Thank you for your prayers for the Sudanese refugees in South Sudan! SIM sent an assessment team last week and they have learned a lot about the situation. The last we heard, 13,000 refugees from Blue Nile State had been registered and the UNHCR is anticipating thousands more before the end of the year. The World Food Program and UNHCR have been able to bring in food for 8,000 refugees but clearly not enough for everyone. The photo pictures a large crowd waiting for their relief food supplies. Please keep praying that the Lord will supply all of their needs. We've heard an encouraging report that people from the local M. tribe have been visiting the refugees (largely from the U. tribe) and sharing food with them. These tribes have historically not been friends with each other so this is exciting.
Our director and team are still unsure of ongoing security in this area and how soon the missionaries will be able to return. They are looking at the possibility of moving our secondary school to this location temporarily, although there are a lot of complex logistics involved. Please continue to pray for wisdom. We also have another special prayer request: Our assessment team has sent letters to the southern army and local government authorities in Blue Nile State, requesting that the secondary school students be allowed to transport school resources and materials as well as more valuable belongings of ours, such as solar equipment, to the mission compound in D. near where the refugees are. So far they have been denied permission. We also now know that our house as well as other buildings have been looted and items stolen. Please ask the Lord for favor with influential army and government officials so that school and personal missionary property can be retrieved.
As far as our personal requests and news, on Dec. 13th it will be 6 months that we've been waiting for Amy's green card. The website says "6 months average" for this type of application so we continue to pray that the application will be processed and approved soon. As you can imagine with all the turmoil and upheaval in our part of Sudan, we are unsure exactly where we will be located when we return. There are several options, depending on what happens with the secondary school, and we'll try to keep you posted as we learn more. Please pray for the Lord's leading, for the ability to "let go" of the things we've lost and keep going, and for provision of housing. Thank you--be encouraged that the Lord is at work!
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