Good Neighbors - LTLA Update - June 2023

 

Greetings again from Africa, I am writing to share an encouraging development that happened for the LTLA Community Ministry this past month. It is encouraging to see the impact that our ministry is having upon our neighbors by the LTLA Community Center. Our prayer is that we continue to impact our neighbors around our ministry sites in Chinhoyi. When the team is working in the LTLA vegetable garden they are typically singing and laughing together. This caught the attention of the gardener at the Environmental Management Agency that is close by as he walked on his way to work. He observed that we are quite successful in our vegetable garden efforts and he had noticed our good composting work that is out in front of our property. He was struggling with his gardening efforts and asked his supervisors if he could approach us for training. When asked, Shelton, LTLA Community Ministry team leader, was more than happy to have the team provide training at their site. The team helped them start their compost pile and will be providing ongoing coaching in their gardening efforts.  Last week I had the opportunity to accompany Shelton to guide the gardener in turning his compost pile and providing the appropriate amount of moisture while turning it. While at their site our team noticed a lot of mulch piled up so they inquired if they would be willing to share some with us. Well, they shared a lot as you will see in the photo below, so we are now well stocked with mulch for our gardening efforts. Mulch is critical in sustainable farming to help preserve moisture in the soil and prevent weed growth. Would you pray with us that relationships with our neighbors will result in people coming to know Christ as they see our good works on behalf of the community? Seeking to be good neighbors, Mike Sulc Life to Life Africa

LTLA Community Ministry team demonstrating composting with Environmental Management Agency staff.

Shelton, LTLA Community Ministry team leader, doing a follow up consultation on composting with the Environmental Management Agency staff member.

Pile of mulch provided to LTLA by the Environmental Management Agency.

Cabbages from LTLA garden are being distributed with corn meal & beans to vulnerable families.

Carrots in the LTLA garden.

The carrots are being sold along with broccoli and lettuce to help the ministry. Cauliflower, peas and red onions will soon be harvested for sale as well.

Mike enjoyed using the lettuce, carrots and broccoli for salads on his recent visit.

On the Ground in Africa - LTLA Prayer Bulletin - June 2023

 

Greetings from Africa, Thank you for your prayers for my time with the LTLA team in Chinhoyi, Zimbabwe. I have been able to spend time with Shelton & Tino and meet their baby daughter, Kunashe. What a joy to rejoice with them in God's gift of her life! She is now home with them and they are busy doing "kangaroo treatment" with her, where they wrap her to their body for skin to skin contact. This treatment allows their body temperature to keep her warm so that the nutrients she is receiving from Tino's milk can be used for her growth and not to just keep her warm especially with the cooler temperatures of their winter..Please pray for Kunashe's continued development and for sustaining grace for her parents as they care for her.

Kunashe was well loved by friends from the US who provided the wrap she is wearing along with the blanket she is laying on and the toys she is beside.

I learned while here that another team member, Stella, became a "gogo" (grandmother) for the first time. She was doubly blessed with twin boys born to her daughter in early June. They were also born premature at 30 weeks and are still at the hospital connected to feeding and breathing tubes. Please pray for their lung development as one in particular is struggling to breath. I have also spent time with Tsungai, who has completed one week of radiotherapy treatment for cancer. She is encouraged in spirit and is just experiencing some dizziness physically. Other ladies on the LTLA team will take turns to be with her in Harare, the capital city where she is receiving treatments, to provide help and encouragement. They are graciously being housed by friends of the ministry in Harare.

Mike with Tsungai.

