~ Marty and Louise Koonce ~ Blogs: Marty, Louise, 4T's
From Marty - Proverbs twenty-nine verse three says, "A man who loves wisdom brings joy to his father." Today my dear friend Bertain (formerly known as Houndzo) brought great joy to his father. About eight years ago Bertain began pursuing wisdom via the fear of God. He has brought many to Christ and has begun several churches. He has brought freedom to many in his family, yet, the one that he longed to bless resisted him. He longed for his dad to respond to Jesus' invitation but his dad just couldn't accept it that God would accept him too. Finally through God's wisdom and love Bertain wore him down. Today Bertain baptized his dad into Christ and his Dad was filled with great joy. I will always remember the ways that I hounded Bertain about saving those in other villages while leaving his own family to their destruction. I wish you could have heard the joy in Bertain's voice this afternoon as he called to inform me of his dad's new birth. It is events like this that encourage me deeply about the future of Jesus worship among the Watchi. It will, by God's grace and power, continue on.
Speaking of continuing on, I have moved into tenacious training mode for my leadership studies in the villages. It was really thrilling this week to witness the lights coming on in the heads of the leaders at Ahepe as they considered the future of their work there. By the way, they casually mentioned in passing the conversions of a family in the church there. I didn't realize until I got home what they had said. Louise and I both sat in shock at the news that the Ahepe church had some new members. This is yet another indication of God's empowering as God is now waking the sleepers and half dead Christians and churches among us to their responsibility to be light and salt. That could be a new slogan for us, "If Ahepe can do it anybody can!" Yet, isn't that just how He works, using the weak and broken for His glory.
I have been overwhelmed as of late to the earth shattering power of God's word, mainly by the ways it is working on and in me. I know that if God can just use me to help them realize this truth here, then nothing will be able to stand in their way.
As for Rwanda preparation, I got to take a shot at matchmaking this week on behalf of Daniel our Kinyarwanda teacher with his bride to be back in Rwanda. What I said must have worked because she finally agreed to tie the knot. By the way be praying for them, as now Daniel has to come up with the bride price and money for her ticket to fly to Togo to live. Be praying for her too as the move will be quite a shock to all of her senses.
As many of you have been wondering, our truck is still running, thanks for the prayers. So we are hoping that we can wait until Rwanda to get a newone. Thank you all for your love and yourprayers. They continue to sustain us and give us the strength topersevere joyfully.
 From Louise - A more routine week has passed. The water crisis seems to have passed, or at the least has lessened. We have had water and electricity most of the week.
The boys are doing well at school. We celebrated Taylor's birthday with a party on Saturday. The Nerf gun theme included a live action arcade shooting range. See the photo of the ducks!
~ Rachel Baker ~
 It's been a great week getting back into the swing of things here in Tabligbo. The boys were back in school and we just had a "normal" week. When we had our first day back to school, we soon found out that the boys' current plant project had outgrown its original home – the light hut. So, for science we replanted their bean plants outside in the yard. They really thought this was neat. They had to dig their holes "two-hands deep and two hands wide" while using old spoons. I must say, they're very proud of how well their plants have done. Emily and I are constantly hoping the plants last now that they've been moved outside! They boys are attached to them, always checking the plants first thing in the mornings.
The stomach bug that is making its way through the team finally caught up with me on Sunday. I stayed home while Emily went off to church with the Crowsons. While the power, water, etc has all been running so smoothly, the entire time I was home on Sunday, everything was out. No water. No power. No internet. So, I got to spend my time laying on the cool tile floor just reading a book and waiting on Emily to return home. Sure enough, when she did, the power and water returned shortly after! I'm starting to feel better, but please pray for a full recovery… and that no one else gets sick! ~
~ Murphy and Christine Crowson ~ Crowson's Blog
 From Murphy - Please continue to pray for the village of Tafahoue (Ta-fa-xway). Pray that the Lord would send His Spirit to convict their hearts of sin and bring them to faith in Jesus so that a strong, vibrant church can begin in this village. The Batoe Christians went there this past Sunday to do another lesson but the meeting fell through because the village chief was stick and a good portion of the village men had taken him to the hospital. Pray that God would bless Daniel (pictured left) and Komlavi as they proclaim the Good News!
Friday, as I drove to Kpotonou for a leadership training session, I asked the Lord to give me some encouragement and confirmation that my prayers for this area were being heard. During my prayer time with the leaders one told me about his desire to resurrect the church in Agbeku which began a few years ago but stopped after one of the new Christians died. They went this past Saturday to meet with a few others who would like to begin worshipping the Lord again. PLUS, another leader in the group told me of his desire to move to a new area this August for six months to plant a new church! What great news! The Spirit of the Lord is moving in their hearts in answer to our prayers, giving them a burden for their own people. Let us pray that He will fan this flame, that the church in Agbeku will be born again and that their dreams to plant a new church in a far off village will come to fruition!
This past Saturday I met with nine elders and we went through the entire book of Romans! Man, what a day. I didn't think we would be able to get through it all, but by God's Grace we did. What a powerful and profound book of the Bible. We are saved by God's Grace that no man can boast. Let us continue on in a life of sacrifice as we live by faith and walk in the Spirit. In preparation for the day, each leader read Romans four times. God blessed us with a deeper understanding of His Word! Thank you Lord!
 From Christine - For St. Patrick's day this year, Matthew suggested we have a cookout. He has been collecting sticks from around our yard and the yard next door for the past several weeks. We had a great fire and the evening was cool and breezy.
Beginning this month I will be teaching in the villages of Kpotonou and Sedome. I had decided to take a different approach to ministry for our last year in Togo and just spend time going house to house praying for women. I will be doing this with the women in Batoe. However, the Kpotonou women would really like me to continue teaching. Please pray that God will give me wisdom as I prepare lessons and teach in these two villages. Pray also that I can be an encouragement to them as well as to the Batoe women. Thank you so much for your love and prayers for the Watchi people.
AND, we have great news concerning our adoption! Check our blog for more details...
~ Emily Dunnagan ~
I have two great funny quotes from Trevor last Wednesday. During our Bible story time Rachel had asked him to retell what we read the day before about Joseph "he put the grain in his brother's sacks with the silverware on top." We had to straighten him out on the differences between silver - as money - and silver what you use to eat with. Then that night during team devotional he put in a prayer request for "everybody’s wombs to get better" when we all just looked at him, and then he clarified by saying "you know like my sunburn and Stephen's elbow". Evidently he meant to say wound.
I enjoyed getting to go out to Batoe for worship this Sunday. I am getting to the point that I know many of the Christians names and the children are less timid around me - there is one little girl who always comes and holds my hand after church. I was really struck by our cultural differences during Murphy's sermon when he didn't know the Eve word for tent and that his audience didn't have any concept of a portable dwelling. The differences still amaze me that after praying and singing together in unity, something as little as the word "tent" reminds me how very different we are as well.
~ Agricultural Ministry ~
 The well in Batoe is finished. Now the villagers will need to completely empty out all of the water in the well so that new, fresh clean water can come. Last year during elections a woman came and told the village that she would dig them a well if they would vote for her to get into parliament. She gave money to some workers and they began the work but soon after stole the rest of the money. When Christine and I went to church this past Sunday in Batoe we noticed that our picture and "Murphy Crowson, March, 2008" was engraved into the side of the well. They did this so that the politian couldn't return and claim that this well was her work. I told them that if they want to put a name on the well so that people would know who buildt it, that was fine. BUT, not my name! Jesus is to be praised for this well!
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