December 2010 Newsletter

Steve & Alene Burgert - Missionaries with Tenwek Hospital in Kenya

Psalm 121:8 -Coming & Going Newsletter - December 2010

“He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives, and release from darkness for the prisoners” Isaiah 61:1

Pokee Salamu Katika Jina La Yesu! Swahili for: Receive greetings in Jesus’ name!

We pray a rich and blessed Christmas season for each of you and your families. Thank you for your love and support for us. We cherish your prayers, emails, packages, and partnership more than we could ever express. You have helped make our time in Kenya a true joy.

Visiting Jerusalem, Israel & Egypt

We joined ten others, including Rev. Jane & Brian Riecke, from our home church in Colorado (First United Methodist Church of Loveland) for a tour of the Holy Land in October. It was truly a blessing to experience the land of the Bible - to see and walk around these real places of the Old and New Testaments. It was especially moving to sing and share devotions while boating on a smooth Sea of Galilee as we remembered the stories of Jesus and His disciples on that same lake. We were also blessed to share communion near the site of the Garden Tomb in Jerusalem in celebration of the sacrifice Jesus made for our sins, as well as His resurrection! In addition to the sightseeing, it was wonderful to share time with our pastors and others from our home congregation. The extension of the trip into Egypt gave us a great appreciation for the rugged and desolate desert that the Israelites crossed during the exodus. (After viewing this wasteland, Steve said, “I’m sure I would have been one of those who complained to Moses!”) The Egyptian ruins of temples, tombs, and pyramids are a testimony to history measured in thousands of years and to a people searching for meaning in this life and the after-life. We give thanks for our Christian faith, and knowing the God of our past, present, and future.

Partnering with Donations On-Line

Thank you for considering partnering with us. One-time gifts or on-going support are needed for our ministry services and can now also be arranged via the internet at: http://www.wgm.org/burgert

Celebrating Our First Year in Kenya

We happily mark the completion of our first full year of service in Kenya. The reappearance of the purple blossoms of the jacaranda trees proves to us that the cycle of a year has passed. We give thanks for the Lord’s guidance and protection evidenced in so many ways. He has enabled Steve to have a great team to provide endoscopy patient care, research and physician training. Alene has used her prison chaplain background to teach and mentor chaplaincy students, as well as participate in ministry to those inside prisons and those being released. We both have felt welcomed into the community and have had opportunities to encourage and be encouraged by the faith of many Kenyans. We are amazed to look back at the many gifts of this past year and can hardly wait to see what the Lord will unveil for us in the year to come!

Esophageal Cancer Research Begins

The high incidence of cancer of the esophagus in this area is a major reason why Tenwek Hospital has such an active Endoscopy Unit. Our endoscopy team has prayed for the opportunity to help prevent this cancer, and our research project which started this month may play a key role in answering that prayer. It has been a blessing to work with a Kenyan physician, Dr. Mike Mwachiro, in performing special, detailed examinations of the esophagus to seek out early, pre-cancerous abnormalities. Subjects also complete a detailed questionnaire to help track possible causes. We also give thanks for three team members from the National Institutes of Health and Mayo Clinic in USA who visited Tenwek this month and greatly assisted in getting the research protocol underway.

Please pray with us:

• For the Lord’s wisdom as we start our 2nd year of service in Kenya

• For ministry opportunities for each of the eight Chaplaincy students graduating April 2011

• For preparations for the Work Team coming to Tenwek from our home church in Loveland, CO in March 2011

• For continued faithful prayer and financial support for our mission service

Please thank the Lord with us:

• For peaceful referendum in Kenya in August

• For our Colorado home sale in September

• For Steve’s good visit with his parents in Minnesota in October

• For our refreshing Holy Land trip with our Colorado church family in October

• For Dr. Tom Kettler from USA covering for the Endoscopy Unit during Steve’s absence

• For the Lord’s gracious guidance throughout our first year of service in Kenya

• For faithful partners in prayer and finances

• For safety during our many recent roadtrips

For a joyous and blessed Christmas Season!

Contributions: World Gospel Mission, 3783 East State Road 18, PO Box 948, Marion IN 46952 (account 02273-Burgert)