMB Job #82559)
• Building for Peace: Habitat for Humanity Partnership (IMB Job #82950)
• Camotes Island Evangelism Team (IMB Job #82562)
• Dinagat Island Evangelism Team (IMB Job #82560)
• Siquijor Island Evangelism Team (IMB Job #82558)
• Waray Riverboat Evangelism Team (IMB Job #82561)
• Media Team Positions: Visayas (IMB Job #82563), Mindanao (IMB Job #82564), Waray (IMB Job #82565)

Pray for the areas where these teams will minister, for the softening of hearts who will come into contact with the Gospel. Pray for students as they respond to God's direction for this summer.
See website (www.nehemiahteams.com or www.thetask.org) for job descriptions and additional information about each team... or drop us an email at nehemiahteams@yahoo.com

Semester 2007 Teams
February 3 - August 1, 2007

• Agusan Ag/Low Elements Team (IMB Job #82698)
• Camotes Island Evangelism Team (IMB Job #82702)
• Dinagat Island Evangelism Team (IMB Job #82700)
• Siquijor Island Evangelism Team (IMB Job #82699)
• Waray Riverboat Evangelism Team (IMB Job #82701)

See website (www.nehemiahteams.com or www.thetask.org) for job descriptions and additional information about each team... or drop us an email at nehemiahteams@yahoo.com

Mission Resources Available
Are you a World Christian? Not a "worldly" Christian.... but a world Christian. If you're interested in answering that question and learning more, go to our website and download a Bible study series to help you develop a Christian worldview. Other resources are also available. Go to our homepage (http://www.nehemiahteams.com/) and click on "Resources."

Lottie Moon Christmas Offering and International Missions Emphasis Resources are now available online at http://www.ime.imb.org/. As a Southern Baptist Church, your church office should have received a promotional package. These are incredible materials available for your church to use in promoting and challenging your church to be involved in international missions. Video clips, power points, photos, banner & poster art, stories, bulletin inserts, clip art, drama & skits, and music, plus graded items for children and students... it's all available for you to use! Many items are ready for download from the website above, others can be ordered through the IMB Resource Center.

Unwrapping the Gift: Pacific Rim 2006 Advent Prayer Guide
Once again our regional office is making an advent prayer guide available to assist you in praying this Advent season. The daily stories and prayer requests from various people groups in Pacific Rim will bless your hearts and inspire your faith. Available for download at: http://www.go2pacrim.org/component/option,com_remository/Itemid,88/func,select/id,7/orderby,2/page,1/

Top Ten Reasons to Give to the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering

1. It makes gift giving easy. No shopping required and it lasts forever.
2. In a slow economy or falling stock market, it's an investment that will pay lasting returns in God's kingdom.
3. More than 5,000 Southern Baptist missionaries depend on you to keep them on the field.
4. 100% of our offering supports missionaries and their ministries.
5. Your gift can help send a God-called missionary who is ready to go.
6. Your gift makes you part of God's work around the world.
7. A world rocked with war, hatred, hunger, and greed desperately needs the loving touch of Jesus.
8. You are blessed to be a blessing-- to all peoples. (Gen 12:2-3)
9. Billions have little or no chance of hearing the gospel unless you give.
10. You're giving Jesus something He really wants for His birthday.
    

May God bless you as you express your thanks to Him during this Thanksgiving season,

Jess & Wendy Jennings
David, Krysten, & Betsy

http://www.nehemiahteams.com/

June 2006

• Praise report: Filipino 2006 Nehemiah Teams results
• Camp Use & Construction Update
• American Nehemiah Teams on the field!
• Medical/Construction Teams soon to arrive
• Stateside Assignment time is here

Praise report: Filipino 2006 Nehemiah Teams results
As Nehemiah Team members arrived at orientation, the first thing they saw was the 12 foot wall! For some, this was an adventure. For others, a challenge... an impossible task... a nightmare! This was something they could not do on their own. It represented what we were asking them to go out and do: open doors and plant churches among the unreached and hard to reach here in the Philippines. Students going to the unreached? Students planting churches? If we ask them to climb a high wall... they just might do it!

