Possessing The Land in Tanzania

Title Deed Victory!Pages 5-6

Victory MagazineMarch/April 2015 Hidden With Christ Ministries

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A Heart to GiveBy Mary Holt

Operations ManagerHidden With Christ Ministries

…Freely you have received; freely give. Matt 10:8

Since its inception – 15 years ago – it has always been the commitment and heart of Hidden With Christ Ministries to give out of the abundance of what it has been given. This is a principle that is at the very core of HWCM. It is a conviction born from God’s love and the many Biblical injunctions about faith, compassion, giving and tithing that guide the ministry.

Every month HWCM makes contributions to other non-profit organizations from its general fund (not from designated donations

or projects). HWC also provides financial support for pastors and missionaries overseas when made aware of emergency needs or situations.

I thought it would be interesting to share with you the many ways that HWCM has been privileged to give over the years. Here are some of the projects and needs we have donated toward:

Ministries and Churches in America, the Middle East, Kenya, Liberia, Nigeria, Tanzania, Viet Nam

Missionaries and Missions trips

HWCM has assisted many pastors in Africa with practical and emergency needs. These pastors have very little of their own, yet they are relied upon tremendously by relatives, church members and even communities to help in times of need. They are committed and willing to sacrifice for the sake of the Gospel. Funds have provided for food (literally to prevent ongoing hunger); family and church member burials including buying coffins in which to bury the dead; expenses for medical emergencies; shelter, repairs and basic needs after a pastor’s family suffered in a house fire; transportation such as bicycles and motorbikes – without which some pastors must walk many miles to their churches and villages; training and conferences; children’s education/school fees; bibles and audio bibles.

HWCM has donated to other orphanages and assisted with Bible School scholarships.

As HWCM has faithfully given, God has always provided for the ministry to meet its own obligations.

We are extremely grateful for the generosity of so many people around the world. We just wanted you to know that you can take great joy in knowing that you are an important part of making a difference in the lives of those in need when you give to Hidden With Christ Ministries.

Do not neglect to do good and to share what you have,for such sacrifices are pleasing to God.

Hebrews 13:16

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have you ever wondered howsignificant your donations are?

WHAT $100 cAn do:

IN THE UNITED STATES

AT TrEASUrES of AfrIcA cHILDrEN’S HoME

Nice Dinner out for 2 or 50 dozen eggs

PLUS 55 lbs. of maize flour

(A month’s supply of eggs and

maize flour for the orphanage)

A Latte a Day for One Month

or60 kilograms (132)

pounds of rice(we use 100 kilograms of rice per

month)

WHAT $50 cAn do:

IN THE UNITED STATES

AT TrEASUrES of AfrIcA cHILDrEN’S HoME

A month of Cable TV or220 lbs. of wheat flour

(A month’s supply of wheat

flour for the orphanage)

One fast-food dinner out for family of 5 or

Two Sundays of Chicken Dinners for the

entire orphanage

Every dollar given really does make a big difference!

By Christina OberstChaplain

Treasures of Africa Children’s Home

Here at Treasures of Africa, we believe in being a blessing to others in our community and

to find areas of need where we can serve others and give of God’s great love. One of the “Seven Pillars” for a successful life that we have been teaching the children is the pillar of LOVE and the need to show compassion to others who are less fortunate. In seeking places where we could serve and give, not only from the resources that God has so graciously given to us but also of our love and time, we were led to a Nursing Home in the nearby village of Njoro. We spent Valentine’s Day there with the children from Treasures

of Africa, bringing gifts of flowers, clothing and supplies to bless the residents of this humble place.

The conditions of this home are unlike any nursing facilities I was accustomed to seeing in the states. In fact, it is nothing in comparison to even the most poorly operated facilities I have ever witnessed. The living conditions are harsh and unpleasant. The staff at Njoro Nursing Home do their best with the meager provisions they receive from the government to care for those who live here, but it is very difficult.

Most of the elderly residents have no family. Those who do, have been abandoned by them. They never receive a visit from relatives and they are quite lonely. They have very few personal possessions. What they do have, has been given to them by

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Diamond giving a gift of clothing to nursing home resident in Njoro Village

Christina Oberst with resident at the nursing home in Njoro Village

Learning

others since arriving at the home. Many do not know their age or remember many things about their lives. When one of the grandmas was asked her age, all she said was, “I remember the day the Germans came.” Tanzania was a part of German East Africa - a colony of Germany - until 1919.

