Daren is the Cluster Strategy Leader of the Kingdom 2 Kingdom (K2) Cluster. The K2 Cluster is made up of 8 evangelism teams. Each of those teams is lead by a Team Strategy Leader (TSL). Daren and these 8 TSLs provide leadership for the K2 Cluster. Daren organizes a meeting at least once a year to provide training and encouragement to the K2 Cluster leadership team. This years meeting was planned for Lesotho. So Daren called Tom Melvin.
Tom Melvin is the TSL for the Basotho Team. He and his wife Cindi did an excellent job of organizing the logistics for this meeting and providing a fantastic location for the leadership team to meet. Pray for Tom and Cindi as they develop strong relationships with national believers. Pray for their 16 year old son Eli who is busy homeschooling.
The Basotho people are a beautiful and intriguing people. Their home is in the mountain kingdom of Lesotho. Much of the year is cold and yet the sun is strong. As a result they wrap blankets around their shoulders to keep warm and don interesting hats to block the rays of the sun. Pray that the Basotho will experience the grace offered to them through Jesus Christ. Pray that Basotho believers will take the gospel to their own people living in remote locations in the mountain kingdom.
Next in the planning stage Daren called the Fortenberrys. Robert and Margaret Fortenberry have over 15 years of experience serving the Lord as Church Planters in Lobatse, Botswana. Daren invited them to lead us in our times of Bible Study each morning and evening. In addition, Robert lead us in considering the topic of "Church Planting in Resistant Fields." He did a great job challenging us to remember that spiritual work requires spiritual people operating in spiritual power. We cannot accomplish our vision apart from God. John 15:5 reminds us that apart from Jesus we can do nothing. Please pray that the missionaries of the K2 Cluster will operate in spiritual power. Thanks, Robert and Margaret, for ministering to us.
Todd Jones and Kelly Carruthers live in Gaborone and Francistown, Botswana respectively. Todd is the TSL for the Tswana of Botswana Team and Kelly is the TSL for the Kalanga Team. Their wives were unable to join us so they were our resident bachelors for the week. Pray for Lisa Jones and Ann Carruthers as they care for their children and meet the demands of ministry in the home and in the community.
Our meeting was in a quaint lodge with a real home feel. Our meals were served in this dining room where we were able to fellowship with one another, discuss strategy, as well as best practices and plans for the future. Pray for all the TSLs of the K2 Cluster as they take back what they learned to their teams.
Shawna Davis and Sky Scott worked together for 4 years in Western Zambia before Daren and Shawna moved to Botswana. Sky was about 8 months pregnant during this meeting. We were thankful she made the extra effort to travel the extra distance and ride over rough, rocky roads to attend this meeting. Pray for Daniel and Sky Scott as they care for their newborn daughter River Belle who is now just less than a month old. Pray that the gospel will spread throughout the 1 million people of the Barotse Kingdom of Western Zambia.
Daniel Scott is the TSL of the Upper Zambezi Team. Pray for him as he provides leadership to this team.
It was an extra blessing to have Micah Davis, Daren and Shawna's son, with us on this trip. Since he is homeschooling his 11th grade year he was able to join us for this trip. He enjoyed hiking the nearby trails when he wasn't studying.
Gregg and Donna Fort are missionaries serving in Zimbabwe. All of these TSLs balance planting new churches, working with and training existing churches, working with national conventions and coordinating strategy to take the gospel to people groups who have not heard the good news. That is a big job description, and that is not all of it! Pray for Gregg, the TSL for Zimbabwe, as he provides leadership for the ministry going on throughout Zimbabwe. Pray for Gregg as he ministers to the leaders of the Baptist Convention of Zimbabwe.
Micah really enjoyed hiking with Gregg because, "Uncle Gregg stayed in front of me the entire hike and usually no one likes to go as fast I do". Micah enjoyed hiking in this beautiful area.
Here are a few photos Micah took while on a hiking "field trip".
The water eroded interesting patterns in the rocks. Pray that the word of God would erode the Basotho's resistance to the gospel and that they would turn to Jesus.
Beautiful flowers growing among the rocks and grass in the valleys of these mountains.
Stains left from where water sat before it evaporated.
Stagnant water giving way to the algae. While Micah was either doing school work or hiking the rest of us were....
...meeting! We met with the Lord in worship, (thank you, Daniel & Sky), in Bible study, (thank you, Robert), we met with Lucy Driggers to talk about people groups and keeping track of who is hearing the gospel and who is yet to hear! We met with Daren to discuss best practices, budgets, and learn what is happening around the Sub-Saharan Affinity Group. We met around the coffee pot, we met outside for bocce ball and ladders, and we met in the evenings after dinner to play "Ticket to Ride". Multiple boards helped!