The Filipino teams came back rejoicing. There was one common testimony on every team: God is at work among even the most unreached! Rejoice with us:

• 12 teams with a total of 34 members
• An additional 41 local students trained & equipped
• Ministered in 42 different areas
• Sites for Kids Health Camp: 29
• Kids enrolled in Health Camp: 851
• Tracts distributed: 5833+
• People indicating response to follow Christ: 396
• New believers baptized: 20+
• House to house evangelism: 395 homes
• Permanent Bible studies: 8

Some teams were forced to use creative ways to share Christ with the unreached...

• One team was not allowed to give a bold, verbal public witness... but they were allowed to visit individual farmers on their farms and share about agriculture and about the One who can give them abundant life!
• A team was able to impact the same community for the entire 3 weeks... each week conducting a different type of "camp" for the children & young people of the community. Although they couldn't go door-to-door & share the Gospel... the Lord brought many to them so they could share the Gospel in a relationship-type way.
• A team of cultural learners explored a culture completely foreign to them. In the dark hours of the night, sitting side by side with men of this people group, these students shared of their personal journey with the one, true God. As they were questioned by the men of the community, they were able to answer questions about their faith & the One in whom they believed.

Pray the fruit of their ministries will remain strong. Pray that house churches will continue and new believers will reach out to many more people from their people group. Pray that decisions made by team members will be confimed by the Holy Spirit's work in their own lives.

North Mindanao Baptist Campground Update
It has been a little over 2 years since we started building the North Mindanao Baptist Campground. We want to thank all of you who have helped financially and those who have given their time to come work. Even though the facility is not complete, 145 young people from the Mamanwa tribe came for a two day camp sponsored by their denomination. For most, this was their first camping experience. We praise the Lord that many decisions were made!

Our local association of Southern Baptist Churches used the facility this past April during their annual Camp Meeting to house attendees and for the children's classes. The Caraga Regional Baptist Men will use the facility this next week for their annual 3-day retreat. We also used it for our Nehemiah Teams orientation & debrief sessions. So even though it is not yet complete, it is being used for training & encouraging the local Christian body.

There is a Nehemiah Team assigned to the camp for the next two months. They began early this past Monday morning pouring floors for the 2 smaller cabins. They will continue with other projects over the course of the summer. We are also excited about the Alabama volunteer team coming June 17-24. While others conduct free medical clinics, some of the men will spend the week working on the facility.

American Nehemiah Teams on the field
Following a 4-day orientation, 20 American students with their 9 Filipino team mates began their summer ministry. While the Agusan team set up "home" at the camp, the other 2 teams took to the high seas as they set sail for Cebu City and their final destinations for the summer. What a sight they were as they traveled through Butuan City all loaded up in their jeepney loaded down with backpacks, boxes of Bibles & tracts, rice sacks with their "mobile kitchen" supplies! Needless to say, they were excited to be on their way!

You can keep up with them by checking their team's blogs over the summer. Two media gals are serving as "embedded reporters" as they report on the team's ministries.

The blogs can be accessed through our website (www.nehemiahteams.com) or through the links below:
Agusan Ag/Construction Team & Siquijor Island Team: www.nehemiahmissions.blogspot.com
Can-avid Riverboat Team: www.can-avid.blogspot.com
Dolores Riverboat Team: www.dolores-team.blogspot.com

Pray for boldness in sharing Christ. Pray for the teams to discover a person of peace in each area who is open to learning from the scripture. Pray they will be an encouragement to believers.

Medical/Construction Teams to arrive
Our partnership with DeKalb Baptist Association over the past two terms has resulted in many volunteers coming to be a part of ministry here in the Agusan River Valley. The final team for this term arrives on June 17th. On Sunday the 18th, team members will be in local churches, preaching & sharing testimonies. The medical team, led by Dr. Mike Story, will conduct free clinics in 4 remote villages where health care is very limited. The construction team members will continue to work on the camp, building much-needed bunk beds! Pray for safety as the medical team travels each day to the clinic sites. Pray for those attending the clinic to be open to hearing about the Great Physican!

Stateside Assignment time is here
We are excited to have the chance to see many of you over the next 6 months. We can't wait to share all that God has done over this past term. Our older kids, David & Krysten, left earlier this month and are enjoying time with grandparents & other family members. We will continue to use our current email address so please keep in touch!