My heart will always beat to an African drum...

Two months in the US was wonderful.  Walks and laughter, hugs and prayers, special lunches and potlucks, reunions and newborns...  Time with family and special friends never seems to last long enough.  But today I saw a Facebook post with a picture that said, "My heart will always beat to an African drum."  When Madeleine and I returned to Burkina, our first Sunday back we attended Wayalghin Baptist Church.  And I felt my heart beat with joy, with praise, with thanksgiving to our Father for the privilege of serving Him here.  I love the rhythm of African worship.  I love to dance to the alter (or maybe I just sway a little bit as a I walk :) with my offering.  I love to see people lift their hands and hearts to the One who has made them new creations.  This past Sunday at Good Shepherd Baptist Church, I heard one of the best sermons I've heard all year.  I love being a part of the International Mission Board legacy that helped lead men like Vincent Konkonbo to the Lord and disciple him.  Thank you, Wayne Walton, for your years of dedicated service to Burkinabe Baptists.

This summer while I was spending time with family and friends, many of you joined me in praying for the 7th Annual West Africa Baptist Women's Conference held in Ouagadougou.  Thank you for your prayers.  Fifteen months of meetings and organization paid off, and the women who came from 9 different countries certainly danced and sang to the glorious beat of an African drum as they worshiped and praise the Lord together.  I am so proud of the Burkinabe Baptist women with whom I work.  They, along with the youth (ages 12-29ish) of our churches, welcomed all of their visitors, and I understand that the conference was one of great fellowship and tremendous teaching.  Thank you for praying with us.  I hope you enjoy the beautiful colors of Africa in the photos below...

prayer for the women...

They will come from all directions – north, south, east and west.  They will come by plane, by bush taxi, by car, by chartered bus.  Baptist women from at least 7 different west African countries will arrive in Ouagadougou, the capital city of Burkina Faso, this coming Monday, July 9 for the bi-annual regional conference of Baptist women of West Africa.  Oh, how I wish I could be there to see the magnificent display of colors that my African sisters love to wear, to enjoy the worship through music and dance, and to hear the rich teaching surrounding the theme:  “Woman of Peace, A Source of Blessing.”  The speakers will share with the women how they can be God’s source of blessing in their homes, in their churches, and in their nations.

You and I can’t be there, but we can pray.  Please pray for:

• Safe travel for all participants:  Some of the women will be traveling for a minimum of two days to arrive in Burkina.
• Superb attendance:  The women of Burkina Faso have prepared for 700 women.
• Organizational excellence:  The precious Baptist ladies from Burkina have worked so hard to be well-organized for this meeting.  Pray that all of the details which have been meticulously prepared will fall in to place easily. 
• Excellent translation:  Translation will be from French to English and from English to French.  There will also be at least 3 other translations that will take place quietly in the audience.
• Excellent teaching:  Pray that all the teaching will be Holy Spirit inspired and that God’s message will be proclaimed.
• Vision for the nations:  Pray that each woman who attends will begin to see her responsibility that the gospel be preached to the uttermost parts of the earth. 

Thank you so much for your partnership in this ministry.  Your prayers are as important to its success as any other preparations which have been made.

Many blessings,

Kathy

Robbie's graduating!

Support for James...

Dear Friends and Family,

I hope this letter finds you in good health. I am currently completing my sophomore year at UNC Chapel Hill. The work God is doing on the UNC campus through Reach-UNC this year is both humbling and exciting. I am blessed to be a part of it.  As I approach the summer I am looking forward to continuing to serve the Lord through an opportunity at my church called City Project.

City Project will provide a unique experience of discipleship by seeing how the local church ministers from three levels, locally, nationally and internationally. The seven week program starts off with discipleship training led by the pastors and church leaders at The Summit Church, where I am a member. Our team will then spend a week in New York serving with Muslims in Queens. For the next four weeks we will live in disadvantaged communities in Durham, taking discipleship classes in the morning and volunteering in local non- profits in the afternoon. Finally, the last two weeks in late July I will spend in Serbia working with young business men and the Roma people.

