Koepke March 2022

“I know that you can do all things, and that no purpose of yours can be thwarted” (Job 42:2).

When we arrived in Nigeria in August of 2014, there were 110 children living onsite. Four of those children had just graduated from high school. Of those four, the three girls spent four years at Bingham University. After graduation, they served for a year in mandatory National Youth Service (NYS), where they were posted to parts of Nigeria that they were unfamiliar with. All three served in school settings. Since that time, four more of our girls graduated from Bingham University and have served a year in NYS. One of our boys graduated from an IT course and National Television Authority school. Most of these graduates have found jobs in education.

Israel has graduated from Bingham University this year and is departing soon for his year of NYS. Of those remaining graduates, five have gotten married, close to fifty are still in tertiary education, and fourteen are waiting for their names to be called by universities. There are quite a variety of studies involved: law, midwifery school, medical school, industrial chemistry, youth ministry, education, mass communication, biochemistry, and business management.

When the current class of senior high students graduate in July of this year, there will be only twenty-one children living onsite! The others will have graduated and moved into tertiary education, vocational tracks, or gone back to their extended families. This small number seems shocking when we look back to the time we arrived here. But it is proof that God has shown His faithfulness in raising these orphans, giving them a quality education, and preparing them to serve as His ambassadors in Nigeria.

So many people over the years have given of their time, finances, prayers, and correspondence to make this happen. You are an important part of that investment. Thank you! It has not always been easy—teenagers are teenagers wherever you go! But as we have discovered in the Book of Exodus, God’s plans will not be thwarted.

Christabel and Juliet are leading worship hymns and choruses at church, and Reuben recently joined them on the keyboard.

Reuben

Juliet

Christabel

Dry season will end in the next month or so. We have been working on correcting erosion problems before the rains begin, building gabions, and doing a lot of digging. About 1/3 of the digging is completed. Planting groundcover and thorny bushes and sisal will come next.

A couple of our drainage projects before the rainy season begins

We are looking forward to being back in the U.S. for Easter this year. If you would like to meet, please let us know by email.

Thanksgiving

• Rafiki has provided Women of Hope (a local sewing project for widows) with money for a new batch of products.
• God’s faithfulness in providing hope and a future for our resident children.
• We have experienced six months of peace in our area—no disruptions to the school schedule.

Prayer Requests

• Our current class of seniors will be sitting for their national exams soon, and they would cherish your prayers. National exam scores mean the difference between going to tertiary education and going home, so there is great pressure to achieve high marks.
• For those who are already in higher education, they are finding that they have to seriously study now. The transition from childhood to the adult world has been a shock for some, while others are thriving with the extra demands of effort and time. Four of these students are in their senior year of university and would appreciate your prayers as they complete their projects (dissertation).
• A strike by the UniJos professors’ union is delaying the start of university for several of our students. They were in their dorms ready to start, and the strike commenced. It’s disappointing, but we are hopeful it will be resolved quickly.
• Salvation for our residents who do not yet have a personal relationship with Jesus our Savior and spiritual growth in godliness for those who do have a living faith in Jesus.

Please click here for a printer friendly version of this newsletter.