FROM “BUSH BUNNY BRENDA“ DATE: NOVEMBER 26, 2022 HOPING YOU ALL HAD A WONDERFUL DAY GIVING THANKS TO THE LORD FOR ALL YOU HAVE. Here in Balama, it was business as usual, giving out food to orphans and widows in need. Thanksgiving is an American holiday, but I think everyday is a day of thanks as the Lord’s blessings are unending. BALAMA FAMILY GIVING THANKS FOR ASSISTANCE WITH 7 ORPHANS Dedicated Aunt and Uncle take in 7 Orphans when they have barely enough for their own children. This Aunt and Uncle just took on a HUGE responsibility, after this Aunt’s Sister died in childbirth leaving 6 children under 13 years of age, and this newborn as orphans. The father left in a hurry after his wife died, which is a common happening around here. This overwhelmed couple was in shock as they brought the newborn to us for infant formula. They had no idea we would help provide food for the 6 little ones as well! When I read the document stating how many children they were caring for, I immediately asked how they would manage for food. Their answer, “we don’t know”. But that didn’t stop them from accepting these children as their own! BIG HEART hardly describes what they have. My staff and I didn’t hesitate to enroll them in our weekly food program for orphans. They also have several children of their own at home whom they support with their farming. We will assist them as much as possible, for I doubt their farm can produce enough to even buy each of the children a set of clothes. YOUR LOVE GIFTS AT WORK! BBC CROWDS GROWING AS OUR TEAM GETS ROLLING Due to a lack of fuel in this area, we are still limited to sending out only 2 motorbikes to the villages each day for the BBC Children’s Evangelism Program. We had hoped the fuel problem would have resolved by now, but it is showing that it could be long term. Know that we are doing our best to obtain fuel each time it becomes available within a 30 mile radius. MANY CHILDREN RECEIVING JESUS INTO THEIR HEARTS End of salvation prayer with new children receiving Jesus! https://youtu.be/17iDqK8osAQ On average, 30 to 35 children per day are receiving Jesus as Lord and Savior during the devotions time of the BBC program. Teaching new team games that involve many children at once. Tug o war, always a big hit with the crowd! https://youtu.be/oWyOwy92uMs The games are fun, and more and more children are staying to hear the Bible Story at the end. Leaders Carlitos and Daniel do a great job of presenting Bible stories with large picture books to the children. THANK YOU FOR MAKING THIS PROGRAM POSSIBLE. BUSH BUNNY BRENDA LANGE AND THE BALAMA STAFF |
Monthly Archives: November 2022
BUSH BUNNY BRENDA BLOG: NOVEMBER 19, 2022
FROM “BUSH BUNNY BRENDA“ DATE: NOVEMBER 19, 2022 2022 FOOD AND SEED GIVE OUT FINISHED!! The 2022 food program for the villages is complete! The program is named The Joseph Project, because like Joseph, we fill our barns in time of plenty and give out in time of hunger. This week marked our final food give outs to orphans and widows in the Balama and Meluco Districts. Our days started at 3 a.m. so that the loaded food trucks could roll out before sunrise to the remote villages. Corn and bean seeds were included in this give out so all can plant their fields. Devotions before food give out. Everyone helps get food and seeds back home. A bicycle makes it easier to the get food, corn and bean seeds home. YOUR LOVE GIFTS MAKE THIS PROGRAM POSSIBLE. Thanks to you, these orphans and widows have food to give them the energy to plant their fields. As always, our aim is to GIVE THEM A HAND UP, NOT A HAND OUT! Thus, food to help them gain strength, and seed to plant so they are more self, sufficient. THE JOY OF HAVING EVERY NEED MET Click the link below to see little Suzanna looking beautiful. https://youtube.com/shorts/Az4GQn0F0Vg A real beauty, Suzanna at 15 months, is enjoying having all her needs met, including learning about the love of Jesus. She is not crazy about barking dogs though! Turn on your sound!! BUSH BUNNY BRENDA LANGE AND THE BALAMA STAFF |
BUSH BUNNY BRENDA BLOG: NOVEMBER 12, 2022
FROM “BUSH BUNNY BRENDA“DATE: NOVEMBER 12, 2022 |