I am excited about serving the LORD in this way, but in order for it to be possible; I will need both your prayer support and financial support. As the LORD leads you, please join in me in praying particularly for my time in Durham. After college, I plan to teach in Durham, and this summer will be a time to build friendships in the school system that will be helpful in the future. Pray that The LORD would soften the hearts of the people, that I would love unselfishly and count my life as nothing compared to the surpassing riches of the gospel. Pray also for my time in Serbia. Not knowing what to expect is scary, but I am also excited to live and worship in a new culture.

Second, consider supporting me financially this summer. My support goal is $4500 to cover the cost of room, board, and transportation. If you would like to contribute financially, send a check to my home address or directly to the church. Both addresses are shown below. Make checks payable to The Summit Church and put “The City Project: James Shafto” in the memo line.  You can also make an online contribution here.

This summer is going to be an amazing time of discipleship, growth, service, and blessing. I look forward to us partnering together in this work and outreach.

God bless,
James Shafto

Summit Church

c/o The City Project

2335-114 Presidential Drive

Durham, NC  27703 

James Shafto

102 White Oak Court

Chocowinity, NC  27817

As a prisoner for the Lord then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling which you have received.

-- Ephesians 4:1 

Jan 2012 update from Kathy...

2012 has already given so many glimpses of God’s greatness and His goodness!  Jay was in an accident where he rolled our Toyota pick-up truck as he tried to avoid a big truck carrying wood into the city.  He and the two passengers with him walked away with no major injuries at all.  Rob and Madeleine have started into their second semester at school and both of them brought home excellent report cards from the first half of the year.  Having done equally well, James ended his fall semester at UNC and spent Christmas with Jay’s family in Boston.

 

Baptist believers in Burkina encourage and challenge us regularly as God is growing and expanding their vision to see His kingdom come in Burkina and all around the world.  Last weekend I hosted the leadership team of UOBC for what Rob called “Mom’s sleepover.”  It was a planning meeting for the upcoming year – a little late because of some unforeseen interruptions in the lives of some of our ladies.  What a joy to listen to each region of Burkina share the ministries that they have been involved in!  From sweeping school and church yards to supporting orphans and widows with donations of grain and clothing, to going door-to-door and into village markets to share the good news of Jesus with neighbors, I was overjoyed to hear how God is using His daughters to show His love to their communities.

A new initiative that the “co-laborers with Christ” will be undertaking this year is the working toward the opening of a center for exploited females.   I am helping to lead the steering committee for the strategic planning of this project.  It will be exciting to see where God will lead us as you pray.  We are just in the beginning stages so please pray specifically that we will be able to narrow our many desires to match God’s vision for this center and that God will provide the necessary funds and manpower to renovate the building and grounds that we have been given by the Baptist Union of Burkina.  If you are interested in volunteering to help with the launching of this center please be sure to contact me either on this blog or at shaftojk@yahoo.com.  The opportunities for service will be many including construction and painting as well as training leaders and the ladies/girls who will be living at the center. 

Have a wonderful Valentine’s Day, 

Kathy

Dec 2011 update from Jay...

Holiday time is upon us again, when our thoughts turn to birth of Christ, peace on Earth and goodwill to men.  Africa saw its share of difficulties this year and Burkina Faso was not exempt.  Many people kept us in prayer during the mutiny last spring, from which the country has emerged as strong and stable as ever. 

During that time conferences were curtailed in the uncertainty, but we are looking forward to a fruitful renewal of training programs for lay leaders across the country.  This afternoon I spoke with one of our top trainers, Paulin.  He was in the village of Semapou this past weekend where 140 church members met to learn Acts 3:1-19 where Peter and John heal the lame man in the temple.  When they went into the village to share the story, 109 people indicated a desire to follow Christ!  Follow-up plans are being made to see how deep these decisions are, but already 17 have come to church!  Wednesday, Paulin will be in the village of Kademan holding the same training/outreach.  God’s Word changes lives!