While here, I have also been able to encourage Arthur, the LTLA director. It has been a challenging past year on many fronts as we feel attacked by the enemy. The ministry teams here have increased their resolve to pray, asking the Lord for His protection and victory. Would you join us in praying for the Lord to strengthen our faith and bolster our courage to continue carrying the great news of Jesus and His Kingdom into Chinhoyi and beyond? I have the opportunity to carry the Gospel of Christ to farmers in northern Malawi with a good friend of the ministry, Tim Mooney. Ron Shimkus discipled Tim as a student at ISU and he went on to serve with The Navigators for two years in Uganda. After that he taught social studies at Ames High School and would take groups of students with him in the summers back to Uganda to help build schools. Tim developed a heart for coffee farmers in Uganda, so we met in Malawi yesterday along with a Ugandan farmer friend of his, Charles, to visit coffee farmers in northern Malawi.  You may remember four years ago that I traveled to Malawi to visit another ISU student, Tyler Marshall, who was serving there with the Peace Corps. On that visit I met Park, a young man in that community, who desires to make an impact for Christ. Park and Shelton, LTLA Community Ministry team leader, received sustainable farming and stewardship training together that year from Foundations for Farming in Malawi. Would you pray for Tim, Charles and I this week as we visit Park to encourage him in his efforts with farmers in Misuku, Malawi? Grateful for your continued prayer support while I travel in Africa! Mike Sulc Life to Life Africa

Mike and Tim Mooney

Meeting Kunashe - LTLA Prayer Bulletin - June 2023

 

Greetings LTLA Friends, I am pleased to report that on June 9th Tinotenda, Shelton's wife, gave birth to Kunashe Liz. Tino was having contractions most of the day, so the doctor delivered Kunashe via C-section at 32 weeks. Kunashe weighed 4lbs and was initially assisted with a breathing and feeding tube in intensive care at a private hospital in Chinhoyi. Thankfully, she is now breathing and eating on her own. A year ago this month Shelton & Tino lost their first child at 8 months of pregnancy. Tino has type 1 diabetes, so her pregnancies are at a higher risk. The doctor made the decision to deliver the baby as he felt good about the baby's development. We are grateful to the Lord for guiding the doctor and preserving Kunashe's life. Her name means "there is God." Shelton & Tino have certainly felt God's presence very near to them as they are rejoicing in his gift of Kunashe to them. Join us in praying that she can go home soon. Thank you for the prayer and financial support for Tsungai. She began radiation treatment today. Pray that this treatment will eliminate all cancer cells in her body. I arrive today to Zimbabwe and plan to visit Tsungai in the capital, Harare, where she is undergoing the radiation treatment at a private clinic. She is being housed there by good friends of the ministry that live close to the clinic. Hopefully I can hold Kunashe on this trip if she is released from the hospital. Would you pray that I am able to encourage our team as they continue to persevere in challenging circumstances with the Zim dollar collapsing in value and as they face presidential elections at the end of August? Thank you for holding us up in prayer before our good Heavenly Father who is ever present. Gratefully in Him, Mike Sulc Life to Life Africa

Kunashe was in the incubator with a breathing & feeding tube for the first five days. She remained in the incubator another five days.

Kunashe is now out of the incubator and is continuing to adapt to breast feeding while also taking bottles.

Bringing Hope To The Next Generation - LTLA Update - May 2023

 Greetings Again,

 

In the midst of challenging circumstances in Zimbabwe, the LTLA Training Ministry team has faithfully continued reaching out to Zimbabwean youth and young people. The situation there is leaving the next generation with a hopeless forecast from a human perspective but we are pointing them to the only true source of hope. Here is a report from Arthur Nhau, LTLA Zimbabwe Director and Training Ministry Director:

 

College Ministry - Chinhoyi University of Technology (CUT)

 

We had a session on mental health and invited a professional counselor who is a believer. She was really engaging and the students kept asking a lot of questions regarding their future along with life challenges. She continued to point them to Jesus who invites us to come to him with all our questions and concerns.

Mental health session with CUT students.