FROM “BUSH BUNNY BRENDA“ DATE: NOVEMBER 12, 2022 OUR CHILDREN ARE GROWING UP! Here are the photos of each of our 7 children’s homes. The Zebra house toddlers/infants. Baby Leopards won’t be small for long! The Lions and they are a lively group! The Buffalo herd! The Rabbits of Victory House. The Gazelles. Every child in this photo came there as an infant! The Ostrich House. Baby Reginalda on top, back row is the baby with the broken femur. Thanks to prayer, God has straightened her femur and she is starting to put weight on it. Far right, bottom is 2‑year old Quistan. Friday night, he had 2 convulsions not fever related and is in hospital unconscious. More labs today will tell us if it is malaria. Prayers are needed for both. ENJOY THE PHOTOS OF THE KIDS, FOR THEY ARE GROWING UP FAST! The 1st through 6th graders are officially out of school as of yesterday. It was fun watching the kids cut loose on the playground! Sorry, no photo of that as it was very early, and too dark under the huge mango tree that shades our playground. FINISHING FOOD DISTRIBUTION BEFORE THE RAINS COME! Our first storm of the rainy season hit last night. At our mission, no rain was received, just a heavy thunder/lightning show with heavy winds.But rains are supposed to begin next week, if the weatherman is correct. Because of this, we are hustling to get the November food/seed give out completed, as these families need their seeds to plant. Our trucks left at 3:30 a.m. on Friday to be at the Impire distribution site by dawn (4:30 a.m.) Remember, rural Africa moves according to the sun, and waits for no clock. If it’s daylight, everyone is moving. This completes 2 of the 5 county wide give outs. The other 3 are scheduled for Monday to Wednesday next week. Trying our best to beat the rains. BUSH BUNNY BRENDA LANGE AND THE BALAMA STAFF |
BUSH BUNNY BRENDA BLOG: OCTOBER 29, 2022
FROM “BUSH BUNNY BRENDA“ DATE: OCTOBER 29, 2022 TWO OF OUR MOTHERS HAVING SURGERY On Monday, October 31, Foster Mother Bertina (Ostrich House), and Granny Feliciana, mother to her orphaned grandchildren, will be taken by our Office Staff at 5 a.m. to the Regional Hospital in Montepuez for surgery. Foster Mother Bertina has abdominal tumor near her diaphragm. Bertina has an abdominal tumor just under her diaphragm that doesn’t appear cancerous, but the Dr. won’t know for sure until he operates. Bertina’s surgery is very concerning to me, as it is not an easy one, due to it’s location in the abdomen. Granny Felicina having operation on left hip on 31st. Granny Feliciana has a large tumor on her left hip that needs to be removed. Both women need prayer coverage. The outcome of these surgeries will determine how many days these 2 women must stay in the Montepuez Regional Hospital. Each women will be accompanied by a female family member who will help to care for them in hospital. I will update you next week on their progress. BBC GROUPS CONTINUE TO GROW IN NUMBERS Pulling for all their worth! This game really draws the crowds. I am sharing a video that shows how the little ones are working hard to learn how to run a relay race. Their attempt couldn’t be any cuter. Little ones haven’t quite figured out the relay race. https://youtu.be/7m4sClE54FU The devotions groups are getting bigger thanks to the “cliff hanger” stories that Carlitos tells before the games start. Telling a cliff hanger story before devotions has drawn many more kids to stay longer and hear about Jesus. Keep praying for us, as our 2 motorbike teams will be growing into 4 motorbike teams by early November, thanks to a fuel donation from one of our donors. Waiting on parts for the 4th bike, so as soon as that is fixed, we will organize a second 4 man team. This will allow EACH VILLAGE a weekly program. At present, there are so many villages, that it takes the 2 man bike team 2 weeks to visit all of them. 7th OF APRIL ORPHANS RECEIVE NEW SANDALS Orphans living in 7th of April Village in their new sandals. There are 9 orphaned children cared for by their 3 Aunts who live in a small village way out in the bush. This village, named 7th of April, sits at the foot of a mountain within sight of our mission station, but is not easy to reach by road. Motorcycles can maneuver the road much better than a