We also took one afternoon to go prayer riding. Many of the Sotho living in the mountains get around on horseback. Cindi Melvin printed a small but specific prayer guide that we could use to pray for the Sotho people as we rode.
We prayed for this young shepherd's salvation as we rode past him. We prayed for the Jim Flora family. They live in these mountains and are ministering to shepherds, just like this. Pray that the Sotho men would come to know the voice of the Good Shepherd.
It was so great to spend one afternoon outside in God's creation, praying specifically for the people living in Lesotho. We all arrived back at the lodge in one piece.
Shawna's prayer guide was in one piece, but barely. Near the end of the ride as we were going up a very steep, muddy slope with lots of big rocks, her horse decided to fall down, gravity prevailed and she went with him. BUT...she held on to her prayer guide!
John and Jennifer Putman live in Rustenburg, South Africa and work with the Tswana of South Africa. John is the TSL for the South Africa Tswana Team. Pray for John and Jennifer as they minister in the village of Pella to chronically ill AIDS patients. Pray that a church would start through the many relationships the Putmans are developing in this village.
Lucy Driggers is the Strategy Research Associate for the Sub-Saharan Affinity Group. She helps identify people groups who are unreached or unengaged with the gospel. She helps Daren and the other Cluster Strategy Leaders identify areas of need.
One afternoon a group of Basotho dancers and musicians came to perform for us. Their songs and dances told stories about the Basotho culture.
This is the gum boot dance and tells the story of how the Basotho men work in the diamond mines found in Lesotho and South Africa. These boys somehow made music with these boots. Pray with the Flora family that God would give them 100 Basotho men who they could train to share the gospel with their own people.
These girls danced while the girls sitting sang and played various instruments.
Here are all those who attended the K2 Cluster Leadership meeting. Two of the TSLs were unable to attend due to being in the US. Brian Beadle is the TSL for the Northern Kalahari Evangelistic Team. He is currently on Stateside Assignment. John David Thompson is the TSL for the Pedi Team. He and his wife Lori arrived as new missionaries 2 weeks after our meeting.
Daren is the Cluster Strategy Leader of the Kingdom 2 Kingdom (K2) Cluster. The K2 Cluster is made up of 8 evangelism teams. Each of those teams is lead by a Team Strategy Leader (TSL). Daren and these 8 TSLs provide leadership for the K2 Cluster. Daren organizes a meeting at least once a year to provide training and encouragement to the K2 Cluster leadership team. This years meeting was planned for Lesotho. So Daren called Tom Melvin.
Tom Melvin is the TSL for the Basotho Team. He and his wife Cindi did an excellent job of organizing the logistics for this meeting and providing a fantastic location for the leadership team to meet. Pray for Tom and Cindi as they develop strong relationships with national believers. Pray for their 16 year old son Eli who is busy homeschooling.
The Basotho people are a beautiful and intriguing people. Their home is in the mountain kingdom of Lesotho. Much of the year is cold and yet the sun is strong. As a result they wrap blankets around their shoulders to keep warm and don interesting hats to block the rays of the sun. Pray that the Basotho will experience the grace offered to them through Jesus Christ. Pray that Basotho believers will take the gospel to their own people living in remote locations in the mountain kingdom.
Next in the planning stage Daren called the Fortenberrys. Robert and Margaret Fortenberry have over 15 years of experience serving the Lord as Church Planters in Lobatse, Botswana. Daren invited them to lead us in our times of Bible Study each morning and evening. In addition, Robert lead us in considering the topic of "Church Planting in Resistant Fields." He did a great job challenging us to remember that spiritual work requires spiritual people operating in spiritual power. We cannot accomplish our vision apart from God. John 15:5 reminds us that apart from Jesus we can do nothing. Please pray that the missionaries of the K2 Cluster will operate in spiritual power. Thanks, Robert and Margaret, for ministering to us.
Todd Jones and Kelly Carruthers live in Gaborone and Francistown, Botswana respectively. Todd is the TSL for the Tswana of Botswana Team and Kelly is the TSL for the Kalanga Team. Their wives were unable to join us so they were our resident bachelors for the week. Pray for Lisa Jones and Ann Carruthers as they care for their children and meet the demands of ministry in the home and in the community.
Our meeting was in a quaint lodge with a real home feel. Our meals were served in this dining room where we were able to fellowship with one another, discuss strategy, as well as best practices and plans for the future. Pray for all the TSLs of the K2 Cluster as they take back what they learned to their teams.
