Deborah
- missionary in Central Africa
 Deborah
our oldest daughter taught in a school in Lebanon for 5 years.
She then went to southern Zambia to work with an outreach/humanitarian
organization based near Livingstone. Deborah ministered in
orphanages, schools, churches and outlying villages. After
fulfilling her duties with this organization, she is planning
to move out into a ministry of equipping and skilling African
women in a rural context. The African women are generally
viewed as inferior to the African men, and have a much lower
status in society. Although there are exceptions in the cities,
in rural areas this is the general case. The women have the
awesome task of bringing up the African children and grandchildren,
and thus mould the next two generations. The men are not
concerned at all with this task which traditionally they
leave to unskilled and badly equipped women.
It is our daughter’s concern to help skill, equip and
empower the African women to better themselves, gain knowledge,
grow in confidence, increase their family’s wellbeing,
and thus bring up and mould better equipped young people
who will later lead their nations with care and skill. Deborah
has proved this already in many ways in Zambia over the last
two years in her teaching and training of rural women. She
has gained the approval of some of the chiefs and leaders
of the local communities through her understanding of the
local culture, speaking of the local language and the help
she has rendered to the womenfolk.
She has asked for your prayers and support.She has to raise
her own monthly financial support (you can do this through
our secure
server marking your gift
as" for Deborah'). Please pray for her in this new
venture. She spent her early years
in central Africa, knows the African culture and has a
passion for African children.
Rooth and Niamh
Rooth runs our training base in Brighton UK where we train and orientate the
teams who come with us to Eastern Europe and the Middle East. Rooth also ministers
to the needy youth of the area, befriending, counselling and bringing them
to Jesus. She is doing a marvelous job and is a wonderful mum to her daughter,
Niamh, who is now two years of age.
Paul
Our son is living in Toulouse in southern France. He is
writing profusely and will produce a novel soon. We're in
touch with him often. He is a blessing. Paul often pops over
from France to Brighton to help us and his sister, Rooth,
with local tasks and looking after Niamh.
The Smethurst Family send you their love and thank you for
your friendship and partnership. We could not manage to accomplish
what we do with out you. Great is your reward from the Lord.
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