A Resting Place: A Praise Report!

Hello there!

Patience takes a spin!

    Greetings from the Berkshires, where the effects of winter are beginning to be felt and we have seen a few flurries and a bigger snow in the last week. Joyce isn't thrilled about the onset of the cold weather, but is making the best of it and is adapting through wearing many layers and staying near the heat. She helped me throw some snow in our last storm!

Bundle up!

   I promised I would be sharing about God's provision for our housing and I am praising the Lord that I can do it in this blog post!
     After getting back from our trip we spent two and a half weeks staying with friends and family, praying and looking for housing in the Berkshires. A couple weeks ago, we came back to Western MA and found our accommodations with friends had fallen through, leaving us without a place to stay for the night! I called a couple whom we had met a week earlier and they introduced us to good friends of theirs and shared our situation with them.
    After asking some questions and consulting together in prayer, this dear Christian couple took my family and my parents in on the spot, not only for the night, but as long as we needed  a place to stay! They offered us two very large rooms and a shared kitchen space in a large 1700's farm house that we are renting. Solid Rock Farm is a place dedicated for the Lord's service and their heart is "educating members in life, farming, and creative art skills, acknowledging God as our provider." I am able to do work at their farm in exchange for rent and it is situated in the beautiful town of Stockbridge, MA. Joyce is enjoying cooking up a storm here and is keeping busy cleaning and chasing Patience around, who is now running!

Our new residence.

The sitting area of our room.

Elegant and comfortable living quarters.

Patience and Dada touring the farm.

      Joyce and I do hope to eventually find an apartment or place that is our own space and there is potential for that in the future, on the farm property. We are so blessed by this timely provision and meeting a brother and sister in the Lord who are quickly becoming like family!

Running and wrestling!

     I have started riding with a local ambulance service as I build up medical experience for our return to Africa. I am prayerfully considering opportunities for theological training that would better enable me to interpret God's word and clearly communicate the Gospel.

     I want to send a big thank you for those who sent birthday wishes and cards to Joyce for her 26th birthday on October 26th. I didn't do an official blog post, but Joyce was so blessed by the kind thoughts and words sent her way. She never has experienced a birthday like that before.

A little birthday gathering with family

A wall of birthday cards!

Patience enjoyed wearing the packaging.

   I can't thank you enough for your prayers in this time of waiting. Joyce and I are still facing some major transitions ahead of us as we wait to go back to S. Sudan next year, but are thankful for a place to rest our head.  We will keep you informed as it all becomes more clear in the Lord's perfect timing.

Picnicking in warmer climates

Please Pray for:

~Joyce's mother in Uganda who is suffering from a chronic and debilitating ailment.

~God's direction for Joyce and I as we look for wisdom in the face of transition and for the preparation He has for us as we wait to go back to Africa.

~Our friends Katherine and Tombe Isaac in South Sudan, as they struggle through a grueling visa process in order to come visit family in the USA. Pray that the Lord opens the doors and removes the road blocks, giving them patience as they wait on God's timing.

~The South Sudanese, that they might all come to know Jesus as their true Lord and Savior. It is only through the pulling down of hatred in men's hearts through the Gospel that will enable them to build a true peace and Godly stability in their nation.

We are very grateful for the thoughts and prayers you have been sending our way and that encouragement lifts up our hands and hearts!

Patience first time as a wedding guest.

Happy Belated Thanksgiving, Merry Christmas, and God bless you!

Jonathan, Joyce, and Patience
Phone #: 774-203-8308

Six Weeks of Sojourning (and counting...)

Patience Takes the wheel!

Merriam-Webster defines Sojourn as: a period of time when you stay in a place as a traveler or guest. That would describe our nomadic movements in the last several weeks quite accurately & we could go by the title "sojourners". On September 15th, Joyce, Patience, and I, along with my parents jumped into our van and set off on an epic adventure! All our belongings were in storage and our home became a red Honda Odyssey AND the hearts and homes that would welcome us during our traverse.

Friends of many years in VA

"Hanging out in Free Onion!"

Former Neighbors and good friends relocated from the Berkshires!

Two Jonathans' reconnect after three years!

Enjoying fellowship in TN

    We were blessed to fellowship with friends and family across Pennsylvania, Virginia, North Carolina, and Tennessee as we steadily peregrinated southwards. Growing up, it was not unheard of for the Lueken clan to travel 11+ hours in a day, but in order to preserve my wife's sanity and not provoke my daughter to the extreme opposite of her name we decided to break up the travel into manageable, 2-5 hour sections. It was more bearable for my wife (who had never traveled farther than 5 hours away from her home before she met me) and a lot more pleasurable way of seeing the beautiful country that is the USA. During our trip Patience made a lot of friends!

