DeckerUpdate June 10

Here's a fairly lengthy update about our family and ministry, including

* Mary's month at D.A.
* Dave's trip to Liberia
* Prayer concerns

Dear family and friends,

Thanks so much for your prayers, and notes of encouragement, over the past several days. We've had some good days, and some bad days with regard to electricity since that time. We've been able to get enough water to fill our reservoir, and we are figuring out how to best use it so that we have water for what's needed and not waste it! I'm figuring out when to do laundry, often late at night or before sunrise... but the Lord is giving peace and confidence that He is caring for us in every way! I'm so thankful that He provides all that we need, and if He doesn't provide it, we must not need it!

The past month has been interesting and busy. I really enjoyed my month at DA as the school counselor. I was privileged to be able to spend time with many students and a few staff members in need of some encouragement. I'm really looking forward to being there again for next semester, and REALLY looking forward to the arrival of the "real" counselor on January. There have been several situations which very clearly needed a higher level of counseling, and for the most part, there are no opportunities for long term counseling here on the field. Please pray as we strategize about the development of a Member Care and Counseling Team here in Dakar, to work cooperatively with the West Africa Mobile Member Care Team.

Here is Dave's report from his recent trip to Liberia!

The main purpose of my trip was to help our new dental clinic get off the ground by setting up their finance and bookkeeping systems. Though not real exciting to write about, I enjoyed that task quite a bit. I've never had the opportunity to set something like this up from scratch. The clinic hopes to be operational sometime next month, and I'm sure we'll have some kinks to work out once the cash begins to flow.

Bookkeeping may not be too fascinating, but here's a fact that will catch your attention. The country of Liberia presently has THREE licensed dentists. Serving a population of three million people! With health care infrastructure devastated by more than fifteen years of civil war, it's safe to say that the collective dental health of this nation is worse than atrocious. Tens of thousands live in constant misery, and many face life threatening conditions that would have been easily treatable in their early stages. Our two dentists, Keith Chapman and Frieda Schmidt, are anxious to get the doors open and begin treating patients.

Here's a link to the clinic's web site:

I also enjoyed hanging out at the guest house with a gang of about a half dozen engineering students from Cedarville University in Ohio who were in Liberia, along with their professor / engineering dept. head, for two weeks. These guys had spent their school year planning projects that would benefit the media and health care ministries of ELWA, and also pastors from ECUL, the fellowship of about 140 churches that SIM partners with.

On the ELWA campus they repaired and pressurized a large water tank, so that water pressure to the whole campus will not drop as soon as the electricity that runs the water pumps is cut off. And for the pastors, one of the students invented a solar-powered lamp that will make it so much easier to study after the sun goes down. They set it in the sun to charge up during the day, and it runs all evening. Battery lights are an unaffordable luxury for most, and candles or lanterns are pretty hard on the eyes. The pastors were thrilled, and these college students really enjoyed this opportunity to serve others. They worked day and night with tireless enthusiasm!

You can read a little more about their work here:

Prayer Concerns: We thank you for praying about these in the days ahead!

***Please continue to pray for resolution in the electricity situation. It's "fatiguant" as our Senegalese friends say: "TIRING!"

***Financial needs: (one-time needs that could be covered through our ministry account, if funds are provided.)

* possible trip to Ghana for me for the Member Care Providers Retreat and Consultation (MCPC) with Mobile Member Care Team in October (about $750 needed for this.)
* Joey's eye surgery: scheduled for July 2 (about $2500 needed for that)

***Please pray for Joey's eye surgery, scheduled for July 2, to be successful in fully correcting his vision. He really wants to be able to apply for an aviation program and his vision needs to just a little bit better than it is!

*** We are planning a small Spiritual Life Conference for about 40 of our SIM missionaries and family members, to be held in the end of July. We are excited about the way God has been leading us in pulling together people and programs to be a special set-apart time for refreshment and renewal of our lives together as missionaries. Please pray for all the preparations that need to be made.

*** Pray for God's direction as we seek counselors who could be here as part of a Member Care and Counseling Team, to provide long-term counseling for families in need of that type of support here on the field.

We feel very privileged and thankful to be here in West Africa, and blessed by your prayer and financial support of the work God has called us to, even on the days when we're hot and can't run our fans because we don't have electricity... we know it's your prayers that are keeping us here!!

In His love,
Mary for the Dakar Deckers