The Chimala Mission has welcomed a new missionary -- Cheryl Bode! She is a nurse from Oklahoma who is going to work with the hospital to raise the standard of care, educate staff and also do mobile clinics in small, rural African villages. She is fitting in well on the mission and we are very happy to have her here.
The Chimala Bible Institute has many new students. One of the new students is a student from Malawi named Alec Billiat. He has been preaching for 19 years and has decided to come to CBI to get some additional training so that he can serve the churches he works with better. In class, he is quite knowledgeable in the scriptures and also a good leader among the students. He is in my NT Greek class and he is doing well.
At the Chimala Mission Hospital, we had a veteran employee retire at a Shirehe (party). He has been cleaning for many years at CMH. He had quite a big day.
We also are going to have a big day on March 19 as the entire Mbeya region will celebrate National Nurse's Day at the Chimala Mission Hospital. Preparations are in full swing as we are expecting a large number of visitors and guests at the hospital. My daughter Anna has been busy painting poles at the hospital and Cheryl and my wife have been cleaning up several areas of the hospital. We have also tore down the old wooden bridge between the hospital and the church building and are replacing it with a new metal bridge.
Also, through the generosity of good Christians in the USA, we were able to purchase 40 new mattresses to replace the old and torn mattresses at the hospital. Thank you very much!
We have several groups coming onto the mission this year. We have three doctors from China coming in mid-April. In May, we have a group from Oklahoma Christian University coming to do VBS's in local villages and also some work around the mission. Also in May, we have a group of nursing students from Harding University who will be working at the hospital. In July, we have Tony Hopper coming to teach on the Beatitudes at the mission and the surrounding area. In August, we will host the Gospel Chariot to do evangelism work area the Chimala area.
There is some news for those of you who know the history of the Chimala Mission. We are in the process of re-establishing a presence on the Ailsa Farm (just south of the mission on top of the mountain). We will be planting trees and making a new presence where we have not been in quite a while. We will also be rebuilding some of the buildings and cleaning up the area to enable people to live there again. If you have questions, let us know!
Along Chimala Trails
During the pioneer days of the mission here in Chimala, like Guy Caskey and Eldred Echols, they had several young men come from the USA to do the first 'safari for souls' campaigns. Several men worked long and hard to help build several of buildings here on the mission, plant churches, and many other activities here in the Chimala area. In the spirit of those pioneer missionaries, we would like to invite like-minded Christians to come and work with struggling churches, preach and teach, work diligently in personal and public evangelism, help train preachers and teachers, and equip the local leaders with the needed skills to push the churches to the next level in leadership.
We often have several groups to come to the mission in May and June. However, we would like for you to consider July 2013 for the 2013 Safari for Souls in Chimala. If you are hearing the call, answer it! Let us know if you would like more information on campaign work at the Chimala Mission. Email us at wagner.chada@gmail.com.
Wagner Family Furlough
The Wagner family is going to go back to the states for a furlough beginning in late October. We will be visiting churches to make reports, raising support, and also visiting family and friends. The cost of plane tickets will be around $12,000 for round trip tickets. We need your assistance to make this trip happen. If you can consider giving as an individual or by encouraging the congregation, you will be helping our family make this necessary trip. If you would like to contribute, let us know!
Chad Wagner
To see Chad’s report with pictures, please click here.