Just over the border of North Carolina!

Buddies!

Eating green beans and watching bunnies

    The first goal  in the journey was for Joyce and I to attend a Community Health Evangelism (CHE) Course in Marion, NC  from Sept. 23-28.  Equip International graciously accommodated us in a 3 bedroom living quarters that enabled my father and mother to watch Patience, while Joyce and I attended classes throughout the week. 

Group activity

Role play: I was a four year old asking food from a drunk father

   

Student Discussion

  Each day was started with a time of worship and morning devotions that was encouraging and challenging at the same time. The daily lessons were very participatory and required great amounts of student involvement/input. The instructors would often lead us to find our own answers to questions asked. In a very hands on way we learned:

-How to build a relationship with a community;
-Help them  to identify their own problems and needs within the community;
-Point them to the 1st and foremost solution that targets their hearts; a need for a Savior and discovering the grace found through the Lord Jesus Christ.
-Encourage community and individual ownership of the wholistic interventions and solutions to spiritual, physical, emotional, and social health.
-Encourage evangelism and the planting of Churches
-Train them so they can train other communities and villages.

Patience making new friends

Dinner buddies

CHE class of September 2018

    The relationships built with other students (who are also involved in missions and Christian ministry work domestically and internationally) would have been worth the price of tuition alone. Fellowship over meals, chatting between classes, and time together after the daily sessions was encouraging and revitalizing. I even got to do a workout with a professional wrestler who is going to the mission field!
      Joyce and I are really excited to implement this training as soon as we get back to Africa!

Visiting with Donald and Ruth Fonseca, former missionaries to South Sudan and East Africa in the 1950's.

     We were blessed by the highlight of visiting former missionaries to South Sudan and East Africa, Donald and Ruth Fonseca in TN. They worked with Joyce's Great Grandfather in Opari, S. Sudan from 1957 to 1963 and had a lot of stories. At 86, he is still full of energy and can still speak the language! They both still speak fondly of their time in Africa and what Don calls "going to Madi University", by learning about the people, language, and culture.  

Gospel-centered discussion, prayer, and laughter.

    The return trip included more visiting of friends and we also had a blessed time of talking to and praying with Paul Washer and the African coordinator at Heart Cry Missionary Society in VA. We reached New England on October 15th, a month after starting our travels. 

Patience Learning from her Mama 

     We have continued to visit friends and family in the New England area, including attending an EMT conference and a wedding. Currently Joyce and I are searching for a home in the Berkshires/Western MA area(though we are willing to go anywhere He would lead us) and my parents are also looking for housing that would be separate from us, but hopefully close by. We will keep you updated and eagerly await to share the praise report of God's provision as it comes!

    Until we have a permanent address we will be receiving personal and ministry mail 
C/O 86 E Bacon Street, Plainville, MA, 02762
    

Hiking Sharps Ridge in Knoxville, TN

    Thank you for your prayers for:

   ~ God's plan for housing for Joyce and I and for my parents. I hope to begin training to work with the Lee EMS and ambulance service as soon as we have a place to stay in the area.

   ~ Grace for Joyce as she has a hard time travelling and both of  us are getting tired of the frequent nomadic movements.

   ~ God's direction for Joyce and I concerning His timing for us going back to S. Sudan.

   ~ Encouragement for Joyce's family as they live with the reality of Lodu's passing and that they would encounter more of God's Grace and Love every day.

    ~ Understanding of God's grace and Salvation for the leaders and people of S. Sudan, as the peace agreement has been signed and hope of people returning to their homes with hearts transformed by the Gospel.

Rubanga kolu nyito (God be with you)!

~Jonathan and Joyce and Patience Lueken 
 Phone #: 774-203-8308
Temporary Address: 86 E Bacon St, Plainville, MA, 02762

Finally Home and Dancing with Jesus

   I would like to share about all the things that God has been doing on our travels & the blessing of the CHE course we just took, but that will have to wait for another post. I have two pieces of sad news & many of you have been aware and active in prayer for quite some time.

Moga and Lillian with two of their three children

Abijiah, Samuel, and Joel (L to R)

First, please pray for Moga and Lillian Kenyi, Joyce's older brother and sister-in-law. You may remember how they lost little Elizabeth back in February at four days old. On Tuesday(Oct. 2nd) we heard that Lillian miscarried at six months pregnancy & a little boy was stillborn. She is still weak & we are praying that she will recover both physically & emotionally. Also pray for Moga, Lillian, & the children as they process this loss. God has a purpose in all thing, especially suffering & we believe that He is doing more than we can even see.