pick-up truck. Carlitos of the BBC discovered these orphans in great need when he went there on his motorbike to share the Gospel a few years back. He planted a church there, and trained up a Pastor to teach the Word of God. One of the little boys couldn’t walk, and we are happy to announce that another organization has just donated him a wheelchair! This is a great help for him and his Aunt, as thanks to our weekly food give outs to him, he is now too big to carry. Carlitos told me last week that the children’s shoes were now worn out, so we organized 9 new pairs of sandals, so they can walk in the hot sand. The temperatures are reaching above 96F/36C daily, so the sand gets very hot around midday. YOUR LOVE GIFTS AT WORK! THANK YOU FOR YOUR LOVE GIFTS THAT KEEPS THESE CHILDREN HEALTHY AND HAPPY. BUSH BUNNY BRENDA LANGE AND THE BALAMA STAFF |
BUSH BUNNY BRENDA BLOG: OCTOBER 22, 2022
FROM “BUSH BUNNY BRENDA“ DATE: OCTOBER 22, 2022 HIGH WINDS DAMAGE CHURCH ROOF Removing the securing bricks and broken beams from church roof. Last Saturday morning, our team of carpenters and brick layers had their hands full repairing 5 tin sheets and 3 broken wooden beams damaged by high winds on Friday afternoon. We are grateful that none of the tin sheets came completely loose from the roof as they become flying razor blades when pushed by high winds. The damage was repaired in 4 hours, as the brick layers and carpenters worked together to complete the work in record time. We are grateful it was ready for service on Sunday, and that the damage was minor. High winds plague this area and rip off many roofs during the hot and dry season that lasts until December. BBC MAKING A BIG DIFFERENCE IN THE LIVES OF MANY Our BBC (Bush Bikers for Christ) teams are gathering larger crowds this week as the word is out that they are back with games and great picture books. Dropping bean bags and other assundry confusion as new kids learn relay racing. https://youtu.be/uL0GzZZpwHM You can see from the photos and video that the crowds are much larger, yet many kids aren’t staying for devotions. Devotions and Bible stories after Bawana Games. I worked with the teams to “tweek” their program so that everyone hears the Word of God if they come to the games. So they are now starting a Bible story and leaving it as a “cliff hanger” with the ending only given in devotions. IT IS WORKING! Carlitos, leader of the BBC team, stated that it worked very well today as they double the number of children in devotions. Raising hands to receive Jesus as Lord and Savior! Some children just need a spiritual push to get them interested in knowing who Lord Jesus really is. LEARNING THE VALUE OF MONEY WHILE HELPING A WIDOW Since we represent the parents of the 58 children who live with us, it is our responsibility to teach them good morals as well as financial responsibility. When the school year begins in February, each child receives shoes and a school uniform. If their shoes wear out, or become too small, it is then their responsibility to report it to our staff so they can earn a new pair. Clearing a farming field for a blind widow earns a pair of shoe as payment. https://youtu.be/vcjWZhz4U5M The teens in our boy’s dorm are now busy working for new shoes, and at the same time helping a blind widow who lives in one of our improved mud hut homes. This is a win-win for both parties, as the widow gets her field prepared for planting, and the boys get a new pair of shoes. I call it LEARNING BY GIVING A HELPING HAND. MANY THANKS TO ALL WHO HELP US TO HELP OTHERS. BUSH BUNNY BRENDA LANGE AND THE BALAMA STAFF |
BUSH BUNNY BRENDA BLOG: OCTOBER 15, 2022
