HelpingtheKellysGoToAfrica - Calvary Baptist Church would like to Welcome YOU!

Dear Friends,

Hebrews 11:1 says: "Now faith is being sure of what you hope for and certain of what you do not see."

WOW!! I'm not quite sure where to begin. As many of you know Tim and I have
been extended the opportunity to serve at the Bongolo Evangelical Hospital
in Gabon , Africa . ( bongolohospital.org ) We will be serving under the
Christian and Missionary Alliance. We recently had a meeting with the head
of the Short Terms Missions Office (STMO) and it went incredibly well. We
have received an overwhelming amount of information both from the meeting
and several lengthy conversations with members of the field team in Bongolo.
It has taken me a couple of weeks to try to wrap my head around everything.
I'm going to try to address the information in the form of questions. Maybe
in doing so I can relay it to you in some sort of order and sense.

If you are with the CMA, why do you have to raise your own support?
We are serving under the Short Term Missions Office (STMO) which is newly
formed. It is part of the Church Ministries/Missions Mobilization aspect of
the CMA and not International Ministries (IM). The Great Commission Fund
(GCF) only funds IM. The goal is to set up several Short Term Mission
Centers in various places around the world. The first one has been running
successfully now for about 2 years in Ensenada , Mexico and has already
reached a point of success to where the center is self funded. Financially
the goal is to have each center self funded within the first couple of years
of operation.

What is a short term mission center, and why are they needed?
The goal of the Short Term Missions Office is to connect Alliance people
with Alliance work around the world. The idea for these centers came from a
growing need within the CMA for mission fields that were capable of hosting
short term teams. It takes an incredible amount of time and effort to
coordinate, organize, prepare for, and host any team. To do so in addition
to already existing responsibilities is often straining for our
missionaries. The "call to serve" within our US churches has grown so much
we have not been able to keep up with the demand, and many have turned to
other short term mission organizations. The goal is to provide for the need,
enable others to serve, and give opportunity to both youth and adults to
experience overseas missions and potentially a life long call to ministry.

What are you doing in Gabon ?
We will be managing one of the two centers in Gabon . One is located in
Libreville, the capital city, and the other is in Lebamba, 11 hours south
where the Bongolo Hospital is located. Praise God, Bongolo has seen 530
confessions of faith this year!! The hospital has seen great growth in
recent years and is also undergoing a lengthy rebuilding process, thus
requiring many work teams and much help. They are in need of someone to be
there to manage and oversee the teams and projects. They are a team of
doctors, surgeons, and nurses whose responsibilities are already great. As
Christians we are familiar with the concept of being a part of the body of
Christ. As a body, we are not all hands or all feet. As a family, we will
come along side of the Bongolo team as a different part of Christ's body,
fulfilling a different but vital role for that field.

When are you going?
An exact date is soon to be set, but it has been determined that it will be
after the first of the new year.

How long are you going for?
We have jokingly been labeled "long term, short termers". There is a legal
time definition of 1 year because of it being a short term office. They have
asked us to commit to a min. of two years (two back to back terms). Our
heart is life long service in overseas missions.

How much do you need to raise?
With much guidance and experiential input we have figured we will need to
raise about $54,000 or $4500 per month. This covers our monthly living
allowance ( which will be the same amount received by the IM missionaries
from the GCF), insurance, housing, utilities, language tutor, etc. Our
travel and outfit expenses are above and beyond this amount.

When do you need to start receiving support?
Now! The only option we have right now to send our outfit to Gabon is to get
it on an annual container which leaves in July. That's only 3 months from
now. The next known container won't be until July '09.

What are some of your needs?
I have attached a copy of our outfit list if anyone is interested, it is an
excel file. There are some unexpectedly large items on it (ie. refrigerator,
washer, dryer). This is because it is actually cheaper to purchase these
items in the US and ship them than it is to buy them in Gabon .
The missionaries in Bongolo asked us to share with them some ways that they
can specifically be praying for us, the following is what we sent to them.
These are all vital steps in our journey to Gabon .

- The sale of our house- We are praying for God to provide the right buyer
in his time. Once Tim has completed his classes, we would like to return to
Franklin, NC to continue preparing for Gabon .

- support - In praying for support we are also praying for opportunities to
share what God is doing, and that God would prepare the hearts of those that
HE would have join with us in this ministry.

- Departure Date - Please pray for wisdom as we prayerfully try to nail down
a date for departure and the events leading up to it.

- Franklin - we will also need to find temporary housing in Franklin during
our remaining time in the states.

I hope this answers some of the questions you may have, and gives you
insight to some of our specific needs. Let me again say thank you to each of
you who have lifted us up in prayer and encouraged us over the last 20
months.

God has strengthened our faith along this journey. Each day has had the sole
purpose of bringing us closer to Himself. God has showed Himself so clearly,
and He continues to do so.

Thank you!

- Tim and Amanda Kelly tazfek.kelly@gmail.com

AK

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