Lillian with Abijiah

    Lodu "Reggae" Bosco Kenyi (known to many as Reggae) is Joyce's youngest brother and the last of 12 children born to Albert and Jemima (Rozana) Kenyi. Reggae, a boy of 16, loved people, his family, and dancing. He was born with Down's Syndrome, but that did not slow him down in the least and he was known all over Loa village. Joyce couldn't walk to school without her brother coming along and the teachers would have to accept him to sit in class with his sister.

Last time laughing with Lodu in June 2016

     If there was dancing in the village, Lodu had to be apart of it. Only locking the door of the hut at night would keep him from slipping away in the evening to join the festivities and more often than not he would be seen returning home in the first light of the morning, shuffling and stepping to the beat.
     He loved to help his parents in carrying water and any other chores he could put his hand to. When Joyce's family were scattered to the refugee camps in 2016, Reggae was a great help to his parents as they were staying in the settlement and his enthusiasm was contagious.

Lodu "Reggae"

    More than a year ago, Lodu began to have swelling of the legs and some other debilitating symptoms with terrible pain. He was taken to the regional hospital in Uganda and after a month and a half they could not give a diagnosis., so he was discharged without the hospital releasing x-ray and any other test results. Over the months, the other hospitals in the Adjumani region (nearest to where Joyce's parents are staying) could only offer some help in taking care of his bedsores and eventually it was left for the family to give palliative care at home in the refugee settlement.

    On October 3rd, 2018, my dear brother-in-law received his final healing and went to be with the Lord at 7 pm (African time). I can only imagine the joy as he was received into the Lord's presence and began dancing before the Lord in a perfect body that is free from pain and suffering! It is hard to say goodbye or think that we won't see him again on this side of eternity, but he is better off than us, being held in the arms of Jesus and dancing with his little niece Elizabeth and nephew. We love you Lodu and we can't to wait see you again! One day we will be dancing together.

    Please pray for Joyce's family in this difficult time as they face back to back funerals. Emotionally it is so hard and the financial burden of paying for the funeral arrangements in the African culture is also a heavy weight. We see how God is using the loss of Reggae and the baby on this earth to draw Joyce, myself,  and the rest of Kenyi family closer to Him.

Looking to the Lord for His Grace today and everyday!

Rubanga kolu nyito (God be with you)!

~Jonathan and Joyce and Patience Lueken 

New Phone #: 774-203-8308

Operation Nehemiah Missions www.operationsnehemiah.org Operation Nehemiah Rebuilding the Republic of South Sudan from Bottom up, One family,  and one village at a time, for Jesus

To Donate on the website scroll to the bottom - Choose option #2 

Then choose PayPal or Credit card 

Note: one time or recurring/monthly option.

PayPal onlighthouse@gmail.com  (we get 96.8% of your donation through PayPal)

 Mail checks to Operation Nehemiah   c/o  23 Tyringham Rd. Lee MA 01238 

(We get 100%)

Operation Nehemiah Missions - Headquarters: 

PO Box 563 Lanesborough, MA, 01267  413-770-4711

In the Fog, Jesus Walks with Us

Ingoni (hello) My Friend,

    I hope you are well! I am thankful today that our Lord Jesus has promised to never leave or forsake His children.
      For Joyce and I and my family, our life is resembling hiking a mountain in a dense fog. We can only see a few feet beyond our shoes and we do not know where the trail is going to lead. We have an experienced mountain guide who intimately knows the trail and we have to trust in His ability and not our own.  In our lives there are so many question marks right now. We are just asking God for the next few steps and waiting on Him.

Mountains in Fog (photo taken in South Sudan)

    You may or may not have heard, that we (Joyce, Patience, and I, as well as my parents) are moving in a couple days on  9/15 and will be storing our belongings in order to travel for three to four weeks. We do not yet know where home will be when we come back, though all of us hope to stay within the Berkshires, close to our church family and all the connections we have made over the last year. Joyce and I are praying to stay locally here in Lee, as I will start volunteering at the Lee EMS and a local clinic Volunteers in Medicine VIM in October, though we are willing to go anywhere God wants us to be. We are asking God to direct us and you can be sure we will post the praise report here, when God comes through on our behalf!

Chopping and stacking... teamwork!

    Perhaps your asking, "where are those nomadic Luekens travelling to this time?" Good Question! As said in a previous update, Joyce and I are attending the Community Health Evangelism (CHE) course in Marion, NC from Sept. 23 - 28. God has already provided three/fourths of the tuition and very affordable lodging for my parents during the course, who will be watching Patience for us. We will be seeing friends and family on either side of the course and we may be travelling close to you! Our itinerary is not solidified and we may have flexibility to swing your way, so check out our tentative route. Lord willing, our trip will not be affected by the coming of Hurricane Florence, but we are praying for the areas that will be affected and I may have an opportunity to volunteer in the post-storm clean up for a couple days while we are down south.