One story that has really touched my heart is the story of a woman named Lucy. Lucy is blind and she spent many years of her life, previous to being brought to the home, begging on the streets for whatever she could get to survive. When she had a stroke that affected the right side of her body and impaired her ability to speak, she could no longer survive on the street. She was then brought to the home by the local authorities. Lucy still does not have full use of her right leg and arm but she is improving. Each time we come to visit her, we continue to pray for complete healing and restoration.

When we first started coming to the home, Lucy could not speak at all. She can now speak some words and express herself verbally. She quietly sits each day for hours on the concrete slab in from of her little room. It is like she is just waiting each day for someone to come and visit her. Whenever you talk to Lucy, she responds with the biggest smile ever. Lucy loves Jesus and she loves for us to pray with her. I am humbled at what little she has, the conditions in which she lives, and the years of hardship she has endured. Yet she demonstrates an inexpressible joy and thankfulness every time we visit which is amazing to behold.

Everyone here at the nursing home is so thankful for even the smallest of gifts. But the thing they are most thankful for is our presence. They often tell us of how they love to see us and how good it is of us to come. They also remind us that they will never run out of stories to share with our children. They love talking with our children and our children enjoy sitting with them. Many of them have formed special bonds.

It is so beautiful to watch these special bonds of friendship blossom between our children and the grandmas and grandpas at Njoro. Our children needed them and they needed our children. God knew this and has wonderfully brought the generations together for a wonderfully loving and special purpose.

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Moses with a resident of the NjoroNursing Home

To Love

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Rita LangelandFounder/Executive Director

Treasures of Africa Children’s Home

For years we have dreamed of building the Treasures of Africa Children’s Village and Leadership Academy. Desiring to serve more orphaned and abandoned children than we are able to house in our rented building in Moshi, Tanzania, and at the prompting of Regional Welfare authorities, we looked and prayed for just the right piece of property to purchase. The Welfare authorities had strongly encouraged us to buy our own land in order to eliminate the “insecurity” of the orphanage being housed in rented facilities. We longed to expand our work by having on site educational buildings, develop income generating businesses, as well as have the room to grow some of our own food. So it was clear that obtaining our own land would fulfill the desires of everyone concerned.

In April 2011, after a series of miracles had taken place, we purchased a 5.4 acre plot of land located about a 15 minute drive outside of Moshi town. We drilled a water well and built a huge brick security wall around the circumference of the property. Then we began working closely with another non-profit organization based in southern California – BuildingAfrica – in planning for the development of the solar powered building project. Helping us select a competent builder, engineer and architect in Tanzania was a huge first step. Then we worked for over 2 years with both the Tanzanian professionals and the BuildingAfrica team in the U.S. to craft a master architectural plan for this project. By phone, internet, and in person, the blueprints and the multitudes of needed revisions flew back and forth across the two continents. While all of this was transpiring, we were simultaneously working hard to obtain the Title Deed for the land. (There is not an automatic Title transfer with the purchase of land in Tanzania as it is in the U.S. After property is purchased, you must apply for the Title Deed with the government’s Ministry for Lands.)

Obtaining the Title Deed became a lengthy legal battle that we could not have imagined. It took almost 4 years and incredible persistence in faith and prayer, but God won the battle. On February 13, 2015, we received the Title Deed to our property. The prayers of so many friends

POSSESSING THE LANDThe Title Deed Victory

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around the world – along with those of the children and staff at Treasures of Africa – helped bring this day to pass, and we are so grateful.

What’s Next?Now the challenge before us is to pray for the finances to build this project. The architectural plans may be viewed on our website by going to www.treasuresofafrica.org and then clicking on the menu tab at the top of the page that says BUILDING PROJECT. Read the article and in the center you will find a place to CLICK to see the site plans. Make sure you scroll all the way down if you would like to see all 26 pages of blueprints!

Our experts at BuildingAfrica have estimated that the building of this all solar-powered 16 building project will cost approximately 4.5 million dollars. We would like to raise an additional 2.5 million dollars for operating expenses and to create our income generating businesses to help fund the orphanage on a long-term basis. So we are asking you to partner with us IN FAITH to pray and believe God for this 7 million dollar goal. The Lord has brought us this far – and we are confident He can bring this to pass.