FROM “BUSH BUNNY BRENDA“ DATE: OCTOBER 15, 2022 LOCAL NUTRITIONIST MAKING WEEKLY VISITS Dr. Mariano weighs and examines each infant in our baby formula program. Dr. Mariano of the Balama Health Center is now visiting our malnourished infants in our Baby Formula Program each Thursday. Each infant is weighed, then given a physical exam. Any infant found ill is taken back to the Balama hospital for treatment. He also does nutritional counseling with the care taker of those infants not gaining weight like they should be on our high protein milk and cereals. WE GREATLY APPRECIATE HIS HELPING HAND with all our infants and younger children. FOOD HANDOUTS COMPLETED FOR OCTOBER Each food distribution begins with devotions and a short Bible story. For the last 2 weeks we spent much of our time loading and distributing the 20.5 TONS of corn and 3.78 TONS of beans it takes to supplement the diets of the 1,144 orphans and widows in our Village Food Assistance Program For Orphans. 3 orphan girls divide the food to help their Aunt get it to their mud hut. Granny and orphaned Grandson will divide their bag of corn before carting it home. Weight is 60 kg. or 132 lbs. Older child teaching the younger ones how to carry food on their heads. It’s a great day for us once we know they all have food to help sustain them throughout the next 30 days. THANK YOU for give them a helping hand during these hot and dry months when nothing wants to grow. 2 BALAMA PASTORS TRAVELING TO TETE PROVINCE As I write, our Pastors Gito and Ramadan are traveling 3 days by bus to a teaching conference in Tete City. Our National Bishop, Zalira, selected them for a promotion to REVERAND when he was visiting our mission in May of this year. The AGUAS VIVAS CHURCH, which is our spiritual covering here in Mozambique, has 3 levels that a church leader may achieve according to his training and accomplishments. First is Pastor, then Reverend, with BISHOP being the highest level. Reverend is for leaders who have excelled in planting churches and evangelizing their areas. Pastor Gito Pastor Gito has planted 5 churches in 5 villages, and has BAWANA GAMES programs going in each of these areas. Pastor Ramadan Pastor Ramadan has planted 2 churches and assisted a less experienced Pastor in planting 2 additional churches in remote villages. Ramadan has BAWANA GAMES programs in 3 locations in his very large village. These 2 men are the first to be chosen from Balama for this honorable advancement, so we are super happy for them. BLESSINGS TO YOU ALL! BUSH BUNNY BRENDA LANGE AND THE BALAMA STAFF |
BUSH BUNNY BRENDA BLOG: OCTOBER 8, 2022
FROM “BUSH BUNNY BRENDA“ DATE: OCTOBER 8, 2022 HELDER NOW A TEACHER IN BALAMA! Our first orphan to complete higher education, is now gainfully employed by the Balama School District. He will be teaching math, natural science, and art design to 7th graders in a village about 6 miles/9 km from Balama. A very happy Helder with new bike as transportation to his new teaching job. Helder is now living with a relative on the other side of Balama town, and is traveling to this village with the bicycle that we purchased to meet his transportion need as there is no housing available in this village. This all came about this week, with Helder leaving our school children for this new job. Teacher Pedro had nothing but high praise for how well Helder interned under him. It is very hard to see Helder go, as he has been a great contributor to our dorm for over 7 years, and to our staff since February. We wish him well and made sure he had all that was needed to get a good start in life on his own. He will receive food from us for the next 2 months as his first paycheck will be delayed. He also received pots and pans, bedding, and other kitchen items. THANKS TO ALL OF YOU FOR MAKING HELDER’S DREAM A REALITY! BBC CROWDS ARE GROWING! This week, the word is out that the fun times are back with our BBC teams! The motorbike teams saw their crowds DOUBLE to over 800 children per day. Praise and worship starts each BBC program. https://youtu.be/BrlV6PyASN0 The photos tell the story as our teams play games to attract the children, then teach them about Jesus under the nearest shade tree. Teaching a new game to the Bawana village children. Bible stores help the children vizualize what the Youth Leader is explaining. MILK PROGRAM EXPANDING AS MORE TWINS ARE NEEDING HELP Josina and her 3 week old twins, Victor and Victoria, are the latest to be admitted into our INFANT MILK FORMULA PROGRAM. This program serves mostly orphaned infants that would perish if not for our help. We also assist mothers who are malnourished and therefore have no breast milk. The 3rd category assisted are mothers with twins who are approaching 30 days of age. It is rare to find a mother in our District with enough breast milk to satisfy 2 fast growing infants. With our help, the twins are able to flourish and maintain a constant growth rate. Mother Josina learns how to mix infant formula from Assistant Children’s Director, Fatima. THANK YOU TO ALL OF YOU WHO MAKE THIS PROGRAM POSSIBLE. TOGETHER, WE ARE SAVING LIVES, 1 CHILD AT A TIME. BLESSINGS FROM BALAMA, BUSH BUNNY BRENDA LANGE AND THE BALAMA STAFF |