Our student conference had more than 40 students who attended. We didn’t invite a guest speaker but gave the opportunity for the LTLA Training Ministry trainees to share from their own walk with the Lord. It really encouraged the students to hear from young adults who are walking with Jesus and some new contacts we invited gave their lives to Christ. College Ministry Conference gathering.            College Ministry Conference fun activity. We have also started engaging students through sports on campus, mainly soccer. We are thankful that God is giving us new contacts through this ministry outreach. In the past we have reached out into the community through forming a soccer team so we are now trying it on campus with students. LTLA College Ministry soccer team (wearing donated Ames High School soccer uniforms). Young Adult Ministry - Chosen Generation Lately the group has been dominated by guys so we prayed that girls would also attend the fellowship. We are thankful to the Lord that more girls are now coming. Pray with us that God will raise laborers from this fellowship and open doors of opportunities for this group which is composed of unemployed youths in our community. (As you have heard about the situation in Zimbabwe, there are very few jobs available.) Chosen Generation Bible Study. Chosen Generation barbeque gathering. Primary & High School Ministry The love for scripture memory continues among the youth which is very encouraging. Pray with us that as they commit God's Word to memory it will guide them to Christ throughout their life.  We had been doing a separate Bible study with the Children of Hope (children living at the landfill) but have incorporated them with the other children. It is helping remove the stigma associated with their circumstances. Would you pray that the Children of Hope and all the children will open their hearts to Christ as they spend time in God's word and with one another.  Youth Bible Study that is incorporating Children of Hope (children living at the landfill). Thank you for your prayers for the LTLA Training Ministry team efforts in sharing Christ with the next generation here in Zimbabwe. Faithfully yours in Christ, Arthur Nhau LTLA Zimbabwe Director

Misery Index - LTLA Prayer Bulletin - May 2023

 Dear LTLA Friends,

Thank you to those who responded to our appeal for financial help! Your support will keep us going during the summer months when our gift income is lower. It will certainly help us as we face increased needs in the country that has been named the most miserable place to live in 2022. You can read about it in the following link:

https://www.nationalreview.com/2023/05/hankes-2022-misery-index/

The situation is only getting worse as the exchange rate of the Zimbabwe Dollar for one US Dollar has increased from 850 Zim Dollars in January to 2000 Zim Dollars in May for $1 USD. The result of this is a further increase in prices for basic goods, only making things harder for the Zimbabwean people. So, thank you for your contributions that help us share the love of God in tangible ways with the people to whom we are ministering.

Our team member, Tsungai, is needing to undergo radiation treatments to help kill off any remaining cancer cells after a hysterectomy identified evidence of cervical cancer. Typically this radiation treatment could be performed at one of two government hospitals in the country, but both of the machines are not in operational order. So she is left with the private clinic route which is more than twice the cost, $4000. She, like most Zimbabweans, does not have medical insurance and does not have the money to pay for this treatment. Our ministry would like to help her. If you would like to contribute toward this need, you can send a check to:

Life to Life Africa
PMB 344
10151 University Blvd
Orlando, FL 32817
(Write "Tsungai" in the memo line)

I must admit that I personally am feeling very discouraged with the ongoing struggle of the people in Zimbabwe. They topped the list of most miserable in 2022 but there are countless other people around the world who face very similar circumstances. It can be overwhelming to consider, but I know that God sees it all and he has made a way for people to be saved along with prompting his people to help bring good for the glory of his Name. Would you pray for Life to Life Africa as we seek the Lord to strengthen us to persevere and guide us in doing good? (1 Peter 4:19)


Committed to our faithful Creator,

Mike Sulc
Life to Life Africa

Harvest Time - April 2023

 

Greetings LTLA Friends, 

April in Zimbabwe is the beginning of harvest for their staple crop, corn. The Lord graciously provided abundant rain this year so good yields are being reported. Thank you for your prayers in this regard!

Shelton, LTLA Community Ministry team leader, reports that of the 44 families that we trained in sustainable farming practices 31 families had a good harvest while 8 families were not faithful in implementing the training. The plots from 4 families have not yet been assessed and unfortunately 1 family lost their plot because the owner of the land decided to build after they had planted. Most of the families do not have land on which to plant so they take the risk to plant on unused land hoping that the owner doesn't decide to use it. 

We are grateful for the faithfulness and blessing of the Lord on the 31 families who yielded a good harvest. Along with this good harvest of food, our prayer is that people in these families will respond to God's blessing of forgiveness for sins in their lives and enter into a relationship with God through Christ. We are seeing many members of the new families we added this year begin attending our youth Bible studies as well as our Women and Men of Hope meetings. Mr. Gomo, a man who lives and works at the landfill, has accepted Christ and Shelton is helping establish him in his relationship with Christ. Please join us in praying that others will place their faith in Christ like Mr. Gomo. 

(See LTLA Community Ministry photos below.) 

