Hello there! After a few more days of travel than we had initially planned, we are all finally in our respective homes. Our time on the other side of the world was incredibly positive, and it was great to see that the work that Dalraida is involved in is thriving. This was my third time at Chimala and each visit has been better than the last; the entire Ferguson family has put in a massive amount of work to help spread the news of Jesus there, and it shows by the improvements that have been made since 2018. If I am allowed to be proud in any way, I am very proud of the entire Ferguson family, their work, and their sacrifices to make sure that the church grows in Tanzania. The elders of the church in Chimala are preparing themselves to take a larger role in the whole work, and that shows a lot of spiritual growth as well. In Madagascar, it was easy to see that Eli and the church there strongly desire personal and church-wide growth and they are working hard to achieve this. When the work started about 10 years ago, it was just Eli; now, there is a full church building in Toliara and 3 village churches with nearly 200 Christians total. They are dedicated workers and it was wonderful to get to experience what they are doing there.
As a member at Dalraida, the growth in these works is attributed partially to you as well. Even if you’ve never been on a mission trip, by freely giving funds and trusting the eldership, you are playing a massive role in ensuring that both of these works continue. We thank you for your diligence and want to encourage you to continue to walk hand-in-hand with the Christians that we support around the world. You may never get to meet them in this life, but in the next there will be a host of people that you will get to fellowship with who are there because of the effort that you have made.
From Perry Baker
I would summarize that the Madagascar trip was successful with the following remarks. Eli was a very gracious host who from my observations is a hard-working preacher of the gospel that is well known and respected in Toliara and the villages. His desire for preaching and winning souls for Christ is evident. He is not only preaching, teaching and training but planting seed to all he comes in contact with.
Pierlo (one of the village preachers) is 65 years old and is the head of his village in Antanindranto. He was with us the entire time in Madagascar and was taught and baptized by Eli. He is very humble and quiet but highly regarded in his village where he preaches and teaches the gospel.
Danny (another village preacher) is 26 years old and preaches in his village of Antaliabo and also was with the entire time. Eli works very closely with Danny as he is still young in the faith and needs a lot of growth. We also met Mahasoa (bush preacher) who is 23 years old and young in the faith.
We spent every day teaching and encouraging in homes and two days in the bush at three different villages, (Antanindranto, Antaliabo, and Maroarivo). Eli, Pierlo and Danny work together at each of these villages and reach out to other villages. What impressed me most was the attentiveness of the people for the gospel in the bush and the city. There is one Christian lady in particular who walks to every service 12km (7.4ml) one way. She has been a Christian for 12 years and an awesome encourager to all Christians.
I was truly blessed to be able to go on this mission trip.
From Avery Hackney
This trip to Chimala Tanzania and Toliara Madagascar has been one of the most beneficial trips in all my years in missions. From teaching in the schools in Chimala to meeting with villages in the bush of Madagascar, the word of the Lord was established and I am forever grateful I was able to play a small role in this process. I want to express my gratitude to the congregation at Dalraida for allowing me to work alongside them in the mission field. I also owe a great deal of gratitude to Gif and Perry Baker, thank you both for your service in the Lord. I pray the Lord gives you both many more years in His service. It has been an honor to work with you all!