BUSH BUNNY BRENDA BLOG: OCTOBER 1, 2022
FROM “BUSH BUNNY BRENDA“ DATE: OCTOBER 1, 2022 BBC BRINGING MULTITUDES TO CHRIST This week the BBC motorbike team and bicycle teams visited a new set of villages leading over 250 children to Christ. 10 Children accepted Jesus in Maco village this week. Over 70 came to Jesus in Mariri village on Thursday this week. On September 30th, I met with our 16 Village Pastors who eagerly restarted their BBC programs earlier this month. They reported 47 new children’s salvations after ministering to 963 children in 30 villages. Many of the 963 children they ministered too had already received Jesus before the Covid outbreak stopped our program. Now the teaching begins of how to walk daily with Jesus. Jesus is moving in a powerful way among the Balama youth, and it is AWESOME to watch. Tug-of-war Teaching tug-of-war to the little ones. https://youtu.be/oeENO54I_LI Taking Balama for Jesus is our goal! For the children are the “good ground”, willing to listen and open their hearts to the One who sent their little spirits into this world. SUNDAY SALVATION REPORTS FROM VILLAGE CHURCHES Village Pastors receive their quarterly food allotment donated by a very generous man of God. VILLAGE CHURCHES SUNDAY SALVATIONS CHILDREN: 416 (Sunday School Classes) TEENAGERS: 55 ADULTS: 38 DAVE DEBOER RETURNS TO THE USA Dave was a great help and inspiration to both me and the children during his 20-day visit. Dave gave out balloons this last Sunday to all the Sunday School attendees making 50+ plus children very happy! His gift is HELPS and he does it with gusto! Dave Deboer was a great hit with the village widows during the food give outs. It was hard to keep him busy as he completed any task given in record time. Flying out on Wednesday night to land in Atlanta, Georgia, put his plane right in the path of Hurricane Ian. We are grateful to the Lord for guiding those pilots to bring the plane in safely just before the storm crossed their flight path. Dave is now safely at home in Michigan getting much needed rest after 43.5 hours of travel. WORDS TO LIVE BY: Keep your eyes continuously on Jesus, for He is coming soon! BLESSINGS FROM BALAMA, BUSH BUNNY BRENDA LANGE AND THE BALAMA STAFF |
BUSH BUNNY BRENDA BLOG: SEPTEMBER 24, 2022
FROM “BUSH BUNNY BRENDA“ DATE: SEPTEMBER 24, 2022 1000’S OF CHILDREN NOW HEARING GOD’S WORD Thanks to generous partners that assisted with motorbike fuel, the 4 man/2 motorbike BBC team ministered to 4,390 children in 14 remote villages over the last 2 weeks. Teaching from the Children’s Evangelistic Fellowship (CEF) LARGE PICTURE BOOKS, the teams taught each of the village groups from Genesis on Creation. In October, we hope to have 4 motorbikes in service, so that these children can hear the Word of God weekly vs. twice a month. BBC team teaching Adam and Eve story using large picture books. BBC BICYCLE TEAMS got started on Sept. 15th and were able to teach Creation to 2,597 children in 12 villages in 6 days. CLARIFICATION: The bicycle teams visit the villages close to Balama town, while the motorbike teams teach in the villages more than 10km/6 miles from our base. As you can see in the videos the children dearly love the competitive games and listen intently to the Bible Stories. In one village, a child was ill, so the Pastors led the children in a healing prayer for the sick child. BBC teaching the children to pray for the sick. Learning by doing. https://youtu.be/sSHGhid6Eck THE LORD IS MOVING IN A MIGHTY WAY AMONG THE CHILDREN. SEPTEMBER FOOD GIVE OUTS COMPLETED THIS WEEK Praise songs are a favorite way to begin devotions before each food give out. https://youtube.com/shorts/J9O6r2QughI Our Food Give Out Teams assisted the last 9 villages on our list in the BALAMA