While some public school teachers will be spending their well deserved summer break catching up on house projects or going on vacation, Linda Todd (Dr. Steven Todd’s wife), an elementary teacher in Colorado Springs is going with Steven into a refugee camp.

The Todds are traveling again to the Nyarugusu Refugee / Resettlement Camp located in rural western Tanzania, on the DR Congo border. Steven and Linda will be going into this massive refugee camps where the UN has placed more than 65,000 Congolese people who have fled the horrors of civil war and genocide.

Dr. Todd will be leading an Advanced Pastoral Training Institute with 750 refugee pastors from three camps.

But given the extraordinary circumstances of working with refugees, they are also trying to provide practical help to the refugees as well. Linda will join him this June, which will be her second trip into the refugee camp.

In 2003, Linda made a promise to the women refugees who had started a vocational program training young women in skills that can provide income beyond the UN rations. During Linda’s last trip, these women cornered her and asked her for sewing machines! Since there is no electricity within the camp, they are referring to Chinese built ‘pump’ type manual sewing machines, which can be purchased in Tanzania.

These sewing machines can be purchased in Tanzania and the Todds are making arrangements to have the machines shipped to the camp. The machines are not cheap, especially for refugees who have virtually no currency and must ‘barter’ for most items. The Todds have privately raised the money for sewing machines, gas generators for the camp, soccer balls for the children, and are bringing 1000 ballpoint pens for the pastors.

Along with Steven and Linda, a team of nine young adults from New Life Church in Colorado Springs are joining them and will be working with the young people in the camp while the training school is going on.

"What an extraordinary ministry for an extraordinary time! AFMIN is a powerful mobilization and multiplication training concept that I believe will help transform nations."

Dr.Dick Eastman, President
Every Home For Christ, International

Prayer Needs

More than any other form of partnership, we earnestly covet prayer from believers whom God will call to stand with us. Here are a few current prayer needs:

Safety of our students and staff. Much of our work is in areas of Africa where civil war and violence has occurred, and in some cases, continues. The Church continues to grow in these parts of the world, yet there is danger.
For the pastors in our program. These servants of the Lord are amazing people! We pray that the teaching will help them in practical ways, will encourage their hearts, and that God's Kingdom will continue to expand through their efforts.
For the Church in Africa. As millions come to Christ , it is our desire to see them connected into vibrant, healthy churches where they can be discipled into fully devoted followers of Christ .
Provision. We continue to trust God to provide. The current challenges include the sudden devaluation of the U.S. dollar, as well as fuel costs, increase in airfare, etc. These all affect our actual ability to minister to these pastors.
Wisdom. AFMIN regularly receives invitations to equip and train pastors in countries where we currently are not ministering. Our heart's response would be to say “Yes” but we need God's wisdom in determining how we should respond.
God's favor and anointing. Most of all, we want God to be glorified through all that we do, and we want to be faithful stewards who can be used by Him to bless these pastors and leaders in Africa.