Shawna Davis and Sky Scott worked together for 4 years in Western Zambia before Daren and Shawna moved to Botswana. Sky was about 8 months pregnant during this meeting. We were thankful she made the extra effort to travel the extra distance and ride over rough, rocky roads to attend this meeting. Pray for Daniel and Sky Scott as they care for their newborn daughter River Belle who is now just less than a month old. Pray that the gospel will spread throughout the 1 million people of the Barotse Kingdom of Western Zambia.
Daniel Scott is the TSL of the Upper Zambezi Team. Pray for him as he provides leadership to this team.
It was an extra blessing to have Micah Davis, Daren and Shawna's son, with us on this trip. Since he is homeschooling his 11th grade year he was able to join us for this trip. He enjoyed hiking the nearby trails when he wasn't studying.
Gregg and Donna Fort are missionaries serving in Zimbabwe. All of these TSLs balance planting new churches, working with and training existing churches, working with national conventions and coordinating strategy to take the gospel to people groups who have not heard the good news. That is a big job description, and that is not all of it! Pray for Gregg, the TSL for Zimbabwe, as he provides leadership for the ministry going on throughout Zimbabwe. Pray for Gregg as he ministers to the leaders of the Baptist Convention of Zimbabwe.
Micah really enjoyed hiking with Gregg because, "Uncle Gregg stayed in front of me the entire hike and usually no one likes to go as fast I do". Micah enjoyed hiking in this beautiful area.
Here are a few photos Micah took while on a hiking "field trip".
The water eroded interesting patterns in the rocks. Pray that the word of God would erode the Basotho's resistance to the gospel and that they would turn to Jesus.
Beautiful flowers growing among the rocks and grass in the valleys of these mountains.
Stains left from where water sat before it evaporated.
Stagnant water giving way to the algae. While Micah was either doing school work or hiking the rest of us were....
...meeting! We met with the Lord in worship, (thank you, Daniel & Sky), in Bible study, (thank you, Robert), we met with Lucy Driggers to talk about people groups and keeping track of who is hearing the gospel and who is yet to hear! We met with Daren to discuss best practices, budgets, and learn what is happening around the Sub-Saharan Affinity Group. We met around the coffee pot, we met outside for bocce ball and ladders, and we met in the evenings after dinner to play "Ticket to Ride". Multiple boards helped!
We also took one afternoon to go prayer riding. Many of the Sotho living in the mountains get around on horseback. Cindi Melvin printed a small but specific prayer guide that we could use to pray for the Sotho people as we rode.
We prayed for this young shepherd's salvation as we rode past him. We prayed for the Jim Flora family. They live in these mountains and are ministering to shepherds, just like this. Pray that the Sotho men would come to know the voice of the Good Shepherd.
It was so great to spend one afternoon outside in God's creation, praying specifically for the people living in Lesotho. We all arrived back at the lodge in one piece.
Shawna's prayer guide was in one piece, but barely. Near the end of the ride as we were going up a very steep, muddy slope with lots of big rocks, her horse decided to fall down, gravity prevailed and she went with him. BUT...she held on to her prayer guide!
John and Jennifer Putman live in Rustenburg, South Africa and work with the Tswana of South Africa. John is the TSL for the South Africa Tswana Team. Pray for John and Jennifer as they minister in the village of Pella to chronically ill AIDS patients. Pray that a church would start through the many relationships the Putmans are developing in this village.
Lucy Driggers is the Strategy Research Associate for the Sub-Saharan Affinity Group. She helps identify people groups who are unreached or unengaged with the gospel. She helps Daren and the other Cluster Strategy Leaders identify areas of need.
One afternoon a group of Basotho dancers and musicians came to perform for us. Their songs and dances told stories about the Basotho culture.
This is the gum boot dance and tells the story of how the Basotho men work in the diamond mines found in Lesotho and South Africa. These boys somehow made music with these boots. Pray with the Flora family that God would give them 100 Basotho men who they could train to share the gospel with their own people.
These girls danced while the girls sitting sang and played various instruments.
Here are all those who attended the K2 Cluster Leadership meeting. Two of the TSLs were unable to attend due to being in the US. Brian Beadle is the TSL for the Northern Kalahari Evangelistic Team. He is currently on Stateside Assignment. John David Thompson is the TSL for the Pedi Team. He and his wife Lori arrived as new missionaries 2 weeks after our meeting.
I've just published a sketch that I made using one of your photos. I hope you don't mind. I made a link to your blog.
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