Thursday, November 14, 2013

What Do the Foxes Say? (November 2013)

Here's the latest newsletter from the Fox family ... 


Happy Harvest!
At this time of year we have a few decorations we put up around our house. One of those is a sign we hang on our door that says “Happy Harvest” with a picture of a scarecrow. As I passed by the sign the other day I thought about the phrase ‘happy harvest’. Yes indeed, the harvest time can be a happy time of the year.

Although I have relatives who farm, I did not grow up in a farming community so harvest time didn’t mean much to me. However, the main occupation of the Songhai people is farming. The weather and land are definitely not ideal for farming, but they plant the crops that can handle it - mainly millet. If they‘ve experienced a good rainy season, then the harvest is definitely a happy time of the year. However, this year the harvest was not bountiful. There was a short rainy season and some sort of parasitic plant attack. One of our friends collected 1/9 of what he did
last year. Not a happy harvest.

As I think of this in spiritual terms I am reminded that Jesus said, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few.” (Luke 10:2) There is great joy to bring in a big harvest and Jesus says there is a harvest of souls waiting to be reaped. But there have to be laborers. Some plant, some water, but God gives the growth (I Cor. 3:6). Seeds have to be watered often to bring about growth. We had rains in Niger this year, but not enough to bring much growth. The same is true with evangelism and missions. Many many seeds have been planted by past missionaries, ourselves, and countless volunteers. Yet we must plant more seeds and continue to water and water and water them until a plentiful harvest is brought in. And we must reap with humility because ‘neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth.‘ (1 Cor. 3:7)

So please join us as we...
• pray for more laborers
• pray for a bountiful spiritual harvest
• Give God ALL the glory for it! -Sarah Fox

Lottie Moon Christmas Offering
As fall comes to a close & the holidays approach, we would be remiss not to say a HUGE "THANK YOU" to all of you who give to the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering. (If you are not Southern Baptist or don't know what this offering is, you can read more about it here. OR if you need some great resources to use in your church this year, click on that link as well.) Basically, this offering is what allows us to be here. Because you give, we have a house to live in, a vehicle to access & engage the Songhai people, medical care for our family, funds to distribute the Word to the believers in their language, resources & means to train & send out national partners & the list goes on. Your gifts not only benefit us but also the 5000 other missionaries that work with the IMB. We ask that, this year, you give above & beyond. We are so blessed to be here, doing what we love & fulfilling God's call on our lives but there are at least 1000 others like us waiting to go ... & right now, there are not enough funds to send them all. Please give so that others may go & millions may hear of Christ.

Prayer Points
• Praise the Lord for making it through the first 8 weeks of homeschooling! Our girls have been doing great!
• Praise the Lord for a new group of men in a nearby village who Jody has shared the gospel with and who want to hear more. Pray for their salvation.
• Pray for H*, a girl in our village who is in serious need of a difficult eye surgery. Pray for the salvation of this family (the father is a Muslim leader).
• Continue to pray for Jody as he finishes up a seminary class this month.
• Pray for blessings upon our marriage and the strength to continue to grow in this area.
• Pray that God may establish a strong leader in Boubon to lead and shepherd the believers here.

Our Little Girls
• We praise God for how these girls have adjusted to this culture and are developing a passion and love for the Songhai people.
• Pray for C because she has fears at night time.
• Pray for J to continue to grow in her reading ability and not get frustrated so easily.
• Pray for L to learn her letters.

P.S. Our girls love receiving and sending e-mails to other kids, so if your kids want to write we’d love to hear from them!

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