Another fall highlight is the decision to expand the Bible school to include a Moore campus in Sanwabo and a Jula department in Koudougou.  With this decision enrollment has tripled!  This change has forced our trained pastors to get more involved in passing on what they received long ago when they attended Bible school.  Each qualified teacher is being asked to teach a module during the year.  It looks like my turn will come in the late spring!

Thank you for your support of God’s work in Burkina Faso and around the world through your giving, going, and praying.  We are blessed to have such a strong and loving church as a partner in seeing God’s Kingdom come on earth as it is in heaven!

Jay Shafto

01 BP 580 Ouagadougou

BURKINA FASO

(226)50-31-29-48

(226)50-36-30-72 (h)

(226)76-01-38-52 (c)

Dec 2011 update from Kathy...

Well, dear friends, once again too much time has passed since I’ve written.  Rest assured that my lack of communication doesn’t at all signify a lack of action by our great God.  He is certainly at work as always and we see His hand in so many ways in our lives and ministry.  Our reasons to be thankful this holiday season are many.

Through these past months I have had the privilege of teaching second grade at the International School of Ouagadougou.  What a joy it has been!  My students have filled my days with joy and laughter and the heart-satisfying fatigue that every teacher knows.  My long ago years of experience in a high school science classroom did very little to prepare me for this journey.  Seven year olds bring their own special qualities which make for a unique learning curve for their teacher.  21 children (most do not speak English at home), 11 girls, 7 boys, 14 different nationalities, many different reading levels – all of these and more have presented me with a job that has required much time and professional creativity.  I loved almost every minute and have truly felt God’s pleasure as Eric Liddell did when he ran.

 

It has continued to be a blessing to work alongside the Baptist women of Burkina, “Les Ouvrières Baptistes du Christ, Baptist co-laborers with Christ.  We meet regularly to talk about God’s vision for His work among Baptist women in Burkina.   In November I had the joy of training women and other young adults of one of our Baptist associations to use Bible stories to share the “living water” of Christ with those whom they encounter in their daily lives.  I also serve on a committee of the national leadership team to plan for a West Africa-wide Baptist women’s conference to be held here in Ouagadougou next summer.
 

My “mom” job is still one of the most rewarding of my life.  It’s always a joy to talk with James and to see how the Father is molding him into a young man who is an answer to my longtime prayer for my children – that they love the Lord with all their heart, soul, mind, and strength.  He has had a challenging, but successful year at UNC Chapel Hill and will be spending Christmas with Jay’s family in Boston.   Robbie gives us equal reason to be proud as he is a leader in the local youth group called WIRED (Walking in Righteousness Every Day).  His senior year is going great –with terrific grades thus far and three university acceptance letters!  He serves the Lord with his music as an excellent guitarist.  His band often leads at an Anglophone worship service that is held here in Ouagadougou.  And sweet Madeleine…  a momma could never ask for a better daughter.  She is responsible, reliable, and respectful.  She loves to cook, and this year, her pies (including home-made crusts) and Grampy Shafto style stuffing were much appreciated at Thanksgiving.  She’s a straight A student and shares interesting insights with her daddy and me from her Bible reading in her quiet times.

 

Counting my blessings would never be complete without mentioning the tremendous blessing of my dear husband.  This year of work and ministry for him has been one of the most emotionally demanding of our lives, and I am always encouraged and challenged by his desire to see God’s Word applied to every situation that he finds himself in.

 

To all of you who have supported our ministry through prayer and giving to Lottie Moon and the Cooperative Program, we say a heartfelt thanks during this time when we celebrate the birth of our Savior.  The gift of His life is truly the greatest reason for celebration and thanksgiving.   Without your generosity we couldn't be here living and serving in Burkina Faso. 

 

With much love, 

Kathy for all the Shaftos, 

Jay, James, Robbie, and Madeleine