The vision of this project is “TO DEVELOP WORLD CLASS LEADERS FOR EAST AFRICA FROM AMONG ITS ORPHANED AND ABANDONED CHILDREN.” You can be a part of this powerful vision by praying or by giving a donation of any size toward this building project. Together we can see this vision fulfilled!

“Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much.” Helen Keller

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HWC Ministries Board member Clair Lee (standing on the TOA property in Tanzania) invites you to join her in investing in the future leaders of Tanzania by giving a donation to the Building Project!

Donate Online:

www.treasuresofafrica.org

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Mass parenting is a term that’s been circulating

around the local missionary community here in Moshi, Tanzania for quite some time. It refers to parenting or mentoring a large number of children simultaneously but brings with it a connotation of being unable to meet the real needs of each child due to the overwhelming numbers. When I first heard the term, I was really struck by the concept and the challenge it brought. I’ve been contemplating our parameters at TOA and various mass parenting strategies ever since.

When I was raising my son it was easy to pour into him because it was one on one. I was a single Dad and he was an only child. We were fortunate to have close family all around us to help pick up the slack. It was the polar opposite of mass parenting.

Raising one child is so different from raising 2 or 5 or 29 or more but the question remains – How do you instill love and security into all of them at the same time? How do you foster healthy respectful relationships? The answer is still one-on-one individual attention from someone who really cares.

Currently we’re like one big family - two toddlers, 5 second graders and at least one child in each grade all the way up to University Freshman. They live in the same building with the girls on one side and the boys on the other. We meet in the middle for meals and living space where iron sharpens iron and caregivers instruct accordingly. It is the caregivers (Fathers, Mothers, Mentors, Educators) of our children that are the focus of this article and where we invite the prayers of the saints to assist us.

When we build and move into our new facility, we will be looking at pouring into over 100 children on a daily basis. We’ll need grace, lots of wisdom (and yes some mass parenting skills) but hopefully without the missing link of close interpersonal relationship. Our model for caring for one hundred plus children will be very different from what we’re doing now with 29 children. We’ll have many new sets of house parents living onsite with the aim of raising godly men and women of integrity in more of a family style setting than an institutional model. The quality of our childcare workers and our staff to child ratio will be vitally important elements for our vision of raising world class leaders to come to pass!

Good people are the strength of any organization and our future Caregivers and House Parent staff

The Challenge of

Treasures of Africa Director Warren Oberstwith TOA kids at school

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members will shape the vision we have for the children. We value our workers, and staff development is a high priority for us. It takes a lot of time and prayerful effort to assemble and train an effective team, especially in Tanzania, and we’re very blessed to have our current staff in place. We’ve learned that finding the right people to work with our kids is not a perfect science and that successful candidates come by the grace of God.

This is where we covet your prayers and intercession. Would you consider partnering with us and setting aside time to pray that the Lord would prepare godly Tanzanian workers and international volunteers to join together with HWCM at the right time to further His plans for Treasures of Africa Children’s Village? Pray for men and women who have a calling to serve and a heart to help drive out the “orphan spirit” that plagues this land. Pray for people who know how (or can learn) to demonstrate the needed love languages, to fill the love tanks of the children and to help set their feet on the firm foundation that is Jesus pointing to our heavenly Father.

Prayer and divine intervention go hand in hand and we anticipate God’s hand of providence in bringing the right people when they are needed. The completion of our building project may look to be in the distance at this point, but God seems to be moving quickly and we’ll need to have our human resource eyes open while the construction moves forward. We feel that this need is as big, if not bigger, than the need for money to build!

With your prayers we can do it and by the grace of God we will. We know He will bring the right people in His perfect timing but it all starts now in prayer.

Blessings from the land of Kilimanjaro,

Warren OberstDirectorTreasures of Africa Children’s HomeMoshi, Tanzania

Mass Parenting

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As each year comes to an end and a new year dawns, I always spend time praying about what the next year will bring, and I like to share any insights that I have gained from that time of prayer. I was unable to include this article in our January edition due to space constraints, but felt that I should share it with you now.

I believe the key emphasis for 2015 can be summed up in the phrase, “Turning Point.” I sensed that this year would be a crucial year in which significant change would occur for many people. Specifically, that Christians who had been praying for change in certain areas of their lives for years, would find that 2015 would be their “Turning Point” year. However, there are always conditions for prophetic words to come to pass, and the same applies here.

