Thank You! Obrigada! (Portuguese) Kinaushukuru! (Makua) Asante Sana! (Swahili)

As we close yet another year out, and prepare for all that God has in store for us in 2007, I wanted to thank all of you for your many prayers. I am feeling so much better. After the email went out, and many of you prayed, my fever broke and God has healed me of Malaria. It was a long week and a time where Jesus definitely had me solely to Himself. I am still getting fevers here and there and find myself very much weaker than usual. While I was sick for the last week or so, God has spoken to me so much of all of you. When you prayed, my situation changed. Your phone calls from across the world were some of the best Christmas presents I have ever received.

While in bed, God also spoke to me of the next three months of my life and even year. I am so blessed to have friends and family and ministry partners from around the world who love me and pray; but it will take the same frequency of prayers that has occurred in the last week in order for the next year to be what it is destined in the Lord. Thank you for your prayers and please keep praying for us.

The last three months here in Mozambique has been a time of preparation in many ways for all of us here. Missionaries from around the world have taught us from their own experience through the years, and the Holy Spirit has taught us much more. Commissioning happened during graduation when Lesley-Anne Leighton and Heidi Baker asked, “Will you serve your Jesus? Will you give your life for Him? Will you open blind eyes and deaf ears? Will you preach the Good news to the poor? Will you go to the nations? Will you raise the dead and set the captives free?’ To all these we said ‘Yes!’

The last week has provided for a much needed time away for me personally. It has been a time where Jesus has strengthened my resolve for the next year and beyond.

To update on Randi and I. Many of you have been wondering if we will still head for Tanzania, Uganda and Sudan following Mozambique after the beginning of the year. The answer is most assuredly YES. January 9th, we will be headed to Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania. We are excited because God is truly training us and preparing us for the lives we have both been chosen for and asked for. He is faithful in health and sickness.

A few weeks ago, we emailed all of you and let you know that God had told us to stay in Africa for an extended term, and we still plan to follow that direction. We have already given our lives away-that means that He keeps them whether here or there.

We also have come to learn much through being sick here. We have learned that we will get sick, we will get worms in our skin and stomachs, and scabies if we hold the village children. It is just an effect to life here. However, we also have learned that God is faithful in healing us every time we are sick and has also given us amazing friends and family to care for us.

Again, thank you for all of your prayers and calls. They were such a wonderful Christmas present! Please keep praying for us as we prepare to launch out into three more countries in Africa in less than two weeks.

We also want to hear from you, feel free to email, call or blog on our site. This New Year promises much for all of us and we are both excited to share it with all of you!

Much Love and Happy New Year,
-Jessica J. Orr

*Check out our NEW blog site! www.xanga.com/Jessicaorr

Many of you have emailed me and let me know that you were not able to receive either pictures or newsletters that I have previously sent. Because of this, Randi and I are setting up a blog site where you can view all past and future newsletters that we send. Here, you will be able to view pics and hopefully small videos of what God continues to do here and along the East coast of Africa. Once up and running, we will be sending everyone a link!

Christmas Update:

This last week has been very eventful to say the least. A few days before Christmas, we loaded onto another convoy truck and headed for a village named Miezi. I have to laugh each time we climb up into those trucks, it fells like a scene out of some war movie, and I feel like singing I’m in the army now.

When we arrived at the village, everyone was dancing, shouting and singing for us.

I preached that day about “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.” As I began in the few Makua phrases that I knew, the village clapped and I laughed at myself. I believe God is sending forth a call into all of Africa to raise up those who will lay down their lives for the sake of the Gospel. There will be many from Africa to bring change to the surrounding first third world. Statistics today write that more missionaries are being sent forth from the two thirds world than ever before.

The women of the village took an interest to me and I sat in the hut near the cooking area singing, dancing, and holding their babies.

Randi and I had a chance to try out our two person tent that we will bring with us on our upcoming journey. The stars that night were amazing. We were all sitting outside and I prayed aloud, “God, please give me a shooting star tonight.” No sooner had I uttered the request was a star flying through the night sky. Everyone’s jaws dropped and we marveled at how much God loves us.

The next night we again loaded into another convoy and headed for a village two hours south. The sunset was gorgeous. (Seemed like it came straight out of the lion king)

When we reached the village, the sun was nearly down and to my surprise, I recognized the place. My first week in Mozambique, I went on an outreach with Heidi to the same village. The women quickly recognized me and took me away from the crowd and into their hut to talk and share. My Portuguese was getting better and we could mostly understand each other, although they were very patient with me.

We did a drama and Heidi preached after we showed the Jesus film in Makua. Two deaf people were healed. A woman and a little girl, and many others were healed of other ailments.

We had been on the road for only thirty minutes when the police pulled us over. (2 convoy trucks and a small pick up) Heidi had gone ahead of us. I had forgotten my passport copy and was praying they wouldn’t notice. After a long wait, I got out trying to boost the moral of a visiting team from Canada and America who had not slept in 48 hours.

The police chief walked up to me and talked in Portuguese asking some questions. I answered them and he agreed to let one truck, the small pick up, go. The rest of us would have to sleep on the side of the road for the night. We worshipped and tried to wait through the night while Heidi and others were busy trying to straighten things out from their end.

I laid my capulana (a piece of cloth we wrap around our waist) on the road and a little Makua girl approached me. She laid beside me and quickly fell asleep. I sat and watched the stars for most of the night and finally laid down on the road beside the little girl and fell asleep.

The sun promptly came up at 4:30 am. The police let us go by 5:30 and we arrived back at the village to be informed that the entire village had stayed up all night praying for us. Exhausted, we fell into our tents for an hour nap.

I awoke to fifteen Makua children’s faces staring and giggling at me. I had to laugh at how great a life God had given me. We arrived back to Arco Iris on Christmas Eve Day. Some of us were feeling sick and we were excited to get a bucket shower.

I seemed to get sicker as time went on. I still managed to go to part of the celebrations that night. Heidi translated for me as we did a drama about the Christmas story. We lit candles and danced. Wax was dripping everywhere and we played a game to see who could blow each others candle out while dancing. Some candle light service!

Soon I was feeling worse and headed home. I was running a very high fever and could not keep even liquid down. My body ached, and my friends were up with me throughout the night. I was up the entire night and delirious from the fever which lasted for a few days. I found out I had Malaria after they sent a doctor to me.

Our Testimony:

Long story short, God healed me and we’re ready to preach not from what we have merely heard, but what we have experienced first hand: God’s power in every situation!

“And this is the testimony: that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son.” -1 John 5:11

-Jessica J. Orr