DISTRICT this week. They served 461 orphans and widows by gifting them with 8.5 TONS of Corn, and 1 TON of dried Beans plus soap and salt. These kids have grown up fast and are very mature for their ages. You will note in the photos that ALL the school age children are assisting their grandmothers with carrying the food to their mud huts. Every ophan helps granny carrying part of their corn gift to their mud hut. Two orphan brothers dividing their corn before walking home. THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR PRAYERS AND LOVE GIFTS THAT MAKES ALL THIS POSSIBLE. BLESSINGS FROM BALAMA, BUSH BUNNY BRENDA LANGE AND THE BALAMA STAFF |
BUSH BUNNY BRENDA BLOG: SEPTEMBER 17, 2022
FROM “BUSH BUNNY BRENDA“ DATE: SEPTEMBER 17, 2022 BBC TEAMS UP AND RUNNING! We received permission to return to normal church activities including our Bush Biker for Christ (BBC) Teams using both bicycles and motorbikes. The lack of fuel is still a challenge for the motorbike team, but we managed to buy enough stock for 1 month for 2 bikes, and hope to expand that to 4 bikes in the near future. At present the 2 motorbikes with a 4 man team will visit each village they previously went to over a 2 week period versus a 1 week period. ALL TEAMS were met with GREAT JUBILATION as the village children have been begging them to come play games, and tell the Bible stories for several months now. And the games are on! The children love the competition. https://youtu.be/tBpm0ChxaEQ Bible story time attracts all ages in large numbers! This was their first week in the field, but the children responded well with more than a 100 per village hearing God’s Word at the devotion time that follows the Bawana Team Games. As word spreads that “THEY ARE BACK”, the groups will grow. Before 2020, our teams had a following of over 21,000 children per week! Keep these teams in your prayers, as they are the FRONT LINES in bringing children and teens to Christ. DAVE DEBOER IS BACK IN TIME FOR FIRST FOOD HANDOUTS OF 2022 Our Food Distribution Team targeted 4 major villages this week, handing out 14.46 TONS of corn and beans, along with 15 cases of bar soap, and 12 sacks (240kg/109lbs.) of salt. A total of 776 orphans and widows were served this week. Dave Deboer handed out 1 portion of soap for each family member that we serve, so he got to meet a lot of orphans and grannies. Dave Deboer handing out soap to the widows who care for village Orphans. The give outs will continue next week as we visit the final 2 locations where 469 widows and orphans from multiple villages come to receive a helping hand from all of you who truly love them. Older Orphans help granny to carry their food gift back to their mud hut. DAVE DEBOER is an Orphans Unlimited Board Member who has now been here 7 DIFFERENT YEARS to assist me in either food buying or food give out. His ministry gift is HELPS, and that is surely valued around here! Dave will stay until September 28th, when he must return to the USA. I GREATLY APPRECIATE HIS DEVOTION TO THE LORD AND TO ORPHANS UNLIMITED! A SAD FAREWELL TO SISTER LIGUA, AN ANGEL IN DISGUISE! Catholic Sister Ligua (Lisha) has been a precious friend to me, and a helping hand to our children for the last 8 years. No matter what time of night we called her, she was always willing to get out of bed to assist us. Ligua has many talents, and is excellent with starting IV’s in critically ill super small infants. That is a gift that has saved many a baby’s life here in Balama. We love her lots, but she has been transferred back to Ecuador, her home country, for the next 2 years. At that time, God willing, we hope she will be able to return to Balama as she desires to do so. Sister Ligua, an Angel in disguise! God’s Blessings upon her as she is flying this entire weekend (5 separate flights) in order to return to Ecuador at midnight on Sunday. Please keep her in your prayers for travel mercies. BABY FRANCIANO IS HOME! BABY FRANCIANO was released from the hospital on Monday, and is eating and gaining weight, PTL! Thank you for your prayers for him. Foster Mother Estivania and a perky Franciano happy to be home! BLESSINGS FROM BALAMA, BUSH BUNNY BRENDA LANGE AND THE BALAMA STAFF |