Prayer & Financial Update 

Thank you for your prayers for the medical needs on our team. Tinotenda, Shelton's wife who is diabetic, continues to progress well with her pregnancy as she controls her blood sugar levels through her diet. It has been determined that Tatenda, LTLA Training Ministry team member, is having panic attacks which are causing him to feel severe chest pains, so with the help of counseling and, most importantly, from his relationship with Christ, he is receiving care for his mental and emotional health. 

We are grateful for the surgery that has relieved the abdominal pain that was plaguing Tsungai, who has led the LTLA Critical Care Center for 13 years. Unfortunately, during surgery they found that Tsungai has cervical cancer. She will now undergo treatment that we hope will stop the spread of the cancer. As you can imagine, this is very sad news for her and for our LTLA team. Would you pray for Tsungai and our team as we place our trust in the Lord during this challenging time? 

With these additional medical expenses and with the effects of high inflation in Zimbabwe our ministry is experiencing a deficit. The monthly expenses for the work in Zimbabwe averaged $16,600 in 2022 and this year we are averaging $19,000 per month. We are examining where we can cut expenses but I ask if you would consider a special gift or monthly support to help meet these increased financial needs? Thank you for prayerfully considering how you can help. (Below is giving information.)

Trusting our Lord, 

Mike Sulc 

Life to Life Africa 

To give you can send a check payable to:

Life to Life Africa 

PMB 344 

10151 University Blvd 

Orlando, FL 32817 

You can also contribute through your bank via "bill pay" using the following information for the Life to Life Ministry bank account: 

Routing #: 267084131 

Account #: 586600386

Mrs Marikano & Mrs Phiri did well with their corn plots and are expecting a good harvest. LTLA Community Ministry team conducting compost training for the families we serve. We are helping them learn how to create fertilizer for their vegetable gardens.  Family members who attended the compost training.

Praise & Prayers

 

LTLA Friends, 

We are thanking the Lord for the provision of water at a new ministry location in Chinhoyi. Shelton, LTLA Community Ministry team leader, and his wife, Tinotenda, moved into a house last June in the White City neighborhood. A tank was placed there to capture city water in preparation to locate our Critical Care Center (preschool orphan ministry) there. The tank filled up with water just once as the city has struggled to maintain the water supply throughout the city. With the need for water, we took the step to install a borehole (well). Now it looks like we have a good source of water for which we thank the Lord. (As seen in the video below.) 

 You may remember that Shelton & Tinotenda lost their first child last June in the eighth month of pregnancy. With the Lord's healing touch, they have recovered from that loss and are now again pregnant. Tinotenda is being monitored closely in this pregnancy by an endocrinologist since she is diabetic. We ask for your prayers that she will remain healthy to deliver a healthy baby in five months. 

 We also ask for your prayers for Tsungai who has provided leadership for our Critical Care Center for over ten years. She was hospitalized last week with a lot of abdominal pain and now is waiting for the biopsy results from a growth in her uterus. She loves caring for preschool orphans and we pray she returns to full health so she can continue sharing Christ's love for these children. 

 I arrived back in Zimbabwe today with Thomas Gilbert, Life to Life Ministry director at the Univ of Central Florida. We have the privilege to witness the wedding of LTLA team member, Simba, on Saturday. In fact, Thomas will be officiating the wedding. We then will have the joy of ministering to and with the LTLA team for a week. Would you pray for Simba and Pamela as they start their married life together? Would you also pray for Thomas & I as we minister to and alongside the LTLA team? 

Christ sustains this ministry through your prayerful support. 

Thank you! 

 Mike Sulc 

 Life to Life Africa

LTLA "White City" Ministry House (In the White City neighborhood of Chinhoyi)

Satellite photo of the LTLA "White City" Ministry House with blue square showing future home of theLTLA Critical Care Center. The blue circle is area where the "borehole" (well) was drilled for water.

The blue pipe in the ground comes from the well and leads to the red pressure tank before the water goes up to the water tank. Video link: https://youtube.com/shorts/o5VPN44kXE8

Shelton & Tinotenda were refreshed in September after grieving their loss with a trip to the eastern highlands of Zimbabwe.

Tsungai in December holding Romley, a girl in the LTLA Critical Care Center.

Simba and Pamela will get married on Saturday in a ceremony at the LTLA Community Center.