Fall 2018 Possible Itinerary

Visiting with a friend at a local farmers market

    Joyce and I had hoped to make a few month trip to S. Sudan in late November, but it seems that it may be postponed until next year. It really breaks our heart that we can't introduce Patience to the family in person or see Reggae soon. We have a lot of difficult decisions to make right now and need time to adjust to some of the transitions that God is bringing our way. Joyce's green card will need renewal by July 2019 and after that is finalized, there may be more freedom for us to travel "across the pond" as a family. We are asking for the Lord's timing for our return to Africa. As a good friend said, "God wears a different watch" and His time frame is always perfect.

    Joyce's brother, Lodu (A.K.A. Reggae) is still in critical condition and his bedsores have increased. He is back in the refugee camp with Joyce's parents, who are caring for him and we just sent over gloves and wound dressing supplies to aid in his daily care. We are continuing to pray for his healing, whether that is God bringing him to his eternal home or a complete cure of his maladies. God knows. Both Joyce and I very much desire to see Lodu again, but we know it is in God's hands.

Hiking back from the playground with the Royal Maharincess Patience!

~Please pray for:

-God ordained housing for Joyce, Patience, and I, as well as my parents, when we return from our trip in October.

-Provision and guidance for our travels (Sept. 15th thru the 1st or 2nd week of Oct.) and the remaining tuition cost for the CHE course (Sept. 23-28).

-God's specific direction for returning to Africa and wisdom for continued training and schooling while we are in the states.

-Very much needed increased monthly support for Joyce and I and my family, in order that we may cover daily living expenses here in the states.

-Continued prayer for Reggae and the rest of Joyce's family. We are asking God to make a way and provide so that they can all return to South Sudan and begin rebuilding their homes.

-Salvation and a true understanding of the Gospel for all South Sudanese, inside and outside of  S. Sudan. Pray for the unreached people groups in South Sudan who haven't yet heard the gospel, that God may send workers into the harvest.

   We are hitting the road on Saturday 9/15/18! We will keep you abreast of our travels and try to put out some updates during our peregrinations(travels). Anjo opwosi anyilegisi! (Thank you so much for your prayers!)

Rubanga kolu nyito (God be with you)!

~Jonathan and Joyce and Patience Lueken 

New Phone #: 774-203-8308

Operation Nehemiah Missions www.operationsnehemiah.org Operation Nehemiah Rebuilding the Republic of South Sudan from Bottom up, One family,  and one village at a time, for Jesus

To Donate on the website scroll to the bottom - Choose option #2 

Then choose PayPal or Credit card 

Note: one time or recurring/monthly option.

PayPal onlighthouse@gmail.com  (we get 96.8% of your donation through PayPal)

 Mail checks to Operation Nehemiah   c/o  23 Tyringham Rd. Lee MA 01238 

(We get 100%)

Operation Nehemiah Missions - Headquarters: 

PO Box 563 Lanesborough, MA, 01267  413-770-4711

 

Another Mountain Summit Reached by God's Grace

Hello Everyone!

    I am back home! It is truly a pleasure to be writing today from our town of Lee, while Joyce does some cooking and my daughter Patience is crawling circuits around the kitchen, moving anything that can be moved. I thank God for bringing me through SOLO School's Wilderness EMT course (https://www.soloschools.com/) and back home to my family!

 

One word to describe the studying that I did in Conway, NH for the last month is: INTENSIVE! The amount of information covered was pretty remarkable in the four short weeks(19 days of classes) we had and could be likened to trying to drink water from the bottom of Niagara Falls. I am kind of surprised that I didn't have a Traumatic Brain Injury due to excessive information absorption with symptoms of Increased Cranial Pressure! :) We received excellent instruction and a lot of hands on practice to reinforce what we learned, including volunteering with local ambulance services, hospitals, and clinics.

Practicing Patient Transportation

"Lift on 3, 1.. 2.. 3!"

Exploring some of the tools of EMS and Fire Rescue

     I was definitely stretched to my limit and had to rely on the Lord for the strength, endurance, and mind capacity to be able to pass my Psychomotor (Practical) and Cognitive (Computer-based/written) exam. I praise God for passing both and I now am certified as a Basic EMT! I currently am looking for some local opportunities to practice the skills I learned and volunteer at a local ambulance and in a local clinical setting. This course was an excellent foundation for future medical training. Advanced EMT and Paramedic are some options I am considering in the next couple years.