A committed decision always precedes a “Turning Point” in someone’s life. If you look back upon your own life, you can mark the historical turning points in your personal journey and note the decisions that corresponded with those turning points. For example, you may have chosen to get married or move to another state to attend school or take a new job, and those decisions resulted in dramatic turning points in your life.

In 2015, there will be “Spirit-led” or “God-directed” decisions that you must make in order for the significant change to occur that God wants to bring to pass in your life. God never forces anyone to do anything. He invites everyone to accept His help, direction and His grace to walk out of hard situations into better ones that He has planned. But each individual must make the decision to follow God’s guidance. For example, I have known people who have prayed for years for God to change their circumstances, in which they are miserable. God longs to help them but they will not make a decision to follow His prompting to make certain changes. They are too afraid to move or leave a certain comfort zone (though unpleasant) due to fear of the unknown and an unwillingness to trust God for their future. So they remain stuck.

Turning Point: a point at which significant change occurs

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TOA teen girls excitedly open gifts given to them at the LAVISH LOVE event

One of the most common reasons people don’t make the decisions they NEED to make in their lives, has to do with perceived social pressure. They fear what others, especially family members, will say or think if they make a decision which has life changing consequences. Yet if they looked at the BIG picture, they would realize that it would be wiser to fear living a life without fulfilling your God-designed destiny, than to worry about temporary disapproval from others.

When I was a young woman in my senior year of college, I was engaged to marry a certain man. Exactly six weeks before the wedding, with my wedding gown hanging in the closet and the invitations already done, I woke up with the intense feeling that I was making a terrible mistake. Up to that point, I had not entertained any doubts in my mind. But I could not shake this overwhelming feeling of dread that if I went ahead with the wedding, my life would never become what it should be. Unbeknownst to me at the time, it was God trying to warn me and give me direction. But the social pressure that plagued my mind over cancelling the wedding was very intense. What would everyone think? What about the loss of money that my parents had paid as a deposit for the wedding reception? Also, it was not so easy back in that day without cell phones, Facebook or email, to get the word out after you had made such an announcement. All those thoughts flooded my mind. But I did make that difficult decision to cancel the wedding. And today I can look back on that decision as one of several major turning points in my life. I guarantee you that I wouldn’t be writing this article today or working in Africa with orphans, if I had let social pressure keep me from making that critical decision. Don’t let fear of disapproval prevent you from making an important decision that could precede and usher in your TURNING POINT.

Some of you who are reading this, know EXACTLY what decision you need to make – but for one reason or another, you have been reluctant to commit to making that decision. I want to encourage you to trust God for the strength and courage to make it and stick to it – so that the Lord can bring to pass the year of TURNING POINT for you! Others may not know what decision they need to make, but need to take the time to seek God for wisdom.

We can see a scriptural example of this pattern of a committed decision preceding a turning point, in the life of Paul the apostle. Before he encountered Jesus, Paul’s life was headed in a certain direction. He was very religious and arrogantly confident that he held a perfect understanding of the scriptures. He zealously persecuted those who followed Jesus for being religious heretics. But then he had a dramatic encounter with Jesus on the road to Damascus. At that point – he had a decision to make. He could continue on with his life as it was – persecuting Christians and having the respect of the religious community – or he could decide to believe and obey the vision. Paul’s decision to believe the vision and ask Jesus, “What would You have me to do?” was the definitive TURNING POINT in his life. (Acts 9:6) From that time forward, Paul stepped into the true destiny for which God had created him. And before his life was over, God had used him to pen nearly half of the New Testament.

God wants 2015 to be the year of the TURNING POINT for you – so that you can fulfill the destiny for which God created you. But like the apostle Paul, you must continually ask the Lord: “What would You have me to do?” And be determined to follow every instruction. This will bring about the TURNING POINT you have been waiting for!

You are one decision away from your Turning Point!

A committed decision always precedes a turning point!

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Hidden With Christ MinistriesP.O. Box 3267 Tustin, CA 92781

A Generous Memorial Gift was receivedby Treasures of Africa Children’s Home

In Loving MemoryOf

Margot Leongómez de PizarroBorn August 28, 1926

Died peacefully on January 11, 2015 in Guayata, Colombia

Beloved Mother, Sister, Grandmother and Aunt

www.hiddenwithchrist.com - www.treasuresofafrica.org - www.myeverydaybible.com