march 2011

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Dear Prayer Partners,

Spring has sprung! Well, we really don't have spring, or any seasons for that matter, in Niger ... just hot & hotter! And it is getting HOT here with temperatures hovering around 110 in the days & 95-100 at night. And as an older, wiser missionary once said, "It's not as hot as it's going to get!" But despite the heat, we are trucking along & enjoying a VERY sweet season of ministry here in the desert. People are coming to know Jesus, some are hearing of His love for the first time, others are counting the cost of following Him & finding Christ worth it, believers are growing in their faith & knowledge of Christ, nationals are being trained & sent out to reach their fellow Africans with the truth of the Gospel, volunteers are committing to serve for weeks, or more, at a time so that the Songhai may believe & know that Jesus is Lord, and the list goes on & on!

Thank you for your countless prayers for our team, for the Songhai believers & for those that have yet to believe. We truly, truly, TRULY believe that your prayers are one of the reasons we are in this season. Yes, there are still hard times; yes, people are continuing to be persecuted for their faith; yes, we still meet resistance to the Gospel ... BUT, the Light is breaking through the darkness, Jesus is penetrating the hearts of men & women who have lived under the lies of false religions for thousands of years & it is because of a GOD who is greater still & hears our prayers! Thank you!!

We also wanted to remind you that each week we post a "Weekly Prayer Focus" on our blog for those of you who want more to pray about on a weekly basis. We also are posting specific requests from Gomer in Accra on our blog as well as volunteer testimonies, stories from this side of the world, information for volunteers or about upcoming trips and, if necessary, urgent prayer requests. If you haven't visited seekingthesonghai.blogspot.com yet, we encourage you to do so! While there, you can also browse around & find out a little bit more about the people you are praying for ... learning a bit about their history, their culture & even try your hand at a Songhai recipe or two!

Lastly, for those of you who have prayed for the Songhai for many years, the names Brad & Sally Womble are not new to you at all. As the former team leaders for the Songhai team, they were very instrumental in researching & implementing strategies for the beginning church planting efforts of the Songhai people. As many of you know, they left Niger last summer to accept a temporary position with the IMB in Richmond, Virginia as stateside liaisons for the Sub-Saharan African peoples. The Wombles are excited to announce that they have accepted a new permanent position with the Board in Richmond & Brad will now serve as the Director for Event Coordination for the IMB. They have also purchased a home & will be closing on it in April.


that ALL may know HIM,

Mark & Parker Phillips <><


If you would like to be added to the email prayer newsletter list & receive this newsletter in PDF format, please contact us at thephillips@pobox.com.