     An additional blessing was seeing my cousins in Center Conway. During my course, their house became a laundry mat, restaurant, and "home away from home" on the weekends. Thank you Colin and Annette and Andrew!

Enjoying time with our dear cousins.

     I had written about another intensive course through SOLO on tropical medicine in developing countries called the Geo Medic. I was supposed to start this 10 day stretch of classes in Conway that would go to the 17th of August, but unfortunately the class was cancelled due to lack of minimum participants. It will start up sometime next year and I look forward to taking it then, Lord willing!

    The cancelling of the course was a blessing in disguise and for two reasons:

    1. I actually really need the time to rest and recover now with my family from the WEMT course.

    2. It has opened up the time/resources for the possibility of Joyce and I to take a course together in September. Some of you may remember the "Foundations for farming/Abundaculture" and "Medical Missionary Intensive" courses I took in 2014 and 2015 through Equip International (based in Marion, North Carolina). http://www.equipinternational.org
     They offer a course on "Community Health Evangelism", which would be very beneficial to the work in South Sudan and specifically our work in the medical department. To quote a description from the website:

    "CHE teaches local community leaders how to identify their own needs and how to mobilize the community to use local resources to achieve positive—sustainable—results. Lives and communities are transformed from the inside out as people come to Christ and work together to address local needs."

    We are really excited for the potential fruit that God might bring from this training. Please keep us in prayer for God's confirmation & provision of deposit, tuition, travel and housing costs for pursuing this course (Sept 23-28).

     Equip is still looking for attendants to fill the CHE(Community Health Evangelism) class, so if you are a missionary, ministry leader, or could benefit on a short term trip or regular missions outreach from this training, they are accepting registration right now. Feel free to inquire and they can answer any questions you may have. (http://www.equipinternational.org/community-health-evangelism).


      The nomadic tribe of Lueken may be travelling again in the month of September around the hopeful dates of the CHE (Community Health Evangelism) course. We will keep you posted as plans firm up and we may be in your area if you want to see us! Our target area is Pennsylvania, Virginia, N. Carolina, and Tennessee.

Swinging with Patience

     In the meanwhile, I am enjoying being together with my family, playing with Patience, working at a local CSA Farm weekly, and Joyce and I are continuing to study medical/health/nutrition at home.

Jonathan and Joyce celebrating their 2nd Anniversary

Please keep us in prayer for:

~Please pray for us and everyone in Operation Nehemiah, that God would draw us to Himself through the trials that we face.

~The Community Health Evangelism Course (September 23-28) in NC. The Tuition cost, accommodations, food, etc. for us and my parents (who will be watching Patience to enable Joyce to attend with me).

~God's will and guidance as Joyce, Patience and I hope to visit S. Sudan in November for a few months. We are asking the Lord to direct and provide in the next few months.

 Our more long term plans of living in South Sudan full time will have to wait until we can stabilize Joyce's immigration status here in the USA. Pray for wisdom to walk the tight rope of regulations and limitations that are present until citizenship is reached.

~Joyce Brother Lodu is still in a "see-saw" state of tottering between sometimes critical, sometimes not as bad, but with no marked improvement. Simple things like clean gloves and sterile gauze are hard to come by in the Adjumani Region of Uganda. Hospitals/clinics are often asking patients to buy their own wound dressing materials.

     Joyce's family need God's Grace and provision for this hard time since the family have to provide the nursing care. We continue to pray that everyone of the Kenyi family come to fully understand the love of Jesus Christ in a new way.

~Pray for the Peace of South Sudan as a tentative peace agreement has been signed. The transforming power of the true Gospel of Jesus Christ and His Grace is needed for every leader, soldier, rebel, and citizen of South Sudan, inside and outside the country.

May God richly bless you this week and thank you for checking in!

Rubanga kolu nyito (God be with you)!

~Jonathan and Joyce Lueken 

New Phone #: 774-203-8308

Operation Nehemiah Missions www.operationsnehemiah.org Operation Nehemiah Rebuilding the Republic of South Sudan from Bottom up, One family,  and one village at a time, for Jesus

To Donate on the website scroll to the bottom - Choose option #2 

Then choose PayPal or Credit card 

Note: one time or recurring/monthly option.

PayPal onlighthouse@gmail.com  (we get 96.8% of your donation through PayPal)

 Mail checks to Operation Nehemiah   c/o  23 Tyringham Rd. Lee MA 01238 
(We get 100%)

Operation Nehemiah Missions - Headquarters: 

PO Box 563 Lanesborough, MA, 01267  413-770-4711